One flower blooms, another.
On this side of the river, the son of Jiang was about to lure and kill the head of the phoenix capital, a situation full of cunning calculation and potential danger. Meanwhile, far away in the great thunderous sound temple in the west, those Buddha and bodhisattvas were now beaming with joy.
All Buddhas, enlighteners, arhats, vajraholders, bodhisattvas, monks and nuns have gathered at the sound of thunderous edifice today.
They were arranged on both sides, numbering in the thousands. Some held radiant gold umbrellas, others sat upon magical flowers of precious stones, and some were bathed in the golden glow of merit. It was truly a spectacle of divine light, with wondrous phenomena arising.
And there, standing on the lotus platform, was none other than the present-day Buddha, Sakyamuni.
Everyone is accustomed to addressing him as "World Honored One, Thus Come One, Buddha."
The wondrous radiance of the Buddha light emitted by the thirty thousand Buddhas, five hundred Arhats, eight great Vajrapanis, and four bodhisattvas together does not compare to the brilliance of his single radiance.
As a poem says:
The auspicious mist envelops Tianfu, while the rainbow light accompanies the World Honored One.
Hailed as the first in the West, gate of the King of the Formless Dharma.
"Today, the World Honored One lectures on Chan at the sacred mountain of Liushan, demonstrating the fundamental truth and explaining the origin and development. The threefold sutra that he spoke is truly beneficial to us!"
A bodhisattva sighed deeply.
"When the World Honored One lectures on Chan, there has been no such harmony for quite some time," a Buddha said with a smile. "In the past, when the Golden Cricket was on Liushan, whatever the World Honored One spoke, he would counter with arguments. He would even talk some of his own twisted views and mock the Dharma, truly arrogant."
Another Buddha spoke: "After all, Jinchan's reincarnation has suffered punishment for many years now. When will the World Honored One lead him back to the sound of thunderous edifice?"
"Better that he doesn't come back, then, so that when the World Honored One lectures on Chan, Jinchan won't be dozing off again and even contradicting the World Honored One," a monk laughed.
The Buddha, the World Honored One, can hear what they are discussing.
The Buddha said, "I have banished Jinchan to the mortal realm to endure hardship, with my own thoughts in mind. His journey is not only to be punished, but also to propagate the Dharma of my Buddha."
But the Buddha did not reveal too much at this place, and he smiled, "In a few more days, you will all know what mission Jinchan carries."
The three thousand Buddhas and five hundred Arhats looked at each other in confusion, discussing and arguing.
Some powerful Buddhas seemed to have known this in advance.
They merely watched the other Buddhas discussing it with smiles, not participating in the conversation.
At this moment, Guanyin said, "World Honored One, since the other Buddhas have mentioned the disrespectful Jinchan who slighted the Dharma, perhaps it would be better for one of my disciples to look for him and see if he has undergone a change of heart since suffering so much hardship."
"Good!" the Buddha said with delight: "Then please spare the trouble of the Great Bodhisattva Guanyin of the Southern Sea."
The Buddha took out a mirror and said, "Hold this mirror in front of Jinchan's reincarnated body, and it will show everything seen and heard as if it were a thousand eyes and ears, presenting them all in the Sound of Thunderous Edifice of Liushan Great Temple."
The Bodhisattva Guanyin took over the treasure mirror.
After bowing and taking leave from the Buddha and the assembly of Buddhas in turn, she led her disciple, Mulaza, to ride on the clouds and mist, flying from Xihen Niuzhou to the southern continent of Jambudvipa.
Such a distance, if traveled by horse, would require at least a decade. However, for this bodhisattva, it was reached in the blink of an eye - just the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
Bodhisattva Guanyin counted on her fingers and smiled, "Jinchan's reincarnated body is just seven hundred miles to the east. We don't need to go down to meet with him; we can see him from above."
Mulaza said, "Yes."
The master and disciple flew a little further until they reached the top of a forest.
Looking down from here, a temple could be seen not far away. Behind the temple, not far from the mountainside, there was a cave of demons.
The Bodhisattva Guanyin said, "The Buddha has said that the people in the four regions of the world differ greatly in good and evil. The West Cow Paradise is the foremost in virtue, not greedy, not murderous, nurturing inner spirit; followed by East Shengshen Zhou; then comes North Jiaruzhou; while only the South Hantu Zhou is filled with greed and immorality."
"Indeed, as the Buddha said," the Bodhisattva Guanyin pointed at the cave of demons, "If it were in the West Cow Paradise, would there be a cave of demons so daring to open beside a temple?"
Mulaza nodded in agreement, "Exactly!"
The Bodhisattva Guanyin swept her gaze down and said, "I have already seen Jinchan. Come with me to visit him!"
The master and disciple finally saw Jinchan's reincarnated body in this present life.
The dense branches and leaves couldn't conceal the two pairs of Buddhist eyes.
The treasure mirror also couldn't be obstructed.
The Bodhisattva Guanyin saw Jiangliu'er and smiled, "This reincarnation of Jinchan has a rather fine physique, one that's evident to be connected with the Buddha. Just by looking at his eyebrows, I can tell he is very kind-hearted. I suppose after so much time has passed, he has realized his mistake and repented..."
The words were not yet finished.
It was suddenly cut off.
The face of the Bodhisattva Guanyin seemed to show a trace of unutterable astonishment, as if she had seen something that was unimaginable.
Mulaza, by his side, stared even wider, with an expression of utter shock.
……
It appeared... that down below, Jiangliu'er was engaged in fierce combat with the head of the phoenix capital!
The head of the phoenix capital's armor was ragged and torn, and his whole body was covered in bloodstains. A bamboo spear had penetrated his abdomen, causing him to bleed profusely.
If it hadn't been for his quick reflexes, the bamboo spear would have pierced not just his abdomen, but his heart as well!
"Huff... What kind of monster is this fiend?"
The head of the phoenix capital was tired and shocked. After fighting with Jiangliu for a while, he was covered in wounds and panting for breath.
But Jiangliu'er, indeed possessed "bronze skin and iron bones"!
When his sword struck Jiangliu'er, sparks flew off it!
The head of the phoenix capital looked at his sword for a moment.
He found that the blade was covered with notches!
"Not good enough, I must drag this thief Jiangliu'er to the king, even if I die today, I will take him down with me!" With a fierce resolve, the head of the phoenix capital was about to retreat when he saw Jiangliu'er charging at him again and hurriedly tried to block the attack.
But little did he know that Jiangliu'er's moves became even more fierce and ruthless, and his sword, the precious weapon given to him by the Buddha, finally broke in half.
Holding the remaining one-inch blade of his broken sword, he felt a deadening despair creep into his heart.
"I'm a dead man!!!"
"Swoosh---"
Under the control of "The 100 Chants that Penetrate the Heart Swords Technique," Jiangliu'er's long sword flew out of his hand and, in a blinding speed that even lightning could not match, instantly pierced through the head of the phoenix capital.
"Pshh!"
Jiangliu'er stretched out his hand, and the flying sword returned to his hand. He advanced and gave a few more strokes to the fallen head of the phoenix capital until the latter stopped moving. Without any hesitation, Jiangliu'er pulled Hu Yuyu and fled.
"There's no time to bury him, hurry up, the wolf demon is coming to kill us!"
One man and one fox, after killing an evil demon leader and several little demons, turned and fled with incredible speed.
Hu Yuyu, running and laughing, said, "My Lord is truly powerful. Even the head of the phoenix capital can't match you. We can kill another head of the phoenix capital tomorrow."
Jiangliu'er said, "Now that the head of the phoenix capital is dead, plus the head of the snake capital, there are only two heads left in the wolf gully. The little demons are probably terrified and will pack up and run away in the middle of the night."
"At that time... the Wolf Gully cave might only have three lonely commanders left: Wolf Wuji, the Bear Head, and the Horse Head. But it doesn't seem very easy to deal with them. We still need to plan carefully."
Hu Yuyu said, "Let's follow the Lord's orders."
……
The Bodhisattva Guanyin and Mulaza watched from above, able to see the bodies scattered on the ground as well as the fierce killing scene just moments before.
Mulaza was holding the treasure mirror and displaying the scene that had just transpired, allowing all the Buddhas in the Sound of Thunderous Edifice to witness it as well.
At this moment.
Whether it was the Bodhisattva Guanyin and Mulaza on the scene, or the many Buddhas in the Sound of Thunderous Edifice, or even the Buddha Shakyamuni seated on the lotus throne.
Without exception, everyone fell silent and remained so.
The Bodhisattva Guanyin murmured: "I must have mistaken someone for someone else."
……
……
