Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything-Chapter 270: Samadhi True Fire
With appreciative eyes, the Supreme Elder Lord watched Jiang Liu and felt that this young Little Monk, truly worthy of being the Tathagata’s second disciple reincarnated, truly a person of destiny, seemed to have spoken the true essence of cultivation in just a few words.
Indeed, so-called cultivation is not solely about the height of one’s cultivation level, nor is it about spell supernatural power and such; what truly matters is the cultivation of the heart!
Spell supernatural power, or to say, cultivation level, can be achieved with the help of external forces, but cultivating the heart relies on oneself alone.
Moreover, the ultimate result of a person is not just about reaching the peak through mere cultivation; the final outcome also depends on the cultivation of one’s state of mind.
In short, those who pay great attention to their state of mind do not necessarily become Daluo Golden Immortals or reach the level of Quasi-Saints.
However, all Quasi-Saints are inevitably those who value their state of mind greatly.
The Supreme Elder Lord felt great admiration for Jiang Liu, even more for his growth speed, and that he had even begun to grasp law-type abilities, which aroused a desire to cherish and recruit talent in the Supreme Elder Lord, prompting him to express a desire to take on a disciple.
Jiang Liu looked at him with astonishment, pondering the consequences of such a decision. The Supreme Elder Lord, a level 98 powerhouse, wanted to take him as a disciple?
In that case, would he then possess a master capable of standing against the Tathagata?
Would his Journey to the West then be assured of safety?
Considering these points, Jiang Liu felt somewhat tempted.
Yet, no matter what, he was currently a disciple of the Buddhist Sect and a key figure in the Journey to the West for Scriptures. If he agreed, wouldn’t it mean he was betraying the Buddhist Sect?
By then, what kind of reaction would it provoke from the Buddhist Sect? Experience more content on novelbuddy
If that were so, perhaps he wouldn’t have to worry about his safety, but isn’t Gaoyang still in Guanyin’s hands?
"Hahaha..."
Jiang Liu remained calm with an unchanged expression, not answering, but beside him, Sun Wukong couldn’t help but burst into laughter upon the Supreme Elder Lord’s words, looking at him as one would at a fool, saying, "You old man, are quite interesting. On our first meeting, you say you want to take my master as your disciple? Then wouldn’t I, Old Sun, become your grand-disciple?
What virtues and abilities do you have, old man?"
"Yeah, old man, you want to be my Grand Master? What skills do you have? Besides, even if it’s about taking disciples, it’s not so casual, is it?" Zhu Bajie also chimed in with his remarks.
Logically speaking, whether he accepted disciples or not, Bajie couldn’t be bothered to care about what his master agreed to.
But Sun Wukong made a point; if their master really agreed, wouldn’t Bajie become someone else’s grand-disciple for no reason?
Bajie couldn’t tolerate that, so naturally, this matter concerned him too.
"Actually, I also wanted to ask, you seem very fond of taking disciples, old sir, but how many disciples do you have now?" Following the words of Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujing also didn’t want to isolate himself from the group, and turned his gaze to the Supreme Elder Lord to ask.
"My abilities are not small, and as for how many disciples I have... till now, I haven’t taken a single disciple!" In response to the three brothers’ statements, the Supreme Elder Lord replied.
Upon saying this, the Supreme Elder Lord’s gaze settled on Jiang Liu, then continued, "What do you say? Little Monk? Why don’t you consider it? If you agree, you’ll be my first and foremost disciple!"
Jiang Liu’s expression became somber; the words of the Supreme Elder Lord made him realize that he was, after all, talking to just the Supreme Elder Lord, not the Sage Laozi!
"Thank you for your kindness, but after all, I am a disciple of the Buddhist Sect, and if I were to join your sect..." After a moment of silence, Jiang Liu shook his head slightly and replied.
"It’s all right. It was just a spur of the moment thought, a casual remark!" The answer from Jiang Liu left the Supreme Elder Lord silent for a moment before he shook his head with some disappointment and helplessness.
In fact, the Supreme Elder Lord regretted his words the moment they were uttered. His desire to cherish talent was natural, but trying to compete with the Buddhist Sect for disciples was not easy.
Having shown his desire to cherish talent, the Buddhist Sect would naturally protect their own even more fiercely, preventing him from succeeding.
The Supreme Elder Lord also understood that whether Jiang Liu agreed or not, the likelihood of this matter coming to fruition was slim; the only outcome would be some strife arising between him and the Buddhist Sect.
As a Quasi-Saint, just like the Tathagata is a Quasi-Saint, behind him stood a Saint, and the Tathagata had Saints backing him as well. He was indeed not confident in outmaneuvering the Buddhist Sect.
Originally, there were two Saints behind the Buddhist Sect, while the Three Pure Ones were like branches of the same stem, a full three Saints who could overpower by one.
But ever since the Deification...
The Supreme Elder Lord’s words weren’t picked up by Jiang Liu. When he said it was just a casual remark, Jiang Liu knew it wasn’t entirely casual or entirely true.
Perhaps he indeed harbored the idea of taking Jiang Liu as a disciple, but after considering it himself, Jiang Liu also understood it was an impossibility.
The matter of the Journey to the West was key to the rise of Buddhism, and he was central to the Journey; the Buddhist Sect would not let him go.
Furthermore, Gaoyang was still in the hands of the Buddhist Sect.
Since it was impossible, Jiang Liu naturally had to refuse.
At this time, even though they were matching wits and courage with the Buddhist Sect, having set up many pitfalls for Bodhisattva Guanyin along the way, Jiang Liu didn’t have the capability to confront them openly and break off relations. He could only pretend to be very loyal to the Buddhist Sect in order to lull them into complacency…
"Alright, now we’ve finished dinner, what do you usually do after meals?" Not dwelling further on the issue of accepting disciples, Supreme Elder Lord quickly diverted the topic and asked Jiang Liu and the others.
"Generally? I’m usually cultivating!" Jiang Liu thought for a moment and then replied.
"Heh heh heh, we usually play Mahjong or Fight the Landlord!" Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong laughed and said.
"Play Mahjong? Fight the Landlord?" Hearing this, Supreme Elder Lord’s eyebrows raised slightly, he then said, "I’m old and don’t sleep much anymore. How do you play this Mahjong? Could you maybe teach an old man?"
"Heh heh heh, sure! Old man, you should join us too!" Hearing this, Zhu Bajie laughed and looked quite enthusiastic.
When playing Mahjong, if the master didn’t have time, they would simply have to entertain themselves with Fight the Landlord.
It seemed that the master was going to cultivate again, and it was rare for someone to come and join in. Zhu Bajie, of course, was very welcoming.
Who has the best experience when playing Mahjong? Naturally, it’s those who can easily win.
Since Zhu Bajie was winning almost every time, his experience was the best; thus, he was particularly eager about the activity of playing Mahjong.
Seeing Zhu Bajie’s eager demeanor and how he readily set up the Mahjong tiles, Supreme Elder Lord naturally sat down.
Then, following their instructions, he quickly learned the basic rules of Mahjong.
"Hmm, these Mahjong tiles seem a bit too rough!"
However, as a master of alchemy and artifact refining, once Supreme Elder Lord understood the rules of Mahjong and looked at the tiles that had been simply carved out of ordinary wood, he seemed unable to fully restrain himself.
In the midst of their conversation, Supreme Elder Lord waved his hand gently, and in an instant, a thick flame suddenly appeared, engulfing all the hundred-odd Mahjong tiles.
In the span of half a cup of tea, these Mahjong tiles were refined by the flames and came out looking much more exquisite. They felt very smooth to touch, excellent in hand, and holding them was like grasping fine jade.
"Eh? You old man, your methods are indeed extraordinary!" Watching Supreme Elder Lord effortlessly refine the Mahjong tiles in the air, Zhu Bajie expressed his surprise.
Zhu Bajie’s sharp eyes could, of course, see that Supreme Elder Lord’s move was quite remarkable.
"Was that just now… Samadhi True Fire!?" As for Sun Wukong, his eyes slightly narrowed.
Unlike Zhu Bajie, whose attention was captured by Supreme Elder Lord’s artifact refining technique, Sun Wukong focused on the flame, for in the three realms and six paths, those who could command Samadhi True Fire were very few.
What about Sha Wujing? He remained silent, as he couldn’t quite discern what was special about Supreme Elder Lord’s casual display.
"It’s just practice makes perfect!" Supreme Elder Lord waved his hand dismissively in response to Zhu Bajie’s compliments, appearing unconcerned.
After showing off his skill, everyone had some understanding of his abilities. Supreme Elder Lord did not elaborate, and naturally, no one asked further.
Soon, they started shuffling the Mahjong tiles, with the sound of tiles clattering.
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Jiang Liu, watching this scene, silently marveled at Supreme Elder Lord’s capabilities, but he said nothing and returned to his room to sit in meditation and cultivate.
However, contrary to his expectations, Supreme Elder Lord had taken the initiative to appear; this made Jiang Liu’s heart grow heavy.
He did not understand what the motive behind Supreme Elder Lord’s appearance was.
Was he truly just bored and decided to take a stroll in the Lower Realm? Jiang Liu did not believe it.
He had deliberately changed his appearance and knocked on his door; clearly, he was targeting him, wasn’t he?
"It seems that I’ve done something to catch the attention of Supreme Elder Lord, haven’t I?" Thinking this, Jiang Liu grew more vigilant.
For a figure like Supreme Elder Lord to personally descend to the Lower Realm in search of him, and also to make an excuse to stay through playing Mahjong—he wondered what exactly he planned to do.
However, based on the offhand remark Supreme Elder Lord had made about taking him as a disciple, Jiang Liu felt that perhaps he had no ill intentions, right?
Such a lofty figure, no matter his purpose, couldn’t be stopped by him nor could he be sent away; if he wanted to stay, then just let him stay.
Shaking his head, Jiang Liu pondered for a moment, found no answer, and thus didn’t spend further effort on it.
His spirit immersed, he began to cultivate the Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound.
