The Eastern Emperor of all Heavens did not wish to become a Buddha.

Chapter 81 Different Paths: The Essence of the Law of One Lifetime

Ancient and forbidden land.

A series of powerful Dao sounds resounded continuously, causing the Great Dao Laws of the entire forbidden zone to vibrate and various strange phenomena to appear.

Flowers rained down from the sky, golden lotuses sprang from the earth, and flowers of the Great Dao bloomed in the void. The once desolate and eerie ancient forbidden land now seemed to have become a Dao domain.

Two distinct beams of light stood between heaven and earth, as if dividing the entire world in two, originating from the Martian Holy Body and the Desolate Lord respectively.

The Martian Holy Body radiates a pure and clear Buddhist light, compassionate and peaceful, pointing directly to the true nature of all beings. It disregards all external things, regarding all external objects as illusions, and only its own true nature is real.

The Lord of the Wilderness was surrounded by dazzling golden light, with a faint Buddhist aura emanating from his body. However, he carried an invincible belief, as if he had recognized himself and was now more focused on himself.

Although their auras are somewhat similar, the paths they ultimately take are completely different.

The Tathagata Palm is an unparalleled divine skill summarized by the Buddha after comprehending the great Dao of Heaven and Earth. It is similar to the general outline of the Great Dao, with each move encompassing everything.

Similarly, each person can combine their own understanding and insights to find a path that suits them.

Although both the Martian Holy Body and the Wilderness Lord were influenced by the true Buddhist teachings contained in the first move of the Tathagata Palm, they ultimately embarked on different paths due to their different states and paths.

The Martian Holy Body was a wisp of obsession that transformed into divine thought. Ultimately, it was awakened by the "Buddha's Palm" and thus came to understand its true nature. It gained a deeper understanding of the meaning of illusion and reality, and therefore leaned more towards the nature of living beings and paid more attention to the transformation of the heart.

The Lord of the Wilderness, on the other hand, possesses a complete and perfected Holy Body. In the past, he followed a system that relied on his own body as a seed, without adding anything external, and fully explored his own potential.

Therefore, having grasped the true meaning of the first move of the "Buddha's Palm" and understood his true nature, he became even more focused on himself.

There is no superior or inferior path, nor is there a right or wrong path; it is simply a matter of different personal perceptions.

As the two discussed the Dao, a Chaos Green Lotus bloomed, its nine leaves supporting the sky, depicting the creation of the universe. It was like a living demon emperor, seemingly listening to their discussion, constantly scattering specks of chaotic divine light.

Zhong Xu sat cross-legged beneath the Chaos Green Lotus, his mind immersed in the sounds of Daoist discussions that echoed around him, and countless insights surfaced in his mind.

The Martian Holy Body and the Desolate Lord possessed incredibly profound realms, and Zhong Xu still couldn't comprehend many of their insights. However, even though he had only grasped a small part of their principles, he felt he had already gained a great deal.

As the Daoist chant resounded, faint lights shone within Zhong Xu's body, each transforming into different phenomena: a compassionate and serene Buddha, a sinister and terrifying demonic shadow, an ancient and vigorous Bodhi tree, a hazy and ancient chaos, and a constantly rotating Yin-Yang Taiji diagram.
A hazy, ancient ripple arose, like an illusory river, flowing continuously through Zhong Xu's entire body, connecting all the strange phenomena, and encompassing everything.

At the same time, Zhong Xu's innate nine orifices, five internal organs, six viscera, and hundreds of meridians throughout his body, including the immeasurable acupoints within his body, all merged into a whole, forming a perfect cycle and radiating an aura of completeness.

This is the level where all nine orifices are open and the inner world is fully formed.

Over the past two years, with the improvement of the Secret Realm Technique, Zhong Xu's physique has become increasingly powerful, and the life essence in his body has become more vigorous. In turn, this has accelerated the speed at which he opens the Nine Natural Acupoints. He has already opened the two natural acupoints of the front and back yin, and entered the level of the Great Perfection of the Inner World.

Moreover, his spiritual cultivation had long since reached the level of harmony between man and nature, with the inner and outer worlds merging together. His inner world had adjusted itself according to the external world, and his body and mind were in harmony, with the inner and outer worlds almost reaching a state of perfect harmony.

This is also why he was able to directly influence the outside world with his own will, allowing Yan Ruyu to see various strange phenomena.

If Zhong Xu didn't want to reach the state of returning to simplicity, determine his future path, and completely perfect his inner world to pave the way for future cultivation, he could have already stepped into the half-step outer realm realm, and even a perfect half-step.

However, having mastered many unique skills and had many opportunities, Zhong Xu would naturally strive to make each step as perfect as possible before making a breakthrough.

Countless insights kept surfacing in his mind. Zhong Xu's mind sank into his inner world, and he felt that his inner world had become a complete microcosm, with its own cycle, growth, prosperity, and decline, complete with the five elements and the fullness of his spirit.

Moreover, because the Dao Palace Secret Realm has been perfected, the five great divine treasures have been opened, and the five great deities have all appeared, Zhong Xu's inner world is more stable and powerful than that of ordinary cultivators.

His previous thinking was correct; although the methods of the Secret Realm and the One Lifetime Method are different, they do complement each other to some extent.

A series of sounds seemed to resonate in Zhong Xu's ears and also in his mind, immersing his consciousness in a vast ocean of the Great Dao.

All the divine skills he had mastered appeared in his mind, constantly changing and reorganizing, as if transforming into a vast and boundless sea of ​​stars.

The true meaning of the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, encompassing all changes, flowed within Zhong Xu's body. His mind suddenly stirred, as if he saw endless stars, like countless worlds within his body—the acupoints as numerous as the sands of the Ganges. Simultaneously, the operation of the Demon Buddha Arcane Arts changed. Spectacular energies merged into these countless acupoints, transforming into two distinct figures: one representing the awakening of his true nature, the other a negative condensation, each triggering different changes in energy, altering Zhong Xu's inner world.

Sensing the changes within his body, the true meaning of the "Taiyi Golden Chapter" flowed through his mind, directly merging with Zhong Xu's primordial consciousness. It was as if he had instantly ascended to an infinite height, like the lofty Heavenly Dao, calmly overlooking everything within his body, overlooking the changes in the countless acupoints.

In a daze, Zhong Xu felt that his inner world was no longer different from the outside universe. His spirit merged perfectly with the outside world and became a part of it.

At this moment, everything around him seemed to become the tentacles of Zhong Xu's will.

Every blade of grass, every flower, every tree, the flowing air, and the shining sunlight seemed to pulsate with a special energy.

Harmony between humanity and nature is perfect.

Zhong Xu's inner world also began to evolve according to the laws of heaven and earth in the outside universe, and he needed to make the most thorough adjustments.

But at that moment, a clear and deep bell rang out, echoing in his mind. Zhong Xu's consciousness returned instantly, and the adjustment of his inner world also stopped.

A strange feeling arose in Zhong Xu's mind, and a vague understanding began to emerge in his heart:
'I'm afraid I'll have to return to the world of the Supreme Being once!'

As a feeling arose in his heart, Zhong Xu gained a deeper understanding of the One Lifetime Law.

The essence of the One Lifetime Dharma Cultivation System is a byproduct developed by many otherworldly beings in their quest to find the path to enlightenment.

In the world of supreme beings, to achieve the Dao Fruit position, one needs to allow the nascent Dao Fruit to absorb the power of the epochal cycle that occurs throughout the myriad worlds from creation to prosperity, then to decline, and finally to destruction, so that the Dao Fruit can fully mature.

It can be said that the Path of the Dao Fruit is a path that is extremely closely connected with the entire myriad realms of the Supreme Being, and it is also an incredibly clear path.

For this reason, the One-Life Method, a cultivation system born from the exploration of the path to enlightenment, also has this characteristic: it can be said to have been created entirely according to the structure of the entire universe.

Opening the meridians and accumulating qi lays the foundation, enhancing one's roots and aptitude; the realm of opening the apertures constructs one's own inner world and adjusts it according to the external world; the realm of the outer world merges with the external world, gradually aligning one's inner world with the external heavens; the realm of the Dharma body embodies the principles of law, and the inner world transforms into a true world; the realm of legends clarifies the self, elevates the true nature and spirit, and the world within the body transforms into the prototype of a multiverse; the subsequent creation to the other shore, or even to the ancients, involves gradually comprehending the great Dao of the external heavens, completely perfecting the heavens within one's body, and becoming another complete myriad worlds.

After reaching the level of an ancient being who has achieved the rudimentary form of the Dao Fruit, the heavens within his body are no different from the real heavens.

It is precisely because of this that the ancients completed the process of subtraction and emptiness, breaking free from their connection with the original heavens. They were then able to directly draw upon the cyclical power of an entire era of the heavens, achieve the position of the Dao Fruit, and ultimately transcend.

This is a cultivation system that progresses from imitating heaven and earth to relying on heaven and earth, and ultimately transcending heaven and earth.

Perhaps it is because the Daoist who created the Path of Dao Fruit was a Daoist, or perhaps the Three Pure Ones who were first born were also Daoists, that the Path of Dao Fruit is a perfect match with the Daoist concept of the unity of heaven and man, and is not so suitable for the Buddhist pursuit of emptiness.

For this reason, the Three Pure Ones, as manifestations of the Great Dao, are naturally suited to walk the path of attaining enlightenment.

If the Three Pure Ones were not one entity, requiring them to transcend together, the difficulty would be far greater than that of other beings on the other shore. It is likely that after the Dao Venerable created the Path of Dao Fruit, the Three Pure Ones would have transcended one after another, leaving no chance for others to even compete.

The fact that the Buddha followed the path taken by the Daoist master, and with the help of the fruit of the Jianmu tree, and with the Mahayana lineage and the fundamental Dharma body of Buddhism, Vairocana Buddha, took responsibility for his own karma, not only gave birth to a monster like the Supreme True Buddha, but also ultimately got stuck halfway, becoming an incomplete fruit of the Dao that was neither here nor there, proves this point.

Zhong Xu vaguely felt that even without being tricked by the fruit of the Jianmu tree, achieving the Dao fruit position in the Buddhist realm, like Buddha or Amitabha, would probably not be so easy.

As various insights swirled in his mind, Zhong Xu couldn't help but recall the cultivation system of this world, namely the sacrificial system.

Compared to the Path of the Dao Fruit, this Path of Sacrifice in the Heavens, which involves sacrificing everything and making everything empty and returning to Nirvana, is practically tailor-made for Buddhism. It is a perfect fit for the Buddhist concept of Nirvana, where everything is empty.

Comparatively speaking, for Taoism, which pursues harmony between humanity and nature and follows the natural order, this path of sacrificial rituals—where failure means death—seems extreme and somewhat unsuitable.

'Holy shit.'

Thinking about this, Zhong Xu suddenly felt something was wrong.

The foundation of my current life's magic is the Demon Buddha's Profound Art, while the foundation of the Secret Realm Magic is the Taoist Scripture. Isn't this exactly the wrong path?

(End of this chapter)