Tian Yi thought for a moment, "However, with statues, it's hard to say. That Fire Lord could usurp a place, taking the statues of Zhu Rong and the True Lord of Fire Virtue. It's quite possible for some monster to pop out of a Buddha statue..."
Emperor Wanli truly felt that being an emperor was a high-risk profession. When those ministers woke up, they thought they were attending a story-telling session at court. They were fine, but he was terrified.
Speaking of which, there were quite a few temples, shrines, palaces, and monasteries in Shuntian! If they were all demolished, it would cause quite a stir.
Wanli decided to visit in a couple of days. Before demolishing, he would post a notice, telling the gods to move quickly. True gods would be sent away directly, and if there were evil gods, they would be turned into criminal suspects, though there would be no demolition compensation.
He then asked, "Has the statue of Zhenwu been brought back?"
Tian Yi comforted Emperor Wanli, "The statue of Lord Zhenwu was moved back during the day, and Daoist Master Ji is watching over it."
Emperor Wanli pressed, "It's definitely the one that was moved away before, right? It's Emperor Shizong's statue, right? We didn't move the wrong one?"
Upon receiving confirmation, Emperor Wanli slowly breathed a sigh of relief. His Daoist grandfather had some abilities. He hoped that his statue would still function normally after being moved back. It had been in the great warehouse of the Divine Palace Supervisor for at least thirty-one years...
Is Zhenwu old, can he still fight?
"Tomorrow at the fifth watch, summon the Grand Secretariat and all the ministers... to the Eastern Yue Temple!"
...
In the main hall of Longde Hall, as the fifth watch approached, for the people in the Forbidden City and those on the streets, it seemed that no strange events had occurred this night. It was quiet.
After a night, Ji Xiang's eyes contained radiant divine light.
He felt refreshed, his cultivation was complete, and he felt good.
His essence, qi, and spirit coalesced into form, and a pure white lead flower shone brilliantly, which Ji Xiang retracted into his celestial spirit.
Ji Xiang had already condensed the glory of his human form. With the help of the blank divine tablet, he had greatly shortened the time.
Of course, the Fire Gods whose essence and incense he had previously devoured had also made significant contributions!
Ji Xiang felt that if he cultivated for another day to completely stabilize the foundation of the Four Realms' fetal breath, by tomorrow at this time, he could try to guide a demon over to help him overcome the tribulation, so that his holy embryo could advance further and reach a state of complete perfection.
He then looked at the evil jar. The red-clothed child inside had been refined, and a black bean appeared at the bottom of the jar, exuding a sinister aura.
"Next is the demonic trial. I cannot guide it within the Forbidden City. I will report to Emperor Wanli later and go outside the Forbidden City to guide a demon. Among the ten demons, which one is the easiest to pass..."
Overcoming the demonic trial was the key to entering the next realm and a major hurdle before the completion of the current realm.
In Taoism, there is the saying of "ten demons and nine tribulations," which refers to the tests given by ten types of demons and nine types of unavoidable tribulations.
After the Four Realms, one begins to overcome tribulations, and only after reaching the Fourteenth Realm is one completely free from the ten demons and nine tribulations.
This is like an examination, where the demons are the examiners. This is because in Taoist scriptures, the ten demons are employees under the Heavenly Demon Kings, and the Heavenly Demon Kings are senior executives under the Primordial Heavenly Venerate. Their responsibility is to assess the disposition and state of mind of cultivators. This differs from the demons in Buddhism.
Of course, since it's an examination, one should also choose examiners who are easy to pass.
How can this be called being lazy? This is not laziness, this is called choosing the best! It's like choosing a supervisor when applying for postgraduate studies in university!
Generally speaking, "demonic monsters" are the easiest to summon. You find a fox spirit in the mountains, point at her, and shout, "Transform for me!" or "Monster, I want you to help me cultivate!" When the little fox transforms into a beauty, if lust arises in your heart, the "demonic monster" among the ten demons will come to enforce the law and crack down on illegal activities...
However, this is in the imperial palace, so such actions are naturally not allowed. Lewdness in the imperial harem is a great terror, and there are no demonic monsters here that can help with cultivation.
So Ji Xiang was thinking of finding a monster outside the city, then summoning a demonic monster. This would be pleasing to the eye, serve as an examination, and the passing rate would be very high. Moreover, the demonic monster, as an examiner, has a characteristic: once you pass the examination in its hands, it "will not come again."
Suddenly, there was a commotion in the back hall. Emperor Wanli and his entourage came out, and the Imperial Guards also began to act. They came to inform Ji Xiang that there was a sacrificial event at the Eastern Yue Temple today and that he was to accompany Emperor Wanli.
"The matter of the Fire God Temple just ended, and now the Eastern Yue Temple is having a sacrifice again. Is Emperor Wanli courting death again?"
Such thoughts could not be spoken, and Ji Xiang merely thought about them. He agreed and was led to Emperor Wanli by the Imperial Guards. From the conversations of the crowd, he roughly understood the current situation.
It turned out that some ministers had spoken out of turn, saying that an evil god had appeared in the Fire God Temple and that they should visit other true god temples. They also needed to inform heaven and earth and the ancestors. Something had happened this time, and they wanted to know what was going on and hoped they would bestow their protection, as well as pray for the nation and the emperor himself.
The sacrifices in the southern and northern suburbs were to offer sacrifices to Heaven and express gratitude...
The Altar of Soil and Grain, and the Ancestral Temple, were for sacrificing to the ancestors.
The Altar of the Sun and the Altar of the Moon were places to sacrifice to the sun and moon. The sun and moon are "bright," meaning they were places to pray for good fortune for the nation.
As for the Eastern Yue Temple and the Tai Sui Temple, they were sacrifices to orthodox deities. The Eastern Yue presided over life and death, while the Tai Sui presided over fortune and misfortune.
However, Ji Xiang heard that Emperor Wanli wanted to go to the Eastern Yue Temple first, which was different from the orthodox sacrificial procedure.
...
When the court convened at the fifth watch, the elders of the Grand Secretariat were summoned, including some important ministers. They all gathered near Fengtian Gate to speak. Emperor Wanli's declaration that he intended to demolish the Eastern Yue Temple first immediately drew a wave of criticism.
"Is Your Majesty performing a grand sacrifice or a minor sacrifice?"
"This is not a significant day, so a grand sacrifice should not be performed. However, even a minor sacrifice should begin with the Altar of the Sun and Moon..."
Emperor Wanli waved his hand, "To tell you the truth, I intend to demolish the Eastern Yue Temple! The sacrifice is just a formality. Next, the Tai Sui Temple will also be demolished. With these temples in Shuntian, I am uneasy and fearful!"
The ministers had no choice but to say that even if they were to demolish them, they should at least go and see them first before taking action. Emperor Wanli agreed, saying, "Am I the kind of person who disrespects his ancestors? I highly respect my ancestors!"
If all else fails, I'll rephrase it. What do you mean by demolishing temples? This is called renovation. Don't you have to demolish it first before renovating? As for when it will be rebuilt, that's not for me to decide. You can find the next emperor to approve it.
And so, the entourage set out mightily at the fifth watch, heading southeast, straight to the Eastern Yue Temple by Chaoyang Gate.
Upon arriving at the entrance of the Eastern Yue Temple, at the Zhantai Gate, no anomalies occurred. The plaque of the Eastern Yue Temple was still the same plaque. The Imperial Guards suddenly broke through the door. At the entrance of the main hall of the Eastern Yue Temple, a person was sitting.