The Battle in Journey to the West
Chapter 115 - 113: The True Scriptures Shock the Buddha Ancestor

Chapter 115: Chapter 113: The True Scriptures Shock the Buddha Ancestor

The Daoist Equal to Heaven left his Enlightened Dao Body to rest and recuperate in Flower-Fruit Mountain so that it could quickly return to its peak state. Meanwhile, he himself planned to make a name in the world before pledging loyalty to a lord in order to be entrusted with important duties.

Having acquired the physical body of Wuzhiqi and created an Enlightened Dao Body, the only task left was to slay the Six-Eared Macaque. However, the whereabouts of the macaque were unknown; whether it had been born yet or was already under Tathagata’s control was also a mystery.

Tathagata was a man of boundless ambition and was not lacking in cunning strategies. Even though Wukong was aware of his past and present life, he was not completely confident in dealing with him. The only method now was to continually enhance his own strength.

"Hmm? What’s happening with the Swallowing Dragon Stele?" The Daoist Equal to Heaven suddenly felt waves emanating from the Stele, pointing towards the south. When Wukong was captured and taken to the heavens, he had entrusted the Swallowing Dragon Stele and his Third Primordial Spirit to him.

The great battle of the Middle Ancient Times erupted in the War God Secret Realm of the North Sea but was not the end—another battle was about to break out in the South Sea.

The North Sea had Beiming, while the South Sea had Ruins. The Ruins, where all the waters of the world converged, were known as the Sea Eye of the Four Seas, shrouded in mystery.

The origin of the Swallowing Dragon Stele was mysterious, carved with heavenly runes acquired by the Human Emperor of the Xia Dynasty. He named highly skilled craftsmen and masters of Taoist arts to inscribe these runes. It was dubbed the "Xia Dynasty Dragon Seal" and was kept in the Imperial City to suppress the fortunes of the nation. Later, as Xia Jie lost his virtue, the Swallowing Dragon Stele flew away of its own accord. Each character inscribed on it was profoundly mysterious; even Confucius, learned as he was, could only decipher fragments of it.

The Daoist Equal to Heaven sensed the vibrations from the Xia Dynasty Dragon Seal, seemingly guiding him towards the South Sea, though he was uncertain of the meaning.

"Could it be that there is another ancient secret realm in the South Sea? That the ancient battles erupted there and the Swallowing Dragon Stele is guiding me to go?" the Daoist Equal to Heaven pondered secretly.

The Swallowing Dragon Stele was not a living thing, yet it could see through the origins of certain items—for instance, it revealed that he was brought back to life due to the Rebirth Box reversing time and space, and Tao Yao’s origin was due to being blessed with the first Seven-Color Divine Light between heaven and earth.

He indeed desired to find Subhuti, using the Swallowing Dragon Stele to sweep over him and see if he could discern Subhuti’s true form.

The Daoist Equal to Heaven muttered, "Then I shall make a trip to the South Sea to see what has happened."

He did not venture into Southern Toad Continent but headed straight for the South Sea. Anyway, there was still some time left until the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty—it was almost two lifetimes for mortals. For those on the Immortal Path, who lived long lives, time was not an important concept. Perhaps a mortal’s lifetime was nothing more than a spring and autumn dream for Ancestor Chen Tuan.

The Daoist Equal to Heaven flew all the way to the South Sea without stopping, heading in the direction indicated by the vibrations of the Swallowing Dragon Stele.

He flew over the South Sea, traveling continuously until he arrived at the remains of the Southern Dragon. The Southern Dragon began at Mount Emei of the Southern Toad Continent and ended at the Ruins of the South Sea.

With the Dao of Divination Magic of Fuxi within him, the Daoist Equal to Heaven glanced around, calculated with the Bagua, and immediately discerned the orientation of the remnants of the Southern Dragon, finding the Ruins.

The Ruins had not yet revealed themselves, appearing occasionally to absorb the waters of the Four Seas. It was a mysterious place where no one who had entered had ever returned.

Upon reaching this place, the reactions from the Swallowing Dragon Stele became more intense. Waves of vibrations spread out as the Daoist Equal to Heaven took it out, and it transformed to a foot high in his palm.

"The South Sea Ruins, the Sea Eye of the Four Seas, absorb all the waters under the heavens and serve as the node of the remnants of the Southern Dragon." The Swallowing Dragon Stele scanned the area where the Ruins were and revealed its history, but this was common knowledge, and to speak of it was redundant.

The Daoist Equal to Heaven thought to himself, "I wonder what treasure lies within the South Sea Ruins that the Swallowing Dragon Stele insists on guiding me here?"

Thus, on the sea surface, he cast a spell to create a large ice floe and sat on it to meditate, waiting for the Ruins to open.

For now, the dispute between Buddhism and Daoism was put aside temporarily as Tathagata suppressed Wukong and the Heavenly Court began reconstruction, leaving the Jade Emperor’s pride battered and sore.

The Daoist Equal to Heaven gently touched the Swallowing Dragon Stele, wondering what was within the Ruins, guiding him here. Could it be the mysterious coffin, Tao Yao’s father? It was still unknown who that person was, hiding in the coffin, coming and going without trace, something even the Three Pure Ones were reticent to discuss.

"Splash!"

At night, the calm sea began to surge with waves, and huge winds and waves that could even overturn massive buildings swept through the area.

Daoist Equal to Heaven rose from the floating ice, unaffected by the natural disaster that no longer held any sway over those from the Immortal Path.

A vortex a thousand zhang wide appeared on the sea surface, relentlessly sucking in water into its bottomless depths. The Swallowing Dragon Stele trembled even more violently.

Daoist Equal to Heaven performed an Escape Technique and dived down, but as soon as he entered the Sea Eye, he immediately felt a terrifying suction force!

This suction force was not in a single direction but came from all around him. The overwhelming force almost tore him apart as if giant dragons were pulling on his limbs, dragging him in different directions.

"Damn it, I miscalculated. I didn’t expect the suction force inside this Sea Eye to be so immense that even my true self would be torn apart by it," Daoist Equal to Heaven thought to himself, his body beginning to show traces of blood seeping from his pores.

This vortex, capable of absorbing the waters of the Four Seas, was naturally extraordinary. Being sucked into it felt like his body was being torn to pieces.

"Thus have I heard! The light of this Buddha is boundless, illuminating all directions, hence he is called Amitabha." Daoist Equal to Heaven barely managed to form a Dharma Seal, activating the "Sutra of the Other Shore."

A series of golden lights twinkled as a golden Sharira condensed at his brow point. This Sharira emitted beams of Buddha Light, manifesting a grand Buddha behind him.

The grand Buddha had a smile on his face, performing the Flower Picking Technique with his hands, radiating compassion towards all beings, immovable as a mountain, with three halos behind his head. One halo represented Great Wisdom, another Great Fortitude, and the third, Great Compassion! This was the Dharma Body of Amitabha Buddha. The cultivation of the "Sutra of the Other Shore" was identical to the Buddhist Methods and involved meditation and visualization, the result being the manifestation of Amitabha Buddha.

"Amitabha Buddha!"

Daoist Equal to Heaven pressed his palms together and chanted solemnly with utmost devotion. The Buddha smiled, lowered his hands, and enveloped Daoist Equal to Heaven in his palms.

Meanwhile, Tathagata on Spirit Mountain Great Hall suddenly startled and exclaimed in shock, "I heard someone chant ’Amitabha Buddha’ instead of ’Namo Amitabha Buddha.’ Who could it be? Who dares disregard my wishes and instead pays homage to Amitabha Buddha?"

Tathagata’s title was "Namo Amitabha Buddha," not the one originally called the Guiding Buddha, who first went by the name of Jieyin Buddha, drawing people from all directions into Buddhism. Later, as the Buddhist sect grew, the title was changed to "Amitabha." But now, Buddhist followers recognize only "Namo Amitabha Buddha," not "Amitabha Buddha." How many people are there in West Cow He State? If one person recites a few phrases in a day, that amounts to a considerable power of incense and wishes!

"Kasyapa, Ananda, you two go and investigate for me who mentioned ’Amitabha Buddha.’ Find him quickly and capture him. If he resists, you have my permission to kill him on sight!" Tathagata commanded, his voice cold and steady.

Kasyapa bowed and replied, "Your disciple obeys the command!"

"Obeying the command!" Ananda also bowed and said.

The two venerables took Tathagata’s orders and departed from the Da Xiong Palace, descending from Mount Meru to find out who dared mention "Amitabha Buddha." Since the end of the conflict in the Middle Ancient Times, that name had become a taboo in Buddhism, with no one daring to speak it.

Tathagata murmured, "Could it be that his ’Sutra of the Other Shore’ has appeared? But who is the successor?"

To find out what happens next, please listen to the follow-up.

PS: Regarding the performance of this book, I almost have no more ideas, I can only say that when writing the first book, I screwed up the beginning terribly, and then a large number of Journey to the West themed books emerged on the starting point, making this book less appealing to readers as well. However, I’m still quite satisfied with it from the beginning to now, and it has received many positive reviews, but it ultimately failed to draw a large audience. I will calm my mind and endeavor to complete this book, which is also a test of my mental state.