Since Great Sage himself denied it, the past revealed in this Karma Water Mirror becomes even more intriguing.
Zhu Bajie stroked his round chin, his small eyes glinting with cunning, and he no longer asked further. He just chuckled, retreating behind Sun Wukong, craning his neck, and continuing to stare at the light screen.
Pure Thought Bodhisattva felt greatly relieved when Sun Wukong clarified his position.
He pressed his palms together, his compassionate face showing no emotional fluctuations, and simply said faintly to King Yama: “King Yama, continue.”
King Yama responded, and with a slight urge of his magic, the scene on the light screen flowed once more.
......
In a simple farmhouse courtyard, Lu Fan’s parents put the last remaining half of their food into a cloth bag.
Young Lu Fan stood by, looking at the empty rice jar, his lips tightly pursed, and said nothing more.
He silently returned to the house, took out the two dry, hard flatbreads he had hidden under his pillow, and put them into the cloth bag as well.
His father saw his action, smiled with relief, and patted him on the shoulder.
The family of three then set off.
His father walked in front, holding a wood-chopping axe, vigilantly observing his surroundings.
His mother held Lu Fan’s hand, following behind.
The road leading to the strange mountain in the east was desolate and difficult to travel.
This was the border between the Central Plains and the Western Ding Kingdom, a place of yellow sand and sparse population.
Neither country was willing to bother governing this barren land, and over time, it became a no-man’s land.
“Fan’er, hold my hand tightly, don’t get lost.”
His mother was a little nervous.
“Father, let’s go faster,” Lu Fan also sensed the unusual atmosphere around them and urged.
His father, while pushing aside the thorny bushes blocking their way, said in a deep voice: “Everyone be careful. This area isn’t peaceful. Government officials never come here, and there are often bandits robbing travelers. I heard that deep in the woods, there are even man-eating spirits.”
The world of Mortals was indeed this perilous.
Young Lu Fan in the light screen also showed a hint of fear on his face. He subconsciously leaned closer to his mother and asked in a low voice: “Father, isn’t there a temple at the east end of our village? There are many monks inside, don’t they come out to exorcise spirits and demons, and eliminate harm for the people?”
This was a child’s most innocent and direct question.
In the simple minds of Mortals, followers of gods and Buddhas should rightfully be Incarnations of justice.
Hearing this question, a strange smile appeared on the faces of many Divine Generals on the Execution Platform.
In the light screen, Lu Fan’s father paused in his steps after hearing his son’s words.
He turned his head, looked at his son’s clear eyes, and let out a long sigh.
“Fan’er, you are still young, and there are many things you don’t understand yet.”
He squatted down, looking his son in the eye.
“Those monks… they only stay in the temple, eating vegetarian food and chanting sutras. They never concern themselves with outside matters.”
“Uncle Li from our village, his family’s sheep was carried away by a wolf spirit from the mountain, and his whole family was barely surviving. He went to the temple to kowtow, begging those Great Masters to take action and subdue the spirit, but do you know what those monks said?”
Lu Fan shook his head.
His father’s face showed a bitter smile: “They said that subduing spirits and demons would harm heavenly harmony, and Buddhism dislikes killing. Unless… Uncle Li could donate three hundred catties of grain as incense money, then they might consider chanting sutras and praying for him, to see if they could enlighten that wolf spirit.”
“Enlighten?” Young Lu Fan asked, puzzled, “Can a wolf spirit also be enlightened?”
“Who knows,” his father’s voice was full of mockery, “How could Uncle Li possibly come up with three hundred catties of grain? In the end, it just came to nothing. Later, I heard that those bandits who often rob merchants on the road actually have a very good relationship with the abbot of the temple. They take a portion of the money they steal each year and donate it as incense money to the temple!”
This conversation, through the Karma Water Mirror, reached the ears of all Immortals and Buddhas, word for word.
In the Heavenly Court’s Immortal Official camp, someone finally couldn't help but let out a “pfft” of laughter.
The Lei Department Generals could no longer maintain their composure, their shoulders shaking.
Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing, though still maintaining a serious expression, his slightly twitching lips had already betrayed his current mood.
Taibai Jinxing was even more direct. He stroked his beard, not bothering to hide the smile on his face, and shook his head at the civil official beside him, his meaning self-evident.
That slap to the face was too loud!
These matters were already unspoken rules among the high-ranking officials of the Three Realms.
Most of the Immortal Officials in the Heavenly Court were accustomed to such sordid affairs.
Buddhism opening temples, recruiting followers, and collecting incense offerings was, in essence, no different from the Heavenly Court receiving offerings from the Mortal world.
It was just that Buddhism always liked to cloak itself in an outer garment of “compassion and universal salvation,” speaking in a grand and righteous manner.
They were well aware of the collusion between Mortal temples and the powerful, and even bandits, to collect protection fees and lend at high interest.
It was just that no one had ever dared to speak so directly about this matter in such an occasion, in front of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the Western Religion.
And the one who spoke these words happened to be a Mortal.
In this kind of setting, and in this manner, Buddhism would not genuinely cause a major commotion over this.
This was just the right kind of gossip that everyone could laugh about.
Just for this line, this trip today was worth it!
Sun Wukong was also laughing.
He remembered a long time ago, on his journey to the West to obtain scriptures, the Guanyin Temple he had passed through.
That incredibly greedy Elder Jinchi, who would even set fire to harm lives for a kasaya.
That Black Bear Spirit, who called Elder Jinchi his brother and stole the kasaya.
The words of the Mortal and his personal experiences overlapped at this moment.
On the other side, the Western Religion’s camp was dead silent.
The faces of all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Arhats were as if covered with a thick layer of frost.
Especially Pure Thought Bodhisattva, his face twitched violently, and the Buddha’s light behind his head was momentarily chaotic, almost failing to maintain that compassionate and solemn appearance.
“Absurd!”
He roared sternly, his voice like thunder, shaking the sea of clouds.
“Amitabha! This ignorant man speaks utter nonsense! It is only right and proper for temples to accept incense offerings! If there is no incense money, what do monks eat? What do they wear? With what do they repair temples and reshape golden statues? Not engaging in production, but diligently cultivating, is the very duty of those who have left home! What fault is there in that?”
“He himself could not produce offerings, so he harbored resentment and wantonly slandered my Buddhist pure land, defaming my Buddhist Great Masters! This wicked commoner, ungrateful and disrespectful to the Buddha! With such a father, it’s no wonder he raised Lu Fan, such an evil spawn who destroyed temples and annihilated Buddhism! This is evil at its root, wickedness in his nature!”
“What the Karma Water Mirror reveals is precisely the source of his sin! Born into such a family, he was exposed to slanderous words against the Buddha, and the seed of evil was already planted in his heart! My Buddha suppressed him for ten years, hoping to eradicate the demonic root in his heart, but alas, his evil nature is hard to change, and he remains unrepentant! If such inherent wickedness, such fundamental sin, is not severely punished, where is heavenly justice?!”
His words were spoken in exasperation, yet they drew unanimous agreement from the Buddhist Disciples behind him.
“Bodhisattva is right! Common Mortals do not understand the true meaning of Buddhist Dharma and only make wild conjectures!”
“Offering to my Buddha is for them to accumulate Karma, yet they do not know what is good for them!”
“This person is disrespectful to the Buddha, and his son will surely suffer for it, serving him right!”
Explanations and accusations echoed above the Execution Platform.
However, the smiles on the faces of the Immortals of the Heavenly Court grew wider.
Yet, no one spoke out to refute them.