Walking alone with a sword, slaying ghosts and gods

Chapter 590 The Red Earth Pagoda Reflects Golden Clouds, Taoism and Buddhism Share Profound Mysteries (Seeking Rewards and Subscriptions!)

Fame, when you are at the height of your fame and fortune, is nothing more than an embellishment, a fleeting illusion that reveals its true nature.

However, when fortunes decline and you are at a disadvantage, a positive and good reputation can act as a shield, reducing the number of enemies you may have.

The Taiqing Sect of yesteryear was just like that. As a righteous sect, it practiced self-restraint and adhered to the Dao. Therefore, even though it was weak for ten thousand years, it could firmly hold onto its core territory and was not threatened by many races.

The profound heritage of the Taiqing Sect is one aspect, while cultivating extensive good relationships is another.

The Chi Demon clan serves as a counterexample to this viewpoint:
This race is warlike, bloodthirsty, and unrestrained; how illustrious they were in the past!

Using the blood of all spirits as a sacrificial pool, the tribe's cultivators' ferocious and demonic nature was tempered, thus giving birth to many powerful seeds of cultivation.

With its military might pointing westward, it resisted the Royal Court of the Abyss, suppressed the Human and Witch races in the south, and repelled the Flame, Silverwing, Water, and Wood Spirit tribes in the north. Its demonic power was formidable, causing all races in the Spirit Realm to tremble in fear, lest they avoid it and invite disaster.

However, with the southward migration of the Chimo clan, they suffered a crushing defeat at the edge of the Eastern Creation Heavenly Palace, and the pillars of the clan, the Mahayana cultivators, fell one after another.

This fierce and powerful tribe, which once terrified all other tribes, was like a giant beast whose spine had been removed. Instantly, flames of war broke out, forming a situation of wolves devouring tigers. After being continuously bled and wounded, it would eventually collapse in the blood-red mud.

Deep in the Western Sea, lurking demons unleashed their blood-stained claws; in the desolate Southern Wilderness, ancient witch clans' curses, laden with decaying curses, broke through the earth; and the gazes of numerous human sects and families were cold, concealing greed.

Countless alien forces that had been trampled and humiliated by Chi Mo or harbored treacherous intentions flocked to the scene like hyenas and vultures smelling blood.

Among them, the one that was the most ruthless and decisive, and whose plans were the most far-reaching and far-reaching, was the Western Great Zen Temple, one of the nine sects of the human race, which was known for its compassion and solemn purity!
This Buddhist sect, located in the far west, possesses profound cultural heritage. At this moment, it is using all its resources to secretly forge a tenth-tier pseudo-Buddhist artifact—the Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagoda—that is powerful enough to protect the sect and be passed down through generations!

This pagoda is no ordinary treasure for killing; it contains boundless Buddhist paradises, capable of encompassing mountains and rivers, and accommodating countless people. The golden body of the Buddha sits serenely in the center of this pure land, chanting day and night without ceasing. Under the all-encompassing light of the Buddha, all evil forces retreat, and all is perfectly pure and harmonious—truly the prototype of a blissful Buddhist paradise.

When the Chi Demon Clan fell into unprecedented weakness and panic, countless Chi Demon Clan members were like stray dogs, being hunted and killed by many alien races.

Numerous monks from the Western Great Zen Temple, dressed in simple clothes and carrying prayer beads, treasure vases, and scriptures, descended upon the remaining settlements of the Chi Demon tribes, riding on auspicious clouds and rosy light, to preach and expound the Dharma.

Their faces were filled with compassion, their voices gentle, and they chanted "Amitabha," proclaiming the boundless salvation of Buddhism:
"The sea of ​​suffering is boundless, but turning back is the shore. The calamities that befall you are not your fault, but rather the result of your past karma. In our compassion, the Buddha has opened the door of expediency. Within this Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagoda lies the supreme and pure Buddha-land, free from the calamities of war, the suffering of famine, and the disturbances of evil spirits. All who wish to reside there will find peace and joy, and all their thoughts and desires will be fulfilled by the Dharma realm."

"Taking refuge in the Buddha? It is entirely up to you. Entering this Buddha-land, you will receive protection and enjoy eternal peace and happiness. Whether you diligently uphold the precepts and attain true enlightenment, or simply enjoy carefree bliss, it is all up to you. Our Buddhist school has absolutely no intention of forcing you!"

Such a high promise was like heavenly music in the ears of the Chimo tribesmen, who were already displaced and living hand to mouth.

To escape imminent annihilation, to have a place to live and make a living, and even to satisfy one's thoughts and desires? As for race and heritage?
…Those are things for later.

However, those with discerning eyes can see this matter clearly!

The Chi Demons who moved into the Floating Pagoda, the most powerful among them, were only at the Integration Realm. Once they stepped into the celestial world bathed in Buddhist light, they were like colorless drops of water flowing into a golden ocean.

Day and night, one hears grand chants, witnesses Arhats preaching and Bodhisattvas manifesting, and breathes in pure Buddhist spiritual energy.

The serene, solemn, compassionate, and joyful atmosphere that permeates every inch of space constantly cleanses the mind and reshapes perception.

Subtle influence, like a gentle rain nourishing the earth.

Even if we don't force conversion now, what about ten, a hundred, or a thousand years from now?

Born here, raised here, and immersed in this place, the ferocity of the demonic nature inherited in their blood will eventually be transformed and "purified" by the boundless Buddha light, and the mark of the Buddhist kingdom will already be imprinted deep in their souls.

At that time, without any coercion, they would willingly prostrate themselves in worship, chanting Buddhist mantras, becoming devout citizens of the Buddhist kingdom, adding fuel to the fire of faith for that pagoda-like Buddhist kingdom.

This is a well-intentioned and aboveboard strategy, far superior to resorting to violence or forced conversion, and much harder to resist.

Hundreds of years passed in the blink of an eye. Like rivers flowing into the sea, the Chimo clan, which originally had a huge population, was continuously absorbed and swallowed up by the Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagodas, like a trickle of water.

Of course, the main body of the Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagoda is still in the Western Region. These Chi Demons who are able to enter the Buddha Kingdom in the palm of their hand and survive in the human bag are all cultivators with a certain foundation of cultivation. At least one cultivator with a certain amount of magical power is willing to protect them. The old, weak, women and children of the Chi Demons who do not have a foundation of cultivation cannot endure the hardship of fleeing thousands of miles away.

For the Chi Demon Clan, which was already severely weakened by the successive deaths of Mahayana cultivators and the heavy losses of elite cultivators, the actions of the Xiji Zen Temple were tantamount to cutting off the last foundation for the continuation of the race!
How could those remaining soldiers, the old, the weak, and the disabled, who were sifted out by the Buddhist Kingdom, possibly support the future of the Chi Demon Clan?
The Chi Demon Clan was hidden deep within the Blood Demon Cave. When the two remaining Mahayana elders, Wugu Can and Wugu Tu, learned that their clansmen had been converted in this way and that the foundation of their clan had been eroded in this way, the overwhelming hatred in their hearts almost tore their chests apart!
"Those bald monks! They have gone too far in bullying our people!" Wugu Tu sat cross-legged in the center of a pool of viscous and filthy blood, his body churning with demonic energy, his healed wounds throbbing faintly, and the fierce light in his eyes burning like tangible flames.

"Entering the Eight Heavenly Dragons Pagoda, I will become a Buddhist soldier, no longer an ordinary person, using the guise of hypocrisy and compassion to carry out the extermination of my race!"

"Aaaaaaah! This hatred is irreconcilable!"

Wugu Can roared wildly to the sky, his resentment soaring to the heavens.

The Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagoda is a spiritual treasure of the Buddhist realm, evolving the heavenly way of a realm through Buddhist teachings. However, the Buddhist practitioners of the Western Great Zen Temple in the Earthly Immortal Realm undoubtedly do not possess such a level of skill.

The missing part must be made up by the spirituality of the many Buddhist soldiers inside the pagoda. Now, all those who enter the pagoda are living people, but over time, their own aura will be assimilated by the pagoda, and they will never be able to leave this Buddhist realm again. From another perspective, it is actually that their physical bodies and even their spirituality are sacrificed to this spiritual treasure.

This magical treasure is essentially no different from the Demonic Sect's Myriad Soul Banner; however, its operating method is much gentler.

The Taoist sect also has the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, but the Taoist Ten Thousand Souls Banner is only used as a container to transfer the souls of ten thousand people. They still need to be used for deliverance. Lu Cheng did this when he was in the human world, and thus accumulated a lot of merit.

……

To assist the Xiji Zen Temple in its eastward expansion and to replace the Taiqing Sect in its position, thus escaping various calamities, was the Taiqing Sect's policy for nearly a thousand years.

Xiji Zen Temple may not be unable to see this point, but as the fake Buddhist artifact, the Eight Heavenly Dragon Pagoda, was gradually completed, the situation became clear.

The Western Great Zen Temple had already become a place where all calamities converged, and with the Chi Demon Clan, whose strength had been greatly diminished, it was indeed a huge resource in the eyes of those Buddhist cultivators, so the two sides hit it off immediately.

Xiji Zen Temple even sent two Mahayana Buddhist practitioners eastward to join forces with Taiqing Sect cultivators and take in the remnants of the Chi Demon clan.

The Taiqing Sect will send cultivators to protect them. The Buddhist sect will also pay a very substantial reward for this.

The two Mahayana Buddhist practitioners included a familiar face from Lu Cheng: Zen Master Xiaoyue.

The other was a highly respected Buddhist master, Master Lianshan, a late-stage Mahayana practitioner.

The vast majority of late-stage Mahayana cultivators in the human race rarely leave their secluded lives, devoting themselves entirely to cultivation in pursuit of overcoming the Heavenly Tribulation and attaining ascension. This ascension not only represents an achievement in personal merit but also enhances the overall fortune of the human race in the lower realms. Therefore, the vast majority of late-stage Mahayana cultivators are detached from worldly affairs.

Master Lianshan was an anomaly. In the early years of the racial war between the human race and the Silver Moon Demon race, the human race suffered repeated defeats and was already extremely weak. It was this master who came out of the mountains and defeated the Silver Moon Demon King. However, he himself was also afflicted by some strange and troublesome supernatural power, which had been entangled in the depths of the Buddhist temple for tens of thousands of years. Although the Buddhist teachings were profound and he forcibly suppressed it, his foundation was damaged. Although his cultivation level was still there, his fighting ability had greatly declined. It is said that he could not even reach the magical power of an ordinary peak Integration cultivator, let alone maintain the Mahayana supernatural power. He was already a candle in the wind, relying only on a mouthful of pure Buddhist essence and sect pills to keep his life hanging by a thread. He had almost no chance of ascending to the next world.

Master Xiaoyue was one thing, but now that Master Lianshan was in person, Lu Cheng had to personally receive him; otherwise, the Taiqing Sect would be considered to have lost its manners.

A red wasteland, where sandstorms cut like knives.

The once glorious ancestral land of the Chi Demon Clan is now reduced to ruins and a lingering aura of bloodshed.

Lu Cheng, dressed in a simple Taoist robe, strode across the scorched earth. Beside him stood Master Lianshan of Xiji Zen Temple, wearing an old but clean gray kasaya, holding a stone bowl in his hand.

Ahead of them lay a remnant settlement of the Chi Demon Clan. The low stone houses were crammed with emaciated old people, women, and children, their eyes filled with fear and confusion.

The air was filled with a pungent odor and a restless ferocity emanating from the depths of one's bloodline, but at this moment, this ferocity was suppressed under Master Lianshan's peaceful gaze, like magma being held down by a boulder.

"Amitabha." Master Lianshan chanted the Buddha's name softly, his voice gentle yet possessing a strange penetrating power, clearly reaching the ears and hearts of every Chimo tribesman.

"The sea of ​​suffering is boundless, but turning back is the shore. Enter my pagoda, and you will attain great freedom, be free from all fears, and enjoy eternal peace and happiness."

As he spoke, the stone bowl in Master Lianshan's hand shone brightly.

The golden light of Buddha was no longer wispy, but converged into a warm and magnificent pillar of light, enveloping the entire settlement.

Within the pillar of light, tiny, firefly-like golden runes drifted down and merged into the brows of the Chi Demons.

Lu Cheng watched quietly from the side.

He saw that the Chi Demons tensed up the moment they came into contact with the Buddha's light, their eyes flashing with a bloody light as their ferocious instincts, stemming from their bloodline, instinctively resisted this foreign power that was trying to purify them.

Roars and painful groans rose and fell, and some strong warriors even bulged their muscles and veins, trying to break free of the pillar of light.

However, Master Lianshan's aura remained peaceful, without the slightest hint of oppressive force, but the radiance of the pagoda suddenly became thick and heavy.

An invisible field of Buddhist power took shape, like the most resilient spider web, gently yet irresistibly soothing and binding all restlessness.

The struggle gradually subsided, and the will to resist crumbled in the vast Buddhist light and the gentle yet irresistible chanting.

The bloodlust in the eyes of those Chi Demons faded, replaced by a blank calm, followed by a longing for the Buddhist kingdom within the tower.

One by one, they put down their simple stone spears and bone blades, their eyes softening, even showing a kind of liberated piety. They spontaneously formed a line and walked unsteadily but firmly toward the core of the pillar of light, which was the entrance to the Buddhist paradise inside the pagoda.

Other monks who seek salvation only accept cultivators of the Chi Demon Clan. Even when accepting ordinary Chi Demon Clan members, they require Chi Demon Clan cultivators to provide them with magical protection.

Master Lianshan, however, welcomed all who came, regardless of their magical powers or cultivation levels; he guided the old, weak, women, and children into the Buddhist realm.

This process, though seemingly peaceful, is actually more effective at erasing the very foundation of a race than swords and spears.

"Master, your Buddhist teachings are profound, and your power to guide and transform is subtle and pervasive," Lu Cheng said, his voice calm and devoid of emotion.

"This tower contains the universe and embodies the way of heaven. It can transform malevolence into peace with such gentle means. It is truly a great merit."

Master Lianshan withdrew his Buddhist light, and the stone bowl in his hand returned to its original state. He looked at Lu Cheng with a compassionate smile:

"Sect Leader Lu, you flatter me. This journey is not due to my own merit, but rather to the vastness of Buddhism and the profound mysteries of the Lingbao. The Chi Demon clan is inherently ferocious, like wild beasts unleashed from their cages, harming both themselves and others. Forcibly slaughtering them would only increase our karmic burden; leaving them unchecked would bring endless disaster. My actions are merely using the compassionate power of Buddha to create a pure land for them, to trim their claws and fangs, and to guide them towards goodness. It may seem like I am eliminating the ferocity in their bloodline, but in reality, I am helping them achieve liberation and rebirth, saving them from annihilation. This is also part of the workings of Heaven and the cycle of cause and effect."

Lu Cheng nodded slightly and walked slowly alongside Master Lianshan, the crimson wasteland stretching out beneath their feet. The sandstorm seemed to have subsided somewhat, but the desolation and chill of the world remained.

"What the master said about cutting off claws and guiding them towards goodness is indeed compassionate. However, once the claws and teeth are removed, the wildness is worn away, and they are integrated into the Buddhist realm and transformed into devout believers, in essence, is there any fundamental difference between this and the 'perfect unity' pursued by the demonic path in refining the Myriad Soul Banner to nurture and replenish the soul, and in the point of 'gathering the spirituality of all to achieve the Dao'?" Lu Cheng's words were sharp and went straight to the heart of the matter.

He pointed out the similarity between the Buddhist "boundless salvation" and the demonic "refining of ten thousand souls" in their ultimate goal: to absorb the spirituality of living beings to complete and strengthen their own Dao artifacts or grotto-heavens.

Master Lianshan paused slightly, his expression deepening with compassion. There was no anger at being offended, but rather a profound understanding of the world's ways.
"Master Lu has keen insight and sees through appearances. The Pagoda of Buddha and the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls are two sides of the same coin: one is the light of Buddha, the other is the flames of demons. One is voluntary conversion, the other is forced confinement. One seeks spiritual liberation, the other is the enslavement of souls. Their methods are vastly different, their appearances are worlds apart. This is the difference between 'Buddha' and 'demon,' as clear as the difference between clouds and mud."

"If we discuss the ultimate 'fruit' of our pursuit, whether it is the 'perfect paradise' of the Buddhist Pure Land or the 'heaven-devouring' weapon of the demonic giants, what they ultimately point to is indeed the 'culmination of power' and the 'ultimate manifestation of one's own path.' This is a commonality among all the different methods and paths of cultivation in the myriad realms, a necessary process before reaching the other shore. The distinction between the Dao and the demonic, the debate between the Buddha and the demonic, sometimes lies only in a single thought, in the heart of the practitioner, in the origin and purpose of the power they wield. Our Buddha is compassionate, guiding rather than annihilating, giving life rather than a dead end; this is the fundamental difference."

As Lu Cheng Daoist and Master Lianshan were discussing the Dao, a Bodhi forest appeared, its branches and leaves twisted like dragons, each Bodhi leaf shimmering with a faint golden Buddhist light, serene and peaceful.

Zen Master Xiaoyue sat cross-legged under one of the oldest Bodhi trees, his body radiating a pure, crystal-like light, seemingly blending into the entire Bodhi forest, contemplating the Buddhist principle of "withering, flourishing, and extinction."

This period of conversion and salvation is also a form of spiritual practice for Buddhist practitioners. If one can comprehend some of the profound Buddhist principles contained in the Eight Heavenly Dragons Pagoda, one will naturally benefit immensely.

However, this tranquility was suddenly shattered!
"Roar--!"

A deafening demonic roar shattered countless Bodhi leaves!
The viscous, almost tangible, blood-fiend demonic energy, like a burst dam of blood, instantly dyed most of the Bodhi Forest a dark red!
The spatial barrier groaned under its strain, and a gigantic, ferocious demonic shadow, radiating terrifying power, tore through the void.

It was Wugu Can, a Mahayana cultivator from the Chimo clan.

"You bald monk Xiaoyue! Pay for the lives of my Chi Mo sons!"

With boundless hatred, Wugu revealed himself without holding back! He formed an ancient and mysterious demonic seal with his hands, and a terrifying spectacle of mountains of corpses and seas of blood appeared behind him.

That strange phenomenon was not an illusion, but rather the evil soul domain he had condensed from slaughtering countless living beings!

"The Blood Prison of Ten Thousand Spirits, Soul Refining Through Bone Lock!"

Ten thousand scarlet chains, formed from essence blood and vengeful spirits, spread out like living venomous snakes, ignoring spatial distance, and instantly coiled around Zen Master Xiaoyue under the Bodhi tree!
Wherever the chains passed, the Buddha's light dimmed, the Bodhi leaves withered and turned black quickly, and even the space itself was corroded, producing a chilling "sizzling" sound!

This single strike contained all the blood and resentment that Wugu Can had accumulated from his recent massacre of cultivators from smaller clans. It was fierce and incomparable, determined to drag Zen Master Xiaoyue into an endless blood hell with one blow, and even melt down his Buddha bone and golden body!
“Amitabha! Fellow Daoist Wugu’s treatment of the guests of Taiqing Sect is far too disrespectful to us.”

(End of this chapter)