I changed the world.

As expected of the Celestial Master's Mansion of Danding Mountain, they are truly knowledgeable and experienced... The thought that popped into his mind was exactly the same as Qian Bushi's. However, compared to Qian Bushi's simple curiosity and admiration, he felt a mixture of envy, nervousness, and even worry.

As one of the Three Mountains Talismans, Chunyang Palace of Yuhua Mountain is the only major Xuanmen sect in the north. It has always been on par with Tianshi Mansion of Danding Mountain and Yunxiao Temple of Yunxiao Mountain. However, in the past year, he has clearly felt that some kind of change is taking place.

Initially, he had only heard rumors of Master Xiao of Yunxiao Mountain ascending to immortality and various strange phenomena appearing above the hospital. He didn't initially care about these rumors, as he heard similar stories about mythical religious leaders almost every few years, and even had some half-true rumors about himself. In his view, the rumors about Master Xiao were just another publicity stunt, and as a member of the Xuanmen (Taoist sect), he was happy to see it, since such rumors were beneficial to the spread of Xuanmen beliefs.

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 1036 What is the Foundation?

After that, he heard various rumors about Li Jingxin, the Master Li, who was said to be extremely popular with believers in the capital...

Even the Imperial Religious Administration, which previously had a relatively low profile, sent some materials and videos, hoping to solicit opinions from Chunyang Palace...

Thus, from initial indifference to subsequent suspicion, and finally to shock and helplessness, Guo Cun'an's current state of mind is both chaotic and complex.

Unlike those small, remote temples with little history, Chunyang Palace on Yuhua Mountain has been established for over 1,500 years, dating back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties. As one of the three great mountains of Taoism, Guo Cun'an believed that its influence in Taoism was only slightly less than that of the Celestial Master's Mansion on Danding Mountain, and comparable to that of Yunxiao Temple on Yunxiao Mountain.

However, things are different now...

In the past, Guo Cun'an thought that the legends of the ancestors ascending to heaven and the strange and supernatural beings in mythology were all fabrications by the ancients.

As the world entered the modern era, Western learning spread to the East, science and technology advanced rapidly, and humanity even entered the space age. Religious activities and operations also gradually became more modernized and professionalized...

It's worth noting that Guo Cun'an, at the request of his master, the previous abbot Liu Ruoshui, specifically enrolled in the Business Administration Department of Peking University to better manage the temple using modern corporate management concepts. In fact, he once wholeheartedly agreed with his master's approach. In his view, traditional Taoism, compared to monotheistic religions like Western Christianity, had inherent weaknesses. Therefore, not only did it need to introduce modern operational methods, but it also required a certain degree of reform to better adapt to this rapidly changing era.

Since he took over as abbot, Chunyang Palace has been thriving. In terms of revenue, the annual increase has exceeded 10%, and the welfare of all the Taoist priests has also increased significantly. Therefore, the disciples in the palace all speak highly of him as abbot.

In modern society, money is still the most important thing. With money, you can have manpower, conduct publicity, and expand your influence...

Guo Cun'an even considered leading Chunyang Palace to gradually become the largest Xuanmen sect in the country and reach its peak in the future...

However, things have changed dramatically recently, especially with the information provided by the Religious Affairs Bureau, which was like a bucket of cold water, completely chilling him to the bone.

Although he was certain that the Religious Affairs Bureau wouldn't lie to him about this, the content was still too outrageous. To verify the authenticity of the information, he even had some of his disciples form a special group to collect various related information online.

As he searched purposefully, the more he looked, the more alarmed he became. There was no doubt that the information provided by the Religious Affairs Bureau was accurate. Coupled with the recent online buzz surrounding the miraculous discovery at the tomb of Celestial Master Song Shouxuan, the ascension of Abbot Xiao of Yunxiao Mountain, and the unusual celestial phenomenon at the Zhebi Peak behind Danding Mountain, as well as several overseas supernatural events that were highly likely to be real, all these events told him that the world was not at all what he had imagined.

Extraordinary events do exist in this world!

He even sensed that certain forces, both domestically and internationally, were controlling this type of news. As a result, when searching for such news, most headlines led to empty pages, clearly indicating that the information had already been taken down.

Why is regulation necessary?

In Guo Cun'an's eyes, this clearly illustrated some other issues...

What made him feel most guilty and even anxious was that, no matter how he recalled it, when his master Liu Ruoshui was alive, apart from some teachings on scriptures and doctrines, the most he talked to him about was how to treat people and how to properly manage the temple's lineage...

This knowledge had once benefited him greatly, but in the current situation, he suddenly realized that what Chunyang Palace lacked most and what it urgently needed most was not this knowledge.

If Chunyang Palace were one of those obscure, unlicensed temples, then it would be perfectly acceptable for it to primarily focus on earning money from incense offerings. Such temples are countless in the Great Zhao region, and some even operate as businesses, with succession passed down through generations.

However, Chunyang Palace is one of the Three Mountains of Talismans, a revered celestial temple throughout the land. Such a status does not allow him to simply hide in the background and make money. It's like an elephant in a room; your status and size mean you will inevitably be watched by many eyes.

In particular, it is now quite clear that the other two mountains in the Three Mountains Talisman clearly have their own "foundation".

So, what is the foundation of Chunyang Palace, the Daoist temple of Qingwei Datianzun?

Even though there hasn't been any overt action from any parties involved, and the Religious Affairs Bureau hasn't exerted any explicit pressure beyond some roundabout inquiries, Guo Cun'an believes that such inquiries themselves constitute a form of pressure.

Looking up at the sky, the layers upon layers of clouds and the rainbow-like rays within them filled him with awe. Even in his eyes, such a scene was enough to be called an "auspicious omen"...

However, the more this happened, the more obvious his fear became. What should be the future of Chunyang Palace?

Grandmaster? Have you forgotten to pass down something?!

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Regardless of Guo Cun'an's anxiety at this moment, further ahead of the guests, the Yunxiao Mountain disciples, neatly arranged below the altar, were also occasionally looking up at the sky. However, they were usually quickly nudged or kicked by neighboring disciples with their elbows or feet to signal them not to lose focus. These disciples of Yunxiao Temple had been instructed beforehand by high-ranking priests that with so many guests present at this grand ceremony, they couldn't afford to lose face.

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On the high platform, Master Li Jingxin had already begun reciting his petition. He seemed to be doing nothing, yet his voice carried clearly.

"...We humbly submit that Yin and Yang are in harmony, and the bells and chimes are used to communicate with the spirits. The paths of the visible and the invisible are distinct, and we rely on the true spirits to uphold sincerity. The altar ceremony is solemn, and the Dharma sound is proclaimed..."

"I have heard that Zhen (the primordial spirit) arises from Yuan (the origin), Yang (the yang) is born in Zi (the first of the twelve earthly branches), and all return in response, manifesting the following of Qian (the heavenly order). This is accomplished by the Heavenly Cycle, and the Yellow Bell rises, just as the Dao (the Way) dictates. I respectfully summon the Yang Spirit and ring the golden bell twenty-five times. Having completed this, I recite: 'The primordial order is vast and majestic, the nine clouds illuminate the sky, the cinnabar spirit is evident, the five planets communicate, and the Dao arises naturally…'"

In fact, almost none of the guests below could understand what was being said on stage. However, despite not understanding, they all listened very attentively, as if they could understand every single word.

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 1037 The Atmosphere in the Sky

In fact, at this very moment, if someone could fly into those clouds, they would notice that there was a strange beast resembling both a tiger and a dragon lying dozing in the clouds. This was Zhang Jing's tiger-dragon, which was there as part of the atmosphere group on Zhang Jing's orders.

After all, such a grand ceremony wouldn't be complete without some kind of atmosphere-building team...

Zhang Jing sat cross-legged on the back of the tiger-dragon, lazily feeling the mist in the clouds drift over him. It felt quite nice. Through the layers of clouds, he looked down at the altar on the mountain peak below, where Li Jingxin was still speaking with intonation. A thought struck him, and he saw yin and yang transforming within the surrounding clouds, with faint rumbles of thunder...

He smiled slightly, and unconsciously recited a line of poetry:

"Yin and Yang give rise to repetition, and a thunderclap brings universal transformation."

White clouds rise to the top, and sweet dew sprinkles Mount Sumeru.

Drinking the elixir of immortality, who can know the carefree joy I find?

Sitting and listening to music without strings, one clearly understands the workings of creation.

"Say twenty lines each, and you'll be climbing the ladder to heaven..."

"What a fine poem! What a fine poem! True Lord, you are in such high spirits and so carefree..." A head popped out from the clouds, and a ghost appeared in the background, praising the poem endlessly.

The ghost had red hair and a white face, was short and stout, and looked rather cheerful. He was fair-skinned, held a vermilion brush in one hand and a scroll in the other, wore a classic green robe, a gauze hat, and had the words "Patrolling the Sun" embroidered on his chest.

Although he found Zhang Jing's last sentence, "Give me twenty lines," somewhat strange, since there seemed to be only ten lines of poetry, and he didn't know why this Zhang Zhenjun wanted twenty, he figured the master must have his own reasons, and he didn't need to think too much about it...

All he knew was that this True Lord before him was someone even his own master treated with utmost respect.

He flew to Zhang Jing's side and bowed respectfully, saying, "This humble god greets the True Lord."

“No need for formalities, God of the Day. I just came to check on things that happened in the sect…” Zhang Jing smiled and pointed downwards. He recognized the person in front of him as the God of the Day.

There are quite a few of these wandering spirits within the City God system, scattered throughout the city every day recording information. Generally speaking, the City God's control over his jurisdiction largely relies on these wandering spirits as his eyes and ears.

"I understand, Your Excellency. He heard about the grand ceremony at Yunxiao Temple today and instructed me to bring a squad of soldiers to oversee the event," the wandering deity replied respectfully.

Zhang Jing nodded upon hearing this; he could sense the presence of those Yin soldiers. In a sense, this was a kind of "yin-yang resonance," which aligned with the ritual below.

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Princess Zhuo looked up at the sky in shock. As the eldest daughter of the emperor, she was the highest-ranking guest present today, and her arrival undoubtedly represented the royal family's trust in the Yunxiao lineage.

At this moment, he saw with his own eyes that in the sky above the Yunxiao Temple, layers upon layers of clouds formed a huge circular dome, just like a canopy.

Meanwhile, within this canopy-like cloud layer, there was a noticeable change. It seemed that the initial blue color was gradually giving way to four other colors: blue, red, yellow, white, and black, like a riot of colors, or like a rainbow.

If one had to describe this light, it would be somewhat similar to the Buddha's light at the Golden Summit of Mount Emei in Zhang Jing's previous life. If it were placed in other locations, most people might not pay much attention to it, and even if they did, they would probably just think that the sunlight was a bit special.

However, at this moment, with the clouds gathering like a canopy behind them and the ceremony taking place below Yunxiao Mountain, it possessed an extraordinary sacred meaning, making it impossible not to pay more attention.

She glanced instinctively at her husband, Lü Jing'an, beside her, and Rong Yu, the Empress's close attendant, further away, and noticed that everyone was looking at the sky...

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Meanwhile, at the foot of Yunxiao Mountain, not only were some believers craning their necks to watch, but even some passersby were attracted and looked up to see what was happening.

"Look, look at those clouds! It's truly a divine manifestation!!!"

"Look, look! There's light... there's a rainbow!!!"

"What rainbow? That's a divine intervention, you know... Quickly, offer your prayers..."

Some passersby were discussing the matter, while at the mountain gate archway, many believers once again began to burn incense and kowtow in worship...

Some people even took out their phones to record videos...

On the popular short video platform "FreeLiving," someone had already uploaded a video: "I found a rainbow on Yunxiao Mountain, and there were also clouds shaped like ingots. Some people say it's a divine intervention..."

Within ten minutes, several comments had appeared below:

"A rainbow? That's normal. It just rained, didn't it?"

"The Heavenly Venerable has manifested! We pay homage to the Heavenly Venerable!! [Hands clasped in prayer][Hands clasped in prayer]"

"Don't be so surprised, it's just a rainbow after the rain..."

"It hasn't rained here; the weather has been sunny the whole time. Seeing it in person is truly breathtaking; many people say it's a divine intervention." [Author]

"The five elements converge and gather, the profound light descends upon the world—which great being has attained enlightenment...?"

"Excuse me, it is indeed I, and I apologize for disturbing everyone..."

"How auspicious! Homage to the Heavenly Venerable!!! [Hands clasped in prayer][Flowers][Flowers]"

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Regardless of how the situation has quietly developed online, in reality, Li Jingxin's ceremony on the altar has come to an end.

"I take refuge in the body, the spirit, and the Great Way. I wish to cultivate virtue and return to the Lord of the Fast. May the Azure Flower grant me good fortune and the Golden Tablet grant me long life."

"May the Nine Heavens' True Ruler bestow blessings, and may the Three Realms' divine light shine forth. May calamities vanish without warning, and may blessings gather in times of peace. May homes be protected in tranquility, and may all actions be blessed with serenity. May all spirits guard and protect us from all calamities. With utmost sincerity, we bow and recite..."

After Li Jingxin completed the ritual, he bowed respectfully to the sky. At this moment, on the top of Yunxiao Mountain, layers upon layers of clouds pressed the sky extremely low, as if one could reach out and touch it. The clouds were even clearer when viewed from below the mountain, and a distinct arch could be seen.

On the mountain peak, the view was not so clear. Thick clouds gathered, and within those clouds, auspicious five-colored light shone, faintly highlighting the surrounding clouds as if they were multicolored.