What about General Su?

No one has ever asked Sultan Kublai this question. This identity cannot be revealed to the world. He always keeps to himself, appears at the right time, and then disappears without a trace.

Those who are not familiar with him regard him as Vajra Yaksha, while those who are familiar with him believe that he is indestructible and a weapon without desires or demands.

Sharp weapons do not need care.

Sudangu looked at Yaoying who was concerned and said calmly: "My whereabouts have nothing to do with the princess."

The tone is flat, without any deliberate sarcasm.

But to Yuanjue who was standing by, it felt like a basin of slush mixed with crushed ice was poured over his head. It was chilly. Yaoying didn't react at all, but his scalp tightened. He lowered his head in embarrassment and rubbed his hands helplessly.

A soft chuckle sounded in my ear, "Of course it has something to do with me."

Yuanjue raised his head in surprise.

Yao Ying sat by the campfire, staring into Sultan Gu's cold green eyes, and said softly, "General Su was ordered to escort me. He was feeling a little unwell in Gaochang, and now he is seriously injured. It is not reasonable for me to leave him alone."

Sultan Gu's eyebrows knitted slightly.

Without waiting for his answer, Yao Ying looked at Yuan Jue, staring at him with her dark eyes, and raised her voice a little: "After you send me down the mountain, are you not coming back? Are you going to leave General Su here alone?"

Yuan Jue was shocked and inexplicably felt guilty. He whispered, "I have something important to do down the mountain."

He is to carry out the orders of the Regent.

Yao Ying stretched out her arms towards him and said, "Does that mean General Su has no one around him?"

Yuan Jue widened his eyes, his face a little confused: "It has always been like this..."

There were royal guards at the foot of the mountain and garrisons loyal to the Buddha in nearby city-states, so a large number of men could be called upon at any time. However, the Regent had a special status, and there were only a few personal guards who could approach him and be directly commanded by him. Moreover, Bisu had now swaggered down the mountain as the Regent. In order not to alert anyone, the Regent on the mountain had to disappear completely.

Sultan Kumbh cannot appear in public now.

This kind of thing has happened before. When tribes that were subject to the royal court rebelled, when ambitious families tried to change the dynasty, and when conflicts arose between princes and nobles and tribal leaders, the regent would appear from nowhere, resolve the crisis, and then leave quietly.

It has been like this for years. Yuan Jue has become accustomed to the Regent King's coming and going without a trace. As long as the Regent King is not harmed by his martial arts, he does not need help. After all, the risk of being exposed is higher if one more person knows the martial arts he practices.

Yuanjue glanced at Sultan Gu secretly.

Yao Ying also turned around and looked at the silent Sultan Gu: "General Ashina has gone down the mountain, and Yuanjue is also going down the mountain. The general's injury has not healed yet. If he is attacked by the martial arts again, what should he do without anyone to protect him?"

"I can stay."

She said in a gentle yet firm tone.

Yuanjue thought for a moment and argued for Sultan Ku: "The princess doesn't know martial arts, and she can't help the regent if she stays."

Yao Ying raised her eyebrows and said, "General Ashina brought me up the mountain because I don't know martial arts. Didn't I help him just now?"

There was a hint of grievance in his voice.

Yuanjue was speechless. He moved his lips a few times and looked at Sultan Gu as if asking for help.

Sultan's eyes signaled him not to say more, with a deep sense of fatigue between his brows.

Yuanjue understood and closed his mouth. After a while, he took out the toasted naan and handed it to Yaoying.

"Princess, please use some dry food."

Yao Ying thought he agreed, so she took the naan and asked, "Have you and the general eaten it?"

Yuanjue nodded.

Yaoying was still a little dizzy, so she said thank you and lowered her head to eat her naan.

Sultan Gu closed his eyes and regulated his breathing, Yuanjue looked at the campfire, and the three of them remained silent.

The sky gradually darkened, and the gorgeous sunset was reflected between the rolling hills. The silvery peaks reflected brilliant rays of light, magnificent and majestic.

Occasionally, the short cry of an eagle echoes among the clouds.

When the setting sun had taken away the last ray of light golden afterglow that shone on the cliff, Yuanjue stood up and saluted Yaoying: "Princess, it's getting dark, please follow me down the mountain."

Yao Ying frowned slightly and looked at Sultan Gu.

Sultan Gu closed his eyes and did not move at all. His long, slightly curled eyelashes were also fixed, as if he was in a trance. His whole body looked like a seated stone statue.

Yao Ying sighed, stood up and left with Yuan Jue.

The long boots made a slight crunching sound as they stepped on the snow. Two figures walked down the mountain and disappeared into the dusk.

The footsteps gradually faded away, leaving only the sound of the burning campfire and the howling wind echoing between heaven and earth.

The sun sank into the mountains, the sound of the wind suddenly became fierce, and the snow rolled down wildly.

The mountains and rivers were silent, the sky was vast and dim, and only Sultan Gu was left.

…

The firelight grew dimmer and dimmer, and the night grew darker.

Sultan Gu, who was sitting quietly, suddenly frowned, the veins on the back of his hands and forehead bulged slightly, and the muscles all over his body became tense.

After a moment, his shoulders trembled slightly, and his breath suddenly became disordered. His body leaned forward and fell to the snow. He groaned and a trickle of bright red blood flowed from his lips.

The cold wind blew past, ruffling his clothes like a knife, and the chill penetrated into his bones.

Sultan Kumar supported himself with one hand on the snow, breathing rapidly, opened his eyes, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his right hand, and fumbled with his fingers to take off the mask on his face.

The dim, flickering bonfire reflected on his face, and a picturesque face slowly emerged from beneath the fierce scars.

His eyebrows are as beautiful as mountains and rivers, his eyes are as bright as stars, his facial features are deep and his gaze is as clear as water.

The frost and snow on the ground are not as good as the cool and clear light between his brows.

Her face is like the pure moon, and her eyes are like lotus.

At this moment, he was no longer the feared Sultan, but the monarch of the royal court, the Buddhist Dhammaraja who was respected and loved by the world.

Bisa and Yuanjue were afraid that he would lose his humanity as the Sultan. They thought that he hated the identity of the Sultan as much as they did and wanted to erase the Sultan's existence. Their attitudes towards his different identities were completely different, and they were careful to maintain the illusion.

In fact, he never hesitated.

He was of strong mind and never forgot his responsibilities. Sultan Kumarajiva was Tanmaraka.

Although the identity of Sultan Kublai will never see the light of day, it is still a part of him.

The knife edge caused a sharp pain, and Tanmarajyanong frowned.

The old man's sharp blade was coated with poison, and even though Bi Suo fed him an antidote pill, the poison still spread. He was weak in the muscles and bones, and had finally managed to suppress the chaotic internal energy in his body, but now his internal energy was running wild again.

Tanmarajiva took a few breaths, raised his body with great difficulty, and leaned against the cold rock with a calm expression.

The years have passed, flashing one by one.

…

Luo Jia grew up in a medicine pot. He practiced hard, used pills to stimulate his body's potential, and had to take Brahman medicine to suppress the adverse effects of the practice. His body gradually couldn't bear it. Since he was 18 years old, he needed to take more and more pills, and the intervals between attacks became shorter and shorter. After each attack, he felt like he had a serious illness. His legs were swollen and he could hardly walk. It even became difficult for him to get up.

Tanmarajiva knew that this was a sign of the oil running out and the lamp going out, and he might not live long.

He nearly died during an attack the year before last.

When Mundadeva came to the royal court, he unexpectedly discovered that water moss could alleviate his pain, so Bisa and his friends hoped that the water moss could completely cure him.

Tanmarajiva took it calmly. The water moss grass could only make him live a few more years. Moreover, this rare medicine could not be found anywhere in Congling. He might not be able to hold on until the caravan brought back the water moss grass.

So when the Northern Rong army besieged the city, he took more secret medicine, led the army himself, and personally commanded the five armies to attack the Northern Rong cavalry. He once again defeated the powerful Wakhan Khan who had conquered the northern desert, and forced the Northern Rong to sign an alliance with the royal court.

After the great battle, Tanmarajaka realized that he would not live long, so he arranged his funeral affairs, left behind an imperial edict of succession, and prepared to return to the royal temple, waiting for that day to come.

After his death, his death will be kept secret.

As long as the princes and nobles in the city abide by the alliance, within a few years, the royal court can still use his remaining power to intimidate the Northern Rong.

Tanmarajya knew Wakhan Khan very well and knew that he would not give in and would definitely test his strength. On the day he left the Sand City, he once again led his troops to scare away Haidu Aling who was deliberately provoking him.

Inadvertently, he saved the desperate Princess Wen Zhao.

The medicinal herbs brought by Princess Wen Zhao allowed him to once again survive the torment of the backlash of his martial arts when he was on his deathbed.

Cause and effect go hand in hand, fate brings about fate and destruction.

Tanmarajava gave the princess shelter and watched her live in a Buddhist temple. Every day, she recited scriptures in a confused and pretentious manner, while working hard to return to the Central Plains. Even when she was exiled, she did not forget to lend a helping hand to her fellow exiled people and seek a place for them to settle down.

They had not spent much time together, nor had they talked much.

The monks in the temple were dissatisfied with him, but he had no intention of arguing with them. He had already made his choice and was willing to bear all the consequences for it. He did not care about other people's opinions. Fame and glory were all passing clouds.

But the princess stubbornly defended him and told him what he was thinking. Her understanding, respect and admiration for him came from the bottom of her heart and were sincere.

After listening to the princess' words through a flower wall, Tanmo Luojia thought to himself: Perhaps Princess Wen Zhao could become his fellow disciple.

He remembered what Mondadeva had once said: Princess Wen Zhao was quite intelligent.

Tanmarajapādhi selected some suitable scriptures for the princess, asked the abbot to lead her in morning prayers, and required her to listen to the lectures with other young novices.

The princess studied very hard and could recite the scriptures fluently.

For most of the summer, in the early morning when the light was dim, Tanmarajiva sat in the dim Buddhist temple, translating Sanskrit scriptures with a pen, while she listened to Yaoying standing in front of a monk in the corridor outside, reciting her lessons word for word. Her voice was clear and her tone was light, like pearls falling on a jade plate. He knew in his heart: the princess had talent for wisdom, but her mind was clear and she would never become a monk.

He could hear it.

At that moment, a hint of disappointment flashed through Tanmarajiva's heart.

After a while, the clear and gentle laughter of a young girl came from outside the window, like morning dew dripping on a bodhi tree, clear and bright, able to wash away all dirt and make people feel cool.

Tanmarajava paused for a moment, and the melancholy in his heart disappeared in an instant.

All sentient beings have Buddha nature, which is my meaning.

…

The wind howled among the snow-capped peaks.

The burning bonfire was extinguished by the snowstorm.

Tamalaka came to his senses and tried to exercise his power.

The faint light sank into the sky, and boundless darkness pressed down on him. He became blind, and his soul kept sinking and floating in the cold darkness.

The whole place was filled with cold silence, cold winds, ghostly shadows, and black smoke.

He continued to fall, his eyes closed, but he could see a gloomy and terrifying scene.

Huge iron cities are stacked one upon another, stretching for thousands of miles, blocking out the sky and the sun. Countless lives are trapped inside, suffering.

The iron snakes and bronze dogs spewed out tongues of fire, and the people who were driven away by the demons screamed and wailed in the flames.

The Yaksha demons had fangs in their mouths, sharp as swords, tearing at people's flesh and blood. There were also ferocious iron eagles flapping their wings and circling, then suddenly swooping down and pecking at people's eyes.

Bones were broken, flesh was rotten, blood was pouring down, people had nowhere to hide, their cries of grief and wailing gathered into a huge wave, shaking the heaven and earth.

It is an endless hell with countless deaths and rebirths.

Tanmaraka had witnessed such a scene with his own eyes.

Smoke of war rose everywhere, flames of war raged, bones were exposed in the desert, the old and the weak died tragically at the sword's hands, the defeated were enslaved, and the victorious city-states were slaughtered by another powerful tribe in the blink of an eye. The wars turned into chaos and all lives were turned into ashes.

The common people are always suffering from various hardships.

Before Tanmarajiva was born, the Tanmar clan was imprisoned in the royal palace. At that time, the royal court had begun to spread the rumor that he was the savior of the people. The powerful aristocratic families were deeply frightened, and as soon as he was born, they immediately kidnapped him and imprisoned him in a Buddhist temple.

He grew up away from the court officials and common people, and grew up under layers of surveillance, but he still showed extraordinary intelligence and wisdom. His master who taught him Buddhism was overjoyed and repeatedly said to those around him: "The Buddha's son is indeed extraordinary. He will pacify the chaotic world and bring peace and tranquility to the royal court and the people."

Buddhism can educate people's hearts, but it cannot stop the vicious people from killing innocent people, nor can it stop the powerful, brutal and ferocious Northern Rong cavalry.

If you want to quell the chaos and allow the people of the royal court to live and work in peace, you have to pick up the butcher knife and commit murder.

Only by using Shura's ruthless methods can we protect the peace of the area.

He had committed the crime of murder and would be condemned to eternal damnation, where he would suffer like the wailing ghosts in the mountain of fire and knives.

Tanmarajiva put his hands together, the illusion in his mind gradually faded away, and the hostility between his brows disappeared.

If I don't go to hell, who will?

This is the path he chose.

Tanmarajiva opened his eyes, his emerald pupils sparkled as if filled with clear starlight, his body trembled, and he vomited a large mouthful of dirty blood.

The night was dark and the cold wind was howling.

He fell beside the extinguished campfire, looked at the red snow, and slowly closed his eyes.

A sudden hissing sound was heard amidst the roar of the wind.

After a while, there was another loud horse neigh.

Is there a killer coming?

Tanmarajiva suddenly woke up, struggled to get up, put on the mask, stood up and looked in the direction of the sound.

In the dim light of snow, a strong horse was crawling along a rugged and steep mountain path. A figure was crouching on the horse's back. He was wearing a thick cloak and had a slender figure. He did not look like a killer.

All of a sudden, the wind stopped, the night wind blew away the low-hanging clouds, and a few faint rays of moonlight poured down, lingering on the figure.

The strong horse refused to go forward, and the man on it dismounted, stumbling forward.

Tanmaraka lowered his eyebrows and looked down at the approaching figure.

The person fell down badly, but continued to climb without saying a word. After a full cup of tea, the crunching sound of long boots stepping on the snow came from far away. The girl finally climbed up the snow pile, happily patted the snow mud on her body, raised her face, and walked quickly towards Tanmaragha.

The dim moonlight and the refracted snow light illuminate a young and delicate face.

"General Su!"

When she saw Tanmarajiva, she smiled and waved at him, her clothes fluttering and her eyes bright, like a goddess.

The author has something to say: “Iron snake… bronze dog…” The illusion in Luojia’s mind is a description of the Avici Hell in Buddhist scriptures. These descriptions are referenced from relevant books such as “The Sutra of the Past Vows of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva” and “The Story of Mahamaudgalyayana Saving His Mother in the Underworld”.

…………………………………………

Yao Ying patted her chest and said: It turns out that Tanmaragha once wanted me to become a monk. It was so risky.