Leiyin Temple: Hurling a Furnace at Buddha

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The fog is very thick.

Even with Zhang Fusheng's current eyesight, he can only vaguely see the scene a hundred meters away when he looks up.

Even an ordinary person with no cultivation could see several meters away.

"The trade route lies beneath our feet."

Lian Laosan, carrying a somewhat decayed coffin on his back, rode his horse and pointed to the yellow mud at his feet:

"This is 'Heavy Earth,' a piece of Heavy Earth the size of a palm weighs tens of thousands of kilograms. The winds on the plateau are terrifyingly strong, and only roads paved with this Heavy Earth will not be blown away by the wind."

The old man riding backwards on the red ox looked down.

Yellow mud paved a long road on the ground, beyond which lay only withered, decaying earth.

Without the yellow, heavy mud to guide the way, no one can tell which way to go.

The old man on the ox's back seemed lost in thought.

The group walked slowly along the Heavy Earth trade route, occasionally hearing the roars of beasts from all directions.

Lian Laosan, clearly a competent 'tour guide,' casually explained:

"They are star beasts. The World Plateau is located at the highest point of the Mother Star, extremely close to the starry sky, and star beasts often descend upon it."

"Over time, herds of star beasts have appeared on the plateau—therefore, the most dangerous thing on the World Plateau is Beast Tide."

"And that is why almost every one of the forty-nine cities has at least one deity presiding over it."

Zhang Fusheng raised an eyebrow and said in a hoarse voice:

"Beast Tide?"

"Yes."

Lian Laosan nodded:

"Once the Beast Tide forms, level 1 and 2 star beasts are alright; although there are many of them, they are insignificant to powerful beings."

"The real trouble lies with the level 3 and even level 4 star beasts. I've heard that thousands of years ago, there was a catastrophic Beast Tide that almost destroyed the entire World Plateau."

Zhang Fusheng became somewhat interested:

"Tell me about it?"

Lian Laosan said calmly:

"I've heard that a Level 5 Star Beast crashed into the World Plateau that time—a pure-blooded Three-legged Sunbird —and it unleashed a catastrophic Beast Tide."

Level 4 star beasts are often already among the gods, such as the Giant Whale-Peng. And level 5 star beasts?

Although they lack wisdom and do not cultivate, they are truly mythical beings with terrifyingly high cultivation levels!

The Fourth Girl, sitting on the wooden cart, nodded and said:

"Old man, the cracked earth outside this Heavy Earth trade route seems to have been scorched by that sun bird. I heard that in that battle, dozens of gods perished!"

Zhang Fusheng's expression hardened, and he asked:

"A level 5 Sun Bird must be one of the best among the gods, right?"

"That's not so clear."

Lian Laosan shook his head:

"However, I've heard people mention that the Sun Bird from thousands of years ago was some kind of 'True Saint level,' and that it wasn't hunted down but is currently sealed somewhere on the World Plateau."

True Saint level?

Zhang Fusheng seemed to be deep in thought. That was the existence of the fourth realm of the Divine Path, possessing the position of a Great True Lord or a Great Bodhisattva.

That being said...

He looked down at the red ox, a question arising in his mind.

Even star beasts with such cultivation levels cannot awaken sentience, so why can the red ox?

Or is it...?

Are only mythical beasts from a previous era unable to awaken sentience?

After all, reaching level 5 means becoming Orthodox God life form, a legendary creature like the Golden Crow or the Kunpeng.

There are also the elusive Level 6 Star Beasts—such as the Kunpeng Ancestor mentioned by the Golden Armor, which was nailed to the depths of the Star Sea by the genuine Immortal Slaying Sword.

Zhang Fusheng sometimes wondered, could that be the real [Kunpeng]?

Who was the first Kunpeng in mythology?

It seems only something of that kind could be worthy of the [Immortal Slaying Sword]'s protection.

Between a hundred turns of thought,

Lian Laosan's gruff voice rang out:

"We're almost at the Buddhist temple."

"So fast?" Ruan Yutu asked in surprise, "Isn't that little world that fell from the sky almost here too?"

"No, there isn't." The little girl on the wooden cart opened a bottle of beer and gulped it down, saying at the same time:

"That little world is still far away. We have to pass through Qinghe City and then turn into the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains —it's said to be deep within the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains."

Zhang Fusheng raised his eyelids slightly. Qinghe City?

Isn't that the plateau city corresponding to Qinghe Province?

He thought of the Book of Life and Death.

A hundred meters away, one could already vaguely see human figures. After walking several kilometers, the number of pedestrians on the trade road gradually increased, and they all seemed to be in a hurry.

Zhang Fusheng noticed a huge ancient rock stuck by the roadside, with three large characters engraved on it.

[Hangu Pass].

His eyelids twitched, and he asked:

"What is Hangu Pass on this rock stele?"

"This one."

Lian Laosan answered without hesitation:

"I don't know when it came about, it seems to be very old. It's said that this area was called [Hangu Pass] many, many years ago."

"Didn't you come from Hangu City? The city's name was inspired by Hangu Pass."

Zhang Fusheng's expression suddenly turned solemn.

He thought he had completed the landmark event of Lao Tzu's westward journey, but now he suddenly encountered Hangu Pass.

"We've arrived at the Buddhist temple."

Lian Laosan let out a soft "whoosh," the horse neighed and stopped, and the old man riding backwards on the red ox looked back.

A spacious Buddhist temple came into view, with high vermilion walls and emerald green tiles. Inside the temple was a massive pagoda, hundreds of meters high, piercing straight into the thick fog.

Outside the temple, countless pilgrims gathered, forming several small markets.

The place was bustling with noise.

Zhang Fusheng looked at the plaque of the Buddhist temple, which only had three characters on it.

[Leiyin Temple].

His pupils contracted involuntarily!

Leiyin Temple?

Zhang Fusheng suddenly remembered that when he Above High Heaven, his grandmaster Yuan Feidao had said that he had sent a young novice monk carrying a Buddha statue westward out of Hangu City.

This Buddhist temple seems to have been built only recently, and the patriarch seems to know the whereabouts of the [Buddha Heavenly Position].

Zhang Fusheng asked:

"Xiao Lian, when was this Buddhist temple built? Doesn't the Federation list Buddhist Sect as a cult?"

Lian Laosan glanced at the old man sitting on the back of the red ox, who had somehow turned around and was now sitting there, and said:

"The Buddhist temple was said to have appeared two months ago, but it has actually been there for at least half a year."

As for cult members

He said calmly:

"This Buddhist temple is really accurate; almost all wishes and fortune-telling come true. Naturally, the Investigation Bureau of Jincheng and Qinghe City turn a blind eye to it."

"After all, there's a rumor that six months ago, the director of the Qinghe City Investigation Bureau personally came here to pray for a son—and then his wife, who hadn't conceived in three or four hundred years, actually became pregnant."

Zhang Fusheng frowned even more deeply. Had it been going on for over half a year?

In that case, it would have nothing to do with Yuan Feidao.

But the more unusual it was, the stranger the Buddhist temple became—it was actually called Leiyin Temple!

Zhang Fusheng gazed at the temple, quietly activating the Primordial Scripture Taiyi Chapter.

A faint glimmer of starlight appeared in his cloudy eyes.

He gazed intently, trying to discern, and in the dim light, he could see countless threads of cause and effect.

These threads of cause and effect all originated from that pagoda, connecting almost everyone nearby except for himself, Chi Niu, and Ruan Yutu.

Even more threads disappeared into the thick fog, vanishing into the distant horizons in all directions.

Zhang Fusheng gently patted the red ox's head, and the ox mooed in dissatisfaction.

He briefly retreated to the Eight Sceneries Palace, sat upright on a futon, and used the method of Heavenly Calculation to predict good and bad fortune.

But the divination result was very strange.

Neither auspicious nor inauspicious, neither blessed nor cursed.

In other words, it wasn't calculated.

Divination performed at an infinitely high position yields results that are almost impossible to deduce; the only problem is that the answer may be inaccurate.

Unless there is a being of infinitely higher status interfering.

"That's even stranger."

As the thought returned to its source, Zhang Fusheng murmured to himself:

"This area is called the Hangu Pass region, which is bad enough, but there's also the [Leiyin Temple] with its complicated history, and the divination has yielded no results."

Should we get involved?

If it were any other Buddhist temple, Zhang Fusheng might have chosen to ride away on an ox.

But it's different here.

Leiyin Temple.

He is also Lao Tzu, who traveled westward, destined to bear the mission of transforming into a Buddha—plus, his own body as the World Honored One has yet to receive the corresponding rank or Blessing of Heavenly Position.

This resulted in the delay in the Perfection of the Ten Sages Scripture Texts and the Ten Sacred Cave Heaven.

There may be a great crisis in Leiyin Temple, but there will also be Great Opportunity.

And if I'm not mistaken,

I'm afraid I can't get around it.

Just like the four people who went on their journey to the West had to go through eighty-one tribulations.

"If the old man doesn't believe it, he can go in and pray for himself," Fourth Girl said with a smile.

"Since you're going to be staying here overnight anyway, the market outside the temple is quite interesting. It usually has fun things from all over the world. If you're interested, you can take a look."

Zhang Fusheng raised his eyes and smiled:

"It's worth a look."

Ruan Yutu led the red ox, following behind Lian Laosan and Fourth Girl, passing through small market towns, and approaching the Buddhist temple.

"A specialty of Tianhai Province! Dzi beads from thousand-year-old oysters, barter, barter!"

"Tianshu Flower from Qinghe Province, bartered!"

"Come and see! This 'Exotic Earth' from the Golden Province —even a small handful possesses boundless vitality; it's already a top-grade item. Let's barter! Let's barter!"

Hearing the shouts from all directions, Lian Laosan spoke up at the opportune moment:

"These markets, being newly established, mostly operate on a barter system and rarely accept souls—of course, if there are enough souls, the sellers will usually agree."

Zhang Fusheng nodded thoughtfully, surprised to see a 'familiar face' here.

We're not exactly close; we've only met once or twice.

He glanced to the side and saw a skinny, old man puffing on a pipe and sitting with his legs crossed at a market stall.

"Come, come, take a look! We have so many treasures, all specialties from the Golden Province!"

Zhang Fusheng blinked; it was indeed fate.

When he first escaped from Jiangzhou to the Waiting Area, he successfully obtained several doses of vital medicine from the old man through a series of 'friendly exchanges'.

Only in this way can one become a 'Martial Arts Master'.

I never expected to run into them here again.

After dismounting from the red ox, Zhang Fusheng heard Lian Laosan say:

"This thing is too big, too conspicuous, and its quality is exceptionally good; it's a rare and precious specimen. We need to keep a close eye on it. Let's tie it up in the temple; there are no monks there."

As they were talking, Lian Laosan noticed that the red ox seemed to glance at him sideways, though he wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

"No need to tether it," the disheveled old man said calmly. "You can just lead the Jade Rabbit."

"Yes, Godfather."

Ruan Yutu, leading the red ox, stood like a gatekeeper at the temple entrance. Lian Laosan frowned and reminded him:

"The market doesn't guarantee safety. The little girl might encounter danger alone."

"It's nothing," the disheveled old man said as before.

Seeing this, Lian Laosan shook his head, but didn't say anything more.

Zhang Fusheng did not intend to let Ruan Yutu go in with him to see the Buddha statues inside the temple.

There's clearly a big problem with Leiyin Temple.

Just standing at the temple gate, he felt very uncomfortable—Red Ox was also looking around in confusion.

Clearly, this divine embryo, which was infinitely close to the level of a Venerable, also sensed that something was amiss.

"Wait for me outside," Zhang Fusheng said in a low voice. "If anything seems amiss, ride the Red Ox."

Ruan Yutu's expression hardened:

"I see."

She didn't press the matter, watching as her adoptive father, along with the Lian Laosan and Fourth Girl, entered the temple.

Some pedestrians and market vendors also went inside at this moment, all going to worship the gods.

"I'll go see too, is it really that miraculous?" a thin old man muttered, holding his pipe, and entered the Buddhist temple with a smile.

He took a puff of his pipe, exhaled a satisfied cloud of smoke, and his smile widened considerably.

Since leaving the Golden Province, my luck has noticeably improved; I've made quite a bit of money in this market these past few days!

"Buddha Ancestor, have mercy! Buddha Ancestor, have mercy!"

As the thin old man crossed the temple gate, he uttered these two lines and walked briskly with the crowd, passing through the temple's paths and secluded woods, until he reached the pagoda's gate.

He took another puff of his pipe and looked at a disheveled old man beside him:

"Brother, you look unfamiliar. Are you here specifically to worship Buddha?"

Zhang Fusheng glanced at the withered old man and laughed:

"Yes, Old Zhou, what about you?"

"Me? I'm just trying to make a living here, but I've never actually come in. I feel really uneasy about it, but suddenly I feel better today. Hmm?"

The withered old man was suddenly startled:

How did you know my surname is Zhou?

The Sloppy Old Man smiled gently, his withered white hair fluttering slightly in the wind:

"I also come from the Golden Province. I've been to the Black Market outside the Waiting Area and met you, Old Zhou."

Old Man Zhou was filled with doubt and surprise:

"That's quite a coincidence."

Even so, he couldn't remember where he had seen this disheveled old man before.

But upon closer inspection, there was indeed a slight sense of familiarity about the other person's face.

I don't understand.

Meanwhile, Zhang Fusheng had already entered the pagoda with Lian Laosan and Fourth Girl.

The stupa was dimly lit, with layers of Prayer Flags fluttering on both sides, behind which were statues of Prayer Flags and Arhats.

At the very front was a huge Buddha statue, with a smiling expression.

One hand is made to pluck a flower, while the other hand is stroking the round, bulging belly. On the table in front of her are an incense burner and a memorial tablet.

The memorial tablet contained only four characters.

[Maitreya Buddha Ancestor]

Zhang Fusheng felt a chill run down his spine.

Maitreya

The name of this Future Buddha is clearly a secret in this world.

Even the Little Bean once held the Maitreya Heavenly Position only said that he was the reincarnation of the Great Belly Buddha Ancestor!

There is no such thing as Maitreya in this world or this era.

Yes, there is, but it is the future Great Belly Buddha Ancestor.

"This Buddha statue is very efficacious!" the Lian Laosan exclaimed, then added, "However, the way of worshiping Buddha is a little different, old man, do you see that incense burner?"

Zhang Fusheng snapped out of his daze and squinted his eyes:

"Of course I saw it."

Beside the memorial tablet on the altar, there was a large incense burner filled with densely packed burning incense sticks.

At a glance, there were at least several thousand.

These thousands of sticks, when brought together, should have been larger than the incense burner, yet they were strangely perfectly inserted into it, with gaps between them.

"The furnace has the effect of containing Mount Sumeru within a mustard seed," is a Buddhist saying. In plain terms, it means there is a vast space inside.

Lian Laosan continued at this point:

"The incense burned when worshipping Buddha statues is nothing other than the incense made from one's own Essence, Qi, and Spirit. The method is very simple. Look, over there."

He pointed, and Zhang Fusheng looked over.

Beside the table, there was clearly a large donation box, and the worshippers were all gathered around it.

Zhang Fusheng saw someone reach out and gently touch the donation box.

The next moment.

The man's face paled slightly; one-twentieth or one-third of his Essence, Qi, and Spirit had been drained by the donation box.

Then, a stick of incense popped out of the box.

Zhang Fusheng's expression became even more solemn.

He didn't lose much of his Essence, Qi, and Spirit, but others couldn't see it; he could see it, however, in the hands that touched the donation box.

A peculiar causal connection arose from his body—a connection that was directly linked to the burning incense.

When someone inserts burning incense into the incense burner, bows three times to the statue of Maitreya Buddha Ancestor, and prays for good fortune or has their wishes fulfilled,

The strange karma on his body was then directly connected to the Buddha statue!

Zhang Fusheng noticed that

The intricate web of cause and effect emanating from this pagoda actually all originates from that compassionate Merciful Buddha Statue, which is laughing heartily.

"Girl," Lian Laosan said, glancing sideways, "The incense you offered last time has burned out, go get another one."

After pausing for a moment, he spoke up and gave instructions:

"Remember, when you touch the donation box, don't make any big wishes, otherwise..."

Before he could finish speaking, a commotion arose from the donation box area.

Some people were literally drained dry by the donation box!

The scene was so bizarre that Old Man Zhou took two steps back, almost dropping his pipe!

Lian Laosan shrugged:

"Look, if you make a wish that's too big and don't pull your hand back in time, you'll be sucked dry!"

He paused, then shook his head and said:

"People shouldn't be too greedy. Every drink and every bite is ordained by Heaven's Will. If you want to reap rewards and fulfill your wishes, why can't you give something in return?"

As they spoke, the Lian Laosan pulled his daughter forward, each placing their hands on the opening of the donation box, seemingly losing some of their Essence, Qi, and Spirit, and in return, took out two sticks of incense.

Then they inserted the incense into the incense burner and bowed three times respectfully towards the Buddha statue.

At the same time, Old Man Zhou was standing to the side, swallowed hard.

"This... this looks like worshipping Evil God."

The surrounding gazes made Old Man Zhou shudder again. Realizing he had said the wrong thing, he quickly gave an embarrassed laugh and looked at the disheveled old man beside him:

"Brother, are you going to pray or not?"

He saw the old man, who smelled faintly of foul odor, raise his eyebrows and speak in a hoarse but loud voice:

"I may worship it, but it might not be able to stop me."

The worshippers all glared at the disheveled old man again.

Zhang Fusheng didn't take it seriously. He strode forward and, without even taking the incense or candles, simply stood there in front of the incense burner and the memorial tablet.

"Old man?" Lian Laosan frowned.

Zhang Fusheng did not answer, but stared at the Merciful Buddha Statue. Suddenly, he reached out, grabbed the bottom of the incense burner, and flipped it over!

The incense burner was blown away and crashed straight towards the Buddha statue!

"If you are Buddha, then what am I?"

A Great Sun Halo erupted from behind his head, illuminating the dark pagoda!

The pilgrims exclaimed in surprise.