Chapter 6: The Union of Soul and Body

"This is—"

Ye Qin subconsciously held his breath, unable to believe the scene before his eyes.

Soon a layer of flesh tissue appeared before him, white and delicate—it was human skin.

Next, the other toes also grew flesh, spreading to the sole; in a moment, a perfect foot appeared before his eyes.

Like the heavens' most perfect work, the skin was white and smooth, without any blemish, and even its shape was beautiful, the ten toes round and neatly aligned.

Yet it gave rise to no sense of sacrilege.

Yet looking further up, beneath a thin membrane, bright red blood vessels writhed and tangled together, the flesh tissue above had not yet formed.

It looked truly terrifying and ferocious; the contrast created a powerful visual impact.

The skin grew quickly; flesh and blood continuously spread upward, the transparent flesh tissue gradually took on a flesh tone, as if someone were painting it with a brush.

Soon the white bone painting acquired other colors.

The lower leg grew flesh, the knee grew flesh, the thigh grew flesh, the lower part grew flesh, the middle organs grew flesh, and even the organs were gradually forming.

The crimson threads became bridges connecting the bones, allowing the muscles to attach to them.

White Bone Flesh Contemplation.

Bones grew flesh, and a complete "person" slowly appeared before Ye Qin.

Yet this was not enough; his black hair sprouted like spring leaves full of vitality, quickly growing and wrapping around his graceful figure.

His entire skin emitted a jade-like radiance, flawless; the beautiful curves were displayed to the fullest, faintly revealing a graceful bearing, yet it inspired no sense of sacrilege, only a feeling of holiness.

Just looking at his shadow, it was unmistakably that of a woman.

Most importantly, atop her head hovered a faint halo; at first glance it resembled a pure glass body, clear and transparent, filled with an ineffable Buddha-nature.

Who could have imagined that not long ago, this was merely a pile of white bones!

Ye Qin never expected that the true identity of this pile of white bones before him was actually a woman!

Previously, he had thought it was a scholar.

Only the features were somewhat blurred, a mass of light blocking them, as if behind a layer of hazy white mist.

Although he could not see her face clearly, his intuition told him the woman's appearance must be extraordinary; Ye Qin strained his eyes, hoping to catch a glimpse of her true visage.

The woman stood there quietly, her hands forming a sign: palms open, index fingers extended and slightly bent to touch the upper segments of the middle fingers, then the thumbs bent to touch the lower segments of the index fingers.

This is the Samaya Seal.

She seemed to sense Ye Qin's thoughts and gaze, slowly approaching him; even beneath her feet golden lotuses blossomed, layer upon layer, every movement brimming with Buddha-nature.

Step by step lotuses sprang up, graceful and alluring—nothing more.

The woman's figure drew ever closer, and the Buddhist sounds in his ears grew ever clearer.

Only a little more, and Ye Qin would be able to see the woman's features clearly.

A faint desire rose in his heart; he wanted to see clearly what the appearance of this karmic person truly was.

"Thus knowing, thus seeing, thus understanding, no dharma-form arises."

A Buddha's voice came from the horizon, drifting past Ye Qin's ears, cleansing everything.

Golden lotuses surged forth; from the gaps between the petals, it seemed as if countless piles of white bones could be seen.

In a moment, his originally hazy gaze gradually became clear, and at the same time the initial longing in his heart faded.

What difference would it make to see clearly, or not to see clearly?

No matter how fine the mortal frame, after a hundred years it will turn to white bones, and finally a handful of yellow earth will be scattered upon the world.

Follow the Dao, take the mind as the source. Emptiness is form, form is emptiness. Dreams dissolve, coming and going in haste. The moon in water, the wind in trees. Contemplate thus, and nothing obstructs.

All phenomena are empty of characteristics: neither born nor destroyed, neither defiled nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing.

Even rosy cheeks turning to white bones takes no more than a snap of the fingers.

Thinking of this, Ye Qin's heart gave an inexplicable tremor, as if suddenly enlightened; he seemed to sense something, slowly opening his eyes, his beast pupils filled with clear understanding, devoid of any desire.

Before him remained only that pile of white bones; where was the vision of a woman with lotuses blooming at each step?

Whether fact or illusion, it often lies in a single thought.

White Bone Contemplation: contemplating the white bone, a flowing light appears, and flesh emerges.

At this moment, Ye Qin's heart already held an awakening.

This is the Contemplation Method!

Contemplate all falsehoods, and they become real in consciousness.

He slowly lowered his head, contemplating his own body; at this moment his sight seemed unobstructed, with no hindrance.

Viewing a leopard through a tube, one sees the big from the small.

His sight may be limited, but his thoughts will not be.

The black snake's body was covered in wounds, various marks, looking extremely terrifying; between its black scales, a white light seemed to flash, resembling the shape of bones.

At this moment, through contemplation, Ye Qin seemed able to clearly see the growth of the bones within his body.

Next, countless scales fell off, then the flesh of his entire body dropped away in chunks, leaving only pure white bone.

Unexpectedly, throughout the process Ye Qin felt no pain at all.

Rotting flesh fell away, revealing white bone; indeed, his whole body showed only white bone.

A complete snake skeleton appeared before his eyes.

Seeing himself transformed thus, his beast eyes remained calm, without any panic, everything proceeding naturally.

The pupils of the serpent kind appeared somewhat aloof; more precisely, they were a transcendent, worldly detachment.

Ye Qin blinked slightly; still the scales scorched by lightning, unchanged.

It seemed as if everything just now had been his illusion.

Leaves wither and fall, then branches sprout new buds; the cycle of life and death is but a single thought.

Ye Qin felt he was like a completely bare big tree; this did not mean loss of vitality, but represented rebirth.

As the saying goes, "No destruction, no establishment."

The flesh rotted and fell away, revealing white bone; even the entire body showed white bone.

Soon his scales and flesh all over his body fell off, and a complete snake skeleton emerged.

At this moment, Ye Qin, through contemplation, could clearly see the growth of his internal bones.

A snake's bones usually number between 100 and 400, connected by ball-and-socket joints, allowing each vertebral segment to move freely.

This is also why the Serpent Kind is so flexible.

Ye Qin's snake body is small, so his skeleton is also very fine; it looks like a dense mass, evenly distributed, and at first glance it even glimmers like glazed glass.

Because he had previously suffered severe injuries, many of his internal bones were damaged to varying degrees; some places even fractured, and there were even bruises.

But now these bones seem to be affected by some mysterious force, slowly connecting with each other, while those bruises and impurities are being removed.

The entire skeleton resembled a work of art.

(End of chapter)