The Divine City was a place where experts from Eastern Barren, the royal family of Central Plains, and the overlords of Northern Plains would often appear.
Everything here was luxurious and prosperous. The Drunken Immortal Inn was known as one of the eight great immortal inns of the Divine City. It floated in the air.
This was a bejeweled jade palace. Every brick and tile of the palace was carved out of jade, and it was beautiful and magnificent like a dream.
Ye Fan and Li Heishui rejected the others and went to the Drunken Immortal Inn with the Prince and Yao Yuekong. The little nun went with them.
The palace was surrounded by white mist. It was richly decorated, as if they had arrived at the Ancient Heaven.
The group flew into the air and stood on the white jade stairs. They looked back and saw the mist. It was like they had arrived at the Celestial World.
"May I ask the heavens if there are celestials?" The Prince of Great Xia murmured in his heart.
Ye Fan was startled. Comparing the past with the present, he was dazed.
In this world, cultivators could fly in the sky and travel a thousand miles in the blink of an eye. If he was in his hometown, he would already be a celestial being.
The white jade road stretched forward like a bridge that led to the heavens. They strolled on it, advancing step by step. Many spiritual birds and rare beasts danced among the clouds.
Among the majestic palaces, sixteen young girls flew in the sky and landed in the mist. They bowed respectfully and led the group forward.
The Drunken Immortal Inn was very particular. It was a retro building that looked like it had been through thousands of eras. It was majestic and had a deep foundation.
Li Heishui smiled: "Everything here belongs to the Huang Jin Family. Brother Yuekong, aren't you afraid of attracting trouble?"
"Those who come are guests. They won't be unreasonable and ruin their reputation."
Yao Yuekong's strength was shocking. It was hard to find a worthy opponent among the same generation. Not long ago, he fought with the descendant of the Huang Jin Family.
"Esteemed guest, this way please." The sixteen young girls were not weak cultivators. However, they could only lead the way and serve the dishes for the guests.
"Southern Heaven Gate?!" Ye Fan's expression changed. There were three ancient words engraved on the grand gate in front of him. As he walked here, there were clouds and mist everywhere beneath his feet.
"This place was built to imitate the legendary Ancient Heaven," the prince of Great Xia introduced. It was obvious that he was a regular here.
"Why haven't I heard of the Ancient Heaven?" Ye Fan asked.
"Ten thousand years ago, the Qing Emperor mentioned that he wanted to build a Celestial Court. He had laid out such a layout, but he eventually fell," Yao Yuekong explained.
The Azure Emperor was the Great Emperor of the Fiend Race from ten thousand years ago. He was Yan Ruyu's ancestor. As for how long he had lived, it was hard to say.
"It can't be that some ancient Heavenly Court really collapsed, right?" Ye Fan was suspicious.
"Impossible, Emperor Qing only mentioned it." The prince of the Great Xia Dynasty shook his head.
After passing through the Southern Heavenly Gate, there was an incomparably spacious area ahead. It was divided into four regions, each with the four sceneries of spring, summer, autumn, and winter.
"This place …" Ye Fan was surprised. It was much more spacious than on the ground. There were many palaces here. The four gardens had four different scenes of the four seasons.
Yao Yuekong said, "There are four barriers here. Although they can't be compared to the small worlds created by the ancient sages, they are almost independent spaces. The Golden Family of Northern Plains has a deep understanding of the Dao of Space."
A young girl beside him said softly, "Esteemed guest, please choose the garden."
In the end, Ye Fan chose the winter scenery. Ever since he came to this world, he had never seen a season with snowflakes.
The cold air brushed against their faces. The palace was covered in silver and snow. Standing under the palace, all they could see was a vast expanse of whiteness.
Ye Fan was lost in thought. He thought about the snowy season in the past. Those people and things …
Now, they were separated by a galaxy. It would be difficult to meet them again.
A delicate fragrance drifted over. The plum trees were proud of the snow and the wind. The flowers bloomed in the bitter cold.
They sat down and enjoyed the snow and the flowers while drinking. It was a unique scene.
After drinking several times the fine wine, even the little nun in white's face was flushed and her big eyes were sparkling.
"Princess, you are a monk. How can you drink?" Ye Fan joked.
The little nun in white did not cut off her hair and covered it with a snow-white hat. She wrinkled her delicate nose and murmured in a low voice, "I'm cultivating in the secular world."
Yao Yuekong said, "I have long heard that Buddhism has all kinds of divine arts. They are all amazing in the world, but I have never seen them before."
Ye Fan wanted to get information about Sakyamuni from the Buddhist faction, but the prince and the little nun of Great Xia didn't talk about it in detail.
"What is the name of Buddha now? Past Buddha or Tathagata Buddha?" Ye Fan asked Li Heishui secretly.
"Buddha is the revered one. There are no other names." The little nun said.
"What kind of Buddha is Sakyamuni?" Ye Fan asked indifferently.
The little nun's blushing face froze. She stared at the wine glass with her big eyes and didn't say anything else.
The prince sighed, "Sigh, let's not mention this name. It is a taboo in Western Desert. I also want to know what happened. I have flipped through many ancient books and can only come to one conclusion — there is no Tathagata Buddha in Buddhism."
"Why do you say that?" Ye Fan asked in confusion.
"It seems like … the Buddha has already perished." The prince of Great Xia shook his head slowly after saying this.
"Brother Xia, you are in the wrong." Li Heishui raised his glass and drank, "We have already said this much. Why are you still hesitating? Are you trying to keep us in suspense?"
The prince was called Xia Yiming and the little nun was called Xia Yilin. After getting to know each other, they started to call each other casually.
"He is the revered one, but he isn't. The traitor might have something to do with him. Some say he is the demonic shell of Buddha." Xia Yiming didn't say anything else.
Yao Yuekong said, "Your Royal Highness, can't you be a bit more specific?"
"This is just a little secret that I've heard. There's nothing else. You must not speak of it, or else you will be killed." Grand Xia Prince Xia Yiming said.
"What secret? Who will kill us?" Ye Fan asked.
"Let's not talk about this. There is nothing to gain from it." Xia Yiming shook his head firmly.
"Brother Xia, with your status, why are you afraid?" Yao Yuekong didn't understand.
"We really don't need to talk about Buddhism." Xia Yiming raised his eyes and looked around at the endless snow, saying, "Mount Meru is not an ordinary place."
Seeing him like this, the others didn't ask any further. The prince's knowledge was indeed limited.
Ye Fan asked another question, "How long has Buddhism existed?"
"It has existed since ancient times." The little nun loli Xia Yilin's pure big eyes were filled with doubt. She looked at him as if he didn't even know this.
"Since ancient times?!" Ye Fan was shocked. Buddhism existed before the Sakyamuni two thousand years ago. This left him in a daze.
"There aren't many people in the East Barren who know about Buddhism. It's fine if you don't know about it." Yao Yuekong smiled.
Ye Fan thought about it. On the other side of the universe, Buddhism was created by Gautama Buddha, but there were already Buddhists before him. Rather than saying it was created, it was more accurate to say it was spread.
In some ancient scriptures, it was recorded that Gautama Buddha saw Buddhists cultivating at the expense of their bodies. He thought that it was not the right way, so there was the Rulai Dharma.
He felt that he had grasped something, so he didn't ask any further. He thought about it for a while before coming back to his senses.
Outside the palace, there was a vast expanse of whiteness. Snow swirled in the air, and the fragrance of plum blossoms wafted through the air. The few of them drank and chatted merrily.
This banquet cost two hundred and fifty kilograms of source energy. It was quite expensive, but compared to the legendary Immortal Banquet, it was nothing.
"The Immortal Banquets here cost tens of thousands of kilograms of source energy. They are specially prepared for Divine Lords and Mighty Beings, and they need to be booked in advance. Otherwise, it would be difficult to gather all the ingredients."
Even Sky Demon Palace's Young Lord Yao Yuekong was speechless.
"Isn't it too exaggerated?" Ye Fan asked.
"It's not an exaggeration at all. Take one of the dishes' Divine Phoenix Wings' as an example. It's really cooked from a Bird King that has part of the bloodline of the Divine Phoenix. It condenses all of its essence, and ordinary cultivators can break through a realm after eating it."
Ye Fan suddenly asked, "Is there a Heavenly Roc Wing?"
"There was a Heavenly Roc Banquet in the past, but the Old Roc King made a big fuss over it. In the end, the Golden Winged Heavenly Roc was canceled because of him."
Ye Fan opened his mouth, speechless.
Li Heishui said, "There are only a few Immortal Banquets a year. Only when the Divine Lord invites the Mighty Beings will it be held. Let's not think too much about it. But I really want to drink a cup of Enlightenment Tea from the Immortal Banquet. It is said that even Mighty Beings can gain enlightenment from it. "
Yao Yuekong shook his head. "Enlightenment Tea is a rare item in the Immortal Banquet. It's priceless! There is only one Tree of Enlightenment in the entire Eastern Barren. It's good enough to collect thirty leaves every year. God knows how many people are watching. "
"There is only one Tree of Enlightenment in the world. Where is it?" Ye Fan was surprised.
"In the Undying Mountain," Yao Yuekong said.
"Hiss!"
Everyone sucked in a cold breath.
The Undying Mountain was one of the seven forbidden zones in the Eastern Barren. It was located in the north of the central region.
Yao Yuekong said, "The only Tree of Enlightenment is still growing in the Undying Mountain. Every year, only thirty leaves can be sent out."
"That's not far from the Holy Cliff, right?" Ye Fan asked.
"That's right, it's not too far away. It's said that the Sacred Cliff was a cliff that was cut out of the Undying Mountain by someone with peerless magic power." Yao Yuekong was worthy of being the Young Master of the Sky Demon Palace. He knew many things.
Ye Fan nodded. He had to make a trip to this place, and it wouldn't be too long, because the Holy Cliff had the Nine Secrets.
The Holy Cliff was connected to the Undying Mountain. Ancient Saint Huang died there. The cliff was dyed dark red with blood. There was also a Great Emperor carved formation runes there.
Ye Fan felt that there must be a lot of secrets there.
Suddenly, music could be heard. In the palace next door, a girl in white was playing solo. A flock of spirit birds were attracted.
These palaces were open for the nobles to admire the snow and plum blossoms. They could see each other sometimes.
"It's An Miaoyi …" Ye Fan's expression changed.
"Fairy An, why are you playing solo here?" The Grand Xia Prince asked.
"Miaoyi also arranged a banquet here. I wanted to toast little brother Gu Feng with wine, but I was rejected." An Miaoyi's brows were arched. Her flawless face had a faint smile.
Gu Feng was Ye Fan's current name. He couldn't walk around the divine city with his real name.
"Fairy An, why do you say that? Why don't we drink together?" Ye Fan smiled.
Yao Yuekong and the prince of Great Xia also invited her. An Miaoyi smiled lightly and nodded. Then, she walked over gracefully.
She walked over and glanced at Ye Fan with her big eyes. She smiled and said, "Little brother Gu Feng, you are the first person to reject me. Miaoyi is very vengeful."
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