That was the reason Ksitigarbha had come.
Chapter Nine: The Journey to the West Tribulation
"Amitabha. This building looks simple, yet it is not simple." Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stared at the General Store before him and muttered to himself.
He used his power to try to see through the General Store, but to Ksitigarbha's astonishment, he actually could not.
He could not detect the slightest trace of what was inside the building or who was in it.
It could be said that, in this Journey to the West World, there were not many experts capable of blocking Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's gaze.
He, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, was a Quasi-Saint expert.
Although he could not compare with powerful Quasi-Saints such as Buddha Tathagata and Lord of the Heavenly Court, Haotian, Ksitigarbha was at least a Quasi-Saint.
And now, for a place to be impenetrable to him, a Quasi-Saint expert, it had to at least be the territory of a Quasi-Saint—and not an ordinary one at that.
It was even possible that the owner of this place was a Saint.
To Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, a Saint was still somewhat beyond his reach.
After all, he had only just begun walking the path of cultivation toward Quasi-Sainthood.
"Which Saint could it be?" Ksitigarbha wondered.
Obviously, if this Saint had come to Flower-Fruit Mountain, he should have joined the Buddhist Tribulation.
However, according to what he knew, the Saints had been confined by the legendary Dao Ancestor and could not easily enter the mortal realm, let alone openly alter the Tribulation as they were doing now.
Carrying his doubts, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva came to the General Store and gently knocked on the door.
"Knock, knock..."
Wu Feng, who was staying inside the General Store, heard the knocking and felt somewhat puzzled.
Could Sun Wukong have come back? He opened the door and saw a bald head—a bald head radiating Buddhist light.
"Ksitigarbha." Wu Feng immediately knew the answer.
He had previously heard from Sun Wukong that Sun Wukong had met Ksitigarbha and had also mentioned him.
Thus, the only person who should be able to come here at this time was Ksitigarbha. The other members of the Buddhist Sect did not know about his General Store.
At present, Sun Wukong was still the Sun Wukong of five hundred years ago, not the Sun Wukong of five hundred years later.
Five hundred years later.
As for the pilgrimage party, the Buddhist Sect would pay far more attention to it than they did now.
For now, the Buddhist Sect was still making arrangements for the journey west.
"This is..." Seeing what Wu Feng looked like, Ksitigarbha was also slightly surprised.
According to the six Saints Ksitigarbha knew of, Zhunti and Jieyin were Saints of the Buddhist Sect, so there was no need to mention them—they definitely would not appear at Flower-Fruit Mountain.
The Saint Nuwa was a woman, while the person before him was a man, so she could also be ruled out.
That left only the legendary Three Pure Ones.
Among the Three Pure Ones, Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun were respectively an old man and a middle-aged man. Only Master of the Heavens seemed to have the appearance of a young man.
Could the person before him be the legendary Master of the Heavens?
But he did not look like him either.
Ksitigarbha was somewhat confused, but he still hurriedly bowed respectfully. "This humble monk, Ksitigarbha, pays his respects to this senior."
Since Ksitigarbha could not see through Wu Feng's strength, he believed that the person before him had to be his senior.
"So it is Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. As one of the Buddhist Sect's famous bodhisattvas, your visit has certainly brought honor to my humble establishment." Wu Feng smiled. "Please, come in."
"Thank you, senior." Ksitigarbha nodded and followed Wu Feng into the General Store.
"Senior, could you be Master of the Heavens?" Once he entered the General Store, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva could not help asking.
If Master of the Heavens had appeared here, it would truly be major news.
"Master of the Heavens?" Wu Feng laughed.
Ksitigarbha's imagination was quite good. He had actually mistaken Wu Feng for Master of the Heavens.
But that was also normal. To make Ksitigarbha, a Quasi-Saint, unable to see through him, perhaps only a legendary Saint could do so.
"Ksitigarbha, I am not Master of the Heavens. You need not speculate too much about my identity. I am merely an ordinary shopkeeper." Wu Feng shook his head with a laugh.
"An ordinary shopkeeper." Ksitigarbha was speechless.
If the person before him was ordinary, what word could he use to describe someone who was not?
Extremely ordinary?
"Then, Ksitigarbha, what have you come here for this time?" Wu Feng sat down in a chair and stared at Ksitigarbha.
"Senior, do you intend to interfere in this Buddhist Tribulation?" Ksitigarbha asked.
"Interfere in the Tribulation?" Wu Feng shook his head. "Ksitigarbha, I have no intention of interfering in the Tribulation. I am merely giving Sun Wukong an opportunity—an opportunity to transcend fate. Ksitigarbha, you can have one too."
"I..." Ksitigarbha was stunned. "Senior, I have no need to transcend fate."
"Ksitigarbha, in my eyes, you are likewise bound by fate. You vowed that you would not become a Buddha until Hell was empty. Do you think you can become a Buddha?" Wu Feng asked in return.
Ksitigarbha had vowed not to become a Buddha until Hell was empty. That had been Ksitigarbha's declaration back then.
But could this vow be fulfilled?
No.
That was certain.
As long as living beings existed, evil would exist as well.
Ksitigarbha understood this now.
"It is all for the sake of those living beings," Ksitigarbha said slowly.
"For the sake of living beings?" Wu Feng laughed. "Ksitigarbha, you seem slightly better than the others in the Buddhist Sect. Tathagata, Guanyin, and the others are extremely hypocritical."
"In my eyes, Tathagata and the others are Buddhas, but they are also demons." Wu Feng's voice turned solemn.
"Demons..." Ksitigarbha's expression changed. "Senior, please enlighten me."
"In the future Tribulation, all of Tathagata's arrangements are for his own benefit. The same goes for Guanyin and the others."
"Indeed, in Guanyin and the others' eyes, human life is probably no more than that of ants. Do you know that most of the incense offered by humans belongs to Guanyin? But has she ever thought of helping humanity?"
"Only you, Ksitigarbha, seem to be kept in the dark. This Tribulation has little to do with you, and Guanyin and the others will not make a special trip to see you."
"In their eyes, you are merely a pawn that increases the Buddhist Sect's fortune. So then, who is the Buddha you speak of, and where is he?"
"Buddha Tathagata? He was Duobao, the former chief disciple of the Interception Sect."
"Dipankara Buddha was the vice-leader of the Chan Sect before becoming a Buddha of the Buddhist Sect."
"Or perhaps Guanyin and Manjushri..."
"Then, Ksitigarbha, where is the Buddha in your heart?" Wu Feng shouted.
That was right.
Once Buddha Tathagata, Dipankara, and the others revealed their true faces, was there still a true Buddha?
Tathagata had originally been an incarnation of the Buddha Ancestor.
His status completely surpassed that of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.
Chapter Ten: With a Buddha in Your Heart, Even a Demon Is a Buddha
"The Buddha in my heart..."
For a moment, Ksitigarbha fell into confusion.
The Buddhist teachings emphasized Deliver All Living Beings, but according to what the shopkeeper had said, Tathagata, Guanyin, and the others were all acting for themselves.
How, then, could they speak of delivering all living beings?
Then who was the Buddha in his heart, and where was he?
He had always purified the evil souls in Hell. What exactly had he been doing?
"Senior, Ksitigarbha does not know." Ksitigarbha shook his head.
"Ksitigarbha, if there is a Buddha in your heart, then even a demon is a Buddha. If there is no Buddha in your heart, then even a Buddha is a demon." Wu Feng delivered a Buddhist maxim.
Naturally, that was also the truth.
Even the Two Sages of the West, who had created Buddhism back then—had they truly thought of delivering all living beings?
That was simply a joke.
During the War of the Witches and Demons, they had forcibly converted the living beings of Primordial Chaos and brought them to the Western Teachings, making them members of the Western Teachings.
During the Battle of the Gods, they had even joined forces against Master of the Heavens and his Interception Sect.
Before you continue