Enlightenment, My Buddhist friends

"Glug-glug... how long will you continue to pray? When a person dies, the truth is gone. What's the point?"

On a stretch of desolate wasteland, Su Min sat atop a small pile of stones, idly sipping the liquor from her treasured gourd. It had been a full week since they left the city. Their progress wasn't exactly swift. After all, how fast could one move when their companion insisted on chanting sutras and reciting prayers at every roadside grave?

Of course, he wasn't doing it without reason. Though called wastelands, these places were, in truth, mass graves. Fugitives and refugees who had perished in the wilds were buried hastily, without rites—naturally, their spirits could not rest.

Don't be fooled by the barren silence by day. Once night fell, these lands would instantly transform into ghost markets. Within a radius of tens of kilometers, no living soul dared venture close.

"Buddha-friend, how did the world come to this?"

Hearing Su Min's casual remark, the young monk let out a long sigh. Restricted as he was, he had been doing his best to avoid contact with others. Were it not for Su Min traveling with him, he would not have dared even this much. Thus, he knew little of how the great Wei Dynasty had fallen into such a state.

"It's like this..."

Su Min, hearing his question, did not hold anything back. She calmly recounted all the causes and consequences from beginning to end. As for the term "Buddha-friend," it had been adopted after Su Min had formally learned the Great Sun Tathāgata Sutra. By that point, the monk had acknowledged her as something of a fellow disciple.

"This..."

As Su Min finished speaking, the young monk's face darkened with suppressed fury.

"A ruler of the mortal world, to believe the whispers of demons and commit such heaven-defying acts...!"

"What else could he do? That damned emperor is already over seventy. Only sorcery and forbidden arts could offer him the longevity he craves."

Su Min couldn't even summon anger anymore. Had it been back when she first crossed into this world, she would have stomped her feet in rage.

"You're right. To truly save the people, the rot must be cut from the root. Since that's the case—why not simply overthrow the dynasty itself?"

"Uh..."

The young monk, who had moments ago been burning with righteous indignation, now turned to stare at her in utter disbelief. He had been thinking of finding a way into the imperial capital, exposing the demon empress's true face, and persuading the emperor to return to the right path. Yet this woman's thoughts leapt somewhere entirely different. Cut it off at the root? Overthrow the entire dynasty?!

"Amitabha... the Demon Queen has truly sown chaos—"

"Chaos my ass. It's just an old fool greedy for immortality."

"..."

The monk opened his mouth to retort, but Su Min's bluntness left him speechless. The more he thought about it, the more he realized she was right. Human desire knew no bounds. Even he, a monk, was not free from temptation. Thus, to prevent future rulers from falling into the same trap, it was indeed better to take charge—reshape the dynasty from the beginning, and guide the next sovereign onto the righteous path.

In that moment, the young monk found himself deeply admiring Su Min's foresight. With just a few casual words, she had already mapped out a future beyond the fall of an empire.

"Buddha-friend, your wisdom is profound. This humble monk is enlightened. To save the masses, one must not focus on individuals, but the world as a whole. The roots must be healed, not just the leaves and branches."

"Huh?"

Seeing the monk suddenly cast aside his chanting and exorcisms, Su Min blinked in confusion.

"Buddha-friend, you have awakened my heart. Today, we part ways. I shall seek a destined sovereign; you, continue your path. We shall meet again at journey's end." With that, the monk's figure dissolved into thin air, leaving Su Min utterly unable to react.

"What the hell did he just comprehend? And wait—did he just dump all the power of this incarnation into movement speed because he couldn't fight here?" Su Min stared into the empty distance, puzzled. But soon, she simply shrugged.

Clearly, the monk's true cultivation was profound. Unlike her, constantly striving for every ounce of progress, he had the leisure to pursue broader missions. Even if this mortal body of his shattered entirely, it would not matter much.

"Wait—he's not actually planning to start a rebellion, is he? I was just venting!"

After all, Su Min was a modern person at heart. Her thought patterns differed greatly from those of ancient people. Plus, considering the grievances she had suffered upon arriving in this world, venting a bit was natural. It wasn't as if that damned emperor could do anything to her anyway.

"Heh... Well, this isn't so bad."

Su Min chuckled mischievously. At the end of the day, it cost her nothing. In fact, she suspected the monk's goal already: to find a true Dragon's Heir—a rightful future Son of Heaven.

~Edit and rewritten by Rikhi, Reiya_Alberich, ReiNyam~

She had no objections. She would settle accounts with the dog emperor eventually. But killing him without securing the aftermath, leaving the land to fracture into endless warlords' battles?Absolutely not. If someone else handled the succession, that was just perfect. Besides, she only had one enemy. The rest of the world had nothing to do with her.

"Well then... the journey continues. About 800 kilometers to go."

Glancing at the map in her hand, Su Min fell into deep thought. Naturally, she had no intention of following the twisting, winding roads. She drew a straight line to her destination, willing to circle around a few cities if necessary. As for any so-called towering mountains—before her, they might as well be flat ground.

Not to mention, she could fly. Though she couldn't maintain flight over vast distances yet, crossing any terrain obstacle was no major problem. Even if Mount Everest stood before her, she could cross it within a dozen minutes.

At her current level—Qi Refinement Stage—she was already far beyond the capabilities of ordinary humans. Fortunately, cultivation didn't seem to make her more "grand-minded" either, which was great news: she could act freely without getting bogged down by lofty morals.

Two Weeks Later — Windswept Desert

When Su Min gazed out across the endless, desolate sands, her face darkened slightly. She wasn't overly fastidious by nature, nor was she obsessed with cleanliness. She could travel for days without rest if necessary. But even she felt miserable now. Her loose, flowing hair was whipped into a tangled mess by the desert winds, caked in grit and dust.

Though it wasn't the worst—thanks to her spatial ring's vast capacity. Inside, she stored not just countless supplies, but even an entire small house and abundant clean water. She could easily dig a hole, hide, and take a proper bath whenever she wished. No, the real issue was more serious: The sandstorms severely disrupted her sensory perception. She couldn't sense far-off presences anymore.

For someone like her—who specialized in detection and perception—it was like being struck blind. Especially troubling considering there were... creatures about.

"The map says there are three major cities around here. Looks like I'll have to enter one and gather information."

She muttered, flipping her hand to store away the map. However, even back in the heyday of the Wei Dynasty, these desert cities were semi-autonomous and largely beyond central control.

Now? They were practically lawless territories.