From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

“Although we have no gold at home, we do have silver, which we are willing to offer to the monk,” the others echoed.

"Grandpa is getting old and a bit forgetful. I already told him last night that I don't want any money."

Jiang Liu chuckled and teased the old man, saying, "I am a cultivator, what use do I have for money? It's just that to subdue that obsessive evil spirit, we need all of you to work together."

"Yes, yes!" Old Man Mao slapped his forehead and hurriedly cupped his hands, saying, "All the able-bodied men in my Mao Village are at the command of the Master."

Seeing that the young men were somewhat frightened, Jiang Liu raised his head and chest and said loudly, "Don't be afraid, I will tell you the origin of that obsessive evil spirit:

Five hundred years ago, this Mao'er Village was still Gao Village. A pig demon once wreaked havoc, wanting to marry Gao Cuilan, the third daughter of Gao Taigong…

Although the pig demon was subdued by Sun Wukong and became Tang Sanzang's disciple, traveling westward to obtain Buddhist scriptures, the sins he had committed still remained.

Pigsy was originally Marshal Tianpeng who descended to earth but was mistakenly reborn as a pig. In a fit of rage, he bit and killed the sow and her piglets. The obsessive evil spirit was formed from their resentment.

The reason it has its eye on Sister Mao in your ancestral hall is because she was Pigsy's first wife, and a remnant of her spirit remains. She has bewitched you, the first patriarch of the Mao family. It steals gold and silver for Mao Yun, and Mao Yun provides incense and restores her soul… You are not cultivators, and faced with such an 'opportunity,' you are naturally willing to offer sacrifices to such a bewitching demon. However, a demon is still a demon; stealing others' fortune will ultimately require repayment.”

Upon hearing this, Old Man Mao was greatly surprised and hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "I hope you will show me the way, sir."

The others also knelt down, begging for their lives.

Jiang Liu turned around, refusing their bow, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I've already subdued Sister Mao from your ancestral hall."

Afterwards, Jiang Liu revealed his plan: "If you want your wishes to come true, the first step is to go back to the source."

"I hope the Master will explain clearly how to return to the source?" Old Man Mao asked, puzzled.

“This place was originally Gao Village. Your ancestors were originally surnamed Gao. You must change your surname back to Gao and stop worshipping Sister Mao. Instead, worship your ancestor Gao Cai.”

Jiang Liu chuckled and said, "Your ancestor Gao Cai made a living on his own, married Gao Taigong's third daughter Gao Cuilan, was self-reliant and kind-hearted, and his family traditions and precepts have been preserved to this day. Shouldn't you descendants who changed your surname to Mao have his memorial tablet in this ancestral hall?"

"We are unfilial!"

Grandpa Mao was struck dumb, and kowtowed again, saying, "We are willing to change our surname back to Gao and worship our ancestor Gao Cai, instead of worshipping this so-called Second Sister Mao."

"In addition, a statue of Zhu Bajie should also be erected."

Jiang Liu added that there was a reason for this: "Back then, when Gao Taigong took Bajie as his son-in-law, he cultivated nearly a thousand acres of fertile land for the Gao family. If you calculate it, nearly half of all the fertile land you have now was built with his help. He can be considered your ancestor, so shouldn't you make offerings to him?"

"It is fitting to offer sacrifices!"

Mao Tai... Gao Taigong and the others hurriedly echoed.

Why erect a statue of Zhu Bajie?

There are three reasons.

Firstly, as Jiang Liu stated, it is an indisputable fact that most of the fertile land in Mao Erzhuang was indeed originally cultivated by Bajie.

For descendants like Fuze, it is both morally and logically that they should make offerings to Bajie.

Secondly, to act as a shield.

This primordial world has flaws in its natural order, and the Heavenly Court and Mount Ling are extremely thirsty for faith such as incense offerings and vows in order to maintain longevity.

Making offerings to wild gods rashly may result in being targeted and punished by Taoism and Buddhism.

The reason why Sister Mao Er has survived to this day is only because Mao Er Village is a poor and remote place, and the little incense and prayers there are not worth mentioning... but it is ultimately not safe.

Now that Sister Mao Er is gone, and Gao Cai has taken her place, it's like walking a tightrope. Once the population of Mao Er Village prospers and the incense offerings increase, it will surely attract the attention of the gods and Buddhas.

If there were a "purifying altar messenger" to keep watch, the Buddhist sects of Mount Ling would see him as one of their own; the celestial officials would think twice before provoking him.

Thirdly, to give Bajie a true place to settle down and make a living.

Although this primordial world has three realms comparable to the human body, it is ultimately a flawed Heavenly Way, and the human body is incomplete. Therefore, one must cultivate in the human world to complete the Heavenly Way.

Therefore.

Creating a human-based training ground for Pigsy in advance, and teaching him to cultivate in Gao Village in the future, is one of the foundations for completing the universe.

"In that case, the next step is to eliminate that obsessive evil spirit."

Jiang Liu ordered Liang Luzhen to lead a group of people to search the mountain. "Those obsessive evil spirits cannot exist out of thin air. They must have a place to reside. I am certain that it is their remains from their previous lives."

"Luzhen, you have a keen sense of smell. Take advantage of your destiny, when the yang energy is strong, to search the mountains around Fuling Mountain. Find it, dig it out, and bring it to the town. I will use the Samadhi of Fire to burn it, so that the obsessive evil spirit will have nowhere to reside."

"Yes!"

Liang Luzhen accepted the order and led a group of young men to Fuling Mountain.

“Fortune”.

Jiang Liu then looked at Lao Fude, "You are skilled in civil engineering, so lead the village's civil engineers and masons to sculpt a statue of Pigsy."

"Senior Brother, Junior Brother will certainly not fail in his mission." Old Fude replied, and a picture appeared in front of him. It was a portrait of Zhu Bajie in this prehistoric world, which looked like a wild boar with a small body and a big head.

As for Bajing, he is now a horse, so it is not appropriate for him to speak human language in front of the people, but he also cannot really regard himself as a horse.

So Jiang Liu strung his original dragon pearl and the red-bearded dragon's dragon pearl together, hung them around his neck, and told it to run around outside Fuling Mountain. He then transmitted his voice, saying, "Ba Jing, when Lu Zhen digs out the bones of those domestic pigs, it will surely disturb the obsessive evil spirits in the mountain. At that time, I will use these two dragon pearls to temporarily take in those obsessive evil spirits. I will have a use for them."

The white horse neighed in response and galloped off toward Mount Fuling.

"Master, what about your horse?"

Grandpa Gao was startled and at a loss for what to do.

"My Mark is no ordinary horse; it is an mortal descended from the Eight Heavenly Dragons, sent to protect my descendants from Flower Fruit Mountain as they continue their westward cultivation. This journey to Fuling Mountain is to suppress evil spirits and prevent them from resorting to desperate measures," Jiang Liu explained.

"So that's how it is."

Seeing how fast the eight-pure horse ran, confirming it was no ordinary horse, the old, weak, women, and children of the town believed it...

Chapter 1402 A Thousand Changes, One Heart

Na Lianglu went up the mountain and, relying on his racial talent, was able to smell the earth. In less than half a day, he found the Cloud Stack Cave and then found the skeletons on a nearby hillside. He dug with the hunters and farmers and found a pile of domestic pig skeletons, which were white, cold and chilling, making people shudder.

But in order to rid themselves of the ghost, the villagers could only carefully carry out and hold the remains together with Liang Luzhen, and then, taking advantage of the high sun and the strongest yang energy, quickly descend the mountain to the ancestral hall via a stone staircase.

As the corpses moved, the obsessive evil spirit sensed it and emerged from the Cloud Stack Cave. Ignoring the injuries inflicted by Jiang Liu the previous night and the bright sunshine, it chased after the people along the stone steps.

Fortunately, the Eight Pure Horse leaped out of the forest, let out a long neigh, and circulated its Qi throughout the heavens, activating the two dragon pearls. Two golden rays burst forth, enveloping the obsessive evil spirit and binding it within the dragon pearl it had condensed itself, making it unable to break free.

When Liang Luzhen and Ba Jingma returned to the ancestral hall, the statue of Sister Mao Er had already disappeared.

Under Fude's supervision, the statue was completed. It was small in stature with a large head, protruding fangs, dressed in a greyish-blue monk's robe, with a string of prayer beads around its neck, and carrying a nine-toothed rake—truly—

Born with a clumsy nature, unable to escape between advancement and retreat. It is difficult to abstain from emptiness and lust, and one must follow one's nature and also follow the Buddha.

A spiked rake paves the way for opportunity, fangs gnaw at cause and effect. In this turbulent world, let laughter and talk go.

This Pigsy from the prehistoric world didn't have such a tall stature; instead, he was somewhat silly and cute, which made Jiang Liu smile knowingly. He said, "You're lucky to have met me. This time, I'll definitely add the word 'great' before 'Ci Zheng Guo' (a title for a person in the Buddhist order), and you won't need that fake Buddha from Mount Ling to bestow a title upon you. It will be a position you attain on your own!"

Then, Jiang Liu turned around and saw Liang Luzhen and the people carrying the bones over. Without hesitation, he chanted "Om" and the Phoenix Fairy Talisman of the Yin Aperture, corresponding to the Yin Aperture, was gently fanned by the Yin-Yang Fan. Without opening his mouth to spit, firelight spontaneously appeared, burning the pile of dry bones and the dragon pearl under the neck of the Eight Pure Horses.

The flames were bright and burning fiercely, yet they did not harm anyone.

Outside the withered bones, the red flames roared and burned them to ashes in no time, returning them to the world.

Inside the Dragon Ball, a faint blue flame burned away the obsessions of the vengeful spirits within in an instant, leaving only a few traces of their true nature.

Jiang Liu beckoned and grasped the several spirits in his hand. He chanted the mantra "Om Lan Jing Fa Jie, Qian Yuan Heng Li Zhen" and used his body and mind to draw upon the power of heaven and earth to create a Dharma realm within the statue of Bajie as a place for these spirits to reside.

"Master, has that monster been eliminated?"

Old Master Gao couldn't help but ask.

“I have already dissolved the obsession of that evil spirit, leaving only a trace of spiritual light, which I have sealed within this statue.”

Jiang Liu told him the truth, "In the future, you will not need to offer incense every day, nor will you need to offer three kinds of sacrificial animals. You only need to offer some rice, grains, fruits and vegetables during festivals."

Remember, the offerings must be taken home by each household for their own consumption; they must not be left behind. Otherwise, the desires of the spirits within will increase, causing them to transform into demons.

"what?"

Grandpa Gao trembled, "That demon is still alive?"

"This cause and effect originated from Marshal Tianpeng Zhu Bajie five hundred years ago, and only he can fully understand this cause and effect. Otherwise, even the Buddha of Mount Ling and Laozi of Tushita could not solve it."

Jiang Liu said, half-jokingly, "Please rest assured, as long as every household has land to cultivate, seeks goodness, and doesn't do petty theft, this spirit will naturally no longer become a demon."

Left with no other choice, Old Master Gao had to compromise.

Jiang Liu added, "Grandpa, there's no need to worry. We're heading west to see the Buddha in the Western Paradise. If we encounter the Clean Altar Messenger Bodhisattva from your Mao Er Village, we'll invite him back after we've completed our mission to settle this karmic debt. We'll also ask him to cultivate here so that you can have good weather and abundant harvests every year."

Upon hearing this, Old Master Gao was overjoyed and ordered all the villagers to prepare a fine vegetarian meal for Jiang Liu, Fu De, Lü Zhen, and the Eight Clean Horse.

Even Kui Lang, Bai Hua Xiu, and others benefited and ate to their hearts' content.

When leaving.

Old Master Gao still offered a thousand taels of silver to express his gratitude.

Jiang Liu did not collect the silver, but instead grabbed a handful and gave it to Gao Cai, saying with a smile, "Five hundred years ago, my family's Great Sage Sun grabbed a handful of broken silver and gave it to your current Gao family ancestor, Gao Cai."

Now, I, a descendant of the Great Sage, will also grab a handful and bestow them upon you, a talent from five hundred years later.

Consider this a thank you for showing me the way, and I hope you'll use this money to buy straw sandals and be down-to-earth.

"Thank you, Venerable Master!"

Gao Cai was overjoyed to receive the silver coins. He and the other villagers of Mao Erzhuang saw Jiang Liu and his entourage off as they left the city. They traveled nearly ten miles before finally turning back.

Liang Luzhen glanced back at the people of Mao Erzhuang, then turned to Jiang Liu and asked, "Senior Brother, why don't you let them change the name of Mao Erzhuang back to Gao Laozhuang?"

“Yes, Senior Brother, this is the place where Marshal Tianpeng entered the mortal realm. If we change it back to Gao Village, the Clean Altar Messenger will have more to belong to when he returns in the future.” Old Fude was also curious.

"There are countless outward appearances, but only one true heart."

Jiang Liu smiled and said, "I taught the people in the village to change their surname back to Gao so that they would not worship desires, but worship their ancestors and understand the fundamental nature of their mind and body."

This is the true meaning of returning to the source.

As for the name of the estate—

That's the outer foreskin, changing with the passage of time, but it doesn't need to be altered.

This is the truth of spiritual practice.

In reality—

"Besides, although Sister Mao Er stole other people's property through the Five Ghosts Transporting Technique to provide Gao Yun with a fortune, she was still considered to have protected the area. Therefore, the name 'Mao Er' was left behind as a memento," Jiang Liu added.

"Senior Brother, with your abilities, you could easily catch that evil spirit without those commoners, right?" The white horse beneath him also spoke in human language, having come up with an idea.

Jiang Liu laughed and said, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."