I am a fairy in Journey to the West

Chapter 124: Visiting the Garden and Talking about Seeking Scriptures, Zhuang Yan Receives the Imperial Edict

Daluo Heaven, Ziqing Garden.

The Jade Emperor, dressed in ordinary clothes, walked with his hands behind his back on a path paved with purple, green and white jade. On both sides were thousands of gorgeous and fragrant flowers and plants.

Behind the Jade Emperor are a monk and a Taoist priest also wearing ordinary clothes. The monk is Tathagata Buddha and the Taoist is Taishang Laojun.

The three of them were enjoying the flowers and chatting, when they heard Taishang Laojun said to Tathagata Buddha: "I heard that fellow Taoist has created a few new Buddhist scriptures, and is looking for people to pass on the scriptures to the world?"

The Tathagata Buddha smiled and said, "Yes, it is the Tripitaka Sutra."

The Jade Emperor asked curiously, "Which Tripitaka is it?"

The Tathagata Buddha said, "Your Majesty, the Three Canons are 'One Canon of Dharma, talking about heaven; One Canon of Theory, talking about earth; One Canon of Sutra, saving ghosts.' Together they are the Three Canons, totaling thirty-five volumes, or 15,144 volumes."

The Supreme Lord asked, "Where will the sutra be passed on?"

The Tathagata Buddha said: "The sentient beings in Jambudvīpa and the Eastern Land are stupid and slander the true words. They do not know the essence of my Dharma and neglect the true teachings of Sakyamuni. Therefore, this Tripitaka should be spread to the Eastern Land in Jambudvīpa."

Hearing this, the Jade Emperor suddenly said, "Laojun, I remember that there seems to be incense offerings to you in the Eastern Land of the Southern Continent?"

Taishang Laojun laughed and said, "It's just a way of clinging to the royal family. When I was reincarnated as Li Er in the lower world, I didn't have any bloodline to pass down."

“But they gave you a temple name and pursued a noble position. Even if they were just trying to curry favor with you, it is still considered as a offering of incense to the ancestral temple. You can’t turn them away, right?” The Jade Emperor said with a smile.

The Supreme Lord waved the whisk in his hand slightly and said, "Your Majesty, what you said makes sense."

At this time, the Jade Emperor said to the Tathagata Buddha: "Buddha, it is not easy to spread the Dharma to the East. Now the aftermath of the Buddha-Demon Catastrophe is still there. The journey from Nanzhanbuzhou to Xiniuhezhou is long, and there are many demons along the way. If the pilgrim is a mortal, I am afraid he will never be able to obtain the true scriptures in his lifetime."

The Supreme Lord said, "Your Majesty, you may not know that a hundred years ago, nine people had set out from Nanzhanbuzhou to Xiniuhezhou to seek scriptures, but they all died in the Flowing Sand River."

"Oh?" The Jade Emperor was surprised. "Is there such a thing? What kind of monster is there in the Flowing Sand River? How could it be able to stop nine people from seeking scriptures?"

Buddha Tathagata smiled and said, "He was the general who violated the rules in front of the emperor. He was banished to the lower world and fell into the Flowing Sand River. He often suffered from the pain of flying swords piercing his heart and ate humans to survive."

The Jade Emperor nodded slightly and then asked, "Who is the tenth person to seek the scriptures?"

The Tathagata Buddha said: "I have ordered the Venerable Guanyin to go to the Eastern Land Tang to find the pilgrim. I believe there will be a result soon."

The Jade Emperor said: "The spread of the Tripitaka Sutra in the East to enlighten the world is beneficial to all sentient beings in the three realms and four continents. However, the one who obtains the sutra will be the founder of the Sutra Collection in the future and will be revered and worshipped by billions of sentient beings. He must be carefully selected."

The Tathagata Buddha said: "Please rest assured, great celestial being. There are 81 difficulties on the journey to obtain the scriptures. The seeker must overcome many difficulties, persevere, never give up, and keep his original intention, only then can he obtain the true scriptures."

The Jade Emperor nodded slightly and said, "Well, very good. I am also concerned about such good things. If it can temper the character of those who seek the scriptures, so that they can obtain the true scriptures and benefit all living beings, I will also not hesitate to use the power of heaven to help Buddhism."

The Tathagata Buddha clasped his hands together and said, "Thank you, great celestial being, for your mercy."

Afterwards, the Jade Emperor, Laojun and Buddha toured the Ziqing Garden. After the tour, the Jade Emperor hosted a banquet in the garden. After the banquet, the Buddha bid farewell to the Jade Emperor and returned to the West.

The Jade Emperor then asked the Supreme Lord Lao, "What do you think of this journey to the West?"

The Supreme Lord Lao said: "Your Majesty, Buddhism has experienced a great catastrophe, and the Buddhist teachings in the world have been destroyed. Now we are starting to obtain the scriptures in order to restore the Buddhist teachings in the world as soon as possible."

At this point, the Supreme Lord Laozi said, "Besides, a human emperor has descended from the Eastern Tang Dynasty in the Southern Continent. If the Dharma can be spread to the Southern Continent, it will surely spread to the four continents and revive the Mahayana teachings."

The Jade Emperor nodded slightly when he heard this and said, "Before this, the teachings of the Southern Continent were all Hinayana?"

"Yes." Taishang Laojun said: "Before, the Southern Continent was full of Hinayana teachings, and the Three Treasures Sutras that were passed down this time are Mahayana teachings."

The Jade Emperor smiled upon hearing this and said, "So, Buddhism is about to flourish?"

Taishang Laojun said: "This is also a good thing. For all living beings in the world, more Buddhas are better than more demons."

The Jade Emperor asked, "What about Taoism? Doesn't Taoism want to spread its teachings?"

The Supreme Lord Laozi replied: "Your Majesty, all things are Tao, including the Buddhas, immortals, gods, demons, ghosts, and billions of living beings."

"Besides," Taishang Laojun said, "There are only two kinds of disciples in my sect. One kind wants to be an official, and now they are immortal officials in the heaven. The other kind just wants to be free and easy, and live in seclusion to cultivate immortality. These people have either gone to the Ten Continents and Three Islands, or lived in seclusion in the Four Continents."

Taishang Laojun smiled and said: "Daoist disciples either only want to be in power or only want to cultivate immortality. As for the rest, just let nature take its course."

The Jade Emperor nodded and said, "The Ministry of Humanity reported to us some time ago that many Taoist temples in the human world have also begun to worship Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Is this true?"

Taishang Laojun said: "Yes, it is true."

"So what do you think?" asked the Jade Emperor.

The old man smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it's all the same."

At this point, Taishang Laojun turned to the Jade Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, the human world and Buddhism are about to merge, which is actually a good thing."

"Yes." The Jade Emperor nodded slightly and said, "For all sentient beings in the three realms, this is indeed a good thing."

After the Jade Emperor asked some more questions about Taoism and Buddhism, he returned to the Tongming Palace. After he took his seat in the Tongming Palace, he said to Taibai Jinxing, "Taibai Jinxing, pass on an order to the Human World Department. When Lingtai Shenjun Zhuang Yan comes out of retreat, have him come to Taiwei Yuqing Palace to see me as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, Taibai Jinxing immediately bowed and said, "I obey your order."

Auspicious clouds appeared in the 300-li Lingtai Mountain, spiritual energy turned into rain, and hundreds of rainbows rose up, illuminating thousands of mountains.

Patriarch Bodhi stood on the southern slope of Fangcun Mountain, looking far into the distance towards Danchi Ridge. Xianyun and Guhe Tongzi stood by his side. Seeing this, they asked, "Patriarch, what is this strange phenomenon?"

Patriarch Bodhi smiled and said, "The strange phenomenon came from Danchi Ridge. It means that Lingtai Divine Lord is about to attain the realm of celestial immortal."

Xianyun Tongzi asked in confusion: "Grandmaster, didn't Lingtai Shenjun just achieve Xuanxian Dao Fruit a few hundred years ago? How come he is going to achieve Tianxian Dao Fruit so soon?"

Patriarch Bodhi said with a smile: "After listening to the Buddha's lectures for three hundred years, even a piece of stone can become an immortal, let alone the Spiritual Platform God?"

As he spoke, a thousand-foot-long green rainbow suddenly rose above the Danchiling Lingtai Divine Palace, followed by a golden light that shot up into the sky.

The next moment, boundless fairy light spread out, covering the entire Lingtai Mountains.

Zhuang Yan stood above the clouds, with auspicious clouds rising from all directions and purple light and rainbow clouds everywhere.

On top of the Lingtai Baolian, the Yuanshen sat upright, his whole body aglow with golden light, his hands forming seals, with a Xuanyuan golden bead suspended above, which was the 'Fruit of the Heavenly Immortal'.

Zhuang Yan's spiritual platform was clear and he understood everything. He made a Xuanmen Dao formula with his left hand, showing the Xuanmen true method. He made a Buddhist hand seal with his right hand, emitting Buddha light. Seeing this scene, Guhe Tongzi asked again: "Grandmaster, look, Lingtai God has the Xuanmen true method in his left hand and the Buddhist seal in his right hand."

Patriarch Bodhi smiled and said, "Of course. He practiced the Dao method given by Taishang Laojun, the Huiyuan Pure Heart Method. This time, he listened to the Buddha's teachings for three hundred years and suddenly realized the Dharma. He thus achieved the Dao fruit of the Heavenly Immortal."

"Doesn't that mean that Lingtai God is now practicing both Taoism and Buddhism?" asked the boy Xianyun.

Patriarch Bodhi nodded and said, "You can say that."

As he spoke, the auspicious rainbow clouds that filled the sky had dissipated. Zhuang Yan gathered his magical power and divine might, dispersed his seal, and stood in the sky.

Patriarch Bodhi stood on the southern cliff and bowed, saying, "Congratulations, my friend, for achieving the immortal fruit."

Above the sky, Zhuang Yan heard the words of Patriarch Bodhi. He hurriedly looked towards the southern slope of the cliff and immediately saw Patriarch Bodhi and two little boys standing there.

Zhuang Yan quickly bowed and returned the greeting, saying, "This is all thanks to you, my friend. Without your invitation, I don't know how long it would take me to achieve this state."

Patriarch Bodhi smiled and said, "This is all the good fortune of fellow Daoist. I am just following the flow. Fellow Daoist has been in seclusion for a hundred years. Today, he has come out of seclusion and achieved enlightenment. I believe he must have a lot of things to do. If you have free time in the future, you can come to the mountain to chat."

Zhuang Yan said, "No need to say more. If I have time, I will definitely come to visit you."

Afterwards, Zhuang Yan turned into a ray of fairy light and fell into the Lingtai Divine Palace. Fire Spirit Immortal and Lan'er had been waiting here for a long time. As soon as Zhuang Yan landed, they immediately stepped forward to congratulate him.

Miaoyu stood in the distance, staring at Zhuang Yan with her phoenix eyes, and bowed to Zhuang Yan from afar.

Seeing this scene, Zhuang Yan smiled slightly and bowed to Miaoyu in return, but Miaoyu immediately withdrew his hand and turned away.

Zhuang Yan laughed and asked the Fire Spirit Immortal and Lan'er in front of him, "Has everything been okay in the mountains these years?"

"My Lord, everything is fine in the mountains under the leadership of the Prime Minister," said Lan'er.

Zhuang Yan smiled and nodded.

The Fire Spirit Immortal said, "Lord God, the Ministry of the Human World issued an order some time ago, saying that after you come out of retreat, you should immediately go to Daluo Heaven to meet His Majesty the Jade Emperor."

"Oh?" Zhuang Yan was slightly surprised, then nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go to heaven right away."

After saying this, Zhuang Yan immediately ascended into the clouds and flew away into the air, reaching the next level of heaven in the blink of an eye.

He first received the imperial edict from the human world, and then Zhuang Yan went straight up to Daluo Heaven, entered the West Heaven Gate, and came directly to the outside of Tongming Palace.

At this time, in the Tongming Palace, the gods of the Thunder Department had just left, and the Jade Emperor was resting with his eyes closed. Suddenly, a celestial general came in and said, "Your Majesty, Lingtai God has come to see you by order, and is waiting outside the palace."

Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor said, "Please invite the mountain gods of Xuanlingtai to enter the palace."

The heavenly generals turned around and retreated. Not long after, Zhuang Yan walked quickly into the Tongming Palace. At this moment, all the heavenly generals, spiritual officials, and fairies in the Tongming Palace were rebuked by the Jade Emperor. Now, there were only the Jade Emperor and Zhuang Yan in the entire palace.

"Your Majesty the Jade Emperor, the Supreme God of the Mysterious Sky, is here to pay his respects to Him." Zhuang Yan bowed.

The Jade Emperor glanced at Zhuang Yan and said with a smile, "I didn't expect that in just a hundred years, you have already achieved the status of a celestial being. Very good."

At this point, the Jade Emperor pointed to a plate of magical peaches on the jade table in front of him and said, "Come forward. I'll give you a magical peach. Take it yourself."

Zhuang Yan first thanked him, then apologized, and finally walked up to the steps of the palace. He came to the jade table and took out a rosy and plump peach, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward."

The Jade Emperor smiled and said, "What are you thanking me for? This is the peach presented by your Lingtai Divine Palace. Your Palace Prime Minister is called Huo Ling Zhenxian, right?"

“Your Majesty, his name is Fire Spirit Immortal,” Zhuang Yan replied.

The Jade Emperor nodded and said, "What are this person's abilities?"

Zhuang Yan immediately said, "Your Majesty, Huo Ling is extremely capable. I have been in seclusion for a hundred years, and she has been in charge of all the affairs of the Divine Palace. No matter what the matter is, she can handle it in an orderly and fair manner. She is truly a rare talent."

The Jade Emperor nodded and said, "Not only can you handle the affairs of the Divine Palace well, but you also have the energy to grow such good spiritual peaches. You are indeed a pillar of talent. Zhuang Yan is also good at judging people."

After saying this, the Jade Emperor no longer mentioned the Fire Spirit Immortal, but said to Zhuang Yan: "I want you to do something important."

Hearing this, Zhuang Yan hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, please give your orders."

The Jade Emperor briefly informed Zhuang Yan that the Buddhist sect was preparing to start the journey to obtain Buddhist scriptures, and then said, "I want you to test those who are seeking Buddhist scriptures on behalf of the Heavenly Court to see if they are up to this important task."

Zhuang Yan heard this and said, "Your Majesty, isn't obtaining the scriptures a Buddhist mission? Why does the Heavenly Court have to test those who seek the scriptures?"

The Jade Emperor said: "Once those who seek the scriptures succeed, they will become Buddhas and ancestors. From now on, all those who study the Three Treasures in the four continents will worship them as their ancestors. This concerns the sentient beings of the three realms. As I rule the three realms, I am naturally responsible for them."

Zhuang Yan nodded, and then asked, "Your Majesty, how should we test the pilgrims?"

The Jade Emperor said: "Those who have accomplished great things throughout history must have great perseverance and determination. This will test whether they have the perseverance and determination to overcome the disasters and obtain the true scriptures."

"I understand." Zhuang Yan bowed.

The Jade Emperor nodded, and then said: "You can do it as you please. You can decide who to hire and what to do. You don't need to report to me. The affairs of Lingtai Divine Palace can be handed over to Huoling Zhenxian. When the pilgrim obtains the true scriptures, it will be the day when your merits are fulfilled and you will be awarded a title and reward."

Zhuang Yan immediately bowed and said, "I obey your order."

The Jade Emperor once again warned, "Remember, don't be timid. I have issued an edict to the underworld that all the living beings who are related to the Journey to the West will be blessed by the Three Primordials of Heaven after death. They will be given priority in reincarnation and have a long and happy life in the next life. So, just do it boldly. I will tell you that you have nothing to worry about."

Upon hearing this, Zhuang Yan bowed again and said, "I thank your majesty for your grace. I will live up to your trust."

The Jade Emperor nodded and smiled, "However, this matter must be kept strictly confidential and not mentioned to anyone."

Zhuang Yan said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will keep it in mind."

The Jade Emperor nodded and smiled, "I trust you. Well, this matter is complicated, I will not keep you here, you can go now."

Afterwards, Zhuang Yan bowed and accepted the order, then bowed and took his leave.

After Zhuang Yan left, the Jade Emperor called back all the immortals and gods in the palace and said, "Draft an edict."

Master Xu immediately spread out the jade paper, picked up the red brush, and looked at the Jade Emperor.

The Jade Emperor said, "I order the Taixuan Metropolitan Province to notify the Human World Department to commend the achievements and virtues of the Lingtai Divine Palace's Minister Huo Ling Zhenxian and promote him to the seventh rank of immortal official, and he will continue to serve as the Minister of Lingtai Divine Palace."

(End of this chapter)