Chapter 80. I’m taking an oath upon the spirit of our deceased Shizun Jiufang

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“Changming” sealed only thin air, his expression that of visible shock.

What he had touched was not a warm body, but a weightless puppet that started floating down to the ground.

A sword glow, that was bright like the sun in the spring morning, appeared out of nowhere, shattering everything in sight into small pieces. 

Spring morning: “chunzhao”

These pieces fell into nothingness, and were nowhere to be seen.

Yun Weisi was standing in his original place. He had not moved even half a step since the beginning, and the illusion of him dashing forward was recklessly swept away by the sword.

However, he was not standing in that cave anymore. He was now standing on a long and narrow stone staircase.

It was so narrow it could only fit one person if they stood sideways. On both sides of the staircase, everything was pitch-black, with a myriad of sparkling stars.

Yun Weisi turned his head abruptly!

The point of a Buddhist cane was three chi away from him, completely unmoving, ready to stab his chest from behind at any moment.

Three chi: 1 m

Sun Buku showed him a faint smile.

“Congratulations on your narrow escape, Daozun Yun. If you hadn’t moved half a chi just now, my cane would have stabbed you, taking your life.”

While saying this, he withdrew his weapon.

Sun Buku’s Buddhist cane was more plain and unadorned when compared to the Golden Beads Staff, even making its owner look somewhat miserable and shabby. However, there were none of the usual pearls encrusted with the figure of Buddha and written chants on the top of the cane. Rather, it was as sharp as a sword. If one looked closely, they would see that it was densely packed with Buddhist scriptures.

Even if this Buddhist cane could not be called a treasure, it was still an effective weapon in the right hands.

“You know where we are,” Yun Weisi said.

It was not a question, Yun Weisi was sure.

Sun Buku definitely knew more than they did.

Yun Weisi had not actually fought against him often in the past. They bore no grudges with each other, but Daoism and Buddhism were incompatible, and, on top of that, there was also Changming—as a result, they were neither friends nor enemies.

Others only knew that the Qingyun School had a profound knowledge of Buddhism, and their head, Zen Master Buku, was the best one in the Buddhist sects nowadays. He was gentle, and his voice was soft. No one had ever seen him get angry. It was said that everyone who was fortunate to hear him preach, felt as if a spring breeze had washed over them, and felt their head anointed with the purest cream.

Their head anointed with the purest cream: enlightened with flawless Buddhist teaching

Buddhist cultivators were different from secular monks. Some of them shaved their hair, while some did not, because they were more concentrated on cultivating their hearts. If their mental state did not advance, their cultivation would not improve as well, and even shaving every hair of their body would not help, so there were many Buddhist monks with hair. Of course, there were also some who showed their devotion to cultivation by shaving their hair, like Kuhe.

There was no doubt that Sun Buku’s appearance surpassed that of a common Buddhist monk by far. His elegant and graceful looks easily aroused worldly desires. It was said that there was once someone who was swept away by his appearance right in the middle of him expounding Buddhist sutras, and that person dashed to Sun Buku in front of everybody, begging for his love. Of course, they had not succeeded, but Sun Buku’s nickname, the Jade Tree of Buddhist Sects, had spread.

But Yun Weisi knew that this was only how Sun Buku appeared to others.

This man’s thoughts were unfathomable. He was shrewd and silent, and although he often laughed, those were mostly a tiger’s smiles. Him being compassionate and merciful was a delusion of ignorant children.

Tiger’s smiles: hypocritical smile, wicked thoughts

“You’ve lived in the Nine Layers of the Abyss for so many years. You should understand the Void Shore very well,” Sun Buku said unhurriedly.

Not only did he understand it well—Yun Weisi had been guarding that place for many years, so he knew its layout and rules by heart.

“There are two treasures in Buddhist sects, which are regarded as the most valuable, and they are actually twin treasures. They’re called the Buddha’s Drums of Kui Pattern [1]. It is said that a long time ago, a deity created the sky, using the skin of the kui dragon, and the drums were made out of a remaining piece of skin. One of them was given to the Qingyun School, and the other one—to the Wanlian Buddhist Temple. After the failure of the Liuhe Zhutian Formation, the master of the Wanjian Immortal Clan, Jiang Li, wanted to close the gap within the Nine Layers of the Abyss. To drive demons away, they needed a Buddha’s Drum of Kui Pattern. But the Wanlian Buddhist Temple refused to lend it to them, and, although the head of the Qingyun School was inwardly angry, he let Jiang Li borrow the drum for free.”

It seemed as if his words had no connection with their current situation, but, when Yun Weisi heard him mention the Liuhe Zhutian Formation, his expression changed slightly, and he did not interrupt Sun Buku.

Sun Buku continued: “Since this drum is a treasure of the ancient times, naturally, it has many uses. It can change its size, becoming as large as the universe or as small as dust. It can also create almost anything, from a vast desert to mere seaweed, and is endlessly changing. The Void Shore of the Nine Layers of the Abyss was actually a creation of the Buddha’s Drum of Kui Pattern. If you combine it with Jiang Li and Chi Bijiang’s abilities to create an appropriate formation that can send people to the past and change the future, you’ll certainly understand how useful this treasure can be.”

Yun Weisi: “You’re implying that we’re now inside a Buddha’s Drum of Kui Pattern?”

Sun Buku smiled: “Shixiong Yun is deserving of his title as the venerable master of a Daoist sect. You are highly intelligent and can easily make inferences.”

Yun Weisi: “Can you go into the past here as well, and change the future?”

Sun Buku: “The Buddha’s Drums of Kui Pattern don’t have such applications themselves. The Void Shore is something JIang Li created by chance while trying to overcome a calamity. Because of this, Chi Bijiang’s life forces were damaged, and she died an untimely death. She was overwhelmed with love, and took the hit for Jiang Li’s sake, blocking the calamity for him. Surely, you know that Jiang Li created the Nine Layers of the Abyss not for the reason he had mentioned to you, that is, not to close the gap leading to the Darkest Abyss.”

Yun Weisi: “He wants to use the whole world as a formation, laying out a new Liuhe Zhutian Formation. The Nine Layers of the Abyss will be one of its pillars, and he used it to correct his mistakes.”

Sun Buku was a bit surprised: “So you actually do know it.”

Yun Weisi asked in reply: “How did you learn this?”

They had come here to rescue Zhou Keyi. As luck would have it, Sun Buku had arrived as well.

Yun Weisi did not believe in coincidences, but he believed his eyes.

Sun Buku was in a good mood, so he was not beating around the bush.

“Because of Chi Bijiang.”

Yun Weisi: “The Wanxiang Palace.”

Sun Buku nodded his head: “Correct. At first, I was investigating Bei Shu’s rebellion, but I happened to meet Chi Bijiang, and I found out a lot from her. It’s a long story, and I can’t tell it in a few words. In short, I followed the vine to get to the mellow, and realized that the Wanlian Buddhist Temple is also involved, so I came here to take a look. I didn’t really expect to find something that bemusing. That means that the death of Shizun Jiufang, the genius of his generation, in the battle of the Sacred Mountain Wan, is suspicious. I suppose that you also want to learn the truth about what happened. Good or evil, he is still our shizun, how can we let people smear his name and throw him into oblivion behind his back?”

Followed the vine to get to the mellow: track down smth by following clues

Yun Weisi was looking at Sun Buku, trying to understand how much of what he had said had been sincere.

“But you wanted to kill me just now.”

Words can be used to cover up lies, but Sun Buku’s murderous intent was apparent in his eyes.

“You’ve almost become possessed. This poor monk couldn’t simply await his doom.”

Sun Buku’s gaze was penetrating, as if he wanted to see through to Yun Weisi’s inner thoughts.

“Compared to the Ninth Abyss, this place is a minor sorcerer in the presence of a significant one. Given your cultivation, there’s no chance you can get possessed. What could you have seen that almost made you lose control?”

A minor sorcerer in the presence of a significant one: pale into insignificance by comparison

Yun Weisi did not answer this question. He turned back and started looking for a way out, going down the stairs step by step. He used his spiritual powers to send the Chunzhao Sword ahead as a guide.

But, akin to a stone sinking in the sea, it found nothing.

He lowered his head to look down.

The high stairway under his feet seemed to have neither beginning nor end, stretching into the darkness as far as the eye could see, suspended in the air. No one knew where it began or where its final step was located.

Yun Weisi dropped a jade pendant down there, but heard nothing even after a long time had passed.

It was so deep that one could not see the bottom of it.

Sun Buku was standing near him, making leisurely remarks.

“If you jump down, you’ll fall into a boundless trap, just like those people in the Void Shore who are indulging in the past. Yun Weisi, since we both want to get out of here, why don’t we work together?”

He seemed to not be in a hurry at all. He was so calm and unruffled that he even sat on the stairs cross-legged, his fingers folded in a lotus gesture.

Holding a flower, he smiled, just like a Buddha expressing compassion.

Holding a flower, he smiled: fig. gain a thorough understanding of Buddhist teachings; in this case, I believe, it refers to his gesture

Yun Weisi: “Keep talking.”

He was not saying much because he did not want to interact with Sun Buku. This person was carefully observing his speech and behavior, while Sun Buku’s ability to read minds was quite impressive, which stood in contrast to his merciful appearance that was refined like a spring breeze and rain.

Yun Weisi was repulsed by him subconsciously, and was always on guard against Sun Buku.

Sun Buku said: “The Wanlian Buddhist Temple has been accepting disciples in abundance for years, and has performed miracles to lure crowds of common people to worship them on bended knees. This faith has deepened their spiritual powers, and they have colluded with the Ghost Realm in secret, capturing living souls to refine into ritual vessels, which has enhanced their cultivation bases. After the accident with Bei Shu came to light, the Qingyun School started investigating, finding spider threads and horse tracks everywhere. This time, I took up the matter myself, and I wanted to find some clues during the puja on the fifteenth of the seventh month. I didn’t expect them to be that generous, and use a formation set with their Drum of Kui Pattern to lure us here and trap us.”

Spider threads and horse tracks: tiny hints

Yun Weisi furrowed in his mind: “Colluded with the Ghost Realm?”

“You didn’t know?” Sun Buku thought that Yun Weisi was quite knowledgeable about the Wanlian Buddhist Temple, “Attracted by its fame, common people from every province come to the annual puja of the fifteenth of the seventh month to offer money, fruits and flowers that pile up as tall as mountains. Everyone wants the Wanlian Buddhist Temple to release the souls of their ancestors, and protect their households. In reality, everything is different.”

The Wanlian Buddhist Temple summoned immortal souls, collected ghosts, and tricked them into traps, either taking them under control, or refining them to become evil spirits. However, the Human World venerated them.

According to Sun Buku, the puja was an outright scam.

Yun Weisi was thinking about Changming.

They had gone their separate ways, and Changming was exploring the paths inside the You Capital. Since the Wanlian Buddhist Temple knew about their arrival in advance, they used the Buddha’s Drum of Kui Pattern to kindly invite them to enter their jar. Their enemies had certainly laid out schemes in the place where Shizun was now, and Changming could hardly avoid countless snares and ambushes alone.

To kindly invite them to enter their jar: lure into a trap

Thinking about this, he would inevitably start worrying, but he could not show it lest Sun Buku noticed a clue.

“Why should I trust you?”

His expression was grave, as if he was pondering over Sun Buku’s words.

“Since we used to be fellow disciples, I’m taking an oath upon the spirit of our deceased Shizun Jiufang. Until we’ve uncovered the mysteries around the Wanlian Buddhist Temple, I won’t get in your way at all…”

Although Yun Weisi’s expression had appeared as serene as Sun Buku’s, at this moment, it looked inexplicably baffling.

“Your expression is strange, what’s wrong with my words?”

Yun Weisi restrained himself: “Everything’s fine. You’ve already rebelled against him, so don’t use his name in your vows.”

“Although Shizun Jiufang and I took different paths, we could still work together. I’m devoted to Buddhism with all my heart, but he thought it beneath his dignity, so of course, I couldn’t approve of him. But, as someone who was pursuing the Heavenly Dao, he’s my role model. I deeply venerate him. Moreover, I know that—”

Sun Buku smiled faintly, “Although you became enemies, you still think of him as your shizun.”

For Sun Buku, Jiufang Changming was a bright beacon. If you catch up with this light, you will become one yourself.

He believed in Buddhism, but he did not believe in Jiufang Changming.

But Yun Weisi was different.

Yun Weisi’s Dao was always Jiufang Changming.

“Save me ah! Is there anyone here?! Quick, save me!”

The urgent and pitiful cry for help reached their ears, drifting from place to place, neither far away nor close by. It broke their probing conversation that was already at drawn daggers.

This voice was coming from the cultivator who had opposed Jun Zilan earlier.

The author has something to say:

A small scene unrelated to the main text:

Sun Buku: I’m taking the oath upon the spirit of our deceased Shizun Jiufang…

Yun Weisi: ???

Zhou Keyi: ???

Song Nanyan: ???

Tn:

[1] Kui pattern: animal pattern of Chinese bronze working of Shang—Zhou dynasties. Kui is a mythical creature resembling a dragon.