Chapter 177: Vimalakirti's Room
Zhenru said: "I harmed her, so naturally I have to save her."
Gong Mengbi said, "She may not appreciate it. The more you try to save her, the more likely she will refuse to turn back."
Zhenru's face turned even paler. "The one who tied the bell must untie it. When my merits are complete, as long as I can appease her resentment, she can kill me or chop me up as she pleases."
Gong Mengbi shook his head and said, "It's an injustice."
Zhenru said, "Forget it. Originally, I should have been here to stop her from committing murder today, but I'm tied up with something important. Since you're here, it's destiny. I was thinking that once she gets out, she'll naturally come looking for me, but since you can stop her, give me some more time."
He gathered his spirits and said, "I can teach you the method of Vimalakirti's room. You can use this magical power to repaint the murals, rebuild Vimalakirti's room, and trap her inside again."
"But the cliff carvings are no longer useful, and Lanyin Temple is in decline. It can no longer contain her. You need to use that paper to make a copy of the mural and trap her on it. But I have to tell you, you've used that paper once before, so if you try to trap Zhenniang again, it may not hold her for long."
Gong Mengbi said, "It doesn't matter. I'll trap her for three to five years. By then, it won't be me who's afraid of her, but she will be afraid of me."
Zhenru didn't doubt his ability and said, "Please don't hurt her. When she is about to escape, I will come regardless of whether you can handle it or not."
Gong Mengbi knew that Zhenru was afraid that he would send Zhenniang to the underworld.
Although there is a way to redeem Zhenniang from the underworld, Zhenru has no confidence that he can accumulate enough merit to atone for his sins before his death.
Gong Mengbi said, "I have no intention of harming her. I stopped her from escaping because I didn't want her to get stuck in this mess and find it even harder to get out."
Zhenru laughed and said, "Come here."
Gong Mengbi walked over, and Zhenru reached out and placed a relic in his hand, saying, "This is the Dharma of Vimalakirti's room. You must not pass it on to others. If it weren't for the heavy calamity of the Pure Land Dharma, I would be willing to teach you the Dharma. With your wisdom, you will definitely achieve something."
Zhenru looked at Yan Chixia again and said, "I will hold Zhenniang here. Please go to the monk's burial ground to help my fellow disciples. Guarding these two Vimalakirti rooms will buy more time for the fox fairy."
Yan Chixia said: "I will not fail in my mission!"
Zhenru waved his hand and Yan Chixia disappeared from the meditation room.
Gong Mengbi closed his eyes and concentrated, trying to comprehend the Vimalakirti Dharma in the relic.
It is recorded in the "Vimalakirti Sutra - Chapter on Manjushri's Inquiry about the Illness" that when the elder Vimalakirti displayed his supernatural powers, the Buddha immediately sent 32,000 lions to sit in a high, spacious, solemn and clean room to come to Vimalakirti's room. The room was spacious and accommodating, and there was no obstruction.
The room is large enough to contain the heaven and earth, and is called Vimalakirti's room. It is also called the Sumeru of a mustard seed or the Buddha Kingdom in the palm of your hand.
However, Gong Mengbi could not learn such profound skills, and could only achieve the coexistence of reality and illusion, and use the small to contain the big, which is the realm of reality and illusion, just like Zhenru.
The seven murals represent seven worlds, which rely heavily on the mind and spirit.
Fortunately, Gong Mengbi was proficient in illusion, and this transformation of truth and illusion was also his strength. He also practiced the Tongtian Method and the Seven Cultivations Sutra Annotation, so his mind was also his strength.
At this time, when I was contemplating Vimalakirti's room, I felt that many parts of it confirmed what I had learned.
I was waiting for him to ask about the key points, but all he got was, "I have it all figured out, but I need to try it out first."
Zhenru frowned slightly and said, "Let's try it here."
Gong Mengbi then let go and did it.
The wind blew into the small Zen room from somewhere, and in a moment, the room was filled with a cool breeze.
Zhenru watched as the four walls turned into the earth, the tables and chairs turned into mountains, and the roof turned into the sky.
A huge bright moon rose, a gentle breeze blew, the bamboo sea surged, and the whole world had changed.
Zhenru opened her eyes wide and said, "I believe what you said. If you trap Zhenniang for three to five years, she may no longer be your opponent."
Zhenru stretched out his hand and the vast world collapsed and turned into a meditation room.
Gong Mengbi said modestly, "It's just that this method has some similarities with what I've learned, so I can comprehend it faster."
Zhenru was about to say something else, but the refreshing fragrance of orchids gradually became stronger.
He looked towards the door. Unbeknownst to him, a beautiful orchid had grown out of the cracks in the bricks at the entrance of the Zen room.
Zhenru's expression gradually became uneasy, and she said, "If she comes, I will try my best to hold her back."
Before Gong Mengbitao could speak, Zhenru had already pushed him out of the seventh level of the real and illusory world.
When Ning Caichen and Ma Junji saw him come out, they hurriedly asked, "Fox Fairy, what's going on?"
Gong Mengbi said: "Don't worry, there is a way."
Gong Mengbi paced in front of the cliff carvings and did not take action immediately.
On the seventh mural, the Flower-scattering Goddess has already met the Buddha.
On the first mural, there seemed to be a human figure within the vague outline.
After learning about Vimalakirti's room, Gong Mengbi looked at the cliff carving and gradually understood the ins and outs of it.
The cliff carvings that carried the emperor's dragon energy and the fortune of Lanyin Temple became treasures to suppress Zhenniang. With the fall of the previous dynasty, the dragon energy dissipated, Lanyin Temple declined, and its magic faded.
The seven murals were entirely supported by the magical powers of Zen Master Sanming and Zhenru, but most of them had been refined by Zhenniang and disappeared without a trace.
That white mist is the breath of the real and illusory world left behind when the mural dissipates.
Gong Mengbi gestured briefly and knew he couldn't repaint the murals. His magical powers were low. Although he was familiar with Vimalakirti's room, his magical powers were not the same as those of Master Zhenru and his disciple. The power he could borrow was very small, and he couldn't complete the seven murals.
Moreover, Gong Mengbi has another hidden worry.
Zhenniang is not afraid of Buddhism. How long can the Vimalakirti Room, which was repainted with the power of Zhenru and Sanming Zen Master, trap her?
Gong Mengbi hardened his heart and said, "What's the point of redrawing a new one? It's better to revise it and draw a new one."
Gong Mengbi built a platform out of earth and kneaded an earth statue to worship the Goddess of Mount Tai.
He then lit the incense in the small golden censer, and the smoke curled up, blending with the fragrance of the surrounding orchids.
Gong Mengbi paid homage to the Goddess of Mount Tai, and with this worship, he calmed his mind.
Ning Caichen and Ma Junji also followed Gong Mengbi to worship the Goddess of Mount Tai, asking her to bless them to survive this disaster.
With the help of the Goddess of Mount Tai, Gong Mengbi felt that he could be successful in everything he did.
But he was still cautious and performed the fox sacrifice method.
Foxes took shape in the fragrance, and a huge moon rose in the sky.
The moon god with a human face and a bird's body and two horns on his head is flying in the moonlight.
A white tail stretched out from behind Gong Mengbi, and with a light sweep across the cliff carvings, it smoothed out the areas where the five murals had been empty for a long time.
Instead of using the surrounding white mist as ink, he used the fire in his heart as ink and the tail of the moon as a brush, and began to paint on the cliff carvings.
As he painted, moonlight poured onto the cliff carvings. Foxes merged into the moon and transformed into white mist, which, accompanied by the fire in his heart, re-painted ink on the cliff carvings.
Gong Mengbi did not choose any picture to redraw, but drew a new picture according to his idea.
But the painting was not yet finished, and the seventh mural suddenly weathered and disappeared on the cliff carving.
Gong Mengbi cursed inwardly: "Didn't we say to hold Zhenniang back? It's only been a short time!"
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