The Lord of Void and Real
Chapter 567

Chapter 567: Chapter 563: Ling Mountain Plan Chapter 567: Chapter 563: Ling Mountain Plan “Elder, what exactly happened back then?” Shen Luo pondered for a long time, then asked.

“What are you referring to? The eruption of the disaster of demons, or the destruction of Heavenly Court…in the end, they were all the same event.” Li Jing paused a bit halfway through speaking, then gave a bitter smile.

“Would the elder please enlighten me about the specifics of the destructive demonic event from back then?” said Shen Luo, with a furrowed brow.

Concerning the disaster of demons, he currently knew very little about it, for it was more of a legend that had yet to come true in reality. If he could truly learn the details of the actual disaster in advance, perhaps he could prevent it after returning to reality.

With this in mind, Shen Luo believed that the divine soul of Pagoda Heavenly King was waiting for him.

“My memory isn't complete, but I can only tell you what I know. As for the truth behind it all, you'll have to explore and piece it together yourself.” Li Jing briefly hesitated before speaking.

“Elder, speak at your ease.” Shen Luo said hurriedly.

“After an ancient war that swept across the Three Realms, the Demon Clan's Supreme Chiyou was defeated, decapitated, and his limbs severed. His demon soul was sealed, and the Three Realms enjoyed a few years of relative tranquility. However, the intent of the demons to wreak havoc in the Three Realms never died, and some members of the Demon Clan attempted to unlock the seal and resurrect Chiyou in the Human World.” Li Jing said.

Shen Luo knew about some of these events, but he didn't interrupt Li Jing, allowing him to continue speaking.

“Later on, anomalies started to appear between Heaven and Earth. The earth veins no longer remained stable, monstrous aberrations sprang up everywhere in the Human World and chaos began in the Three Realms. Regardless of whether they were divinities or mighty beings at the heavenly court or on the earth, they all sensed that a storm was coming. The Heavenly Court, considering that the disaster of demons started with the Demon Clan, decided to address the problem starting from the Demon Clan itself. Thus, the Jade Emperor and Buddha Tathagata of The Western Paradise joined hands to formulate the 'Ling Mountain Plan' ” Li Jing continued.

“Ling Mountain Plan?” Shen Luo was quite puzzled.

“You certainly know of the Ling Mountain Plan from back then, but under a different name – 'Pilgrimage to the West'. Seeing the changes in Shen Luo's expression, Li Jing spoke with a slightly solemn gaze.

“What? Master Xuanzang's long journey to the west for scriptures was part of the Ling Mountain Plan?” Shen Luo's countenance changed abruptly as he remarked with surprise.

This incident was widely circulated amongst the general populace, with people having written it into folklore. Thus, Shen Luo was not at all unfamiliar with the story of the hardened trials that he and his four disciples had gone through to obtain the true sutras.

However, he was unclear why, after their return to Chang'an, his five disciples only called for an unprecedentedly large Water-Land Conference in the Da Ci'en Temple. After that, Master Sanzang announced that he would translate the scriptures in the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and seldom ever appeared in public again.

His three disciples with vast abilities, who were supposed to spread the word, also disappeared and were never seen by the world again. Many later speculated the authenticity of this epic journey, rendering it a concoction of fiction under the pen of literary figures.

“It's perfectly normal for you not to know this. From its inception, the Ling Mountain Plan has been a closely guarded secret in the Heavenly Realm. There are very few who know the truth about it, including the Jade Emperor, Buddha, Taishang Laojun, Guanyin Bodhisattva, Maitreya Buddha, and Bodhi Ancestor. Their numbers did not exceed ten. Even those five disciples did not know anything about it at first.” Li Jing continued.

“So, their real purpose for the journey was not just to seek scriptures?” Shen Luo frowned and asked.

“You could say not entirely. After all, there were more and more disturbances caused by demons within the Great Tang Kingdom, and the moral values of the people were gradually deteriorating. They needed to be diverted, educated, and converted to Mahayana Buddhism. After all, the change in one person's heart affects all people, the change in heart of a nation's people affects harmony, and the change in the collective conscience of a realm affects the fate of Heaven and Earth. If the general trend is towards goodness, then the pollution of Heaven and Earth can naturally be eliminated, thus averting a great disaster.” Li Jing shook his head as he spoke.

Upon hearing this, Shen Luo sighed to himself. The times he lived in, where Mahayana Buddhism was already spread throughout the Great Tang, countless Buddhist temples had been built, and missionary monks wandered everywhere, preaching. But still, the disturbances caused by the demons were becoming increasingly severe.

“Relying on Buddhism for education… Forget how long it would take, just teaching people to learn and practice Buddhism is difficult enough.” He couldn't help but speak out.

“That's why this is just a part of the Ling Mountain Plan. The other part involves spreading a rumor, alleging that eating the flesh of Tang Sanzang can grant eternal life and unsurpassable powers. By using this bait, they lured in the cunning hidden demons to capture them all, thus eliminating the risk of the disaster.” Li Jing continued.

“What a clever scheme. Not to mention how many ancient hidden big demons were lured in and finally slain, merely recruiting Sun Wukong, the demon king of his generation, into Buddhism was indeed a great coup.” Shen Luo couldn't help but admire.

“It's not as simple as you think. The Victorious Fighting Buddha was originally transformed from the five-color divine stone left behind by the Nuwa after she mended the sky. He is not fundamentally a demon in the usual sense,” Li Jing shook his head.

“Could it be that Sun Wukong was originally arranged by the Heavenly Realm?” Shen Luo vaguely guessed something.

“Otherwise, how could he have won the favor of the Bodhi ancestor and been personally instructed in profound skills? Did you believe that only Tang Sanzang was a pilgrim? In reality, Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujing, and White Dragon Horse, they were all pilgrims. Each of their incarnations was an arrangement set by the Heavenly Court and Ling Mountain.” Li Jing chuckled as he spoke.

Light flashed in Shen Luo's mind as he recalled the trials from the legend of the pilgrimage, and doubts once again arose in his heart:

“But, on their pilgrimage, many of the demons they encountered were divine beasts transformed into demons. Why was that?”

“While the Heavenly Court and Ling Mountain used the quest for scriptures to lure out the demons, they also somewhat decentralized them. Wouldn't the demons have a strategy against the Heavenly Court and Ling Mountain? They too were actively bewitching the heavenly generals and Buddhist disciples of the Western Paradise. Quite a few weak-willed individuals, those who hold resentment towards Heavenly rules revealed their true colors during this time.” Li Jing explained.

“So that's how it was. These measures were quite effective already, so why did it still fail in the end?” Shen Luo's understanding dawned upon him, and he asked a complicated question again.

“Well…I'm afraid nobody can tell for sure. It's possible that it's just fate. Six or seven years after Master Sanzang returned from his pilgrimage, including Zhenyuanzi and Bodhi Ancestor and other great powers, they discovered that the scriptures of Mahayana Buddhism could not transform the people. And the chaotic aura between Heaven and Earth hadn't changed, thus the Ling Mountain Plan was declared a failure. At that time, something else also happened, and the situation worsened even further.” Li Jing sighed heavily.

“What exactly happened?” Hearing him say this, Shen Luo became increasingly tense.