Chapter 398: Zhao Duan: Eastern and Western Buddhism, fighting over the Dharma? Ridiculous

Let’s get in!

“Dang—dang—”

Inside the Shenlong Temple, a deep bell sound rang out from this ancient temple. The sound rolled across the entire venue, instantly shocking the officials in the Guanshui Tower.

Outside the Shenlong Temple, in the square that had been cleared of snow long ago, a group of striking Western monks walked towards the armored guards who were blocking the scene in the cold wind.

The team includes the "Five-Direction Monks" under the Western Region Dharma King, monks wearing robes of different colors such as black, green, white, red and yellow. However, the most eye-catching one is the Red Sect Master.

The old monkey-like "holy monk" led the crowd in, his expression solemn and dignified. Beside him, the young man Danche followed closely, holding a prayer wheel in his hand.

Under the watchful eyes of the imperial guards and the nobles who were invited to observe the debate in the square, the group walked to the side of the stands.

Dan Che glanced around, frowned slightly, and said in a low voice:

"Master, there aren't many people here."

The Red Sect Master looked straight ahead, but he was clearly disappointed, not because of the size of the audience...

After learning about the "Buddhism ban", he had already guessed that there would not be many believers watching today's debate. What really made him frown was that with fewer people, the chance of "wisdom" appearing would be much lower.

However, now that things have come to this, he can only calm down and whisper:

"Don't look around. Do you think these people on the field are...? There are even more people from the Yu Kingdom hiding in the surrounding buildings. Today, the Queen of Yu Kingdom is in the nearby Guanshui Tower.

Moreover, the debate is not only for the purpose of gaining fame, but also as a competition with the Shenlong Temple, so that the monks in the Shenlong Temple can realize that the true orthodoxy of Buddhism in the Western Regions is our true goal. "

In the final analysis, today's debate is a competition between Eastern and Western Buddhism.

Showing it to outsiders is secondary; fighting for the "orthodox" status is the most important thing.

“Dang—dang—”

The bells echoed lowly.

After the Western Regions delegation entered the square, a large group of monks also walked out of the gate of the Shenlong Temple.

The leader was the Abbot Xuanyin, who was wearing a brown monk's robe and a golden cassock, had a hunched figure and an old face.

This powerful man who had been hiding in the Buddhist temple and had not appeared in the world for many years appeared in front of everyone again after Xu Zhenguan overwhelmed the Shenlong Temple and withstood the three swords of the empress not long ago.

Behind Abbot Xuanyin, there were three people following.

They are:

Bian Ji in white monk's robes;

Nagarjuna, a man of great stature and a beardless face;

And the female Prajna Bodhisattva with long black hair reaching her waist, a plump and charming figure, and almost transparent pupils.

Behind the three of them were densely packed monks numbering hundreds, each of whom had a serious and solemn expression.

Both sides came to the two sides of a huge circular platform that was hastily built in the square.

Almost simultaneously, all the monks put their hands together and chanted, "Amitabha!"

The mixed sounds sounded like a huge bell, shaking the tiles of the buildings around the square.

Such a huge momentum!

The many onlookers nearby all changed color, feeling enveloped by a sudden solemn atmosphere.

…

On the water-viewing tower.

The court officials looked out at the snowy square and could clearly hear the resounding Buddhist chants.

Mo Chou, a maid, stood beside the empress. As soon as she filled a glass of water, her eyelids twitched wildly when she saw the ripples in the water in the cup on the coffee table.

Then, everyone clearly heard the loud voices of the two sides greeting each other from afar.

It was probably a Red Sect monk representing the Dharma King, having a dialogue with Xuan Yin, explaining the purpose of today's debate, and arguing for "orthodoxy" and so on.

"What a loud noise..."

Princess Wenzhu had a strange expression on her face. Although she had been in the Western Regions for many years, this was the first time she had witnessed a debate of this scale.

"That high platform is engraved with formations all around. Even without deliberately casting spells, the sound of the debate can spread far away."

Xu Zhenguan sat at the head of the table, his expression calm. He smiled and said, "Aunt, did you know that there would be a debate later? What is the topic today?"

Princess Wenzhu shook her head: "I don't know."

After entering the city, she deliberately kept a distance from the Western Regions monks. She sat here today as the "Princess of Yu State" and not anything else.

Xu Zhenguan personally introduced:

"Do you see that high platform? From now on, both sides will send representatives up to the platform and jointly summon the projection of the deity, the Buddha, hanging high in the air. This time, the two sides will debate on 'what constitutes good deeds'. The outcome will not be determined by humans, but by the Buddha...

Oh, the Buddha is the god of wisdom, and is the perfect judge... This is also the reason for the struggle for "orthodoxy." Whoever's understanding of the Dharma is more favored by the Buddha will naturally inherit the orthodoxy of Buddhism.

The reason why she was so familiar with it was that this was not the first time that a debate had taken place in history.

But to actually witness it is something you have never seen before in your life.

The struggles in the religious world are no more docile than the secular imperial power. If you look through the history books, have there ever been any sectarian struggles that did not erupt in blood and fire?

…

When I was slightly distracted, the "greeting" session in the square ended.

"Master..." Dan Che glanced at the old monk beside him, only to see the latter's big hand gently stroking the little monk's head.

The Red Sect master stepped onto the platform, straightened his robes, and sat down cross-legged.

He looked across and said loudly, "Please!"

On the side of Shenlong Temple, Abbot Xuanyin sat on the chair in front of the monks. As a powerful being in the realm of heaven and man, according to the rules, he would not participate in this debate.

The plump and beautiful Prajna Bodhisattva glanced at the other two, smiled with a complicated expression, and sat down on the empty chair to the right of Xuanyin.

As one of the three Bodhisattvas in Buddhism, Prajna and Xuanyin have always been at odds with each other. This time, Xuanyin had personally ordered Prajna not to participate.

Everyone's eyes fell between Bian Ji and Nagarjuna Bodhisattva.

However, in the end, Nagarjuna Bodhisattva, who was highly expected and should have been the second-in-command of Shenlong Temple, snorted and turned around to sit on the left side of Xuanyin.

First, Tianhai was defeated, and then the lakeside was shrouded in smoke... After Nagarjuna returned to the capital this time, his power was severely reduced by the furious Xuanyin.

Therefore, the one who represented Shenlong Temple in the battle today was Bian Ji, the man Xuan Yin relied on the most and who was very good at speaking.

Bian Ji walked up to the platform step by step and also sat down cross-legged.

As he sat down, suddenly, without any warning, dark clouds gathered in the sky above the square, and the prayer wheel in the hands of the young monk Danche suddenly began to spin wildly on its own.

On the other hand, in Shenlong Temple, the unfathomable old monk Xuanyin had, at some point, spread out his palm and gently tossed a Buddhist symbol of the word "卍" into the sky.

"boom!"

There was a roar almost like thunder, and circles of ripple-like Buddha light suddenly spread across the sky, accompanied by the sound of hundreds of monks chanting Buddhist scriptures in the square.

Amid the sound of scriptures being recited, an astonishing scene appeared!

I saw a big hole appearing in the clouds in the sky. In the hole, there was a towering, huge and blurred Buddha head, overlooking the earth, bathing in the Buddha's light and looking towards the debate platform!

"World Honored One!"

Around the square, the nobles who were watching, as well as the court officials and scholars in the nearby buildings were all excited and dazzled.

Be in awe of witnessing the advent of one of the most powerful gods in the world, Lord Buddha!

Not only them, this time, even outside the blockade of the imperial guards, mortals in nearly half of the capital city caught a glimpse of the golden light in the sky.

The believers who lived closer to the Shenlong Temple looked at the Buddha appearing in the distance in their courtyards and knelt down one after another.

Recite: Amitabha.

"Your Majesty...it's about to begin." Mo Chou took a deep breath and handed the tea bowl to the empress.

Upstairs, all the officials, including Xu Zhenguan, stared intently at the debate area, imagining the ensuing verbal battle between the two sides.

However, just as the debate was about to begin, suddenly, a discordant voice came from somewhere, breaking the solemn atmosphere.

"Haha, looks like I arrived just in time!"

Suddenly, people looked in astonishment in the direction of the sound, and saw a figure appear on the roof of a two-story building near the square.

Zhao Duan was wearing a loose robe, his hair was casually tied behind his head, and he was holding a flag in his hand that was hastily and crudely made from some shop.

Standing facing the wind, smiling disdainfully.

Under the astonished gaze of the crowd, Zhao Duan threw the flagpole in his hand forward with all his might! He leaped into the air.

Then, like a dragonfly skimming the water, he leaped out more than ten feet, stepped on the flagpole with both feet to gain leverage, and leaped towards the towering debate platform!

"Bang!"

The flagpole under his feet was like a long spear, using the force to make a sharp sound of breaking through the air, wrapped in a strong wind, and stabbed fiercely in the center of the platform!

“Clatter…”

The flag wrapped around the flagpole flutters in the wind, with two big words "Challenge" flying in a flamboyant manner!

Then, Zhao Duan landed on the stage in front of everyone's stunned eyes. He glanced at the Red Sect Master and the white-robed Bian Ji who were sitting cross-legged in meditation with his hands behind his back, and sneered:

"Eastern and Western Buddhism? Debating Buddhist teachings? What a bunch of blockheads! They've clearly taken the wrong path, yet they dare to brazenly argue about the orthodoxy of Buddhism. It's simply ridiculous!"

quiet!

The originally solemn and tense debate scene seemed to be paused. The monks in the square, the nobles watching, and the surrounding imperial guards all looked astonished.

In the distance, on the water-viewing tower.

All the officials in the court were stunned, and then they exploded with a buzzing sound.

"Lord Zhao? How did he...how did he get on the stage?!" An unknown official exclaimed.

"This kid... is crazy..." Cold sweat broke out on Ma Yan's forehead.

"Zhao Chenshi...what's going on? Lord Yuan?"

Xue Shence was also stunned for a moment. He turned his head to look at the man in blue clothes beside him, but saw that the usually calm Imperial Censor also had a slightly dull expression.

However, Zhao Duan's old rival, Prime Minister Li Yanfu, after being stunned, suddenly turned his head to look at the empress in front of him.

Then, the other officials also came to their senses and looked at the empress.

Speculations arise in my mind:

Could it be that this was arranged by His Majesty? It must have been arranged by His Majesty, right?

"Zhao...how could he..." Mochou was dumbfounded and almost dropped the teapot in her hand.

Princess Wenzhu was the calmest. After a moment of shock, she blurted out:

"Is he the Zhao Duan?"

As she spoke, she looked at the figure standing on the high platform in the distance. Suddenly, she felt inexplicably familiar with the figure, but she clearly had never seen this person before.

When she turned her head to look at her niece beside her, she saw Xu Zhenguan sitting woodenly in the chair, with faint blue veins slightly bulging on his forehead.

Xu Zhenguan's beautiful eyes reflected Zhao Duan's figure, and she gritted her teeth:

"What are you doing again?"

This plot is much harder to write than I expected... I'll definitely finish it tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)