# Chapter 3512: Srotapanna Silver Trees
"Yes, so you came at a very bad time."
Wolf Ancestor transmitted his voice to Zhang Ruochen: "The God Venerable is injured and has returned to the valley to recover."
Zhang Ruochen's heart shook. With Nutian Shenzun's level of cultivation, what kind of injury would require him to return to White Clothes Valley to recuperate?
Such a major event had occurred, yet why was there no news from Destiny Temple at all?
Wolf Ancestor led Zhang Ruochen to the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest.
The trees here were very much like silver castings, emitting a metallic luster.
On the trunk of every tree grew a Buddha, each in a different posture—some meditating with closed eyes, some sitting cross-legged in contemplation, some lying on their sides sleeping, some forming demon-subduing finger seals...
Every tree was breathing, not like lifeless objects.
Wolf Ancestor said, "I'll send you off here."
Zhang Ruochen looked at the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest before him and said, "One of the seven treasures of Buddhism, the Srotapanna Silver Trees. Quite the formation. Uncle Wolf, I just wanted to see Jue Miao and discuss some matters with her. After we talk, I'll leave. Is it really that difficult?"
"I told you, you came at a bad time."
Wolf Ancestor showed an expression of helplessness and walked away directly.
Zhang Ruochen entered the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest and immediately heard the sound of chanting sutras. He followed the sound. Gradually, the sky darkened.
About an hour later, it became completely dark, with not a trace of light remaining.
He could only faintly see the silver trees around him and the shadows of the ten thousand Buddhas.
Given Zhang Ruochen's current eyesight, this was absolutely abnormal. Just as he was about to activate his Truth Divine Eye—
A voice came from an open area ahead: "Zhang Ruochen, this humble monk Yan Shu. You must pass my trial to leave the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest."
Zhang Ruochen didn't activate his Truth Divine Eye but looked at the outline of the monk several dozen zhang away.
The monk sat with his back to Zhang Ruochen, like an illusory silhouette, but his bald head and robust physique were visible.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Yan Shu? Sir, you are Jue Miao's biological father, Nutian Shenzun's only son, Senior Kong Yan Su, correct?"
"Worldly names have long been abandoned. Why bother mentioning them?"
Zen Master Yan Shu said, "The position where this humble monk now sits is the eye of the Ten Thousand Buddha Formation. The Ten Thousand Buddha Formation was jointly arranged by the Sixth Patriarch and Yinxue Tian. Once activated, even if all the heavens come, they can be trapped for several days. You cannot pass my trial!"
"But it's not completely without a way!"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Master, please speak frankly."
Zen Master Yan Shu said, "This humble monk, to resist the Withering Death Art, after giving birth to Jue Miao, devoted himself entirely to Buddhism. I heard that the Bright Mirror Platform and Bodhi Tree left by the Sixth Patriarch are in your hands. If you are willing to donate one, it would be great merit. This humble monk, compassionate and merciful, will surely let you pass."
Zhang Ruochen was speechless.
Even a monk craves treasures?
"All treasures in the world are external possessions. I have never valued them much. I can give them away easily, but if someone demands them, then they should show real skill and just take them by force."
Zhang Ruochen clenched his five fingers, and the Kirin Fist Gloves on his hand emitted rings of light, lightning flashing. He continued, "I've long wanted to experience the methods of the Sixth Patriarch and Yinxue Tian. Today, I finally get my wish!"
Before his words faded, Zhang Ruochen had already struck first with a fist.
"Boom!"
The fist force shattered the earth, lightning like a cascading waterfall, reaching behind Zen Master Yan Shu in an instant.
Just one chi away from Zen Master Yan Shu, a silver-white Buddhist light burst forth, forming a bright sphere.
The sphere carried Zen Master Yan Shu flying upward, and the Srotapanna Silver Trees on the ground rose into the air along with him.
Every Buddha on every tree came to life—some chanting sutras, spitting out Sanskrit characters.
Some formed finger seals, shooting out divine power beams.
Some assumed the posture of subduing dragons and taming tigers, forming hand seals.
...
Zhang Ruochen stood unmoving like a mountain, divine power surging from his entire body as he threw punch after punch.
But with ten thousand Buddhas striking together, the divine abilities were too numerous, densely packed, flying in from all directions.
The Immovable Wisdom King Fist, which could contend with Haizi Qiu, was suppressed here.
Shattering a wave of divine abilities in the east, another pressed in from the west. Shattering a hundred kinds of divine abilities in the west, palm seals fell from above.
Zhang Ruochen was exhausted from dealing with them, charging left and right.
If he stopped even for an instant, he would inevitably be struck by a large number of divine abilities.
"The Srotapanna Silver Trees are absorbing my divine qi and cutting off my communication with the outside world's heaven and earth. I can't keep consuming like this."
Zhang Ruochen activated the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram scene—Divine Mountain, Divine Sea, Jade Tree Ink Moon, and Illusory Star Sea all manifested simultaneously, blocking the Buddhist divine abilities surging from all sides for a moment. Then, he took out the Earth Cauldron and channeled divine qi into it.
"Whoosh!"
A primordial world burst forth centered on the Earth Cauldron, with Origin Divine Light shooting out in all directions.
Instantly, the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest was scattered, and all Buddhist divine abilities were annihilated.
Zhang Ruochen didn't intend to fight Zen Master Yan Shu to a decision. Grabbing the Earth Cauldron's leg, his Ancestor Boots flashed as he prepared to escape directly.
After all, charging out of the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest counted as passing this trial.
"Good kid, you have some skill! Earlier, Jue Miao said to go easy on you, so this humble monk only activated part of the Ten Thousand Buddha Formation's power. It seems I can't suppress you! Get back!"
With Zen Master Yan Shu's explosive shout, the Srotapanna Silver Trees suspended in the void all ignited, like silver fire trees, growing wildly at an extreme speed.
Each silver tree had a canopy like an umbrella, branches and leaves rushing into the clouds.
The Buddhas growing on the trees transformed into giant Buddhas, each as large as a mountain, filling Zhang Ruochen's field of vision.
"Break!"
Zhang Ruochen used the Earth Cauldron to clear a path, charging straight through, constantly smashing giant Buddhas and Srotapanna Silver Trees into silver powder.
But before the silver powder even hit the ground, it grew roots, trunks, branches, and Buddhas again.
At first, he could still handle it, but as the power of the giant Buddhas grew stronger and stronger, even the Earth Cauldron found it difficult to shatter them.
Before long, the primordial continent manifested by the Earth Cauldron was instead shattered by the ten thousand Buddhas, and Zhang Ruochen was forced into an extremely narrow space. The space grew increasingly solid, and the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram scene shrank to within eighteen zhang. With his cultivation, his body could barely move.
Clearly, Zen Master Yan Shu hadn't been boasting. This Ten Thousand Buddha Formation left by Yinxue Tian and the Sixth Patriarch indeed had the power to trap all the heavens.
"Crack!"
The bones inside Zhang Ruochen's body creaked under the pressure.
In that instant, he thought of Wu Yue, Mu Lingxi, Dai Xue Queen, and Quan Zhongsheng beneath the Jade Tree Ink Moon. How could they withstand this force?
Should he really admit defeat?
Zen Master Yan Shu's voice rang out: "Admit defeat! Admitting defeat isn't shameful—it's a great wisdom, a great state of mind. Let go of everything, and naturally attain Buddhahood instantly. Of course, if you change your mind and donate the Bodhi Tree or the Bright Mirror Platform to White Clothes Valley, this humble monk will count it as your victory."
"And I will spread the word of today's events, telling all cultivators under heaven that Zhang Ruochen broke the Ten Thousand Buddha Formation and already possesses strength at the level of all heavens. This will make your name known!"
Jue Miao was dark-hearted, but she wasn't this shameless!
How could her father be like this?
Zhang Ruochen fell into deep thought.
After a moment, he laughed and said, "So that's how it is!"
"Whoosh!"
Zhang Ruochen gave up resistance, retracting the Earth Cauldron, the Taiji Four Symbols Diagram, and all his divine qi back into his body.
He didn't let any power leak out, becoming like a mortal.
Instantly, the Srotapanna Silver Trees suspended in midair lost their aggression, rapidly shrinking, gradually falling to the ground, once again becoming a silent Ten Thousand Buddha Forest.
Zen Master Yan Shu stood beneath a silver tree, looking at Zhang Ruochen with a complex expression.
"Thank you for the guidance, Master. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn't have been able to break the Ten Thousand Buddha Formation." Zhang Ruochen bowed.
Zen Master Yan Shu shook his head. "It has nothing to do with this humble monk. You yourself are not a stubborn and aggressive person by nature, so you were able to comprehend the true meaning of 'let go of everything and attain Buddhahood instantly.'"
Without a doubt, the so-called Ten Thousand Buddha Formation was such that the stronger the enemy, the stronger the formation.
If Zhang Ruochen had never attacked from the beginning, the formation wouldn't have activated at all. As long as he restrained all his aura and power, the formation would naturally stop operating.
Of course, if Zhang Ruochen had actually listened to Zen Master Yan Shu and admitted defeat, he would have truly lost.
Being forced to admit defeat versus comprehending letting go—
One gives birth to inner demons, the other gives birth to the Buddha mind. The difference is like heaven and earth.
Zen Master Yan Shu asked, "Zhang Ruochen, what is your vision?"
"The sea accepts all rivers, encompassing all phenomena." Zhang Ruochen's gaze was firm.
Zen Master Yan Shu said, "Nonsense! Just like Xumi, you're both dreaming. Where in this world is there a heart that can accept all rivers? Where is there a method that encompasses all phenomena?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "This junior knows that the hell of the human heart will never be empty. That was indeed Saint Monk's dream! This junior also knows that the sea accepting all rivers and encompassing all phenomena is a dream, a realm impossible to reach even after ten or twenty eons. But has Senior ever thought about proving the Dao of the Ancestor or proving the Dao of the Buddha?"
Zen Master Yan Shu squinted, staring intently.
"Isn't that also a realm Senior will never be able to reach? But has Senior ever given up moving toward that realm? Aim for the best, and you'll achieve the middle. Aim for the middle, and you'll achieve the worst."
Zhang Ruochen walked straight out of the Ten Thousand Buddha Forest and said, "Light one lamp, and it won't illuminate the entire universe. Even with stars filling the sky, there are still many places in the world shrouded in darkness. But in the darkness, someone must light a lamp—otherwise, how can we see the path ahead?"
"I can accommodate the Angel Clan, the Elf Clan, the Yaksha Clan, the Undying Blood Clan, the Rakshasa Clan. I can accommodate my former life-and-death enemies Yan Wushen, Xue Tu, Que, Quan Zhongsheng. I can give the Mani Pearl to Zen Master Jue Miao. Then naturally, I can also accommodate the Underworld Clan!"
Zhang Ruochen was very clear about why Zen Master Yan Shu had asked him about his vision.
(Chapter End)