I Can See Your Combat Power

Chapter 922: Chapter 216: The True Wilderness

“Dreams come true?”

With a Gou Chen Mask atop his head, Tang Luo folded his arms across his chest and spoke calmly, “It appears that Master Jiu Da seems to know the purpose of my visit?”

“Ever since the day you had a conflict with Ke Luda, Master Jiu Da has been pondering, with your formidable cultivation at the peak of Fierce Realm, what could possibly attract you to the Wilderness to the extent that you would assume a different identity and visit the temple.” Master Jiu Da said with a chuckle: “Later, after passing by you outside the temple, Jiu Da understood.”

“Oh?” Tang Luo released his arms from his chest, placed his left hand on his knee and his right hand naturally on the table, tapping his index finger intermittently on the table surface and casually asked with his hoarse voice, “Could it be true as the city says, that Master Jiu Da has the eyes of reincarnation, able to see through past and present lives?”

“After sixty years of cultivation, Jiu Da doesn’t know if the cycles of reincarnation he has seen are real or not. But just before entering the temple and passing by you, I accidentally discovered your hidden illness.”

Master Jiu Da looked at Tang Luo with a confident chest and said, “It seems that you not only possess Martial Arts Divinity but are also invincible in battle, otherwise you would not be tainted with such a thick Blood Fiend aura. You must have come to the Wilderness to use the Asura God Statue of the Vita Temple to remove the Blood Fiend within you, right?”

...

With his intentions disclosed by the old monk, the left hand resting on his knee suddenly clenched tightly, the atmosphere in the hall instantly turned murderous, and Tang Luo’s eyes were filled with coldness as he slowly said, “Master, what an acute sense of smell.”

“You flatter me, sir.” As if not noticing the murderous intent in Tang Luo’s eyes, Master Jiu Da explained harmoniously, “Since my youth, I have endured the cleansing of Evil Qi, and after decades of arduous cultivation on the Asura Path, sensing Evil Qi has become second nature to me; it’s nothing to boast about. But do you know why the Feitian Clan, despite their arrogance and brutality, are sealed as protectors of Buddha’s Country and awarded the vast Vimazhita as their fief by Buddha’s Country?”

“The Asura Path is a branch of the ancient Zen tradition and is one of the sources of Buddhist teachings. Although cultivation of Asura Path is hindered by Evil Qi, making it difficult to transform the physical body and ascend to King Realm, it still counts as one of the powerful techniques, so there is nothing strange about its transmission to this day.”

“It seems that sir has some understanding of the Feitian Clan, but you only know part of the story,” Master Jiu Da continued to explain, “Buddha’s Country is the most domineering; all Buddhist teachings must follow the Buddhas’ overarching principles, and only those that share the same source can be considered fundamental to Zen. Unless they comply with Buddha’s Country, all others will be branded as heretics and eradicated. Thus, those Zen traditions from ancient times that did not submit have either been obliterated from history, or have turned into ancient Buddhas, or have vanished without a trace. And the Buddhist Sect, which has assimilated various beliefs, has ultimately become the Buddha’s Country of Zhongzhou. Among them, the strongest factions correspond to Bodhisattvas and Buddha, while the smaller ones can only protect like Arhats. The Asura Path, though exceptional, is merely considered an affiliate of the Asura in the eyes of Buddha’s Country, not even ranked in the top hundred, but yet it is sealed as a protectorate of the Divine Country by Buddha’s Country. Don’t you find that strange, sir?”

Affection is a term used in personal relationships; among forces, the discussion is more about interests.

An ancient saying goes: when there’s mutual benefit, relations grow closer; when there is harm, they drift apart, this is the natural order; such is the way to discern the merging and divergence of similarities and differences, and it is the same in principle.

The meaning is, those who can bring mutual benefits will inevitably bond closely. If the association leads to harm for both parties, they will certainly become distant and estranged. This is the fixed pattern for all things in the universe. To understand the convergence and separation among people, it is just the same.

The resplendent Buddha’s Country in Zhongzhou preserved the Feitian Clan, surely because this power was of great use to the Buddha’s Country. However, Tang Luo could not fathom what the backwards and ignorant pseudo-gods of the Wilderness could offer that the Buddha’s Country found so valuable.

As Tang Luo contemplated, he noticed Jiutuo’s gaze fixed on him, full of deep meaning. Upon meeting his eyes, a sudden flash of spiritual light brought enlightenment.

“Do you mean that those Buddhist Sect disciples afflicted by inner demons all come to the Vimazhita Wilderness for a journey?”

“Indeed, sir, you are truly talented.” Jiutuo had not expected such a subtle hint to be grasped by the man before him. Though he felt wary in his heart, he lavishly praised, “With your martial arts cultivation, after using the Asura God Statue to extract the Blood Fiend, it won’t take more than ten years to complete the spiritualization of the flesh and attain the esteemed position of a grandmaster, free and happy. Truly a joyous occasion.”

Facing the old monk’s flattery, Tang Luo was expressionless and said dismissively, “But I still can’t understand, if the Asura God Statue’s ability to control Evil Qi can significantly reduce the risk of Buddhist Sect disciples falling into demonhood, then the Zen could have simply moved the statue away. Why must they leave your Feitian Clan behind? Could it be out of compassion?”

“It’s certainly not because of compassion,” Jiutuo said with a smile. “Apart from the Feitian Clan, who else would willingly cultivate the Asura Path which has no hope for enlightenment? If there is no nourishment of Evil Qi from the Asura Path, the Asura God Statue will lose all of its divine power within ten years. Then, what will those Zen disciples who have fallen into the demonic path do? Don’t you agree, sir?”

“What a protector of Buddha’s Country, and what an Asura Path of the Feitian Clan.”

With Jiutuo’s explanation, Tang Luo quickly understood many intricacies and also grasped the true nature of the Feitian Clan in the Vimazhita Wilderness.

No wonder the Feitian Clan, though weak and ignorant, occupied such a fertile land. No wonder even the mighty Buddha’s Country recognized the Feitian Clan’s rule over the Wilderness.

“But there is one thing I still don’t understand. Doesn’t the Zen have the ‘Purifying Divine Mantra’ for disciples who fall into demonhood to dissolve it with Buddha’s teachings? Doesn’t this contradict the principles that the Zen publicly professes?”

“An external evil that enters the body can naturally be expelled with a divine mantra, but what use is reciting countless mantras for an inner demon born from that very mantra?”

Jiutuo, smiling, with the wrinkles on his face coming together and his eyes squinting into slits, seemed to mock the all-capable Buddhist Sect: “In Zen teachings, there are many inherently contradictory and unresolvable aspects. Any sect that amalgamates countless gods and Buddhas will have this problem. Rather than stubbornly trying to solve these insoluble doctrines of Buddha, it’s better to find an alternative method. Thus, Zen disciples troubled by inner demons all come to the Wilderness for a journey.”

“It is said that if one undertakes a barefoot pilgrimage of eighty thousand miles to the Vita Temple, all confusion and obstacles regarding Buddha’s teachings will disperse. Naturally, for the Asura God Statue will extract all the Evil Qi from within the Zen disciples. Without the Evil Qi, there will naturally be no harm to the Dao Heart.”

“Jiutuo tells you this, sir, to convey that since the Feitian Clan and the Asura God Statue are so crucial to Buddha’s Country, a Great Zen Master has been stationed in the Holy City. Even with your strength, sir, don’t expect to be able to break into the Vita Temple inside Nede City alone, let alone approach the Asura God Statue.”