Chapter 127: Hui Ke, the Little Monk from the Western Domain

Chapter 127: Chapter 127: Hui Ke, the Little Monk from the Western Domain

As the old sayings go: one wrong move can lead to a cascade of failures; a great dam can be brought down by an anthill; from a tiny clue, the bigger picture is revealed; a single action can affect the whole system...

In truth, everything in this world is connected in some way.

Many things are even connected in more ways than one.

And what is the Celestial Dao? The Celestial Dao is the rule governing these connections, a rule universally known in the Cultivation Realm as Law.

The Law transcends all things; it is the principle by which all things operate.

Once this principle is lost, order will spiral out of control, or even collapse entirely.

Understanding and utilizing this principle allows one to achieve twice the results with half the effort.

And what of defying this principle? One will either be harmed by it or annihilated by it.

Cultivation, Cultivation... what is the "truth" one cultivates? It is the understanding and utilization of these principles. ℯℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

In the Mortal Realm, a Cultivator cultivates their own body, developing its potential. To put it more broadly, they use the principles governing heaven and earth to improve themselves, eventually comprehending and utilizing the Law.

A God, upon reaching godhood, gains control over the Law. The more powerful the God, the more of the Law they control.

As Xiezhi said, there are three thousand Great Daos in the world. The nine Venerable Daos each split into fifty Supreme Daos, and each Supreme Dao gives rise to three thousand Daoist Techniques.

These are the fundamentals of the world’s operation.

The Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, and Three gives birth to all things.

The Wuji becomes the Taiji, the Taiji creates the two polarities, the two polarities produce the four phenomena, the four phenomena generate the eight trigrams... and so the cycle repeats.

Therefore, since the workings of heaven and earth follow a set of principles, doesn’t that mean one could calculate and deduce the developmental trajectory of anything, allowing one to observe its past and future?

This was an immense proposition, one that involved far too many variables.

So much so that during his enlightenment, even with a clear and empty mind and his thoughts pushed to their absolute limit, Chu Fan’s repeated attempts to deduce a specific example all ended in failure.

But he refused to give up. ’My thinking has to be correct,’ he thought. ’If I can just find one of these principles, my ability to judge matters might see a qualitative leap.’

However, he had no idea that what he was trying to comprehend was one of the Venerable Daos. Not only that, but it was the number one ranked and most complex of them all: the Chaos Law.

Forget a mere mortal like him with only Level 26 Spiritual Power; even a Celestial God with Spiritual Power exceeding Level 50 could be driven mad by such complex calculations and deductions.

Fortunately, Chu Fan didn’t realize he was trying to comprehend a Great Dao. He had simply chosen a direction and was using events that had already occurred, looking for a single node from which to make his deductions. Then, based on the results, he would verify if the actual event matched his deduction.

Each time he was wrong, he would reverse his reasoning and try again.

After more than half a month, he had painstakingly proven a single principle.

This principle was related to Cause and Effect, a Supreme Dao under the Law of Cause and Effect. He just hadn’t fully grasped it yet when his Meditation was interrupted.

"Amitabha Buddha!"

The Buddhist chant startled Chu Fan out of his enlightenment.

For a Cultivator, such a state of enlightenment was an incredibly rare opportunity. It was easy to imagine, then, how furious Chu Fan’s expression was at this moment.

"You damn monk, don’t you have any sense?" Chu Fan shot to his feet, but the sight of the monk before him made him swallow his anger.

The monk was about the same age as Ye Xiaohan, only twelve or thirteen years old. He was dressed in tattered, earth-yellow robes and held a wooden staff taller than himself. He stood behind Chu Fan, one hand held in a prayer gesture.

"Benefactor, although you entered the Enlightenment Realm, a demonic obstacle arose in your heart. If this humble monk had not called out to you, I’m afraid you would have gone mad."

"You’re just a little monk, spouting nonsense," Chu Fan said, his tone hostile.

"Benefactor, please see the truth. While my Buddhist Family may not claim to be masters of the Dao of Cause and Effect, this humble monk knows a thing or two. You sat here for half a month and, although you reached enlightenment on the Dao of Cause and Effect, you became lost in the complexity and forgot the fundamentals, chasing the branches while ignoring the root. Have you not heard that the Great Dao is ultimately simple?"

The little monk wasn’t old, and his voice was still cracking like an adolescent’s, but his words struck Chu Fan like a thunderclap, a deafening awakening.

A flash of insight sparked in Chu Fan’s mind, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared.

"The Great Dao is simple, the Great Dao is simple..." Chu Fan muttered the four words over and over.

’He felt that these four words were incredibly important to him, but he didn’t know why. He wasn’t even sure what practical use the Dao related to Cause and Effect, which he had spent half a month comprehending, actually had for him.’

"Benefactor, Benefactor!" the little monk called out to Chu Fan again.

"Ah? Oh!" Chu Fan was once again pulled back from his thoughts.

"Benefactor, that you could have an epiphany here and comprehend the Dao of Cause and Effect shows that you have a strong affinity with my Buddhist Family. Why don’t you..."

"Hold it!" Chu Fan quickly waved his hand. "You’re just a little monk. How old are you, trying to recruit people into monkhood?"

"This humble monk simply feels that since you can comprehend the Dao of Cause and Effect, if you were to cultivate the precepts of my Buddhist Sect, you would surely be reborn in Paradise." The little monk may have been young, but he didn’t speak like it.

"I have a family. Don’t mention this again."

After saying this, Chu Fan suddenly had a realization and stared at the little monk with wide, shocked eyes.

’How old is this little monk? He’s already in the Nascent Soul Realm?’

"Little Monk, which monastery are you from?" Chu Fan asked.

"This humble monk comes from the Arhat Zen Temple in the Western Domain. It’s a small temple, so you may not have heard of it, Benefactor."

"You’re from the Western Domain?" Chu Fan was shocked again. He knew a little about the Central Domain, but as for the Western and Southern Domains, he only knew they existed and had never heard anything about them.

"That is correct. And where might you be from, Benefactor?"

"Oh, I’m from the Eastern Domain!"

"I’ve heard the Eastern Domain is an Outer World. My Buddhist Sect has not established any temples there, which is a pity. I wonder, after we leave this Secret Realm, if I might accompany you to the Eastern Domain?"

’Chu Fan never would have thought that the Eastern Domain was considered a Barbarian Land not only by the Central Domain People, but by those from the Western Domain as well.’

"What? Are you planning to go to the Eastern Domain to save all sentient beings?"

"Is there any reason I shouldn’t?" the little monk asked, confused.

"What’s your name?" Chu Fan asked.

"This humble monk’s dharma name is Hui Ke. And your name, Benefactor?"

"My name is Chu Fan."

"So you are the ’madman’ Prince Fuling of the Hua Xu Empire spoke of."

"Oh? You’ve met Prince Fuling?"

"This humble monk was just passing by and overheard them discussing you. They did not see me, however."

Chu Fan asked the little monk some more questions about the Western Domain, and the monk answered everything he knew without reservation.

After chatting for more than an hour, Chu Fan got up to leave.

"If you really want to go to the Eastern Domain, let’s agree to meet back here in a month."

"Benefactor, this humble monk would rather travel with you!"

"No, absolutely not. I’m used to traveling alone. I feel awkward with a companion."

"You need not worry, Benefactor. This humble monk will simply follow. If you do not summon me, I will not disturb you. If you discover anything, I will not fight you for it. If you don’t believe me, I can swear an oath to the Buddha," the little monk Hui Ke said, pressing his palms together.

Chu Fan furrowed his brow. ’This little monk must have an ulterior motive, right?’

"This humble monk understands a little of the Dao of Cause and Effect. Observing your aura, I can tell you are destined for a great opportunity within this Secret Realm. I dare not ask for it myself; I only wish to follow you and broaden my horizons."