The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 326 - 278, we pay our respects to... Heavenly Master Zhang! _2

Divine Dragon Temple had painstakingly prepared for decades for this magical duel, aiming to overthrow the Heavenly Master Mansion and extend its influence, plotting to annex the ancestral Zu Ting of the Western Regions Buddhism to achieve the great plan of merging East and West.

But their success was suddenly interrupted by Zhao Douan.

Tianhai was completely defeated. If they didn't recover quickly, not only would decades of preparation be wasted.

If it spread among the Jianghu people, the people of the world would not care about the details, they would only remember:

Divine Dragon Temple was inadequate.

And the next Buddhist Tao magical duel wouldn't happen for decades!

Divine Dragon Temple could not accept such a great loss of reputation!

Thus, the old monk responded quickly, seizing the chance to clarify and counter-accuse, preferring to offend the court rather than failing to recover.

"Shut your damn mouth! You old bald donkeys are good at reversing the blame!"

Suddenly, on the side of the Heavenly Master Mansion, the chubby Gongshu Tianyuan, like a ball, shot up and rushed forward, holding a small horn in his hand, cursing loudly:

"Who broke the rules first? Isn't Tianhai also in the 'Worldly Realm'? You allow your side exceptions; what, Brother Zhao isn't allowed?"

Behind him, the priests of the Heavenly Master Mansion, as if waking from a dream, echoed his words, accusing the bald monks of reversing the blame.

Beautiful!

The court silently praised.

The Heavenly Master Mansion had already lost, so rather than giving their reputation away to their old rival, the Divine Dragon Temple, they'd rather have Zhao Douan take it.

This was also an opportunity to accuse Tianhai of cheating, to provide an excuse for Jin Jian's defeat.

Seeing the blame being directed at him, the previously silent, hands-off Mage in white robes couldn't sit still anymore.

Bian Ji frowned, displeased, said:

"Gongshu Priest is wrong. Tianhai's vertical pupil is a natural physique, not an external object, how can it be equated with the Taia Sword, a weapon? Moreover, Tianhai didn't use it in his duel with Jin Jian."

Gongshu Tianyuan wasn't fooled, rolled up his sleeves in a gearing-up gesture:

"Pfft! Stop changing the topic! Typical of Bian Ji, skilled with words, but I'm not falling for it! Sure, Tianhai's eyes are part of his body, but can you claim the Buddha Light within them is also his own?"

Bian Ji replied lightly, "Indeed, it's something he accumulated and cultivated himself."

"Ha! What an accumulation!" Gongshu Tianyuan laughed mockingly:

"Tianhai accumulated Mana in that vertical pupil over time, and when enough is accumulated, it bursts out, comparable to the Worldly Realm.

If you say this isn't breaking the rules, then we of the Heavenly Master Mansion have a talisman master and an Alchemy Master. Should I just tattoo a human skin talisman on my junior sister's arm, let her accumulate Mana in it, and then use it as a talisman during a fight, would that be alright?

Is that against the rules?

This isn't an external object, it's my junior sister's body!

Or simply, swallow a few divine-grade Pills to digest temporarily... would that be acceptable?"

He took a breath and continued:

"Also, when Tianhai fought with my junior sister earlier, he didn't open his vertical pupil because he was respectful or because he knew this thing looked suspiciously like cheating, so he covered it up as much as possible? You group of sanctimonious monks know it in your hearts!"

Bian Ji's brows furrowed tighter, noticing the surrounding public nodding, thinking his points were valid, he couldn't help feeling anxious.

He was about to mediate when the head monk of the Precepts Hall next to him had already turned the tables, starting to argue with Gongshu Tianyuan.

Divine Dragon Temple stubbornly insisted the Taia Sword's contained Mana was an external force, whereas the "vertical pupil" was not.

Gongshu Tianyuan argued that the "vertical pupil" was against the rules, so Zhao Douan's use of the Taia Sword's power was a legitimate counterattack.

For a moment, the two sides held firm to their arguments.

The watching crowd also split into two groups, some thinking the monk was wrong, others thinking Zhao Douan undoubtedly violated the rules.

They argued nonstop.

...

"Where is Your Majesty? It would be best if Madam Zhang reports quickly."

Big Qingyi Yuann Li also found it tricky, looking towards Mo Chou.

The court officials were supposed to support Zhao Douan, but with the Buddhist Tao duel, being a third party outside the court and a stakeholder, without the Empress's approval, no one dared to openly declare their stance.

Mo Chou shook her head, a bitter expression, said, "I'm afraid it's too late..."

Xu Junling didn't say a word, his gaze shifted to Zhao Douan on the platform, thinking: How will you conclude this?

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At that moment, seeing the unfavorable direction the wind was blowing, Bian Ji sighed, speaking:

"Who violated the rules first remains a dispute, however, Lord Zhao had means to defeat the enemy. Why did he need to go so far as to inflict such grievous harm? Could it be, defeating Tianhai wasn't enough, he had to beat him to this extent?"

Gongshu Tianyuan was momentarily silenced, this indeed was an issue.

Zhao Douan had been excessively harsh, that last sword strike clearly exceeded the "reasonable" range, bordering on a fatal blow.

And the monk also turned the tables, collectively denouncing Zhao Douan for his ruthless attack.

"Master Bian Ji, one mustn't make careless accusations,"

On the stage, Zhao Douan hadn't spoken until now, his voice clear yet laced with fatigue, steadily spread:

"Others might not know, but with your cultivation, Master, you should have been able to hear through the veil my conversation with Tianhai earlier.

He said, 'If I unravel the vertical pupil, I can't hold back,' to which I replied, 'Neither can I.'

This is my first time wielding the Taia Sword, I also wasn't sure about the power of the sword technique, its vast Sword Qi far surpassed the divine chapters, nor could I stop it."

He paused, seemingly struggling to breathe, and calmly said:

"If Master insists on thinking I did it on purpose, then I must ask, why didn't Tianhai hold back after releasing three Buddha Lights forcing me into a dead end earlier?

It's simply a case of fighting fire with fire!"