Chapter 33

At the beginning of the sutra, it tells of a disciple of the Buddha asking the Buddha: he has countless treasures, and if he gives these treasures away to others, does that count as merit? The Buddha tells him it does not, because such giving is seeking blessings, and seeking blessings is not merit; true merit arises from within, upon seeing one's true mind, being able to act with equality, letting thoughts flow unobstructed, constantly perceiving one's nature—only such things are merit.

Hmm, this works. Zhou Shuo slightly nodded, this kind of wealth‑seeking‑blessings giving is merit, then wouldn't monks and nuns all be fed to the point of having brains full and intestines fat, people becoming monastics just for food and clothing, and the Buddhist teachings would be ruined; the intent of this passage is acceptable, let's continue reading.

Seeing the Buddha answer that merit is seeing one's nature equal, thoughts without obstruction, the Buddha's disciple then asked, if there is a naturally born demon, with an extremely wicked nature, acting according to his own nature and rampantly slaughtering, would that count as merit? The Buddha replied, the heavenly demon acts according to his nature, recognizing his own nature, that counts as merit, so demon and Buddha are equal.

On the surface it seems utterly heinous, but logically it works; even 'demonic nature extremely wicked' is a hypothesis, so who in this world has an extremely wicked nature, and what is nature anyway? Zhou Shuo raised his eyebrows; this passage makes one feel creepy, yet it is full of hypotheses—although calling killing in accordance with one's nature merit, the premise is that 'killing' is in accordance with one's nature, and what is nature!

Self‑nature is… Zhou Shuo looked down at the sutra; indeed, the Buddha's disciple then asked again, what counts as self‑nature.

The Buddha said: What need speak of self‑nature? It is originally pure; what need speak of self‑nature? It is originally unborn and undying; what need speak of self‑nature? It is originally complete; what need speak of self‑nature? It is originally unmoving; what need speak of self‑nature? It can give rise to all dharmas.

Damn, that's so abstract—pure, unborn and undying, complete, unmoving, able to give rise to all dharmas; meeting these conditions is self‑nature, self‑nature needs no seeking, everyone has it, yet everyone cannot find it—okay, that's very Buddhist. Zhou Shuo looked at the sutra, involuntarily grinning, then continued reading.

The monk who raised the question was probably also baffled by the Buddha, unable to ask further, so he turned back to the sutra's central topic of 'merit', asking what merit is useful for; the Buddha told him merit is used to nourish oneself, to stay away from worldly joy, and is the basic provision for attaining fruition; Buddhism has three fruits—Buddha, Bodhisattva, and Arhat—each fruit requires corresponding merit provisions; as for how much, it is not stated.

After asking about the function of merit, the monk who wrote the sutra again asked the Buddha how to cultivate merit; the Buddha then listed six methods: giving, observing precepts, patience, diligence, meditation, and wisdom; these six methods are also called the six pāramitās, the six perfections leading to the other shore—bodhisattvas wishing to become Buddhas must fully cultivate all six, achieving self‑enlightenment and enlightenment of others, self‑salvation and salvation of others.

Damn mysterious, if it's self‑nature, why can't it be pointed out directly, why must we endure such arduous training? Zhou Shuo looked at the Buddha's answer, involuntarily curling his lip; earlier it was said self‑nature is possessed by everyone, so why must we still undergo such bitter practice, why can't we point directly to the true mind!

Just like Zhou Shuo, the monk in the text also didn't understand, asking whether sentient beings can become Buddha by self-realizing their nature; the Buddha replied yes, but those who become Buddha through self-realization are naturally able to practice the six paramitas, whereas sentient beings in Jambudvipa are stubborn and hard to tame, and even in the ten directions worlds one may not find a single self-realized one who sees nature; even later monks will raise the banner of 'self-realization' to corrupt the orthodox Dharma, at that time demonic beings will wear kasaya, heretical teachers will preach like the sands of the Ganges, and people's hearts will thus be corrupted, the age of decline will arrive, and only by earnestly cultivating the six paramitas, observing precepts and refining oneself, can one progress step by step.

"Demon wearing kasaya?" Zhou Shuo looked at the words in the scripture, involuntarily blinking; after the Great Zen Temple's destruction, the black‑gold kasaya spread out, and pirates like the Yellow‑Eyed Human Buddha and Green‑Eyed could drape it over themselves—does this count as fulfilling that line "demon wearing kasaya"?

"Zhou—" Yao Yueyu jumped off the boat, looking into the distance at Zhou Shuo, who was walking over while lowering his head to look at something, she was about to speak when unexpectedly a tall, handsome young man about twenty‑four or twenty‑five stepped forward and saluted.

"What's the matter?" Yao Yueyu looked at the tall man before her—this was Gu Yeyu, a disciple of the Divine Sound Hall of the Tai Kang Province of the Yao Chi Sect, one of the Yao Chi disciples accompanying her on this sea voyage.

"That Young Master Zhou took away a piece of kasaya inscribed with text from Giant Whale Island." Gu Yeyu looked at the picturesque Yao Chi young lady, slightly bowed, turned his head, and pointed at Zhou Shuo in the distance who was lowering his head to look at the kasaya, saying.

"I understand, you may go!" Yao Yueyu looked at Zhou Shuo with his head bowed far away, and gave a slight nod.

"Yes!" Gu Yeyu looked at the young lady with double pupils and composed demeanor, gave a slight nod and walked away; when his back was to Yao Yueyu, a flicker of disappointment flashed in his eyes—Yao Yueyu is the daughter of the Yao Chi Sect's sect leader, not only of noble birth but also beautiful with double pupils, extraordinarily gifted, admired by countless people; he naturally was among them, yet he could not win her heart.

Watching Gu Yeyu leave, Yao Yueyu, with her double pupils, gazed into the distance at Zhou Shuo still bowing his head, she broke into a light run; upon approaching, she suddenly saw Zhou Shuo set down what he held and lift his head, and she couldn't help but smile.

"What are you looking at?"

"A Buddhist scripture." Zhou Shuo had just finished reading the text in his hand, smiling as he handed over the kasaya inscribed with the scripture.

"A Buddhist scripture? You're so absorbed in it, do you want to become a monk?" Yao Yueyu took the kasaya that was handed over, flipped it, and indeed saw the opening "Thus have I heard"—a phrase present in all Buddhist scriptures, which translates to "the one who wrote the scripture heard the Buddha speak," similar to the Confucian "the Master said."

"Become a monk? Don't joke, I haven't even started a family yet! I just find it interesting." Zhou Shuo looked at the lively girl and quickly shook his head.

"How is it interesting?" Hearing the word "start a family," Yao Yueyu's face flushed, but her eyes remained on the kasaya; she skipped the opening passage and saw the line "the innate nature of the heavenly demon is to kill for merit," causing her eyebrows to twitch.

"It's right at the beginning." Zhou Shuo saw the red rising on Yao Yueyu's delicate, pinch‑able face, stepped forward grinning, and pointed to the beginning of the scripture in her hand.

"The heavenly demon follows its nature to kill for merit—this is an heretical external scripture; how dare it open with 'Thus have I heard'?" Yao Yueyu frowned, examined it carefully, confirming she hadn't misread; she had also studied with her mother, and although she had never read Buddhist scriptures, such classics usually teach goodness, and she had never heard of killing counting as merit.

"No, no, you need to look closely—the opening of this scripture has a premise: the heavenly demon kills for merit, the premise being that the heavenly demon's nature is to kill; here the heavenly demon's nature is assumed to be utterly evil, a hypothetical statement, since even the heavenly demon's nature is uncertain, let alone a human's."

"Hearing you say that, it really does sound interesting—if you went to study, you could probably place first in the imperial exams!" Yao Yueyu followed Zhou Shuo's words, examining it carefully again; the scripture is indeed quite interesting—it looks like a heretical text at first glance, but a closer look reveals a whole set of Chan methods, and the fact that this guy can understand it shows his literary foundation is not bad!

"Just a little cleverness—I could never place first in the exams; I haven't studied, I don't know textual meanings, can't memorize classics, let alone compose poetry or prose." Zhou Shuo, hearing his sister's praise, felt a bit proud but quickly shook his head; the imperial examinations aren't simple, their difficulty is no less than today's tests, with millions of students nationwide each year, only a fraction pass; Hong Yi finds it easy only because he's studied since childhood, other novel protagonists find it easy because they have memorization behind them, while I'm probably just too lazy later on.

"Then what can you do?" Yao Yueyu looked at the smug yet head‑shaking guy and asked.

"I have reason." Zhou Shuo raised his head and puffed out his chest, striking a tall pose.

"Reason? How do you mean that?" Yao Yueyu found it strange; the answer was quite novel.

"Look." Zhou Shuo casually patted the sword at his waist.

"This is your 'reason'." Yao Yueyu instantly widened her double pupils, her eyes mixing laughter and tears.

"Not bad—literature has no first, martial arts no second; this is my ultimate reason: if I can't prevail mentally, I'll destroy his body. Confucius—there was a Confucian sage who did just that." Zhou Shuo nodded firmly, and wanted to cite Confucius as an example, but then realized this world lacks Confucius, Yi Zi hasn't emerged yet, yet there should be a similar projection, so he casually remarked.

"Which Confucian ancestor have you heard of doing such a thing! Moreover, even if you can't outmatch him mentally and destroy his corpse, what if he reincarnates and returns?" Yao Yueyu nearly burst out laughing, and jokingly replied.

"Then destroy him again, let him wander forever as a lonely ghost until he vanishes." Zhou Shuo waved his big hand.

"What if you can't destroy his body?" Yao Yueyu curled the corner of her mouth, her eyes narrowing into crescents.

"If I can't destroy his body, let him live and die on his own—humanity must die, that's the heavenly principle's cycle. If I hate him, I'll become his disciple, learn his strengths, then turn around and kill him; if I don't have time, I'll make his legacy mine, turning his disciples into the people he hates most." Zhou Shuo thought a moment and gave his answer.

"Then how can I earn your hatred?" Yao Yueyu looked at the serious guy, lowered the hook of her mouth, widened her eyes fully—she couldn't tell, but this guy's personality is quite ruthless!

"Well..." Zhou Shuo looked at his sister who breaks pots, at her unusual double pupils and delicate face, wondering who he has ever hated in his life.

The atmosphere subtly shifted in an instant; Zhou Shuo gazed at Yao Yueyu's double pupils, unable to find a reason to make himself hate someone to death—he truly had never hated anyone that much in his life.

"……" Yao Yueyu stared blankly at her own pupils, her face flushing involuntarily, her double pupils flickering and drooping.

"What are you looking at? Let's go—my older sister is looking for you." Yao Yueyu lowered her gaze, then suddenly lifted it to glare at him; this guy really is something, making her forget the matter at hand.

"What does she want with me?" Zhou Shuo came to, seeing the shy yet annoyed look, he felt his heart go soft, his gaze a little dazed—had he unknowingly flirted with his sister?

"If you don't come, forget it." Yao Yueyu looked at the dazed fellow, put her hands behind her back, gave a light hum, and turned—will you not come?

"Coming, I'm coming." Zhou Shuo saw his sister turn away with a light hum, and hurriedly followed, his heart blooming with joy.