This humble Taoist priest, Qianhe, begins his quest for immortality by slaying demons and monsters.

Chapter 189 Straight into Cixi's Tomb, the Old Witch Flew Away

Commander Zhang kept calling him "Immortal Master," and Zhong Bai slightly raised his hand, instantly understanding that the other party had fallen silent.

"There's no need for you to explain this, layman. We came to the capital precisely to deal with the Manchu imperial family!"

Hearing Zhong Bai's calm words and the mocking laughter of the group of sage-like Maoshan elders behind Zhong Bai, Commander Zhang immediately felt at peace.

"May I ask your title, Venerable Elder?"

General Zhang was curious; he had a feeling that the Taoist priests in front of him were definitely not of low status.

"I am Zhong Bai, the head of the Maoshan Sect!"

"Hahaha, we are also elders of Maoshan!"

"The old Taoist Xuanmingzi has been appointed as the new leader of Maoshan!"

……………, listening to the introductions from the elders and Xuanmingzi, Zhang Dashuai's eyes widened, and he kept looking around in disbelief.

"Are you the Thousand Crane True Lord of Maoshan?"

Are you all also True Elders of Maoshan?

Clearly, Zhang Dashuai of Maoshan had some understanding of the situation. It was precisely because he knew how terrifying Zhong Bai and his men were that Zhang Dashuai was so pleased.

"Hahaha, Heaven is truly merciful!"

With the arrival of all you venerable masters and true lords, those zombies and evil spirits are surely nothing to fear!

Zhong Bai listened and nodded, then said, "Please be patient, layman. In fact, it is not only our Maoshan sect that has come to the capital. In a few days, Longhu Mountain, Gezao Mountain, Qingcheng Mountain, Wudang Mountain, Zhongnan Mountain Quanzhen Sect, and other major Taoist sects will gather in the capital. Buddhist sects such as Jinshan Temple, Baima Temple, and Wutai Mountain will also be coming."

With the Taoist and Buddhist sects joining forces, the demons and monsters in this capital city will surely be wiped out!

The news of the alliance between Buddhism and Taoism was not spread throughout the world a few months ago, after all, it would not be good for Zhong Bai and his group to alert them. But now, the person in front of Zhong Bai is the actual controller of the capital. He is being told that in addition to reassuring him, the more important thing is to get him to cooperate with both Buddhism and Taoism!
"hiss!"

Somewhat surprised, Commander Zhang swallowed hard. He had been quite satisfied with just Zhong Bai and his group arriving, but he never expected that experts from the Buddhist and Taoist sects would soon be on their way...

"Your Majesty, just give the order!"

Although I am a powerful warlord, I know that guns and cannons are useless against evil spirits and demons.

Even the most venerable immortals and true lords would probably not be afraid of these guns and cannons.

All I can do is follow the True Lord's advice; I'll do anything to rid the capital of these demons and monsters!

Zhong Bai smiled. He had to admit that anyone who could be a warlord was bound to be smart. At this moment, he was able to be pragmatic instead of putting on airs. Zhong Bai admired this kind of person.

"That's natural. The people in the capital who are close to the Qing imperial tombs will need to be evacuated by lay Buddhists. We are not as good as lay Buddhists in this respect."

Appropriate encouragement is necessary. Sure enough, upon hearing Zhong Bai, the leader of Maoshan Sect, praise him so highly, Commander Zhang instantly became as energetic as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

"You can rest assured, True Lord!"

"Evacuating civilians is something I'm good at!"

"By the way, True Lord, fellow True Men, please come with me to the palace to rest first. In this capital, only the palace can accommodate you True Men. The others were damaged during the war, and the people and my soldiers have not yet finished repairing them."

How could Zhong Bai and the others not understand Zhang Dashuai's little scheme? It was Zhang Dashuai who occupied the palace, and the purpose of letting Zhong Bai and the others stay in the palace temporarily was not only so that he could come to find them at any time, but more importantly, with Zhong Bai and the others there, Zhang Dashuai felt very safe.

"Excellent! The layperson is very thoughtful..."

Zhong Bai did not refuse, as the capital city was no longer as awe-inspiring as it used to be.

Those who cultivate can also move freely. Without the suppression of the dragon's energy, where can't they go?
......................................................

Several days passed slowly.

In the past few days, disciples and elders from various sects and schools have been arriving in the capital one after another.

General Zhang was overjoyed and arranged accommodations for everyone, with Longhushan and Maoshan both being placed inside the palace.

Night falls inside the palace.

"Senior Brother, the emperor's palace is truly magnificent. It's amazing that we, his fellow disciples, can one day stroll around the Forbidden City like this."

Life is truly unpredictable!

Beside Shi Jian, Si Mu chuckled. This time, Maoshan had brought not only elders, but also some elite disciples.

“Junior Brother Four Eyes, flowing water doesn’t compete for the first spot, but for its endless flow. The rise and fall of secular dynasties are frequent, but what we seek is immortality. These worldly riches and powers are nothing but castles in the air and dust on the ground to us…”

Listening to Shi Jian's long-winded speech, Si Mu suddenly felt a headache coming on. He didn't know when it started, but Shi Jian's personality had changed from being competitive to being as bland as water. And that wasn't all. After meeting his junior brothers like Si Mu, he had also changed from being intimidating and offering help to being tirelessly instructive.

As the two were discussing, they saw figures approaching them from the palace gate. Upon seeing this, the helplessness on Four Eyes' face disappeared, replaced by solemnity and reverence.

The visitors were elders, leaders, and presiding officials from various sects of Taoism and Buddhism. Their purpose was simple: to discuss with Maoshan which imperial tomb to start their investigation!
One after another, figures passed by Simu, and Simu was greatly shocked. These were the pillars of Buddhism and Taoism!

Inside the hall, Zhong Bai and a group of Maoshan elders had been waiting for everyone's arrival.

Before he even arrived, Zhong Bai waved the palace gate, and it slowly opened, revealing the abbot of Mount Wutai, Tonghai, standing right there.

"Amitabha Buddha, Master Zhong, esteemed masters, it's been a long time. How are you all?"

Hearing Abbot Tonghai's greeting, Zhong Bai smiled faintly and said, "No need for Abbot Tonghai to worry, the elders of Maoshan are doing quite well."

Upon entering the hall, Abbot Tonghai sat cross-legged on a prayer mat in a corner before speaking.

"I heard that two months ago, Sect Leader Zhong personally went to Jinshan Temple to kill the Green Scaled Serpent King that was being suppressed under Leifeng Pagoda. This old monk is very curious about this matter. Fellow Daoist Hui'an of Jinshan Temple looks down on our Buddhist colleagues. How can we trouble Sect Leader Zhong with such a matter?"

Despite the potential for cooperation, Master Tonghai did not wish to become too close to a Taoist leader like Zhong Bai before visiting the Qing Dynasty imperial tombs.

Zhong Bai smiled indifferently.

Just as he was about to reply, he saw Abbot Huian leading a group of elders from Jinshan Temple into the palace.

"Amitabha, Senior Brother Tonghai, you flatter me. I only asked Headmaster Zhong to go to Leifeng Pagoda to kill the Azure Scale Serpent King because I was worried that your precious Seven-Colored Lotus had not yet recovered and I was afraid of causing you any loss. However, Headmaster Zhong's unparalleled power truly makes this old monk extremely impressed!"

After entering, Huian took on all the responsibilities. He never intended to ask Buddhist experts of the same level to help him; what they wanted would be even more ruthless than Maoshan.

After hearing Hui'an's explanation, Master Tonghai nodded with a forced smile.

He knew that Jinshan Temple most likely wouldn't ask him for help, yet no one even came to Wutai Mountain to inquire before inviting the head of Maoshan. Master Tonghai was simply feeling that his status in Buddhism was being challenged.

Of course, since Huian had said so, Master Tonghai naturally did not want to dwell on the matter.

Soon, the Lingxiao Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain, the Yunqingzi True Lord of Quanzhen Sect, the leaders of Qingcheng Mountain, Wudang Mountain, Gezao Mountain, and other minor Buddhist and Taoist sects all gathered together.

The only mortal in the hall was Commander Zhang.

"Master Zhang, I wonder if the people near the imperial tomb have been evacuated?"

Zhong Bai asked, and Zhang Dashuai immediately became interested, his smile never stopping.

"My Lord, you can rest assured about what I, Old Zhang, do. I've sent my men to bring all the people within a twenty-mile radius of the Imperial Mausoleum into the city. Of course, some people didn't quite understand, so I had my men forcibly take them away..."

Speaking of this matter, Commander Zhang felt furious. His men were clearly doing what was best for the people, but some people thought they wanted to seize the land. Since they couldn't bear to leave their homeland, he had to resort to some harsh measures.

Zhong Bai and the other True Lords and Masters listened without blaming Commander Zhang. This kind of thing was normal. According to the rules of the Taoist sect, those who were notified but did not want to leave were destined to suffer this calamity. The Taoist sect would not do such a thing as being a pushover.

“Amitabha Buddha, those people do not understand the layman. I think that once we kill the evil spirits, they will naturally be grateful for the layman’s kindness.”

Listening to the Buddhist master's words of comfort, Zhang Dashuai chuckled, hoping so.

"Now that everyone who's supposed to be here is here, let's discuss whose tomb we should explore first!"

When Master Lingxiao spoke, everyone fell into deep thought.

"Amitabha, this old monk's idea is still to start with the mausoleum of Empress Dowager Cixi."

"Of course, we explore tombs for the sake of all living beings; whose tomb is it?"

After the elder of Baima Temple finished speaking, everyone nodded in agreement.

Honestly, if the Manchu royal family hadn't turned themselves into zombies, Zhong Bai and the others would never have wanted to come to the capital. Tomb raiding is the job of grave robbers, something that high-ranking Buddhist and Taoist figures like Zhong Bai would never deign to do. Alas...

"If none of you have any objections, let's start with Empress Dowager Cixi's mausoleum!"

Lingxiao Celestial Master made the final decision, and no one had any objections.

......................................................

At noon, at the mausoleum of Empress Dowager Cixi.

When they were less than a hundred meters away from the mausoleum, everyone's gazes became complicated. A large hole had been blasted open above the mausoleum, and a surge of corpse energy was pouring out of the hole. Looking at the hole, Commander Zhang's face flushed. Well, this was his masterpiece.

"Gentlemen, I will go ahead and investigate!"

Zhong Bai stepped forward and smiled brightly. Throughout the area around the imperial mausoleum, Zhong Bai and his companions were unable to penetrate the earth with their divine senses to see the situation inside the mausoleum.

But for Zhong Bai, none of these were problems, as opportunities to obtain demon-slaying points were few and far between.

Hearing Zhong Bai's boastful words, the elders from various sects behind him smiled faintly. They were naturally happy to see this, since Zhong Bai was a Golden Core True Monarch and it was just the mausoleum of Empress Dowager Cixi. Even the Celestial Master Lingxiao was not confident that he could defeat Zhong Bai. He could be considered the number one person in the Buddhist and Taoist circles present!
(End of this chapter)