The situation with the shepherds was even more complicated than Ren Qing had imagined. There were faint traces of something highly unusual about them, making them impossible to figure out.
Aside from their internal organs resembling those of human females, the fine-wool sheep showed no other signs of humanity.
Their bodies and souls were no different from ordinary livestock, nor did they carry the slightest trace of any cultivation technique.
Even after Ren Qing summoned the Information Flow to inspect them, he found no clues. After all, the Information Flow could only trace matters related to cultivation techniques.
Whether it was the shepherds or the fine-wool sheep, neither seemed connected to Buddhism.
After discussing the matter for a long time, Ren Qing and Li Tiangang still failed to reach any conclusions, so they patiently waited for the Forbidden Corpse's ears to finish mutating.
In less than half a day, a Martial Practitioner-stage aberrant object from Following-Ear Listening fused into the Forbidden Corpse, causing a flood of miscellaneous noises to reverberate through the secondary head.
Watching Ren Qing connect himself to the mutated organ's nerves, Li Tiangang could not help but feel worried, mainly because Song Zongwu was involved.
The more he learned about Buddhism, the more apprehensive he became toward this bizarre cultivation system.
With Song Zongwu's Yang God Realm strength, it was hard to say whether he could withstand the corruption of Buddhist aura when facing a Heavenly Aberration Realm cultivator like Sitting-Deer Arhat.
At that moment, Ren Qing disconnected from the mutated organ and casually blocked the noise generated by Following-Ear Listening to avoid disturbing ordinary cultivators.
Bai Guniang could not help asking,
"Did you find anything?"
Her brows furrowed slightly. The Hall currently lacked enough high-level cultivators. If they truly had to make contact with a Buddhist faction, the timing felt far from ideal.
Ren Qing closed his eyes and replied,
"The shepherds gathered near the canyon because of some sort of festival. They exchange sheep with one another as part of a ritual, praying for lush grasslands in the coming year."
The Perceiver branch of Following-Ear Listening could not translate the shepherds' language directly, but it could roughly convey the intended meaning.
Li Tiangang and Bai Guniang's first reaction was disbelief.
Five years ago, this place had still been covered by acid rain, devoid of life.
They had also noticed days earlier that the shepherds only came here because their flocks had been driven by Buddhist corpses toward the canyon.
How had it suddenly become a ritual festival?
Ren Qing shook his head.
"I plan to investigate what exactly the Buddhists are doing. At the very least, I need to determine Song Zongwu's condition."
"But..."
Li Tiangang hesitated.
He had no idea just how many life-preserving methods Ren Qing possessed. Even if he encountered a Heavenly Aberration cultivator, escaping would be effortless.
Ever since Jingzhou, Ren Qing had repeatedly slipped away from beneath the noses of Earth Immortals. Now that he also possessed Longevous Tortoise, there were few places in the world he truly feared.
After making his decision, Ren Qing noticed that the hexagram on the turtle shell embedded in his upper palate became extremely strange.
It shifted from Auspicious to Auspicious with Misfortune.
So there was an opportunity hidden within?
Most people would interpret Auspicious with Misfortune as obtaining a fortuitous encounter while inevitably facing danger, meaning they must proceed cautiously.
Ren Qing's interpretation was completely different.
To him, it meant that the opportunity itself concealed danger. As long as he did not become greedy for that opportunity, no danger would arise.
What opportunity could compare to attaining immortality?
He already possessed the foundation for becoming an immortal and naturally had no interest in Buddhist opportunities.
"Don't worry. I'll disguise myself as a Buddhist cultivator."
Ren Qing tapped his glabella.
Five golden beetles flew out from Ghost Shadow.
The beetles landed on his forehead and transformed into five dark-gold eyes. Within the whites of the eyes, swastika symbols slowly revolved.
Then, under the astonished gazes of Li Tiangang and Bai Guniang, his appearance underwent a dramatic transformation.
His skin withered and his body stooped.
His facial features instantly changed into those of an elderly monk, while age spots spread across his face.
The person he was imitating was Zong Qing of Lion Buddha Temple.
Both Zong Qing's true body and substitute body were already dead.
Zong Qing was likely the only Yang God Realm cultivator among all the factions who knew the truth behind the Immortal Gate. His journey into the Mirror World had undoubtedly been premeditated.
Yet even Great Compassion Maitreya Bodhisattva had become a pawn in someone else's scheme. Zong Qing naturally could not escape his fate and had died miserably within it.
Ren Qing chose Zong Qing partly because Laughing Lion Arhat's true body remained unstable, suggesting that the substitute body might still be lingering between life and death.
If he firmly claimed to have escaped from the Dead Man Forbidden Zone, nobody could expose him unless Laughing Lion Arhat personally descended.
"Ren Qing?!"
Li Tiangang's scalp went numb.
His Yang God Realm aura erupted instinctively.
From beginning to end, Ren Qing was indistinguishable from a genuine Buddhist cultivator. Had they not witnessed the transformation themselves, they would never have recognized him.
Bai Guniang remained somewhat calmer, though the flying sword tensed behind her back, showing that her reaction had merely been slower.
Though still only a perfected Ghost Envoy Realm disguise technique, with the enhancement of Walk Among Mortals, its effects rivaled a Yin Difference Realm Restriction Officer Technique.
"It's me. Just a technique."
Ren Qing's voice emerged from the old monk's mouth.
Yet after only a few words, it became aged and hoarse, enough to send chills down one's spine.
Would you like to choose the branch Thousand Faces Without Face?
Cost: 200 years of lifespan
Ren Qing did not hesitate.
He advanced the disguise technique to Yin Difference Realm, causing even his soul aura to gradually resemble Zong Qing's.
That was precisely why Li Tiangang and Bai Guniang felt their scalps tingling.
The disguise was simply too perfect.
It even made them feel as though Ren Qing might originally have been a Buddhist cultivator.
The most terrifying aspect of Thousand Faces Without Face had not even begun to show itself.
Combined with Dreamflowers, Ren Qing could transform all tens of thousands of cultivators in the Hall into Buddhists if he wished.
Unfortunately, there were nowhere near enough Dreamflowers to support such a feat.
If necessary, Ren Qing could assemble an entire counterfeit Lion Buddha Temple using the Hall's cultivators, much like the Yellow-Robed Demon impersonating the Buddha in Journey to the West.
Ren Qing said gravely,
"Senior Li, remain within the Stomach World for now. But be prepared for an all-out war at any moment."
Li Tiangang nodded slightly, though his gaze remained fixed on Ren Qing's body and soul.
The advancement of the disguise technique completed quietly.
With the Information Flow and the suppression provided by his Ascension Ladder dream techniques, there was no need for secluded cultivation.
Only after Ren Qing vanished into the Forbidden Corpse's digestive tract did Li Tiangang and Bai Guniang finally recover from the shock.
...
Ren Qing arrived at the Forbidden Corpse's mouth.
Having not set foot in the outside world for so long, he felt somewhat unaccustomed to it.
He took out another Dreamflower containing a small amount of Buddhist aura and transformed it into an old cassock draped over his shoulders.
Then he summoned the Information Flow.
[Would you like to choose the branch Gate of the Non-Immortal?]
[Cost: 1,000 years of lifespan]
The thousand years of lifespan he had just harvested from the Mirror World disappeared in an instant, pushing the Yin Difference Realm Calamity-Dispelling Method toward Yang God Realm.
Although it might affect the future Ascension Method of the Dead Man's Sutra, the Calamity-Dispelling Method was due for a breakthrough anyway.
There was no need to save those thousand years.
The advancement occurred silently.
Ren Qing could sense countless invisible Wu Deceits circling him, wailing amid endless suffering.
Yet no one else could perceive their existence by any means.
His imitation of the elderly monk Zong Qing became flawless.
At the same time, the aura of Restriction Officer Techniques gradually disappeared, completely eliminating his final weakness.
The Yang God Realm stage of the Calamity-Dispelling Method—Gate of the Non-Immortal—greatly enhanced his ability to erase his own presence, while also boosting all subordinate techniques.
The key to Gate of the Non-Immortal lay in the Ghost Gate.
Ren Qing could now vaguely perceive its existence.
With a thought, the great gate cracked open slightly.
Dense smoke poured out.
Countless dried arms stretched from within, as though desperately trying to escape.
The turtle-shell hexagram remained Auspicious with Misfortune, but the two characters seemed soaked in blood, covered in over a hundred cracks.
Ren Qing immediately shut the Ghost Gate.
He still did not know what existed within those rooms beyond the gate.
However, he now possessed the ability to imprison others inside.
What truly made him wary was the gate's rule:
If one person was imprisoned within the Ghost Gate, then one person would inevitably be released.
Unless absolutely necessary, Ren Qing had no intention of opening it again.
He feared that some indescribable horror might emerge and drag him into danger.
Only after the Ghost Gate completely closed did the hexagram return to normal.
Ren Qing glanced at the Information Flow and allowed the Calamity-Dispelling Method to settle into its natural state, concealing all traces of cultivation.
[Lifespan: 355 years]
[Techniques: Calamity-Dispelling Method
(Storyteller, Mirror Immortal, Disguise Technique, Longevous Tortoise), Gate of the Non-Immortal (Lecturing Old Master, Strange Mirror Walker, Thousand Faces Without Face, Knowing Fate in Vain)..]
Divine Ability: Walk Among Mortals..]
...
Just as Ren Qing completed his breakthrough, the shepherd tribe began moving northwest along the deep canyon.
The timing of their arrival coincided almost exactly with Song Zongwu's appearance in Dream City.
There was an eighty percent chance they had been drawn here by him, though their purpose remained unknown.
Now that Song Zongwu had vanished, they too were leaving.
Everything about the situation felt deeply unsettling.
Ren Qing narrowed his eyes.
The five Buddhist eyes on his forehead emitted a faint glow while Ghost Shadow rapidly spread beneath his feet, covering several hundred meters.
The Forbidden Corpse slowly sank into the darkness and was absorbed into the Stomach World.
He placed it on the far side of Wine Lake, directly opposite Wuwei City, making it convenient for cultivators to harvest the resources contained within its body.
However, Ren Qing could clearly feel the burden it placed upon the Stomach World.
After all, the Forbidden Corpse was an Earth Immortal corpse.
For the Yang God Realm Abi Hell to contain it was already extremely difficult. If the corpse ever fully unleashed its strength, it would become a disaster for the Stomach World.
Fortunately, Ren Qing had prepared in advance.
The primary and secondary heads each had clearly defined roles, making loss of control impossible.
He felt that the Method of Modeling Heaven and Earth could barely manifest the Forbidden Corpse through himself, but doing so was far less convenient than simply carrying it outside the Stomach World.
Looking at the enormous pit within the canyon, Ren Qing secretly activated Method of Modeling Heaven and Earth.
This time, he chose the Jailer-level technique Jianmu Technique.
[Jianmu Technique]
[Created by Elder 'Withered Glory'. To cultivate it, one must swallow water, seeds, and soil, then seal all five senses and bodily openings until the seeds sprout into saplings within the body.]
Ren Qing extended his wooden arm.
Vegetation throughout the canyon grew at a visible rate, quickly covering the giant pit.
He was not trying to erase every trace.
Even if a Buddhist faction noticed something strange, uncovering the truth behind the Forbidden Corpse would cost them considerable time.
Then he headed toward the shepherd tribe, pretending to be seriously injured.
Ren Qing deliberately collapsed unconscious along the path they were certain to travel.
Before long, the shepherds discovered him.
Then something entirely unexpected happened.
The shepherds were terrified upon seeing Ren Qing.
They shouted continuously.
Through Following-Ear Listening, Ren Qing transmitted their speech to the Forbidden Corpse's ears and learned that they were calling him a "demon."
It was the same reaction they had displayed when encountering the Buddhist corpses.
Yet only moments later, after a brief period of confusion, their attitudes changed without the slightest warning.
They became fanatically fervent.
And they began addressing Ren Qing as..
"Buddha."