Chapter 2550: Never to Return

In the past, a demon tide destroyed the world. The World Venerable walked barefoot on the wasteland, saving all living beings.

He wore just a piece of hemp clothing and a bamboo hat.

Like a beam of heavenly light shining into the wasteland, he saved countless lives and soothed countless frightened souls.

During that difficult period, the World Venerable himself was also confused, bewildered, and searching.

According to Buddhist scriptures, at that time, the most people who followed him numbered three thousand, and at the least, only one person remained.

The only one who remained was Manjushri, known as "wisdom supreme."

Manjushri followed the World Venerable without leaving or abandoning him. This experience is also called "three thousand kalpas destroyed, one life affinity born" in Buddhist scriptures. After this, Samantabhadra came.

Samantabhadra held principle virtue and practice virtue, systematically organized the World Venerable's scriptures, built Mahayana Buddhism, and helped construct the supreme pure land.

But with Manjushri, who symbolized wisdom virtue and correct virtue, accompanying him, only then did the earliest prototype of the pure land come into being in the spiritual light.

After a time interval difficult to measure, Manjushri unexpectedly saw the venerable's appearance again!

He was mad with joy, overcome with sorrow, and also lost control.

Finally, he chewed alone.

He had infinite resentment, unlimited grievance, all turned into sad sounds.

"I..."

Manjushri knelt dejectedly on the mountain path, crying unable to form sentences.

That barefoot, hemp-clothed monk did not speak, only slightly lowered his head and looked at him warmly.

High in the sky, wind and clouds rolled, converging into a giant Buddha face.

This Buddha face appeared more compassionate and grander than the World Venerable's original appearance.

"You say you never betrayed—when the World Venerable's body died, where were you?!"

Ksitigarbha's grand voice, like thunder rumbling beside his ear, made Jiang Wang's ears bleed!

With his control of sound, he was actually stabbed by every word he heard.

This was the result of the protection of the Kunpeng heavenly state.

Of course, at this moment, he was also spinning dizzyingly inside the Kunpeng heavenly state, no longer able to maintain that composed posture.

"I was here! How could I not be here?!"

The turbid water person wailed and cried: "I was by His side, I watched Him die!"

That giant Buddha face seemed to be entirely embedded in the sky dome. In an instant, it pressed down, instantly making the thousand hundred zhang sink, almost wanting to swallow you into His compassion!

"Why did you only watch?"

"Formerly I transmitted the scriptures to you, and you held the scriptures without words."

"How exactly did the World Venerable die that year? Say!!"

Between the battles of super-detached ones, it was originally extremely difficult to have such an intuitive gap manifest.

But as an innocent heavenly person of the Yiluo tribe, exactly in the heavenly sea, his relied upon power was all-around suppressed by Ksitigarbha—as if facing the World Venerable himself!

Give him one thousand times, ten thousand times the opportunity, and he still cannot make a move against the World Venerable.

The giant Buddha face continuously fell, and the terrifying pressure continuously intensified.

The innocent heavenly person's eyes burst open directly.

A flower of blood burst open, spreading in all directions.

The turbid water person became a person wrapped in blood silk!

"How Tathagata died, how eternity is silent—say it!"

In the eyes of the giant Buddha, not only did they reflect this turbid water person kneeling on the mountain path, but they also vaguely shone out a piece of turbid sea, a boundless turbid sea carrying ebb and flow, with a lotus-shaped scripture, gradually becoming clear...

Kneeling on the mountain path, with tears flowing down his face and blood vessels covering his body, Dan Tai Manjushri, however, suddenly raised his hand to support the mountain steps!

His tears dropped on the stone steps, tapping out a line of straight, sharp Dao characters—

"Heaven's movement is vigorous, the gentleman with self-strength does not rest!"

His spine seemed to be supported precisely by this sentence. He found strength precisely within this sentence, and then he had eternal courage. He supported the mountain steps, and also supported himself, just like this, raising his head.

Complicated air currents rose like dragons.

Manjushri raised his head, and ten thousand airs opened the heaven!

Qiankun pure air, vast righteous air, green blood red heart, red heart red air, transform dragon literary air...

Thirty-six literary airs swam around his body, some becoming green bamboo with joints, some as red dragons in the sky, weaving up such beautiful scene clouds for him.

Simultaneously cultivating thirty-six kinds of literary airs, proving the literary heart of the ten thousand worlds, he was the contemporary first sect of Confucianism, second only to the Supreme Sage Kong Ke's great scholar! And he did not belong to any of the four academies, nor was he in the sea of learning of the book mountain, but was deeply hidden in the depths of the sin sea.

The literary airs scene clouds, once released, then retracted, as if retracting into Dan Tai Manjushri's waist belt. After tying his waist, he was slightly thinner, but appeared straighter, again facing the hemp-clothed monk and the giant Buddha in the sky.

The scripture in the giant Buddha's eyes disappeared! That piece of turbid sea could also not be seen.

"World Venerable is already dead..." Dan Tai Manjushri murmured.

"World Venerable is already dead!" He shouted.

He suddenly stood up, and a pair of blood-colored eyes flipped out within his eye sockets! At this moment, blazing fierce flames jumped around his body, even incinerating the nearby Buddha light, and even invading the giant Buddha in reverse. Red fierce flames instantly crawled all over the entire Five Fingers Brahma Mountain, manifesting thousands of strange and hundred strange monster shapes...

Evil views filled the spiritual mountain!

At this moment, he only truly manifested the posture of the Sin Sea Three Fierce!

Standing in front of him, that hemp-clothed monk who had looked at him so warmly, was no longer visible.

Just as he understood that, the World Venerable would never return.

"Although the World Venerable is dead, His will will always exist." That giant Buddha face walked down from the high sky: "Ksitigarbha thoroughly understands formation, abiding, destruction, and emptiness. I should embody His will forever, for my eternity—"

A group of fierce flames pounced up face to face. Good as a dragon entering the sea, a tiger descending the mountain.

The fierce flames completely wrapped Ksitigarbha's golden body. At this time, all kinds of literary airs were also tumbling within it. The fierce flames surged fiercely! Great blaze, great fierce!

Manjushri pointed and said: "Call me auspicious, call you blazing prosperous!"

According to the "Bhagavan Six Meanings," it is recorded—"Tathagata's fierce flame of wisdom fire, thoroughly understands the boundless, hence called blazing prosperous!"

Ksitigarbha was burned by the evil flame, yet did not resist. His golden body melted into golden liquid drops, making the fierce flame even more blazing. In the fire, he only looked at Dan Tai Manjushri with such sorrow and compassion, and stretched out his Buddha palm towards him: "Manjushri, believe me, everything is still in time. That everything has not yet ended—follow me together, we will realize the World Venerable's ideal."

"You kneel down," Dan Tai Manjushri said.

Ksitigarbha looked at him.

Dan Tai Manjushri said: "You also kneel down to me, repent towards me, give me your equality—then I will talk about ideals with you."

Ksitigarbha showed no anger, only a gentle voice said: "If it is only like this, you have lost your way back..."

"I have seen the World Venerable kneel down," Dan Tai Manjushri calmly narrated: "In order to save an old beggar who was paralyzed by demon qi and begging on the roadside, He, who had already exhausted His divine power and strength, knelt down to suck the demon sores for that old man—that old man only lived for three more days."

"Saving living beings is the purpose, how to save is only the means." The fierce flame had burned Ksitigarbha somewhat emaciated! Golden liquid drops poured down like a waterfall of sweat. He only said: "Cutting flesh to feed the eagle is not necessarily impossible, it's just that we don't need to do so now."

"Of course, I completely believe the sincerity of this sentence you say," Dan Tai Manjushri was inexplicably somewhat melancholic: "But you are not the World Venerable, you can never become the World Venerable."

Ksitigarbha, sweating profusely with golden liquid, said: "Great good does not shun small actions, but also absolutely does not stop at small actions, why must you cling to appearances?"

Manjushri looked at him: "You seek me with stories today, how many do you remember about me?"

Ksitigarbha also looked back at him: "Let's get to know each other again."

Manjushri 'heh'd: "When I was young, I was raised by humans. My mother walked into the Yiluo River and gave birth to me in the water, but did not send me above the water's surface—because she died. My father died earlier, only to buy my mother time to give birth to me. I flowed downstream with the current and was adopted by a human couple."

"Humans killed my parents, and humans raised me. I don't know whether I should hate or should love."

"Later, I didn't need to consider this problem—because my human parents also died. They died in that sweeping demon tide."

"I lived alone in this world for a long time, not knowing the meaning of life, not knowing where I should go. Until one day, I met the World Venerable."

"When I first knew Him. He was still very weak, not even as strong as I was at that time. But He was already exploring the truth of the world, pursuing the root of all suffering, and seeking the answer to saving living beings."

"He said beings, not only the Yiluo tribe, not only humans, but all heavens and ten thousand realms, all living spirits, all sentient beings."

"I was convinced by His character, ignited by His ideal. From then on, I followed Him, until He entered nirvana..."

Manjushri's low voice gradually extinguished, and then rose up, his gaze blazing: "You possessed such power from the moment you were born. Do you know what sentient beings are? With what do you want to tell me—where the future is, what the ideal looks like. Should I love, or should I hate?"

Jiang Wang, struggling and tumbling in the continuously swallowing vortex, intermittently heard this segment and his heart was also moved.

Did they not say that the Yiluo tribe people were born heavenly persons? Then how could they not have power?

Born able to mobilize the power of the heavenly way, how could this not be related to "weak"...

He had not thought carefully before, but now thinking about it, it did seem a bit off—

The World Venerable's compassion also seemed to indeed exceed the category of heavenly persons.

Because the heavenly way itself did not care about anyone's life or death.

Jiang Wang himself, in the heavenly person state, also had indifferent emotions and gradually dissolved feelings.

From this point of view, did the World Venerable's compassion not only exceed that of heavenly persons? It was better than the vast majority of people, and it was rare true compassion in the world!

Because the Yiluo tribe had already perished, with very few chapters in history. When people viewed the past now, they also needed to continuously revise their cognition.

Jiang Wang suddenly realized that his cognition of the Yiluo tribe was inaccurate.

Because the Yiluo tribe was an order proxy created by the heavenly way, it was a one-time attempt for "heavenly persons" to proxy "people." Just casually equating the Yiluo tribe with today's heavenly persons was incorrect.

Perhaps the vast majority of Yiluo tribe people were like that, but after all, it had a part of "person" in existence. So there would also be differences.

All free living spirits have free will.

Only heavenly persons who were forever sunk in the heavenly sea completely followed the rules of the heavenly way and acted as heavenly persons.

For example, he had approached and struggled free several times, for example, Wu Zhai Xue becoming Seven Hates.

The Yiluo tribe was a heavenly person tribe, once also regarded as a part of the human tribe. Every person of the Yiluo tribe also had their own seeking.

For example, the World Venerable, for example, Dan Tai Manjushri, and also, for example, today's Ksitigarbha!

From this, another key question extended—

The World Venerable's ideal!

The World Venerable took "equality of beings" as his lifelong wish, ended his life, and also preached in the ten thousand realms, practicing with his body.

Is the heavenly way equal?

The heavenly way favored the demon tribe between the human tribe and the demon tribe, and favored the Yiluo tribe between the Yiluo tribe and other tribes. From this angle, it did not seem so equal.

But fundamentally speaking, the heavenly way only pursued maintaining the order of the world. Whoever was more in line with the existing order, whoever could better maintain the rules of the heavenly way, whoever could better protect this world, the heavenly way would then favor them. This was of course also a kind of fairness.

The heavenly way only cared about the order itself, not who approached the order.

If the human tribe could completely lean towards the heavenly way, then the human tribe would also receive favor—this was the heavenly person Jiang Wang had once proved and struggled free from.

But the World Venerable's seeking of the equality of beings was for all living spirits in all heavens and ten thousand realms to be equal, regardless of whether they were close to the heavenly way or not, whether they were against the world order. It was for the human tribe, the demon tribe, the Yiluo tribe, and any other tribe to enjoy the same heavenly favor.

From this point of view, the World Venerable was perhaps against the heavenly way!

Because He went against the heavenly way's instinct to maintain itself.

Could this be the cause of the World Venerable's death?

Ksitigarbha's voice was grand in the heavenly sea: "I was born in response to fate, precisely to inherit everything of the World Venerable. You ask where the road ahead is—if you still remember the World Venerable's answer, if you still remember the World Venerable's ideal, then let's go together."

Manjushri inexplicably raised his head: "Who allowed you to inherit?"

He said with complex emotions: "The World Venerable's ideal can never be realized!"

It was the World Venerable's ideal that could never be realized, and it was that period of time that could never return. He also announced the death of that period of experience as Manjushri Bodhisattva!

He had already accepted it!

But Ksitigarbha only laughed and said: "Just right, I have eternal life!"

He melted in the evil flame, and also shone brilliantly in the evil flame: "Eternal life should be dedicated to an eternal ideal."

All over the mountain, evil views silently roared.

"You have the biggest difference with the World Venerable."

Dan Tai Manjushri's fierce flame gnashed its teeth and brandished its claws on the giant Buddha's golden body.

But his voice, on the contrary, was not so intense, as if those simple, ultimate emotions were all consumed in the confrontation with Ksitigarbha. Only cruel reason and cold reality remained!

"I will follow Him to do things that cannot be realized. And I will only tell you why it is impossible."

"He was truly an existence that created ideals, that poured out ideals."

Dan Tai Manjushri's ten fingers were virtually joined in front of his body, forming a mountain shape, like meditating but not meditating.

Literature seemed to look like a mountain, this was exactly the mountain of literature!

He virtually joined these ten fingers and clasped them towards Ksitigarbha's head! Pressing the Brahma mountain with the mountain of literature, just as he did after the World Venerable entered nirvana, bidding farewell to the past.

"You only climbed up from His corpse...delusion!"

But looking at the Five Fingers Brahma Mountain above, a mountain range interwoven with literary air boomed down.

Literary air tumbled on it, like the shadow of a ten-thousand-year-old green pine.

This mountain vaguely seemed to represent today's book mountain!

Of course, it was an earlier image. Today's green pines of the book mountain are already broken.

As this mountain sank, Ksitigarbha's Buddha body also sank.

The evil flame burning the Buddha then spread and blazed more.

This golden body rapidly melted and even burned out piece by piece, flying out Sanskrit scriptures!

In the blazing flames, Ksitigarbha's eyes held a strong sorrow, but He only smiled compassionately: "It's alright, the road ahead is long, I'll walk it myself."

The golden body was like mud, transforming in an instant. Golden liquid flowed down from the mountaintop like lava, dressing this Brahma mountain in golden clothes.

The evil views all over the mountain, including the fire burning the mountain, were also solidified by the golden liquid flow, actually becoming gold-like quality like amber!

Having first attended upon the World Venerable, and later seeking learning from the Confucian ancestor, embodying the strengths of both Buddhism and Confucianism, the innocent heavenly person's move was far more powerful than people imagined.

But standing on the mountain path of Brahma mountain at this time, He did not show any relaxation.

He knew that He had only repelled one contact from Ksitigarbha.

Preaching failed, next would be the true means.

"Little friend Jiang!" He walked alone on the mountain path of Brahma mountain with his hands behind his back, passing through the evil views that had already solidified into false mountains and the flower trees that were like fierce flames, casually asking: "How do you think my mountain of literature looks?"

At this time, the deep sea of heavenly way was still vast with waves, that "inverted fight" still existed, and the terrifying boundless vortex was still swallowing like a whale!

The Kunpeng heavenly state was also still struggling at the edge of the vortex...

He didn't even say a word to pull his comrade!

He had at least helped him lure Ksitigarbha to the heavenly sea, and while he was fighting against Ksitigarbha, he did not spare any effort to help!

Jiang Wang judged for himself that if the two sides had swapped positions, he would definitely have pulled Dan Tai Manjushri's hand. Even after pulling him out, he would then fight!

Should the camaraderie forged in fighting back-to-back be cherished or not?

Really a waste of reading the sages' books!

While struggling with all his might, he tried to make his voice calm and objective: "I think this mountain is extremely perilous, perhaps the literary principle is somewhat twisted!"

Dan Tai Manjushri laughed heartily: "This is a copied book mountain!"

Just like that, he ascended to the top of Brahma mountain.

Jiang Wang couldn't help but feel ashamed and angry for a while, but suddenly the sky spun and the ground turned, that terrifying suction suddenly intensified! He and his Kunpeng heavenly state were instantly swallowed into the depths of the vortex, as if swallowed by the mouth of an evil beast!

At this life and death juncture, he didn't know why, but he could actually hear voices chatting beside his ear—

"He has exhausted everything to fight for those he cherishes. He has poured everything out, wanting to interfere a little in the super-detached battle. But he should also understand, this is not a battlefield he should be involved in, he cannot afford even a little wave!"

"This is his choice. I think, just this choice alone, can win respect."

Jiang Wang distinguished that one voice was from Seven Hates, and the other was from Mountain Sea Dao Lord... how were they still chatting?

"Respect! Of course, respect!" Seven Hates's voice said: "Only some regret."

"I almost forgot, you are all approaching heavenly persons, and you have all struggled free. From ancient times until now, it seems only you two—" Huang Wei Zhen said: "Same illness, pity each other?"

Seven Hates sighed and said: "He has such good conditions, he should be smarter—I'm not saying he's stupid, stupid people wouldn't be able to find opportunity in this situation. But he shouldn't have chosen this. He made the wrong choice, but had the right effort, maybe because the choice was wrong, no matter how correct the effort, it all ended in failure. My regret is precisely in this."

Mountain Sea Dao Lord's voice said: "You are smart enough. But he has the courage of not being smart. I think this is also very good."

Seven Hates's voice said: "Even if he can't do anything? Can't achieve anything?"

"What's so ugly about not being able to achieve something?" Mountain Sea Dao Lord's voice replied: "As strong as you, also sit in front of me. As strong as I, also sit in front of you. See, even you and I also have things we cannot achieve. Let alone below super-detached?"

"Let's make a small bet," Seven Hates's voice said: "That year I and Lou Yue met in the 'Secret Mud Hell World', which is one of the evolutions of the 'Buddha Says Eighteen Mud Hells Sutra'. Well, that piece of scripture, the middle piece—before today's 'Eighteen Mud Hells' were formally born, hell has undergone countless rehearsals of birth and destruction in the universe!"

"Jiang Shu probably saw the importance of hell, then alone entered deep inside with his halberd."

Seven Hates asked: "When do you think he can kill his way out?"

Huang Wei Zhen only asked: "Bet what?"

Seven Hates's voice said: "If you lose, pinch me one Dragon Flower Lecture of Dao Calendar 1321. I will provide you with related historical materials and details—that year I had already prepared a good verbal battle against all the old fogies, sword pointing at rotten and outdated learning, alas, I couldn't go, I regret this very much."

Huang Wei Zhen said: "You don't seem to respect my power too much."

Seven Hates only laughed: "Isn't this exactly the fantasy of my youth?"

Huang Wei Zhen pondered and said: "I want to say, you in Dao Calendar 1321 also weren't considered young."

"Among historical scholars, that's considered young!" Seven Hates sighed: "Times are different now. Now there are absolute peak cultivators at thirty years old. Don't be so harsh on people from the old era."

Huang Wei Zhen said: "Then if I win, I want—"

What could be more idle than drinking tea during life and death!

Human joys and sorrows are not understood by others!

In the violent spin, Jiang Wang's already limited power rapidly collapsed. Those leisurely voices in his ears made his ears ring even more.

And he tried to gaze back at the road—

He only saw the vast distant mountains gradually receding again, and the sea waves roaring at the horizon.

That continuously spinning world was like a lonely ellipse. The ellipse had a golden outline.

At this moment, he suddenly realized that he had actually always been trapped inside one eye.

Ksitigarbha's Buddha pupil!

When?!

He confirmed that he had truly stirred up the mad waves of the heavenly sea, he determined that he had truly influenced this battle. But he really didn't know when, the heaven and earth had already reversed.

Because he so firmly believed in himself, he realized one thing—

Ksitigarbha, with his supreme divine power, would influence all unstable factors in the heavenly sea, completely block and peel them out, and swallow them into His eyes.

This was the origin of that terrifying vortex that swallowed the sea and ate the mountains.

This peeling and drawing must be interrupted, otherwise all earlier efforts would be wasted. Ksitigarbha would then again grasp the absolute advantage of the heavenly way in the unobstructed heavenly sea.

But he couldn't do it!

He realized, but he couldn't do it.

In the spinning of the sky and turning of the ground, he couldn't even preserve himself. How could he talk about interfering with Ksitigarbha's actions?

Think of a way! Think of a way! He stared straight up at the high place—the heaven had already become a well mouth, and he was sinking deeper and deeper into Ksitigarbha's eye pupil.

Looking at the sky from a well is a span of sky, looking at the moon from a well is a string of the moon.

Truly a bottomless and endless abyss!

Think of a way! What other method is there?

In his mind, the star river flashed. Countless immortal thoughts exploded one by one, as if putting on a splendid fireworks show!

Ideas were born one by one, and denied one by one.

Perhaps...

Just at this moment, the ellipse-shaped "well mouth" in his eyes suddenly flashed with a sliver of light, as if a knife edge had appeared.

Jiang Wang confirmed that it was not his illusion!

Just the next instant, the "mouth" was indeed cut into "day".

A ferocious, exaggerated big halberd tore through this Buddha's eye and intruded into Jiang Wang's eyes!!

Ghosts and gods howled above the halberd's point, with the wails of billions of ghosts.

And fluttering at the end of the long pole was a streak of noble purple.

Great Qi, Jiang Shu—

Killed his way out of the eighteen mud hells!

This chapter is 6k, including 2k added for the great ally "Just right good good" (5/10).

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