Drop the butcher's knife and become a Buddha immediately.

The sky was overcast, and a fierce wind howled.

Such eerie weather seemed to foreshadow the turbulence of this journey.

Gu Qingfeng and his group walked toward the Boundary Pass, the biting wind causing his black robes to flutter wildly.

Just as they were about to step onto the pass—suddenly!

Buzz… buzz… buzz…

A sacred chorus of chanting and wooden fish percussion echoed through the heavens, casting an aura of divine purity over the world.

Gu Qingfeng raised his head and saw the dense dark clouds pierced by a blinding golden light, like a sword cleaving through the sky, shooting toward the earth and forming a towering pillar of radiance.

Then, twelve monks clad in kasayas descended from the heavens, bathed in golden light, their faces serene and holy, as if Buddhas had descended to the mortal realm.

And behind these twelve monks followed a man of extraordinary bearing—noble, majestic, and exuding an air of indomitable authority.

When Shangguan Wan'er and the others saw this man, their expressions instantly changed.

"Shangguan Ji!" they blurted out in unison.

"Hahaha! My dear sisters, it’s been a while. Have you forgotten how to address your elder brother?" the man, Shangguan Ji, laughed.

He was none other than the Second Prince of the Feathering Immortal Dynasty, the elder brother of Shangguan Wan'er and Shangguan Qing.

"I have no brother who would turn against his own flesh and blood!" Shangguan Wan'er spat venomously.

Anyone who had been repeatedly targeted for assassination would hardly be cordial.

Shangguan Ji paid no mind to her hostility. Instead, his gaze swept over Gu Qingfeng and the others before finally settling on Fairy Miaohua.

His eyes lingered on her curvaceous, mature figure, a flicker of greed flashing within them.

"I must say, Fairy Miaohua, I never expected you to defeat two Earth Immortals and over a dozen True Immortals single-handedly. You’ve been hiding your strength well. But today, with the twelve eminent monks of the Prajna Zen Sect here, you won’t escape!"

Fairy Miaohua’s expression turned peculiar at his words. She instinctively glanced at Gu Qingfeng, unsure how to respond.

Shangguan Ji had misunderstood—he assumed she was the one who had eliminated his forces.

This was only natural, as she was the only Earth Immortal in the group, the strongest on the surface. Who else could have done it?

Surely not Gu Qingfeng, a "mere mortal"?

"Esteemed Fairy Miaohua, this humble monk, Faming, greets you," a middle-aged monk holding a staff said with a bow.

"Fairy, you killed my junior brother, Fa Xu, and stole a sacred treasure of our Prajna Zen Sect. Your sins are grave. However, the Buddha is merciful. If you return the treasure and follow me back to Prajna Temple, kneeling before the Buddha for ten thousand years while I cleanse your sins with the Dharma, you may yet be redeemed. Do not persist in your delusions."

Before Fairy Miaohua could reply, Gu Qingfeng burst into laughter.

"Kekeke… how amusing. Truly amusing.

Let me translate for you, old bald donkey. What you’re really saying is: ‘Even though my junior brother Fa Xu took money to kill you, since he died, you must compensate us. Not only must you compensate us, but you must also be imprisoned in Prajna Temple for us to toy with for ten thousand years. Don’t be ungrateful.’"

Gu Qingfeng was beside himself with amusement, marveling at the profundity of Buddhist teachings.

The twelve monks of the Prajna Zen Sect immediately frowned, their expressions darkening.

"You insolent wretch! A mere mortal dares to speak out of turn? Shangguan Wan'er, control your pet!" Shangguan Ji snapped.

He was eager to curry favor with the monks, hoping to secure the Prajna Zen Sect’s support for his future bid for the throne.

Unfortunately, he had no idea what it meant to invite disaster with his words.

"Shangguan Ji, how dare you insult my master?! I’ll carve you into pieces!" Shangguan Wan'er roared.

Shangguan Ji froze at the word "master," his eyes widening in disbelief as he pointed at Gu Qingfeng. "You called him what?"

Shangguan Wan'er straightened proudly. "He is my master!"

For a moment, Shangguan Ji felt as if he was seeing his sister for the first time.

"Madness! Utter madness! A princess of the Feathering Immortal Dynasty, calling a mortal ‘master’? Venerable Faming, I beg you to swiftly eliminate this disgrace to our dynasty!"

"The thought was already in my heart. Form the array!" Faming bellowed.

Boom!

The twelve monks, including Faming, erupted into action. Surging Buddhist light burst from their bodies, shooting into the sky.

In an instant, their auras and radiance merged, forming an overwhelmingly powerful Buddhist formation.

Then, they tore off their crimson kasayas and hurled them into the air. The kasayas shimmered with golden light, expanding rapidly until they blotted out the sky, turning it a deep red.

Embedded in the kasayas were countless gemstones that glittered like stars in the crimson heavens.

A crushing pressure emanated from the kasayas, as oppressive as the Buddha’s Five-Finger Mountain.

This was one of the Prajna Zen Sect’s most formidable formations—the Kasaya Subjugation Array!

When suppressing demons and heretics, the monks’ energies intertwined, making them an unstoppable force. Combined with the kasayas, which weakened enemies and amplified their own power, the array was virtually unbreakable within the same realm.

In fact, with twelve Earth Immortals working in unison, even a Heaven Immortal would struggle to break free.

This was Shangguan Ji’s confidence. He had to kill his sisters here, at the Boundary Pass, before they reached the Middle Reaches.

The Lower and Middle Reaches were like separate worlds, divided by the pass. Whatever happened downstream would not affect the Middle Reaches.

That was why he had set this trap—once they entered the Middle Reaches, his crimes might be exposed.

Originally, Shangguan Ji couldn’t have mobilized so many monks, not even with money. But Fa Xu’s death and the loss of a sacred treasure had enraged the sect.

Thus, Shangguan Ji and the Prajna Zen Sect struck a deal—for double the price, he secured twelve Earth Immortals.

"Fairy Miaohua, lay down your blade and find redemption. Surrender now, and you may yet be spared," Faming intoned, bathed in holy radiance, his visage as solemn as the Buddha himself.

He stared at Fairy Miaohua, expecting fear or panic.

Yet, she didn’t even glance at him. Neither she, nor Shangguan Wan'er, nor Shangguan Qing showed the slightest concern.

Strangely, all three women were looking at the "mortal"—Gu Qingfeng.

Then, the mortal spoke. Ignoring the monks entirely, he turned to Shangguan Ji and grinned—a savage, blood-chilling smile.

And for no reason at all, Shangguan Ji’s heart lurched in dread.

"You're called Shangguan Ji, right?" Gu Qingfeng sneered. "This Emperor will give you a piece of advice—you'd better start running now. Run as far as you can, so you can live a little longer."