Becoming a god starts from planting a Bodhi tree.

Chapter 519 True Spirit Heavenly Ranks, Where the Other Shore Lies

"Increase the amount of incense offered?"

Before the golden fence, Doumu slowly turned her head, her gaze empty and indifferent.

"How is the situation at the front since I withdrew from the battlefield?"

"Your Majesty, with the awakening of the main gods of the Thunder and Fire departments, the war is going very well, and we have won one victory after another."

"If that's the case, why increase the share of incense offerings?" Doumu said calmly. "Tell Wei that from today onwards, he will only receive 30% of the incense offerings."

Luo Xuan looked on in surprise and doubt. Why was the incense offerings decreasing instead of increasing?
"His Majesty……"

Luo Xuan's words were interrupted by Dou Mu.

"If there's nothing else, you may leave. Don't bother me recently. I have some concerns and need to go into seclusion for a while."

Luo Xuan's pupils constricted sharply. They were cutting back on frontline incense expenses, yet this person was going into seclusion... Could it be...?

After waving Luo Xuan away, only Doumu remained on the golden arched bridge once again.

She looked down and saw the vast and boundless universe. The stars were as small as grains of sand, yet countless, and they were densely clustered together to form a magnificent and dazzling Milky Way.

As the Heavenly Court expanded its reach to encompass more and more realms, the atmosphere beneath this arched bridge grew ever more magnificent and awe-inspiring.

At its peak, the Mother River of the Realm flowed beneath this arched bridge, the root of the Great Dao of this realm.

At that time, in the eyes of such supreme beings as them, nothing in this realm was immutable; even the rise and fall of a realm-level civilization was merely a matter of a single thought.

Just now.

The solemn and majestic voice seemed to descend from the heavens, ethereal and distant, utterly detached:
"Taiwei colluded with Diyi to seize the Heavenly Court's and Buddhist offerings. As the Heavenly Emperor, are you just going to turn a blind eye like this?"

Doumu didn't look in the direction of the voice, but simply sighed, "Before the Great Dao, is there truly no one to walk alongside us?"

The indifferent words came again:

"Those who rise to power through betrayal are betrayed by their allies; this is a common and welcome occurrence in the world. What is there to be confused about?"

"Betrayal of those who rose to power?"

Doumu smiled and turned back, her gaze piercing the depths of the boundless void, to the heart of the central Buddhist kingdom that spanned countless eons. She shook her head.

"It seems that in these decades, Jingqiu, you still haven't been able to reach the other shore. Otherwise, you would never have said this. There is no betrayal or loyalty between me and Di Yi. It's about who is more 'complete'."

Today, the original illusory Buddhist kingdom has been grounded in reality, transforming into a pure land of crystal, clear inside and out, spanning countless eons, its beauty boundless, its purity arising spontaneously.

It seems that no matter where one is, as long as one believes in Buddhism, one can see the trend of connecting the origin of the Great Dao of the Boundary Sea, but it still lacks a sense of perfection.

In the center of the Buddhist kingdom, beneath the majestic Bodhi tree, sat a being who resembled an emperor more than a Buddha.

In contrast, the female Heavenly Emperor, who now sits atop the golden archway, exuding a cool and aloof aura, ethereal and distant, without a trace of worldly concern, seems more like a celestial being or Buddha.

Under the Bodhi tree, Ji Jingqiu looked up and said, "Judging from what you're saying, it seems you've already reached the other shore."

Doumu smiled and said, "Lord Ji, don't you understand why I chose you and gave you so much power? The title of Lord Ji, the restraints... these are all secondary reasons. The real reason is that although you and I are not the same kind of people, we are also very similar."

Ji Jingqiu remained silent. Doumu's words made people wonder what similarities existed between him and Doumu.
Doumu revealed the mystery and sighed softly, "In this vast Boundary Sea, if there are any people who can see the so-called other shore, it can only be you and me."

"Have you found the other side?" Ji Jingqiu asked.

"Find the other shore?" Doumu shook her head. "The other shore has always been there, why search for it? What we need to find is a way to reach the other shore again."

"Did you find it?"

Doumu nodded: "The depth of this realm beyond the True Spirit Heavenly Rank is too high, so even beings like you and me, who know that the other shore is there, find it difficult to climb. We need a ladder to help us reach the other shore again."

"Stairs?" Ji Jingqiu murmured. The information revealed in the other party's words seemed to match some of his recent explorations, proving that Doumu was not talking nonsense.

"You want to use all spirits as the foundation?" Ji Jingqiu suddenly recalled Di Yi's words and shook his head, saying, "This is not a ladder, but a stepping stone."

"You can interpret it however you like," Doumu smiled. "We granted them freedom, sparing them from the slaughter by the Boundary Sea Clan, and now we only need them to make some insignificant contributions."

Ji Jingqiu's face was cold and indifferent.

Why would the realms under the rule of the Heavenly Court attract the "destruction plan" of various factions in the Realm Sea?
The cause of everything lies in the Heavenly Court.

Seemingly sensing Ji Jingqiu's thoughts, Doumu calmly said, "Going further back, it was the Heavenly Court that suppressed the Tide of Annihilation and held back the Sea of ​​Bitterness from a hundred epochs ago; otherwise, how could we have reached this point?"

What happened a hundred years ago remains unknown to Ji Jingqiu, who has no way of commenting on it.

Getting back to the main point, Doumu said solemnly, "Based on my understanding of Wei and Di Yi, they will not let go of the opportunity for me to go into seclusion. Therefore, during my seclusion, I need someone to protect me."

Ji Jingqiu's expression turned cold: "I had no idea you trusted me so much."

Doumu chuckled:
“My death will only do you harm, not benefit you. Once Di Yi and Wei take power, the expansion of the Heavenly Court will only accelerate, and they will not allow you to continue to encroach on the control of Buddhism like I have done.”

"By then, you will be facing Di Yi and Tai Wei, and the position of Buddha will probably no longer be yours. Is this really a good thing, Ji Shizun?"

"Over the years, you have devoted a great deal of effort to Buddhism—incarnating into countless forms, traveling to various places, and enlightening all beings to understand the Dharma. Some of your teachings even contradict the Buddhist doctrines propagated in Heaven..."

"I never cared about any of that."

"But if Taiwei and Diyi come to power, will they still let you get away with this?"

Doumu's words cut to the heart of the matter, causing Ji Jingqiu to give her a deep look.

Over the years, Ji Jingqiu has created countless incarnations with different appearances, traveling through the realms under the rule of the Heavenly Court to explain Buddhist teachings to the world and to curb the flow of offerings.

Without his secret assistance, the Jiehai Sect would have collapsed even faster.

In addition, he was also vying with the Investiture of the Gods for control of Buddhism, the most important part of which was the collection of incense offerings and vows.

All of this was observed by Doumu, the ruler of the Heavenly Court, but strangely, she never intervened.

"So all this indulgence over the years is meant to be used today," Ji Jingqiu sneered. "But you're right. If you and Taiwei and Diyi are bound to eliminate one side, then it's better to eliminate Diyi."

Doumu smiled and said, "The right choice. After Taiwei is removed, you can enjoy 40% of the Buddhist incense offerings."

Ji Jingqiu suddenly asked, "Doumu, what does it feel like to be betrayed by your former comrades-in-arms?"

Doumu Yuanjun's smile faded, she remained silent for a moment, then smiled faintly again:

"I felt a rare pang of sadness, but I'm used to it. Gods are immortal even without a heart. The truly immortal ones are already used to being alone."

"Do gods also feel lonely?"

“It’s loneliness,” Doumu corrected. “Pure divinity cannot give birth to the human feeling of loneliness. Ji Shizun, although you are a post-natal being, you also have the hope of becoming a ‘supreme god’ one day, just like me. When that day comes, you and I will go from being similar to being ‘the same’.”

Ji Jingqiu sneered, "Taiwei has already betrayed you, who do you think will be the next to betray you?"

Doumu was speechless for a moment before saying, "Could it be you?"

“You’re wrong,” Ji Jingqiu said calmly. “I have never formed an alliance with you, so how can you talk about betrayal? We simply have different paths and cannot work together.”

After saying that, Ji Jingqiu waved his hand to dispel Doumu Yuanjun's prying gaze.

On the golden arched bridge, Doumu Yuanjun took a long time to withdraw her gaze.

Ancient stars gradually appeared around her, connecting all realms and transforming into star projections of different universes. Strangely, the star projections reflected by these ancient stars did not belong to this realm sea!
Doumu looked down at the arched bridge and murmured:

“Every world is like a ferry. We board and disembark, but we will never stay long. In the end, we will all have to go to the other side.”

……

In the pure land of crystal color.

Beneath the towering Bodhi tree, amidst the profound Zen atmosphere, Ji Jingqiu sat alone, yet it seemed as if countless figures sat upon him, reflecting a myriad of his own facets in a mirror.

This scene was enough to terrify mortals and shock even the strongest beings!
"True Spirit Heavenly Rank..."

It was as if countless Ji Jingqius were whispering, causing a thunderous roar in the Buddhist kingdom.

Over the decades, with endless offerings of incense, Ji Jingqiu's primary task was to infinitely expand and elevate one of his innate supernatural powers, the "True Self."

This innate supernatural power directly determines the strength of his true self, and the strength of his true self is the foundation for resisting the incense offerings and wishes of all living beings.

During this period, he discovered that the harmony between the [Eternal Freedom] and the [True Self] was at its highest.

He had previously attempted to combine these two supernatural powers and techniques, and now he has gone a step further, with the [Eternal Freedom Form] breaking free from its original limitations.

With the blessing of the Buddha's position and endless incense offerings, his "true self" ascended to a terrifying level. He had now begun to foresee the great state of freedom that even the Venerable Master Shouzhen could not see in the past.

At this moment.

Ji Jingqiu looked up, just as Doumu had done before, gazing into an unknown place. Her [True Self] activated, and a single true spirit floated high, ascending into the unknowable realm.

When Ji Jingqiu pushed his "true self" to a certain extreme, his true self was submerged in layers of hazy mist. This sense of déjà vu finally led him to find the "ahead".

Over the years, he had been pondering what the other shore truly was and where it lay. This unexpected event gave him a glimpse of direction.

At this moment.

Ji Jingqiu's spirit hung high, rising into layers of hazy mist and interwoven light and shadow.

Finally, we arrived at an indescribable place.

This place seems to be the end of time and space, where time has lost its scale, space has lost its boundaries, and everything has returned to the beginning, which is also the end.

And this place...

Ji Jingqiu had visited before, and more than once.

That was the place he had reached when he had attained enlightenment, defied his innate nature, and severed the curse of the wicked poison.

But unlike then, when he entered the mist and kept falling, he was now suspended high in the sky. With the strengthening of his true self, he leaped into the sky and went above the mist.

"Ji Jingqiu, give it your all today and try to reach another level!"

A miniature Hela nestled on his head, cheering him on.

Even Ji Jingqiu didn't know what methods this guy used, and Wu Zhou and Jian Guang tried their best, but they couldn't follow his true self into this place.

Ji Jingqiu ignored the guy who was talking nonsense and looked up.

During this period, he devoted all his energy to exploring this land.

As his id continued to rise, a very faint yet real sense of sublimation permeated the depths of his id.

It seems that the higher one goes, the greater the transformation of one's true self.

He had no idea where it was, and he searched through ancient books but could not find a similar description until Doumu revealed the information about the "True Spirit Heavenly Rank".

It's almost like a profound intuition.

Ji Jingqiu instantly understood the true name of this place—True Spirit Heavenly Rank!
A profound revelation arose in his mind—

Not everything that is alive qualifies to be called a "living being".

In this vast world of countless grains of sand, only those beings who possess a true spirit, or their true self, are truly recognized by the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

Furthermore, those "porcelain figures" and "artifact spirits" created by the powerful, and all such beings, are not considered living beings.

The True Spirit Heavenly Rank is the source of the Great Dao that all sentient beings are born into. It represents the height that sentient beings are at and also symbolizes the first... fundamental cultivation method in the world.

Regardless of the method of cultivation used, anyone who enhances or strengthens their true self and thus elevates their position on this celestial path can be considered a being on this path.

The same applies to many cultivation methods in the world where Ji Jingqiu resides.

Whether it is the way of gods or the way of martial arts.

This was the revelation Ji Jingqiu had at this moment, but it contained no information about the other side.

"True Spirit Heavenly Ranks?" Hela lay on Ji Jingqiu's head, clutching a tuft of hair in her hands, and muttered, "The top should be where the Other Shore is, right? Ji Jingqiu, can you even get up there?"

Ji Jingqiu climbed tirelessly, as if there was no end to the journey.

The fog is not nothingness, but a viscous, stagnant medium. Climbing into it is like going against the current, bearing immense pressure.

This was an extremely tedious and boring road. Time seemed to stand still here; a moment felt like eternity. It was so tedious that Ji Jingqiu started chatting with Hela in a casual, aimless way.

"Doumu wants to use all the spirits as stepping stones to lift her to the top within this True Spirit Heavenly Staircase?"

"I wonder what heights Doumu can reach now."

Various thoughts flashed through Ji Jingqiu's mind. He no longer looked up at the endless heights behind the mist, but instead looked into the distance and down below.

The saying "climb high and look far" doesn't seem quite applicable here due to the heavy fog of uncertainty.

This time, Ji Jingqiu reached an extremely high place, but still could not see the other side. In the end, his true self was exhausted, and his mind returned to its original state.

Upon returning to the Buddhist kingdom.

Ji Jingqiu directly extracted the power of incense offerings and vows, and refined pure divinity through the Investiture of the Gods to restore himself.

Since she had already made a verbal agreement with Doumu to help her deal with Taiwei and Diyi, Ji Jingqiu no longer held back and mobilized all the incense offerings and vows she had.

This quickly caused unrest in the Heavenly Court, especially among the Taiwei faction.

But Ji Jingqiu completely ignored him.

With Taiwei declining, the various factions in the Boundary Sea, such as Yuanchu Palace, are finding it easier to manage.

It's simply killing multiple birds with one stone.

After recovering to a near-complete state and refining his true self through the power of incense offerings, Ji Jingqiu once again threw himself into exploring the True Spirit Heavenly Rank until he was completely exhausted.

After repeating this process, Ji Jingqiu finally felt the thick fog gradually dissipate!

As the fog thinned and the view opened up, Ji Jingqiu was finally able to see some distant places, as well as some... indescribable and inexplicable things.

Those appeared to be ferries, carrying many creatures. The ferries looked extremely strange, and were decorated with magic arrays and barriers.

It is like the skeleton of some giant creature pieced together, its surface covered with a constantly writhing and changing dark film, forcibly "ploughing" through the bizarre and colorful medium in the mist.

Besides, there were also some humanoid beings, and occasionally one could hear sounds like silk tearing, porcelain shattering, or... a loud chewing sound, which sent chills down one's spine.

At this time, a vortex would appear deep within the mist, and countless orbs of light would inexplicably swarm in, like vultures pecking at carrion. After a moment, the vortex would dissipate, and the orbs of light would also scatter without a trace.

Hela, sitting atop his head, had a serious expression. She grabbed a lock of his hair and fell silent, seemingly afraid of attracting the attention of these strange things.

Ji Jingqiu remained calm; none of these things could affect his desire to climb.

He could already see the fog fading away, and the end might be just around the corner!
As he continued his endless ascent, he gradually came to see the source of the chewing sound—

A colossal spirit sat cross-legged high above, its form indescribable and its size immeasurable, as if it were the very concept of "giant."

It reached into the True Spirit Heavenly Steps, scooped up a handful of incredibly hot, energy-filled orbs of light as if taking something out of a bag, and then tossed them into its mouth, making a chewing sound that shook the entire space...

Hela felt a chill run down her spine. The chewing sound at that moment brought not an auditory shock, but a fear that stemmed from the very essence of life!

An instinctive feeling surged into Hella's heart: this giant spirit before her was her natural enemy!

She wanted to warn Ji Jingqiu to be more careful, but she couldn't make a sound at the moment.

Ji Jingqiu, at some point, had already risen to the same level as the Giant Spirit!
The chewing sounds in the chaotic fog abruptly stopped.

A ray of light, like the sun, fell upon Ji Jingqiu. It was the gaze of the giant spirit, as if it had seen something incredible. Then... it suddenly stretched out its giant hand and grabbed at Ji Jingqiu!

The blade flashed.

The giant abruptly withdrew its outstretched hand, grabbing the fallen head. The head let out a low growl of dissatisfaction and anger, then pressed its head back down.

Ji Jingqiu ignored it and continued climbing.

Upon witnessing that Ji Jingqiu's height surpassed its own, the giant spirit let out a fearful wail and shrank back.

The fog above was thinning, and the view was becoming more open, but the things that could be seen and existed were becoming increasingly scarce.

"Is this the other side that Master He and Master Mu saw?" Ji Jingqiu murmured.

Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to verify this.

at last.

The last wisp of mist lingered at Ji Jingqiu's feet.

He finally emerged from the seemingly endless fog and arrived at this unknown land.

But what he found hard to accept was that there was nothing there.

There was no light, no darkness, and no source of the Great Dao as he had imagined. Even the pressure in the mist, which was like water pressure, had disappeared. All that remained was endless nothingness.

Until he looked down.

From a high vantage point, one gains a panoramic view of everything.

this moment.

Ji Jingqiu gazed for a long time at the "world" beneath his feet that seemed to contain everything, existence and non-existence, and finally understood what the other shore was.

At this moment, countless "Ji Jingqiu" figures across endless time and space came into his view.

The other shore seems to be a "perspective".

(End of this chapter)