The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

Thud!

Even though Meng Qi had somersaulted in midair, defusing most of the falling force, he used Thousand Pounds Falling to expedite his fall. He swayed upon landing on the ground. The impact sent the sand flying and made two large pits where his feet made contact. His legs were partially buried – all the way up to his calf.

He survived the fall unscathed; he did not even feel any turbulence in his Qi or blood. The sturdiness of his physical body was evident.

Right then, the figure of an elegant and intelligent-looking monk was reflected in his eyes. The monk, wearing a snow-white frock and hemp-sewn shoes, appeared to be in his early twenties. From head to toe, he gave the impression of spotlessness.

Wasn’t this the wondrous image of a monk that he had once aspired to have?

“Wrong! This is Junior Brother!”

Meng Qi was in a daze, as if he had been struck by lightning. Wasn’t he fighting with everyone in order to obtain the Primary Instruction of Buddha’s Palm? Why would he see his Junior Brother here?

“What a coincidence, Junior Brother…” Meng Qi smiled subconsciously.

Suddenly, he sensed the Withering Bodhi Tree in his own hand and spotted Hong Neng who was not too far away. Everything that he had just experienced flashed across his mind.

The tranquil and compassionate feeling that evoked a change in the Dharma and Logos and nulled his ability to fly earlier was somewhat different from the solemn, victorious aura that the Crown Prince emanated.”Damn it! What a cop out!”

“Which master of Lanke Temple is it?”

“Is he doing it to support the former Crown Prince?”

There was no time for him to speculate about the intentions of the other party. He took the opportunity to instantly trigger the Reincarnation Charm in his left hand.

“The current situation has been determined to be unsuitable. It is not guaranteed that the secrets of the Six Realms would not be exposed. The use of the Reincarnation Charm is temporarily nulled until this situation is diffused.” The voice of the Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms echoed in Meng Qi’s mind.

“Damn it! What a cop out!” Even though Meng Qi had suspected that something like this might happen, blood still rushed to his head and he could not help cursing the Dominator’s ancestors.

“If Yunhe has no other ideas, I’d have to try tossing the Bodhi Withering Tree and borrow Senior Brother Hong Neng’s Just Around the Corner technique to fend off the aftermath…” Meng Qi made his decision in a flash, showing no hint of hesitation.

“Senior Brother…” Zhen Hui finally broke out of his trance. Pleasant surprise colored his eyes and a bright smile lit up his face. He did not seem to find anything wrong with this situation at all.

“So what is written in stories can really happen in real life!”

It was at this moment that the whistling winds above the Immensity Sea calmed and the black granule gradually turned crystal clear, taking on a glazed quality. On the ground, wild grass germinated and trees grew tall.

In mere seconds, a lush green had blanketed the entire place. Meng Qi stared at a tall and verdant mountain that had grown in front of him, and faintly saw the silhouette of a person weeding in leisure. His complexion was ruddy and his figure athletic. He looked exceptionally healthy.

There was a small winding path that began at the foot of the mountain and stretched all the way into the mountain, giving an impression that it was a road leading to the clouds.

The path ended somewhere deep in the mountain, where there seemed to be a simple temple of an ashy-green color that embodied the vicissitudes of life. In front of the temple was an Eight-treasure Merit Pond. A Bodhi tree was growing secretly inside, in the center of the temple.

The entrance to the temple was partially open. A horizontal board engraved with three characters hung across the doors. Even though he was not able to clearly see what was written on the board, his heart could clearly recognize these three characters.

Lanke Temple!

Was this Lanke Temple, which was known to be a short distance away, yet poles apart?

Was this the legendary pure land that a certain Boddhisattva had claimed its Sambhogakaya in?

Immortal Yunhe inexplicably put away the Primordial Charm of Purity and floated down beside Meng Qi. His white brows were knitted when he soundlessly relayed his voice to Meng Qi, saying, “Glazed World of the East? Doesn’t seem like it. There’s merely a fragment-like portion here. Furthermore, its breath is a little different from the description in the ancient records, as if its master has changed. That doesn’t seem right either…”

While a puzzled Immortal Yunhe was racking his brain for answers, there appeared to be a shift in Meng Qi’s expression. Inside, he was trembling with shock.

“Glazed Pure Land of the East?”

“Isn’t this the pure land of Bhaisajyaguru Buddha?”

“And Bhaisajyaguru Buddha is rumored to be the Embodiment of Buddhism that Azure Emperor had detached from himself – one of the Buddhas of the Three Realms!”

‘Patriarch of the East’ Azure Emperor, Primogenitor Taiyi, and Bhaisajyaguru Buddha were three names that belonged to a realm above the state of a Legend. Certainly, they surpassed even their own unique legends but they seemed to share an inexplicable connection that invited speculations and resulted in many rumors…

More importantly, Bhaisajyaguru Buddha was a rare great power that had remained active from the ancient times all the way to the medieval times. It was only after the rise of the medieval sacred sects that he slowly disappeared and seemed to have passed away.

Was Lanke Temple a fragment of the Glazed World of the East? Or did it share a different sort of inheritance connection?

Judging from the Sutra of the Vows of the Bhaisajyaguru Buddha and his own Twelve Vows, there was a good chance that the Glazed World from the East was indeed the pure land of Sambhogakaya. It was more consistent with Lanke Temple. Whether it was a pure land to consummate Sambhogakaya or not, Meng Qi had no idea.

“Where did the Glazed Pure Land of the East go?” Meng Qi stared at the ashy-green ancient temple in front of him; numerous thoughts crossed his mind. What kind of Bodhisattva, Buddha, or Bhaisajyaguru Buddha impartation would be hiding inside?

Suryaprabha Bodhisattva, Candraprabha Bodhisattva, or the likes of the legendary Embodiment of Bhaisajyaguru Buddha, Suvarnabhadra Vimala Buddha?

It might even be Bhaisajyaguru Buddha itself or its relics suppressing the place.

That did not sound right. If Bhaisajyaguru Buddha was still in this world, Abbot Kong Wen would not have omitted the name when describing the Dharmakaya helper. Judging from Abbot Kong Wen’s words, the one from Lanke Temple seemed to be only a level greater than Dharmakayas like Master Lu and not a great power like Bhaisajyaguru Buddha!

The mysterious Lanke Temple had ‘manifested’ but made no immediate moves to try and snatch the Bodhi Withering Tree. This confused Meng Qi and, for a moment, he dared not blindly urge Immortal Yunhe to use all the tricks up his sleeve or toss the tree away. He calmed his emotions and decided to wait and see.

It was at this moment that the Dharmakayas like He Qi, Prime Asuras, and Asura King had finally caught up to them. Kong Wen and Master Lu brought up the rear because they had missed the Bodhi Withering Tree that had emerged from a split in the void by seconds. They essentially had to make an additional round trip to get here.

The arrival of Kong Wen prompted the other Dharmakayas, aside from Taoist Chong He, to subconsciously move away from him. The previous Kong Wen was a demonic imposter. Who knew if this one was genuine?

A glazed blue color had enveloped the entire vicinity making it seem as if Lanke Temple, Meng Qi, Zhen Hui, and the rest were at a different location. Everything looked mysterious and unpredictable.

The Dharmakayas appeared to have a basic understanding of the person from Lanke Temple and had ruled out of the possibility of him snatching Buddha’s Palm from the very beginning. Now that Lanke Temple had shown up, they had to approach this cautiously. They did not make any reckless movements and stopped just outside of the glazed blue color to see what he had to say.

Zhen Hui stared at Lanke Temple, which resembled an old Buddhist temple located deep in the mountains, and found its sudden appearance to be profoundly mysterious. It truly deserved its reputation as the most secretive sect in Jianghu.

“I used to hear about Lanke Temple like it’s no more than a story, but now I find myself in the story itself.” Zhen Hui’s eyes were bright and energetic. He spoke familiarly with Meng Qi as he had always done, without turning to look at him.

“Why do Junior Brother’s words seem to carry an even deeper sense of Zen…” Meng Qi put away the Withering Bodhi Tree and felt all eyes turning to him. Their surly and terrifying gazes felt almost tangible, making him shiver out of nervousness.

“The Dharmakaya masters are besieging me… Even if I can leave with the Withering Bodhi Tree with the help of the one from Lanke Temple, it looks like I’ll be the target of their envy in the future. These Dharmakayas will hunt me down and Primogenitor Lingbao and the others won’t always be able to protect me!”

Frowning, Meng Qi began to carefully consider whether he should grasp whatever little time he had to comprehend Buddha’s Palm before tossing the Withering Bodhi Tree away.

Lying at the end of the little path that pierced through the clouds was a tranquil old Buddhist temple. A clear, sonorous voice of indistinguishable gender drifted from within.

“Esteemed donors, there’s something I’d like to say. Please listen.”

“Here comes the greatest act in the show…” Meng Qi cleared his mind of any distracting thoughts and wore a serious expression. “What would this person from Lanke Temple be plotting?”

“Amitabha. Please speak your mind, Bodhisattva.” Kong Wen placed both hands together, looking solemn.

“It’s a Bodhisattva? Is it an ordinary Bodhisattva or a Maha Bodhisattva?” Meng Qi began making guesses.

Suryaprabha Bodhisattva and Candraprabha Bodhisattva, being the left- and righthand attendants to Bhaisajyaguru Buddha, were in the category of Maha Bodhisattva. They shared the same title with Guanyin Bodhisattva, Wenshu Bodhisattva, Ksitigarbha, and other great powers.

The rest of Dharmakayas had no objection, whether spoken or otherwise.

The compassionate voice from within Lanke Temple said,

“The matter of the Primary Instruction of Buddha’s Palm has brought great changes to Fish Sea and Tan Han. Even though we don’t have to worry about putting people’s lives in danger, we have incurred a great deal of sin for murdering. I’m devoted to the cultivation of Sambhogakaya and l will not disobey the Grand Wishes and do something like snatching someone’s treasure. However, since the Withering Bodhi Tree has come to this place, that means we share a fate. I feel the need to step in and diffuse this hostile situation lest the battle stretch on and result in the tragic deaths of many.”

‘He’ had used the personal pronoun ‘I’ without any embellishments.

“Could it be that you wish to keep it to yourself, Bodhisattva?” There was an invisible movement in the void that accompanied Dharma King Dushi’s sneer.

The one from Lanke Temple showed no anger nor made a sarcastic reply. In a compassionate and gentle voice, he said, “Young Donor Su, you can’t disregard the aftermath of this situation even if you manage to leave this place safely with the Withering Bodhi Tree in hand. Don’t let greed blind your soul.”

“This, I understand. May I know which charter you adhere to, Bodhisattva?” What he had said was precisely what worried Meng Qi the most. It was useless to retort.

“Why don’t you hand the Withering Bodhi Tree to Lanke Temple for safekeeping? If any of the donors here wish to comprehend it, he or she can enter the temple to do so,” the one from Lanke Temple said.

“Isn’t… Isn’t this Bodhisattva afraid of making empty promises?” The thought suddenly struck Meng Qi.

Surprisingly no one, not even ‘Prime Asura’ Meng Nan, pointed this out. It was as if they thought that the one from Lanke Temple, being a monk, would not lie or boast!

“What say you, Young Donor Su?” the one from Lanke Temple asked Meng Qi.

Meng Qi frowned as he began to weigh the pros and cons.

It was at that very moment that Dharma King Dushi opened his mouth again to speak. “Do you mean safekeeping the inheritance or comprehending the Gist of Trueness?”

“Naturally, it’s about comprehending the Gist of Trueness. Considering the state of the Withering Bodhi Tree, it won’t last more than three tries if you attempt to obtain the inheritance directly. I believe it will be difficult to divide these attempts equally among all of you. If you can try and comprehend the Gist of Trueness, how does it differ from obtaining the inheritance?” The one from Lanke Temple took the time to give a detailed explanation.

Meng Qi had been misusing the words ‘Gist of Trueness’ to refer to other things but there were, in fact, differences between them. When he obtained Ananda Oath-breaking Bladesmanship, the first style of Buddha’s Palm, and Nine Annihilation at Heavenly Nights, he was obtaining Gist of Trueness impartations. Under those circumstances, the Gist of Trueness would instantly enter him, allowing him the freedom to comprehend them whenever he wished.

Meanwhile, the likes of Jiang Zhiwei, Zhang Yuanshan, and Zhen Hui had been comprehending the Gist of Trueness passed down through their sects. The degree of their comprehension depended entirely on themselves, but they were not given the freedom of comprehending them whenever they liked.

It was akin to having a book. In Meng Qi’s experience, he had absorbed the contents of the entire book into his mind and he could freely read and reference it. Jiang Zhiwei and the rest would be reading the book like regular people do. The amount of knowledge they obtained from the book depended on themselves.

Due to the limitations on the items bearing the Gist of Trueness impartation, there could only be a limited number of people who can directly obtain it. If everyone did so, it would not be long before the item would be obliterated. That was why the sects would offer the method of comprehension. Even if the attempts would still wear the item out, it could still be maintained for a long time.

Exchanges made at the Six Realms were akin to such comprehension. Even if the travelers could not comprehend anything, their Karma points would not be reimbursed.

Meng Qi made his decision after listening to the explanation. Considering the current situation, he had no choice but to follow the suggestion of the one from Lanke Temple. With the ability of the temple to be everywhere and anywhere, it made little difference to him if the tree was with the temple as long as he could comprehend it constantly.

“Well, at worst, I won’t be able to trade it for Karma points.”

“Bodhisattva, I have no objection,” Meng Qi suddenly said.

The voice of the one from Lanke Temple smiled slightly. “That’s great to hear. Why don’t you be the first one to comprehend it, Young Donor Su?”

Kong Wen, Chong He, Cui Qinghe, He Qi, the Abbess of Shui Yue Nunnery, Taoist Shou Jing, the grandmaster from Jin Gang Temple, masters from Snow Mountain Sect, and Immortal Yunhe all gave gentle nods in agreement.

The vision of the former Crown Prince, Zhao Qian, and the nine senior monks was still being clouded by Immortal Yunhe. They had yet to catch up to everyone else.

Dharma King Dushi spoke at this very moment, trying to probe. “Can we comprehend it as well?”

“If you’re all willing to put down your weapons, naturally you’re free to do so,” the one from Lanke Temple said compassionately.

“Humph!” Dharma King Dushi turned and disappeared into the void.

Most of the Buddhism followers here belonged to the Righteous Path. Furthermore, they had come to a consensus, and Lanke Temple was intervening as well. If Dharma King Dushi and the rest did not leave now, they would not be able to later!

‘Prime Asura’ Meng Nan stared coldly at the people from Jin Gang Temple and Snow Mountain Sect before following suit and escaping, bringing with him the monsters, the current Bliss Bodhisattva, and the rest.