"Hmm? What's strange about this wall?"
Zhenshi studied the relief but saw nothing unusual.
Zhenjiu said, "Look. These carvings depict the Buddhas of the Great Lingyin Temple. By rights, they should cover the entire stone wall."
"But the Buddhas occupy only the center, leaving both sides empty. And the figures in the middle—Venerables, King Mings, Vajra Guardians, and Sangharamas alike—are packed too tightly together. They could have been spread across the whole wall to display the Buddhist Sect's vast and magnificent grandeur."
"Yet whoever carved this chose to crowd them into the middle and leave both sides bare. Isn't that strange?"
Only then did Zhenshi see it. He examined the wall again and said, "So that's it. Perhaps the space on either side was left deliberately."
"After all, that man wanted to establish three World-Honored Ones. Leaving room for them would make sense."
While Zhenshi and Zhenjiu studied the relief, Azure Dragon considered what it implied. Jinjue Buddha sat at the center, with Lingjue and Lingding attending him on either side. Bodhisattvas and Arhats stood in ranks beside them, surrounded by Venerables and King Mings, who were in turn encircled by Vajra Guardians and Sangharamas. Ring upon ring, the hierarchy laid bare the Great Lingyin Temple's ranks of True Fruition and the varying quality of its disciples' spiritual foundations.
Yet at the very bottom of the relief were not kneeling monks or mortals, but four King Mings, each bearing a Buddhist Treasure.
The four stood to either side, holding a Jeweled Parasol, a Jeweled Pagoda, a Jeweled Pestle, and a Jeweled Sword. They wore robes of crimson, azure, violet, and blue, with Lotus Crowns upon their heads. All eight eyes stared at the same spot.
"So that's it."
Azure Dragon smiled faintly. Two swastikas appeared in his dark-gold, glasslike Buddha