The saying that Buddha is demon is not without reason. In fact, there are many spells in Buddhism that are similar to those of evil spirits, mostly using bewitching techniques. Otherwise, how could Buddhism have developed faster than Taoism? There are quite a few lower-level Buddhist disciples who know these techniques, and they are all very cunning.
When Ksitigarbha arrived, he was first confused by the presence of the six Venerable Ones of Rebirth, and then he was bewitched by them. Logically speaking, Ksitigarbha shouldn't have fallen for such a minor spell, but unfortunately, firstly, Ksitigarbha had never left the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss and was unaware of the wickedness of people's hearts; secondly, Ksitigarbha's skill in these bewitching arts was basically zero. While being stunned by a Venerable One of Rebirth's words, he was also influenced by the spell and unconsciously believed them.
If a low-ranking Buddhist disciple had come here, this whole thing would never have happened. These Buddhist disciples are all incredibly cunning; even the Six Great Venerable Ones couldn't fool them.
Ksitigarbha, in his foolishness, went to the eighteen levels of hell and made a grand vow at the lowest level to deliver the souls of the dead. In fact, this was a grave mistake.
These eighteen levels of hell are a product of the Heavenly Way, designed specifically for punishment. All the evil spirits inside are people with heavy sins, who should be suffering in this hell. However, Ksitigarbha, deceived by the Venerable One of Rebirth, came to this hell to convert the evil spirits. This disrupted the normal operation of the underworld and was contrary to the Heavenly Way, turning a good thing into a bad thing.
Fortunately, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva wasn't foolish when he made his great vow; he didn't say he would deliver the ghosts in the eighteen levels of hell. Otherwise, instead of accumulating merit, the vow would have brought divine punishment.
These things were done by the Six Venerable Ones, so they were naturally very clear about them. These Six Venerable Ones and the Ten Kings of Hell were originally from the same source and were enlightened by Xuan Tian. They could be considered brothers. Moreover, they had a great understanding with each other and their minds were connected. The Ten Kings of Hell naturally knew these things and immediately burst into laughter.
King Pingdeng laughed loudly, "We don't need to rush this matter. I'm afraid there are people who are more anxious than us."
At this time, Ksitigarbha was unaware that he had been tricked. He was still in the eighteen levels of hell, diligently reciting scriptures and converting evil spirits. Ksitigarbha discovered that below the eighteen levels of hell, there was a blood-red sea, where many wronged souls and evil spirits resided. From time to time, some wronged souls in the underworld were attracted by the aura emanating from this blood-red sea and plunged into it, only to be instantly swallowed by the blood-red water. Ksitigarbha, with his strong sense of justice, could not tolerate this. He immediately used his great magic to stop these wronged souls, and uttered Sanskrit chants. His whole body radiated golden light, just like the six Venerable Ones of Rebirth. The golden light went towards the blood-red sea, vowing to save these wronged souls who were drowning in the sea.
Little did he know that this action would bring him an adversary.
Twenty Styx Ancestors
When Ksitigarbha made his great vow, the Western Amitabha and Cundi exchanged a smile. Ksitigarbha entered the underworld, and the great rise of Buddhism in the West began. Suddenly, Amitabha was taken aback and said bitterly, "This Sage Xuantian is indeed not someone to be trifled with."
Upon hearing this, Zhunti was stunned for a moment, then immediately became furious, saying, "This fellow is quite cunning! I never expected that he would so easily bring us such a formidable enemy." Zhunti had also foreseen this matter concerning Ksitigarbha.
Suddenly, Jieyin laughed and said, "Isn't this exactly what I wanted?"
Upon hearing this, Zhunti paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "That's right." Immediately, Zhunti sent out a page to summon Shakyamuni Buddha.
When the Tathagata entered the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, he saw that both saints were present. He stepped forward and bowed to them, saying, "The Tathagata pays respects to the Buddha, Namo Amitabha Buddha."
Then he addressed Cundi, saying, "Homage to the Buddha Mother, Namo Subhuti Buddha."
Zhunti nodded and said, "Amitabha Buddha, Namo Great Vow Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva made a great vow to deliver all the wronged souls in hell. This is a great good deed of heaven and earth, but unexpectedly, he was plotted against. Now a great enemy is coming, and we need the Buddha to go and rescue him."
The Buddha was taken aback, then suddenly realized and said, "That's exactly right."
After bowing to the two saints and withdrawing, the Tathagata then summoned all the Buddhas to go to the underworld.
But then it was said that the gates of hell were closed. This was a great pity for Styx Ancestor, an old neighbor of the Underworld. Styx Ancestor was a Daoist who had attained enlightenment in the Purple Palace of the Dao Ancestor Hongjun in the past, and had long since reached the late stage of Quasi-Saint realm, having severed his two corpses. From the moment Ksitigarbha stepped into the Underworld of Reincarnation, Styx had a bad feeling, knowing that the great calamity of the Netherworld Blood Sea that he had worried about for thousands of years was about to arrive.
With Buddhism now wielding such power, how could Styx not know? But the Netherworld Blood Sea was Styx's refuge, and he was determined to fight it to the death. Styx had initially thought that if Ksitigarbha had peacefully focused on converting evil spirits on Yin Mountain, as long as the root of the Netherworld Blood Sea wasn't severed, Styx could have tolerated it. But he hadn't expected Ksitigarbha to attack the Netherworld Blood Sea the moment he made his vow. Styx was no saint, and this concerned his own safety; it was intolerable. Therefore, Styx immediately gathered all his followers within the Netherworld Blood Sea, preparing for a battle against the approaching Buddhist army.
Inside hell.
When Ksitigarbha saw that the sea of blood was filthy, he wanted to cleanse it, but he never expected that this action would bring him a great enemy.
Ksitigarbha's body surged with Buddhist light, rushing towards the sea of blood. However, at this moment, Styx was leading the Netherworld Cult out. Before he could prepare, Styx saw a burst of golden light. He only had time to protect himself, but not the Netherworld Cult behind him.
Those Netherworld Cultists were created by the Styx Ancestor from the Netherworld Blood Sea, and their power was perfectly matched by the golden light of Buddhist merit. How could those Netherworld Cultists be a match for Ksitigarbha, who possessed quasi-saint cultivation? They were all sent to the Western Paradise, screaming in agony.
This is unacceptable! If Ksitigarbha continues to cause trouble like this, the Styx Ancestor will have to move.
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