txolops Chapter 16 The Great Thunderclap Temple in the Western Paradise
Chapter 16 The Great Thunderclap Temple in the Western Paradise
Li Fa understood that Que Jiuhan wanted to use someone else to do his dirty work, but he was still too inexperienced to try this trick on him.
However, he doesn't want to provoke the pilgrimage team right now. With his current strength, he probably wouldn't last ten rounds against Sun Wukong.
But just then, the catalog was updated again:
A new causal link has been detected.
[Target that cannot be killed: Little White Dragon (The Chosen One)]
[Potentially salvageable: Tang Sanzang's white horse]
[Unemployment Assessment]
Rewards for a successful rescue:
[Optional Reward 1: Six Harmonies Spear Technique (Martial Arts)]
[Optional Reward Two: Water and Fire (Supernatural Power)]
[Optional Reward 3: Horse Riding Proficiency]
Li Fa was shocked; he hadn't expected that the White Dragon couldn't be hunted.
What shocked him even more was that there was a reward for saving the horse that Tang Sanzang was riding.
It seems that the Merit Chart is not just a simple diagram of karma, but rather a kind of guide.
It was trying to tell Li Fa that some personnel matters could be handled, while others could not, or could not be handled for the time being.
So it seems my idea of breaking away from the main Journey to the West storyline and developing independently is going to fail.
Li Fa understood. Since that was the case, he had no choice but to make the trip to Eagle's Sorrow Gorge.
But he remembered that in the original story, Tang Sanzang and his disciples arrived at Eagle's Sorrow Stream in Snake Coil Mountain in the dead of winter. At that time, the weather was freezing cold, the north wind was biting, birds had folded their wings, and deer hibernated. The Jade Dragon could not find food in the mountains, so it risked eating Tang Sanzang's horse.
However, it is still late autumn, and if we go directly to Snake Coil Mountain, we will have to wait for Tang Sanzang for some time.
It's better to wait until it's almost December before going.
Thinking of this, Li Fa said to Que Jiuhan, "Don't worry. Shuangcha Ridge is not peaceful right now, and I'm afraid I won't be able to avenge you for a while. Let's wait until winter comes before I go and avenge you."
Upon hearing this, Que Jiuhan was moved to tears and repeatedly kowtowed, saying, "Thank you, Grandpa! Thank you, Grandpa!"
Li Fa waved his hand and told him to leave.
He left the cave, transformed back into Lu Kunkun, and returned to the Skinning Pavilion.
He appointed Zhang Xiaowu as the head steward of the hermitage and Badger Captain as the head steward of the skinning pavilion. After settling all the affairs in the cave, he went into seclusion to practice martial arts diligently, waiting for the twelfth lunar month to arrive.
We will not go into details here, but let us talk about the silver-headed Jiedi, whose true spirit had not been extinguished, and who went to Mount Ling.
Upon entering the Pure Land, he was immediately greeted by guards. Upon seeing that it was the Silver-Headed Guardian among the Five Guardians who had suffered a calamity and whose true spirit was weak, they dared not be negligent in the slightest and immediately protected him until he reached the outside of the Great Thunderclap Temple.
At this moment, a man emerged from the temple; it was Venerable Ananda. Upon seeing the pitiful state of the silver-headed Jiedi, he was greatly alarmed and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"
The shaman then recounted what had happened. Ananda was greatly alarmed and hurriedly tried to calculate with his fingers, but he could only get a vague result without any clues.
Seeing that he couldn't figure it out, the silver-headed Jiedi hurriedly asked, "Venerable One, is the Buddha here?"
Ah Nan: "He is giving a sermon in the Mahavira Hall."
The silver-headed Jiedi said, "I beg the Venerable One to protect my true spirit, and I pray to Buddha to make the decision."
Ananda nodded, then made a hand seal and chanted an incantation, sending out a golden light to protect the Silver-Headed Jiedi and head straight for the Great Buddha Hall.
Upon entering the hall, one indeed saw flowers falling from the ceiling and golden lotuses emerging from the ground. All the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and Vajras were arranged in their respective positions, their appearances solemn and dignified, and all were silent.
On the central lotus platform, the Buddha's golden body, sixteen feet tall, shone with restrained radiance, his wise eyes slightly lowered, and he spoke of the Lotus Sutra.
Venerable Ananda, protecting the true spirit of the Silver-Headed Jiedi, stood quietly beside the jade pillar at the side of the hall, not daring to disturb the Buddha's sermon.
Then the Tathagata spoke: "So it is. Since I attained Buddhahood, it has been an extremely long time, my lifespan countless eons, and I have remained eternally abiding; however, in order to prevent sentient beings from becoming lazy, I manifested Nirvana. But now it is not true Nirvana, yet I proclaim that I will attain Nirvana. The Tathagata uses this expedient means to teach and transform sentient beings..."
In an instant, all the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and Vajras in the hall, some smiling with flowers in hand, others lost in thought with their eyes lowered, were immersed in this mystery. Even the true spirit of the Silver-Headed Jiedi gradually stabilized.
The Buddha paused for a moment, as if waiting for something.
Ananda, observing the expressions on Ananda's face, knew it was time to speak, and thus reported: "I report to the Buddha that the Silver-Headed Guardian of the Five Directions encountered misfortune while on official business at the Two Realms Mountain. His golden body was shattered, and only his true spirit escaped back. There is now an urgent matter, and I humbly request the Buddha's holy judgment."
Only then did Tathagata raise his head and look at the silver-headed Jiedi.
All the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats, and Vajras looked over at the same time.
"Come closer and we'll talk in detail," the Buddha said, his expression neither joyful nor sorrowful.
Jiedi then knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "May Buddha have mercy! Your disciple, Yintou Jiedi, is here to guard the Two Realms Mountain by the decree of the Buddha."
After the pilgrim rescued the stone monkey, the disciple intended to clean up the scene and report back to Buddha the next day. However, he suddenly encountered a fierce and unruly creature, seemingly a deer demon.
He possessed extraordinary abilities and boundless strength. This disciple attempted to subdue him, but… he was no match for him. His golden body was shattered, his form destroyed, leaving only a wisp of his spirit to escape. This disciple has failed in his mission and deserves death. I humbly beg Buddha to punish me!
Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent.
However, divine light flowed in the eyes of each Buddha and Bodhisattva, as if they were making deductions.
The Buddha then asked, "What did that deer demon look like?"
The silver-headed Jiedi said, "Short and stocky build, pointed head, and..."
So he described Lu Kunkun's appearance to the Buddha.
Only then did the Buddha say, "This deer demon is not his true form; someone has transformed into his appearance."
The silver-headed Jiedi was greatly surprised: "How did Buddha know this?"
The Buddha laughed and said, "I think all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have already deduced this, but the secrets of heaven are obscure and they cannot calculate it. So I took another approach and deduced the true form of that deer demon, and found out that this little demon had been dead for many days. Therefore, someone must have transformed into his appearance and harmed you."
The silver-headed Jiedi asked, "Does the Buddha know its true nature?"
The Buddha shook his head and said, "I don't know either; I can't predict him. It's probably because the Journey to the West began, and the secrets of heaven were in chaos. In addition, he also had some ability to steal the heavens and change the sun, so it's normal that I can't predict him. Your defeat at his hands was actually your destiny's tribulation, not a mistake in battle."
Upon hearing this, Jiedi trembled with fear, his true spirit lost in thought.
Guanyin Bodhisattva stepped forward and said, "The Two Realms Mountain and Shuangcha Ridge are only two or three days' journey apart. The pilgrims just came out of Shuangcha Ridge and then passed through Two Realms Mountain. Could this monster be related to Shuangcha Ridge?"
The Buddha nodded and said, "What the Venerable Guanyin said is absolutely right. The deer demon's true form is just a minor monster from Shuangcha Ridge."
Guanyin said, "Buddha, the three demons of Shuangcha Ridge were born to face a calamity, and were the first of Jin Chanzi's tribulations. But just now, I foresaw that all three demons had met untimely deaths, and now the Silver-Headed Jiedi has also met with misfortune. There are many variables involved, which may disrupt the journey to the West."
The Buddha smiled and said, "Venerable One, there is no need to worry. The Heavenly Way is fifty, the Great Expansion is forty-nine, and one is missing. The journey to the West is fraught with difficulties, which is meant to temper one's character and nature. Naturally, it can also accommodate unexpected changes. Although these changes are unpredictable, they are not necessarily all bad. However, their origins are unfathomable, so we must be careful."
Immediately, the Buddha said to the Silver-Headed Guardian: "Although your golden body is destroyed, your true spirit is not obscured, which can be considered a merit. Go to the Eight Treasures Merit Pool to receive the nourishment of the Buddha's teachings and rebuild your Dharma body. In the future, you will return to the ranks of the Five Guardians and will be given a proper role."
The silver-headed Jiedi was moved to tears and bowed again, saying, "Thank you for the Buddha's grace!"
After he thanked them, a Vajra Warrior led his spirit to the Eight Treasures Merit Pool.
The Buddha then said to Guanyin Bodhisattva, "Since you, Venerable One, are in charge of the westward journey, this matter shall be entrusted to you for a thorough investigation."
The remaining Jiedi, the Six Ding and Six Jia, the Four Duty Officers, and the eighteen Dharma Protectors are to exercise caution along the way and refrain from direct intervention unless absolutely necessary. They should simply report any unusual activity they observe truthfully.
Guanyin Bodhisattva accepted the decree: "I will obey the Buddha's teachings."
The Buddha lowered his eyes and said nothing more.
Then the chanting in the hall resumed, and auspicious clouds were reborn.