Chapter 571: Seeing Before Death

Jizhao was originally an illusion, but now it was being used to reveal the truth.

Jianzhen first fixed his gaze on the corpses hanging and swaying outside the Buddha hall, then slowly retracted his sight, sweeping over Li Miao, over the severed limbs on the ground, over the corpse-lotus beneath him, and finally stopping on his own body.

He raised his hand and groped his right face.

Fangs, bulging flesh, and beneath the tightly closed right eyelid, the eyeball was spinning rapidly, as if it would open at any moment.

Jianzhen closed his eyes.

"Is this... the evil I have committed?"

Li Miao shook his head.

"No, Master, this is not your fault."

"These monks were not killed by you, and this did not come from your original heart."

Jianzhen smiled bitterly and lowered his head.

"Original heart, Buddhism, heh."

"Benefactor, if someone committed an extremely evil act and then told you they were forced or deceived, what would you do?"

Li Miao was silent for a long time, then said in a deep voice.

"... Kill."

Jianzhen smiled bitterly.

"That's right, if one does evil, one must pay."

"This is the living human world, not the fictional Hell or Western Paradise debated in Buddhism. The passing of every life is real and true; how can I deceive myself and others?"

"Benefactor, rest assured, I will not go mad because of this."

"It's just... I feel a bit lost."

Jianzhen looked ahead, his vision unfocused.

"Because of my stubbornness, I did not follow Patriarch Bodhidharma's last words and forcibly tried to save Japanese Buddhism, resulting in the loss of my life, failing the Patriarch, and failing the younger generations."

"Because of my pedantry, Zhang Sanfeng was trapped in the Ise Grand Shrine, and I even implicated you in crossing the sea to fight the First Ancestor of Heaven-Man."

"I was actually a bit proud of myself; even if I died, even if I failed the Patriarch, even if I implicated my descendants, I had practiced my own Buddhism to the very end, without killing any innocent person, without creating any unnecessary karmic debt."

"And yet—"

He stretched out his left palm and closed one of the eyes in the corpse-lotus, a tear actually falling from the corner of his eye.

"In the end, it was all for nothing."

"The body is dead, and the Dao has vanished."

"After decades of practice, I was originally a bit proud, but now it seems I am a useless person; I can neither complete the Patriarch's entrustment, nor save innocent people, nor even cultivate my own Buddhism."

"Useless, ignorant, incompetent."

"Ridiculous, pitiful, sad."

He suddenly opened his eyes and said urgently to Li Miao.

"The True Constancy I have now comes from the methods of Shintoism, not what I have cultivated, so I cannot pass it to you. But when I was alive, I left behind the Simen Original Intent Sword Art; that was the result of my attempt to deduce True Constancy, and it is also a reminder and gift I left for future generations!"

"With your comprehension, Benefactor, as long as you obtain the Simen Original Intent Sword Art, you should be able to deduce the True Constancy cultivation method!"

"Also—"

He reached out and pointed at Li Miao's heart.

"I cannot see clearly what Patriarch Bodhidharma left in your heart, Benefactor, but I have some speculations—after the Patriarch mastered the Six Paths, he did not stop. According to the information he left behind, he had already gained some insight when he went to Japan!"

"Perhaps because of this, the Patriarch was able to injure the First Ancestor of Heaven-Man to the point where he dared not appear for a thousand years, even while being hooked by him in the Vajra Realm!"

"That seed does not belong to any of the methods within the Six Paths Heaven-Man Realm. Just now, when I vaguely felt you mastering Jizhao, that seed fluctuated."

"So when you master the Six Paths and the Heaven-Man Realm is perfected, that seed should take root and sprout!"

"Also—"

Jianzhen's voice was urgent, without a moment's pause.

"Zhang Sanfeng is trapped; you must not rush to the Ise Grand Shrine. It is best to join forces with the Ming Cult Leader to perfect your own realm first! You must do your best to plug the loopholes in your Xuanlan Realm; do not be careless!"

"This is the Xuanlan mantra I cultivated; you can compare it for reference, perhaps it will be useful."

He tore off a piece of his robe, bit his finger, and lowered his head to write rapidly.

"The Patriarch was compassionate; in his eyes, Heaven-Man and commoners were of equal weight. So if the First Ancestor of Heaven-Man only threatened Heaven-Man, it shouldn't have been enough to make him cross the sea to fight to the death!"

"Judging by the Patriarch's act of spreading Buddhism and the opponent's cultivation of Shintoism, the realm above Heaven-Man likely requires influencing the common people of the world. This may be the reason why Zhang Sanfeng and the Patriarch followed one another to kill this person!"

"You must be careful, Benefactor. The opponent will not wait for the next Heavenly Demon to be born. The common people of the world hang on you alone; be extremely careful! You must never follow in my footsteps!"

Jianzhen had finished writing the manual and raised his hand to hand it to Li Miao.

Their eyes met, and he said with a solemn face.

"That I could meet you after my death is already a great fortune; I will not ask for more."

"After I commit suicide, you can dissect my corpse; perhaps you will discover something."

"Also, if you have time, Benefactor, I hope you can bring my corpse back to Shaolin. There is no need to say my name; just say it is a sinner who failed the Buddha. Place my corpse before the Buddha to kneel and bow, as a warning to future monks." ===== CHAPTER 572 =====