My brother is so cunning

Chapter 1111 Yun Zhongzi's Thoughts

"A high school diploma?" Master Yu Ding's face darkened, his tone filled with disdain. "These are all gimmicks fabricated by the Celestial Venerable of Creation! Mortals are inherently ignorant; how could they possibly have the ability to manage themselves? It must be that he used evil magic to manipulate the people, making them appear 'orderly,' but in reality, they have long since lost their independent will!"

Huanglong Zhenren echoed, "That's right! Mortals only need to focus on farming and worshipping gods and Buddhas. A small country with few people, men farming and women weaving, the sounds of chickens and dogs echoing from one another, living to old age without ever interacting with each other—that is the ideal human realm. What's the use of learning those 'written laws'? It's just a waste of time and will only make them arrogant and question the authority of immortals and Buddhas—that is precisely the sinister intention of the Creator Heavenly Venerable!"

Yun Zhongzi hurriedly defended himself: "It's absolutely not manipulation! I have been secretly observing for many days. The people's words and actions are all from the heart. Children are laughing and learning in the school, craftsmen are honing their skills in the workshop, and the elderly are playing chess and chatting in the street. Everyone's face is full of life. They are definitely not puppets being manipulated!"

At this point, Yun Zhongzi paused before continuing, "Compared to these common people, the ordinary people of the Great Zhou Dynasty, who are trapped on the land their entire lives, are numb and live without any vitality."

"enough!"

Guang Chengzi interrupted sharply, his tone filled with anger: "Yun Zhongzi! How can you still be so stubborn? He makes mortals rely on 'laws' instead of gods and Buddhas, which seems beneficial, but in reality, it severs the 'destiny' for all living beings! If mortals are content with basic needs and can manage themselves, no longer seeking immortality or worshipping gods and Buddhas, where will new cultivators ascend to heaven in the Three Realms in the future? Where will the merits and incense offerings of us immortals and Buddhas come from? This is severing the lineage of cultivation, which is worse than doing evil!"

Yun Zhongzi turned pale after being reprimanded. He opened his mouth to argue, but when he saw a hint of displeasure flash in Yuanshi Tianzun's eyes, he could only lower his head helplessly and retreat to the corner.

He knew in his heart that no matter how he told the truth about the mortals, these immortals and Buddhas would not believe him, or would not believe him. What they cared about was not whether mortals were doing well, but whether mortals still depended on gods and Buddhas and whether they still revered the immortal sects.

Guang Chengzi's words still echoed in my ears: "If mortals are content with just having enough to eat and wear, and can manage themselves, no longer seeking immortality or worshipping gods and Buddhas, where will the Three Realms find new cultivators in the future? Where will the merits and incense offerings of us immortals and Buddhas come from?"

These words were like a thorn, piercing deeply into Yun Zhongzi's heart.

He suddenly realized that the Chanjiao doctrines he had believed in for many years seemed to be gradually deviating from his original intention of "seeking the well-being of all beings".

"Ordinary people are inherently foolish; how can they possibly manage themselves?" Master Yuding's disdainful words resurfaced in his mind.

Yun Zhongzi couldn't help but refute in his heart: The people of Xinbinhai City can make laws, elect managers, understand the articles, and distinguish right from wrong. How are they "ignorant"?
The new deities in the city, such as the young city god and the young land goddess he had met, were less about instructing the people from a high position and more about serving them.

On the contrary, the immortals of the Chan Sect, having witnessed the enlightened and prosperous world created by mortal beings themselves, condemned it as "manipulation by evil magic" and a "demon city established by a celestial demon" because this prosperous world shook divine authority, disrespected gods and Buddhas, or was not a prosperous world created by them. Isn't this a greater kind of "ignorance"—ignorance of the "potential of all beings" and ignorance of the "true meaning of the Dao"?

He suddenly remembered his master's teachings, "The Way follows nature." Aren't all things and all living beings nature itself?
But now the "Dao" of the Chan Sect seems to exist only in the halls of immortals and Buddhas, and only in the control of mortals. No matter what the truth is, the Chan Sect must have the final right of interpretation.

If the continuation of the "orthodox tradition" depends on the superstition and worship of ordinary people, and on suppressing their pursuit of knowledge and their desire for autonomy, is such an "orthodox tradition" truly worth protecting?
Yun Zhongzi's heart sank little by little, and his firm belief over the years began to waver. He looked up at the immortals in the hall—Guang Chengzi was full of anger, Huanglong Zhenren was indignant, Yuanshi Tianzun was still majestic, and the Western Sect envoy had a "compassionate" look on his face. Everyone firmly believed that they were "upholding the Heavenly Way", but no one noticed the arrogance and selfishness behind this "upholding".

The Western Sect jumped out and accused Wen Rui of being a demon incarnate. Yun Zhongzi felt a strong sense of déjà vu, just like when they labeled the disciples of the Jie Sect as "wearing fur and horns, born from eggs and moisture," "beasts," and "incomplete in their six senses."

They don't even mention why those who are "born with fur and horns, hatched from eggs and born from moisture" are "incomplete in their six senses" and unable to achieve enlightenment. They just take it for granted and treat them with indiscriminate hostility and contempt.

If the Buddha claims that Wen Rui is a demon incarnate, what evidence can he provide?

What one feels in one's heart, one speaks out as if it were law; that's all, it's entirely a matter of personal judgment.

But Buddha once boasted that he was the only one worthy of respect in heaven and earth. In reality, if the gods of the three realms were ranked, he would hardly even make it into the top ten.

That cannot be covered up by simply saying that he was young and ignorant at the time. After all, in the Western religion's boasting, Buddha is the chosen one, born with great blessings and mission.

He wanted to speak, to voice the questions in his heart: "If the 'Tao' is for the betterment of all beings, then why is the 'Tao of Intercepting Heaven' propagated by Wen Rui considered heresy? If 'saving the world' is the original intention of the Chan Sect, then why are the gods and Buddhas not pleased, but terrified, when they see mortals saving themselves?"

But he swallowed the words back down his throat.

He knew that the rules of the Chan Sect were strict, and he was just a Golden Immortal who came from a rogue cultivation background. In the face of such unanimous "justice", any questioning would only be denounced as "being bewitched" and "betraying the orthodox lineage".

Just like seven hundred years ago, he took the lead over all his fellow disciples of the Chan Sect, attempting to solve the problem of the fox demon wreaking havoc on the orthodox dynasty in the human world all by himself. After failing, he returned to Kunlun and was looked at with strange eyes by his fellow disciples for a long time.

At the time, Yun Zhongzi was extremely puzzled. He was clearly trying to avert disaster in its early stages before it turned into a tragedy, which could save the lives of countless innocent people. Why did his fellow disciples not only not support him, but also look at him as if he were a fool?

At this moment, he realized that the "Tao" he believed in might no longer be the true "Tao," and that Wen Rui, whom the immortals regarded as a "demon," might be the one who truly understood "the Tao of Heaven resides in all living beings."

Inside the hall, the Primordial Celestial Venerable had already ordered the alliance with the Western Religion and was to further seek allies to establish an "Alliance to Suppress the Heavenly Demons".

The sound of the immortals echoing in unison made the palace tremble slightly. Yun Zhongzi also lowered his head and responded softly, but his heart was filled with confusion—was this war, which was in the name of "maintaining the orthodox tradition," actually "saving the Three Realms" or destroying a possibility for all living beings to truly be autonomous?
(End of this chapter)