Chapter 112: Western Buddhist Kingdom, the Secret Realm of Cause and Effect
After spending half a month on the Thousand Flow Plains and initially adapting to the local customs and practices outside the Northern Territory, Ye Li and Qin Yixuan decided to continue westward. Based on the intelligence gathered by Sun Xiaohou and the faint pull of divine essence within Qin Yixuan, it seemed that some opportunity lay ahead in the Western Territory.
The Western Regions are a world apart from the snow-capped peaks and glaciers of the Northern Regions and the plains and water towns of the Central Regions. Here, vast expanses of yellow sand and boundless Gobi deserts endure, and the climate is dry and harsh. Yet, within this seemingly desolate landscape stand countless golden-domed pagodas. The sounds of Buddhist chanting often drift on the wind, permeating the landscape with a unique atmosphere of solemnity, awe, and compassion. The Western Regions are a world of Buddhist cultivation, with temples and monasteries of all sizes scattered throughout. The greatest influences are giants like the Vajra Temple and the Liuli Pure Land Sect.
Instead of blazing through the streets with their evasion lights, the two chose a common mode of transportation in the Western Regions: a covered wagon pulled by a docile demonic beast called a "sand camel." They blended in with the caravans and pilgrims, slowly journeying westward. This allowed them to better blend in with the environment, experiencing the unique "Buddhist charm" of the Western Regions, while also avoiding attracting unnecessary attention.
Along the way, they encountered devout ascetic monks, kneeling with every step as they journeyed to holy lands; they also met enlightened monks preaching in the oasis, saving all sentient beings; and they witnessed the miraculous methods by which Buddhist practitioners used supreme Dharma to dissolve the hostility of the Gobi Desert and nourish the oasis. This was a stark contrast to the intensely competitive and focused cultivation of the Northern Territory sects, leaving Ye Li and Qin Yixuan feeling deeply intrigued and gaining a deeper understanding of the diversity of "Tao."
In this land imbued with compassion and peaceful laws, Qin Yixuan's divine essence seemed to become exceptionally active and peaceful, giving her a new understanding of the profound meaning of the Nine Heavens Mysterious Water Sutra: "The highest virtue is like water; water benefits all things without contention." Ye Li, on the other hand, keenly sensed a profound connection between the Western Regions Buddhist doctrines of cause and effect and reincarnation and the fragment of the Samsara Mirror she held.
One day, they followed a caravan to a famous Buddhist city on the edge of the Western Regions—"Jashyapa City." Legend has it that this city was the place where an ancient Buddha named Jashyapa preached. In the center of the city lies an ancient "Karma Pond," where, it's said, those with predestined connections can glimpse fragments of their own karma, a truly miraculous experience.
However, when they arrived outside of Jiaye City, they noticed something was amiss. The city gates were heavily guarded, and all monks entering and leaving were subject to strict inspection. A subdued energy wave could be heard faintly from within the city.
"Master, what happened in the city?" Qin Yixuan asked an old monk who was queuing to enter the city in a gentle and polite tone.
The old monk glanced at Qin Yixuan, clasped his hands together in greeting, and sighed, "Amitabha. Unbeknownst to you two benefactors, three days ago, the secret realm of the Karma Pond in the city suddenly opened prematurely for unknown reasons. However, the entrance is extremely unstable, and an evil aura is leaking out. The abbot is leading the monks in a formation to suppress it, and is inviting all cultivators with predestined connections to enter, investigate the source of the abnormality, and purify the evil."
The Causal Secret Realm opened prematurely? Unholy aura? Ye Li and Qin Yixuan exchanged glances, each seeing the stirring in the other's eyes. This seemed both a challenge and an opportunity.
After paying the entrance fee, the two entered Kasyapa City. The buildings were mostly stone, intricately carved with Buddhist motifs, and filled with the scent of incense. They headed straight for the Karma Pond in the city's center.
It was a clear pool surrounded by an ancient temple. The water seemed ordinary, yet it felt bottomless, a connection to an unknown time and space. At that moment, the space above the pool distorted, forming an unstable portal of light. Wisps of black energy emanated from the portal, carrying a chilling aura of resentment and chaos. Dozens of highly accomplished monks sat cross-legged around the portal, chanting scriptures. Rays of golden Buddha light, like chains, interwoven into a vast net, barely blocked the portal and purified the escaping black energy.
An old monk in a red cassock, with a gaunt face but a gleaming gaze (it was none other than the abbot of Jiaye City), saw Ye Li and Qin Yixuan approaching. When he sensed the pure, peaceful, and faintly sacred aura emanating from Qin Yixuan, a flash of surprise flashed in his eyes, and he took the initiative to ask, "You two benefactors are truly extraordinary. Would you be willing to enter the secret realm and help our Buddhist sect quell this disaster?"
"Master, you are so kind," Qin Yixuan returned the greeting. "We have traveled here and are willing to do our best to help. I just don't know what the specific situation is like within this secret realm."
The abbot explained, "The Secret Realm of Cause and Effect is a place left by the ancient Buddha Kasyapa for the understanding of cause and effect. This unusual event seems to have been caused by an external force invading, polluting the very essence of the secret realm, causing disordered cause and effect, a proliferation of illusions, and the breeding of some evil and foul demons. Those who enter must guard their original intentions and discern cause and effect. Only then can they find the source and purify it. The secret realm suppresses cultivation, and it is difficult for those above the Yuandan realm to enter. The two donors' cultivation levels are just right."
Ye Li sensed the aura behind the light gate and could indeed feel a faint throbbing coming from the fragment of the Samsara Mirror, as if something in the secret realm was attracting it. She looked at Qin Yixuan, who nodded slightly. The divine essence in her body instinctively rejected and desired to purify the evil aura.
"In that case, the two of us are willing to go." Ye Li said.
The abbot was overjoyed and handed over two wooden talismans that exuded the scent of sandalwood. "These are the 'Purifying Heart Talismans,' which can help you resist some of the evil influences and stabilize your mind. Within the secret realm, cause and effect are entangled, so be careful in everything you do."
After taking the wooden talisman, Ye Li and Qin Yixuan did not hesitate. Under the expectant gaze of the monks, they flashed and plunged into the unstable light gate.
The moment they entered the portal of light, the world spun. Once they regained their footing, they found themselves in a bizarre world. The sky was a distorted vortex of color, and the earth, like a shattered mirror, reflected a fragmented scene. Countless blurry figures darted through it, wailing, fighting. These were illusions formed by the disordered forces of cause and effect, making it difficult to distinguish true from false. The air was filled with a sickening, foul aura, constantly trying to corrode the mind.
"Guard your spiritual altar tightly, and don't be deceived by illusions," Ye Li shouted softly, energizing his extremely cold spiritual energy, forming a protective shield of ice crystals around him, isolating the evil energy from entering. Qin Yixuan also mobilized his profound water spiritual energy and divine essence, enveloping himself in a deep blue glow. His holy aura melted the surrounding foul air like ice and snow.
The two cautiously journeyed through the shattered secret realm. Along the way, they witnessed numerous scenes caused by the disorder of cause and effect: the regret of cultivators whose single thought led to the destruction of their sect; the obsessions of mortals, unable to escape even after several reincarnations; and all sorts of evil thoughts and fears, amplified and distorted by the foul aura.
These scenes were a profound test of one's Dao heart. Qin Yixuan, relying on the purity of her divine origin and the flexibility of the Nine Heavens Mysterious Water Scripture, was able to maintain clarity. Meanwhile, Ye Li, amidst these chaotic fragments of cause and effect, sensed something deeper.
The fragments of the Samsara Mirror vibrated gently within her sea of consciousness, emitting a soft glow. Through these shattered illusions of cause and effect, she seemed to see countless fine, intricate "threads" connecting each living being within the illusion, representing their cause and effect. And that foul aura, like a malevolent sticky substance, contaminated, twisted, and tangled these causal threads, causing chaos.
"Cause and effect...reincarnation..." Ye Li's understanding deepened. The Samsara Mirror controlled reincarnation, which inevitably involved cause and effect. If one could understand cause and effect, perhaps one could better control the power of reincarnation, and even...avoid certain negative consequences?
She tried to mobilize a trace of the Samsara Mirror's power, to perceive and sort out the relatively clear lines of cause and effect around her. It was difficult at first, but gradually, she seemed to be able to vaguely discern fragments: a monk in seclusion in this secret realm, his inner demons suddenly rising, invaded by external evil, and ultimately becoming the source of the pollution...
"The source... may be in that direction!" Ye Li pointed to an area where the causal lines were particularly chaotic and the black energy was the thickest.
Qin Yixuan trusted Ye Li's judgment without reservation, and the two of them immediately headed in that direction.
The closer they got to the center, the more terrifying the illusions became, and the erosion of the foul energy became more intense. Even monsters formed from pure foul energy began to appear. They had no fixed form, like shadows, and attacked living beings frantically.
Ye Li unsheathed the Mystic Ice Sword, its light freezing everything in its path, even the invisible evil aura being frozen and purified. Qin Yixuan swung his longsword, and the Mystic Water Sword Intent transformed into a fine net, entangling and purifying the demons. Working in perfect harmony, the two slashed through the thorns and brambles of their path.
Finally, they reached the core of the secret realm. A stone Buddha statue, once supposedly compassionate and majestic, was now completely corroded by black energy. Its face was distorted, its eyes oozing black tears of blood, and its body was entangled with the phantoms of countless wailing, agonized souls. Embedded in the heart of the Buddha was a throbbing black tumor, the source of all the foul energy!
"Amitabha... The sea of suffering is boundless, turn back and you will find the shore..." The corroded Buddha statue actually emitted a devilish voice that bewitched people!
"Devil, stop being so arrogant!" Qin Yixuan cried out delicately, her divine essence greatly stimulated, erupting with a roar! The Cang Hai Ming Yue Pearl shone brilliantly, and behind her, a more solemn and compassionate female deity emerged, emanating an endless power of purification! The phantom raised her hand, and a stream of pure and purifying divine light, like a celestial river pouring down, washed over the demonic Buddha!
"Roar!" The Demon Buddha roared in pain, with black energy surging, trying to resist.
At this moment, another strange change occurred! Perhaps drawn by Qin Yixuan's rich divine aura and the power of the Buddha's essence, a golden light suddenly burst forth from the depths of the secret realm, breaking through the dark atmosphere. It was a string of prayer beads, seemingly simple yet imbued with powerful Buddhist power! The beads automatically swirled above Qin Yixuan's head, shedding rays of peaceful Buddha light. This radiance intertwined with her divine essence, multiplying the power of the purifying divine light several times over!
With the help of this Buddhist treasure, Qin Yixuan's momentum was like a rainbow, and the purifying divine light completely suppressed the demon Buddha!
Ye Li wasn't idle either. She seized the opportunity, and the Mysterious Ice Sword transformed into a stream of extremely cold light, piercing the black tumor in the Demon Buddha's heart! At the same time, she pushed the power of the Samsara Mirror to its limit, not to attack, but to try to "sever" the causal connection between the tumor, the origin of the secret realm, and the countless resentful souls!
"Break!"
laugh--!
The sword light pierced the tumor with precision! At the same time, Ye Li seemed to hear the subtle sounds of countless causal lines breaking! The tumor struggled violently for a few times, and finally, under the dual blow of the purifying divine light and the causal rupture, it exploded!
The thick, foul aura, as if losing its source, began to dissipate rapidly. The black aura surrounding the stone Buddha statue also gradually faded, and though tattered, it regained a touch of dignity. The distorted scene within the secret realm slowly returned to normal, and the painful hallucinations gradually subsided.
The crisis is over.
Qin Yixuan withdrew her divine power, and the string of Buddhist prayer beads also shone inward, falling into her hands, unusually gentle. She looked at the prayer beads, and a flash of enlightenment flashed in her eyes, as if this object was destined for her.
Ye Li was immersed in the realization of severing the causal link, and her understanding of the cycle of reincarnation deepened. This trip to the secret realm had been a huge gain for her.
When the two emerged from the Light Gate, bearing the precious Buddhist rosary and the good news of having purified the secret realm's origins, they were greeted with the highest respect by the monks of Kasyapa City. The abbot congratulated Qin Yixuan on receiving the ancient Buddhist rosary, praising her for her affinity with the Buddha and her profound blessings.
After this incident, the names of Qin Yixuan, the "Mysterious Lady," and Ye Li, the "Ice Phoenix," began to spread quietly throughout the Buddhist kingdom of the Western Regions. Their journey, paved with this karmic secret, imbued their journey with a new layer of mystery and Buddhist affinity. For Ye Li, her understanding of karma and reincarnation would become a crucial foundation for her future.
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