Seeing the unbearable look on Li Zhi's face, King Chakravartin comforted him and said, "Don't worry, human emperor. The Wangchuan River is just to wash away their grievances. When they have washed away their grievances and entered the Palace of Yama, justice will be waiting for them."
Li Zhi pondered for a moment: "If a treacherous and evil person endures the pain of peeling skin and bones in the Wangchuan River, it is his own fault. But if he is a kind person, he also has to suffer this kind of pain, how can Lord Yan tolerate it? "
The King of Chakravartin heard this and let out a long sigh: "I and the Nine Hall Yamas know everything about this matter, but apart from that, the underworld has no other way. To be honest with the emperor, in fact, all the wronged souls in the Wangchuan River are good people. Just imagine. If he is a heinous person, how can he feel resentful after death?"
Li Zhi's eyes lit up: "Yan Jun means that there is no other way in the underworld, but there are other ways elsewhere?"
The Wheel-turning King nodded: "Lingshan Great Thunder Sound Temple, Buddha Tathagata created the Mahayana teachings of the Tripitaka, which can transcend the dead and ascend to heaven, and can overcome difficulties and escape suffering. If people are saved by the Tripitaka Sutra after death, they will never be riddled with resentment again. .”
Li Zhi looked back at Meng Po at the bridge: "After drinking Meng Po soup and stepping onto the Naihe Bridge, you will forget your past and present lives. Even if you go to the eighteenth level of hell, how will your soul know what it is doing?"
The Reincarnation King did not expect Li Zhi to ask this question. He was stunned for a moment, and then said: "That's why there is karma, and that's why there is reincarnation of good and evil."
Li Zhi sighed softly when he heard this, and then walked towards the other side.
After getting off the Naihe Bridge, Li Zhi looked into the distance and saw that although the underworld was vast, it was gloomy and gloomy.
When asked about the reason, the Wheel-turning King said that it was all caused by resentment.
Although the snakes, insects, rats, and ants in the Forgotten River can eat the resentment, some of it still remains in the water.
Over time, resentment overflowed, and the underworld became what it is today.
After speaking, the Wheel King waved his hand, and a fairyland-like scene appeared in front of Li Zhi.
"Human Emperor, this is the underworld that was just created by Empress Houtu. At that time, the underworld was more like a paradise than an underworld."
Li Zhi pondered for a moment and said, "If this continues, what kind of destination will the underworld be?"
The King of Wheels said in a deep voice: "The earth collapsed and the underworld ceased to exist; the ghosts scattered and the world became purgatory."
Li Zhiyi frowned: "Is there a way to resolve it?"
"Originally there was no way to resolve it. Now that Tathagata Buddha created the Mahayana teachings, the underworld has a glimmer of hope. If the Human Emperor can welcome the Tripitaka Sutra back to the Tang Dynasty and save the souls of the dead, one day the underworld will return to its former glory. Scenery."
"How can we welcome the Tripitaka Sutra into the Tang Dynasty?"
King Zhuan Lun shook his head: "I don't know, but I ask King Tang to pay close attention after returning to the Yangtze River."
Li Zhi nodded: "Don't be anxious, Mr. Yan. I will discuss with all the ministers after I turn around and then make a decision. Although I am only the king of the Tang Dynasty, I don't want the lives of the four continents to be devastated."
The Wheel King bowed deeply: "Thank you very much, Human Emperor. Please come with me to see the scenery of the underworld."
Li Zhi nodded: "Okay, please Yan Jun to lead the way."
Although there are many scenes in the underworld, they all reveal a chilling atmosphere.
Although the Eighteenth Level of Hell is a place to punish evildoers, it can also make people feel numb.
The Palace of Yama is extremely majestic, but it also makes people feel depressed under the background of various ghosts.
Because of Li Zhi's arrival, the ten palaces of Yama gathered together to entertain the king of the Tang Dynasty.
There is no meat and wine in the underworld, so we can only entertain people with tea.
Perhaps they were all the lords of the current dynasty, and Li Zhi had a very happy chat with the ten kings of hell.
Suddenly, a dull drum beat sounded, and King Yama's expression changed when he heard the sound: "Human Emperor, it's time to set off. If you delay, your soul will be contaminated with yin energy, which may be detrimental to your yang life."
Seeing the other nine people nodding, Li Zhi, who was not yet satisfied, could only stand up and leave.
After sending Li Zhi out of the Yama Palace, King Qin Guang suddenly said: "Human Emperor, although your life span is not over, your body has been seriously ill. If you want to continue to govern, you need a good prescription to remove the root cause of the disease."
Li Zhi thanked King Qin Guang and followed King Zhuan Lun to a high mountain.
Following the path to the top of the mountain, I suddenly saw a mountain stream blocking the road, with a dazzling golden light emitting from the mountain stream.
Li Zhi looked at the mountain stream and said puzzledly: "Yan Jun, how can you survive in this mountain stream?"
The Wheel King said with a smile: "The Human Emperor misunderstood that this is the most famous scenery in the underworld. If you come to the underworld and don't see it here, it will be a pity in your life."
When Li Zhi heard this, he looked out and saw thousands of golden lights and thousands of auspicious colors in the mountain stream.
Just when he was about to take a closer look, the King of Wheels suddenly stretched out his hand and pushed: "If you don't return the sun now, how will you wait?"
Li Zhi was unprepared at this moment and immediately fell off the cliff and fell downwards.
Seeing that the falling speed was getting faster and faster, he was worried: Could he fall to death again?
In a rage, he opened his eyes suddenly, only to see the queen looking at him anxiously.
At this time, in the underworld, the dull drum beat became more and more urgent, and the face of Yama of the Tenth Palace became even more ugly.
Outside the Yama Hall, those so-called lonely wild ghosts were running around in panic, as if they would disappear in the next moment.
Suddenly, a majestic man appeared out of thin air, standing between heaven and earth. The aura emanating from his body seemed to turn the entire underworld into powder.
"You are so bold, you dare to bewitch the Human Emperor."
As he spoke, the man waved his hand, and a strong wind suddenly blew up, and then the underworld that Tang Wang had just visited disappeared into smoke, leaving only the ten palaces of Yama standing out of thin air, but they were also in a miserable state.
The man sneered when he saw this, and then slapped him again.
Although Yama of the Tenth Hall wanted to escape, his body no longer obeyed his orders.
Just at the moment of despair, two giant palms appeared out of thin air, one palm faced the man, and the other palm rolled up the Ten Palaces of Yama and disappeared.
As the two palms met, a force that destroyed the heaven and earth spurted out, almost turning the heaven and earth into nothingness.
When everything returned to calm, the giant palm and the man had disappeared, leaving only the mighty aura spreading across the heaven and earth.
The atmosphere in the Chang'an court hall the next day was extremely solemn, because all the officials knew that the soul of the Tang Dynasty King was in the underworld.
On the other hand, Li Zhi's expression remained as usual, and he even had the leisure to tell everyone interesting stories about the underworld.
When he was young, Zuo Prime Minister Wei Ran came out of the office and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, the Tang Dynasty has been going on for more than three hundred years, but there has never been any talk of ghosts causing trouble. Now that your Majesty suddenly wanders to the underworld, I think there must be something fishy in it."
Li Zhi smiled slightly: "Wei Aiqing, am I just dreaming?"
Wei Ran shook his head: "I don't dare. It's just that the King of Wheels has repeatedly stated that he will go west to Lingshan to obtain the Mahayana teachings, which is a bit suspicious."
The next moment, Wang Fangyi, the Minister of Rites, came out to greet him: "Your Majesty, what the Prime Minister said is absolutely true. The four major continents in the world, except our Nanfang continent, all respect the Buddha and respect the Tao. But what is the scene in the three continents now? You don't know. .”
Then Wang Fangyi turned around and said to the ministers: "Monsters are rampant in Hezhou in Xiniu, and the people are struggling to survive every day; Luzhou in Beiju still has hair and drinks blood, and they don't know what enlightenment is; Dongsheng Shenzhou is a place where monsters linger, and there is almost no sign of ordinary people. . Only in the Tang Dynasty, the people are happy and the seas and rivers are clear. If this is the case, why should we introduce Buddhism into the Tang Dynasty?"
As soon as Wang Fangyi finished speaking, another civil servant came out: "If one day, the underworld collapses due to resentment, and ghosts wander in the world, how can the Tang Dynasty be spared? In my opinion, if the resentment of the dead souls can be overcome, the peace of the Tang Dynasty will be preserved forever. , it is not a bad idea to introduce Mahayana teachings into the Tang Dynasty."
Just as this person finished speaking, another person said loudly: "Do you still remember what happened in the previous dynasty? There are many temples and Taoist temples throughout Nanfanbuzhou. But the monks and Taoists do not respect the law and their ancestors, they are like maggots attached to the bones. , blood-sucking insects, turning the entire Eastern Land into a smog. What can we do if we introduce Buddhism into the Tang Dynasty and repeat the mistakes of the previous dynasty?"
As civil and military officials from all over the dynasty came out to give advice, the court hall was filled with people and it was very lively.
Li Zhi smiled bitterly when he saw this. He had foreseen this situation before he went to court.
When the debate among the ministers was at its most intense, Li Zhi suddenly coughed loudly.
After finally stopping his coughing, the chamberlain discovered that there was a trace of blood in his handkerchief.
Seeing this, the officials stopped arguing and all looked at their king.
Just when everyone was at a loss, the guards guarding the palace gate came into the palace to report.
Just now, two boys came from outside the palace, saying that they were disciples of Guanyin and could cure the old illness of the king of Tang Dynasty.
Wei Ran frowned when he heard this: His Majesty just wandered into the underworld last night, and today a Guanyin disciple came to treat his illness. What a coincidence.
Seeing Li Zhiyi's brows furrowing, Wei Ran cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, you can invite the two of them to see you and see how they respond."
Li Zhi nodded: "I will retreat from the court today. Wei Qing will stay and Xuan Ertong will come to see you."
Although the officials were reluctant, they could only exit the main hall and return to the mansion to wait for news.
In the morning of the next day, everyone saw that Li Zhi had changed from his usual sluggish look, as if he was a different person.
He has never looked so good since he came to the throne.
After all the officials presented the memorial, Li Zhi said: "Dear dear friends, since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the people have been the foundation of the country, which has led to the prosperous age it is today. Emperor Taizong even famously said: The people are like water, and the emperor is like a boat. Water can carry a boat or overturn it! But if we want the Tang Dynasty to be prosperous for eternity, we also need the stability of the Three Realms. Therefore, I want to send an eminent monk to Lingshan to receive the Mahayana teachings, so that I can save the wronged souls and resolve the sufferings of the world. Dear Sirs, What do you think?"
As soon as Li Zhi finished speaking, Wang Fangyi took a step forward and said, "Your Majesty has spoken so eloquently, I dare not disagree! I just want to know, if the Tathagata really intended to dedicate the Mahayana teachings to Your Majesty, why didn't he deliver it in person? Although he is a Buddha, But His Majesty is the Human Emperor, no less than him!"
Immediately afterwards, General Qin Yong came out and said: "What Mr. Wang said is true. Looking at the whole world, only our Tang Dynasty is the paradise on earth. Even though the Tathagata is a Buddha, he should not get involved in our Tang Dynasty! If he really If you are serious, you should send disciples to escort the Mahayana teachings and pay homage to our emperor!"
Li Zhi gave a wry smile and said, "Don't be anxious, gentlemen. Yesterday, the two boys of gold and silver under the Guanyin seat said that the Mahayana teachings should not be given to others easily, otherwise even if you get the true scripture, it will be useless. If you want the true scripture to show its power, A devout person needs to travel across mountains and rivers to personally welcome him back, so that he can show his sincerity."
Qin Yong snorted: "Your Majesty, I am a military general and speak rudely. I hope your Majesty will not blame you. In today's Tang Dynasty, every household enshrines ancestral tablets. How can there be leisure to care about the Tathagata of birds? To be honest with you, even if he Kneeling in front of me, I don’t believe those deceptive words.”
Having said this, Qin Yong turned to the ministers and said: "Everyone, I heard that the monks in Hezhou, Xiniu, only meditate and chant sutras every day, and never work. They rely on the incense of the people to keep themselves fat and white. What's more, What's more, whenever the money is not enough, he will go down the mountain to take it by force. How is such a person any different from a moth?"
Wei Ran coughed lightly: "General Qin must be careful, that is not called taking by force, that is called begging."
Qin Yong curled his lips: "Alchemy? Reaching out to ask for money, isn't it just taking it by force? The people worked hard, but in the end they had nothing to eat. They did nothing all day long, but they were full of fat. If such a person arrived in the Tang Dynasty, I will cut him into pieces!"
Li Zhi couldn't help but smile: "General Qin, we also have monks in the Tang Dynasty, and they are also working."
"Your Majesty, it was the Tang Dynasty that taught them how to behave. I am not worried about anything else. I am worried that the Tathagata will take advantage of me to welcome the Mahayana teachings and send those worms to the Tang Dynasty."
Li Zhi looked serious: "I guarantee that as many people from the Tang Dynasty go to Lingshan, as many people will come back. And the Mahayana teachings can only save the souls of the dead and cannot be used for other purposes! The Tang Dynasty is the Tang Dynasty for the people, and it is definitely not a sect. of the Tang Dynasty! This is the confidence you and the people of the Tang Dynasty have given me!"
This is the first time that Li Zhi has publicly used the word "I" in front of officials since he ascended the throne.
