“You finally came?”
“No!”
“You are not him. Who are you?”
…
Entering the Three Lives Gate, the golden water surface under Zhang Ruochen’s feet turned white.
The boundary between water and sky disappeared.
This was a world without dust or defilement!
Zhang Ruochen walked forward slowly and asked, “Who are you? Where are you?”
“I know who you are. You are his successor.”
The vast voice rang out again.
“Hua!”
Under Zhang Ruochen’s feet, a shadow emerged on the white water surface.
It was a Buddha shadow, with kind eyebrows and benevolent eyes, an ancient face, wearing a cassock, and ninety-nine topknots on his head, each like earthworm tracks in mud.
Zhang Ruochen could not help but retreat a step. He also looked up at the sky.
But there was nothing in the sky.
Only a shadow in the water.
“No need to look. I died many years ago. This is my remaining consciousness and merit qi, condensed into a sambhogakaya.” The Buddha shadow in the water said this.
The voice was ethereal, sometimes far, sometimes near.
Zhang Ruochen saw that the Buddha shadow in the water resembled Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s corpse face. He said, “You are Yun Qing Ancient Buddha?”
“Indeed.”
Zhang Ruochen felt respect in his heart. He quickly put his hands together and bowed.
This was a great sage of Buddhism. Zhang Ruochen had received much grace from Buddhism. How could he not pay respects?
Zhang Ruochen said, “The person you were waiting for should be my master, Monk Xumi, right?”
“Originally waiting for him, but you came, that is fine too.” The Buddha shadow in the water said.
Zhang Ruochen was puzzled. He said, “This junior has only just achieved divine spirit power. My cultivation is limited. Compared to my master, I am worlds apart.”
“It is not that higher cultivation guarantees success. Sit down first. I will tell you slowly.”
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged, in the same position as the Buddha shadow in the water.
The Buddha shadow in the water was like his reflection.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “In this Darkness Abyss, I have been dead for endless ages. Only the sambhogakaya remains, and even that is about to lose consciousness. Your arrival is my only hope.”
Buddhas have three bodies: dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, nirmanakaya.
Dharmakaya is the true body of the Buddha, symbolising the essence of life.
Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s dharmakaya was the thousands-of-zhang-long corpse lying in the Desolate Ancient Ruins City.
Sambhogakaya refers to the body formed by accumulated merits and a lifetime of knowledge. After the dharmakaya dies, the sambhogakaya can reincarnate.
Good begets good, evil begets evil.
All are sambhogakaya.
As for nirmanakaya, it refers to the Buddha’s emanation body.
Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s dharmakaya had died, nirmanakaya did not exist. Only the sambhogakaya remained here, unable to reincarnate.
Zhang Ruochen had some understanding of Buddhism. He said, “Ancient Buddha hopes that I can take your sambhogakaya out of the Darkness Abyss for reincarnation?”
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “I do have that idea, but more so, I hope you do something even more important. Because perhaps only you can accomplish it.”
Zhang Ruochen asked, “What is it?”
“Go to Great Nether Mountain and retrieve the Buddhist supreme treasure, the Cintamani.” The Buddha shadow in the water said.
Zhang Ruochen was not unfamiliar with the Cintamani. He said, “Great Nether Mountain is elusive and untraceable. With my current cultivation, I fear it is difficult to fulfil Ancient Buddha’s entrustment.”
With Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s cultivation, he still could not retrieve the Cintamani and fell in the Desolate Ancient Ruins City.
With Yin Xue Tian’s cultivation, to find the Cintamani, he still went missing in the Darkness Abyss.
Zhang Ruochen was humble and cautious by nature. Naturally, he could not be arrogant enough to think he could do what Yun Qing Ancient Buddha and Yin Xue Tian could not.
“Hua la.”
Ripples rose on the water surface.
A scroll rose from the water and appeared before Zhang Ruochen.
On the scroll was painted two swallows on willow branches, extremely lifelike.
But Zhang Ruochen saw that this painting contained great dao brush strokes. Each stroke seemed casual yet held infinite mysteries.
In the lower left corner of the scroll, there was also a “Zhang” character.
Seeing this character, in Zhang Ruochen’s mind, a majestic figure involuntarily emerged. He had twenty-seven layers of heavens above his head, stepped on the hellish Yellow Springs underfoot, awe-inspiring to the soul.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “Have you heard the anecdote of ‘the Bright King Meditating, Jade Loses the Pearl’?”
Zhang Ruochen suppressed the shock in his heart. His gaze moved away from the scroll and he nodded.
“Back then, the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable won the Cintamani from my master, Jade Heaven Buddha. But after my master passed away, he came to pay respects and painted this painting, giving it to me. He said, with this painting as a token, one can go to the Darkness Abyss to retrieve the Cintamani.” The Buddha shadow in the water said.
Zhang Ruochen’s fingers touched the scroll. In his heart, he sighed, “This Swallow Pair Flying Chart is actually from the Great Venerable’s hand. But since Ancient Buddha holds the token, why…”
Zhang Ruochen could not say the latter half.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “The dangers of the Darkness Abyss are far more terrifying than you imagine.”
Zhang Ruochen said, “So, Ancient Buddha hopes I can take this chart to Great Nether Mountain, retrieve the Cintamani, and send it back to the Western Heaven Buddha Realm?”
“No! I hope you retrieve the Cintamani and give it to the Nether race’s Kong Yin Xue. If she has already fallen, give it to her descendants.” The Buddha shadow in the water said.
Zhang Ruochen was very puzzled. He said, “Why? How can a Buddhist supreme treasure fall into the Nether race’s hands?”
“What is the meaning of the Buddhist supreme treasure’s existence?” The Buddha shadow in the water asked this.
Zhang Ruochen’s mind turned cleverly and he understood.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “All the past grievances originated from this Cintamani. These grievances, with the passing of old friends one by one, did not disappear. Instead, they continued, causing unknown amounts of innocent blood and tears.”
“One pearl, one affection, one grudge, endless suffering.”
“Back then, I wanted to retrieve the Cintamani to resolve this enmity and tragedy. The Cintamani is precious, but only by using it to resolve hatred, reduce suffering, and pacify resentment is its most valuable place.”
Zhang Ruochen sighed in his heart.
Hai Shui said Yun Qing Ancient Buddha wanted to retrieve the Cintamani because it was lost due to him back then. He felt guilty and wanted to make up for the regret in his heart.
Now it seemed Hai Shui had seen Yun Qing Ancient Buddha too shallowly.
Zhang Ruochen sincerely admired Yun Qing Ancient Buddha. He said, “Has Ancient Buddha already seen that I am the descendant of the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable?”
“Correct! Precisely because of your unique identity, you are the best candidate to retrieve the Cintamani and resolve the enmity between the two sides.” The Buddha shadow in the water said.
Zhang Ruochen put his hands together. He said, “Seeking the Cintamani, this junior is duty-bound. But to send the Cintamani to Kong Yin Xue’s descendants, to the Nether Hall, I absolutely cannot do.”
“This is exactly why I must have you send it! The world’s disputes are mostly because preconceived notions are already in the heart.”
“With preconceived notions in your heart, disputes will arise in the future, then fight generation after generation, endlessly. When is the end?”
The Buddha shadow in the water continued, “But if you have the heart to resolve hatred, let go of preconceived notions, it is not impossible to part the clouds and see the sun, vast skies and seas, accumulate blessings for descendants. I see your mind is open, able to embrace all, tolerate everything, not a profit-seeking, narrow-minded person. You should be able to do it.”
Zhang Ruochen smiled bitterly. He said, “Senior, do you know how many years it has been since you fell in the Darkness Abyss? It has been eight hundred thousand years. Eight hundred thousand years, the outside world has changed utterly. The twenty-four heavens have fallen, the saint realms destroyed, Heavenly Court established, the universe’s myriad realms under Hell Realm’s onslaught, deaths numbering not just billions.”
“Now, war has reignited. Unknown how many great realms will be destroyed, how many stars shattered.”
“If I send the Cintamani to the Nether Hall now, would it not push the war towards even greater cruelty?”
“You say my mind is open, able to embrace all, tolerate everything. But I cannot tolerate the Nether Hall gods, because they are far stronger than me, do not need my tolerance. In other words, before I have powerful cultivation, I have no qualification to speak of tolerance before them.”
“The premise of embracing all rivers is that I must be as vast and powerful as the sea.”
“Now, I am just a drop of water, with only the heart to become the sea, unable to contain rivers.”
The Buddha shadow in the water was silent for a long time, as if digesting Zhang Ruochen’s words.
Zhang Ruochen continued, “But I can promise Ancient Buddha, if in the future I am strong enough, I will do my utmost to resolve the past enmity and fulfil Ancient Buddha’s last wish. But if Kong Yin Xue’s descendants are stubborn, still my enemies, I can only raise my sword to kill them all, eliminate the threat forever.”
Back then, Kong Yin Xue’s curse made no Zhang family member able to become a god. Unknown how many Zhang clansmen were slaughtered by external enemies due to inability to resist.
These deaths and blood tears, though not directly by Kong Yin Xue’s hand, were indirectly caused by her.
For Zhang Ruochen to promise Yun Qing Ancient Buddha to resolve this enmity was already a sea-like Buddha heart.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “You say you are just a drop of water, unable to contain rivers. I say, I can help you.”
“How can Ancient Buddha help me?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “Though I am dead, the Three Lives Gate remains, and countless Buddha qi still exists. I can help you break into the god realm. Within ten thousand years, your cultivation can reach the Supreme True Realm.”
The Supreme True Realm was the great god level.
How could Zhang Ruochen not hear the meaning in Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s words? This former great sage of Buddhism wanted to bestow his entire inheritance on him.
Obtaining a divine venerable’s inheritance was not easy. But with Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s sambhogakaya assisting, it was like direct empowerment.
Yun Qing Ancient Buddha was the master of the Sixth Ancestor.
Monk Xumi had also listened to the Sixth Ancestor lecture on Buddha, counting as half a disciple, half a friend.
So, Yun Qing Ancient Buddha could be considered Zhang Ruochen’s half grandmaster.
Zhang Ruochen’s heart shook. He quickly changed from sitting to kneeling. He said, “Thank you, Ancient Buddha, for your fulfilment! But this junior’s path to becoming a god is arduous. I fear inheriting the inheritance alone cannot break through.”
“Ancient Buddha is Kong Yin Xue’s master and should know she cast the Dao Severing Curse back then, making the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable’s descendants unable to step into the god realm.”
Saying this, Zhang Ruochen had intent to probe, wanting further confirmation from Yun Qing Ancient Buddha’s mouth that the Dao Severing Curse truly existed.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “You are wrong!”
“I am wrong?” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Buddha shadow in the water said, “Back then, her Dao Severing Curse was not aimed at the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable’s descendants. It was at Ling Yanz’s descendants. Of course, your line is precisely the descendants of the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable and Ling Yanz, that is, Xumi’s descendants.”
Zhang Ruochen’s heart shook greatly. He said, “Monk Xumi!”
“Xumi is the son of the Immovable Bright King Great Venerable and Ling Yanz. The events of that year cannot be explained in a few words. Even some secrets, I do not know.”
The Buddha shadow in the water continued, “But I do know the way to resolve the Dao Severing Curse. Kong Yin Xue cast the Dao Severing Curse to draw out the Cintamani from Ling Yanz’s hand. Because the Cintamani can break all worldly curses.”
“In other words, as long as you find the Cintamani, the Dao Severing Curse will be broken immediately.”
