Chapter 3799: The Story of Mahabrahma
Maha Mountain rose high into the clouds, majestic and magnificent.
Within the mountain, there were many divine birds and strange beasts—Luan birds, Phoenixes, and Vermilion Birds. They soared through the sky, transformed into human forms, stood on lotus platforms, wore monastic robes, held prayer beads, and bore golden halos behind their backs. All were intelligent, benevolent, and true divine beings.
The Maha Golden Platform was located at the summit of Maha Mountain, towering above the clouds. It was entirely golden, and with every step, a splendid scene unfolded.
Coral treasure trees adorned exquisite pavilions, white jade pagodas stood beside purple-golden incense burners.
The Buddhas of the Western Buddha Realm had clearly learned of Zhang Ruochen's grand arrival. They gathered at the Maha Golden Platform, eager to see with their own eyes this rising star who was at the peak of his power.
The many Buddhas possessed profound mindsets. They all wore gentle smiles, neither humble nor arrogant. Most showed an expression of appreciation, regarding him as the successor of the Seventh Patriarch and the inheritor of the Sixth Patriarch's legacy.
Subtly, there was an atmosphere of ten thousand Buddhas paying homage!
As they entered the Jinggai Treasure Hall at the very center of the Maha Golden Platform, the number of Buddhist cultivators decreased. Those who remained were at least top-tier great gods. Some rode elephants, some held mirrors, some had long eyebrows—each one carried significant weight.
The hall before them was unimaginably vast. Every pillar seemed to point straight to the heavens, as if supporting the universe and reaching the boundaries of the starry sky.
At the entrance of the hall, Jingxiu stopped and did not proceed further.
Mahabrahma's golden body was ninety-nine zhang tall, seated at the highest position. His body was like a small mountain. He had the white hair-tuft between his brows, wore a brocade kasaya, sat on a thirty-six-grade lotus platform, and had seventy-two Buddhist halos behind him. He was solemn and sacred, with a majestic bearing and profound aura.
Zhang Ruochen naturally did not neglect propriety. He bowed and performed a Buddhist salute.
Mahabrahma's voice was deep and resonant, like the sound of heavenly thunder. "Imperial Dust is one who has affinity with the Buddha. Since you have come to the Western Buddha Realm, you are a distinguished guest. There is no need for such formalities."
"Cihang has cultivated for ten thousand years and has already entered the Great Unbound Infinite. Truly, her fortune is profound."
"Now that she has returned to the Western Buddha Realm, she will surely attain the Great Compassionate and Merciful Buddha Path in the future."
After Zhang Ruochen and the other two took their seats on the lotus platforms, a Luan bird that had transformed into human form presented three servings of food.
A pot of Red Dust Brew, a Bodhi Fruit, and a bowl of Hundred Families Rice.
Seeing these three types of food and the order in which they were presented, Cihang Fairy immediately understood. She then closed her eyes, waiting to see what Zhang Ruochen would choose.
Indeed, Mahabrahma was a being of great wisdom, having anticipated this long ago.
Zhang Ruochen looked down at the three servings of food before him. He first lifted the Red Dust Brew and filled a cup.
He raised the cup and savored it carefully.
"Excellent Red Dust Brew. The four flavors of the human world—sweetness, bitterness, sourness, and spiciness—come rushing in. It makes one mourn the sorrows of the past and yet recall the beautiful times once lived."
"This must be the Bodhi Fruit from the oldest Bodhi tree in the Western Buddha Realm, right? Legend has it that it possesses the divine effect of enlightening all sentient beings."
Zhang Ruochen ate the Bodhi Fruit bite by bite, and finally, his gaze fell upon the Hundred Families Rice.
It was a very ordinary clay bowl.
The rice in the bowl was a mix of new and old, dry and wet, green and yellow.
The so-called Hundred Families Rice was rice begged for through alms-begging.
The so-called alms-begging was about forming good karmic connections.
A pot of Red Dust Wine was meant to make Zhang Ruochen experience the sweetness, bitterness, sourness, and spiciness of the human world and the inability to control one's own fate. It was also meant to tell Zhang Ruochen about Mahabrahma's own difficult and agonizing situation.
A Bodhi Fruit was a reminder for Zhang Ruochen to awaken and understand.
And the highlight was the final Hundred Families Rice.
Eating the Hundred Families Rice meant forming a good karmic connection.
A hundred families are one family; you and I are both of the Buddhist sect.
Zhang Ruochen smiled and shook his head. In the end, he did not pick up his chopsticks.
Seeing this, Cihang Fairy and Chi Yao, who were sitting to his left and right, sighed secretly.
Chi Yao had once cultivated in the Western Buddha Realm and had feelings of gratitude towards this pure land.
Zhang Ruochen said, "There is one thing I do not understand, and I have long wanted to ask Mahabrahma for guidance. May I speak?"
"Everyone, withdraw!"
As Mahabrahma's voice sounded, all the Buddhas in the hall retreated.
He understood that Zhang Ruochen was about to lay his cards on the table.
Zhang Ruochen said, "The master of the Desolate Heaven Hall Master of the Stone Divine Temple in the Hell Realm, Yuanxu Ancient Buddha—does Mahabrahma still remember him?"
"Yuanxu Ancient Buddha was a cultivator of the Western Buddha Realm and a disciple of the Sixth Patriarch. How could I not remember him?" said Mahabrahma.
Zhang Ruochen said, "How does Mahabrahma evaluate him?"
Mahabrahma gently shook his head. "A Buddha is also a human. As long as one is human, they may stray from the right path. The Five Aggregates are all empty, and the Ten Precepts are not observed—perhaps only a Buddha can achieve that."
Zhang Ruochen said, "So, Mahabrahma knows about his actions one hundred thousand years ago?"
Mahabrahma acknowledged this with silence.
Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly. Truly worthy of being called a Buddha Lord, he did not deny it against his conscience. That was already an extraordinary state of mind.
"Perhaps Yao Yao and Cihang Fairy do not know that one hundred thousand years ago, the world believed that the Desolate Heaven Hall Master had betrayed the Heavenly Court, colluded with the Stone Ancestor, and cut down the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree, the spiritual root of the Kunlun Realm. This caused the divine qi of the Kunlun Realm to dissipate, greatly weakening its various defensive powers. It left Xumi Saint Monk alone to block the countless gods of the Hell Realm, ultimately leading to his fall and disappearance."
"But who knows that the Desolate Heaven Hall Master was actually acting on the orders of his master, Yuanxu Ancient Buddha? He pretended to defect to the Stone Ancestor and offered the plan to cut down the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree, thereby luring the gods of the Hell Realm into the Kunlun Realm."
"The final result, however, was that the gods of the Heavenly Court that Yuanxu Ancient Buddha had invited did not come to ambush. The Stone Ancestor and the gods of the Hell Realm had learned in advance that it was a trap and did not fall for it."
"Pity that the Sky-Connecting Divine Tree willingly allowed itself to be cut down by Desolate Heaven. Pity that Xumi Saint Monk's Dao vanished and his body perished. Pity that all the gods of the Kunlun Realm were lost. For one hundred thousand years, a full one hundred thousand years, the Kunlun Realm only then emerged from its blood and tears, barely avoiding the destruction of its realm and the extinction of its race."
"Does Mahabrahma feel disappointment, regret, or fear?"
Zhang Ruochen had already stood up. His figure was heroic and upright, his gaze sharp as a sword.
Chi Yao directly summoned the Blood-Dripping Sword. Behind her, a "卍" mark appeared, and the shadow of Zangjin Baihu appeared, even more massive and majestic than a divine elephant.
"I also have a story. Would Imperial Dust be willing to listen?" Mahabrahma was exceptionally calm.
Zhang Ruochen regained his composure and grace. "I have long wanted to hear it!"
Mahabrahma said, "I was originally of mediocre talent. I could not match the profound Buddhist teachings of Yunqing Ancient Buddha, nor the brilliance of the Sixth Patriarch. I cultivated for six eons, and my lifespan was nearly exhausted, yet I could not reach the Infinite Realm."
"On that day, I entered the Saha World for a final desperate attempt, but I failed. As I walked out of the Saha World and stood by the Washing Image Pond, the desire to survive and the desire to seek the Dao within me were stronger than ever before. Yet, in the end, they were replaced by despair. My Buddhist heart was on the verge of collapse."
"It was Qishier Pin Lian who manifested a projection in the Washing Image Pond, awakening me and pulling me back from the brink of utter despair. After that, every so often, she would manifest a projection in the Washing Image Pond, teaching me Buddhist Dharma and guiding me on the shortcomings in my cultivation."
"I never expected that the true essence I had failed to attain through six eons of bitter cultivation seemed to dawn on me overnight. My cultivation realm soared like a shooting star, unstoppable."
"I was filled with gratitude towards her. I regarded her as both a teacher and a mountain—a peak I looked up to and chased."
"After the Sixth Patriarch entered nirvana, she no longer only descended as a projection into the Washing Image Pond. Her true body appeared in the Western Buddha Realm. Including Yuanxu, several Buddhist cultivators knew of her existence and had received her guidance. Their reverence for her reached a level no less than that for a Buddha."
It was only at this point that Zhang Ruochen asked, "So, regarding the deadly game set against the Kunlun Realm and Xumi Saint Monk one hundred thousand years ago, were you merely an informed party, or were you also a participant?"
"An informed party. Perhaps I could also be considered half a participant." Mahabrahma smiled bitterly, self-pityingly. "At first, I truly believed that Qishier Pin Lian was trying to help the Kunlun Realm and assist Xumi Saint Monk. So, I once descended as a projection to the Kunlun Realm and planned together with the gods of the Kunlun Realm. Otherwise, given Yuanxu Ancient Buddha's cultivation level at the time, how could the gods of the Kunlun Realm have easily made such a huge decision?"
"But when I tried to contact the Heavenly Venerable and the gods of the Heavenly Court, I was stopped by Qishier Pin Lian. It was only then that I learned of Qishier Pin Lian's other identity: Kong Faning."
Zhang Ruochen could tell that Mahabrahma was not fabricating a story. He was indeed just a pawn of Qishier Pin Lian.
And Desolate Heaven was an even more insignificant pawn.
Chi Yao said coldly, "Since you knew, why have you never spoken out all these years? Is this the heart of a Buddha Lord? Is this the path of a Buddha Lord?"
Mahabrahma was silent for a long time. "Perhaps this is the inner torment one must endure for doing wrong, the debt one must repay for receiving a favor. Or perhaps, there is a divine will in the unseen. That divine will has arranged for your arrival today to draw a conclusion to everything in the past."
Zhang Ruochen said, "I have two more questions. What is the relationship between Shang Tian and the Stone Heaven of the Hell Realm with Qishier Pin Lian?"
Mahabrahma gently shook his head.
Zhang Ruochen frowned. Mahabrahma had admitted to all the previous matters and spoken them out fully. There was no need for him to hide anything on this issue.
Yuanxu Ancient Buddha had a close relationship with Shang Tian's son, the Duotian Divine Emperor. How could Shang Tian be completely unaware?
Could it be that only Yao Shenzun was scheming behind the scenes?
As for Stone Heaven, if he had no connection with Qishier Pin Lian, how could he have known about the Kunlun Realm's plan? How could he have known in advance that the Inverse God Clan would face a calamity of extinction?
Mahabrahma thought of something. "Shang Tian cultivates the Three Corpses Refining Dao, which originates from the Buddhist Three Bodies. However, after entering the Indestructible Infinite, a major problem arose in his cultivation."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Are you referring to the independent consciousness of the three corpses?"
"You know of this?" Mahabrahma was slightly surprised.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Shang Tian's Demon Corpse came to the Space Divine Temple last time to rescue Yao Shenzun, and I noticed something then. The demonic nature of the Demon Corpse was too strong. Its will and spirit were too independent and decisive. It was impossible for it to coexist with other consciousnesses."
"The Three Corpses Refining Dao seems very powerful, but the three corpses are equally strong, each walking their own path. Once the cultivation realm is high, problems will inevitably arise. How could the Demon Corpse and the Divine Corpse be willing to be controlled by the Original Corpse?"
Mahabrahma said, "Qishier Pin Lian's Buddhist Dharma is extraordinarily profound. Her research on the Three Bodies is almost unparalleled. If she has a method to allow Shang Tian to merge the three corpses and solve his cultivation problems, Shang Tian would certainly not refuse to cooperate with her. At the very least, the Demon Corpse would definitely cooperate with her."
"As for the Stone Heaven of the Hell Realm, perhaps the former Space Divine Temple Hall Master, Yujingzhen, is your breakthrough point."
"Can Mahabrahma speak more directly?" asked Zhang Ruochen.
Mahabrahma chanted, "Weak water north cliff stone, stone heaven true self body. Weak water dries up day, stone heaven emerges time. Nine lives cut self, sever nine lives feeling."