I changed the world.

On April 16th, the sky over Dinghai was clear but the sun wasn't too strong; it was a cloudy day. From early morning, many believers began to gather at the foot of Yunxiao Mountain. Some were clearly local residents of Dinghai, carrying yellow cloth bags commonly used for burning incense. They gradually gathered in front of the stone gate at the foot of Yunxiao Mountain. Some residents placed their incense sticks in a large bronze cauldron not far from the gate, while others knelt on the ground, chanting prayers.

Today is an important day for the abbotship ceremony of the Yunxiao lineage. A grand enthronement ceremony for the new abbot will be held on the mountain.

Even though the temple had announced long ago that it would be closed for the day and would not receive any visitors, it was still an extremely important day for local believers in Dinghai and many others from other places. Even though they could not go up the mountain, many believers still gathered at the foot of the mountain to chant sutras and pray for blessings.

Some police officers and disciples of Yunxiao Temple were standing at the entrance to the mountain. These police officers were arranged by the local police station. Because there were many guests attending the abbot's abdication ceremony of Yunxiao Temple, including representatives of the royal family, it was absolutely necessary to prevent any incidents from happening. Therefore, the local police station simply sent officers to assist in maintaining order. In addition, there were several police cars on standby by the roadside further away, with fully armed officers inside to ensure that no emergencies would occur.

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind the History Books: Chapter 1034 A Touch of Immortal Aura

Down the mountain, some worshippers who had burned incense did not rush to leave. Instead, they gathered in twos and threes at the mountain gate. Many of them knew each other, especially the local worshippers from Dinghai. They simply sat there and chatted, glancing at the mountaintop. Many felt that at this time and in this location, they could "absorb some divine energy."

In particular, some of these believers had personally witnessed the miraculous scene of Master Xiao's "ascension to immortality," and they couldn't help but recount it again, attracting a crowd of people who had only heard rumors or had never experienced the event.

“Let me tell you, don’t listen to those experts’ nonsense, what they say about weather or something, it’s all nonsense. That night, a few of my old friends and I were outside the hospital, praying for the old master… Let me tell you, I saw it very clearly, it was a beam of light, straight up into the sky…” An elderly woman who looked to be about sixty years old was telling the people around her what she had seen.

"Sister, I saw someone online say that it might be caused by some kind of lighting..."

"No, no, let me tell you, it was definitely not a light. I saw it clearly that day. It was a beam of light that went straight up into the sky from the floor where the old man's ward was located..." The old woman said, while pointing to another gray-haired woman next to her: "Aunt Li, you were there that day too. Do you think that's what happened?"

"Yes, yes, that day, I saw a beam of light shooting up into the sky, straight into the clouds..." The gray-haired woman beside her nodded, her eyes seemingly shining: "Truly, the heavens are protecting us, the heavens are protecting us..."

“This Yunxiao Mountain, there really are immortals here…” the old woman beside her hurriedly added.

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At this very moment, on the mountain, outside the gate of Yunxiao Temple, three groups dressed in various Taoist robes, with neat attire and holding various ritual implements, walked slowly along the mountain path past the stone archway inscribed with the four ancient characters "Taishang Daocheng" (Supreme Taoist Temple) towards the mountain gate.

The three teams of Taoist priests lined up on the left and right, respectively, and were disciples responsible for clearing the way. Each of them held a silver seal, a precious sword, a gold-threaded duster, a jade ruyi, and so on. If a knowledgeable person looked closely, they would be able to tell that these were all imperial gifts.

At the head of the middle row stood a dignified old man, dressed in an exquisitely crafted purple robe embroidered with auspicious symbols such as the Yuluo Terrace, the sun, moon, stars, the Eight Trigrams, pagodas, dragons, phoenixes, cranes, and unicorns—clearly no ordinary garment. This man was none other than Li Jingxin, the current abbot of Yunxiao Temple, bestowed the title of Protector of the Nation, Profound Understanding, and Profound Virtue.

Walking beside Li Jingxin, slightly behind him by half a step, was a middle-aged man wearing a lotus crown and a blue Taoist robe. This middle-aged man also possessed a dignified bearing, following closely behind Li Jingxin. This man was none other than Li Jingxin's junior brother, Zhou Jingyuan, who was still the abbot of Yunxiao Temple.

Behind these two were yellow parasols and numerous ritual implements. In addition, behind them were disciples holding bowls, chimes, bells, drums, flutes and other musical instruments, playing and striking them along the way.

In the square outside the mountain gate, many guests had gathered again. These were all invited guests, including An Zhengquan and Wei Hanwen. They had been reminded of certain taboos beforehand, and no one took out cameras or mobile phones to take pictures or make loud noises.

The procession ascended the ancient, mottled steps in front of the temple gate. At this moment, the middle gate in front of the main gate was wide open, and the procession stopped in front of the middle gate. Disciples offered ritual implements such as scepters and incense. Li Jingxin glanced at his junior brother beside him and nodded to him. Zhou Jingyuan then stepped forward slowly, his face solemn, lit the incense sticks, and bowed three times in each of the four directions in front of the gate.

At this moment, a disciple presented a yellow satin, on which were embroidered four seal characters, “Dao Guan Zhu Tian” (道冠诸天), with lion patterns and seven-colored necklaces below. On the satin were three incense burners with upturned ears.

Zhou Jingyuan inserted the incense stick into the incense burner in the center. At this moment, Li Jingxin pointed with his finger hidden in his sleeve, and a wisp of green smoke rose straight up from the incense stick, standing still and unwavering in the mountain wind, and went straight into the sky.

Some of the surrounding guests gradually noticed this and began to look up, with whispers even breaking out among them...

At this moment, Zhou Jingyuan, holding a long ivory tablet, exhaled and spoke:

"The purple void is lush and beautiful, the four seasons are clear and tranquil. Heaven opens the mysterious cycle, and the righteous law flourishes..."

After the hymn of praise was recited, another disciple presented a wooden staff. Zhou Jingyuan took the staff and struck the mountain gate once, which was considered to open the mountain gate...

Everything proceeded according to regulations. The entire procession then entered through the mountain gate and ascended along the central axis of the temple, offering incense and prayers in turn at each gate and hall, praying for national peace and prosperity, and for the flourishing of the true Dharma.

The whole process was quite complicated, but the ceremony could not be neglected, so the guests did not complain and followed at the back of the procession to watch the ceremony.

However, as the procession gradually moved up the mountain, passing the Three Gates Hall, the flagpole, the ornamental column... the Lingguan Hall, the Law Hall... as the procession went higher and higher, the clouds in the sky clearly changed!

Following behind in the procession of guests, Wei Zhangli gently tugged at her husband's sleeve and pointed to the sky. Wei Hanwen looked up and saw that the clouds that had been floating in the sky were gathering from all directions. The clouds were gathering at a relatively slow pace, which was why they hadn't been noticed by many people at first. However, once the procession had passed halfway through the palace and temple, and past the Lingguan Hall, the strange sight of layers of clouds gathering above the Yunxiao Temple and the vast expanse of sky around them became clearly visible.

Furthermore, the clouds even had a faint bluish tint, and some even thought they resembled an inverted gold ingot...

"Oh dear... so many clouds..." Wei Hanwen was pulled by his wife's sleeve. When he looked up, he also noticed the difference in the sky.

"Look, look! All the clouds around us have gathered here!!! How strange!!!" Wei Zhangli exclaimed excitedly.

Among the surrounding guests, discussions began to rise: "The Heavenly Venerable has manifested! Look, look..."

"I saw all those cigarettes go into the clouds. Are there gods in there...?"

"This Yunxiao Temple is truly miraculous... This must be a divine intervention..."

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind the History Books: Chapter 1035 The Ritual

In fact, not only those on the mountain, but also the believers and pilgrims gathered at the foot of the mountain were whispering among themselves, and some were even taking photos and uploading them to the internet.

"Look, look, doesn't that cloud look like a **?"

"What the hell? That's a gold ingot, that's a gold ingot..."

"What gold ingot? That's called a 'ruyi,' so auspicious... This is a divine intervention from the Heavenly Venerable!!!"

"Yes, yes, it must be the Heavenly Venerable manifesting His power!!!"

"Look, those clouds are blue, aren't they? They're different from the others..."

"Come, come, let's pray... May the Heavenly Venerable bless my family with peace and safety, and may my daughter find a husband this year..."

"May the Heavenly Venerable protect us!!!"

"May the Heavenly Venerable protect my family and grant me abundant wealth this year..."

At the foot of Yunxiao Mountain, many believers had already begun to find their own spots, some raising their hands above their heads, bowing and chanting, others kneeling on the ground, and some prostrating themselves with their palms facing upwards.

Some people took out incense and lit it to worship, which inspired others to follow suit.

Even further away, police officers maintaining order on the street were muttering incantations and bowing with their hands clasped towards the sky...

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As the entire procession moved upwards, it stopped in front of the Sanqing Hall. At this time, a grand altar had been set up in front of the Sanqing Hall, surrounded by various colorful flags and banners.

At this time, the entire procession lined up around the altar according to regulations, with all kinds of ritual implements prepared, while the guests were arranged to watch the ceremony from a distance.

Here, the "Memorial Presentation Ritual" is required. According to the regulations of the Xuanmen (mysterious sect) in this world, the memorial is sent to the Nine Heavens to inform the Three Pure Ones and all the immortals of the Nine Heavens.

The first to step onto the platform was not Li Jingxin or Zhou Jingyuan, but another high-ranking priest. After ascending the altar, he was responsible for purifying it with water and sprinkling water. At this time, music began to play, and this high-ranking priest began to chant the purification mantra on the platform:

"...Your Majesty...Heaven and Earth are naturally at noon, the filth (the qi disperses, the cave) contains the mysterious artifact, the bright and clear primordial flow, the eight directions of divine power, making me naturally...I...^guards-my pavilion, the evil filth dissipates, the Dao qi endures..."

"All blemishes vanish, the three gods bestow blessings, the chanting of the Void Recitation resounds, the profound chapter is recited. Divine power is as venerable as the Heavenly Venerable..."

As the high priest on the stage chanted the mantra, the disciples below also recited: "The vast sky contains form, the ultimate Dao is formless, receiving harmony and communicating with the wondrous energy, the musical scales move with sincere hearts..."

The high priest on the platform recited again: "We humbly submit that Yin and Yang are in harmony, relying on bells and chimes to communicate with the spirits. The paths of the visible and the invisible are distinct, relying on the true spirits to uphold sincerity. The altar ceremony is now solemn, and the Dharma sound is proclaimed..."

The chanting lasted for about fifteen minutes. After all the rituals were completed, Li Jingxin finally stepped onto the altar with a solemn and composed demeanor, his sleeves fluttering.

At this moment, in the front row of the guests behind were the Princess and her husband, along with several female officials dressed as eunuchs, clearly from the palace. One of the eunuchs was whispering to Qian Bushi, the director of the Imperial Religious Affairs Bureau, and occasionally looked up at the sky. At this moment, the blue aura in the sky grew heavier and heavier, covering the entire peak of Yunxiao Mountain like an umbrella.

"Does the Abbot know the meaning of the clouds in the sky?" After chatting with the female official for a while, Qian Bushi turned to ask a middle-aged Taoist priest in a blue robe beside him. This man was Zhang Lianchuan, the current Abbot of the Celestial Master's Mansion on Danding Mountain and the son of the contemporary Celestial Master Zhang Sicheng.

As one of the Three Mountains Talismans and the orthodox lineage of the Xuanmen, the Zhang family of Danding Mountain has always held a pivotal position in the entire Xuanmen, and was even once regarded as the so-called number one family of the Xuanmen.

The abbotship ceremony of Yunxiao Mountain was a major event in the Xuanmen sect, and he was naturally invited to attend. Because of his special status, he was even arranged to sit in the first row, right next to Qian Bushi.

Since learning that his father had reconnected with the Penglai Immortal Sect, Zhang Lianchuan felt that he also had connections. When he looked at Master Li, he saw him as less unfathomable and more as someone whose true nature was understood without words.

In Zhang Jing's words from his previous life, there was a sense of superiority, as if he believed that among all the heroes in the world, only the magistrate and Cao Cao were worthy of the title...

Upon hearing Qian Bushi's question, Zhang Lianchuan was slightly taken aback. To be honest, he didn't really know why the clouds above were changing. This question stumped him.

However, he was, after all, a man of considerable influence. Especially as the old Celestial Master grew older, he, as the supervisor, had taken on many daily responsibilities at the Celestial Master's Mansion on Danding Mountain. He had also gained much experience in dealing with people and situations. So, although he was unaware of the truth, he still maintained a calm and composed expression on his face.

His mind raced, racking his brains...

At this moment, it would be absolutely unacceptable to say that I didn't know; I would lose face for no reason...

In Qian Bushi's view, the Supervisor Zhang before him remained silent for a moment, then a faint smile appeared on his face, and he heard him whisper:

"It is neither smoke nor cloud, but rather a dense, swirling mass of clouds, a desolate and undulating spectacle. This is called auspicious cloud. The appearance of auspicious cloud signifies joy."

"Qingyun..." Qian Bushi, of course, didn't know that Supervisor Zhang was just making things up. He seriously repeated it to himself several times before flattering him, "Supervisor Zhang is indeed very knowledgeable..."

Then, Qian Bushi approached the female eunuch again and spoke to her. Clearly, the question he had just asked was not his own.

Just as Qian Bushi and Zhang Lianchuan were whispering to each other, not far from Zhang Lianchuan, only a few guests away, Guo Cun'an, the abbot of Chunyang Palace on Yuhua Mountain, stood there with an expressionless face, but his ears were stretched out, watching the ceremony in front of him while listening carefully to the conversation between Qian Bushi and Zhang Lianchuan.