Chapter 40: The Stone Room
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Under the glazed pagoda, Xin Ji’s smile was tranquil. He looked at the devil-like Duo Ercha and said serenely, “Donor, your injuries aren’t light.”
“So what? It’s more than enough to kill you!” Duo Ercha said coldly. He threw himself at Xin Ji, hurricane swirling around his fists with crackling lightning overhead. He was ferociously defiant.
Xin Ji’s smile became increasingly indifferent, his voice placid.
“All conditioned dharmas, are like a dream, like an illusion, like a bubble, like a shadow, like a dewdrop, like a lightning flash; you should contemplate them thus.”
Xin Ji’s quiet voice echoed all around. He lifted his right hand like he was holding a flower.
The Colored Glaze Pagoda behind him was glittering. Beams of Buddha light spread out, with the sounds of Zen music barely discernible.
“All conditioned dharmas, are like a dream, like an illusion, like a bubble, like a shadow, like a dewdrop, like a lightning flash; you should contemplate them thus.”
The Buddha light twinkled as if it was light from a holy man who had achieved nirvana, like the enlightened Bodhisattva. Together, they issued a solemn and ethereal Zen sound.
Duo Ercha’s expression became stricken and, for the first time, he looked astonished. “You’re actually abandoning your body?”
“It’s just because I’ve learned a couple of things in my old age.” Xin Ji’s silhouette gradually faded, merging into the Buddha light, before finally disappearing into the universe.
“Shit!” Duo Ercha’s black robe puffed with air, a fierce hurricane swirling around him. It made him look like a human storm, surrounded by a lightning.
Xin Ji’s body had been entirely disintegrated, leaving only a faint silhouette. His right hand was extended, coiled in the flower-holding posture. His smile was pure and serene, untouched by dust.
The overhead Buddha and Bodhisattva light disappeared, concentrating on a single finger. The surrounding became silent and peaceful, with only the Zen sound still echoing.
“All conditioned dharmas, are like a dream, like an illusion, like a bubble, like a shadow, like a dewdrop, like a lightning flash; you should contemplate them thus.”
…
Accompanied by sounds of rustling, Meng Qi and Qi Zhengyan entered the secret passage. They touched the inner wall for a while and eventually found the door switch.
“This time, Duo Ercha probably wouldn’t be able to find us… ” Meng Qi used nonsense words to disguise the violent emotional turbulence inside him.
Taking out a match and a firestone, Qi Zhengyan lit up the darkness.
The secret passage was large enough to fit two people. The stones overhead were uneven and the walls were crude and covered in mosses.
“This doesn’t look like it’s purely man-made. This passage should be transformed from a natural path.” After carefully observing the passage, Qi Zhengyan took quick steps and placed Zhang Yuanshan down on a flat, spacious area.
Meng Qi restrained his emotions and copied Qi Zhengyan. He chose a softer spot and put down Jiang Zhiwei. He then said, faking solemnness, “Senior Brother Qi, I’ll go ahead to explore the passage in case there are enemies hiding.”
Since even an acolyte could access the back mountain, Meng Qi believed that there were no demons and ghosts other than a stupa. Emboldened with this thought, he planned on exploring this passage. Since the topography of the temples of both worlds was so similar, the end of the secret path ought to reveal the mystery of the Shaolin secret path. Perhaps then he might reap some benefits out of it.
Besides, Meng Qi understood well about “the Infinity Genre”. After finding out about the mission evaluation system in the last Samsara, he had his guesses. Exploring the secret may just be one of the important standards in the mission evaluation.
Qi Zhengyan expressionlessly looked at Meng Qi and then took out another match. He lit it up and handed it over. “Junior Brother Zhen Ding, thanks for the trouble. I need to stay here and guard Senior Brother Zhang and Jiang Zhiwei from poisonous insects and snakes.”
Ah? Meng Qi had already prepared multiple excuses to leave Qi Zhengyan behind him. After all, there was no telling what was inside. It would be problematic if Qi Zhengyan’s greed emerged. But Qi Zhengyan was unexpectedly so thoughtful! Meng Qi did not even have to say a word and he had already offered to stay and stand guard!
“Then thanks for the trouble, Senior Brother.” Meng Qi did not think too much about it. After lighting up the match, he walked deep into the secret passage, watching out for both enemies in the darkness ahead and sneak attacks from behind.
Only when Meng Qi’s figure had disappeared at the corner and the sound of his footsteps increasingly faint, did Zhang Yuanshan open his eyes. Weakly but calmly, he said, “Junior Brother Qi, I didn’t expect you’d stay here.”
“I’ve been completely devoured earlier, significantly reducing my strength. I’m not Junior Brother Zhen Ding’s match right now.” Qi Zhengyan leaned against the wall and sat leg-crossed. He said flatly, “If I hastily follow him and discover some secrets or treasures that can only be known to one, do you want Junior Brother Zhen Ding to kill me or not? There’s greed in everyone. I don’t want to test how far Zhen Ding’s Buddhist heart goes, so I decided to stay.”
Zhang Yuanshan gave a slight nod and smiled. “You’ve truly become talkative after getting this severe wound.”
Qi Zhengyan’s face instantly darkened and he turned his head away.
Zhang Yuanshan smiled and closed his eyes again to continue his healing. Jiang Zhiwei was concentrating on herself all this while as if she was totally unconscious of the world outside her.
After walking along the secret passage for a while, Meng Qi figured out that he was already deep in the mountains.
The fire from the match flickered, dying the road ahead a dull yellow, making Meng Qi feel an unspeakable pressure. It was as if the match would be snuffed out at any time, plunging the world into darkness at any time. And the demons and ghosts would emerge from the darkness to swallow him.
After moving forward a little further, Meng Qi halted in confusion. He seemed to have reached the end of the passage. The mountain wall was shaped in a semi-circle, opening up to what seemed like the entrance to the stone room.
There were a decaying hassock, a stone bed, and a stone table.
“Is this perhaps some master’s secluded quarter?” Meng Qi made a guess. He cautiously observed his surroundings again before walking over.
When he went closer, the light from the flame illuminated the wall. On it, he vaguely saw a few lines of words.
“Oh, it’s Sanskrit.” Meng Qi was nevertheless a “top student” in the Lecture Hall, so he was no stranger to Sanskrit. Squinting. He tried hard to identify the words.
“If one doesn’t enter the world, experience the sea of bitterness, or learn discipline, how would he know the meaning of the monastic rules for Buddhists? How can he see through the illusory events? How can he illuminate Buddhism, proving the truth that existence comes from nothingness?”
Meng Qi’s understanding of Sanskrit was shallow. He struggled bitterly to comprehend the text, without being able to guarantee the accuracy of his understanding. But he certainly understood the general idea.
“These words are really quite mysterious… ” Meng Qi talked to himself. He lowered the torch towards where the signature was.
“Anan… Ananda?” Meng Qi was too astonished to close his mouth. Was this the Venerable in front of Primogenitor of Buddhism’s seat?
“Hold on.” There was even the story of him breaking his oath and leaving Buddhism!
The Sanskrit form of “Ananda” was written in serpent-like strokes, the engraving thin and forceful. The signature hid a faint sharpness and a subtle, serene Zen spirit. Attracted by the signature, Meng Qi held out his hand to touch it.
Just as his palm made contact with the wall, a chill ran through Meng Qi’s body and the light of a blade flashed before his eyes. It was like a dragon returning to the sea and a fierce tiger withdrawing to the mountain. With a clean cut, the various obstructions of life were cut off.
The blade light was so captivating that Meng Qi could not react at all. He could only watch blankly as the light above him evolved into a variety of shapes, before finally transforming into the lofty world of mortals.
The living, the old, the sick, and the dead all suffered. The light changed into boundless mysteries. Finally, they all emerged into a blade and cut off all the shackles around it!
Amidst the glow, Meng Qi vaguely saw a monk. He could not tell if the monk was old or young, good looking or ugly. He could only vaguely feel the deeply bitterness and solemnness on the monk’s face.
The light dimmed and the Sanskrit on the wall returned to dust, lightly falling down.
Meng Qi finally recovered and looked at the scene before his eyes in a daze. What had happened earlier? The transformations of the blade light and the sorrow bitterness of the mortal world were still deeply engraved in his mind.
Dust fell on the ground, coming together to form words.
“You’ve gained the spiritual impartation of ‘Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship’. You’ve learned the first blade skill of ‘Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship’, ‘Peace Quietude Split Crippled Move’.”
Meng Qi’s jaw fell open for a long moment before he closed it again. He finally understood what he had encountered. Based on Jiang Zhiwei’s words earlier, Dharmakaya and a few top techniques and moves of exterior view were passed down through spiritual impartation rather than words. Some objects could only carry spiritual heritage once, while others could carry it for years. It depended on the individual himself if he could learn from the spiritual impartation and how much he could learn. When the individual had fully mastered the techniques and moves, he himself could leave a spiritual impartation behind.
That was how Jiang Zhiwei could only comprehend a little of “Sword of Anatta”. If she turned what she knew into a script, it could at most be sold for 800 or 900 Karma points, less than a tenth of its original worth.
But Meng Qi was confused as he remembered the ‘Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship’ in the temple being something that was not passed down through spiritual impartation… As monks at Jin Gang Temple were good swordsmen, Xuan Xin especially mentioned that there was one swords style comparable to Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship. It belonged to the top exterior view, in which one could touch the rule of heaven and earth when he was fully accomplished. He also mentioned a monk from the previous generation borrowed this script and mastered the swordsmanship, thus became a master of blade.
So Meng Qi knew that this swordsmanship was passed down by script in Shaolin Temple.
Since he knew little about the stories in the temple, Meng Qi did not even know where to begin guessing. He had not had time to do it either. He closed his eyes and devoted himself to recalling what he had gained earlier, mulling over the changes of ‘the Peace Quietude Split Crippled Move’.
It took 9,000 Karma points to exchange “the Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship”. The Primary Instruction took 3,000 and each part was 1,200. If he forgot it, his loss would be massive!
Moreover, what he had gained was the impartation of Gist of Trueness. That was equivalent to the Primary Instruction of the swordsmanship, though he needed to slowly mull it over and understand it. Additionally, compared to Primary Instruction, he could directly learn the five parts of the swordsmanship through this impartation of Gist of Trueness.
Of course, it required an extremely high level of understanding and enlightenment. Meng Qi could only understand the first part of the Crippled Move when he received the impartation of Gist of Trueness.
“Why was it a Crippled Move…” Meng Qi opened his eyes, disappointed. A Crippled Move meant it could not be practiced.
If one wanted to utilize the true power of “Ananda Oath-Breaking Swordsmanship”, he had to enter the exterior view to evoke a change in the exterior world. But this was considered a trump card in his hand if he could just master it superficially. Even if it was not as strong as Jiang Zhiwei’s “Sword of Anatta”, it would be frightening enough for others.
Breathing lightly, Meng Qi temporarily put this matter aside. He kept exploring the stone room to see if there was anything else.
After circling half the stone room, he found something that looked like a stone door under the light from the flame.
There were faint traces remaining on the mountain wall, with etchings of familiar words.
“He who is loyal and kind should not enter this door.”
Reading this sentence, Meng Qi naturally put his hand on the stone door. He had meant to touch it, not opening the door.
When his hand touched the door, waves of unspeakable chill and terror rushed into Meng Qi’s heart. Broken corpses and rotten limbs, evil ghosts and Skyscraping Devil, those were all shown before his eyes.
Then a streak of light lit up the black air. It burned everything and pointed straight to Meng Qi.
Meng Qi’s face turned pale and he hastily stepped back, getting out of the stone door. What he saw gradually faded.
After gasping for a while, Meng Qi found his back was wet with cold sweat. His whole body was aching and limping, as if he was heavily injured.
How weird… Meng Qi harmonized his Qi-circulation to recover. He dared not touch the stone door anymore.
At this moment, he found a small deep hole below the stone door. Inside, there seemed to be an indescribable flame burning. A few tiny words were written next to it.
“Kill those who are unfaithful!”
Meng Qi wondered helplessly what did that meant exactly…
…
Duo Ercha quietly stood at the edge of the forest, watching the remaining traces.
His left shoulder and hand had disappeared and he could not help shivering, but nevertheless, he kept his back straight.