Invasion Myth: Starting with the Schoolteacher

Chapter 997 Recruiting New Members of Justice
Seeing Hui Ren's clenched fists and eyes that seemed to be spitting fire, Xu Xuan did not take the opportunity to fan the flames.

The *Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra* states: "Anger is the deepest fault; among the three poisons, none is more severe; among the ninety-eight defilements, it is the most entrenched; among all mental illnesses, it is the most difficult to cure." It also says: "Anger can destroy good deeds, just as poison can destroy medicine."

"Don't let a moment of anger ruin years of quiet cultivation."

Not immediately agreeing to or urging the other party to do anything is not a tactic of retreating to advance.

Xu Xuan could easily use his silver tongue to guide this powerful Zen abbot to direct the anger of Linji Temple toward the Liang Prince's Mansion, thus gaining a strong ally for himself in the north.

But doing it that way is really not refined and falls short of standards.

More importantly, Zen practice emphasizes "mind-to-mind transmission," its methods are incredibly profound, and often involve sudden enlightenment that defies logic.

One second they might be burning with anger, and the next second a witty remark can shatter their illusions, leading them to realize that "anger is also empty," and they instantly attain enlightenment.

This uncertainty is too great.

Therefore, Xu Xuan chose to return the choice to Hui Ren himself.

It merely points out the harm of anger; whether the other party chooses to abide by the precepts or to let their anger burn is their own responsibility.

Upon hearing this, Huiren took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his surging blood and qi, and respectfully bowed to Xu Xuan with his hands clasped together: "Amitabha, thank you for the reminder from the Venerable Monk. This humble monk has learned much."

However, the tone shifted immediately, and the anger in those copper bell-like eyes did not subside; instead, it settled into something even more resolute:

"However, the commentary on the Mahavairocana Sutra states: 'The wrathful appearance is not anger, but rather the fierce appearance of great compassion.'"

"In his compassion, the Buddha sometimes manifests a fierce and wrathful form to guide those stubborn, unyielding, and deluded beings, using the power of Vajra to destroy their afflictions and karmic obstacles, and to remove the demonic hindrances on their path to enlightenment. This form appears fierce, but its essence is still a manifestation of compassion and salvation; it is called 'compassionate wrath'!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Xuan nodded inwardly; these were words a proper monk should say.

This is one of the reasons why Buddhism has such a strong influence and wide adaptability.

The same emotion or the same behavior can have two completely different interpretations, one positive and one negative.

It can be "anger" that needs to be eliminated, or it can be "wrath" that represents compassion. Which interpretation to use depends entirely on whether one can "maintain" one's true nature and whether one can make the explanation appropriate.

If one can maintain this stance and make sense in their explanation, then they are correct; it is a skillful manifestation of the compassion of Buddhism. If one cannot maintain this stance or make a correct explanation, then they have entered the demonic path and are being consumed by the fire of their own mind.

Xu Xuan himself was the best among them, and he was most skilled at using demonic methods to do good deeds and subdue many external demons.

Since the monk Huiren chose the latter, he intended to cultivate this "wrathful countenance" through this matter, transforming his burning anger into "compassionate anger" to subdue demons and protect the righteous path...

Those are like-minded "good brothers" who can fight side by side.

Then, Zen Master Fahai revealed his true abilities.

As a seasoned monk who has weathered many storms in the Jiangnan region, Xu is arguably the most adept at dealing with powerful figures and thorny problems within the Buddhist community. He is already quite adept at handling forces of the Liang Prince's Mansion.

It's perfectly understandable that they could readily pull out several detailed action plans from their rich experience at this moment.

Of course, in order not to scare the Zen monk in front of them, who was still quite "simple-minded", they still made a special selection.

They chose the option that was relatively gentle, had a positive process, and seemed more in line with the image of a high-ranking monk.

He clearly divided the plan into three steps and said to Huiren:

“This matter is very complex and should not be acted upon rashly. I believe we can proceed in three steps.”

Extend one finger:
"First, we need to find out the true origin and source of this divine punishment aura that is shrouding your temple. Although it has been confirmed that it is related to that person in the Prince's Mansion, we still need to accurately trace the source of the specific cause and effect, and what kind of 'deity' or law is responsible, in order to prescribe the right medicine."

Next, extend the second finger:

"Based on the results of the first step of the investigation, we need to find a solution to resolve or transfer this calamity. Is it to communicate with it? Is it to try to purify it? Or is it to find a substitute to bear it? Only when we have a clear understanding of the root cause can we determine the specific method."

Finally, he extended his third finger, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable force:
"Let the real culprits bear the consequences they deserve. Although Buddhism is compassionate, it also speaks of the cycle of cause and effect, and that retribution is inevitable."

At first glance, the plan seems logically clear, with well-defined steps, simple and direct, and full of the composure and method of handling problems by reputable institutions.

But this kind of "stable process" is exactly what Xu Xuan could only dream of but never achieve.

His past experiences, whether it was getting involved in the great calamity of Yunmengze or dealing with matters in Guobei County and the underworld, almost every time he got involved, unexpected accidents would occur at the beginning, and then the plot would run wild like a runaway horse, galloping in a direction that no one could predict, leaving everything in chaos.

All the subtle foreshadowing and elaborate schemes, all the hidden scheming and meticulous planning, are often skipped over at an accelerated pace, jumping directly to the final conflict and resolution.

Ultimately, the problem is usually solved in one way or another.

Even if the problem is not ultimately solved perfectly... then the person who created the problem has certainly been dealt with.

However, the scope of the "person" who is being dealt with can sometimes be quite flexible.

Most of the time, he is naturally the enemy. But occasionally, it might be himself. After Huiren temporarily joined this "Squad of Justice" led by Zen Master Fahai, he began to delve into the first step of the plan: exploring the origin of the divine punishment aura.

Divine punishment, as the name suggests, is punishment by gods and spirits.

Its characteristics have been described in ancient times: "It cannot be based on wealth, power, courage, strength, armor, or sharp weapons; the punishment of gods and spirits will surely prevail."

This means that no matter what power, wealth, or force the punished possess, they are powerless to resist such extraordinary power.

More importantly, divine punishment is often an absolute sanction against a certain "evil deed," containing some ancient law and will, and it usually does not dissipate on its own until the goal is achieved.

So, does Linji Temple have committed any "evil acts" in this matter?

The answer is yes.

“Obstructing the execution of justice can itself be regarded as an ‘evil’.”

Xu Xuan pointed out the key point: "Even if you are being misled and are performing the rituals to ward off disaster and pray for blessings out of good intentions, your actions are objectively offsetting and delaying the punishment that should have come upon the culprit."

Just like in "Journey to the West", Tang Sanzang was repeatedly deceived by the White Bone Demon's illusions and insisted on driving away Sun Wukong, who was loyal to protecting his master and dedicated to subduing demons.

Although he had no intention of doing evil, his actions themselves hindered the righteous act of 'exorcising demons,' and thus he suffered that calamity and was captured by the demon. This also implies a similar principle.

Of course, the Tang Monk in the book does these kinds of "troublesome things" quite frequently, and sometimes, they are not entirely unintentional mistakes.

Zen Master Fahai's speculation about the motives behind the actions of the Tripitaka Master was also based on his own considerations, thinking that perhaps he had the idea of ​​voluntarily entering the tribulation to temper his mind.

They might have thought of measuring how much importance all the gods and Buddhas attached to the journey to the West, and also checking if this monster had a powerful background.

Ahem, back to reality, Xu Xuan concluded, "What we need to do now is to distinguish right from wrong, assist this 'divine punishment' in finding the rightful master and carrying out the punishment it deserves, so as to make up for the mistakes we made unintentionally due to being deceived, and eliminate the undeserved disaster suffered by Linji Temple."

After listening, Hui Ren's eyes flashed with a hint of understanding:
“Amitabha! After the Zen Master’s guidance, the only places I can think of within the territory of Liang Kingdom that might be related to ancient deities are two.”

"One is the acacia tree in the north of the city, which was once designated by Heaven as a place for lovers to be together. The other is the place in the east of the city where the Fire God is worshipped."

Upon hearing the name "Acacia Tree," Xu Xuan's heart skipped a beat, sensing that something he desired might be found within it.

It is likely related to the emotional turmoil that has troubled him. There is a famous love legend in Shangqiu.

But now was not the time to talk about love and romance, so he put aside his thoughts and continued to listen to the information provided by Huiren.

"Since the aura that the Zen master sensed was extremely fiery, it most likely originated from Ebotai, who is in charge of fire matters!"

However, after making that conclusion, a great deal of doubt welled up in Huiren's heart. He muttered to himself, his face full of confusion:
"But... according to consensus, there shouldn't be any truly manifest deities in the world. So where does this 'divine punishment' come from?"

This counterintuitive situation makes the whole incident even more perplexing.

It should be understood that the Buddhist influence extends throughout the Nine Provinces and even beyond, with a vast and sophisticated information network. The fact that "the gods have disappeared and the incense offerings and divine ways have long been severed" is a common knowledge recognized in the cultivation world and is absolutely impossible to be wrong.

If a living deity were to truly manifest in the world, even if it were merely to display a definite miracle, it would be a momentous event for the entire cultivation world, enough to overturn the existing understanding.

But now, it seems that such an illogical thing has happened in Liang Kingdom.

Nothing in this world is absolute.

Xu Xuan, however, remained quite calm and even had a lot to say about it.

His experiences themselves are a constant breaking of "common sense".

The first decent opponent that Lao Xu encountered when he first started out was the former Judge Lu.

This fellow, using some kind of heaven-defying secret technique, forcibly demoted himself from his divine position, separated his divine soul, abandoned the existing divine laws, and transformed himself into a strange existence that was neither god nor human nor ghost. Then he infiltrated the human world, attempting to retrace his path of cultivation and climb to new heights.

Unfortunately, he was unlucky and happened to encounter a novice who was just starting out at the time... well, someone who could be called a 'white lotus little devil'.

Unfortunately, this little devil managed to latch onto two incredibly powerful figures by sheer chance, and he also possessed a certain amount of unreasonable 'luck'.

That's how they managed to survive such a close call, and even... turn the tables and kill their opponent.

It was that battle that made Xu Xuan truly experience the terrifying and powerful nature of divine power.

Even though Lu Pan is no longer in his complete form, his remaining 'Judgment' divine power, along with the locking and judgment based on the law level, is almost an unavoidable 'mechanism' attack.

That power seems reasonable, but it is actually quite unreasonable. Once judged by its laws, it is difficult to resist by conventional means.

Therefore, Xu Xuan looked at Hui Ren, who was still immersed in shock, and said decisively:
"There's no point in just speculating here; we might as well go and see for ourselves."

(End of this chapter)