Return to Secular Life

Chapter 248 Return to the secular world

"After reaching the twenty-fold heavenly realm, one becomes Tathagata?"

Qin Mu's eyes lit up. The Great Leiyin Temple was indeed the highest holy place of Buddhism, and the Tathagata Mahayana Sutra was indeed the most important teaching of the religion, worthy of being ranked alongside the Great Yutian Demon Sutra and the Fourteen Chapters of Dao Sword.

The three holy places are indeed not famous in vain.

Yankang Kingdom was suffering from a snowstorm, but here it was spring-like all year round. Many refugees from Yankang Kingdom fled here and settled down in temples. Many of them converted to Buddhism.

"The move by the Great Leiyin Temple seems to be taking advantage of someone's misfortune." Qin Mu looked at the temples on the hilltops and said in a low voice.

The blind man shook his head and said, "Mu'er, don't worry about their purpose, just look at what they do. The Great Leiyin Temple saved these people's lives, which is a good deed. Regardless of whether he intends to use this to strengthen Buddhism and spread Buddhist teachings, he did a good thing after all. If you study the Great Leiyin Temple's thoughts without looking at its actions, you are no different from Li Tianxing."

Qin Mu felt awe in his heart and nodded in agreement.

A person's life is a great practice, and it is easy to be led astray by extreme thoughts. Any thought that is not carefully considered and scrutinized may lead to deviation in one's mind.

Qin Mu has been with Li Tianxing these days and has been influenced by him unknowingly.

The former leader of the Demonic Cult has a deep demonic nature and an extreme mentality, but he is also a grandmaster, and his words make a lot of sense. If you are not careful, you will unconsciously absorb his ideas and concepts.

Long Qilin came to the Golden Summit. The fire clouds under his feet were getting lower and lower and fell to the ground. The Golden Summit was out of the clouds and mist was flowing under his feet. The ground was covered with white jade, the same color as the clouds.

Coming here, it feels like a fairyland.

Qin Mu looked around and couldn't help but admire secretly. The Loulan Golden Palace was luxurious, but it had a nouveau riche feeling. The Great Leiyin Temple was also luxurious, but much more solemn, showing the solemnity and culture of Buddhism everywhere.

There are many pagodas on the golden roof, among which one is the most magnificent. Many long-browed monks sit in the pagoda, and some sit on the top and eaves of the pagoda, chanting scriptures continuously, and the sound of Buddha is resounding.

"Could that be the Thousand Buddha Pagoda?" Qin Mu thought.

A female Bodhisattva in white came forward with a pure bottle in her hand, bowed and said, "Master of the Heavenly Demon Sect, the Horse King God, Madam Si and this old Taoist friend, Tathagata has been waiting for a long time, please follow me."

Qin Mu said, "Thank you, sister."

"elder sister?"

The female Bodhisattva chuckled and said, "Master Qin is joking. Please."

Qin Mu and others followed her footsteps, and saw that on the golden roof, there were eminent monks with Buddha's light shining all over their bodies. They were sitting on the clouds, and behind them, there were golden lights forming circles, which were very eye-catching.

The old Tathagata is the leader of all the monks, sitting at the highest point, with a large body, and venerables on both sides of him. Below him are the Bodhisattvas, Arhats, Vajra, Dharma protectors, and some of the old Tathagata's junior brothers, who are extremely powerful. There are also some monks of different species who have attained enlightenment and do not look like humans.

Qin Mu and the others came closer, and Qin Mu greeted them and said, "Senior Brother."

The old Tathagata hurriedly stood up and returned the greeting, "Senior Brother."

As soon as he stood up, many other Dharma protectors, venerables, bodhisattvas, arhats, and vajra stood up one after another, saying in unison, "Brother!"

After everyone finished greeting each other, Old Tathagata raised his hand and invited Qin Mu to take a seat. Qin Mu looked down and saw that the seat was a cushion. If he sat down, he would be much shorter than these monks floating in the air.

"Mu'er, just sit down." said Master Ma.

Qin Mu sat down and felt a soft force coming, lifting him and the cushion up and placing them on the back of Long Qilin, which was quite majestic.

Old Rulai looked at Master Ma and said with a smile, "My disciple, have you given up the worldly affairs and are you planning to return to the mountain?"

Master Ma said, "Go back to the mountain? There is a Mount Xumi in my heart, but there is no Buddha in the mountain."

The old Tathagata smiled and said, "When even Mount Sumeru disappears from your heart, you will be the Tathagata. Good, put your wife and children aside. I will pass away soon, and you will be the abbot of the Great Leiyin Temple."

Master Ma shook his head and said, "I will take charge and kill all the thieves on the mountain."

The faces of the Dharma protectors and Arhats changed drastically, and they shouted angrily and looked furious.

The old Tathagata said, "You are still stubborn and refuse to change your ways. Last time you went up the mountain, I came back as soon as possible, but I was still a step late. You should know that we still have a master-disciple relationship. You cut off your arm and sent it to me. I was grateful that you would leave the worldly affairs and return to the Great Leiyin Temple. So I ordered the monks to put your arm in the Thousand Buddha Pagoda, hoping that one day you would come back after straying. You should know my intentions."

Master Ma said solemnly: "I know. But my wife and children also died at the hands of the Great Leiyin Temple, and this blood feud must be avenged."

"Idiot!"

The old Tathagata gave him a stern rebuke, saying, "Wife and children, wife and children, are all illusions, nothing but stinking skins! If you have Buddha nature, you will know that all the karma and karma of marriage are in vain in the end."

Master Ma was furious and shouted, "What the hell! I've chopped off my hands, and you're still not satisfied? You want to kill my wife and children? What do you mean my wife and children are just skeletons, all bound by demons? What's wrong with me loving skeletons? I'm giving you face by calling you Master, and I need your help. If you keep talking nonsense, I'll overturn you, wash your golden roof with blood, and beat you to death!"

The faces of the monks on the mountain changed drastically and none of them could sit still.

Qin Mu had not expected that Master Ma would suddenly outburst. Master Ma had always been mature and steady, the most stable person in the village, and the person that Lame Man admired and respected the most. He had not expected that Master Ma would outburst and he could not be stopped.

Dark clouds suddenly came over the Golden Summit. Just a moment ago, there was a gentle breeze, auspicious clouds and golden light, which was extremely auspicious, but now there was a murderous aura.

Qin Mu coughed and laughed, "You are taking the place of the host. Senior Brother Rulai, I haven't introduced you yet. This is my Grandpa Ma, usually called Grandpa Ma, two generations older than me. This is Granny Si, two generations older than me. This is Grandpa Blind, two generations older than me. Senior brothers, there is no need to be polite."

The old Tathagata laughed loudly, and the dark clouds in the sky dispersed. He said with a smile: "Master Qin, you and I have a great fate. You got the Xiqi Luo, which was originally my staff for traveling around the world. You got it. You and I were destined to be master and disciple. I once planned to go to Daxu and ask a few old Taoist friends in Canlao Village for a favor, so that I could accept you as a disciple of my Great Leiyin Temple. I never thought that our fate would be broken. When I met you again, you were already the Demon Master of the Heavenly Demon Sect. It's really fate and destiny. It's fate that plays tricks on people."

Qin Mu smiled slightly and said, "You are joking, Tathagata. I am here to ask Tathagata to subdue demons and eliminate evil. There is a great master in Granny Si's body, Li Tianxing, the former leader of my Holy Religion. Li Tianxing has transformed into a demon in Granny Si's heart. Therefore, I dare to ask Tathagata to subdue this demon and eliminate a public nuisance for the world."

A venerable said in a low voice: "Buddha, this Granny Si is the previous Saintess Si Youyou of the Heavenly Demon Sect. She murdered her husband the night she married Li Tianxing. She is not a good person either. She is the devil among devils."

Many Dharma protectors and Arhats said, "This is the Demon Cult's family affair. How can we interfere?"

The old Tathagata raised his hand and said with a smile: "All sentient beings are equal. Buddhas are sentient beings, and demons are also sentient beings. Since Master Qin has asked me to help, I should help."

Another venerable's eyes flickered, and he whispered, "We give away scriptures and collect some money for offering incense. Can we subdue the demon this time..."

The old Tathagata waved his hand, silencing him, and said, "Madam, can you please show me your true appearance?"

Qin Mu hesitated, shook his head and said, "Tathagata, it's not necessary, right?"

The blind man paused with his bamboo stick and said, "Old Tathagata, you still don't need to see the real face of the mother-in-law, or it will ruin the practice of the monks on your mountain."

"Love affairs are just passing clouds, and even the most beautiful woman in the world will eventually die. Fellow Daoist, you underestimate the practice of the monks in my Great Leiyin Temple."

The old Tathagata smiled and said, "I want to enlighten Master Li, but I can't help without seeing the true appearance of Master Li's wife. Master Li has fallen in love and love has brought out the demons in his heart. I will teach him to see that the thing he loves is nothing more than this."

Granny Si chuckled, "Blind man, Master Ma, why don't you remove the seal on me? Master Qin, take off this ugly skin of mine. I want to meet these big monks who say one thing and mean another, and see how strong their willpower is!"

The blind man frowned slightly and whispered, "Master Ma, what do you think?"

Master Ma hesitated for a moment, looked at the enlightened monks all over the mountain, and said, "Old Tathagata's Buddhism is far superior to mine, so he should have this ability. Mu'er, what do you think?"

Qin Mu thought for a moment and said, "Now we can only try our best. Grandfathers, be careful and don't let Master Li escape."

Granny Si chuckled and said, "I have been fighting with this old bald donkey for who knows how many years. How could I run away from such an interesting thing? I won't run away even if you chase me away!"

Master Ma sighed, took back the Buddha's spirit from her eyebrows, and nodded to the blind man.

The blind man stretched out his hand and grabbed, and dragon-like silver energy flew out of Granny Si's body and returned to the blind man's body.

Qin Mu stepped forward and gently scratched it, and Granny Si's skin split open. A stunning beauty stood inside the skin, with black hair like a waterfall. She slowly raised her head and looked around with her bright eyes, her gaze moving over the faces of the enlightened monks one by one.

There was complete silence on the Golden Summit.

Even the Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist sounds in the Thousand Buddha Pagoda paused at this moment. The monks all felt dry mouths, their hearts were pounding, and the rosary beads in their hands were turning rapidly.

Suddenly, the Buddha light behind a Bodhisattva’s head dissipated, and he fell from mid-air and landed in the valley under the clouds.

After a long time, there was a thud sound of something heavy falling to the ground.

Plop, plop. There were several more sounds of heavy objects falling to the ground. They were the Arhats and Vajra who fell one after another.

Old Tathagata's face changed slightly, and he looked around hurriedly. He saw that the monks' eyes were fixed on the stunning beauty, and the rosary beads in their hands were spinning faster and faster, making a clattering sound.

"Hey!"

Just as the old Tathagata was about to shout, he suddenly heard a loud shout, and an Arhat roared and rushed towards Granny Si, saying sternly: "This is a demon who confuses all living beings, a demon. When I look at her, I feel a demon in my heart. I must kill her!"

"I will kill this demon for the world!" Another Vajra came out wielding a demon-subduing pestle, showing three heads and six arms, and rushed towards Granny Si.

Suddenly, an old monk rushed out, blocked the Arhat and the Vajra, tore off his monk robe, yanked his rosary beads, and laughed like a madman, "I am used to killing and setting fires, and never practiced the truth. I have been vegetarian and chanting Buddha for many years, and I feel that the first half of my life was lived in vain! After seeing this beauty, I realized that my whole life was lived in vain! I will return to secular life!"

Several more Arhats rushed over, and for a moment the Golden Summit was in chaos.

The old Tathagata's yellow robe trembled, and suddenly the Buddhist sound in the Thousand Buddha Pagoda was loud, and thousands of Buddhas chanted together, which made the monks who were fighting on the golden summit come to their senses. They sat down one by one, secretly feeling ashamed.

"What's the point of eating vegetarian food and chanting Buddhist scriptures? What's the point of achieving enlightenment? You will still die. It's better to enjoy life while you can! I'm going to return to secular life!" Suddenly an old monk jumped off the golden roof and fled away.