A Pawn's Passage

The tallest structure in Jinling Prefecture was the Porcelain Tower, which was located within the Great Temple of Gratitude, also known as the Gratitude Temple.

The Gratitude Temple spanned a vast area, making it the largest in Jiangnan. Walking through the entire temple on foot would take at least 6 hours. Within the temple, a man-made canal called the Perfume River ran from north to south, dividing the temple into front and back sections.

Only the front of the temple was open to visitors, while the back of the temple was closed to the public and accessible only to renowned Confucian scholars and Buddhist monks.

The Gratitude Temple was built by Emperor Taizong of the Wei Dynasty in memory of his mother and father, the founding Emperor Taizu. It took 19 years, 113 tonnes of silver, and the labor of 100,000 soldiers and civilians to complete.

It was constructed entirely to palace standards. The temple was resplendent with gold and jade, illuminated day and night. It had 30 halls, 150 monk quarters, 120 guest rooms, and 38 scripture rooms, making it the foremost of all temples.

The Porcelain Tower was made entirely of glazed tiles and adorned with 146 eternal lamps inside and out, reputed to be the second tallest tower in the empire.

The tallest tower was the Sky-Piercing Tower located in the Purple Mansion of Jade Capital, which had 33 floors, symbolizing the 33 Heavens of the Primordial Daoist Ancestor. It was situated at the top of Yuxu Peak, rumored to connect to the Kunlun Paradise above Jade Capital.

For this reason, the Gratitude Temple was not a Buddhist temple, but a royal temple. Even after the fall of the Wei Dynasty, it was not converted into a Buddhist temple. In fact, its ties to Buddhism were even weaker than to Confucianism.

Most of its monks were Confucian scholars who delved into Buddhist teachings but ultimately abandoned them to return to Confucianism in an attempt to “escape Zen.” However, in an effort to mitigate the impact of these scholars blurring the lines between the two religions, the Buddhist Sect redefined the term, escape Zen, to mean turning to Buddhism to escape from reality.

With just a slight change in wording, the meaning completely shifted.

The monks of the Gratitude Temple could be interpreted through either lens. According to the Buddhists, they were seekers who fled Confucianism to immerse themselves in Buddhism. According to the Confucians, they were temporary visitors to Buddhism and would eventually abandon it and return. Either way, these monks were deeply connected to Confucianism.

In summary, the Gratitude Temple did not belong to the Buddhist Sect or the Daoist Order. Instead, it was considered a Confucian temple. Thus, during the conflicts between the Buddhist Sect and the Daoist Order, this temple was spared and never destroyed or sealed by the Daoists.

At this moment, the Porcelain Tower was brightly illuminated. Situ Xingluan sat at the top, leaning against the spire and overlooking the entirety of Jinling Prefecture.

Standing beside him was Sikong Cuo, whose clothes and hair were tousled by the night wind.

Situ Xingluan pointed downward. “The Daoist Order has begun to respond. I must admit, they are indeed formidable. Even if we doubled our forces, we wouldn’t be able to match them head-on. But it’s a pity...”

“It’s a pity that the Daoists are in disarray—or rather, embroiled in infighting,” Sikong Cuo sneered.

“Exactly, infighting.” Situ Xingluan laughed. “The Daoist Order currently faces two major conflicts—one horizontal and one vertical.”

“What do you mean by horizontal and vertical?” Sikong Cuo asked.

Situ Xingluan gestured in the air, drawing two horizontal and two vertical lines to form a grid. He explained, “Vertical refers to up and down. Horizontal refers to left and right.

“For example, the Daoist Grand Master is on the left, and the Holy Court’s Pope is on the right. Their stances and factions differ, but they exist on the same horizontal line—this upper one.

“Similarly, a Daoist priest is on the left, and a Holy Court acolyte is on the right. Despite differing stances and factions, they also exist on the same horizontal line—this lower one.

”The Daoist Grand Master and the low-ranking Daoist priests belong to the same faction, which places them on the same vertical line—this left one. Meanwhile, the Holy Court’s Pope and the low-ranking acolytes are in the same faction, placing them on the same vertical line—this right one.

“The upper horizontal line means that the Grand Master and the Pope are of the same class: rulers. The lower horizontal line means that the low-ranking priests and acolytes are of the same class: the ruled. So, the distinction between the upper and lower lines is between superior and subordinate.

“The vertical line on the left means that the Grand Master and the low-ranking priests are of the same group: the Daoists. The vertical line on the right means that the Pope and the acolytes are of another group: the Holy Court. So, the Daoists are on the left, and the Holy Court on the right.”

Sikong Cuo seemed to understand what Situ Xingluan was drawing, but he remained partially confused.

Before he could inquire more, Situ Xingluan continued, “Simply put, it’s about factions and hierarchy. Who you are depends on your faction and your level within it.”

Sikong Cuo’s expression grew somber. He sensed a blasphemous audacity in Situ Xingluan’s words. It was an irreverence that the Daoist Order, the Confucian School, the Buddhist Sect, the Holy Court, the Imperial Court, or even the Cult of Fates and other secret societies would never tolerate.

Divided by hierarchy, followers would begin to question the gods and the leaders of their faith, which was absolutely intolerable.

Situ Xingluan continued speaking to himself, “The horizontal issues within the Daoist sect are essentially factional problems, more specifically, the alliance of the Zhengyi Sect and the Quanzhen Sect against the Taiping Sect.

“This is an overt issue that anyone with eyes can see. The reason we have such a golden opportunity is due to the infighting among the three Daoist sects, or to be precise, their rulers.

“But the vertical issues hidden beneath these horizontal ones are the real root of the Daoist Order’s worsening problems. It is the struggle between the upper and lower ranks. The lower-ranked Daoist priests have long been dissatisfied with the higher-ups. Although the upper echelon has the power to easily suppress them, the lower-ranked Daoists are the foundation of the entire Order. If the foundation is unstable, even the most magnificent and lofty structure becomes a house of cards.

“It’s like this Porcelain Tower beneath us. Destroying only the top floor would merely cost one level of the tower, and the rest could easily be repaired on the original foundation. But if the underground foundation is destroyed, the entire tower would collapse, and rebuilding it would require starting from scratch.

“Of course, some insightful individuals within the Daoist Order have realized this and advocated for reformation to alleviate and resolve the conflicts between upper and lower ranks. Someone like Zhang Yuelu is part of this faction, which I like to call the young progressives, as opposed to the old farts who cling stubbornly to tradition.

“Reform can be summed up in two words, yield benefits. This means giving away one’s own benefits. As the saying goes, people don’t fear scarcity; they fear inequality. As long as the upper echelons are willing to cede benefits to the lower levels, these conflicts can be mitigated.

“But yielding benefits is far easier said than done. It requires the mindset of the Buddha sacrificing his flesh to feed an eagle. Westerners say that touching someone’s interests is harder than touching their soul. Easterners say cutting off someone’s source of income is like killing their parents. Who would willingly yield benefits? They can’t bring themselves to do it, and letting someone else do it for them is even more impossible.

“All reform ultimately means changing oneself and dying first to be reborn. Who has that kind of resolve? Even if they do, turning a large ship around is difficult, reversing entrenched habits is harder, and uprooting deep-seated traditions is no trivial matter. So, are they capable? Those young progressives will inevitably clash with the old farts, but I don’t have high hopes for them. Most of the younger generation will probably meet their tragic ends.”

Sikong Cuo’s expression darkened, and he could not help but ask, “What exactly are you trying to say?”

Situ Xingluan retorted, “What do you want?”

“Me?” Sikong Cuo was taken aback.

Situ Xingluan squinted his eyes. “Are you satisfied with destroying just Jinling City, or do you want to destroy the entire Daoist Order?”

Sikong Cuo could not help but gasp sharply.

This audacity was beyond measure!

Even as a member of a secret society, someone who constantly risked his life, Sikong Cuo still found Situ Xingluan’s audacity boundless—so bold it bordered on delusional.

Situ Xingluan laughed mockingly. “If you don’t even dare to imagine it, how could you ever achieve it?”

After a long silence, Sikong Cuo finally said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Instead of lofty rhetoric, why not focus on doing the task at hand?”

Situ Xingluan smirked. “Of course, of course! We must handle the present task well. Even though the Daoist Order has begun to respond, they’ve still underestimated us. I remember a saying that weakness isn’t the greatest obstacle to survival; arrogance is. I think it has some truth to it. The water treatment plant is just a smokescreen. Everything is already in place. We’re just waiting for your command.”

Sikong Cuo exhaled deeply. “Then we’ll let the Daoist Order pay the price for their arrogance.”