Then, as though he had made some decision, Master Xuanzhi first drew a deep breath, pressed his palms together, and uttered the Buddhist invocation "Amitabha." He then looked at Xu Taiping with utterly resolute eyes and said:
"Daoist Taiping, please take this humble monk with you to Wilderness Heaven!"
Xu Taiping's heart jolted, and he hurriedly shook his head.
"Master Xuanzhi, although Wilderness Heaven connects to the Five Heavens, it lies due west of the Shangqing Realm. Wouldn't Buddhism Disciples like you be inviting trouble by entering so rashly?"
At these words, Master Xuanzhi showed no fear. Instead, he broke into a rare grin and said:
"Brother Taiping, this humble monk practices a technique that can turn my calamities into another's good fortune. Simply put, the greater the calamities I suffer, the stronger your good fortune will be!"
What Xu Taiping had never expected was that Xuanzhi was insisting so strongly on accompanying him precisely because he would encounter calamities in Wilderness Heaven.
For a moment, Xu Taiping could not help marveling once again at how powerfully Buddha Fate tempted Buddhism Disciples.
In the end, however, he still refused Xuanzhi.
"Master Xuanzhi, if it is merely a matter of delivering this bodhi branch to Venerable Jiaye in the Thousand Buddha Kingdom, I am more than capable of doing it alone."
Master Xuanzhi, however, remained adamant.
"Brother Taiping, this concerns the very survival of Buddhism in our Shangqing Realm. We cannot allow the slightest mishap. Even if this humble monk dies in the Wilderness because of it, it will be a worthy death!"
In all the time Xu Taiping had known Master Xuanzhi, this was the first time he had seen him so stubborn.
Just as Xu Taiping was struggling with how to turn Master Xuanzhi down, Dongfang Yuejian suddenly spoke