Once light and dark ceased to replace each other, the sealing finally concluded.
“Is this to test one's state of mind?” Zen asked. The Buddha nodded in affirmation.
“Yes.”
Zen tilted his head in curiosity. “Am I supposed to break the seal in five minutes?”
The Buddha nodded once again. “If that is what you wish.”
“Alright then.”
Zen prepared himself by taking a deep breath before he began to concentrate his mind and energy on the task at hand.
He was literally trapped in his own mind and everything was happening in his head, but that did not an that the world around him was not real.
A benefit of his current situation, however, was being able to do whatever he wanted.
“Mind Sword!” he called from within him. “Break!”
As Zen's mind shouted his command, long swords suddenly materialized beside him.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack
His swords, borne from his own will, flew out and shattered the Buddha statues that once covered the land. With the statues gone, the world around him began to crumble.
Like a huge illusory curtain, Zen's swords had split the world open, tearing it apart in order to reveal another, newer world underneath.
“The swordsmanship that is used to mainly cultivate the state of mind was inherited from the Starry Sword Region,” the Buddha told him in a calm, enlightened voice. Zen raised an eyebrow at the ntion of the technique's origin.
“The Starry Sword Region?” he repeated. He then rembered the Oneness Sky Palace and its ruler. “Is that region ruled by Eastern Emperor Taiyi?”
“The one and only,” the Buddha confird. “However, I'm afraid it's going to be too difficult to break the ntal prison with just this cultivation thod. Though your state of mind is sharp, it is not enough.”
Zen couldn't help but scoff in amusent. “Really? I don't find it difficult to destroy this world though.”
Boom!
As soon as he said that, a loud explosion reverberated all around them as the long swords from before shot out and shattered everything. When the old world fell, another took its place.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
It was a constant state of creation and destruction as Zen continued to shatter the thirteen worlds that surrounded his mind.
At this rate, five minutes would be more than enough for him to pass the Buddha's test.
On the fourteenth world, Zen summoned his swords once again but the number he was able to conjure was noticeably less. When he launched his attack, the world did not shatter and only cracked in a few places.
Zen frowned and willed himself to try again. “Mind Sword! Shatter!”
A gentle, understanding smile appeared on the Buddha's face. “You're tired.”
Zen's state of mind was sharp, but his strength turned out to also be his boon. His mind was too sharp that it consud a large amount of ntal strength, which lessened his endurance.
As the Buddha said, Zen felt tired. “There is no standard for the cultivation of ntal strength. I'm afraid I can't cultivate it,” he sighed.
The cultivation of the state of mind was mysterious and it was all up to one's own comprehension.
“You don't know how to cultivate it but that doesn't an you can't. I can teach you an omnipotent Buddha theurgy to enlighten you if you want,” the Buddha said with a smile.
Zen's eyes flashed at the Buddha's offer. “An omnipotent Buddha theurgy?”
These thirty-nine heroes were once considered the strongest figures in the past chaotic era.
Though he did not know the Buddha's real na, Zen knew that he was still considered a master in Buddha Region. His theurgy was no doubt unparalleled.
“Isn't this a test?” Zen asked. “Why are you offering to teach ?” It didn't make that much sense to him. Why offer a lesson in the middle of a practical test?
“Whether it's a test or not depends on your own perception,” the Buddha vaguely explained. “Fate brought us together so there is no need for to test you.”
That explanation wasn't enough to clear all of Zen's apprehensions. This test was completely different from what he imagined.
As he thought it through, the Buddha began to speak.
A series of strange words reached Zen's ears but since he was trapped in his mind, he couldn't really hear anything.
However, even if his ears weren't working, he still felt that soft pressure in his mind.
“These words...”
They were all aningless but they were connected to each other since they had such a profound effect on him. Zen couldn't help but compare them to Sanskrit words as the pressure continued to build in his mind.
When the Buddha ceased his chanting, the pressure had reached its peak and he felt a warm feeling flood through his head. The fatigue that previously plagued him was long gone and he felt extrely relaxed.
“Mind Sword!”
Boom!
“Mind Sword!”
Boom!
He was now back to shattering the worlds in one strike. If he felt himself getting tired, Zen rely activated the mind thod that the Buddha just taught him.
In no ti at all, Zen had broken through all the sealed worlds and passed the Buddha's test. On top of that, he even learned an omnipotent theurgy! To say he was happy was an understatent.
Zen, however, couldn't help but be curious. “What's the na of this mind thod? How does it have such a miraculous effect?”
“It is nad the Buddha Mind thod and if you use it in reverse, it can trap your opponents in ntal prisons,” the Buddha answered.
Zen cupped his hands in respect. “Thank you! May I have your na?”
His reply was a re smile. The Buddha calmly pushed him away and put distance between Zen and the Buddha Region.
Just as Zen was convinced he was never going to find out this master's na, he heard a voice mumble softly in his head. “My na is Tathagata.”
“Tathagata...”
Zen repeated the na to himself, intending to keep it with him as he flew into the void.
In the 77th chaotic era, the Buddha Region might have very well been a powerful force.
To Zen, since the 77th civilization had been dominated by humans, then that must an it was much better than the current chaotic era.
In fact, it was much more complicated than he had first imagined.
As Zen flew, he was once again enveloped by new scenery.
He found himself a star. Zen landed on it and saw a man with incredibly delicate and graceful features. He was so handso that he could even be considered more beautiful than most won.
“Who are you?” Zen asked. The handso man gave him a shining smile.
“I'm Emperor Charm.”
Zen's eyes imdiately widened. “Emperor Charm?!” The emperor nodded and waved his hand dismissively.
“You can go. I don't have any test for you.”
His nonchalance took Zen aback. “You don't have any test for ?”
Wasn't the whole point of being here to let these human heroes test and recognize him?
Zen did not imdiately do as he said. He rely stood there and stared at the emperor of the Sun Crow race before opening his mouth. “Emperor Charm, did all of you have the sa goal back then?”
Emperor Charm tilted his head in curiosity. “What goal?”
“Changing the fate of the chaos and realizing the Finale Way,” Zen replied.
Emperor Charm let out a charming laugh that sounded like light, chiming bells on a sunny day. “Of course we had the sa goal!”
“It's a pity that the Emperor Charm in the current round of chaos has chosen the opposite way.”
The laughter died on Emperor Charm's throat after he heard what Zen just said.
The Emperor Charm in the current round of chaos had inherited everything of him: talent, personality, bloodline, and even theurgies. However, at the end of the day, he remained his own person and even the real Emperor Charm had no power over him.
“I see.”
Emperor Charm waved his hand, summoning a gust of wind that blew Zen away.
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