The Jade Pure Hall returned to silence. Meng Qi, holding the Three Treasures Ruyi, began to expound on the mysteries of Primordial Unity and the intricate yet simple structure of time and space—insights gleaned from years of arduous cultivation and the condensation of his illusory Dao Fruit. Every word he spoke was profound, as if the very laws of the universe followed his speech. Darkness enveloped the surroundings, while golden lamps manifested out of thin air, resembling scattered celestial blossoms, casting an ethereal and dreamlike aura over everything.
The disciples of the Jade Void Palace who had come to listen reacted differently based on their cultivation levels—some were utterly entranced, while others seemed lost in contemplation. The higher their realm, the deeper their immersion.
Nezha, whose Dharma Body was nurtured by the Primordial Chaos Green Lotus and whose innate talents had propelled him to the Creation realm, excelled in divine powers and combat but lacked deeper comprehension of the Dao’s origin. Watching his uncles, Guangchengzi and Chijingzi, either smiling faintly or visibly moved, he felt somewhat puzzled. Though he too had gained insights from the Sect Master’s teachings and was eager to apply them to his martial arts, he couldn’t fathom why they were so visibly affected.
Just then, a golden lamp descended before his eyes, its flickering flame seemingly containing the most profound and subtle truths. Focusing his gaze, he perceived within it cause and effect, good and evil, past and future—as if all the principles and descriptions of heaven and earth were condensed into that single point. The more he tried to discern it, the more infinite it seemed. Eventually, hallucinations arose—the point multiplied into lines, the lines formed planes, the planes stacked into worlds, and then pierced through time itself. The further it evolved, the more indescribable it became, until finally, it collapsed back into a singular point where void and time curled together, as if nothing had ever changed.
Nezha was utterly absorbed, feeling as though the realms of Legend, Creation, and the Other Shore were all encapsulated within. He didn’t even blink, fearing he might miss a single detail, his mind racing to replicate this evolution.
Suddenly, the golden lamp fell to the ground and extinguished, all its profundity vanishing abruptly. Nezha instinctively reached out to catch it but grasped only empty air, leaving him with a profound sense of loss.
He snapped out of his daze, startled by his own uncharacteristic behavior. “Did I just become as entranced as Uncle Guangchengzi and the others?”
At that moment, Meng Qi ceased his lecture and nodded slightly. “Greed leads to excess. Let us stop here for today.”
Before Guangchengzi or Manjushri could express their regret, he continued, “Senior Sister Cihang.”
Cihang? Guanyin? The Golden Immortals, including Guangchengzi, seemed to realize something, their gazes turning toward the Undying Demon God.
Under the bewildered eyes of the junior disciples, the Undying Demon God slowly rose and bowed. “What instructions does the Sect Master have for me?”
Was she admitting to being the Cihang Daoist before the Investiture of the Gods and the illustrious Guanyin Bodhisattva afterward? Duke Huan of Qi was both shocked and unsurprised. But after escaping from Mount Ling, why hadn’t she returned to the Western Pure Land, choosing instead to remain secluded at Mount Tianzhu?
Meng Qi spoke gently, “The kalpa nears its end, and the apocalypse approaches. All beings suffer as if plunged into the Nine Nethers. Senior Sister Cihang, have you forgotten your vow to relieve suffering and aid the distressed?”
The Undying Demon God paused before solemnly replying, “This vow has never left my heart.”
Seated on his lotus throne, Meng Qi nodded. “Then descend to the mortal realm and fulfill it.”
As he spoke, he pointed casually, and black mist surged from the Undying Demon God’s body—a mix of deathly aura and demonic corruption, twisting into nearly discernible Dao patterns before dissipating into nothingness.
With the mist gone, boundless golden light erupted from within her, accompanied by chants, prayers, and hymns that filled the Jade Pure Hall with purity and compassion.
As the light receded, the Undying Demon God had transformed back into the White-Robed Great Being. She bowed deeply, gratitude and solemnity in her voice. “I obey the Sect Master’s decree.”
She then nodded to Guangchengzi and the others before turning and leaving the Jade Pure Hall, exiting the Jade Void Palace as a streak of clear light descending to the mortal realm.
Watching her departure, Guangchengzi sighed softly. “All these years… she has endured much.”
…
Having received the decree and left the Kunlun Realm, Cihang Daoist surveyed the vast world below before descending into the Moonwater Nunnery within the Earthly Buddha Kingdom.
—After the fall of the Great Zhou, as a lineage of the Pure Land’s Great Bodhisattva, the Moonwater Nunnery had naturally become part of the Earthly Buddha Kingdom.
Inside the nunnery, the current abbess, Cizhen, sat in lotus posture before the golden statue of the Great Compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva, rhythmically striking a wooden fish. Upholding the aspirations of her predecessors, she had attained the Dharmakaya in recent years.
Suddenly, solemn and ethereal chants filled her ears, and a refreshing fragrance wafted into her nostrils. Sensing something, she opened her eyes to see the white jade vase before the statue glowing softly, the willow branch inside sprouting fresh leaves, transcendent and vibrant.
Drops of glazed golden light fell from the air, and the golden statue of Guanyin shed its lifelessness, brimming with vitality. Its colors brightened, and its eyes opened, radiating compassion.
Abbess Cizhen understood immediately. Clasping her hands, she murmured, “Homage to the Great Compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva. Your disciple welcomes the Patriarch’s descent.”
Cihang Daoist spoke solemnly, “In this era of apocalypse, all who harbor compassion must walk the world.”
While instructing Cizhen to gather the nunnery’s disciples, she also manifested an emanation at the border between the Earthly Buddha Kingdom and the Vacuous Pure Land to witness the suffering of beings and discern her duty.
…
At the border, Buddhist temples were everywhere. Crops grew unaided, yielding bountiful harvests season after season. The people lived in peace and contentment, always smiling, all reciting sutras, all compassionate, all diligently cultivating—a veritable paradise on earth, devoid of suffering.
Guanyin’s emanation, responding to prayers, took the form of a black-robed, delicate-looking bhikkhuni. Holding an alms bowl, she knocked on a household’s gate.
The middle-aged master, his face serene and kind, greeted her. “Venerable, have you come to seek alms?”
“Your kindness is appreciated,” the bhikkhuni replied gratefully.
The man took the bowl and returned with it filled with vegetarian food, chanting Buddha’s name all the while without pause.
Accepting the bowl, Guanyin smiled. “Your devotion to the Buddha is remarkable.”
“Flattery, flattery,” the man demurred. “If I were truly as devout as you say, I would have already met Maitreya Buddha, attained fruition, and enjoyed bliss, free from the sufferings of birth, aging, sickness, and death.”
“Can chanting Buddha’s name once devoutly truly lead to bliss and fruition?” The bhikkhuni frowned slightly. “How do you perceive the Tathagata within, seeking your inherent freedom? Or does Maitreya Buddha replace your own Tathagata?”
The man shook his head blankly. “I don’t understand this ‘Tathagata within’ or ‘inherent freedom.’ I only know to chant devoutly.”
Guanyin studied him deeply before leaving without another word.
…
Another emanation, disguised as an ordinary traveler, arrived in the Vacuous Pure Land. The scene was much the same—people lacked nothing, all serene and content, though social hierarchies were strict, and devotion to the Eternal Venerable Mother was absolute.
Posing as a merchant from the East Sea, Guanyin’s emanation struck up a conversation with an innkeeper.
The plump, kindly man in his thirties spoke elegantly and knowledgeably, yet every topic inevitably circled back to the Eternal Venerable Mother’s salvation.
“The Venerable Mother pities all beings, unwilling to see us perish in the apocalypse. Thus, she descends to save us, transforming the mortal realm into the Vacuous Pure Land. Even if heaven collapses and earth splits, we shall endure eternally within our home…” the innkeeper prattled on.
Guanyin’s emanation mused, “Does this salvation include those to the north?”
At this, the innkeeper’s expression twisted into malice. “It is they who worship evil demons, amassing sins that brought about the apocalypse! Only their deaths can atone!”
His kindly demeanor warped into something monstrous and repulsive in an instant.
Guanyin listened quietly, sighing inwardly.
Just then, her true form in the Moonwater Nunnery sensed a shift in the world’s energy. Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva, the Future Star Buddha, and others descended upon the border between the Earthly Buddha Kingdom and the Vacuous Pure Land.
“Has the century-long peace between the Earthly Buddha Kingdom and the Vacuous Pure Land come to an end?” Cihang Daoist lamented.
After the Golden Mother’s betrayal and the Sect Master’s ascension to the Other Shore, this peace had become thinner than paper. Its end was inevitable.
Somewhere in the Vacuous Pure Land, a pure white Buddha watched this scene with cold, piercing eyes.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage