Chapter 196
In the Tang Dynasty of Cathay, an official in the Imperial Astronomical Bureau named Gautama interpreted the celestial phenomenon of a solar eclipse.
He predicted that Shi Siming, who was wreaking havoc in Cathay Province, would soon be defeated and killed. In the same year Shi Siming was indeed killed by his adopted son, and the An Lushan Rebellion ended. The emperor was overjoyed and promoted him to the position of Junior Director of the Imperial Observatory.
Gautama is the alternative name for the surname "Gautama" in Cathay.
However, Gautama the Immortal only studied astronomy and astrology, and was not very knowledgeable about other subjects.
Hebe, however, possessed a vast array of Skygazing Technique, encompassing all Vedic Astrology texts.
But Hebe felt little shock or joy, because the Vedic Astrology she received was merely a side effect of directly confronting a great being.
The disc behind her head swirled back to Hebe's eyes like a shooting star.
A round disc, as full as the moon, represents the night sky over Bharata at this moment.
—Saturn and Mars, these two planets almost overlap.
And in Hebe's eyes, the two planets were still slowly rotating around each other.
In Vedic Astrology, this has a specific term: "Celestial Embrace Lock".
Now, Hebe finally understood why the Fisher King had been so determined to bring about the Vedic Age, and she finally understood what changes had occurred in the wasteland between the two rulers.
It's very simple, just like Saturn and Mars. The Fisher King, April Archon, and the Wolf, August Archon, are locked together.
The Fisher King symbolizes the entirety of nature, possessing the characteristic of encompassing and nurturing all living beings; while the savage wolf symbolizes the primitive herd of beasts, which can only survive in a primitive and wild natural environment.
Conversely, while nature provides for all living beings, it can also ruthlessly take their lives; and many creatures will constantly encroach on the land and destroy the natural environment in order to survive.
The two leaders are currently in a paradoxical state, both opposed and united.
In fact, the Opposing Blades emerged from this foundation and continued to extend to extremes.
The supreme seat that originally belonged to the Trimurti is now locked together by Brahma the Fisher King and Shiva the Wolf. How easy would it be to untie them?
And what forced Canlang to take this step...
It's probably not due to either the private or Eris alone, but rather a combination of both.
Hebe was lost in thought, and gradually her eyelids drooped.
The clouds and mist gathered again, but they did not completely envelop Hebe.
The moon behind her grew ever rounder, and two Yang Pill flew out from her sleeves, dancing gracefully beside her like evening stars appearing and disappearing in the clouds.
Not far away, Kama's feet trod across the bluestone and grass. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Hebe's lowered eyelids and quickly covered her mouth with her hand.
After a while, seeing that Hebe did not suddenly open her eyes, Kama quietly approached—not too close, just at a distance where he could clearly see Hebe's eyebrows and eyes.
She looked at Hebe and smiled slightly.
As Hebe deduced, the immortals were among the few people who were able to retain memories of the previous era.
In the previous era, nearly half of the more than fifty immortals died, including several of the Seven Great Immortals and even the Progenitor Daksha.
The large amount of Maya Illusionary Power is enough to support the emergence of new immortals and fill the vacancies belonging to the Seven Great Immortals.
Furthermore, with the Ant-hill Immortal's incapacitation, the dominance of the Vedic Age also needed to be taken over by someone.
But for a time, no immortal was willing to step forward and become the target of everyone's criticism.
However, within this dubious silence, conflict arose—not between sages, but between sages and Kshatriya.
During this period, the Aryan nobles were conquering east and west, and their slaves, land and wealth were increasing every day, so they could be said to have reaped a great harvest.
Of course, at least at this time, they didn't mind robbing the Brahmin along the way.
Although Brahmin, thanks to the caste system, were not reduced to slavery, their wealth was indeed plundered.
But the Kshatriya are not a monolithic group; if I rob you today, it might be another group that comes to rob you tomorrow.
Of course, the amount of money handed over still cannot be reduced.
Under such interrogation, the Brahmin naturally revealed the existence of the sages.
Although the immortals live a secluded life, their material conditions are not bad. Although the world has entered a new era, the magical treasures and blessings they created through arduous cultivation are still effective.
For example, the Immortal Jiyu, who was ranked among the Seven Great Immortals, was known as the greatest teacher. He once competed with the Bhrigu Immortal for the right to define the era. He was unfortunately defeated in many debates and was forced to go into seclusion.
Even though he went into seclusion, he still took with him the Wish-Fulfilling Divine Cow that could produce countless treasures, food, and weapons, and could grant the wishes of others.
Nominally, he was living in seclusion, but in reality, he had carved out his own sacred abode in the forest, where the Immortal Jiyu practiced asceticism regularly, and after finishing his asceticism, he would procreate. By the time this Kshatriya nobleman came to him asking for the Wish-Fulfilling Divine Cow, the Immortal Jiyu already had a hundred sons.
Of course, this Kshatriya king also knew that the immortals were all eccentric and powerful ascetics. So he did not directly resort to violence, but instead offered the Immortal Jiyu a deal: he was willing to exchange all the treasures, servants, and land he had plundered for the Wish-Fulfilling Wish-Fulfilling Divine Cow.
The Immortal Jiyu wasn't stupid; of course, he wouldn't agree to this exchange.
The king was furious: he sent his one hundred sons as vanguards, leading the Kshatriya warriors in an attack.
The Immortal Jiyu merely smiled coldly and patted the Wish-Fulfilling Divine Cow.
But then the divine bull raised its rump, instantly producing countless elite soldiers clad in armor and wielding weapons. They slaughtered the army sent by the Aryan king, leaving no survivors.
The Immortal Jiyu still felt it wasn't enough, so he pointed directly at the sons of the Aryan king and uttered the first curse of the new generation!
In an instant, the king's one hundred sons turned to ashes right before his eyes.
This curse certainly has an element of making an example of someone to deter others.
The sages tacitly approved of Daksha's plan. In the previous era, they were forced to bow their heads before the Aryans' blades, but in this era, with the establishment of the caste system, things were different.
The immortals who possess the Dharma have already surpassed the Kshatriya, and now they are using curses to make the Kshatriya feel pain.
The idea of Immortal Jiyu was good; the Aryan king did indeed feel immense pain. The problem was that the pain he felt was a bit excessive.
In utter despair, this king renounced his worldly life and began to practice asceticism Brahmin!
As the first Kshatriya to engage in ascetic practices, he was easily bestowed the title of sage.
His name is [Immortal Zhongyou].
In fact, his status was already equal to that of the Immortal Jiyu, but the Immortal Zhongyou did not stop his arduous cultivation.
This sage was deluded, believing that the reason he had suffered such a calamity must be because he was not Brahmin.
—Damn it, if I were Brahmin sage, would I look like this?!
Filled with this self-reproach and obsession, the Immortal Zhongyou began their arduous cultivation.
He started to get caught in the involution.
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Hebe finally saw a turning point.
—This refers to the Kshatriya beginning to compete with the Brahmin.
Here we must mention the different standards of intense, arduous study.
In Bharata, the military nobles, the Kshatriya, could enjoy the honor of the throne, fine food and beautiful women, but they also needed to expand their territories and maintain the Dharma in the world.
Note that "enjoying the glory of the throne" and "maintaining the Dharma of the world" are not causally related; these are both noble obligations that Kshatriya need to fulfill.
Yes, enjoying superior material conditions is also a responsibility and obligation of the high caste.
This applies not only to Kshatriya but also to Brahmin. Moreover, the priestly class has an additional label compared to the military aristocracy. "Purity."
In order to maintain the purity of lineage, caste, and asceticism, the seemingly "impoverished" practice of Brahmin actually requires a great deal of manpower and resources to establish independent Forest of Asceticism.
The latter is also known as a sacred place in the forest, or a pure land, or, in a more Eastern way, a sacred place.
Does this look familiar? Yes, with the version update to the Vedic Age, immortals can build their own online platforms by imitating the Snow Mountain Pure Land.
Then the immortals can surf the internet... oh no, I mean, meditate and surf in their respective Forest of Asceticism.
Then another question arises: can this be considered ascetic practice? Yes, yes, of course it can be.
As mentioned earlier, caste determines the different standards of asceticism.
So Kshatriya don't enjoy the glory of the throne, the fine food and beautiful women, but instead engage in ascetic practices—even if their ascetic practices consist of simply wearing simple clothes and reducing their meals from ten milk balls to eight.
Meditating before bed is a form of spiritual practice.
At this time, the Brahmin who had the right to asceticism were even more different. Even if they did nothing, just sleeping under a tree and automatically idling was considered asceticism.
This is not just asceticism, it's extremely asceticism!
Even if Hebe were willing at this point, she could convert the power of asceticism into a table according to this calculation standard.
The power of asceticism accumulated by Brahmin far surpasses that of Kshatriya.
However, if we wait until the later Dharma Age, when the third class, the Vaishya, also begin ascetic practices, we will find that even with their desperate asceticism and meditation, they cannot catch up with the Kshatriya ahead, let alone the Brahmin at the very top.
Hey, do you think your mere ten years of arduous practice as a low caste can compare to the three generations of accumulation of a high caste?
Of course, this refers to Bharata.
Aside from Hebe, who is an exceptional case, all the immortals have always maintained a minimum level of asceticism.
They withheld most of the Maya Illusionary Power to craft magical artifacts and exchange for blessings, while keeping a portion for unforeseen circumstances.
—The latter is usually used to curse someone.
In short, influenced by the overall superior natural environment of Bharata, the sages lived a leisurely and carefree life for a long time.
Now the question is...
Spurred on by the Immortal Jiyu, the Immortal Zhongyou began to cultivate asceticism with all their might.
So how exactly did they practice such rigorous self-cultivation? Let me put it this way.
Hebe now turns on the Great Radiant Light at 8:00 AM every day to watch the live streams and antics of Immortal Zhongyou.
Of course, Hebe was one of those people who anonymously entered the live stream of Immortal Zhongyou and never gave any gifts (blessings).
Not only did she not give any gifts, she also took the opportunity to send viruses, hijacking the internet speed and data usage of the other immortals.
Therefore, other immortals found that when they meditated and observed their Immortal Zhongyou practicing asceticism, the images were often choppy and blurry.
However, they did not suspect that someone was stealing their internet speed or data. Instead, Immortal Zhongyou' arduous cultivation had been remarkably effective, even influencing the present world.
"—Praise be to Indra!"
But under the banana tree, the Immortal Zhongyou clasped their hands together, head down, legs crossed on top, spinning around like tops.
A hole has been drilled into the ground under the banana tree.
During this process, the sweat on his body rose into steam, and a tremendous amount of power from his ascetic practice burst forth.
Golden light gradually radiated from the distant snow-capped mountains, and even stars appeared in the clouds. Low rumbles of thunder echoed in the sky. All of this demonstrated that the cultivation power of the Immortal Zhongyou had reached an extremely terrifying level.
The main problem is that he didn't transform the power of his ascetic practice into blessings or magical treasures, nor did he use it to curse others.
He was simply practicing asceticism!
This whole morning was spent wandering around.
Around noon, his youngest son came to bring him lunch.
The food was served in banana leaves, along with a pot of beverage made from a mixture of milk, coconut meat, turmeric powder, and pepper.
The Immortal Zhongyou had one hundred and one sons, the first one hundred of whom were all destroyed by the curse of the Immortal Jiyu.
The remaining son inherited the throne of the Immortal Zhongyou and was also responsible for providing for his food, clothing, and shelter.
After about forty minutes, when they no longer felt full, the Immortal Zhongyou began the second stage of their arduous cultivation.
"Homage to Brahma!"
The Immortal Zhongyou walked to another tree, took off their belts and threw them onto the branches, forming a circle.
Immediately afterwards, he put his neck in the noose, and with a powerful push, his feet left the ground.
This is the latest ruthless act. Before he was bestowed the name of an immortal, doing this would only have one result—suicide.
But now it's different; the power of asceticism sustains his life.
Although it requires some arduous practice, the resulting power of that practice far surpasses that of the previous one.
The Immortal Zhongyou tried their best to maintain the "hanging" posture, slowly bringing their hands together in front of their chests, and their legs also crossed in mid-air.
The only things supporting his entire body were his chin and the strip of cloth around his neck.