Donghuang Ziji

Chapter 928 Using the Lion to Express One's True Feelings

The Nine-Headed Green Lion's doubts lingered for a long time. He watched as the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi walked to the banks of the Flowing Sand River time and time again, only to be killed and devoured by the Curtain-Rolling God General.

His flesh and remains became part of the Flowing Sand River, constantly changing this land.

During the observation, the Nine-Headed Green Lion also understood why Chu Tai referred to the Flowing Sand River as the Weak Water, a place where reality and illusion intertwined.

Or rather, the full name of the Liusha River that devoured Jin Chanzi's nine lifetimes should be the Xinghai Liusha (Sea of ​​Sexuality and Flowing Sand).

The term "性海" (xinghai) refers to the sea of ​​one's true nature (or actual nature), and is used as a metaphor for the profound and vast rationality of true reality.

In addition, the Sea of ​​Nature can also be called the Sea of ​​Fruit, corresponding to the realm of the Tathagata's Dharmakaya.

Quicksand is the unpredictable flow of fake soil, while the flowing weak water within it is the easy way for fake soil to trap the real. The combination of quicksand and weak water can be used to cultivate truth through falsehood.

Therefore, the Flowing Sand River, though seemingly a barren wasteland, was actually the process by which Jin Chanzi abandoned the Buddha's teachings and moved towards his true self.

Chu Tai, who was also paying attention to these changes, couldn't help but recall what the Heavenly Emperor had said to him earlier.

Although Chu Tai had not communicated with the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi since their last meeting, he had not spoken to him again.

However, his suggestion that Chu Tai should absorb the power left behind by Taiyi Zhenjun still bothered him. During Jin Chanzi's reincarnations, Chu Tai also investigated some of the details, both openly and secretly.

After several attempts, Chu Tai realized that he didn't have many people he could trust.

As the embodiment of Taiqing Heaven in the current time period, Laozi naturally stands on the side of the Heavenly Emperor.

After two simple tests, Chu Tai understood the other party's thoughts.

Although Bodhi Patriarch tended to be independent due to the nature of his Dao fruit, it was also because of his research in the spiritual realm that he seemed to have discerned some of Chu Tai's thoughts.

He subtly expressed his greater optimism for Chu Tai's path to enlightenment, even stating bluntly: "Although it may be a bit dishonest to say this, compared to the return of other powerful beings in the world, if a new post-saint emperor could emerge in the Three Pure Realms, it would be of great benefit to the countless worlds within the Three Pure Realms, as well as to the Pure and Eternal Blessing Great Heaven itself. If I had to choose between the two, I would choose a new post-saint emperor."

Chu Tai's expression turned very ugly at that moment, but a sentence from Bodhi Patriarch interrupted his thoughts.

"Some matters should involve both parties. If you are unwilling, can you be sure of the other person's opinion?"

Chu Tai wanted to refute this at the time, asking how anyone could willingly have their Dao fruit torn apart, but after carefully considering Bodhi Patriarch's state, he was also somewhat unsure.

"If you really want to explore that truth, you might as well wait a while, or go and see Jin Chanzi's cultivation."

Now, Chu Tai watched as the power left behind by Jin Chanzi, through countless reincarnations, transformed with the Liusha River into the boundary between reality and illusion, becoming the foundation for his future advancement.

He was puzzled but still couldn't figure out whether Jin Chanzi corresponded to himself or Taiyi.

Furthermore, when he left the Heavenly Court earlier, Buddha also advised him to come and see, so it is clear that the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi hides some secrets that he is unaware of.

'No, perhaps it's not about secrecy, but rather that they hope I can learn something from Jin Chanzi's experiences, just as they hope Qing Shi can learn something from Jin Chanzi's reincarnations...'

Thinking of this, Chu Tai's gaze changed slightly, and he called out. The nine-headed green lion hurriedly rushed to Chu Tai's side.

Looking at the large lion scratching its head, Chu Tai asked, "What insights have you gained from seeing Jin Chanzi reincarnate nine times?"

Upon hearing this, the nine-headed green lion was overjoyed, shook its nine heads, and said, "Indeed, I have gained some insights."

Then, he revealed the true nature of the Flowing Sand River that he had discovered, and added, "I see that the cicada is also quite intelligent, but it still has to go through such hard work to hone itself. Obviously, it has not received a good education. Otherwise, how could it be inferior to me?"

The nine-headed lion's words were also a clever trick, subtly flattering Chu Tai as being superior to the Buddha.

But Chu Tai ignored his lion cub's flattery and instead asked him about other subjects.

"I see that you have made some progress in your cultivation. It just so happens that the Golden Cicada has been reincarnated in the mortal world and is on his way to the West. He will need to go through several tribulations. Why don't you go down to the mortal world and take one of the tribulations as your refuge?"

Chu Tai's words made all eighteen eyes of the nine-headed lion shine brightly. They nodded repeatedly in approval, muttering to themselves that they must let Jin Chanzi know how powerful he was.

But as he was about to leave, the nine-headed lion seemed to remember something and looked at Chu Tai, asking, "Master, as the calamity of the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi, what extent can I go? If I accidentally corrupt his Dao heart, will I be skinned by the Buddha?"

As he spoke, the lion seemed to grow somewhat frightened.

Chu Tai laughed and said, "If you have the ability to corrupt Jin Chanzi's Dao heart, I will protect you from Tathagata."

Upon hearing this, the nine-headed green lion happily rode away on a cloud.

As soon as the lion left, a ray of Buddhist light descended, and Guanyin Bodhisattva appeared. Chu Tai stepped forward to greet him and said, "My lion was rude, and I hope the Bodhisattva will forgive it."

The Bodhisattva merely chuckled and looked down at the mortal realm, saying, "Your Majesty is too modest. Your divine beast has already attained enlightenment and is only slightly inferior to this old monk. If it can understand its true nature and awaken its wisdom, it can advance further and become equal to this old monk. It is only natural that he would say such things."

"Bodhisattva flatters me. That lion cub is merely relying on the golden elixir given to him by Laozi. In terms of cultivation, he knows what but not why. It's one thing for him to use his supernatural powers, but if he were to teach disciples, who knows what kind of troublemakers he would produce."

After saying that, Chu Tai seemed worried and swung the green branch in his hand, stirring up the clouds and reflecting the scene of the nine-headed green lion descending to earth.

After the nine-headed azure lion left Qingxuan Mansion, it descended on a cloud and landed in Bamboo Mountain in Yuhua Prefecture.

He saw towering peaks and jagged rocks in the mountains, with ancient pines and cypresses, and flowing streams in the valleys. There were also many lion-shaped creatures, led by six spirit beasts: the monkey lion, the snow lion, the suanni, the bai ze, the fu li, and the tuan xiang. However, they were ignorant and confused. His desire to teach them grew stronger, so he took these wild beasts and spirit beasts as his disciples and grand-disciples, calling himself "Grandfather" and also known as "Nine Spirits Primordial Saint". He also opened a Taoist temple in the mountains, named the Nine-Bend Winding Cave.

Every day, the Nine-Headed Primordial Saint would sit on a high platform, revealing his nine heads rotating in a cycle, teaching his many disciples and grand-disciples the methods of breathing exercises and transformation techniques.

However, these creatures are inherently wild and untamed. In terms of cultivation, they are all restless and lack a foundation in meditation. After listening to the sutra for only a quarter of an hour, they start to stagger and fall over.

The snow lion spirit yawned and shouted, "Grandfather, what you're saying now is all empty talk. Why don't you teach us some powerful supernatural abilities!" The suanni beside it was attracted by the lotus flowers that appeared when the Nine-Headed Lion was preaching. It pounced and overturned the stone table, scattering the scriptures that the Nine-Headed Lion had condensed with his magic power all over the ground.

Seeing this, the Nine-Headed Lion was furious. In the past, if the Emperor had shown compassion and opened an altar to preach, all the immortals and gods would have held their breath and listened attentively. Now, however much he preached, these wretched creatures began to cause trouble.

Driven by rage, his vital energy shifted, and a giant hand appeared out of thin air, grabbing the Suanni and pinning it to its position.

The other leaders looked elsewhere. The disciples, including Naoshi, Xueshi, Fuli, and Tuanxiang, although trying to stay alert, had empty eyes and clearly hadn't listened.

The only one who brought some comfort to Nine-Headed Lion was Bai Ze. Although he listened attentively, he was clearly struggling to learn and did not grasp much of the true meaning.

Seeing this, the Nine-Headed Lion Saint changed his approach and taught them some breathing exercises every morning and martial arts practice at noon.

When it was time for breathing exercises, Bai Ze and Xue Shi showed some interest, but Nao Shi, Fu Li, Tuan Xiang, and Suan Ni were listless.

When it came time to practice martial arts, these six lion spirits were all full of energy, and their other disciples and grand-disciples were also very excited. They easily stirred up chaos in the mountains, leaving no room for peace and quiet, and there was no trace of the tranquility of immortal cultivation.

Nine-Headed Lion suppressed his anger and could only silently remind himself that at least they had learned something, and he could discipline them more strictly in the future.

This scene, when seen by Chu Tai in the heavens, made him laugh. He said to Guanyin beside him, “Bodhisattva, look at this lion. Everyone thinks that others are like him, enlightened by the Golden Elixir, born holy, with pure body and mind, and do not need to endure the suffering of the mortal world. By relying on external forces to achieve enlightenment, he will inevitably have to learn from Jin Chanzi in the future, shave off the three flowers and five energies, and walk around in the human world.”

When Chu Tai said this, he stared at Guanyin, clearly implying something more.

"As a divine beast, the Nine-Headed Lion is naturally intelligent. It is just temporarily unable to react. Once it understands the difference between itself and ordinary spirit beasts and mortal beings, it will naturally change."

Guanyin's answer clearly did not satisfy Chu Tai, but he did not want to ask directly, so he continued to watch the Nine-Headed Lion teach his disciples and grand-disciples.

Just as the Bodhisattva had said, after a brief period of distress, the nine-headed lion quickly adjusted his mindset. He knelt before Chu Tai's portrait and kept repeating in a low voice, "Teaching and transforming is not something that can be accomplished in a day." Then he silently observed the changes in his disciples and followers and gradually discovered the problem.

That day, he reached out and pulled out the lion cub that had been trapped in a crevice in the rock and howling in agony while trying to escape, and scooped up the snow lion that had turned into a piece of blue stone and could not be turned back. He placed them in their places and looked at them, saying, "Do you know what the Dao is?"

The lions looked at each other, puzzled. Finally, after glancing at each other, they pushed out their most beloved Bai Ze.

Bai Ze scratched his head and asked, "Is it a method passed down by our ancestor?"

Seeing that Jiuling Yuansheng's expression hadn't changed, Fuli, standing nearby, mustered his courage and asked, "But what about the path those people came out of at the foot of the mountain? It seems to be called a narrow mountain path or something like that?"

Seeing that his two brothers had not been reprimanded, Tuanxiang immediately shouted, "If you ask me, it should be our ancestor's nine heads! Where in the world is there a more powerful supernatural ability than our ancestor's nine heads!"

As he spoke, he looked at Nine-Headed Lion with sparkling eyes, as if seeking praise.

The nine heads of the Nine-Headed Lion took a deep breath at the same time, suppressing their anger, and began to explain the intricacies to them. However, the lions remained lazy, some secretly playing with beetles, some sleeping with their heads tilted and eyes open, and others pretending to be writing furiously.

All of this caused Nine-Headed Lion to sigh repeatedly in his heart.

Chu Tai, inside Qingxuan Mansion, shook his head and said, "Lion'er ultimately doesn't understand how to impart knowledge, teach skills, and resolve doubts."

The Bodhisattva shook his head and said, "The Emperor seems to be biased, which is why he cannot see the truth. We might as well take another look."

Thus, the two watched as the Nine-Headed Lion taught his disciples and grand-disciples for three or four days, and three or four years passed in the mortal world. On this day, the Nine-Headed Lion taught his disciples and grand-disciples the Tao Te Ching as usual.

Just then, thunder roared in the sky, as if rain was about to fall, and the sermon sounded in harmony with the thunder.

In a daze, the Nine-Headed Lion seemed to see the azure light emanating from the body of the lion, the white light shining from the eyes of the snow lion, the blood energy surging around the body of the lion-like creature, the wisdom light flowing between the eyebrows of the white lion, and the faint Daoist aura emanating from the bodies of the fox-like creature and the elephant-like creature.

Just as the Nine-Headed Lion was about to take a closer look, he saw the Suanni being attracted by a falling precious flower again. It pounced on it and grabbed the lion's tail, making the lion cry out in pain, "Grandfather! The Suanni is causing trouble again!"

Seeing this scene, Nine-Headed Lion felt a strange emotion. It seemed that teaching disciples was not so important, or that he did not necessarily have to teach them to become successful. It was good to let them live freely like this.

'After all, it's me who wants to fight Jin Chanzi, not them!'

Thinking of this, the Nine-Headed Lion's expression towards his disciple became even more amiable. Guanyin, seeing this, smiled and said, "Excellent, excellent! Congratulations, Your Majesty! Your divine beast has attained enlightenment, and its future achievements may not be inferior to those of this old monk."

"The Bodhisattva is too kind. He has only come to understand a little of the meaning of life and found a little of the meaning of his own existence. He has transcended the cycle of simply learning the Dharma and pursuing enlightenment. He is still far from true enlightenment."

In response to Chu Tai's answer, Guanyin smiled and said, "But for such a naturally born saint, isn't it most important to understand how to live, how to live better, and to find one's own part beyond one's duties?"

"In comparison, does Your Majesty have any doubts about your future prospects?"

"Yes, there are some, Bodhisattva. If the Three Realms are in ruins, and Heaven and Mount Ling are trapped in the Netherworld, and I am in Mount Ling, then do you think I should return to Heaven to assist the Heavenly Emperor in stabilizing the divine path, or stay in Mount Ling and try to replace the Medicine Buddha and perfect the system of Buddhas in Mount Ling?"

Chu Tai's words were somewhat cutting, but Guanyin had clearly received some hints from the Buddha. After a moment of thought, she said softly, "If we consider Guanyin Bodhisattva's identity, I support the Emperor's choice to save more people."

“From the perspective of Guanyin Bodhisattva, I would choose Mount Ling, because I am in Mount Ling and I have the most acquaintances there.”

"But in reality, when that time really comes, the fellow practitioners of Mount Ling will probably choose a similar path to Guanyin. At that time, Mount Ling will return to the Heavenly Court, and naturally there will be no more troubles."

"This is a perspective I've never considered before."

Chu Tai looked at the Bodhisattva, then at the nine-headed lion below, and whispered, "Then tell me, will my lion cub do things that it knows are impossible for the sake of its disciples and followers in the future?"

"If it is a divine beast under the Emperor's command, and it truly understands the meaning of life and recognizes these lion spirits as its family, then it probably will."

"What does the Bodhisattva think I should choose?"

(End of this chapter)