The Buddha is actually me

Chapter 434: Cause and Effect, the Gears of Fate
After listening to Tongji's story, Zhang Jiuyang couldn't help but think of the last words said by the remnant soul of the Prajna monk after he imparted his supernatural powers.

He said eight words.

May I ask the Buddha, how can one achieve immortality?
At that time, Zhang Jiuyang could hear the grief and anger in his voice. As a Buddhist disciple, it sounded like he was questioning the Buddha. Moreover, being so obsessed with immortality was somewhat contrary to Buddhist teachings.

After all, in the eyes of Buddhists, the physical body is just a shell, and becoming a Buddha is the ultimate destination.

Now that he knew about the experience of the monk Prajna, he deeply understood those eight words and realized their significance.

I don’t ask for the best of both worlds, but I just ask not to let you down.

No wonder even after he became a remnant soul, he still wore a red bean bracelet on his wrist.

"No, the Prajna Monk has such achievements and has made many military achievements in Dajing. Why are there so few records about him?"

Yue Ling suddenly asked a question that hit the point directly.

The Imperial Observatory should be the place with the most complete intelligence in the world, but even she had never heard of the name of the Prajna Monk. This was too unusual.

Zhang Jiuyang nodded. Indeed, how could a person who could suppress the seventh-level strongmen of his generation have no experience passed down?
Just like Zhuge Qixing, even after six hundred years, people still remember him and there are Zhuge temples everywhere.

"Because the Prajna monk cut off his own karma."

Tongji sighed and said, "There is a unique skill in my Baiyun Temple called the Reversal of Cause and Effect. Venerable Gesang used it before. Now only the abbot in the temple has mastered this skill."

Confusing cause and effect!

Zhang Jiuyang's heart moved. The magical power just displayed by Venerable Gesang was indeed amazing. It could affect the three of them at the same time and almost caused an internal conflict.

"There are two levels of the art of reversing cause and effect. The first level is confusing cause and effect. Venerable Gesang is at this level. He can disrupt the invisible cause and effect. Even a real person in the sixth level will be affected."

"The second level is called Severing Cause and Effect. It can sever the cause and effect between a person and the heaven and earth, causing a person to disappear forever from the memories of all living beings, and even words can hardly record it."

Hearing this description, even Yue Ling, who was known for his bravery and fighting prowess, felt a chill in his heart.

Buddhism emphasizes cause and effect, and believes that the reason why people exist in the world is because of invisible lines of cause and effect. If cause and effect do not exist, then people will not exist.

If those invisible threads of cause and effect are severed, that person will disappear, not only physically but also from everyone's memory.

Cleanly and thoroughly.

Even a loving couple can forget each other completely the next moment, and only see clues in the habits they have developed over decades, feeling that they seem to have forgotten something very important.

But when I concentrated on trying to go there, I couldn't think of anything.

This kind of magical power is truly incredible and chilling.

Zhang Jiuyang became alert. Baiyun Temple was indeed the ancestral home of Zen Buddhism with thousands of years of history. Its methods were strange and unpredictable. He must not take it lightly when dealing with them in the future.

"You mean that the monk Prajna severed his own karma, so his deeds were gradually lost and forgotten?"

Tongji nodded and said, "Yes, but it is not completely severed. If you can cultivate to the sixth realm, you can remember it. In addition, the manuscript he left behind has the power of the immortal golden body and can also resist the erosion of that power."

"But why would he do that?"

Zhang Jiuyang didn’t understand. Wasn’t the other party determined to wait for his wife to return from reincarnation?
Once the cause and effect is broken, won’t the connection with my wife also be broken?

"The manuscript says it's due to aging."

Zhang Jiuyang was stunned.

"Although the Prajna Monk has cultivated an indestructible golden body, is fearless of swords and spears, and has numerous magical powers, he can be said to be impervious to any leaks, but he cannot defend himself against one thing... time."

“Time flies by, day and night. Even if the body remains intact, the soul will gradually age and eventually pass away, leaving only an eternal, indestructible shell.”

"By that time, the monk Prajna was already very old. He had waited for more than two hundred years, but the person he was waiting for never showed up. Time had made him start to forget what his wife looked like."

"Finally, he turned his gaze to the method of reversing cause and effect, because the person who created this technique once mentioned in the book that this technique should have a third level, which is also the most supreme level, called reverse cause and effect."

"Reversing cause and effect can reverse time and change things that have already been done. That is the real cause and effect. But unfortunately, this is just a speculation and there is no way to practice it."

Zhang Jiuyang understood. This thing was just like the seventh level of Qiankun Da Neng Shift. The people who created the technique were just bragging about it. In reality, whoever practiced it would be cheated.

If nothing unexpected happens, the Prajna monk should have been cheated.

"The Prajna monk wanted to cultivate to the third level, and then reverse the cause and effect, go back in time, and return to when his wife was still alive to prevent all the tragedies from happening. Unfortunately, although he was a genius, he still failed."

"After he went astray in his practice, his karma was mostly cut off and he was gradually forgotten by all living beings. Even the monks in the temple often couldn't remember who he was."

“But he was a seventh-level master after all, so he managed to hold on. Although he was forgotten, he was not angry. He just worked as an unknown monk sweeping the floor in the temple, day after day, year after year.”

"Until one day, two young men came to visit the temple together. They were gifted and talked a lot, which attracted the attention of the Prajna monk."

Zhang Jiuyang had already guessed the identities of the two young men, but he was also more saddened by it.

The gears of fate are turning quietly. The strong man who once suppressed an era met the strongest man of the next era on an ordinary day.

"The two young men, one is called Yue Jingzhong, the other is called... Zhuge Qixing."

"At that time, the world was still the Great Jing Dynasty, but it was already in its final years. The political situation was turbulent and chaotic, and the people were living in dire straits. The two young men had lofty ambitions and a heart to save the world and bring peace to the people, which made the Prajna monk admire them very much."

"After a conversation, he passed on the military tactics he had summarized in his early years to the young man named Yue, hoping that he could realize his dream of joining the army and serving the country on his behalf."

"As for Zhuge Qixing..."

At this point, Tongji paused for a moment and sighed, "The Prajna monk still can't let go of his obsession with his wife. He found that although Zhuge Qixing is not very old, his talent is so high that he can be called a monster."

"He is well versed in astronomy, geography, mechanical engineering, and astrology. His wisdom and understanding are so great that he is the most amazing person he has seen in hundreds of years. Even he feels inferior to him."

"At that time, the Prajna Monk realized that if this child had not died young, his future achievements would have far surpassed his own. So he came up with an idea and wanted Zhuge Qixing to help him perfect the third level of the method of reversing the cause and effect."

"The third level that he couldn't deduce, Zhuge Qixing may be able to deduce in the future. When he deduces it, won't it be better for him to pass it on to me?"

"So he violated the temple rules and taught Zhuge Qixing the method of reversing cause and effect. He also lectured on the scriptures for seven consecutive days and shared his insights with him." Zhang Jiuyang showed a look of enlightenment. No wonder Zhuge Qixing dared to go to Baiyun Temple to debate. In addition to his extremely intelligent mind, this experience probably helped him a lot.

A Buddhist monk who has practiced for hundreds of years, his lifelong understanding of Buddhism surpasses that of many eminent monks.

This is also Zhuge Qixing's good fortune, which allows him to combine the strengths of both Buddhism and Taoism and possess an incredibly strong foundation.

"But unfortunately, the Prajna monk did not wait until that day. Even with Zhuge's wisdom, he did not deduce the law of reversing cause and effect to the third level. Not long after, his deadline came, and he had to shut himself up in order to break through, but he failed."

Tongji sighed and said, "No wonder his body decayed so quickly after his death. It turned out that he encountered the demon of the body of a Mara when he was in seclusion. In the end, he fed the demon with his body and turned into a Yin Mara fruit."

“However, the Prajna Monk is indeed a genius. He was able to leave behind a trace of his soul, which allowed this immortal golden body to reappear in the world hundreds of years later!”

"Did anyone come to see the Prajna Monk during his time in seclusion?"

Zhang Jiuyang suddenly asked. He was very curious about how Tianzun got this Yinmola fruit.

Tongji thought about it carefully and said, "The contents of the manuscript end here, but as mentioned before, Yue Junshen and Zhuge Guoshi often came to him for advice. The three of them would talk for several days each time, covering everything from military tactics, magical powers, state affairs, and scriptures."

"If someone really came to look for me, I think... it should be the military god Yue and the state teacher Zhuge."

Zhang Jiuyang and Yue Ling looked at each other without saying anything.

Yue Ling's expression was very complicated, which meant that the speculation that Tianzun was Zhuge had more weight.

"Amitabha, I thank you again, Mr. Zhang, and I am willing to pass on the magical power of the Immortal Golden Body to Baiyun Temple..."

"Ahem, don't thank me so quickly. I did promise to return the inheritance, but I didn't say I would give you the skills. I said I would give you the people."

"To someone?"

Zhang Jiuyang smiled faintly, waved his long sleeves, and Sanbao's figure flew out, staggering to the ground.

When he saw the deceased body of Venerable Gesang, his eyes trembled and turned gloomy.

No matter what, the two of them met, but unfortunately they had different paths and could not work together.

"This is my sworn brother Sanbao. Since he calls me big brother, it can't be for nothing. I have passed on the Immortal Golden Body to him. If you at Baiyun Temple want to possess this magical power, treat him well."

Sanbao looked surprised and said, "No, the Immortal Golden Body? Brother Zhang, didn't you tell me that this is called Iron Lump Skill?"

Tongji's face twitched when he heard this. What the hell, Iron Lump Kung Fu?

It's really amazing that he could think of calling the Immortal Golden Body something so vulgar!
"Little monk, let me see how you perform your power."

Sanbao didn't know who Tongji was. He looked at Zhang Jiuyang and saw him nod. Then he took a horse stance and practiced his skills. With a whoosh, a bronze glow flowed on his skin.

Tongji nodded with satisfaction and said, "Little monk, this is not called the Iron Kungfu, but the Indestructible Golden Body. It was created by a seventh-level divine monk in my Baiyun Temple. It is the first horizontal training skill in Buddhism. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is a magical skill that protects the religion."

Sanbao blinked, and then his pure pupils grew larger at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Suppress...suppress the magical power of the sect?
The first horizontal training secret skill?

He looked at Zhang Jiuyang, his eyes slightly red, and he didn't know what to say for a moment. He was deeply moved.

Brother Zhang actually passed on such a precious magical power to him, but they had barely met each other...

"Sanbao, this is the monk Tongji of Baiyun Temple, the head of the Demon Subduing Institute. He has agreed to let you enter Baiyun Temple. Why don't you thank him quickly?"

Upon hearing this, Sanbao first bowed to Zhang Jiuyang, and then bowed to Tongji.

"Disciple Sanbao, greetings to the Master."

"I may not be able to be your master. You are the master of the secret teachings of Baiyun Temple that have been lost for hundreds of years. Your status is very important. How to arrange for you will probably depend on the decision of the abbot."

After a pause, Tongji smiled and said, "I see that you are very talented and have extraordinary aptitude. Perhaps the abbot will make an exception and accept you as his disciple."

Sanbao's eyes lit up with joy and he asked, "Is it Master Tonghui?"

Tongji nodded.

"That's great. I've had the honor of reading Master Tonghui's Lotus Sutra. There are still many things I don't understand, so I'd like to ask him for advice!"

Tongji looked at Sanbao with surprise in his eyes.

As a cultivator of the sixth realm, it was not difficult for him to see that the young monk was truly interested in Buddhist scriptures rather than magical powers.

Extremely rare.

He asked a few questions casually, and was surprised to find that the other party's answers were not only well-reasoned, but also contained a lot of his own insights, which were quite inspiring.

"well!"

Tongji praised it twice, as if he had seen a rough jade, and exclaimed: "I'm afraid that Brother Abbot will really be tempted this time."

Zhang Jiuyang said quickly, "Brother Tongji, I'm leaving this matter to you. I, your little brother, have admired your abbot for a long time."

As he spoke, he smiled and patted Tongji's shoulder, looking very familiar with him.

Master Tonghui, the abbot of Baiyun Temple, is at the peak of the sixth realm and is known as the Great Sage Zen Master. His strength is unfathomable. It is said that he practices silent Zen and has not spoken for thirty-two years.

But the monks' respect for him did not diminish in the slightest, and Baiyun Temple prospered even more.

The most important thing is that the abbot has not accepted any disciples yet. If Sanbao becomes his successor, he may even be able to take over the abbot's mantle and become the leader of Buddhism in the future.

Tongji was somewhat helpless about Zhang Jiuyang's familiarity. He had the intention to kill him just now, but now he could pat you on the shoulder and call you brother. This Zhang Jiuyang was really hard to figure out.

……

(End of this chapter)