The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

The Qing Emperor? This is unexpected! Meng Qi was feeling shocked as he did not expect the mission to involve the Qing Emperor, Dong Wang Gong.

Among the five emperors of the ancient times, the Celestial Ruler was having the highest status and realm that overpowered all the other emperors. The Fire Emperor was coming from the Archaeozoic era, thereby having the greatest amount of Five Virtues and other resources. The Black Emperor, on the other hand, was a disciple of the Heavenly Primogenitor, thus he had a close connection to both the Heavenly Court and Taoism. Being more commonly known as the Great Emperor Zhenwu or Dang Mo, he had the greatest network. Next, the Golden Emperor was the head of all fairies. However, after the fall of the Heavenly Court, she had cut off the connection with the past and thereby leaving behind the least legends and stories. Lastly, the Qing Emperor was the most mysterious one ever.

Not only did he have a Taoist body called Lord Taiyi, but he also had another Buddhist body, namely the Pharmacist Buddha. Apart from being one of the Almighty Nine Taoists, he was also one of the Buddhas of the Three Horizontal Worlds. His Eastern Pure Land, alias the Vaiduryanirbhasa, was one of the most prominent Pure Lands in Buddhism. Being a God of Heaven and one of the Five Emperors, it was needless to say that he was a great man full of mysteries.

It was said that the Qing Emperor had passed away in a sitting position during the ending phase of the ancient times. The Pharmacist Buddha, on the other hand, had died during the Middle Ages. Lord Taiyi was the only one who had no record of death. Instead, he had been gradually minimizing his involvement in the mortal world, and eventually, he disappeared from the scene. Hence, those who knew the relationship between these three bodies suspected that the Qing Emperor was still alive. Obviously, Luya thought so, too. After mentioning the name of Qing Emperor, he had deliberately explained that he was looking for Lord Taiyi rather than the Pharmacist Buddha.

Meng Qi purposely frowned and said, “The Qing Emperor was one of the five emperors of the ancient times, whereas Lord Taiyi was one of the Almighty Nine Taoists. Both of them were prominent figures of their own generation. You do know that it’s nearly impossible for me to search for him, right?”

“Moreover, perhaps the Qing Emperor, Lord Taiyi, and the Pharmacist Buddha had died already.”

Although Meng Qi was saying so, he was actually thinking the opposite.

Luya said with a smile, “Of course, I do have some clues of where the Qing Emperor or Lord Taiyi is. If I don’t, why would I waste the time and energy of both of us?”

“What clues do you have?” After organizing his thoughts, Meng Qi could somehow guess why Luya wanted to find the Qing Emperor. It must be something to do with the Core Fragment of the Hao Tian Mirror.

Luya was the son of God Hao Tian, whereas the Qing Emperor was a mighty person who had obtained the incomplete soul of the Hao Tian Mirror and re-forged it. Thus, there might be some connection between God Hao Tian and the Qing Emperor.

A part of the land they were standing on was suddenly isolated, as if it was sunken into the riverbed of the river of time. Luya looked around and said, “In the Real World, someone has seen a mad man before. Sometimes, he is dressed as a Taoist priest who wears a blue robe and a bamboo crown. He is tall and thin, with ordinary facial features. He likes to squint his eyes into a narrow line. Other times, he will be wearing a weird green robe. Despite his dishevelled appearance, he has a handsome face.”

“It’s referring to two different people, isn’t it?” Meng Qi asked on purpose.

Luya said, “No. The former image is often used by Lord Taiyi, whereas the latter image – aside from the dishevelled appearance – seems to be an accurate depiction of the Qing Emperor. Also, they have one thing in common – they have been mumbling ‘Who am I, who am I’ all the time.”

Meng Qi was stunned. He is the strange Taoist priest that I met before!

In the past, Meng Qi had encountered a strange Taoist priest who was wandering outside the Immortal Valley. Also, in the journey of sailing to Donghai, he had come across with the same person again!

Nevertheless, Meng Qi was so distracted by the priest’s abnormality of repeating “Who am I, who am I” over and over again. Unconsciously, he ignored the fact that the priest’s appearance had been vastly different from the first time they met. According to the gatekeeper of the Immortal Valley, the ordinary-looking priest who wore a blue robe and a bamboo crown was tall and thin. Also, he liked to squint his eyes into a narrow line. Later on, when Meng Qi met the priest at Donghai, he was wearing a weird green robe and having a dishevelled appearance despite his handsome face. If the priest did not utter the words “Who am I, who am I” repeatedly, he would never think that they were the same person!

Could it be true that the strange Taoist priest was the Qing Emperor, Lord Taiyi who had saved people from suffering, and even the Eastern-Sun Deity?

If that was true, the priest was actually the only alive martial artist in the current era who was at the peak of Zao Hua Realm!

“I know you’ve heard of the strange Taoist priest. Also, you have the treasured scrolls of calligraphy of the Eastern-Sun Deity. Thus, I hope you can track him down using these clues,” added Luya. “After you find the Qing Emperor – or you may call him Lord Taiyi, just tell him, ‘The top floor of the Nine Levels of Heaven…’ then, your mission will be completed. If you succeed in doing so, I’ll help you to remove one more name from the List of Deification.”

The top floor of the Nine Levels of Heaven? What is the secret hidden underneath these words? Meng Qi could not help thinking. However, knowing that Luya would never explain it further, he resisted the urge to ask Luya about that.

At the same time, he was resisting the urge to ask another question, What is the use of the Demonic Peach that is hidden inside my body?

Meng Qi had been very curious about the Demonic Peach that was passed down from the Archaeozoic era. Luya, being a well-known figure in the Archaeozoic era, might know something about it. However, knowing that the Demonic Peach was definitely a precious item, he was worried that Luya might covet this item. If that happened, his life would be at risk.

Just then, Luya stroked his hand on the List of Deification. Immediately, the golden words of ‘Jiang Zhiwei’ flew out from the list and broke into pieces. Something had broken out of the bondage and went into the void.

This is the time! Meng Qi had taken a move. Following closely behind the aura of the thing that had broken free, he lit the Dao Yi Glazed Lamp and activated the Tyrant’s Invincible Blade.

As he broke through the barriers, the darkness in the surroundings kept flying backward. Suddenly, everything brightened up. Following behind the aura, Meng Qi had returned to the Real World and arrived at the Xi Jian Pavilion. He was currently outside the quiet room of Jiang Zhiwei.

Due to the current peaceful world situation, the defensive formation of the Xi Jian Pavilion was not activated fully. That was why Meng Qi could enter the pavillion effortlessly.

Su Wu Ming, who had returned to the sect, sensed an outsider coming in. He grasped his sword hilt immediately. But after finding out it was Meng Qi, he put down his guard and let go of the sword.

Crack. When Meng Qi appeared, he was surrounded by purple thunderlight. An ancient lamp occurred inside his eyes, releasing black and white light that shone on the door of the quiet room. It reflected a karma world that was both real and illusory.

The real spirit drilled into the glabella of Jiang Zhiwei and made her open her eyes immediately. In the next moment, she saw Meng Qi.

Without hesitation, she activated the formation of the quiet room as Meng Qi was a person that she trusted the most.

As Meng Qi wielded the Tyrant’s Invincible Blade, the sky turned dark and everything seemed to have disappeared. Right after that, a purple thunderlight soared up and cut off the karma threads one by one. In an instant, Jiang Zhiwei felt that her body had become much lighter than before, as if she had broken free from layers of shackles. She even had a feeling that she was able to enter the Dharmakaya Realm at the moment. Nonetheless, she resisted the temptation to make a breakthrough in her realm because she knew that her cultivation base was not strong enough. If she chose to move up to the Dharmakaya Realm at present, the breakthrough would most probably fail which might result in death.

Clang. Meng Qi kept the Tyrant’s Invincible Blade and smiled at Jiang Zhiwei. He announced solemnly,

“From now on, you are not a Samsara Traveller anymore.”

Jiang Zhiwei closed her eyes, feeling overwhelmed by all kinds of emotions. After a long time, she opened her eyes that were covered with tears. “Without Samsara, I wouldn’t have the chance to meet you guys, so I really am a lucky one. But now, I’m even luckier to be able to break free from it.”

Without Samsara, I wouldn’t have the chance to be so close with Meng Qi and the others, to witness various wonderful swordsmanship, and be as experienced as I am now. That’s why I actually appreciate everything I got from Samsara. However, if I’m unable to get rid of it, I would be shackled for my entire life. It’s so exhausting to do things I don’t want to. Furthermore, one day in the future, I’ll be facing the most difficult choice – whether to live a humiliating life or die with pride. Fortunately, Meng Qi has helped me to get out of Samsara.

Meng Qi sat down relaxingly opposite Jiang Zhiwei. Transmitting a secret message, he told her about the trade between Luya and himself. Before the karma threads were cut off, he dared not discuss this matter with her for fear that another Master of the Six Dao of Samsara would be aware of it.

“Luya may not keep his promises. You have to be extra careful when dealing with him in the future,” knowing that Ruan Yushu and the others would be able to get rid of Samsara as well, Jiang Zhiwei was excited but worried at the same time. “Well, let me help you in finding the whereabouts of the Qing Emperor or Lord Taiyi. The Hao Tian Mirror Fragment can help me to travel to different worlds and Universal Fragments, so I might be able to find more clues.”

Meng Qi continued to send a secret message that said, “In the past, I’ve encountered a person who looks like the Qing Emperor. At that time, he was entering the Ocean’s Eye in Donghai. After I successfully forge or acquire a Heavenly Longsword, I’ll be going after him. In the meanwhile, if you’re having a Spiritual Wander around the world, please look for more information about the Ocean’s Eye.”

Jiang Zhiwei gave him a slight nod before she suddenly thought of something, “Little monk, just now when I had a Spiritual Wander into a Universal Fragment, I suddenly felt the presence of another additional self.”

“Another additional self? Could it be a newly born Universal Fragment?” Meng Qi made a guess, feeling interested in having a Spiritual Wander. He said, “Why not we check it out?”

“Sure,” grabbing the Hao Tian Mirror Fragment in one hand, Jiang Zhiwei held Meng Qi by his arm using another hand.

Meng Qi released his Divine Sense and engaged in a Spiritual Wander together with Jiang Zhiwei. The scenes in the surroundings had changed. As the quiet room and the sect became blurry, many illusory chains of the Principle of Nature were floating in the dark. It was a totally different view from what he normally saw in daily life. It was as though he was wandering in the sea, because from time to time, he was seeing fish and reefs.

As they wandered outside, they flew higher and higher. Suddenly, something bright came into sight. A glossy world was presented before their eyes – there was a beautiful mountain covered with green grass and surrounded by thick clouds. On the mountain, a path was leading to the greenish-gray ancient temple with a Bodhi tree beside it. The whole world was run by the Principle of Nature.

“The Pure Land of Lan He Temple,” sighed Meng Qi. It was only until then that he really saw the temple, even though he had entered it several times before.

This was the difference between the Dharmakaya Realm and the Exterior Realm.

Jiang Zhiwei smiled and said, “I’ve once wandered here before with the help of the Hao Tian Mirror Fragment. I even went into the temple and drank a cup of tea.”

Slowly, they went past the Pure Land of Lan He Temple and continued to move forward in the dark. Feeling the subtle connection, they were searching for the newly-emerged additional self mentioned by Jiang Zhiwei.

In the dark, different kinds of worlds emerged from time to time. Some were large, some were small, some were full of vitality, some were heavily damaged, some were Universal Fragments, and some were destroyed Pure Lands or Taoist Caves. So far, the Lan He Temple was the only Pure Land that was intact.

Just then, Meng Qi sensed something based on the subtle connection on Jiang Zhiwei’s body. Right after that, he had discovered the location of the particular Universal Fragment.

“Go left!” both of them flew to the left to go after the fragment. After a long while, a magnificent world came into sight – it was a thousand times larger than the Universal Fragments they met before!

Looking down from the sky, Meng Qi could see an island surrounded by a vast ocean.

Dragging along Jiang Zhiwei with his Divine Sense, both of them went into the Universal Fragment.