Chapter 1801: The Five Virtues And Five Manifestations (I)

Dayang Mountain.

Rolling mountains stretched into the distance, draped in green and gold. The green came from the myriad lush forests, while the gold came from the dazzling halls that shone with boundless splendor. Colossal statues towered among the peaks, completing the magnificent scene.

"In Great Zhao, the imperial court is in chaos; order has collapsed both within and without; the sovereign does not act as a sovereign; and the ministers do not act as ministers. Even its territory lies fragmented. It can neither pacify the lands of Yan and Liao, nor subdue Monan and reclaim the land of Long and Liang[1]. Its many kings stand divided, and even Jiangbei, which it only recently recovered, is nothing more than a bargaining chip between the immortals and the Buddhists.

"Across the successive northern dynasties, Zhou established kingship first, brought order to the civilized realm, and revived the descendants of Xia. Wei founded an imperial line, pacified east and west, and established the institutions of an immortal dynasty. Liang expanded its territory, brought the lands north of Monan under its control, and sent its armies as far as the Northern Sea. It is truly difficult to rank their accomplishments, but if one had to choose the most useless of them all, the Great Zhao of today would undoubtedly come first.

"Yet here in the heartland of Great Zhao, within the seat of this ancient realm, lies a blessed land, our Great Mahayana Dharma Realm!"

The black-robed monk in the great hall pressed his palms together, his expression serene. He held up a flower and took his seat, while the assembled monks below whispered among themselves in admiration. The monk merely kept his palms together and smiled with raised brows.

"Where the immortals cannot govern, cannot bring order, and cannot offer deliverance, there lies the domain of Buddhism!"

The Buddhist cultivators all appeared deep in thought. One among them, however, rose from his seat. He had a benevolent countenance and wore emerald monastic robes, but his expression was solemn as he asked, "I have harbored a doubt for many years, yet I have never been able to resolve it, nor dared to pursue it. Now that I have witnessed the Venerable One come here to expound the Dao, admiration has arisen within my heart, so I dare to ask!"

Seeing the black-robed monk above nod, he continued, "May I ask, Venerable One! Outsiders slander us, claiming that the Buddhist Dao rests upon collection, essence, and position. They equate collection with Gathering, essence with Brilliance, and position with Body, arguing that the Buddhist Dao is therefore merely the Immortal Dao! How should we answer them?"[2]

The moment these words were spoken, the mountains and forests shook, and tigers and leopards roared. Fiery prisons shattered all around them, accompanied by the sounds of clubs striking flesh. The assembled cultivators erupted into an uproar, horrified by his heretical words.

The monk seated above, however, clapped his hands and sighed. "Deriving meaning merely from positions is utterly absurd. Immortal cultivators cultivate gain, while we cultivate loss. The two are inner and outer aspects of each other. Only the truly ignorant would discuss immortality and Buddhism in such terms."

He rose to his feet and continued with perfect composure, "During the discourse at Kongtong Sea in years past, the immortals spoke of the Five Virtues and the Five Manifestations. The Five Virtues run crosswise, while the Five Manifestations run lengthwise. Their interweaving forms the warp and weft of heaven and earth, and therein lies the Great Dao."

He had imbued these words with a great spell so that all present might comprehend them. They crashed across the courtyard like thunder and flame, seemingly stirring a transformation in heaven and earth. An unending hailstorm began pounding the grounds outside the hall, drawing the Buddhist cultivators over to watch.

"Tianjue thus teaches: The Five Virtues are real, while the Five Manifestations are illusory. No matter how lofty the Five Virtues may be, they cannot transcend the Five Manifestations and must accord with them, follow them, and be contained within them. Thus, the Five Manifestations are the root of the Five Virtues, while the Five Virtues are the outward expression of the Five Manifestations.

“At their utmost, the Five Virtues are reality and existence, while the Five Manifestations are illusion and emptiness. Our cultivation lies within the Five Manifestations.

"This is what it means for them to be inner and outer aspects of one another!"

As he finished speaking, jade pearls fell with a series of hollow thuds, and white deer raced past the hall. Snow descended throughout the surrounding lands, bringing gold, jade, and precious pearls with it in a display of boundless splendor.

The monk continued, "Thus, all perceptions and all forms are emptiness upon emptiness. Yet ordinary practitioners of Buddhism cannot attain emptiness through emptiness, so heterodox paths teach them to make offerings, using form to nourish sensation, perception, formation, and consciousness.

“This is to use one emptiness to nourish four emptinesses and one absence to nourish four absences, seeking to render all things empty until only a single point of truth remains, attaining realization in the Sandalwood Grove. Yet this Sandalwood Grove is itself also empty!"

These words manifested as iron and stone, crashing down and leaving the metallic ground covered in dents before scattering in every direction. His blunt declaration that the Sandalwood Grove was empty caused blood to stream from the ears and noses of the assembled cultivators. The monk in emerald kasaya robes was even forced nine steps backward before toppling headfirst to the ground!

Rumble!

Dense black clouds immediately gathered above the golden hall. A field of auspicious light searched the area, but the golden hall blocked its way and prevented it from finding its target. It soon turned away in disappointment and dispersed like the wind.

The Buddhist cultivator in emerald robes silently climbed to his feet, thinking in horror, Just who is this man?!

Only after a long while did the monks sprawled across the floor manage to rise. They still felt as though they were burdened with iron and stone, leaving them barely able to move. Then a long sigh rang out.

"Martial Granduncle Kongshu... truly possesses learning that encompasses both heaven and mankind! He is truly generous and selfless!"

The one who uttered this long sigh was none other than Maha Fachang of the Great Mahayana Dharma Realm! He had once single-handedly maintained the peace in Jiangbei for many years. Later, as the conflict between north and south grew increasingly intense, he was driven back to the dharma realm. He now cultivated within the dharma realm, and clearly held an exceptionally high status there.

Yet even someone of his exalted background could not help but feel solemn after hearing such discourse. It was as though countless mysteries had unraveled within his heart, yet also as though a single leaf had obscured his vision, leaving him unable to speak.

He walked down from his seat, the worries that had originally weighed upon his brow unexpectedly cast aside as his mind became consumed with contemplation.

The black-robed monk above raised his brows and smiled. "What is it, Fachang?"

Those words dispelled the barrier within his heart and brought him back to the present, causing him to remember his worries once more. Maha Fachang lowered his brows and eyes, then answered, "Martial Granduncle... News has arrived from the Great Desire Dao. Maha Liangli Tianlang Zhi intends to recall Yaosa Chengmi!"

The black-robed monk pressed his palms together and smiled. "That is only to be expected... is it not?"

Fachang remained silent.

The matter was not particularly complicated. Years ago, Chief Jiang had been ordered south to the Great Primordial Hidden Radiance Mountain, where he had joined forces with Maha Liangli Tianlang Zhi of Great Desire Dao. The two reached an understanding, and the Great Desire Dao had relinquished Yaosa Chengmi so that he could participate in the affairs of the Wrathful Dao.

Yet this was hardly beneficial to the Great Desire Dao. After all, Dayang Mountain was deeply interested in restoring the Wrathful Dao and had taken full charge of the matter. Whoever they elevated would naturally become one of Dayang Mountain's people. Once Yaosa Chengmi attained the Dao, he would inevitably seek to escape their control and attach himself to Dayang Mountain. Why would he continue obeying the Great Desire Dao?

Tianlang Zhi had only pretended to agree. At the critical moment, he had turned around and plotted against Chief Jiang, causing him to lose the Great Primordial Hidden Radiance Mountain and severely damaging Dayang Mountain's prestige in the process...

How could the furious Chief Jiang and the others possibly allow Yaosa Chengmi to return?

This may well lead to another internal struggle... The Great Desire Dao is plainly becoming increasingly powerful. That lord is also finding himself increasingly hard-pressed against that peacock... and has ceded a great deal of authority over the Great Desire Dao...

Fachang looked deeply troubled, but the black-robed monk did not question him further.

"You returned quickly, Fachang. Did you witness the cultivator of the ancient Congealed Jade Dao make his breakthrough?"

Fachang respectfully approached his side and pressed his palms together. "Martial Granduncle, I did."

"How was it?"

When Kongshu asked, Fachang replied with a sigh of admiration, "He was truly formidable... Even the [Banished Immortal's Resentful Abode] guarded him for quite some time. In my opinion, had he been given a little more time to catch his breath, he might not have lost to Guanyu, Li Yuanwei..."

Kongshu merely shook his head. "Although I never personally witnessed the events of ancient times, judging by your account, this incident has caused just as great a commotion."

Fachang answered with a complicated expression, "Naturally! After witnessing his breakthrough, I returned directly to the dharma realm. I spent three years discussing the Dao with the [Great Tu Chief] before setting out to return here, and happened to receive new information along the way. It is said that he consumed a pill before his death... an extremely powerful one.

"For some reason, the [Banished Immortal's Resentful Abode] did not completely sever his connection to the present world. It seemed to be using him to accomplish something, causing every word he spoke to leak out clearly. He openly declared that Chunyi Dao Gate was innocent... Who knows what that was about?"

Kongshu's gaze shifted slightly as though he had realized something.

The path of immortal cultivation holds supreme detachment above all. Master once mentioned... that Chunyi Dao Gate was an instrument for probing something, most likely Supreme Yin. This pill was delivered with truly ingenious timing... If he had refused to consume it, someone in a later generation inevitably would, and that person might not even be a descendant of Chunyi Dao Gate.

1. "Liang" here refers to 凉, the historical northwestern region, not 梁, the Liang dynasty mentioned later in the passage. ☜

2. Gathering, Brilliance, and Body refer respectively to Gathering Wood , Brilliant Essence, and Body of Kui. ☜