Chapter 357 – Empty Yet Not Empty, Severing Dust Yet Not Emotion—Buddha Child Awakens

One living Buddha, one living Bodhisattva.

The clash between them could truly be described as world-shattering.

With just a few simple collisions, the entire area around Little Thunderclap Temple was nearly obliterated.

As the battle continued, Buddha Kongming sensed something amiss.

It seemed the Black Lotus Sect’s Reincarnated Bodhisattva Wushu had deliberately chosen this location for their battlefield.

Though Little Thunderclap Temple was currently protected by Buddha’s light,

this radiance was undoubtedly insufficient to withstand the residual shockwaves of a battle at the Buddha level.

Kongming had fully realized this during their initial exchanges.

Therefore, to prevent Little Thunderclap Temple from being affected by their battle,

Kongming was forced to divert part of his power to protect the temple.

In contrast, the Black Lotus Sect’s Reincarnated Bodhisattva Wushu had no such concerns.

Indeed, it appeared He had planned from the very beginning to make Kongming hesitate due to this vulnerability.

Otherwise, why would Wushu—who had previously been evading Kongming—

now actively appear before him?

It was precisely because Bodhisattva Wushu believed these circumstances favored Him.

And indeed, events unfolded exactly as Wushu had anticipated.

In terms of pure strength, though Kongming stood at the pinnacle of the Great Vehicle Stage with peerless Buddhist teachings,

He still fell slightly short when compared to a true Buddha’s reincarnated form.

However, the gap between them wasn’t as vast as one might imagine.

Yet when Kongming was forced to fight with restraints, the situation changed completely.

To prevent Little Thunderclap Temple from being destroyed by their battle’s aftermath,

Not only could Kongming not move freely, He had to position His Buddha form as a shield before the temple.

Facing some of Bodhisattva Wushu’s attacks, He even had to endure them directly rather than evade,

Because if He dodged, Little Thunderclap Temple behind Him would become the target.

A single strike from Bodhisattva Wushu—even a casual one—was more than the temple could withstand.

As Kongming’s power waned while Wushu’s remained unimpeded, Kongming fell into clear disadvantage.

On the battlefield, this manifested as Kongming being forced into a nearly perpetual defensive posture,

Rarely finding opportunities to counterattack.

This scene was witnessed by everyone within Little Thunderclap Temple.

As they watched Buddha Kongming’s radiance grow increasingly dim, with numerous eerie black lotuses blooming across His Buddha form,

The monks within the temple visibly descended into panic.

“Peace.”

Just as the monks were becoming distraught and disorderly, a voice imbued with Buddhist power reached all ears.

The power contained within that voice carried the resonance of the Great Dao itself,

Instantly restoring tranquility to the agitated monks.

All turned to look toward the source of the voice.

The speaker was none other than Juechen, who had recently become Little Thunderclap Temple’s current abbot.

Compared to before, Juechen had matured significantly.

Though his appearance hadn’t changed much,

The Buddha nature he exhibited and his mastery of Buddhist teachings had visibly advanced.

The most direct evidence was his current cultivation at the Peak of the Nascent Soul Stage.Just a few months ago, Juechen had only been at the level of Awakening, equivalent to a Cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Observing all the monks of Little Thunderclap Temple looking at him, Juechen calmly said, “Panic solves nothing. Do not let emotions… cloud your judgment.”

Upon hearing Juechen’s words, the surrounding monks of Little Thunderclap Temple finally calmed down completely.

For matters were indeed as Juechen had said.

With their cultivation levels, they could not alter the current situation in any way.

Panic would only impair their normal judgment.

The more critical the moment, the more essential it was to remain composed.

For only in this way could they possibly find that faint glimmer of hope amidst despair.

After soothing the emotions of the Little Thunderclap monks, Juechen once again turned his gaze toward the distant figure of Buddha Kongming.

In truth, Kongming had already anticipated today’s circumstances.

If he could suppress the Black Lotus Sect, it would naturally be a cause for celebration.

But if he were no match for the Black Lotus Sect, the question of Little Thunderclap Temple’s fate was one that had to be considered.

And for this question, Kongming had already found an answer.

This answer lay with Juechen.

Moreover, what he intended to do was almost identical to what Juechen’s master had done.

That was to hasten Juechen’s Awakening of his past life’s wisdom.

Originally, in Juechen’s master’s expectations,

after absorbing his Sharira, Juechen should have fully Awakened.

But his master had overlooked one thing.

Or rather, he had underestimated the height of Juechen’s past life.

A single Sharira from a venerable monk comparable to the Nascent Soul Stage was far from sufficient to trigger Juechen’s complete Awakening.

At most, it merely accelerated the process.

Yet, the same action yielded entirely different results between a Buddha’s Sharira and a venerable monk’s Sharira.

Kongming had told Juechen that once he judged himself incapable of suppressing the Black Lotus Sect,

he would impart his lifelong cultivation to Juechen.

And once Juechen absorbed all of Kongming’s cultivation,

his past life’s wisdom would fully Awaken.

At that point, Juechen would become a true living Buddha,

capable of suppressing all the demons and evils of the world.

However, this would also mean Juechen’s complete death.

Faced with such an outcome, Juechen, who had long made his choice, remained remarkably calm.

After all, he had experienced similar circumstances before.

He faced so-called “death” with complete equanimity.

His only concern was not about what would happen to him in this life,

but whether, after his Awakening, he would still be unable to resolve the current crisis.

He was even more uncertain whether his past self could reach the heights hoped for by Kongming and others.

Rather than fearing his own “death,” Juechen was more worried about the destruction of Little Thunderclap Temple.

But just as most things in this world are never swayed by personal emotions,

Juechen had no way of knowing whether Little Thunderclap Temple would survive this ordeal.

All he could do was strive with every ounce of his strength.

As Juechen calmly awaited the impending outcome,

Kongming and Wushu, after a momentary stalemate in the distance, finally reached a turning point.

Kongming now had half an arm severed,

cut off by Wushu using a Black Lotus leaf.

The wound was overgrown with black vines.

These vines coiled around Kongming’s injury, making it impossible for him to heal his body.

More critically, these vines carried a unique Buddhist Power.It could even directly affect Kongming’s own Buddhist Dharma.

It transformed Kongming’s own Buddhist Dharma into Wushu Bodhisattva’s Black Lotus Buddhist Dharma, which then fed back into Wushu Bodhisattva himself.

This caused Kongming, who was already somewhat outmatched by Wushu, to completely fall into a disadvantage.

In contrast, Wushu Bodhisattva was in a much better state.

In fact, compared to when he first appeared, Wushu Bodhisattva’s condition had clearly improved significantly.

Not only was the Buddha light around him growing increasingly radiant, but his own Buddha nature had also visibly elevated to a great extent.

If not for the fact that the Black Lotus Sect had committed many acts that provoked the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people, many monks of Little Thunderclap Temple might have been swayed on the spot by his appearance alone.

Perhaps sensing that victory was within his grasp, Wushu Bodhisattva did not rush to continue attacking Kongming.

Instead, he spoke, which was a rare occurrence.

“I must admit, although I have made many preparations in advance for today, your strength still exceeded my expectations.”

“If not for the hidden dangers left by the Heart Demon, you might have long become an existence equal to me.”

“What a pity, what a pity…”

Upon hearing Wushu Bodhisattva’s words, Kongming did not pay them much heed.

The massive golden Buddha manifestation remained solemn and dignified, showing no trace of sorrow or joy.

It seemed as though life and death had long been cast aside by him.

Or perhaps, Kongming had long been mentally prepared for the current situation.

Thus, there were no significant emotional fluctuations.

However, his calmness did not extend to the monks of Little Thunderclap Temple.

In the eyes of the monks of Little Thunderclap Temple, Kongming was the spiritual pillar for the vast majority of them.

After all, compared to the true Buddhas who resided high in the clouds, their true forms difficult to glimpse, Kongming, as a living Buddha, was the true Buddha they could actually see.

Therefore, in many cases, the monks of Little Thunderclap Temple did not necessarily worship the Buddha statues enshrined in the Great Hall.

Instead, they revered this living Buddha who resided year-round on Four Emptiness Mountain.

However, Kongming’s defeat this time, in the eyes of many Little Thunderclap Temple monks, not only signified that Little Thunderclap Temple was about to face imminent disaster but also represented the collapse of their faith.

For even Kongming, the living Buddha, had failed.

They could not think of any way to resolve the current crisis.

This sentiment was shared even by the Vajra guardians within Little Thunderclap Temple.

In fact, it could be said that because the Vajra guardians understood Kongming’s strength better, they were even more aware of what his defeat meant.

For a time, the atmosphere within Little Thunderclap Temple became eerily strange.

The golden bodies of many began to crack, with Buddha light leaking out.

This was a sign of their Buddha hearts being tarnished.

Even more terrifying, black patterns began to appear on the bodies of some monks, and their Buddhist Dharma began to exude an aura similar to that of the Black Lotus Sect.

Clearly, under the overwhelming presence of Wushu Bodhisattva and Kongming’s declining state, many monks of Little Thunderclap Temple began to doubt themselves.

There was even a faint trend of converting to the Black Lotus Sect.

This was undoubtedly a very ominous sign.

After all, when the members of a School begin to doubt their own School, its Legacy becomes difficult to sustain.

And without a Legacy, it would mean true extinction.

Seeing the situation within Little Thunderclap Temple, Wushu Bodhisattva smiled.

Or rather, he had long anticipated such an outcome.

In truth, despite his previous subtle and not-so-subtle attacks targeting Little Thunderclap Temple…With a posture that seemed intent on completely destroying Little Thunderclap Temple.

In truth, Little Thunderclap Temple held no small place in Wushu Bodhisattva’s heart.

One could even say its importance was no less than His current descent into this world.

After all, if the Black Lotus Sect wished to spread its teachings in this world,

they would need many people familiar with this realm.

The monks of Little Thunderclap Temple undoubtedly fit this requirement perfectly.

If they could absorb Little Thunderclap Temple and convert all its monks to the Black Lotus Sect,

this would undoubtedly be a great boon for the Black Lotus Sect.

This was why Wushu Bodhisattva chose to stay His hand at this moment.

He wanted to show the monks of Little Thunderclap Temple

that their so-called Thunderclap Buddhism was far inferior to the Black Lotus Buddhism.

Converting to their Black Lotus Sect was their only true path.

But just as Wushu Bodhisattva thought victory was assured,

a powerful Qi suddenly erupted from Little Thunderclap Temple.

Sensing this terrifying energy, Wushu Bodhisattva rarely showed an expression of surprise.

Because He actually felt a clear threat from this energy.

Then, as if realizing something, Wushu suddenly looked at Kongming before Him.

He saw that Kongming’s Buddha golden body was now covered in cracks, clearly on the verge of complete collapse.

Wushu had been wondering earlier.

Although Kongming’s strength was slightly inferior to His own and he was constrained by Little Thunderclap Temple,

he shouldn’t have been completely defenseless.

Yet when they fought,

Kongming clearly seemed strong on the outside but weak within,

as if lacking some crucial element.

Initially, Wushu Bodhisattva thought this was because Kongming had created a weakness in his own Realm

after severing his external demon body.

But now it appeared the truth was far from what He had imagined.

From the very beginning, the true Buddha in Little Thunderclap Temple… was never Kongming.

“Amitabha, this humble monk has finally achieved Karma Perfection.”

As he spoke, Kongming’s Buddha golden body completely dissipated, revealing his aged face that had grown countless times older.

The current Kongming bore no resemblance to the incarnation of Buddha who had once suppressed heaven and earth with a single palm.

He appeared merely as an ordinary old man nearing his end, like decaying wood.

Sensing Kongming’s fading Qi, Wushu Bodhisattva’s expression turned extremely grim.

Looking down at the now insignificant Kongming in mid-air, he asked perplexedly: “Was it worth it?” Giving everything of yourself to another without reservation.”

Kongming appeared quite detached about this.

“I came with nothing, so I shall leave with nothing.”

“In truth, I should have realized this earlier. I was too attached back then, otherwise I wouldn’t have caused such disaster.”

Wushu Bodhisattva understood the deeper meaning in Kongming’s words.

Kongming was undoubtedly saying he shouldn’t have Sealed his demon body back then.

Instead, upon discovering the demon body was part of himself, he should have disappeared from this world together with it.

Even without that demon body, Wushu Bodhisattva would have found another way to descend.

But whether He could have reached His current cultivation in such short time would have been uncertain.

“The compassionate Buddha… will leave what follows to others.”

As Wushu Bodhisattva watched in silence, Kongming’s figure gradually faded until he completely disappeared from sight.

Simultaneously, a beam of Buddha light shot into the clouds.Swiftly, an immensely profound Buddhist Power descended from Above the Heavens.

This time, even Wushu Bodhisattva felt tremendous pressure.

He raised his head and saw an unfamiliar Buddha with a Heavenly Eye appear.

Kongming was not empty of self; after realizing the mistakes he had made, Kongming chose to sacrifice himself to secure a sliver of hope for Little Thunderclap Temple.

Juechen was not devoid of emotion; though he appeared detached from all worldly ties and severed from the Mortal World, he chose to abandon this life and awaken his past wisdom out of attachment to Little Thunderclap Temple.

Under Wushu Bodhisattva’s solemn gaze, the unfamiliar Buddha in the Nine Heavens slowly opened his eyes.

“My name… is Yama.”

(End of Chapter)