Chapter 39 - Apprenticed to Bodhi Fangcun Patriarch
Chapter 39: Apprenticed to Bodhi Fangcun Patriarch
The Tathagata Buddha gazed intently at the Monkey’s distant fleeing figure, his face neither sad nor joyful, his hand forming the finger gesture of plucking a flower.
In an instant, the vast clouds began to move rapidly back in the direction they came from, as if time were flowing backward.
The Monkey blinked his eyes and found himself once again above the sea of clouds, standing opposite the Tathagata.
The Monkey looked at the Buddha with difficulty in his confidence, already guessing this great monk was no ordinary figure—he never expected such supreme power.
The Tathagata smiled gently, as if seeing through all worldly phenomena. Slowly he spoke, “Monkey, do you know what it means for the Dharma of the Buddha to be boundless?”
The Monkey sneered coldly, “I, Old Sun, come from a famous lineage. How could I be fooled by your empty talk, great monk? This is clearly the ‘Returning Wind and Returning Fire’ method of the Heavenly Gang Great Divine Skill.”
While speaking, the Monkey’s eyes flicked around, secretly thinking of a way to escape—the great monk’s power was truly terrifying and could not be confronted head-on!
“Oh?” The Tathagata was not angered. Smiling as he plucked a flower, he said with interest, “I wonder from which sect you apprenticed? Perhaps I know your master.”
Hearing this, a trace of gloom flashed in the Monkey’s eyes, then he raised his head and said to the Tathagata, “Great monk, stop your nonsense. You just showed a trick earlier; now watch Old Sun’s true skill.”
The Monkey’s ears twitched, and the Golden Cudgel, like a divine snake, sprang from his ear into his palm. With a shout of “Transform!” the cudgel, aided by divine power, lengthened with the wind, and in an instant became as towering as a mighty dragon.
Pressing one hand against its end, the Monkey exerted tremendous strength. The cudgel flew like a meteor, striking directly towards the Buddha’s forehead.
At that moment, the Tathagata sat calmly on his lotus throne, unmoved, only slightly raising his eyebrows to reveal a faint smile. The great sage’s might versus the Buddha’s composure—when they faced each other, a moment felt like a thousand years.
The Tathagata smiled, gently opening his palm, within which seemed to hold the universe itself.
The Monkey suddenly felt dizzy as the cudgel transformed back into an embroidery needle and flew into his ear.
The Monkey was shocked to find himself trapped within the Buddha’s palm. The Buddha’s golden body stood six zhang tall (approximately 20 meters), majestic as a mountain.
“Tathagata!” The Monkey exclaimed in shock and anger.
The Buddha flipped his palm, and a golden palm print descended from the heavens, pressing the Monkey down from the thirty-three heavens.
The palm print transformed into the Five Finger Mountain, where the sources of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—converged. The earth churned and the earth dragon turned.
The Monkey’s golden light surged wildly as he continuously smashed the surrounding rocks, but his speed could not match the force of the Five Finger Mountain’s fusion, and he was ultimately pressed beneath it.
“Good! Good!”
The Tathagata Buddha’s eyes lowered, piercing through the thirty-three heavens, looking at the Monkey who was still struggling. It was unclear what he was thinking.
After a moment, the Buddha said calmly, “If you do not act now, there will be no chance!”
At these words, Ananda and Kasyapa’s faces changed simultaneously, looking around, but unfortunately detected no presence of anyone else.
“Buddha?”
Kasyapa stepped forward to ask. Tathagata waved his hand. Just then, an anomaly occurred.
Above the sea of clouds, a sudden chill spread, the clouds seeming to freeze. Suddenly, the sound of space tearing was heard. The claws of a blue snake tore through space, revealing a black void. From this black void leapt a strange creature with a human face and a bird’s body.
Amid the extreme cold, a burst of extreme heat arose. On the other side, another black void appeared, from which surged a great sun, transforming into a three-legged golden crow.The two strange beings faced each other above the sea of clouds, their tremendous cosmic pressure rolling like a towering tide.
“This is…”
Ananda and Kasyapa looked on in shock, hardly able to believe what they were witnessing.
The Buddha showed an expression of appreciation and said, “The True Form of the Ancestral Witch, the Solar Golden Crow! Young friend, if you are willing to join our Buddhist order, I am willing to grant you the proper position of a Buddha.”
A rainbow light flew in, revealing Qin Chuan’s figure. He cupped his hands and smiled, “Thank you for the Buddha’s kind offer, but the Buddhist rules and precepts are too many. The allure of wine and meat, the beauty of women—I find it hard to abide by such strictness.”
The Buddha replied, “Wine, meat, and beauty cannot compare to the vastness of the Buddha Dharma. Moreover, the Buddhist order does not forbid these entirely; there is even a lineage of the ‘Joyful Buddha’ that embraces such joys!”
Qin Chuan smiled and shook his head at these words, then looked down at the Monkey still struggling beneath the Five Finger Mountain… and at the mountain itself!
[Observing the Five Finger Mountain of the Tathagata, comprehending the twelfth Heavenly Secret of the Great Heavenly Might — the Great Escape of the Five Elements]
From this Five Finger Mountain alone, one could see why the Buddha is truly the supreme master of the Three Realms’ greatest mystical powers.
Qin Chuan knowingly asked, “Buddha, how do you intend to deal with this Monkey?”
The Buddha, seeing Qin Chuan had not responded, said no more, only replying, “This sinful beast has rebelled against Heaven and caused great disaster. Our Buddha’s compassion prevents taking his life; instead, he shall remain beneath the Five Finger Mountain for five hundred years to quietly reflect on his mistakes.”
Qin Chuan said, “Buddha, the Five Finger Mountain is so vast, but the Monkey’s head remains outside. Five hundred years—surely that would be an unbearable torment?”
The Buddha shook his head, “If not so, it would not sufficiently atone for his sins.”
Qin Chuan sighed, “If that is so, I can only presumptuously ask the Buddha to instruct me in some wisdom.”
The True Form of Xuanming hovered, appearing and disappearing within the dark mist like a shadow of the moon on the waves.
In an instant, black clouds gathered, the sky darkened suddenly. Cold winds howled, accompanied by hail that resembled dragon scales fluttering, blotting out the sun.
The three Golden Crows sensed the chill and flapped their wings with long cries. Their golden light flared up. From the high heavens, the Golden Crows transformed into great suns, burning fiercely. Fire and ice clashed, hot and cold opposing and illuminating each other.
During his thirty-nine years of seclusion in Huaguo Mountain, Qin Chuan had no breakthrough toward becoming a Great Dao Golden Immortal, but by a fortunate chance, he used the Solar True Fire as a foundation to manipulate fate and condensed the true spirit of the Three-legged Golden Crow.
Xuanming and the Golden Crow surged forward together to confront the Buddha.
The Buddha sat serenely on his lotus throne, magnificent and solemn, golden light radiating in myriad rays. His hands joined in prayer as he chanted the Buddha’s name. Boundless Buddhist Dharma emanated from him, forming a golden lotus barrier to block the threats of ice rain and blazing suns.
At that moment, Qin Chuan did not even look back. He leapt down from the Thirty-three Heavens like a meteor, streaking through the sky, heading straight for the Five Finger Mountain.
The Buddha’s face was expressionless as he calmly observed Qin Chuan’s actions. He softly said, “What a pity, this is not the reincarnation of the Ancestral Witch or the Demon Emperor; otherwise, I would have liked to debate the Way with the two of you!” With that, the golden light of his sixteen-foot-high golden body suddenly surged, dazzling and radiant.
“Monkey!”
Qin Chuan descended upon the Five Finger Mountain. Seeing the Monkey completely crushed beneath it, he growled and prepared to use his Ice-Snow Dragon Chant Spear to smash the mountain before the Buddha could intervene.
“Qin Chuan?” The Monkey was stunned for a moment, then immediately shouted, “Run! That old monk’s skills are terrifying!”
Just as he spoke, the Buddha and Ananda Kasyapa suddenly appeared above the Five Finger Mountain.
Even with the battle powers of Xuanming’s True Form and the Golden Crow’s true spirit, they could barely hold back that instant.
“Young friend, if you continue to act recklessly, I will have no choice but to personally take you back into the Buddhist order!”
“Monkey, who is your master?”
Seeing the situation, Qin Chuan sighed lightly, sheathed his Ice-Snow Dragon Chant Spear, shrugged helplessly, and turned to look at the Buddha.
“What?”
The Monkey was stunned, not understanding why Qin Chuan would say this.
“Didn’t the Buddha just ask you which school you come from? Why haven’t you answered truthfully yet?”
The Monkey stood frozen, opening his mouth but unsure what to say.
“Speak up!” Qin Chuan shouted, turning to look at the Monkey with a very serious expression.
The Monkey’s body was crushed beneath the mountain, only his head remaining outside. His eyes flickered nervously, and his breathing grew heavier. Nearby, the Buddha’s gaze gradually darkened.
After a moment, the Monkey looked as if he had nothing left to lose. He looked at the Buddha and said, “Old monk, listen carefully…”
I was originally an old ape in the mountain,
With spiritual roots nurtured between heaven and earth.
Disciple of the Patriarch Bodhi of Fangcun,
Mastering boundless Dao and teachings passed through the ages.
Within a small space lies the Great Way,
In the Three Stars Cave, I grasp the true words.
As years flow, deep revelations emerge, my enlightened mind transcends the Three Realms.