Chapter 916: Ananda Is Dead
Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
“My heart is never calm because I’m not able to let go of my beloved. That’s why I’m still trapped in the unending cycle of birth and death in the world of mortals. It’s true that I’ve vowed to follow the commandnts of Buddhism, but I’m breaking them repeatedly. If I’m unable to get rid of my current state, how am I going to get a chance to see the Gautama Buddha?”
It was as though the faint voice was coming from ten thousand years ago. Following that, a sad-looking monk who was tied by invisible shackles seed to have appeared in front of ng Qi and the others.
He was one of the ten principal disciples of Buddha – the Great Arhat, Ananda!
In the Ananda Pure Land shown in the Universal Fragnt, ng Qi – along with Mister Luda and the abbot Kong Wen – had passed through the seventh story and reached the mountain peak. They had seen the withered magical plant, Golden Lotus and sensed the lingering aura of Tyrant. Nonetheless, the did not hear the voice of Ananda, nor did they notice anything strange. There seed to be a difference between the original Ananda Pure Land and the derivative shown in the Universal Fragnt.
“Amitabha. Even a Great Arhat like Ananda was troubled by love. Without great perseverance and wisdom, it’s really hard to hold fast to the commandnts of Buddhism given the fact that we’re living in the world of mortals and undergoing all kinds of suffering from ti to ti. However, if we persist in doing so, our state of mind will get calr and eventually we will be able to find the Buddha-nature within ourselves,” Xuan Bei put his palms together and sighed.
What did Ananda an by “I’m not able to let go of my beloved”? Was he referring to the matters related to the Demonic Sage? Was he still feeling affectionate toward Feng Xi? However, according to the descendants of Demonic Sage, she was born at the beginning of heaven and earth. After living for so many eras, how would she suddenly fall in love with Ananda at the ending phase of Ancient Tis? But there was a strong sense of hatred on the note that said “Kill all the unfaithful ones”... the hatred couldn’t be false as it doesn’t fade at all even after so many years... ng Qi thought with his eyelids half-closed to hide his emotions.
While thinking about these, ng Qi and the others were moving forward at a fast pace.
Just then, the surrounding changed suddenly. Thin mist was gushing out of the cracks and pits, and they could see many blurry body figures erging from the mist. All of them were sitting cross-legged, but they were showing different emotions. So were sorrowful, so were calm, so were shaking their heads sadly, so were showing a smile, and so seed to have realized sothing important.
The eyes of ng Qi still looked indifferent like a dusty ancient well. However, he was speaking in a soft voice,
“Master Yuanng... the Demonic Lord...”
These were the reincarnations of Ananda that ng Qi t in the World of the God of Twelve Forms, and the World of the Sword Emperor and the Demon Queen. The teorite from outer space that once carried the Spirit and Primitive Force of the Demonic Lord was trembling slightly – it had sensed the connections that had the sa aura!
All the reincarnations raised their heads and said simultaneously,
“Now I understand!”
The solemn voices were echoing around the area like a thunder. Once again, a change could be felt in the surrounding, as if sothing horrible was going to appear.
Just then, the teorite from outer space was pulled over and landed on the body of the Demonic Lord.
The blurry body figure of the Demonic Lord suddenly shook violently, as if he had returned to the present from a dream and knew the fact that he had died. His body could no longer be maintained. Inch by inch, the body collapsed and spread out, which led to the disintegration of all the other bodies. Soon, the surroundings beca quiet and peaceful again.
“Well, I didn’t expect this...” seeing this, ng Qi sighed.
He used to have a subtle premonition that the teorite from outer space and the Outer Devil Skin would co in handy one day. Therefore, he had kept them. The Outer Devil Skin was used long ago, whereas the teorite from outer space was used monts ago. What a surprise!
“Amitabha. This place is still dangerous although it may look peaceful. Please be careful,” lotuses were appearing behind every footstep of Xuan Bei.
Jiang Zhiwei was pointing her longsword sideways to protect ng Qi while drawing the energy from the heaven and earth to support him in walking.
She had heard Wang Siyuan talking about the ten-year Zen practice of ng Qi. Hence, she was particularly worried about any unexpected changes that would leave ng Qi no choice but to get into a fight.
The Pure Land belonged to a mighty person of the Legendary Realm. Although the Devil Master had entered this place before, they might not be safe all the way!
Duan Rui followed behind Wang Siyuan closely and waited patiently for an opportunity to build a connection between the Ananda Pure Land and his demonic magic arts. Perhaps he would be able to make an escape!
Thinking of escaping, Duan Rui imdiately recalled the experience of being captured from the Grassland to Jiang Dong. The Frenzied Blade was really making him feel helpless and desperate. There seed to be no point to escape. After all, regardless of where he would be, the Frenzied Blade would be able to capture him, and the whole process would repeat again.
Inevitably, Duan Rui was feeling more helpless. He secretly prayed to the Devil Gods with the hope that the Frenzied Blade would die here.
After moving forward for a while, a huge stone appeared beside the road. A person with a blurred body figure in a ragged robe was facing the stone. He was standing with his back to ng Qi and the others.
“Be careful,” Wang Siyuan stretched out his left hand and stopped everyone from getting closer to the person.
As soon as he finished speaking, the person suddenly turned around. His face was so blurry that no one could see it clearly. It was hard to tell whether he was old or young, good-looking or ugly. The only things that was visible on his body were his eyes – they were filled with sorrow and despair. Pointing one finger to the sky, and one finger to the ground, he said solemnly,
“I’m the best in the world!”
In an instant, Jiang Zhiwei saw a golden Buddha appearing in the sea of soul within her body. Similarly, the Buddha was pointing to the sky and the ground, and uttering the sa sentence. Putting aside all the other thoughts, she had to activate the skills – naly, the Equality of Taishang and the rciful God – with undivided attention in order to defend against the palm strikes that ca from all directions.
It was the first strike of the The Buddha’s Palm!
A person with a distracted mind would not be able to see the Gautama Buddha. Without knowing how to differentiate between true and false, one would not be able to attain Nirvana. Therefore, there would be no way for Jiang Zhiwei to identify the real Buddha’s Palm and dodge the attack!
Jiang Zhiwei was about to draw her sword in a forceful way when the golden Buddha suddenly disappeared from the sea of soul. At the sa ti, the palm strikes that ca from all directions had also disappeared.
In front of her was a tortoise shell surrounded by black and white light that signified Yin and Yang. It contained the principle of Da Dao. After wrapping around all the people with its bright light, it vanished into thin air. Apparently, the light from the tortoise shell had protected the people from being attacked!
Wang Siyuan, looking pale, was activating the Ancient Book with an all-out effort.
Although the strike, the Best in the World was rely perford by the lingering aura of Ananda, it was already strong enough – after all, Ananda was a mighty person of the Legendary Realm. In order to defend against the attack, Wang Siyuan had been using up his energy to activate the Ancient Book!
The muscles in front of ng Qi’s chest were wriggling and healing the wound. After a few monts, the heart-penetrating injury had been fully-healed.
As the Skill of Escape was activated by the Ancient Book, Ananda could not find his enemy anymore. He drew back his fingers that were pointing to the sky and the ground. Then, he looked up at the sky and said sorrowfully,
“The strong enemy is approaching. Soon, I’ll be facing all kinds of danger. Without having a thorough understanding of the teachings of Buddha and finding the Buddha-nature within myself, how am I going to fight with him?”
“However, my obsession of achieving this target turns out to be obstructing from seeing the Gautama Buddha.”
“I just can’t let it go. No matter how hard I’ve tried, I just can’t let it go.”
His voice that echoed in this area had been passed down through the ages. Losing the target of attack, the body of Ananda gradually disappeared.
With a glint in the eyes, ng Qi looked at Jiang Zhiwei, Wang Siyuan and Xuan Bei. From the look in their eyes, he could guess what they were thinking at the mont.
The Samsara Path practiced by Ananda required a great perseverance to hold fast to the commandnts. Ananda had chosen this path in order to train himself in the world of mortals. However, apart from that, it seed that the Samsara Path had sothing to do with his enemy.
Ananda had once said, “Without entering the world of mortals, undergoing all kinds of suffering, and following the commandnts, how are we going to understand the teachings of Buddha thoroughly? We need to experience the impermanence of life in order to find the Buddha-nature within ourselves.” Judging from his words, it could be seen that he was definitely an experienced practitioner of Zen. Nevertheless, despite being such a wise person, the strong enemy seed to be bothering him a lot. Who exactly was the enemy?
Was it the Demonic Sage?
“Who was the strong enemy that he was talking about?” Wang Siyuan mumbled with a frown, trying to figure out who the person was. As the black and white lights jumped around his body, he seed to have a clue already.
Being wrapped in the light of the Ancient Book, ng Qi and the others walked past the huge stone step by step.
“Cough...” halfway coughing, Wang Siyuan spit out a mouthful of blood. Looking exhausted, he kept the Ancient Book.
As a huge part of the rock wall in front of them was already collapsed, so stone rubble were scattering on the road. The path cleared by the Devil Master was very curvy.
After taking just a few steps, the sword of Jiang Zhiwei howled like a dragon. It had sensed danger!
A person in gray robe ca slowly along the path. His face was blurred, but he had similar aura with Ananda. Raising his right hand in a leisurely manner, he put his middle finger and thumb together as if he was picking up a flower.
There was a buzz in the mind of ng Qi and the others. Along with an empty mind, they felt like they had entered the Pure Land of Buddha and gained enlightennt. They could not help smiling.
As soon as the Buddha picked up the flower, Maha Kasyapa had smiled – this was the third strike of the Buddha’s Palm, the Palm of Enlightennt. If one was not enlightened yet, it would bring them a eureka mont. If one was enlightened, they would beco a Buddha right away!
Jiang Zhiwei was about to go into the state of Taishang Wang Qing when Xuan Bei stepped forward with a Form of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva behind his body. As the smile on his face faded away, he chanted the Ksitigarbha Transgression Script with a rciful look,
“From now on, I vow to rescue all the sinful and miserable beings from their sufferings in myriads of inexorable doom, in every world, in every hell, and in the three evil paths. I will help them to stay away from the evil paths that lead them to hell, to beco an animal, and to beco a hungry ghost. Only after saving all the beings from misery, I will realize enlightennt and beco a Buddha.”
“As long as hell is not empty, I vow not to beco a Buddha. I will enlighten all living beings before I attain the supre wisdom of Bodhi.”
As the mantra echoed around, the light of virtue was falling from the sky. Apparently, the Da Dao had acted in response to the mantra. As a result, the Lotus of Great Aspiration was defending against the Palm of Enlightennt, just like how the Orthodox Buddhism confronted the other heterodox beliefs!
Even if Xuan Bei had attained enlightennt, he vowed not to beco a Buddha as long as hell was not empty!
Nurous golden lotuses were blooming and the spring water was gushing out from the cracks in the ground. The person in a gray robe showed a faint smile that conveyed a sense of Zen. As he disappeared slowly, he said,
“There is so much pain and suffering in life. Bad things keep happening on . On top of that, I can’t find a way to get rid of my obsession of gaining enlightennt. Moreover, up to now, I still can’t find any traces of the Spirited Mountain yet...”
Listening to the voice that lingered in the area, a small frown creased the forehead of Jiang Zhiwei. Little by little, Ananda seed to be more burdened with his obsession of gaining enlightennt. Sooner or later, he would be experiencing a rebound and eting his doom. How did the little monk get involved in the karma of Ananda?
As she cast a glance at ng Qi, she could finally detect a change of emotion in his eyes. It seed like he was feeling a little doubtful as well.
“By the ti of getting to the mountain peak, we will know what had happened to Ananda in the end,” said Xuan Bei with a sigh.
Holding the Ancient Book in his hand, Wang Siyuan had practiced divination for a few monts. Then, he coughed and said, “The mountain peak isn’t far from here. At most, we will only encounter the lingering aura of Ananda once more. That is to say, we will need to deal with the Buddha’s Palm again.”
“The Devil Master must have gone through the nine strikes of Buddha’s Palm before he got to the mountain peak. As a result, most of the lingering aura of Ananda has been depleted.”
“Is he going to attack us with another strike of the Buddha’s Palm?” Jiang Zhiwei was feeling worried and excited at the sa ti. “Will it be the fifth strike, the Shining of Jin-Gang, the second strike, the World of Vanity, or the fourth strike, the Repentance?”
Ananda was one of the most outstanding disciples of Buddha. Being proficient in the nine strikes of Buddha’s Palm, he was regarded as the one who had the greatest potential to be the leader of the Buddhist Sect of Amidism. On the contrary, another outstanding disciple of Buddha, Maha Kasyapa, did not learn the Buddha’s Palm at all. Instead, he practiced another art called the Smile of Flower-Picking, and created a new sect. He was going to find the Buddha-nature within himself in his own way.
The nearer they got to the mountain peak, the more cautious they were. After walking through the path that had a lot of turns, a broad space appeared in front of them. The peak was just ten steps away from them.
On the edge of the peak, a monk was sitting in Lotus Position. Apparently, the monk was Ananda, but he was not looking sad and dispirited anymore.
Suddenly, he stretched out his right hand and spread out his five fingers. His palm beca so huge when it smacked at ng Qi and the others.
On the palm, a lot of golden Udumbara flowers were blooming. There seed to be a world in every Udumbara flower, and a universe in every Udumbara tree. As the palm smacked toward them, a new universe and heaven seed to have born. On every layer of the universe and every level of the heaven, countless golden Buddhas, rciful Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and Jin-Gangs were sitting in Lotus Position.
This was the sixth strike of the Buddha’s Palm, the Pure Land on the Palm!
Facing ten thousand Buddhas from the Buddha Kingdom, even the Great Sage Equalling Heaven would suffer a disastrous defeat!
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t Ananda himself who perford the Pure Land on the Palm...” With a sigh, a light beam suddenly burst out from the sword of Jiang Zhiwei. It split into countless sword beams, penetrated layer upon layer of universes, and shone everywhere!
She had made a counterattack with one of the Seven Strokes of Heaven Interception, Spreading Dao to the Universe.
The Buddha’s Palm was confronted with the Seven Strokes of Heaven Interception!
In the blink of an eye, the dazzling sword beams had arrived in front of the golden Buddhas and rciful Bodhisattvas, and shot into their eyebrows.
All the Buddhas vanished one by one, and the Pure Land disappeared. When the huge palm finally fell on ng Qi and the others, it was broken into pieces without inflicting any harm at all!
The person sitting on the edge of the mountain peak suddenly stood up and gave a laugh.
“Obsession would give rise to malicious thoughts that lead to the birth of an Internal Demon within ourselves.”
“Since I’m unable to get rid of my obsession and the Internal Demon within myself, I might as well give up the hope of seeing the Gautama Buddha.”
After saying that, the person walked away and disappeared from sight.
The face of Wang Siyuan was suddenly flushed, along with a sense of madness in his eyes. He seed to have understood sothing as he rushed to the mountain peak.
Feeling confused, Jiang Zhiwei, Xuan Bei, and ng Qi followed closely behind him.
Step by step, all of them climbed to the peak and saw Ananda who had his back to them.
With a steady aura, Ananda turned around slowly. Looking as if he had laid down so burdens, he said in a joyful tone,
“Those who obey the commandnts will beco a Buddha, whereas those who don’t will beco a Devil. I’d like to give it a try to practice the Buddha’s Palm reversely!”
“Hahahaha! I did it!” in the middle of the sky, a sudden laughter was heard. Then, soone solemnly declared,
“Ananda is dead, and the Devil Buddha is born!”
All the blurry body figures, lingering aura, and faint voices were gathered into a backward swastika in a red and black color!
Ananda is dead, and the Devil Buddha is born!
“Haha, now I get it!” Wang Siyuan laughed madly, with blood spilling out from his mouth.
Reviews
All reviews (0)