One Man Attained the Dharma, and Light Shone Within and Without

Buzz, buzz, buzz!

The Golden Body shook, and the offering tables trembled.

Offerings tumbled down. Some landed on the tables; others fell to the floor.

At first, the worshippers remained calm. But when someone cried out and ran, others immediately followed. Some even said their lack of devotion had angered the Buddha.

At those words, the crowd finally panicked.

The monks on patrol noticed something was wrong. Some went to calm the crowd, while others hurried off to report it.

The Guest-Master Monk who had been guiding visitors also noticed the disturbance. He apologized to the guests behind him, then hurried toward the rear mountain to find the Presiding Monk.

On the way, he saw the temple's Karma Master assigning people to guide the crowd. The chaos was beginning to subside, but rumbling still came from the surrounding halls, so he quickened his pace.

Before he got there, he encountered the old monk coming the other way, looking somewhat anxious.

The Guest-Master Monk froze, then hastily asked, "Presiding Monk, the golden Buddha statues are all behaving strangely. What does it mean?"

The Presiding Monk shook his head without answering and strode on. After two steps, though, he stopped and beckoned for the Guest-Master Monk to follow.

The Guest-Master Monk had been about to return to the front courtyard. His study of the Dharma was shallow, and he held no important post in the temple, so he had not felt it was his place to press the question. At the old monk's summons, he hurried after him, still utterly bewildered.

The two monks walked one behind the other. Other monks approached along the way, and when they saw the old monk, they questioned him anxiously.

He remained silent and kept walking until he reached a side hall's guest room. Only then did he stop.

Many monks had gathered behind him. They looked over and saw Chen Hai, Ma Wu, and the others standing outside the door, their faces full of confusion.

"Masters, what is the meaning of this?"

Chen Hai and the others were genuinely startled. After the Guest-Master Monk had left, they had continued venting their indignation and listing the temple's faults. They had never expected a crowd of monks to surround them mid-complaint. It was hard not to feel uneasy.

Little did they know, the monks were just as baffled.

For a moment, everyone stood at the guest-room door staring at one another, the air heavy with tension.

"Who's inside?" the old monk suddenly asked, though he already had a suspicion.

The monks exchanged glances.

The Guest-Master Monk's heart lurched. "The Marquis of Linru County is taking a short nap inside!"

"The Marquis of Linru County. It is him, after all." The old monk frowned slightly, then sighed. "The rest of you may leave."

"But the disturbance in the front hall..." The monks remained worried.

The old monk waved his sleeve and murmured the Buddha's name. "Go. The disturbance has passed."

The monks did not doubt him. They pressed their palms together and withdrew. The old monk then summoned the temple's Karma Master and instructed him, "Bring the finest of the Warrior Monks here to stand guard!"

The Karma Master looked surprised. "Those men are still recuperating. If we call them out now and drain their strength, how will they protect Prince of Ancheng when he comes again? He is His Majesty's own younger brother, and they endured hardship together. Surely his safety matters more than that of Prince of Nankang's younger brother."

The old monk shook his head. "Ordinarily, yes. But now, even if the emperor himself came, he would matter less than the man in that room. Send for them at once!" His tone had grown stern.

The Karma Master dared say no more. He pressed his palms together and left.

Soon, only the Guest-Master Monk remained. After all he had heard and seen, unease showed on his face. He looked at the old monk and asked cautiously, "Presiding Monk, that lord..."

The old monk glanced at him. "This is your karmic opportunity. Come here."

The Guest-Master Monk approached hesitantly. Before he could stand still, the old monk raised a hand, fingers poised as though holding a flower, and lightly touched his forehead.

At once, light and shadow transformed before the monk's eyes!

What had been ordinary rooms and halls now shone with streaks of Golden Light!

Waves of Buddha Light rose above each hall, while colorful clouds drifted across the sky. Strands of light descended from them and gathered inside the guest room before him.

Even the door could no longer block his sight. He could see straight through the wood into the Image inside. Yet he could not make out the figure on the bed—only a hazy silhouette seated cross-legged at the center of a mass of golden light.

An aura of solemn majesty, as enduring as heaven and earth and unchanged since ancient times, radiated from it without cease!

The Golden Light contracted and swelled like a breath.

"Th-this..."

The Guest-Master Monk's eyes widened. He stumbled back nine steps, then pressed his palms together, bowed his head, and repeatedly invoked the Buddha's name. Only then did he barely steady himself, though a trace of fear remained in his eyes.

"The Buddha reincarnated? The Buddha reincarnated!"

He turned to the old monk, his face a picture of astonished uncertainty.

"The Marquis of Linru County is the Buddha reincarnated?"

After speaking, the Guest-Master Monk touched his eyes. He knew the old monk had used a divine ability to let him briefly open his Heavenly Eye!

"Do not panic. Keep your eyes clear." The old monk showed a rare hint of a smile. "Huizhi, this old monk cannot compare with you."

At that, the Guest-Master Monk grew alarmed and insisted that he would never dare claim such a thing.

"Do not worry." The old monk glanced into the room and sighed before speaking to the Guest-Master Monk. "You were destined to remain unknown, but from this day forward, that will change. When one man attains the Dharma, light shines within and without. Just as when the Prince of Huainan attained the Dao in Han times and his eight companions ascended with him, today you cast aside distractions, glimpsed your true nature, and recognized a true cultivator. That is enough to see your nature and attain the Dharma! To encounter this opportunity and reap this fruit is fate, but it also depends on you. You must never grow lax!"

"This disciple is humbled." Huizhi glanced at the guest room again. "Is the lord truly the Buddha reincarnated?"

The old monk sighed. "I thought that although Jiankang City was the Southern Dynasty's capital, its Dragon Aura was waning and its foundations too shallow to sustain true cultivation. Lu You should have been the limit. I never expected a second Reincarnated Immortal to appear. These old eyes failed me!"

Huizhi drew a deep breath, not daring to say more. He had heard regret in the Presiding Monk's sigh!

Only after a while did he cautiously ask, "Presiding Monk, if the Marquis of Linru County is not the Buddha reincarnated, is he also a Immortal?"

"You did not have the Heavenly Eye, so you never saw Lu You's arrival. It was much like today. The Marquis of Linru County must be of the same kind. Even if he is not a Reincarnated Immortal, his origins are extraordinary." The old monk could not help sighing again. "For the sake of the matter at hand, I meant to drive him away. I fear I have incurred a karmic debt."

"There was nothing unusual around the lord earlier. A mistaken judgment was only natural." Huizhi meant to comfort him, but then he grew puzzled. "Why did this suddenly happen?"

"Guishan Temple is no ordinary place." The old monk pointed toward the summit of the rear mountain. "When he went inside for a rest, he was bathed in Buddha Light. With Dragon Blood as the catalyst, a portion of his true nature was revealed, just as it was when Lu You came that day."

"Does that mean his past life is about to awaken?" Huizhi grew even more nervous.

"How could it be so easy?" The old monk shook his head. Looking up, he saw the Buddha Light beginning to settle. "The Marquis of Linru County will wake soon. Compose yourself, then accompany this old monk to visit him."

Huizhi hastily agreed.

By then, the Warrior Monks had arrived. Every one of them was powerfully built, his vitality boiling. Once they took their places, Chen Hai, who had intended to step forward and challenge them, shrank back. He stayed by the door, watchful but unwilling to approach.

"The Buddha Light is settling."

Outside the temple, two Daoists looked toward the halls stretching into the distance and breathed sighs of relief.

The Young Daoist said softly, "It is about to subside. It should not draw anyone else's attention. Fortunately, Guishan Temple is outside the city, so few people will have noticed."

The older Daoist said delightedly, "With a manifestation like that, what could the Marquis of Linru County be if not a Reincarnated True Immortal? How laughable that the other sects all mistook the person for the Marquis's third young lady! We have the advantage. Let's hurry over, pay him a visit, and welcome him into our sect. Delay, and something may change!"

The Young Daoist drew a deep breath and suppressed the excitement surging in his chest. "We must wait until the lord leaves the temple. We should not confront those Buddhists face-to-face."

The older Daoist said anxiously, "Once the Marquis of Linru County reveals his true abilities, all the great sects will know. How could we compete with them then? We have to take a risk."

The Young Daoist smiled bitterly. "Guishan Temple has a gateway to the Buddha Land. Anyone able to open it and travel between the two realms must have reached at least the Longevity Realm. How could we take someone from under their nose? Be patient."

The older Daoist sighed and lamented.

The Young Daoist continued, "Rather than sigh, think about how we can bring the lord into our sect if the others send people too! Why was I so impatient that I revealed the Incense Offering Method? Forget that method—if the lord is willing to join the Cloudsky Sect, I would teach him the Yin-Yang Mirror Art and the Water-Fire Edge Formula as well!"

The older Daoist stared at him in surprise.

The Young Daoist's face was resolute. "If it can restore the Cloudsky Sect to glory, I will suffer the Heart-Rending Punishment without regret!"