Journey to the West: Please Call Me the White Bone Demon

The Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Zhunti, who was sitting cross-legged under the tree with his eyes closed in meditation, suddenly opened his eyes.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and his fingers, which were resting on his knees, suddenly tightened.

He raised his head, his gaze passing over the swaying Bodhi tree and looking towards some empty direction deep within the chaos, before finally uttering a question that was dry and hoarse: "Senior brother, did you feel it?"

The guide on the opposite prayer mat had already opened his eyes.

His face, which was always etched with sorrow, was now ten times more sorrowful than ever before, and the deep wrinkles between his brows were like ravines carved by a knife.

He did not answer Zhunti's question immediately, but instead raised a withered hand, spread his fingers and groped in the void for a moment. When his fingertips brushed across the chaotic energy, they brought out wisps of golden light, but those golden lights dissipated very quickly.

Jieyin slowly lowered his hand, his voice so low and hoarse it was almost inaudible: "Junior brother... the Buddhist sect's fortune... suddenly snapped, completely vanished."

"I can't sense it anymore."

Zhunti's voice carried an unprecedented urgency, "We can't sense the good corpse anymore, nor can we sense the Buddhist fortune. It's as if overnight, all the traces we left in the primordial world have been wiped clean."

He suddenly stood up. "What on earth happened? Before, at least we could still get some messages back intermittently through the benevolent corpse, even if they were incomplete or blurry, at least we knew that Mount Ling was still operating. But now even the benevolent corpse has lost contact..."

Jieyin closed his eyes, his face filled with such sorrow that it was almost dripping with tears. He took over Zhunti's words and said, "Mount Ling is probably no longer there. If it were just the good corpse that was subdued, the fortune should not have been severed at the same time. Only when the foundation of Mount Ling has completely collapsed and the Buddhist lineage has been uprooted from its source, would the fortune be severed so cleanly and decisively."

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly raised his hand and patted his forehead, a gesture filled with a rare sense of regret: "It's my fault... If I had known this would happen, I should have left an avatar in the primordial world back then."

"At least they could keep an eye on us over there. But now we're completely in the dark. We have no idea what happened there, who did it, or what Buddha did."

Upon hearing this, Zhunti was taken aback for a moment, then gave a bitter smile: "Senior brother, what's the use of saying all this now? Who among us could have predicted that Mount Ling would come to this?"

"That person, Tathagata... I have never treated him badly; I even bestowed upon him the honor of being the World-Honored One of Mount Sumeru. What reason does he have to destroy his own foundation?"

The reason is no longer important.

Jieyin stood up: "The important thing is that the Buddhist sect's fortune has been cut off. Junior brother, this time, I'm afraid we can't sit here and wait any longer."

Zhunti suddenly turned to look at him, a glint of light flashing in his eyes: "What does Senior Brother mean?"

Jieyin sighed, "Let's go and beg our teacher one more time. Even if he won't allow us to enter the Three Realms, we should at least find out what exactly happened in the primordial world. As the founders of Buddhism, if we can't even understand how our own lineage was destroyed, what face do we have left as saints?"

Without saying a word, Zhunti took off.

Two figures once again crossed the boundary of the Blissful World, speeding along that familiar void passage towards the Purple Cloud Palace.

Zhunti traversed billions of miles in a single step, the chaotic energy beneath his feet churning and boiling under the surge of his magical power.

But when they saw the outline of the vermilion palace gate again, Zhunti suddenly stopped in his tracks.

The door still stands silently in the depths of chaos, and the three large characters "Zixiao Palace" on the plaque still exude that ancient and imposing aura.

No matter how hard they tried to push their magic forward, the palace gate remained exactly the same distance away as before, neither too far nor too near, neither too big nor too small, keeping them just a hundred feet away.

Zhunti gritted his teeth and cried out again, "Master! Your disciple Zhunti requests an audience! The Buddhist destiny has been severed, and the Lingshan lineage has been destroyed. This disciple can no longer remain idle. I implore you, Master, to have mercy and allow this disciple to enter the primordial world to see for myself!"

The chaos was utterly silent, not even the occasional ripples that had appeared earlier were visible.

Jieyin bowed deeply towards the palace gate: "Master, we two disciples have nowhere to go. Please show us a way out."

……

Zhunti stood there for a long time, his urgent calls gradually turning into hoarse ones, and finally the hoarseness dissipated into the chaotic silence.

He stared at the palace gate that he could never reach for a long time. When he turned around to look at Jieyin, the look in his eyes had changed.

It was no longer pleading, no longer anxious, but a kind of extremely calm and resolute determination, as if all preparations had been made.

"Senior brother, I can't wait any longer."

Jieyin's heart skipped a beat: "What do you mean?"

"I want to enter the primordial world!"

Jieyin's expression changed drastically, and he grabbed Zhunti's arm: "Are you crazy! Our teacher forbids us from entering the Three Realms, and you have the Saint-Destroying Pill on you! If you step in, how can you maintain your Saintly realm?!"

Zhunti did not break free from his grasp, but her voice remained extremely calm: "So what if we can't protect it? Senior brother, how many people did we offend back then for this holy position? The Heavenly Court, the Daoist sect, the remnants of the Jie Sect, the immortals of the Chan Sect... Back then, we built Buddhism on the bones and blood of those people. This is our life's blood and sweat!"

"We carried those grudges with us..."

He paused here, then continued, "But now the Buddhist lineage has been severed, and Mount Ling is gone. Senior brother, what's the point of us guarding a sacred position without any lineage, sitting in this empty paradise?"

The guide's lips moved, but he couldn't utter a word.

Zhunti gently pulled her hand away from his, took half a step back, and smiled at him.

That smile carried something that hadn't been seen in countless lifetimes.

Back when they were still struggling in the primordial chaos, Zhunti had this kind of smile on his face—resolute, open, and leaving no way out.

"Besides, Senior Brother, there's no need to worry too much. Although the effects of the Fallen Saint Pill are irreversible, it doesn't mean you'll fall immediately upon entering the Three Realms. I've calculated that it will take at least several hours for a Saint to fall to the Quasi-Saint realm. Those few hours are enough for me to finish what I need to do."

"Even if I do fall from the Saintly position, I will only fall to the Quasi-Saint realm. Although a Quasi-Saint is not as good as a Saint, I still have the foundation from countless eons of cultivation. There are few in the primordial world who can do anything to me."

"Besides, don't I still have you, Senior Brother? You're stationed in the Blissful World to receive me. Even if something really happens to me, though you can't enter the Three Realms, as long as I escape back to the Chaos, it won't be difficult for you to protect me."

Jieyin wanted to say something more, but Zhunti no longer gave him the chance to speak.

The azure figure turned around, facing the direction of the primordial world, lifted its foot, took a step, and crossed the invisible boundary between the Blissful World and the Three Realms.