Cultivating Immortality in Two Realms

Chapter 341 The Origin and Flow of the Dharma Lineage

At the foot of the snow-capped mountain stands an ancient temple.

The temple is paved with gold bricks and has walls made of milk. The pillars around it are supported by white bones, giving it an inexplicable aura. The temple gate is strange, like a gate to the afterlife.

The entire temple was filled with the burning of unknown oil candles, emitting a faint scent of sandalwood.

A figure emerged from the void, draped in a robe embroidered with the skin of the "Master of the Slate Forest," wielding a white bone staff, with six fist-sized white bone prayer beads floating behind him, resembling a halo of light.

Buzz!

As Fang Qing arrived, the entire "Zhusheng Wuxiang Temple" roared.

He still used the appearance of Yundan Monk, and swaggered into the main hall, where he saw the 'Main Buddha Statue of the Ashtanga Forest'.

A dark aura descended, making his aura faintly similar to that of the 'Main Buddha Statue of the Corpse Forest'.

"Buddha..."

Kumarajiva then appeared, prostrating himself before Fang Qing: "Kumaraja pays respects to the Buddha's esteemed presence!"

"Oh?"

Fang Qing turned around, and the 'Stone Forest Master Skin Thangka' on his chest radiated boundless majesty, making the white bone image seem to come alive.

Countless bats flapped their wings, hanging upside down under the eaves of nearby houses: "What is a Buddhist disciple?"

"Those who uphold the will of the great 'Lord of the Charity Forest' and walk on the earth in His place are 'Buddhas'..."

Kumarajiva bowed again with utmost devotion, without a trace of doubt in his heart, only piety.

Because he sensed the emptiness of the female earth!

That was the true golden nature of the 'Lord of the Mortuary', possessing His majesty and aura!

Even other female Earthly Golden Core True Monarchs would find it difficult to disguise themselves, especially within this Temple of No Form of All Beings, where they received a response from the entire lineage!

"continue……"

Fang Qing remained expressionless as he listened to Kumarajiva say, "In the temple of the origin of all dharmas, there is also a method to cultivate into an 'emanation Buddha,' meaning to cultivate oneself into an emanation of an incarnation of a Buddha, thus attaining Buddhahood... Among the heretical sects of the East, those who uphold the golden nature of the Golden Elixir True Lord are also called 'Immortals,' 'Divine Officials,' or 'Ministers of Control'... In the esoteric tradition, they are revered as 'Buddha's Son' or 'Buddha's Mother'..."

"After all that, it turns out they're just 'Tara's disciples' and 'Tara's mothers' at the Golden Core True Monarch level... well, that counts as an upgrade."

Fang Qing thought to himself, "And they possess strength surpassing even the Perfected Purple Mansion Realm and the Greatest Four Laws Realm True Person. They can replace True Lords in traveling the world and issuing decrees... However, they require Golden Core True Lords to expend their Golden Nature to elevate them, thus they are a burden to Golden Core True Lords, and their numbers will not be many, some True Lords may not even have them... They share the glory and the loss of Golden Core True Lords... Therefore, when Golden Core True Lords slumber, they also return to Nirvana?"

"Once the Taihuang Heaven opens... these immortals and Buddhist disciples will obviously be among the first to become active..."

"As expected, the world is about to change."

"Unfortunately... I'm just an empty shell now, relying on a wisp of golden energy and status sealed by the Dao Life Pearl... Unless I truly extract and refine the golden energy, I'm still just a shoddy Grand Master."

"That's not quite right either... At least by leveraging the metal element and its position, in certain rituals and ceremonies involving the higher-level power of the [Earth Woman]... I can have a decisive effect."

"Furthermore, I am currently a destined individual with a connection between the Earth and Metal elements of the Female element. Once I advance to the late-stage Purple Mansion Great True Person realm, I will transform my supernatural powers into the three supernatural powers of the Female Earth element... With the enhancement of my rank, my strength will at least be comparable to an ordinary Great True Person who possesses all four elements!"

"But of course I wouldn't do that. What if refining the [Female Earth] metal element fixed the lineage? What if the Dao Life Pearl can only transform cultivation techniques and can't transform this kind of mysterious metal element, destiny, and fate? It's better to seal it for now and get some benefits..."

He composed himself and looked at Kumarajiva: "You don't need to concern yourself with Sanji's matter anymore. Just treat him the same as before."

"Follow the law!"

Kumarajiva immediately prostrated himself, without the slightest resentment or confusion... because this was the will of the great 'Lord of the Ashtanga'.

Just like when he received the Buddha's decree, he immediately held a grand ceremony, almost exhausting all the spiritual treasures accumulated in the Purple Mansion of the Wuxiang Temple, in order to obtain the magical result that a destined person would step into the Lotus Blessed Land in the future.

"Take me to the dust-washing pool!"

Fang Qing spoke, instructing Kumarajiva to lead the way to the outside of the Cleansing Pool.

Those terrifying golden statues had knelt on the ground, trembling uncontrollably.

"I came! I saw! I witnessed!"

Fang Qing said calmly.

Now carrying the "Female Earth" metal element, its symbolism and meaning are extremely strong, bringing a vast "Female Earth" imagery.

Sangji is only one step away from mastering supernatural powers.

Within the Cleansing Pool, countless mounds of earth surged forth, and suddenly a lotus seat made of white bones rose up, upon which sat a emaciated young monk draped in a tiger-skin robe.

Behind his head, the "Cleansing Affinity" supernatural power transformed into a halo, standing alongside the "White Bone Contemplation".

Sangji thus leaped to the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion realm!

He opened his eyes with joy, and then saw the figure standing before the Great Dharma King Kumarajiva!

Although Fang Qing was still using the appearance of Yun Dan Seng, Sangji, as a disciple he had converted, naturally sensed it and immediately knelt down: "Greetings, Venerable One..."

Kumarajiva, however, was not surprised and thought that Sangji had been subdued by the Buddha's disciple with supreme power.

However, he still spoke up, saying, "Sangji, you shouldn't be addressed as 'Venerable One,' but rather as 'Buddha's Son'!"

"Buddha...Buddha's disciple?"

Sangji's eyes were immediately filled with shock and confusion...

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……

late at night.

Inside the best meditation room at Zhusheng Wuxiang Temple.

Fang Qing sat cross-legged. During the day, he refused Kumarajiva's request to hold a grand "Buddha's Birthday" celebration, but only ordered him to find a meditation room for him to rest.

"Hmm... [Female Earth] Metal element isn't the key; the key is the certification of 'Lord of the Mortuary'..."

He closed his eyes, and through the 'Shrine Master's Pi Thangka, he could even sense the sole secret deity practiced by the many monks of the Wuxiang Temple—the 'Shrine Master'! And he established connections with each of them…

Even the Kumarajiva is like this!

These masters and Dharma Kings can guide others, but they themselves practice the true Dharma of the Wuxing Temple and invite the "Lord of the Charity Forest" to reside in their hearts as their sole secret deity.

In other words, although they were minor slave owners, they were essentially slaves of the "Lord of the Shada"!

That is why the last time I converted Sanji and destroyed his only secret deity, a change occurred, and the 'Lord of the Ashtanga Forest' became aware of it.

Now that the "Master of the Ashtanga Forest" is no longer here, he can "take care" of it using the Buddhist treasure, the "Human Skin Thangka"!

Therefore, the position of "Buddha's disciple" is truly deserved.

"I don't even need to fight Kumarajiva; in the blink of an eye, the only secret deity he worships will turn against him and take his life..."

"This method of layered control is similar to how a guru can arbitrarily control the life and death of Mingzi and Mingfei..."

"The entire Wuxiang Temple of All Beings is now completely under my control, and unless the 'Master of the Mortuary' awakens, it will be difficult to change..."

A thought suddenly struck him, and he looked at the door: "Come in!"

The door opened, and Sangji entered the meditation room, prostrating himself on the ground: "Greetings, Venerable One, Disciple of Buddha..."

With a wave of his hand, Fang Qing sent a lotus flower to Sangji, which then bloomed with a rainbow of colors.

This is the "certificate of rank" of Lotus Temple!

"How... is it possible to refine it?"

He asked casually.

Sangji is only at the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion realm and is not of great use, so Fang Qing wanted to quickly improve him.

Sangji held the lotus platform in both hands, two mysterious supernatural powers intertwined around his body, as if he were enduring great pain. Tumors on his limbs burst open, revealing lotus flowers and twisted, mutated tree tumors...

"alright."

Seeing this, Fang Qing raised his hand and withdrew the lotus 'position certificate'.

"Your Excellency, I am incompetent..."

Sangji was immediately filled with a sense of loss, and even wanted to inflict punishment on himself.

"It seems that although I can forcibly activate the 'Rank Certificate,' refining different lineages is still difficult... Sangji is already the Dharma King of the Wuxiang Temple of All Beings, and his lineage is different, yet he is less malleable than a mortal... Hmm, I'll find him the 'Rank Certificate' of the Wuxiang Temple of All Beings later..."

Fang Qing observed for a moment, then raised his hand.

A layer of black soil covered Sangji, and when Sangji reappeared, the signs of his transformation vanished instantly.

"Wu Nengsheng can refine the certificate because it represents his temple's lineage, and their cultivation methods are compatible... Lianyanming's cultivation level is too low, and he is also a monk from Lotus Temple, sharing the same lineage..."

"The lineage is truly extraordinary..."

Fang Qing thought for a moment and then asked, "Sangji, what do you think 'Dharma lineage' is?"

"The lineage of Dharma is like a river. The temples that are the source of all Dharma are the great river, and the other smaller temples are the streams... and they all have a common source, which is the 'secret source'... they all flow from the secret source..."

Sangji replied.

"That explanation is quite interesting... If I were to bestow upon you a 'certificate of rank' from the Temple of No Forms for All Beings, and also grant you the status of a disciple, what would you think? Would that be better than being a Dharma King?"

Fang Qing was somewhat curious.

This "position certificate" is quite mysterious, as it is not incompatible with the position of the degree holder.

It should be noted that if the positions of the Du Zi (度子) could be directly stacked, he could have granted Wu Nengsheng another position of the Du Zi, combining three positions to see how he would perform.

But in reality... the Dharma King's ordination position can only be granted to someone once, and cannot be stacked a second time! This is the ironclad rule of the initiation ritual!

If the positions of the masters of Taras could be stacked, other Dharma Kings would not select five masters of Taras, but would instead stack one master of the highest power. Wouldn't that be great?

Therefore, the plan failed before it even began.

This made Fang Qing even more aware of the special nature of the esoteric Buddhist teachings.

"But the 'certificate of rank' is different. It can only appear after a Dharma King at the Purple Mansion level has passed away... and it is almost always a Great Dharma King. Even if a Dharma King occasionally manages to produce a 'certificate of rank' through burning, he is an extremely special Dharma King..."

"If the rank of the disciple I bestow is 'illusory,' then the 'certificate of rank' is 'real'? Furthermore, it is supported by the lineage and tradition... through offerings of incense and faith, it can be continuously strengthened."

"So it seems that Wu Nengsheng's attainment of two ranks, comparable to a mid-stage Purple Mansion True Person, is mainly due to his 'Rank Certification'? And behind all 'Rank Certifications,' besides incense offerings and faith, there is also the support of a lineage of Dharma… even secretly connected to the esoteric origin?"

"What about Sangji? He has broken through to the Purple Mansion realm and possesses his own Purple Mansion rank. If he were to combine that with the rank of the Transcendent One I bestowed upon him, and then refine the 'Rank Certificate'... he would become a trinity. I wonder if he could be comparable to a Great True Person?"

Fang Qing was quite tempted by this.

After all, his own subordinates were too weak and unmanageable, so they were of little use.

Fang Qing was quite tempted by this.

After all, his own subordinates were too weak and unmanageable, so they were of little use.

Fortunately, we now have Kumaraja, a true Dharma King and a late-stage Purple Mansion cultivator!

Furthermore, he has been in charge of the temple that is the origin of all dharmas for many years and knows many secrets!