In the center of the Buddhist Pure Land spanning countless kalpas, Mount Sumeru towers high, surrounded by the purity of the Four Dhyāna Heavens. Seated there is an ancient golden Buddha of profound wisdom, with twenty-four layers of sacred halos radiating from the back of His head, their brilliance interwoven, flawless and serene, exuding divine majesty. In His palm rests an ancient glazed lamp, brimming with the essence of countless karmic ties, as if it had existed since time immemorial.
Yet at this very moment, the eyes of this ancient golden Buddha, usually deep and tranquil, were filled with despair, frustration, defeat, and unwillingness—emotions so intense they threatened to manifest as inner demons, destroying eons of spiritual cultivation.
“Alas…” With a long sigh, the Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara expelled the turbid energy and demonic thoughts from His heart, allowing the glazed lamp to burn them away, dissolving the negative accumulations within His body.
Su Meng had already ascended to the Other Shore, becoming one of the great figures who dictated the rise and fall of the myriad realms. The Ancient Buddha’s own aspirations for the “Cause of All Effects” had utterly vanished like a bubble, leaving Him no choice but to pin His hopes on the struggles and rivalries among the great figures of the Other Shore, no longer able to grasp fate in His own hands.
Su Meng had cultivated for merely a few centuries, yet He had broken through barriers one after another, transcending the Sea of Suffering. Even accounting for the loosening of heaven and earth, the flow of Dao resonance, and the schemes of ancient beings like the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning, the Celestial Venerable of Virtue, and the Golden Emperor, none of it could overshadow His brilliance, His indomitable will, His sharpness and decisiveness. Only with such qualities could He soar across the heavens and illuminate the myriad realms.
Compared to Him, the Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara, who had lived from the primordial era to this epoch, who had once enlightened the Buddha Himself, seemed far too hesitant and timid. When opportunities arose, He dared not stake everything for even a sliver of possibility. This cautiousness was the reason He had survived to this day, yet it was also the shackle that prevented Him from taking that crucial step forward, rendering His eons of cultivation futile.
Looking back, He had not lacked opportunities to eliminate Su Meng in advance. But due to weighing risks, caution, and unwillingness to gamble with His life, He could only watch with envy and resentment as Su Meng grew step by step. It was only after the Devil Buddha’s admonishment—”Indecision invites disaster”—that He slowly shifted His mindset. Now, at last, He fully understood:
In this world, few things come with absolute certainty. When it comes to transcending the Sea of Suffering and reaching the Other Shore, even a twenty percent chance is worth staking everything for!
As these thoughts swirled in the Ancient Buddha’s mind, boundless radiance suddenly erupted in the skies above the Pure Land, illuminating every Bodhi tree, every sala flower, every Buddhist shrine, and every monk.
“Namo Amitabha.” The Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara pressed His palms together in reverence to the Buddha of Infinite Light.
The arrival was none other than the master of the Western Pure Land, the foremost of the Two Buddhist Sages—Amitabha, the Buddha of Infinite Light and Infinite Life.
A sea of glazed pure light submerged the clouds, cradling the faintly visible form of an ancient Buddha, whose body was wreathed in radiant halos, coalescing into a flawless, perfect Buddha-light.
“Benefactor Su has already attained the Other Shore, transcending the Sea of Suffering. Can you not let go of the obsession in your heart?” Amitabha’s majestic voice, like the tolling of dawn bells and dusk drums, shook the Ancient Buddha’s golden body, causing the past to crumble and new insights to emerge.
Could He let go?
Could He let go of the “Cause of All Effects,” for which He had waited an entire epoch?
At this point, should He still chase after that elusive hope?
Should He continue waiting until the end of the epoch?
The Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara seemed to awaken. Rising from His seat, He bowed solemnly and said, “Namo Amitabha. I thank the Buddha of Infinite Light for this awakening strike.”
Amitabha’s voice echoed through the Pure Land: “Without letting go of obsession, how can one perceive the Tathāgata within? Your fixation on the Cause of All Effects has blinded you. Look back now—had you relinquished this pursuit when you joined the Buddhist order during the Investiture of the Gods, devoting yourself wholly to the ‘Great Dream Sutra’ or the ‘Tathāgata’s Palm,’ would you have fallen short of Maitreya? Might you have transcended the Sea of Suffering long ago?”
“To become a Buddha in this very moment is not too late. There are still centuries before the end of the epoch. If Benefactor Su could do it, why not you?”
Hearing these words, the Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara was half-enlightened regarding His past obsessions, half-overcome with bitter laughter and resignation.
Beyond enlightening Him to dispel His fixation, the Buddha of Infinite Light also sought to use His own near-perfect illusory “Karmic Dao Fruit” to reconcile with the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning, Su Meng, and resolve their enmity as obstructors of each other’s paths.
Previously, the Ancient Buddha had feared future persecution from the new Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning, resigning Himself to confinement within the Pure Land under divine protection. Yet before Su Meng could even act, Amitabha had already instructed Him to relinquish the Path of Karma, leaving Him no room for evasion.
Such was the power of those who dwelled on the Other Shore. Such were the ways of the lofty figures above.
Indeed, by severing His own path to transcendence, Su Meng, the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning, had eliminated any conflict with ancient beings like Amitabha, the Celestial Venerable of Virtue, and the Golden Emperor. Many matters could now be eased, even leading to cooperation.
That single strike of Su Meng’s blade, though it severed His hope of attaining the Dao, had also unleashed infinite variables, creating the most favorable circumstances for Himself.
After a long silence, the Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara finally sighed deeply, as if expelling the obsessions that had haunted Him for so long:
“Namo Amitabha. What must I do?”
Amitabha’s compassionate and majestic voice resounded once more: “Without destruction, there can be no creation. Through the Nirvana Golden Body, relinquish the past, sever the Path of Karma, reincarnate into the Pure Land, and devote yourself wholeheartedly to Buddhist practice. Become the Buddha of the future—unstained, undiminished, neither increasing nor decreasing.”
With a final bitter smile, the Ancient Buddha left His resignation in this world. Then, assuming the lotus position, He closed His eyes, formed the Nirvana Mudra, and His expression became serene, filled with purity and compassion.
Softly, He chanted: “If I attain Bodhi, I shall illuminate the myriad realms, the past and future, across all epochs…”
A golden flame of glazed light rose from His body, burning quietly, refining His golden form and consuming the lamp. Around Him, the chanting of sutras and Buddha’s names continued unceasingly, while celestial flowers rained down.
When all had settled, a single point of glazed light soared into the palm of the ancient, serene Buddha above, entering the Pure Land and bathing in the waters of the Eight Treasures Merit Pool, transforming into an ordinary monk with a faint aura.
At the center of the Pure Land, where the Ancient Buddha of Dipamkara had sat, a translucent, black-and-white śarīra remained, its radiance swirling, intricate yet serene.
As the Buddha-light in the sky faded, the śarīra leaped up, piercing through layers of time and space, descending into the earthly Pure Land and landing in the palm of Maitreya, whose golden body was plump and jovial.
Gazing at the śarīra, the ever-smiling Maitreya suddenly sighed. Then, with a leap, He soared toward the infinitely lofty Jade Void Palace.
Passing through layers of darkness where time itself seemed to stand still, Maitreya finally beheld an ancient palace of profound yellow, its eaves draped with dragon-like strands of merit, noble and exalted. The vermilion gates were tightly shut, adorned with three hundred and sixty-five golden nails. Around the palace, on three visible sides, stood nine ancient wells each, their depths unfathomable, encircled by jade railings, exuding solemnity. Among them, twenty-four wells emitted strange, dreamlike lights.
Though not His first visit to the Jade Void Palace, witnessing the Other Shore’s sacred ground restored to its former glory, now even more profound, Maitreya couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, overwhelmed by deep reverence.
This was still the domain of the Other Shore, and its inhabitant remained one of the lofty figures above.
Approaching the gates, He noticed a peculiar plant, verdant and swaying.
“Please inform the Celestial Venerable that Maitreya seeks an audience.” Not daring to be negligent, Maitreya pressed His palms together and bowed.
The Great Green Root, never before honored with such reverence from a future Buddha, nearly floated away in delight. Clearing its throat, it said pompously, “Bodhisattva, please wait.”
Regardless of His cultivation, Maitreya’s current attainment was still that of a Great Bodhisattva.
The root turned and entered the Jade Void Palace, returning after a while with measured steps. “The Patriarch bids you enter.”
Maitreya nodded slightly as the vermilion gates slowly opened. Stepping inside, He proceeded toward the depths of the palace.
The Great Green Root snickered as it led the way, thoroughly satisfied. In truth, the instructions had been given long before Maitreya’s arrival.
Gate after gate opened as Maitreya traversed the halls, finally arriving before the Jade Pure Hall. There, amidst swirling mists and profound darkness, a pristine circular light hung as if on the horizon. Within it, faintly visible, were a jade-green tree bearing fruit, a long sword crackling with purple lightning, and a ruyi scepter of purple, white, azure, and gold. And within it all, the indistinct yet awe-inspiring figure of one who had attained the aura of antiquity.
A true Celestial Venerable, a true being of the Other Shore… Maitreya suppressed a shudder, steadying His emotions, restraining fear and reverence as He pressed His palms together in greeting:
“This humble monk pays respects to the Celestial Venerable.”
Just yesterday, they had stood on the same level. Today, the gap between them was as vast as heaven and earth.
“No need for formalities,” came the transcendent and authoritative voice from within the Jade Pure Hall.
Not daring to waste words, Maitreya produced the śarīra, its black-and-white radiance swirling, and said solemnly, “The Buddha of Infinite Light, learning of the Celestial Venerable’s regret regarding the Cause of All Effects, instructed this humble monk to deliver this, hoping to resolve past grievances.”
Holding His breath, Maitreya awaited a response, His heart slightly uneasy. If Su Meng, the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning, refused this offering, cutting off the past would leave Maitreya with almost no hope of reaching the Other Shore.
After a pause, the lofty voice from the hall replied:
“Regarding the past, Fellow Daoist Amitabha was merely an accomplice. There is no need for such concern.”
As the words faded, Maitreya watched as the śarīra flew from His hand into the pristine circular light, settling upon the faintly visible jade-green tree.
With a thunderous roar, brilliant light erupted before His eyes. The world turned illusory, filled with dazzling threads of stars against a backdrop of black and white. Outside the Jade Void Palace, the remaining twelve ancient wells also began to emit strange radiance.
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