Chapter 156 Reencounter with Wusheng

For the next two days, nothing happened, and the group led by Jiang Chen finally stepped into the territory of the Jingzhao Yin.

Of course, a small interlude occurred during this time.

Jiang Chen encountered an acquaintance here, one of the people who had watched Lin Chen's battle back then.

This person had an impression of Jiang Chen because that Daoist robe was truly striking among those watching the battle.

Later, when Jiang Chen and Lin Chen left together, there was no more news of Lin Chen in the Jianghu after that.

There were rumors that Lin Chen had retired after avenging his great grudge, and other rumors that Lin Chen had been retaliated against by the Prefect of Yangzhou and had gone into hiding.

However, not long after, someone found a corpse on a small path in the forest, with a long spear beside it.

When the person who discovered it saw Lin Chen, he still looked rosy-cheeked, lying on the ground as if he were asleep.

But when that person's greed flared up and he wanted to take the spear, he accidentally touched Lin Chen, and the corpse suddenly turned into a pile of powder.

The man was so scared he ran away, and he loudly publicized what he had seen and heard.

Not long after, someone recognized who the deceased was based on the long spear and the remaining clothing.

This caused a huge uproar, and another wave of rumors spread throughout the Jianghu.

As a bystander at the time, this Jianghu man immediately linked Lin Chen's death to Jiang Chen, who had left with him.

After all, Lin Chen had died silently, yet Jiang Chen appeared here safe and sound.

Jiang Chen had also noticed the man's terrified gaze at the time and smiled, nodding at him, which scared the man so much he turned and ran.

After that, no more rumors spread; the man probably didn't want to cause trouble.

When they approached the nearest city in the Jingzhao Yin and reached the city gate, Jiang Chen and his group saw a crowd gathered there, not knowing what they were looking at.

"The imperial notice has been posted again. I wonder if it's about the xuanmen merit ranking this time."

"Let's go, let's go take a look. This old man has lived for most of his life, and this is the first time I've heard of such a mysterious thing."

"The notice is finally posted! I bet fifty wen on Great Master Vajrabodhi; I'll definitely make a profit this time!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen and the others walked towards the direction of the notice and stood behind the crowd.

Taking a look, at the top of the xuanmen merit ranking, the one ranked first was none other than Jiang Chen of the Maoshan Sect!

Nine rain-praying ceremonies, eliminating evil, healing the sick and saving lives, boundless Karma—the words describing his Karma were numerous.

And in second place was Jianzhen. He had leaped up from fifth to second, but the description of his Karma was only a few words.

Jianzhen of the Vinaya School, healing the sick and saving lives, with continuous blessings and virtue.

Below him were Taoist Wang Li, Taoist Miaosu, and others, all of whom had the merit of performing several rain-praying ceremonies.

And with Jianzhen mixed in among them, he appeared very conspicuous.

Sure enough, soon, arguments regarding Jianzhen broke out.

Some argued that Jianzhen had done nothing and, compared to the other Daoist Great Masters, was far behind and shouldn't be ranked so high.

Others discussed how Jianzhen had been healing the sick and providing disaster relief along the way, saving countless people, and his merit was no lower than those who prayed for rain.

Soon, someone dug up that the person speaking loudest for Jianzhen was actually a Buddhist believer, which further aroused the dissatisfaction of some.

On Jiang Chen's side, watching them argue endlessly, he didn't step forward to say anything.

"It's just idle chatter; there's no need to pay attention to it," Yang Shu said indifferently.

Jianzhen, however, said with some shame, "This humble monk hasn't helped Daoist Priest Jiang at all along the way, and in terms of Karma, I am far inferior to other Fellow Daoists. Yet, I have usurped this position, causing dissatisfaction; it is only natural."

Jiang Chen, on the other hand, was lost in thought.

Jiang Chen also heard some things from the surrounding people.

At the beginning, Jianzhen's ranking was only in the top five, and the reasons for the ranking were fully reasonable.

But this time, he leaped up, squeezing out Zhang Gaoxian, Taoist Wang Li, and Taoist Miaosu, which seemed abnormal.

Zhang Gaoxian was crippled by him, so it was reasonable for him to drop off the ranking list, so let's set that aside. However, Taoist Wang Li and Taoist Miaosu had not stopped praying for rain, so logically, their merits should not have been surpassed by Jianzhen.

"I'm afraid this is intentional by Your Majesty," Jiang Chen said.

"What do you mean by that?" Yang Shu asked.

"The Daoist sects are becoming too powerful, which is not a scene Your Majesty wishes to see. Therefore, placing Jianzhen at the forefront of the controversy, but in doing so, Daoist sects like the Three Sovereigns Sect may not be pleased."

Yang Shu continued his thought, "In this way, the conflict between the Daoist and Buddhist sects will intensify again, allowing Your Majesty to reap the benefits?"

"Your Majesty is wary of the Buddhist sects because of the Empress, and favors the Daoist school because of Zhang Guo, my Senior Brother Li Hanguang, and others. However, both the Buddhist and Daoist sects remain evenly matched under Your Majesty's balancing act."

When Jiang Chen said this, both Jianzhen and Yang Shu understood what he meant.

Ancient emperors were adept at balancing; for them, the stability of their own empire was more important than the well-being of the people.

Jiang Chen and his group stopped paying attention to the ranking list and continued walking into the city.

However, after entering the city, he found that it was exceptionally lively, as if there were some festive occasion.

"Is there some festival today?"

An elderly man passing by heard Jianzhen's question and stopped to say:

"Today, a group of people came from the east, saying they are from some sect or another. They say that because of the Wusheng Laomu's sweet dew, we were spared from the drought. They are also performing initiations for the citizens in the city, which can strengthen the body and keep one free from illness and disaster. Daoist, you should hurry and let Wusheng Laomu perform the initiation for you; if you go late, it might be gone!"

Having said that, he hurried away.

Jiang Chen's gaze narrowed. The Wusheng Sect had actually developed this far; this momentum was not just fast.

Especially with this propaganda; if the one chasing Nvba was truly The Unborn Venerable Mother, then in a sense, she really wasn't wrong.

The Unborn Venerable Mother deliberately did not chase Nvba in this direction, which really did protect the people of the Jingji Circuit in a roundabout way.

Jiang Chen paced forward, and soon he saw at the end of the street, a group of people carrying a shrine, holding alms bowls and willow branches, performing initiations for the citizens queuing up.

Inside the shrine was a statue with a blurred face, resembling a young girl, a woman, and an old crone, which was the same statue of The Unborn Venerable Mother he had seen before in Hao Prefecture.

Every time someone came, the person holding the willow branch would dip it into the alms bowl, get a little water, and then gently sprinkle it on the person's head.

After receiving the initiation, the people would feel clear-headed and full of energy, so they kept thanking The Unborn Venerable Mother.

The water on the willow branch must have been mixed with some Heaven And Earth Treasure, which is why it could make the recipients feel the benefits.

"Amitabha, this place is peaceful, which is clearly Nvba's merit. The Unborn Venerable Mother actually claimed the credit!"

When Nvba heard this, realizing she was involved, her eyes lit up.

"Oh? It's also my merit?"

Finally having a chance to strike back, Jianzhen was not polite at all. He said with a straight face, "That's right, if you hadn't come here, how could this place be so peaceful?"

Nvba heard this and felt it made some sense.

But the more she thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong.