The Buddha Position was similar to a Fruit Position, yet fundamentally different in nature.
Compared to a Fruit Position, the Buddha Position created by Ren Qing was actually closer to an Immortal Position. Cultivators could refine the Buddha Position and thereby wield Buddhist qi.
In theory, the Buddha Position was formed from Dragon Roar Within the Casket and an Immortal Office, meaning he could control it completely.
But since it involved the Tathagata Buddha, even though the hexagram on the turtle shell showed no changes, Ren Qing still couldn't shake the lingering unease.
After hesitating again and again, Ren Qing ultimately decided to proceed cautiously.
Giving up on the Buddha Position was unrealistic. If it truly could transfer Heavenly Dao Assimilation through a Buddha, it would have profound implications for his future plans.
Using the Heavenly Dao of Heaven and Earth Genesis, Ren Qing could remotely control Immortal Offices.
If he also gained the ability to transfer Heavenly Dao Assimilation, then even Turbid Immortals could become pieces on his chessboard, provided his strength reached a sufficient level.
Besides, there wasn't the slightest indication that the Buddha Position had any hidden drawbacks.
Ren Qing decided to try a different approach and see whether he could create an alternative Buddha to replace the Tathagata Buddha in receiving the Earth Immortal Office.
He patiently read through every kind of Buddhist scripture, occasionally seeking guidance from Song Zongwu.
After inheriting part of the Nameless Ascetic's memories, Song Zongwu's understanding of Buddhist teachings had reached the point of complete mastery, despite the fact that he himself believed in no Buddha whatsoever.
With the assistance of hundreds of bacterial souls, Ren Qing began writing a blasphemous Buddhist scripture.
The contents were completely cobbled together from different sources, though he still pursued internal consistency, so at first glance it genuinely seemed authentic.
Ren Qing displayed the same concentration he had used when creating Restraint Officer Methods, even meticulously fabricating the Buddha's experiences as a mortal.
This Buddha was called the Sutra-Reciting Arhat, while the scripture itself was named the Sutra of Buddha Recitation. According to its contents, he became an Arhat after receiving enlightenment from the Great Compassion Maitreya Bodhisattva.
His appearance was that of an ordinary novice monk chanting scriptures, bearing three or four parts resemblance to Tang Sheng, though not nearly as robust.
Ren Qing immediately used Dragon Roar Within the Casket on the Sutra of Buddha Recitation before merging it with the Earth Immortal Office, yet it still failed to produce a Buddha Position.
The scripture's intelligence was no better than that of a wild beast, spending every day gnawing on furniture.
Ren Qing rubbed his temples. Then he recalled that Buddhism was always tied to incense offerings. Perhaps the Sutra-Reciting Arhat simply wasn't famous enough?
Maybe after it spread among the people, the scripture would undergo some indescribable transformation.
Ren Qing immediately contacted Tang Sheng and had him erect statues of the Sutra-Reciting Arhat inside the temples dedicated to the Great Compassion Maitreya Bodhisattva.
After learning what the Sutra-Reciting Arhat looked like, Tang Sheng felt rather uncomfortable.
He had already ascended to the Heavenly Palace. The mortal world also had statues of him, but they were merely abbot statues, nowhere near being elevated to the status of an Arhat.
Tang Sheng wanted to say something but stopped himself. In the end, he could only contact his disciples in the mortal world through Dream City, and before long the Sutra-Reciting Arhat became known throughout Heaven Above Heaven.
Part of the credit naturally belonged to Tang Sheng, who had earned a reputation in the mortal world through his tireless dedication.
Ren Qing also made preparations on another front. He had no intention of completely abandoning the Tathagata Buddha Position, but before touching it he wanted to establish more safeguards. The first priority was advancing Wuying Ghost to the Ascension Ladder.
The core element of an Ascension Method was extremely important.
Ren Qing currently had only a rough concept, making this the perfect opportunity to use the recovery period of the Heavenly Dao Crack to thoroughly refine the direction of Wuying Ghost's Ascension Method.
He entered closed-door cultivation, no longer paying attention to outside developments, only occasionally checking on the Immortal Offices he had previously bestowed.
The Three Realms system had only just taken shape. If some accident caused it to collapse, Heaven and Earth Genesis would also suffer.
After Ren Qing sealed off the Three Realms, it indeed caused a small amount of chaos, mainly because the descendants of cultivators living in the Heavenly Palace all remained in the mortal world.
Fortunately, Dream City still existed, so cultivators did not become overly attached to the lower realm.
Most Ghost Immortals, after gaining the ability to travel between the Three Realms, chose to venture out in search of resources, hoping to advance further with the Heavenly Dao's blessing.
After Song Zongwu and the other Human Immortals finished establishing their cave abodes, they began accepting young Daoist attendants as disciples, mainly to help manage those abodes.
No branch experienced any obvious shift in strength because of the power of the Immortal assigned to it.
Immortals stood apart from heaven and earth, devoting nearly all their energy to cultivation. It likely wouldn't be long before new Yang Spirit realm cultivators appeared.
Seeing that the Immortal Offices positively promoted the development of the Restraint Officers' Hall, Ren Qing nodded to himself and refrained from interfering with Stomach World.
Even if internal conflicts eventually erupted among the branches, or rogue cultivators disrupted the Heavenly Palace, as long as they didn't threaten the foundations of the Restraint Officers' Hall or the normal functioning of the Three Realms, Ren Qing would not interfere excessively. Only through minor disasters and hardships could the Restraint Officers' Hall continue to grow stronger.
At that moment, Ren Qing noticed Great Dream真人's movements, which were truly rather strange.
After appearing at the Enfeoffment Ceremony, Great Dream真人 vanished once again. Only through the Heavenly Dao could Ren Qing vaguely sense his condition.
Ren Qing discovered that Great Dream真人 was nowhere near as endangered as expected. In fact, both body and soul remained in peak condition the entire time.
The reason he couldn't contact him was most likely because of the environment Great Dream真人 currently occupied, one capable of blocking dream-based techniques.
Ren Qing repeatedly activated Heaven and Earth Genesis, confirming Great Dream真人's location over and over.
He should be fifty thousand li south of Xiangxiang, and most likely underground as well. Whether he had already left the Endless Forest remained unknown.
The fact that Great Dream真人 had come to the Enfeoffment Ceremony suggested he might have wanted to warn Ren Qing, yet his soul showed no trace of panic. It didn't seem like he was asking for help.
Ren Qing glanced at the turtle shell's hexagram.
Whenever he investigated Great Dream真人's situation further, the hexagram transformed into "Great Fortune," clearly indicating that the other party had encountered some kind of opportunity.
Ren Qing transformed a bacterial soul into a Nightmare Fiend, attempting to contact Great Dream真人 through dreams.
Dreams produced during sleep were exceptionally strange. Even across tens of thousands of li, within that realm balanced between reality and illusion, the distance might be no more than a few steps.
The bacterial soul stood within Ren Qing's Mud Pellet Palace, as though opening a window leading to Great Dream真人, then leaned inside to take a look.
Endless darkness appeared before Ren Qing's eyes, accompanied by the sound of bubbles bursting and surging currents of water.
He surveyed his surroundings, confirming that this was not Great Dream真人's deep dream.
Not long afterward, eerie whispers echoed through the darkness, though they sounded as if the speaker's mouth were filled with water, making the words impossible to understand.
Unexplained tears began appearing across the bacterial soul's body. With his consciousness attached to it, Ren Qing experienced the pain firsthand and couldn't help sucking in a sharp breath.
He desperately maintained Zhili Technique as the bacterial soul gradually twisted and warped.
Just as Ren Qing's consciousness was on the verge of dissipating, Great Dream真人's muttering echoed through the darkness with an icy chill.
"A fleeting dream of yellow millet must eventually end. Rootless and boundless, all things return to dust."
Great Dream真人's tone felt utterly out of place. After repeating the words several times, his voice became increasingly faint, mingled with the cries of an infant and the relieved breathing of a woman.
Ren Qing then witnessed a bizarre scene.
Against a deep blue backdrop, countless stars filled the sky. As far as the eye could see, silver specks glittered with an enchanting radiance.
From time to time the stars dimmed, causing subtle changes in the whispers.
Ren Qing's pupils contracted. He finally understood what this so-called opportunity truly was.
If he wasn't mistaken, those stars actually emitted the unique aura of Immortal Positions. The only problem was their utterly astonishing number, numbering in the thousands upon thousands.
By consuming bacterial souls, Ren Qing attempted to uncover the truth.
Scene after scene flashed through his mind, and the stars increasingly resembled the eyes of fish, varying greatly in size.
Ren Qing immediately became interested. He had already planned to search for Immortal Positions anyway.
His plans against the Turbid Immortals required implanting Immortal Offices into Immortal Positions, quietly drawing every Weird Immortal in this world into the same camp.
He devoted part of his attention to communicating with Great Dream真人, gradually piecing together more complete clues.
Judging from the auras emitted by the stars, they likely represented more than one type of Immortal Position, though the state they existed in was extraordinarily strange.
Ren Qing suspected Great Dream真人's situation resembled Bo Qiang's.
The Immortal Positions had most likely been arranged by some Heavenly Aberration realm cultivator and sealed inside a container similar to the Longevity Restricted Zone, only for Great Dream真人 to stumble into it by accident.
The Immortal Positions scattered across the world probably all belonged to ancient monsters seeking to advance to Earth Immortal.
They were all waiting for the right opportunity. Without Ren Qing's actions, they probably would have allowed their lifespans to run out before forcibly devouring Immortal Positions to break through.
Once the grand situation of the War of Enfeoffing Immortals unfolded, it was easy to imagine just how chaotic the world would become.
Seeing this, Ren Qing released a large number of pseudo-draconified limbs, sending them toward Great Dream真人's location while simultaneously exploring the true nature of the Endless Forest.
He was naturally interested in those Immortal Positions, but he wasn't reckless enough to rush there immediately.
The Endless Forest alone could easily cause his downfall if he made the slightest mistake. He had no idea which Heavenly Aberration realm expert's death had given rise to such an environment.
It wouldn't be long before Ren Qing could once again spend five thousand years of lifespan. Since Wuying Ghost was linked to the Human Skin Book, it would greatly improve his survivability.
Even if he did decide to go, it would probably be after Wuying Ghost advanced to the Ascension Ladder.
Ren Qing turned his attention back to Stomach World. Several temples dedicated to the Sutra-Reciting Arhat had appeared in Heaven Above Heaven.
Their incense offerings were thriving every day. The faith had even spread to nearby demon-kind tribes, giving it a respectable foundation of believers.
Ren Qing had originally thought he would smoothly nurture a Buddha Position through the Immortal Office.
What he hadn't expected was that the pseudo-draconified Sutra of Buddha Recitation remained completely unchanged. It seemed the Tathagata Buddha's Buddha Position simply couldn't be replicated.
Or perhaps the Sutra-Reciting Arhat had existed for far too short a time?
Ren Qing stripped the Earth Immortal Office from the Sutra of Buddha Recitation and replaced it with an ordinary Ghost Immortal Office, allowing faith in the Sutra-Reciting Arhat to continue fermenting throughout the mortal world.
"What exactly makes the Tathagata Buddha so special?"
No matter how much he pondered, Ren Qing couldn't figure it out. Directly refining the Tathagata Buddha Position was definitely out of the question. The Three Buddhas were simply not beings he could afford to provoke.
His original intention had always been to transfer Heavenly Dao Assimilation through a Fruit Position without mastering Buddhist techniques, and that goal would not change.
Under these circumstances, Ren Qing could only place his hopes on Wuying Ghost's Ascension Method.
Wuying Ghost's divine ability, Dragon Roar Within the Casket, resembled an external incarnation to some extent. Barring surprises, its Ascension Method would likely develop in that direction as well.
Of course, even with the protection of the information flow, many uncertainties remained.
In particular, Wuying Ghost possessed the lowest compatibility among his primary and secondary techniques, meaning comprehending its Earth Immortal Ascension Method would be far more difficult than for his other techniques.
Still, compared to the possibility of encountering the Primordial Heavenly Venerable again through the Disaster-Dispelling Method, advancing Wuying Ghost to the Ascension Ladder was hardly much trouble.
Time continued to pass as the Heavenly Dao Crack slowly healed.
One arm-shaped weird creature after another traveled through the Endless Forest. Before they had gone very far, roots sprouted from their severed wrists.
Moments later, those pseudo-draconified severed limbs had become part of the local ecosystem.
The skies, however, remained relatively safe. Seeing this, Ren Qing continued refining the Ghost Ship in preparation for every kind of harsh environment.
According to his estimates, he would depart in another half year or so, but plans could never keep up with changing circumstances.