From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

And now-

They are the witnesses, participants, and drivers of this era!

At that very moment, Lu Jin's spirit became more concentrated, and a faint light shone forth, causing his body and mind to tremble inexplicably, and the Qi within his body to flow more smoothly.

Zhang Zhiwei keenly noticed this change, and although he was slightly surprised, he quickly calmed down.

Is enlightenment difficult?

Zhang Zhiwei used to find it quite difficult, but later he realized that it was only by staying on the mountain for a long time to cultivate that he found it difficult to attain enlightenment. Once he came down the mountain, experienced enough, and let time settle down, he could sort out everything in the past and gain a completely new understanding that belonged to him.

Therefore.

Staying on the mountain to cultivate oneself, seeking enlightenment, may take most of one's life to gain any understanding.

In the human realm, spiritual practice and enlightenment can be summed up in two words: experience!

[I must say, Jiang Liu has truly surpassed me in this regard, having summarized a complete system of growth and sublimation for enlightenment: sensation, memory, thinking, consciousness, thought, spirit, soul... Damn it, when the world is at peace, should I also learn more about the "science" proposed by foreigners?]

With this thought in mind, Zhang Zhiwei cut off his distracting thoughts and did not congratulate Lu Jin. He waited for Lu Jin to calm his internal energy before continuing forward with him.

After passing the Dharma Protector Temple, we entered the Reincarnation Temple.

Unlike the other buildings, the Samsara Temple is relatively well-preserved, but the Buddha statues inside have all disappeared. It is unknown whether they were taken away by foreigners or simply succumbed to the ravages of time and returned to their original state as clay.

Seeing that there was not much information on the surrounding walls, Zhang Zhiwei looked up and saw a painting above the temple, colorful and a combination of relief and painting.

Because this temple of reincarnation is intact, the murals on the ceiling are also intact. In the center is a huge eyeball, and around it is a radiating pattern of eight colors, each of which is a different mythical beast. On the outermost edge is a circle of dozens of naked dakinis, each with a unique and graceful posture.

Upon seeing this, Lu Jin guessed, "If that nun wasn't lying, this might be one of the Guge Silver Eyes of the Guge Dynasty, containing the coordinates to the Demon Kingdom ruins. But unfortunately, not only do we know that the Demon Kingdom ruins are in Kunlun, but the silver-eyed nun who wanted to be our guide also knows that."

"In that case, the ruins of the Guge Kingdom don't really offer many useful clues. We'll have to go back to Silver Eye Temple and ask that Silver Eye Nun if there are any special magical artifacts or anything like that in her temple," Zhang Zhiwei said thoughtfully.

However, Lu Jin had a different opinion. He used his mental power to scan the entire hill, taking in the entire scene.

There are about 500 houses and palaces, 60 fortresses and towers, 30 pagodas of various kinds, and several defensive walls and tower walls. The largest number of these are the underground caves of the royal city, which number nearly a thousand.

Zhang Zhiwei had a slight sense of this mental energy scan back in Jinhua, but now he could truly sense it. He couldn't help but sigh, "Your ability is really convenient. Did Jiang Liu teach you this?"

"Yes, Brother Jiang imitated it from Zhan Lan."

Knowing that Zhang Zhiwei had not forgotten the existence of those reincarnators, Lu Jin did not hide anything, "Everyone has spiritual power, but if they do not know how to use it, even if their spiritual power is extremely profound, it is difficult to truly unleash it."

Just like using superpowers, it's not as simple as just releasing Qi out of the body to directly convert it into corresponding abilities; you have to rely on manipulating the meridians throughout the body to process it.

The exertion of mental power requires the involvement of the nervous system, including the brain...

Those extraordinary individuals who possess innate telekinetic abilities have mostly been born with a method of using mental power, but they only know how to use it in that one way.

"So how did you learn it?"

Zhang Zhiwei was curious, after all, Lu Jin had not awakened innate telekinesis.

“Human magnetism is a panacea. As long as you find the right way, you can combine it with any cultivation technique in the world.” Lu Jin chuckled, then walked to a wall of the Samsara Temple, raised his hand and knocked on it, producing a dull “thump-thump” sound with an echo, indicating that it was hollow inside.

boom!

In the instant the force was released, the wall cracked, creating a hole that revealed a secret chamber inside, from which a putrid stench wafted out.

Lu Jin frowned, rolled up his sleeve, and a gust of wind blew away the stench of decay. Stepping inside, he saw a Buddha statue.

With its golden hue and silvery eyes, it sits cross-legged on a lotus throne, serene and peaceful.

Behind the Buddha statue is a huge iron gate, ancient and covered with thick dust, and engraved with characters that look like scribbles.

In the very center of the door crack was a black talisman with six large characters outlined in gold and silver ink: "Om Mani Padme Hum".

This is the Six-Syllable Mantra, also known as the Six-Syllable Great Bright Mantra. It is quite rare in Buddhism. The method of practicing this mantra in Chinese Buddhism has been lost. Whether it is an ordinary monk or a martial monk who practices Qi cultivation, they can recite this mantra and have given it many meanings.

But what are the specific effects of mantra recitation on spiritual practice...?

None of them could explain it.

It seems to be just a catchphrase similar to "Amitabha Buddha".

"You said you went abroad to study history? Then wouldn't you call this damaging cultural relics?"

Zhang Zhiwei saw through the black talisman, but he condemned Lu Jin's act of damaging the walls of the Samsara Temple, saying, "This is really too much! This is a cultural heritage left by our ancestors!"

"It wasn't left by my ancestors."

Lu Jin rolled her eyes, speaking as if it were a matter of course, but then seemed to feel that her words were a bit too heartless, so she added, "This wall is already crumbling. Even if I don't break it, it will disappear in nearly a hundred years. Besides, there are no murals or inscriptions on this wall that are worth recording, so it doesn't count as damaging cultural heritage."

"You studied history, so you're in charge."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded seriously and stepped into the room, looking at the three-eyed sculpture. He pondered, "It is said that the Guge Kingdom was rich in gold and silver. This sculpture should be another kind of Guge silver eye besides the relief murals on the dome outside."

"This is a magical artifact."

Lu Jin stepped forward, grasped the Buddha statue, and infused it with a wisp of Qi. He sensed something, but because he didn't know how to use it, he couldn't understand the specific function of the Buddha statue.

“If it is a Buddha statue, then it is most likely used to gather the worship power of all living beings.” Zhang Zhiwei also stepped forward to examine it. He couldn’t figure out how to use it, but the Celestial Master’s Mansion has a variety of traditions, so he could guess a thing or two about the function of this bronze statue.

Lu Jin didn't care about any of that. He picked up the Buddha statue and saw that there were chains under the lotus pedestal. He tore them off and put the Buddha statue into the Ghost Craft Ball, which he had already refined into a storage artifact.

Seeing this, Zhang Zhiwei sighed, "It's really convenient to have a magic tool for storage. The Celestial Master's Mansion also has a corresponding weapon-making tradition. It can even use the worship power of all living beings to make magic tools. But unfortunately, this method requires a very high level of mental discipline. Otherwise, if one becomes obsessed with collecting the worship and faith of all living beings, then it's no different from becoming a demon."

hum-

As soon as he finished speaking, the heavy iron door began to tremble violently, as if some ferocious beast was trapped inside. However, due to a black talisman on the iron door inscribed with the six-syllable mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum," which emitted a faint light, the entity inside the door was temporarily unable to break the seal.

The light on the black talisman was slowly fading, and it probably could only last for about three minutes.

"It seems I guessed right. The purpose of this Buddha statue is to collect the worship power of all living beings and connect it to this iron gate through the chain beneath it, thereby activating the six-syllable mantra on it to prevent anything inside from escaping."

An ordinary person would have run away by now, but Zhang Zhiwei watched the constantly trembling door with great interest and even analyzed the general situation of the secret room.

There was just one thing that intrigued him—

Judging from the extent of the shaking of the iron gate, the thing imprisoned inside should be a living creature, not a zombie or an elf.

The Guge Kingdom has a history of at least a thousand years. How did the creatures inside survive?

"Why don't you just open it and see?"

Lu Jin chuckled twice, and with a wave of his hand, the black talisman on the iron gate fell into his hand and was stored in the Ghost Craft Sphere. The iron gate was then violently pushed open by the creature inside.

boom!

The moment the iron gate was pushed open, the creature didn't react in time, stumbled, fell to the ground, and let out a "woof".

The two of them also saw the thing's appearance clearly. It was shaped like a human, with a cat-like head, and covered in white fur, but it was dry and had little luster.

But what is most impressive is its body. Although it is as tall as an adult, it is thin and bony, as if it would fall apart if the wind blew it away.

Without a doubt, this guy is not a "vegetable" like a "vampire," but a carnivore.

"Ow!"

It got up, lay on all fours, and stared at Lu Jin and Zhang Zhiwei with its scarlet eyes. It let out a roar, and a trickle of saliva hung from the corner of its mouth.

It was obvious that they were treating the two as their first delicious meal after being released from prison.

Before the cat-like creature could even flutter, Zhang Zhiwei raised his right index finger, and a round, golden light, about the size of a soybean, appeared.

There were no other complicated movements, just a flick of the finger.

whoosh-

The soybean transformed into golden light, instantly piercing through the monster's brow, penetrating the back of its head, and piercing the ground behind it, leaving a small dot several meters deep.

The monster stared wide-eyed in disbelief, but with its brain pierced, it was beyond saving and fell to the ground in despair.

"So weak?"

Zhang Zhiwei had thought that this demon, which had barely managed to cultivate into a human form, could put up a fight with him, but he never expected it to be so fragile, unable to even withstand a casual blow from him.

What are you doing?

Looking at the monster's corpse, Lu Jin could only put it into the Ghost Craft Sphere, muttering, "If this thing were alive, it would be worth far more than its corpse!"

"Sorry, my hands were itching to use them."

Zhang Zhiwei chuckled and looked inside the iron gate. He found a courtyard with smooth walls and the ground covered with human bones and small animal bones. He also spotted a rat about the size of a house cat, with yellow and black fur and a long tail, which looked rather cute.

So he spread his hand, and golden light emerged, transforming into an arm that caught the rat. He then said to Lu Jin, "This time I didn't kill it!"

Lu Jin remained silent for a moment, then stepped inside the iron gate to examine the human and animal bones. He said, "The human bones are fresh, dating back three to five hundred years. The oldest piece might date back to when this place was first abandoned. As for the animal bones, they are all relatively small and incomplete..."

After carefully inspecting the iron gate, he discovered that the gap at the bottom of the gate was large enough that even a country dog ​​could squeeze through, let alone a mouse.

"...It seems that the white monster is the 'ancestor' of these cat-like rats. It has been trapped here for many years and has only been able to survive by having these 'descendants' hunt prey from the outside."

But simply surviving isn't enough; without enough to eat, it's difficult to improve one's cultivation, which is why one appears so weak.

If he were in his prime, he might actually be able to go toe-to-toe with him and Zhang Zhiwei for seven or eight moves.

"Speaking of which, there are also images of the same monster on the murals of the Dharma Protector Temple outside." Lu Jin recalled the murals on the walls of the Dharma Protector Temple and guessed that the "cat-rat beast" that had cultivated into human form was most likely kept by the Samsara Sect to punish criminals, sinners, heretics, and the like.

thereafter.

Finding no further clues, the two left the Guge Kingdom, sometimes appearing in golden light, sometimes in clouds, and returned to Silver Eye Temple in an instant without disturbing any of the lamas or nuns in the temple.

Seeing the large black rat enveloped in golden light, Jiang Liu recognized it with his keen eyes and said, "This is a muskrat. It can adapt to both hot and cold environments and likes to burrow and build nests in arid areas. It likes to swim and its diet consists mainly of grass, as well as insects, frogs, etc. It is an omnivorous animal."

Upon seeing the cat-headed, human-bodied monster's corpse, he recognized it and said, "According to Tibetan Buddhist legends, this should be the Sin-Eating Baru, which specializes in gnawing on the flesh and blood of sinners and devouring their souls."

However, in reality, it is a demon raised by the Samsara Sect using some secret method, with corresponding legends added to it, in order to bewitch people.

Fortunately, you two acted decisively and killed them directly; otherwise, you might have suffered some minor losses, as this thing can shake one's soul.

"With our life force and cultivation level, how could this thing possibly affect us?" Zhang Zhiwei didn't believe it.

"Hey, don't be skeptical. Everything in the universe has its counterpart. This muskrat, which has become a spirit, has endured hunger for many years. Its resilience is far beyond that of ordinary cultivators."

Jiang Liu put the corpse of the Sin-Eating Balu into his storage ring, and gave an example: "An animal that has reached a certain level of maturity, especially one that has cultivated a human body, will generally spontaneously develop into a kind of innate ability with a relatively complete Qi circulation path."

Perhaps we don't see it often in real life, but it's recorded in many ancient novels, especially "Journey to the West," where the scorpion demon's venom was so potent that even Buddha felt pain!

"But is the muskrat's talent to devour souls?" Lu Jin asked curiously.

"Musk rats are rodents, and their talents are only related to their teeth. But if we think about it further, we might say that they have considerable evolutionary potential, since one stage of our human ancestors was small rodent mammals."

With that, Jiang Liu waved his hand, and the muskrat that Zhang Zhiwei had wrapped in golden light floated in front of him. He examined it carefully, then pointed a finger at it, and the muskrat turned into dust and vanished without a trace.

This muskrat has also acquired Qi and carries an extremely rich life force, indicating that it must have eaten corpses. If it gains power in the future, it will surely become a menace.