Chapter 145

Magic illusion is ever-changing, shifting with thought, and utterly realistic; whether it is Flame Spirit Princess or Lady Mingzhu, they all have soft bosoms and tender flesh, kissing and caressing him while whispering softly, engaging in all kinds of teasing. Zhou Shuo went through two such illusions in succession, and within his body another mystic fetus was conceived, yet he dared not touch it at all.

Nurturing the mystic fetus is an extremely important stage in elixir dao; if it goes wrong, inner emotions and love run wild, causing the fiery nature to flare up excessively; the mystic fetus refined will be stimulated by the fiery nature and will instantly transform into an infant that flies away, becoming a mortal fetus within her body; this fetus is called the 'Red Boy'.

Among the eighty-one tribulations in Journey to the West, aside from the obstacles of cultivation practice, there are many explanations of cultivation difficulties; the difficulty of the mystic fetus flying away is precisely the tribulation of the Red Boy: the Samadhi true fire transforms into the fire of greed and desire, the holy infant turns into a demon king; to overcome this difficulty, one must purify the mind and see through it, just as Guanyin uses pure water to break the Red Boy's Samadhi true fire, then uses the golden hoop to subdue him.

On the journey in Journey to the West, Guanyin is also an extremely important role, signifying that people should constantly observe and reflect; Guanyin has helped Tang Sanzang and his disciples break demonic obstacles many times, she used the three tight-binding gold hoops to subdue Sun Wukong, the Black Bear Monster, and the Red Boy; among these three, Sun Wukong represents 'anger', the Black Bear Monster represents 'greed', and the Red Boy corresponds to 'ignorance', together matching the three poisons of the human body.

Zhou Shuo's character is not bad; he is not strong in anger, but in greed and ignorance, if it were the moment he had just crossed over, encountering such an illusion would be a hundred percent downfall, only waiting for his entire essence and energy to drain away and die; but now he is able to encounter the situation without being deluded.

Being able to encounter the situation without being deluded, and also knowing he is inside the illusion, Zhou Shuo can hold fast to his original mind, after refusing the pleasure ground, he then silently practices cultivation, completely ignoring the illusion, his spirit enters a state of stillness, carefully nurturing the mystic fetus within his body.

This mystic fetus, like a golden core, exists between substance and non-substance, akin to a qi-cluster seed, taking root and sprouting within the body; Zhou Shuo, in the state of stillness, gathers his mind and spirit completely into it, as if reborn from the mother's body, with spirit and qi fully united.

Not knowing how much time had passed in the illusion, Zhou Shuo, in the state of stillness, with spirit and qi fully united, felt his form slowly fading, his spirit turning into a void, entering a state of sitting in oblivion while suspended in emptiness; the nature-light in the void turned into a bright star appearing, and as soon as the nature-light appeared, the illusion shattered instantly.

"Mmm!" Zhou Shuo felt as if he had just had a long and real dream; he opened his eyes and found himself in a vast palace, while the Corpse‑Pi old man still sat in the blood lotus, suspended above the high steps.

"Teacher." Zhou Shuo looked at the old man sitting in the blood lotus, his heart gave a jolt, and he hurriedly bowed down in obeisance.

"You sure know how to cut corners, using my Asura illusion to achieve the status of an earth immortal in one breath." The Corpse‑Pi old man looked down at the bowing fellow, his silver beard twitching slightly, his tone neither salty nor bland.

"Thank you, Teacher, for your cultivation." Zhou Shuo flattered him without hesitation.

"Cut the pretense, I'm asking you—what did you see in the illusion?" The Corpse‑Pi old man looked at the flatterer, his face unmoved.

"All manner of beauty and red faces, grudges and emotions, are merely fleeting clouds."

"Any thoughts?" The Corpse‑Pi old man nodded slightly.

"I want to really experience these clouds." Zhou Shuo's eyebrows lifted; indeed many illusion plots are very unpleasant, but to speak frankly, people really want to dive in—kill what displeases them, take what pleases them—but thinking about it is just thinking.

"Hmm, that's some insight, but still far from the Great Dao. I once sought to attain fruition through the demonic sect, yet it delayed me for many days; later I switched to Buddhist practice, yet still felt unwilling, wanting to create Asura Zen outside the Buddhist gate—come and see how it is." The Corpse‑Pi old man nodded slightly, then pointed at empty space; Zhou Shuo instantly felt many memories surge into his mind, including theoretical scriptures and various cultivation formulas.

"Teacher, may I ask what Asura Zen is, and what Buddhist Zen is?" Zhou Shuo sat cross‑legged, looking at the Corpse‑Pi old man above, feeling the memories in his mind, examining them carefully; although the wording differs, it is actually the same Zen sect teaching—emphasizing laying down the butcher's knife and attaining Buddhahood on the spot.

"Asura is non‑heaven; non‑heaven is also heaven; the demon originally is Buddha…" The Corpse‑Pi old man frowned slightly.

"Then is the Buddha also a demon?" Zhou Shuo looked at the frowning Corpse‑Pi old man, his heart slightly lifted; he felt this old man had a bit of a nervous disorder and might kill him at any moment.

"The Buddha is not a demon; the Buddha is one who is awakened, fully awakened, staying away from what is not right." The Corpse‑Pi old man frowned and shook his head.

"Didn't you say non‑heaven is also heaven, so how can what is not right not be right?" Zhou Shuo ran through the logic: if the demon is Buddha, why isn't the Buddha a demon, and if non‑heaven is heaven, then what is not right is not right.

"Nonsense…" The Corpse‑Pi old man raised his longevity eyebrows, wanting to scold, but then thought better, swallowed his words after hitting his own mouth, and then changed his tone to say.

"You say 'not right is right'—how do you put that?"

"Under heaven, all take beauty as beauty; that is evil. The distinction between right and wrong arises from the position one stands, determined by circumstance; what is not right can be right, and what is right can be not right." Zhou Shuo simply described the logic—it is really just the two sides of a coin, both being the coin itself.

"Hmm, that makes sense; how to put it into practice?" The Corpse‑Pi old man relaxed his longevity eyebrows and asked lightly.

"Asura Zen is Zen, Buddhist Zen is Zen; Zen being self‑nature, what is to be expected of self‑nature? Originally pure; what is to be expected of self‑nature? Originally not arising and ceasing; what is to be expected of self‑nature…" Zhou Shuo shook his head and swayed, recalling the scripture he had seen on Giant Whale Island, but before he could finish speaking, the Corpse‑Pi old man cut him off.

"Originally complete; what is to be expected of self‑nature? Originally unmoving; what is to be expected of self‑nature? Able to give rise to all dharmas." I have studied the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch more thoroughly than you. The Corpse‑Pi old man felt a nameless fire rising; what I want is how to make 'not right become right', to let Asura Zen permeate.

"…" Zhou Shuo looked at the old man with the nameless fire rising, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, then he lowered his head to think.

"Making what is not right turn into right can enable the six perfections and myriad practices." Zhou Shuo raised his head again and offered a method.

"Generosity, patience, observance of precepts, diligence, meditative concentration, and wisdom—these are the methods of Buddhist cultivation." The Corpse‑Pi old man slightly twisted his longevity eyebrows.

"Buddhist Zen is Zen, Asura Zen is Zen; Zen has no duality—Buddha is, Asura also is; Buddha has attained it, while Asura has not; it would be better to reverse‑engineer from Buddhist Zen, for few people attain self‑awakening on their own, relying entirely on observing precepts to correct themselves, thus allowing gradual progress."

Zhou Shuo roughly figured out that this Corpse‑Pi old man looks like a fellow just like Xia Liuqing—stubborn and willful, wanting to attain fruition yet unwilling to lay down the butcher's knife; it's not outright lawlessness, just a bit of willfulness, with a stubborn streak in his heart.

"Do you think I haven't progressed gradually?" The Corpse‑Pi old man murmured softly.

"Teacher, I've only just entered the gate…" Zhou Shuo looked at the murmuring old man, couldn't help but crack a smile—who exactly is the teacher here!

"Oh, since you've only just entered, then follow my teachings; I've already passed on all the techniques just now. From now on you will reside in the Freedom Palace; this is the token—you may command all the palace maids and guards as you wish. I dwell in the Heavenly Desire Palace, my daughter Mingzhu lives in the Harmony and Bliss Palace; you may go anywhere in this demon palace, except the demon prison beneath West Flat Lake." The Corpse‑Pi old man threw out a token.

"Yes." Zhou Shuo caught the token that flew to his face, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly; he had come to learn the greater and lesser heavenly Asura magic, not to study some trivial Asura Zen—although those arts are also wonderful and fine, their power seems not very great.

"Teacher, when may I leave the palace?" Zhou Shuo felt utterly powerless before the old man; he could only muffledly accept the token, yet he did not forget to ask about his own freedom.

"To enter my demon sect, one must respect elders, cultivate body and nature; if the master has affairs, the disciple must serve his labor; without my command, one may not leave the demon palace without permission." The Corpse‑Pi old man's few stiff words shut Zhou Shuo down.

Zhou Shuo felt a bit depressed, but there was nothing he could do; this Corpse‑Pi old man is the first since his crossing to make him feel so depressed, yet he must attend to him carefully; one slip could cost him his life.

"Indeed, among the strong there are always stronger hands, and one mountain is still higher than another!" Zhou Shuo sighed, took the token and began to wander aimlessly through the Divine Sword Peak Asura Demon Palace; the place the Corpse‑Pi old man mentioned—West Flat Lake—he would absolutely not go, knowing that a fierce yin demon is imprisoned there; contact with it is like a sticky plaster, absolutely untouchable.

In the Asura Demon Palace, aside from the Corpse‑Pi old man, there is also his daughter Princess Mingzhu; the rest are golden‑armored demon guards and ordinary maids. Zhou Shuo, holding the token given by the Corpse‑Pi old man, can command them at will, and under their guidance move through the demon palace.

Although he had entered the demon palace, Zhou Shuo was not one to suffer a loss; while wandering the palace, he discovered the Corpse‑Pi old man's treasure vault, entered with the token and took a look around; the Corpse‑Pi old man is a magnate of the demon sect, his collection is extremely rich—elixirs, magical treasures, secret manuals, nothing missing.

Zhou Shuo took a few bottles from the Corpse‑Pi old man's treasure vault that were beneficial for cultivation, especially elixirs helpful for nurturing the mystic fetus; he didn't need to know where the Corpse‑Pi old man obtained these things—as long as he could use them, that was enough.

With continuous gestation, Zhou Shuo's martial methods began to gradually disappear; his thoughts, spirit, and true qi were all drawn into the mystic fetus, which consequently took shape; after ten months of gestation, once the nurturing was complete, the mystic fetus properly formed, giving rise to an infant in the dantian; as this infant was born, Zhou Shuo's martial methods began to slowly recover.

"MMP, cultivating the Dao is exactly like raising a child." Zhou Shuo felt the connection in his dantian to his very life force; his whole body, condensed from immortal qi into a pure white little figure, couldn't help but grin—this infant had taken much effort to cultivate into form, yet that's not all; it still needs careful care and nurturing, otherwise the infant would die young and all would be for naught.

Although there are many troubles, fortunately having relied on his master, he also has a backer; the various elixirs in the Asura Demon Palace are fully stocked, Zhou Shuo's infant is not lacking in nutritional supplements; his cultivation progresses extremely quickly, soon becoming white and plump, but mindful of the demon palace's restrictions, he dare not wander freely with his spirit, and can only focus on practicing Asura Zen.