The prehistoric infrastructure maniac

Chapter 157 Ksitigarbha and the Golden Cicada

At Jiuding Iron Fork Mountain, the summit of Babao Peak under the night sky is illuminated by the dazzling starlight, making it as bright as day.

Seeing Shennong eating and drinking heartily, Shi Mo couldn't help but laugh and said, "Doesn't the Heavenly Court send you some peaches every time there's a Peach Banquet? And when Brother Zhenyuan's ginseng fruit ripens, you get your share too. Haven't you had enough yet?"

"They're still not as good as the peaches from your mother peach tree! And the celestial wine from Heaven is still inferior to the top-grade celestial wine you treasure," Shennong said with a grin.

"By the way, your Asura Cult had already occupied almost a third of the western territory before, why did you suddenly stop expanding?" Shennong then asked.

“If we expand any further, Jieyin and Zhunti will really get anxious,” Shi Mo shook his head and smiled. “Let’s know when to stop! Besides, they’ve already agreed to expand the City God system to the entire West, which can be considered a concession.”

“Now they’ve become honest, scheming about this and that all day long, resorting to any means to develop their Western religion,” Shennong said.

Shi Mo said meaningfully, "Honest? They are using a strategy of retreat to advance! Especially that Zhunti, he is not the kind of person who can swallow his anger after suffering a loss."

"You mean, they have other plans?" Shennong frowned slightly upon hearing this.

Just then, an invisible wave spread from the Netherworld, instantly alarming all the powerful beings in the prehistoric world. Even the saints subconsciously looked towards the Netherworld with slightly changed expressions.

In the Netherworld, not far from the Sea of ​​Blood, in the dark void, a handsome man, as beautiful as a woman, stood on a nine-tiered golden lotus of merit. He possessed the beauty of an Asura woman, yet also an aura of holiness. Behind his body, which shone with dazzling Buddhist light, a faint golden wheel of merit was forming.
Just now, he made a great vow to save all suffering beings from sin and attain enlightenment, vowing not to become a Buddha until hell is empty, and thus he achieved the Dharma body of Ksitigarbha. The Western religion will have another great power, who is Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

"You wicked disciple!" A figure with dark skin flew out from the sea of ​​blood. It was none other than the Ghost Mother of the Asura Clan, who was not well-known and quietly stayed behind in the sea of ​​blood to cultivate.

The moment she appeared, the Ghost Mother had already drawn together the Yin and death energy of the Netherworld, transforming it into a black auspicious cloud. At the same time, a surging aura emanated from her body, instantly overwhelming Ksitigarbha.

"A Quasi-Saint?" Ksitigarbha never expected that the Ghost Mother, who had once taught him so carefully and was extremely low-key in the Asura clan, had actually severed her corpse and become a Quasi-Saint. His expression changed slightly.

The Ghost Mother, however, glared at Ksitigarbha with a face full of resentment and anger. She was equally surprised that this disciple, whom she valued so much, had chosen to betray the Asura Clan and join the Western Sect, even wanting to come and share the fortune of the Asura Sect and the Underworld.

Just as the Ghost Mother was about to attack Ksitigarbha, a clear, cold shout suddenly rang out: "Stop!"

"Ancestor!" Upon seeing the Red Lotus Daoist who appeared next, the Ghost Mother quickly suppressed her anger and turned around to greet him respectfully.

"Master!" Ksitigarbha bowed respectfully to the Red Lotus Daoist, almost holding his breath.

"It's rare for our Asura clan to have such a promising talent. Not bad!" Red Lotus Daoist nodded slightly as he looked at Ksitigarbha.

The "Ancestor" Ghost Mother looked up at the Red Lotus Daoist with some surprise. Wasn't this reaction a bit off? Shouldn't the Ancestor be angry?
The Red Lotus Taoist looked at Ksitigarbha and continued, "If you cannot become a Buddha until hell is empty, then you probably really cannot become a Buddha. But since you have already made up your mind, then sit in the underworld and help the evil ghosts in hell to be saved and their sins to be absolved. That would be a meritorious deed."

"Yes, Master!" Ksitigarbha replied respectfully and headed towards Fengdu City in the underworld.

"Ancestor, he..." The Ghost Mother was still somewhat confused, but the Red Lotus Daoist glanced at her and said:

"He comes from my Asura clan, and that identity can never be changed. Who says that members of my Asura clan must be followers of the Asura religion? It doesn't matter if they join the Western religion, become disciples of other saints, or even become heavenly soldiers and generals in the Heavenly Court."

"As long as you remember your origins, that's enough! The Western Sect covets the merits and fortune of the Underworld and pulled this stunt on me, but how easy is it to take advantage of the Underworld? In the future, it's hard to say who will share whose fortune!"

After speaking, the Red Lotus Taoist turned and returned to the Blood Sea, leaving the Ghost Mother still somewhat dazed and slightly open-mouthed.
The conflict between the Asura religion and the Western religion has temporarily come to an end. The Western religion did indeed convert some members of the Asura race, even transforming some of the most outstanding descendants of the Asura race into the Buddhist monk Ksitigarbha.
But who ultimately loses and who gains is a matter of opinion, and it requires a long-term perspective.

Unbeknownst to many, Yao Ji had been punished by being confined to Peach Mountain for centuries to reflect on her mistakes.

On this day, Peach Mountain, which had been peaceful for hundreds of years, suddenly became noisy. It was Yang Jian, who had become a disciple of the Jade Void Jade Cauldron Immortal and had achieved success in his cultivation, who had come to split the mountain to rescue his mother.

Yang Jian, who had cultivated to the level of a Golden Immortal in just a few hundred years, easily defeated the heavenly soldiers and generals guarding Peach Mountain with his three-pointed double-edged sword. He then met Yao Ji without being hindered by any array restrictions.

"Mother, I am late, and I have caused you suffering!" Upon seeing Yao Ji, Yang Jian immediately knelt down and choked with sobs.

Looking at her son, whom she hadn't seen for hundreds of years and who had now grown into a man, Yao Ji's eyes reddened. She shook her head slightly and said, "Jian'er, you're confused! Why did you come to see your mother and fight with those heavenly soldiers?" "Mother, don't worry, I'll take you away from Peach Mountain. Now I'm a disciple of Jade Void Sect. As long as we reach my master Jade Cauldron Immortal's dojo, even the Jade Emperor can't do anything to us," Yang Jian said, stepping forward to lead Yao Ji away.

"Your teacher would never have encouraged you to come and save me. You made this decision on your own, didn't you?" Yao Ji asked repeatedly.

Yang Jian grew anxious: "Mother, let's get out of here quickly!"

"Jian'er, what did your teacher tell you? Do you really think your mother is imprisoned on Peach Mountain?" Yao Ji's words surprised Yang Jian slightly: "Isn't that right?"

"If it were truly imprisonment, those heavenly soldiers couldn't even stop you, so how could they possibly prevent me from leaving?" Yao Ji retorted.

Yang Jian realized what was happening and, sensing that his mother's aura was significantly stronger and more profound than his own, he frowned and asked, "Mother, is it because of the Nebula Emperor? Is it because he gave you an order that you dare not disobey?"

"How dare you! How can you casually utter the name of your grandmaster?" Yao Ji frowned and scolded.

“Mother, if he cared about the bond between master and disciple, he wouldn’t have shown you no protection, nor would he have sent Father into the cycle of reincarnation,” Yang Jian couldn’t help but retort.

When Yao Ji heard Yang Jian mention Yang Tianyou, a look of pain and complexity flashed in her beautiful eyes.

However, at that moment, amidst the sound of footsteps, a young man in silver armor and wielding a silver spear, bearing a resemblance to Yang Jian, entered with some celestial soldiers and generals.

Upon discovering that the other party's aura was no less than his own, and that there were even two Heavenly Generals with the cultivation level of Taiyi Golden Immortals following behind, Yang Jian's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly protected Yao Ji behind him.

"You are... Second Brother?" Seeing Yang Jian's reaction, the silver-armored youth with the silver spear frowned slightly in surprise.

"Big brother?" Yang Jian looked at Yang Jiao in disbelief, then his expression changed: "How...how did you become a Heavenly General?"

"You all go out first," Yang Jiao instructed the heavenly soldiers and generals behind him. After they left, he couldn't help but frown and look at Yang Jian, saying:
"For hundreds of years, Second Brother, you've been cultivating under the Jade Void Sect, and you haven't even come to see Mother once. Now that you've arrived, you've already started causing trouble. So reckless and impulsive! What have you learned in these hundreds of years under the Jade Void Sect? Haven't you grown up yet?"

“Jiao’er,” Yao Ji said. Yang Jian frowned and looked at Yang Jiao, his expression not good. “Brother, have you forgotten how the Jade Emperor treated Mother? Have you forgotten how Father died? Why do you serve the Jade Emperor?”

"Of course I haven't forgotten!" Yang Jiao's face immediately turned cold upon hearing this. "It was all a conspiracy and scheme by the Western Sect. Father was nothing more than a pawn of the Western Daoist Zhunti. He deliberately approached Mother back then."

"If that were all, it would be fine. But after he was reincarnated, he clearly achieved great success in his cultivation and awakened his innate wisdom. Yet he became a disciple of the Western Wuchao Zen Master and showed no intention of returning to acknowledge us. He doesn't care about us at all and only wants to attain enlightenment. It's a good thing you still remember him, Second Brother."

"What?" Yang Jian was astonished and couldn't help but shake his head, saying, "Impossible, how could this be... how could this be?"

"Otherwise what? Second brother, didn't the Jade Void Sect explain the whole story to you?" Yang Jiao said, frowning as he looked at Yang Jian. "Could it be that your teacher, Jade Cauldron Immortal, pushed all the blame onto your uncle and grandmaster?"

Yang Jian was speechless for a moment. Yu Ding Zhenren hadn't said anything bad about the Jade Emperor and Xingyun Emperor, but he hadn't mentioned the involvement of the Western Sect behind it either!

"You were told nothing and then allowed to come and save your mother? What did your teacher mean? Did he want to force your uncle to punish you? Don't you know your limits? Doesn't he understand them either?" Yang Jiao continued.

Yao Ji, standing nearby, chimed in, "Jian'er, if your grandmaster truly didn't care about past relationships, he wouldn't have allowed your brother and sister to become disciples of your two grandmaster uncles. If your grandmaster were truly angry, your father wouldn't have had the chance to reincarnate. Your uncle is concerned about the Western Sage, but your grandmaster isn't! What kind of punishment is it for your mother to be practicing in seclusion on Peach Mountain?"

"Second brother, do you know that the Asura clan's bloodbath and conflict with the Western Sect were all caused by Father, because of the scheming of Daoist Zhunti. Our grandmaster was truly furious," Yang Jiao added.

“Grandmaster did give my father a chance, and even reincarnated him as an Asura, but in the end my father still joined the Western Sect. This shows that he only cared about the Western Sect and nothing else.”

"Who exactly is Father's reincarnation?" Yang Jian, whose expression changed upon hearing this, couldn't help but clench his hands tightly and ask.

Yang Jiao paused for a moment before saying, "In this life, my father is called Jin Chanzi! He is the second disciple of Zen Master Wuchao, a disciple of the Western Sect's Sage of Guidance."

"Jin Chanzi?" Yang Jian was clearly surprised. Although he was in the Taoist sect, he had heard of this rising star of the Western Sect, who was quite famous. He just didn't expect that the other party was his father's reincarnation. It was really ironic!

(End of this chapter)