Chapter 747: Helping Out

"Mistress, have you let go?" Hearing Lu Xiucai's words, Bai Lingmiao's heart trembled as some hidden memories resurfaced.

She wanted to say that she had, but the words wouldn't come out.

Seeing Bai Lingmiao stand motionless without answering, Lu Xiucai bowed to her, then turned and walked out of the White Lotus Hall.

"Mistress! You don't need to try to dissuade me. While Lu Xiucai may not be of much use, if I can just kill one more follower of the Dharmic Sect, then I'll be useful."

When he heard the drums from the distant military camp, signaling assembly for deployment, Lu Xiucai excitedly adjusted the copper coin sword on his back and ran towards the sound, chanting an opera tune.

"Succeed, my body returns to my homeland; fail, my life is lost in foreign lands! Avenge my kin, it is my rightful duty! With unwavering loyalty, I go alone! My blood boils, my heart ablaze!"

As Lu Xiucai's chant faded into the distance, Bai Lingmiao, her heart growing troubled, silently turned and walked deeper into the hall.

This was the most heavily guarded area, as it housed the White Lotus Sect's most important treasure.

After pushing open a door and walking past two screens, a white lotus radiating soft light appeared before her.

Compared to when it was first discovered in the Ox Heart Village Ancestral Temple, the lotus had now bloomed much larger, and its gentle glow was no longer intermittent but continuous.

A circle of people, men and women, old and young, surrounded the white lotus. Only the most qualified members of the White Lotus Sect were allowed to approach it.

Bai Lingmiao sat cross-legged on a prayer cushion and quietly began to pray to the Twelve-Petal Merit White Lotus.

"Wusheng Laomu, True Empty Homeland; Wusheng Laomu, True Empty Homeland..."

It was both a prayer to Wusheng Laomu and an attempt to convince herself that the True Empty Homeland truly existed.

The white lotus on Bai Lingmiao's forehead shimmered in sync with the lotus on the table, and her upper body involuntarily split into two halves.

The two upper bodies, back to back, had four hands forming lotus mudras, suspended in mid-air, moving up and down like tree branches. She sat cross-legged in the room, resembling a peculiar, short, white fleshy tree.

This appeared to be some kind of cultivation method of the White Lotus Sect, but only the White Lotus Saintess herself knew its true nature.

Two hours later, the sky outside had gradually darkened, but the room remained as bright as day, illuminated by the white lotus.

Suddenly, Bai Lingmiao stopped. After calming herself, she rose from the prayer cushion and turned to listen towards the quiet outside, "What is it?"

Her perceptive abilities were strong; even the slightest movement would not escape her notice.

"Saintess, someone from the Siqi Imperial Guards came to say that His Majesty wishes to see you."

"The Emperor of Siqi?" Bai Lingmiao couldn't help but recall the two dragon veins that had been used as bait.

Although she didn't know why he wanted to see her, Bai Lingmiao naturally dared not delay when summoned by a monarch. She gathered her people and departed.

Although the state of Siqi had been destroyed, it was clear that the emperor's title still held sway. Even in this crowded city, he still used a three-courtyard residence as his sleeping quarters.

When Bai Lingmiao saw the Emperor of Siqi, she almost didn't recognize him, so different was he from his previous disheveled appearance.

Previously, he was like a dragon vein just pulled from the mud, covered in dirt and barely recognizable. But now, the Emperor of Siqi wore a bright yellow robe embroidered with soaring dragons amidst the ocean. Beneath the pearl tassels of his imperial crown, his ink-jade-like pupils gleamed with an inherent authority, and his entire demeanor exuded the imposing aura of a world-shaking king.

"No need to bow. Give Miss Bai a seat."

The Emperor of Siqi, seated behind a table in his dragon robe, waved his hand. Two elderly eunuchs immediately brought a stool forward.

Bai Lingmiao bowed in thanks, then sat down gently and asked, "May I ask, Your Majesty, why you have summoned this humble maiden?"

The Emperor of Siqi scrutinized Bai Lingmiao, "It is said that the White Lotus Sect has spread widely recently, taking over territories from the Dharmic Sect, and almost all the common people have joined the White Lotus Sect."

"Your Majesty exaggerates. The White Lotus Sect's actions are insignificant; everything is merely to prevent the Dharmic Sect from making a comeback." Though she spoke these words, Bai Lingmiao's heart began to pound. Something about his tone felt off.

"Not an exaggeration! Not at all!" A burly, corpulent man in armor walked out from behind. "The number of people who believe in your White Lotus Sect is equivalent to a kingdom of a thousand chariots. If that's 'insignificant,' then nothing else could be considered significant!"

Bai Lingmiao remained silent, unsure what the man meant by his words.

"I summoned the Saintess for no other reason," the Emperor of Siqi said, stepping down from his imperial chair and slowly walking towards Bai Lingmiao with his hands behind his back.

"Since so many White Lotus Sect followers now obey your command, I wish to discuss a small matter with the Saintess."

Bai Lingmiao glanced sideways, waiting for him to continue.

Just then, the fat man beside them interjected, "Ah, Your Majesty, let's not beat around the bush. Let's just say it directly."

After saying this, without waiting for the Emperor of Siqi to speak, the fat man began to chatter, "Saintess, it's like this."

"The Bardo Temple in Qingqiu has a plan. They can perform a ritual to defeat all remaining Dharmic Sect forces in Siqi in one fell swoop. However, the requirements for this ritual are a bit unusual, so they wish to ask for the Saintess's help."

"Bardo Temple?" A wave of unease immediately swept through Bai Lingmiao when she heard the name.

"They require human lives. Not the kind of lives prolonged by Longevity Pills, but human lives for a sacrifice to heaven. Not hundreds, not thousands, but one million eight hundred and ten thousand."

Bai Lingmiao still said nothing, clearly stunned by the number.

The Emperor of Siqi gave the fat general a look, and the general continued, "The strange thing about this matter is that those lamas insist the sacrifices must be willing to die."

"What kind of talk is that? I really don't know how the Qingqiu people's minds work, insisting on willingness. How are we supposed to get that? That's why we're asking for the Saintess's help."

"Surely, there are some useless people within the White Lotus Sect, aren't there? Like the old, weak, sick, and disabled. Why not put them to good use?"

"You can just use your previous teachings. Tell them they will go to the True Empty Homeland after death, and they'll happily go to their demise."

After the fat general finished speaking, the Emperor of Siqi chimed in, "Rest assured, as long as the Dharmic Sect withdraws from Siqi and I am reinstated, no matter how many people die, I will repay you with five times the number of followers!"

"What? Do you perhaps think I am a man who breaks his word? I can swear before my ancestors! Surely, you can be at ease now?"

Bai Lingmiao's hands trembled as she looked at the Emperor of Siqi before her. For some reason, she was reminded of General Peng Longteng.

"Your Majesty!" Bai Lingmiao's voice trembled, "That's a full one million eight hundred thousand lives!"

"What does it matter? They'll be going to the True Empty Homeland to enjoy blessings anyway. What, does the Saintess perhaps think there is no True Empty Homeland?"