Under One Person: The Seeker of the Dao in the Lü Family

Chapter 176 The Battle for the Ordination Certificate: A Standoff Between the Two Sides

Whether the Milky Way will pour down or not, the turbulent waves that rise to the sky will only last a moment.

Now, black flames are everywhere on this raging, roaring river, and two groups of people stand on either side of the riverbank.

"Amitabha Buddha, Fellow Daoist Xujing, we, the thirty monks of Mount Wutai, were invited by the Pure Land School to discuss scriptures and Dharma. Now you have released the Three Corpses to flood the river. How are we supposed to proceed?"

On the north bank of the Yellow River, a group of monks, dressed in robes, stood on the shore, gazing at the surging river and the billowing black flames, and remained motionless.

"Haha, fellow Daoists, please forgive me. I lost control of my three corpses for a moment, and now they have spread throughout the entire Yellow River. It is indeed a sin, but I have no choice. Fellow Daoists, please rest on the north bank for a few days."

Black flames billowed, blurring the monks' vision. A cheerful voice came from the opposite bank, but there was little intention to apologize.

"Then this humble monk will take action to subdue these three corpses for you, fellow Daoist."

Mount Wutai is the legendary sacred site of Manjushri Bodhisattva, who is depicted holding a lotus flower and a golden sword in his extant image.

The leading monk took out a seven-petaled lotus flower from his sleeve. The lotus flower was radiant with colorful light, and a sense of tranquility emanated from it.

He held a Vajra sword from his waist, its golden light shining brightly.

"No need, Baiyun Temple will take care of it."

As they were talking, a burst of precious light suddenly rose from the opposite bank, and a jade ruyi and a magic sword were seen flying around the river.

"Amitabha, it seems there's no other way but to make an effort."

……

The mighty Yangtze River flows eastward, its waves washing away the heroes of the past. Right and wrong, success and failure, all vanish in the blink of an eye.

This mighty river flows from the west, traversing the land of China and rushing towards the East China Sea. Its surging waters and towering waves tell the story of countless events and tales throughout history.

Now, on a stretch of river outside Jinling City, two highly skilled seniors are engaged in a battle of magic.

"Du Hui, your three temples on Putuo Mountain are far away in Zhejiang and overseas. How come you now have the leisure to travel to the western land of Qin?"

On a lone boat, an old Taoist priest dressed in a Taoist robe and wearing a turban stood at the bow and shouted at a boat opposite him.

"Amitabha Buddha, Qingxu, this humble monk was invited by the Pure Land School to travel to Qin to discuss scriptures and debate the Dharma. Why have you come down from Maoshan and are blocking my way on the Yangtze River?"

An old monk wearing a kasaya and holding prayer beads stood at the bow of the boat. Even though the old Taoist priest from Maoshan was coming aggressively in front of him, he remained calm and composed, as if he were just going to discuss scriptures and doctrines.

"Hey, you're a Zen master, going around discussing Dharma with Pure Land practitioners? Who are you trying to fool?"

Upon hearing this, the old Taoist priest in his robes waved his sleeve without any politeness, saying, "I don't care. With me here, Du Hui, you can forget about crossing the Yangtze River."

"Even if you want to discuss scriptures and doctrines, you should wait seven days. For the next seven days, you can stay here and discuss scriptures and doctrines with me on the river."

Upon hearing this, the Zen Master Du Hui on the opposite side slowly raised his head, his eyes flashing with golden light, his aura surging and gathering, making his wide monk's robe stand out.

"Amitabha, if that's the case, then this humble monk must try to understand the Taoist practice of Master Qingxu."

As he spoke, he took out a piece of jade willow branch that shimmered with an immortal golden light from his sleeve, and with his other hand he took out a white jade bottle from behind his back.

With swift movements, the Zen Master Du Hui waved his robe, scooped up some water droplets from the river, and put them into a clean bottle. He held the bottle in one hand and a willow branch in the other. Although his aura was fierce and imposing, it also exuded a gentleness that was meant to save all people.

"Damn, are you serious, old man?"

On the other side, Qingxu Daoist stared wide-eyed at the jade willow branch and white jade vase in the hands of the Zen Master Duhui opposite him. "You even brought out a priceless Buddhist treasure!"

Mount Putuo is a famous Buddhist holy site in China, with three major temples: Puji Temple, Fayu Temple, and Huiji Temple. It is also said to be the sacred site of Guanyin Bodhisattva.

"Amitabha, Fellow Daoist Qingxu, please stop deceiving this humble monk. Although the Four Treasures of Maoshan are valuable, you, as the sect leader, cannot come empty-handed."

"Fellow Daoist, are you perhaps planning a sneak attack to deliver a fatal blow to this humble monk?"

With a solemn expression, Zen Master Du Hui placed the jade willow branch into the white jade vase. A majestic and peaceful light emanated from his body, just like Guanyin in a painting, holding a vase to save the world.

"Hmph, luckily I did some divination before going down the mountain. As for a sneak attack, how could that be? I'm a man of honor too."

When he realized he had been exposed, Qingxu Daoren calmly and resolutely denied Du Hui Chanshi's "slander".

With a flick of his sleeve, he took a black cloth bundle from his waist behind his back. He opened the bundle, revealing a jade seal and a jade talisman.

It was the Nine Elders Immortal Capital Lord's Seal, and the Heart-Soothing Jade Talisman.

He made a hand seal and tossed the jade talisman in his hand into the air. The runes on the jade talisman flowed, and the solid warm jade transformed into mysterious runes, which were then bestowed upon Qingxu Daoist.

He held the jade seal in one hand and a golden talisman in the other, his expression solemn.

On the river surface shrouded in a thin mist, a Taoist priest and a monk stood facing each other in mid-air, each holding a legendary magical weapon. The stalemate lasted for a long time without either of them making a move.

On the river, Qingxu Daoren and Duhui Chanshi stared at each other, and the radiance emanating from them gradually faded away.

"Du Hui, why haven't you made a move yet?"

"Qingxu, stop beating around the bush. We're just stalling for time. Let's see what fate has in store."

The monk and the Taoist priest were locked in a stalemate, each holding their magical implements. They both understood that now was not the time for a magical duel, and the outcome of such a contest would be of little consequence.

The most important thing now is time. Whoever can meet the person who holds the grand dream the fastest will be the real winner.

The current situation seems to indicate that Maoshan has held back the three Putuo temples, but in reality, it is the three Putuo temples that have restrained Maoshan, preventing this branch of the Shangqing Taoist lineage from having time to attend to other matters.

Those sects that are truly going to make a move are those closest to Qin and to the people of the Great Dream.

The Taoist sects are all over China, and the Buddhist sects are not far behind. It all depends on which sect can meet the person who is the one ...

These two seasoned practitioners, experienced in the ways of the world, were well aware of the situation, but because they were too far from the Qin region, they could only keep each other in check.

"Senior Brother Lin, what is Master doing?"

"Idiot, this is a show of force."

"But why does Master seem a little scared... Ouch!"

On the river, behind Qingxu Daoist, a small boat was hidden in the mist, and two young Daoists with righteous airs in their eyes were whispering to each other.

"What do you mean by being afraid? Is that how you talk about our Maoshan tradition?"

A young Taoist priest with upright posture tapped another Taoist priest wearing round-framed glasses on the head, saying, "This is called a sparring match between masters. Pay attention and learn from it."

"Furthermore, the most important thing now is not to fight, but to buy time!"

"Oh no... Senior brother, that Zen Master Du Hui has indeed taken his disciples and is acting in secret as well."

"Oh no, hurry up and stop them!"

As they spoke, the two Taoists made hand seals, summoning flowing wind and cascading water, and propelled their small boat toward another small boat that appeared behind Zen Master Du Hui.

On the river, the two sides faced each other across the water. Two old cultivators stood at the bow of the boat, while the remaining disciples were locked in combat.

……

On the Yangtze River, a thin mist concealed everything, while on the other side of the Yellow River, towering black flames accompanied by rolling waves of yellow sand spread across the entire river.

Longhu Mountain, Celestial Master's Mansion

The old Celestial Master Zhang Jingqing sat cross-legged in the room, when suddenly his brows furrowed.

"Oh no, I must go into seclusion!"