Then he served as regimental commander in Sichuan government, holding the position until he was transferred to the Beijing General's Office (北京將軍府).

After half year, Nenghai returned to China and studied Buddhism under Zhang Kecheng (張克誠) at Peking University.

In 1917, Nenghai moved to Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, founded the Shaocheng Society of Buddhist Studies (少城佛學社).

His encounters with Tibetan Buddhist texts and lamas in China led him to visit Tibet several times, initially staying in Kham (1926–1927) and then to Lhasa between 1928–1932 and 1940–1941.

[1] He became the main Chinese disciple of Khangsar Rinpoché (1890–1941) at Drepung monastery and was initiated into the tantric deities of Yellow Mañjuśrī and Yamāntaka-Vajrabhairava.

His exoteric works strongly emphasized ethical discipline (sila) as the foundation for the path, following the Gelug tradition's lamrim teachings.

[1] In the summer of 1966, Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution, Nenghai lived in Shancaidong Temple, he was labeled as a gangster and suffered political persecution, he and his disciples were mistreated and tortured.