Above the Great Dao

"At that time, the Yaksha and the king made a vow, saying amidst the countless assembly: Because of love, worry arises. Because of love, fear arises. If one is free from love, there are neither worries nor fears."

Xuanxuan, the Holy Daughter, looked up and saw she had arrived at the Bodhi Dojo. With that, she closed the sutra in her hands and stepped up the mountain to meet Huiyin Bodhi.

Her master, Master Miao Yin, was also there, along with many uncles and elders, each sitting upright.

Since her separation from the Western Capital, the Holy Daughter Xuanxuan had grown into a charming young nun, becoming as dazzlingly beautiful as ever, her figure graceful and flowing.

This lineage she practiced was Red Dust Zen, experiencing the mundane world and withdrawing from intense emotions to enter meditation and attain true awareness, so there was no need to shave her head.

After returning from the Western Capital, for unknown reasons, the Holy Daughter Xuanxuan secluded herself in cultivation, unknowingly entering Red Dust Meditation, and her cultivation rapidly advanced. Now she had cut away the Three Corpse Gods and reached the God Refining Realm.

Huiyin Bodhi said she has a Bodhi Heart and will certainly attain true awareness in the future.

In the Buddhist sect, sudden enlightenment is emphasized, letting go of the butcher's knife to become a Buddha instantly. Therefore, for those who receive sudden enlightenment, their cultivation often advances terrifyingly.

Originally, the Holy Daughter Xuanxuan in the Western Capital did not experience a relationship with the young lord, nor did she participate in the great examination of the Western Capital. Many monks in the Bodhi Dojo believed she would fall out of favor and lose her title of Holy Daughter.

But the Holy Daughter Xuanxuan's cultivation advanced greatly and oddly seemed as if she had experienced a love tribulation, which puzzled everyone deeply. The young lord had been struck dead, who did she experience a love tribulation with?

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan never spoke of this matter, even when her master, Master Miao Yin, inquired, she only smiled and remained silent.

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan paid respects to Huiyin Bodhi and recounted her experiences on the journey down the mountain, describing her observations along the way, the suffering of the populace, the difficulties faced by the common people, and how she treated and saved lives, handling ghosts and gods.

She also spoke of how human hearts transform into demon hearts, that human calamities prevail even over those brought by ghosts and gods.

She had endured the harshness of the seasons, yet remained charming and said, "Now the Mortal World is like Hell. The Womb of the Earth Bodhisattva said, 'Hell will not be empty, I shall not attain Buddhahood.' I fear this Hell shall never be empty."

"Well done, well done."

Upon hearing her words, Huiyin Bodhi and the others said, "In today's age, even our Buddhist sect can only seek personal integrity. You need not chastise yourself. All souls originated from the Buddha Realm, incarnating as living beings within their mortal forms. All worldly affairs are merely a process of these souls' trials. Some endure trials for hundreds or even thousands of lifetimes before achieving enlightenment and returning to the Buddha Realm in true awareness. Others may achieve sudden enlightenment within a single lifetime, returning to the Buddha Realm in true awareness. We as practitioners must aim for sudden enlightenment within this life."

Master Miao Yin smiled and said, "Bodhi is guiding you not to be bewildered by the sufferings of the world. Those enduring hardships are undergoing their trials. We, as practitioners, should observe their trials and attain sudden enlightenment for true awareness."

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan replied, "Thank you, Bodhi, for your guidance. Thank you, Master, for your guidance."

She exited the Daoist Field, gazing at the Mortal World shrouded in yin energy, feeling somewhat confused. Even Huiyin Bodhi's enlightenment failed to resolve her confusion.

Does the Buddha Realm truly exist in this world?

If the Nirvana of all Buddhas is so wondrous, why must the souls residing there come to this earthly realm to endure trials? Is the Buddha Realm not perfect enough?

"Sister!"

A few novice monks approached, chatting and laughing, but upon seeing her, they immediately withheld their laughter, clasped their hands together, and bowed respectfully.

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan smiled and said, "What are you discussing? Relax, don't imagine me as Huiyin Bodhi. I'm not as stern as her."

One of the novice monks loosened up and said, "This time going down the mountain, we encountered Talisman Masters from the Red Mountain Hall Talisman Master Association saving people. I went to help, escorting those people to a nearby temple that seems to rise like the Heavenly Dome, where gods are worshipped inside. They say the light from the temple is the light of the Ancestral Land Divine Continent, which can cultivate crops and yield harvests."

Another novice monk smiled and said, "Those Talisman Masters also said that it was Master Chen who revived these deities. They even invited us to join the Talisman Master Association. We thought since we all save lives, it's fine to join. That night, we saw Master Chen. Other Talisman Masters said we were lucky."

"Master Chen?"

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan was slightly taken aback and smiled, "This Master Chen, is he surname Chen with the given name Shi?"

The novice monks nodded repeatedly, one monk smiled and said, "Does Sister recognize Chen Shi? He was even the top scorer..."

Another monk tugged at his sleeve repeatedly, signaling him to stop speaking. That monk didn't understand at first and was about to ask when suddenly recalling something: "Oh no! The young master was killed by Chen Shi! This Master Chen is the top scorer Chen Shi who killed the young master! The young master was the Holy Daughter Xuanxuan's lover..."

He inwardly lamented, unsure of how to explain. The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan smiled and said, "Chen Shi and I are old acquaintances; you may speak freely."

The novice monks dared not say more and hurriedly excused themselves.

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan smiled, silently thinking, "Mentioning Chen Shi's name once again, my heart is no longer disturbed. Master is right; if one is free from love, there are neither worries nor fears. I have let go, hence able to cut the Three Corpses and attain Divine Skills."

She walked toward her Zen Room when suddenly a familiar voice called from behind her: "Xuanxuan, long time no see. Are you well?"

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan's Heart Spirit trembled; the forged-to-perfection heart attained through Zen Meditation was suddenly thrown into chaos.

She thought she had been free from love, cut the Three Corpses, and had no more emotions, but unexpectedly, hearing this call reignited countless tangled feelings in her heart.

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan turned around, Chen Shi stood at the mountain gate of the Bodhi Dojo, waving at her from afar.

The Holy Daughter Xuanxuan, her demeanor radiant, stood in the wind and looked toward the man at the gates, with a grand and magnificent White Jade Buddha statue towering behind her, overlooking all living beings.

"Mr. Chen, I offer my physical body as a gift to you, would you refrain from contesting for the top scorer?"

"What is offering the physical body?"

"It's giving oneself in marriage!"

...

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, smiled and walked down the mountain.

After a moment, the two walked on the white jade steps and arrived at the Buddha Light Platform of the Bodhi Dojo. It is said that here, one can see the Buddha's light from the Buddha Realm, and if luck is favorable, even see the silhouettes of great Buddhas amidst the sea of clouds, as if they were seated in the Buddha Realm, preaching with heavenly flowers falling profusely.

However, Chen Shi was not so fortunate; he only saw the boundless sea of clouds, and the peaks of the Bodhi Dojo, which looked like golden summits, resembling unsinkable islands in the sea of clouds.

"Mr. Chen came just to see me?" Xuan, the Holy Daughter, asked.

Chen Shi shook his head and said, "No. I was reviving the Chinese deities nearby, and thinking you were here, I came over. It wasn't a special trip to see you."

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, was still very happy and smiled, "It's kind of you to come."

Chen Shi did want to clarify to her that he truly was just passing by, but after thinking about it, he decided to let it go.

Reuniting with an old friend, naturally, there was much to talk about.

Nearly a year had passed since the catastrophe, and much had happened to everyone. Xuan, the Holy Daughter, recounted her adventures to Chen Shi, mentioning her confusion and hesitation upon witnessing the suffering of the world, and referred to the words of Huiyin Bodhi, saying, "I still don't know whether I should descend the mountain to save more people, or sit in meditation, comprehend the red dust, and attain the way through detachment."

Chen Shi raised his head to look at the statue of the White Jade Buddha behind her and mused, "If there is a compassionate heart, what need is there for white jade adornment? The Bodhi Dojo is resplendent, piled with jade, glowing with pearls and treasures, golden Buddhas everywhere. The monks and Zen Masters sit in meditation, carefree and content, how are they different from this White Jade Buddha?"

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, angrily said, "You're saying my Bodhi Dojo lacks compassion!"

Chen Shi smiled and said, "I didn't say that. I said the Bodhi Dojo is indeed worthy of being a Holy Land of the era!"

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, said, "You did say it!"

"I did not! Don't slander me!"

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, glared at him angrily but then suddenly looked deflated, no longer angry, and smiled, "And you? What have you been doing this past year?"

Chen Shi then recounted his experiences over these days to her, spoke of his adventures searching those ancient temples, talked about his confrontations at Despair Slope, spoke of his Demon Transformation, talked about rescuing people, and said much more.

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, didn't interrupt, just looked at him quietly, listening as he continued, her inner world calm and undisturbed.

She seemed to enter a state of neither-thought-nor-no-thought meditation, with no thoughts in her mind. Chen Shi's words were like pictures, taking her to experience the various facets of the mortal world, to feel the joys and sorrows, separations and reunions of the human world,

This was a wonderful form of practice, known in Buddhism as the "Six Reincarnation Scripture," following a person's thoughts, almost experiencing cycles of reincarnation, enhancing perception.

Chen Shi finished speaking, lost in thought.

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, awakened from the mystical immersion in the Six Reincarnation Scripture, and asked, "What is Mr. Chen thinking?"

"I am thinking, with my personal strength, can I really reverse the cosmos and change the world? Sometimes, I feel so small, like an insignificant mayfly between heaven and earth, a tiny speck in the vast ocean."

Chen Shi laughed and said, "I worry, whether I might too one day be shattered to pieces."

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, looked at his profile and realized he had matured much since the time in the Western Capital, with less of the childishness.

"What do you need me to do?" she suddenly asked, as if compelled by an unseen force.

Chen Shi, invigorated, turned to face her, smiled, and said, "I need you to descend the mountain, join the Red Mountain Hall Talisman Master Association, use your Buddhist Law to help more people, to save more people, to search for more ancient temples, to revive more Ancient Chinese Gods! Xuanxuan, I need you to find more hands to do this task, to enter the storm and fire, to plunge into the catastrophe, to fight desperately against ghost gods and human hearts."

His eyes were fervent, and he said loudly, "Xuanxuan, let the Buddha stay on the mountain, I need you to descend, to suppress demons and uphold the Tao!"

"Alright! I promise you!" Xuan, the Holy Daughter, resolutely said.

Before long, a novice frantically came to see Huiyin Bodhi and Master Miao Yin and the others, crying out, "Bodhi, something alarming! Chen Shi went up the mountain and bewitched Xuan, the Holy Daughter, in just a few words! Xuan, the Holy Daughter, took many senior brothers and went down the mountain to suppress demons!"

"Nonsense!"

Master Miao Yin slammed the table in anger, "Chen Yindou came up the mountain back then and almost bewitched someone, now his grandson is following suit, also coming up to entice people! And now, he takes my disciple away!"

Huiyin Bodhi said, "Myao Yin, let them be."

"You were the one who almost got enticed away back then, no wonder you say let them go!"

Master Miao Yin burst out of the Golden Hall, sneering, "I'll go bring back my foolish disciple!"

Xuan, the Holy Daughter, along with many monks of the Bodhi Dojo, entered the vast human world, she looked back at the main peak of the Bodhi Dojo and waved her hand.

"Mr. Chen, I give you a scroll of scriptures, hoping you often study it." She handed Chen Shi a scroll of scriptures and left with the monks and nuns.

Chen Shi boarded the wooden cart and opened the scroll, only to see a page with a Bodhi leaf tucked inside, likely read by Xuan, the Holy Daughter, up to there.

"From love arises sorrow, from love arises fear. If one is detached from love, there is no sorrow or fear..."

Chen Shi read this, turned over the book's cover, and on it were the words "Sutra of the Buddha's Discourse on the King of Marvelous Colors."