Volume 3: A Long Journey, Chapter 371: The Medicine Buddha

The Treasure Banner Buddha believed he would surely succeed this time. Even though the Qilin possessed extraordinary powers, it could not escape the combined efforts of all the Buddhas. At the moment when light flashed on the Qilin’s horns, the Treasure Banner Buddha felt as though his Ruyi Pearl had lost contact with him!
No, there was still a connection, but it was far less distinct than before. The Ruyi Pearl was his most precious talisman—how could such a thing happen? The Qilin had such miraculous powers; it was truly beyond imagination. The Treasure Banner Buddha had already exerted all his strength, and now he could only watch as the light from the Qilin’s horns grew brighter and brighter. Eventually, that light overshadowed the Ruyi Pearl, and the Qilin was able to speak. With a laugh, it said, “Well, I haven’t used my innate powers in many years!”
With the upper hand, the Qilin regained its freedom, leaping out of the range of the Ruyi Pearl’s light. It transformed back to its true form, which was now several times larger than before. Roaring, it said, “Forcing me to reveal my true form—you should be proud of that!”
Some of the Buddhas recognized it and exclaimed, “That’s the divine beast, the Qilin!”
Before their words could fade, a huge purple flame ball was spat out from the Qilin’s mouth and headed straight for the Treasure Banner Buddha. The Treasure Banner Buddha hurriedly dodged, but the flame ball exploded in midair, scattering purple flames. Anyone who failed to dodge was struck by it. Though the Treasure Banner Buddha had an indestructible body, he was still in a chaotic state and unharmed. Seeing that even the Ruyi Pearl couldn’t deal with the Qilin, he dared not continue fighting and fled into the crowd.
Tathagata ordered, “Capture the Qilin first!” Seeing the Qilin turn the tide, Guizhen Buddha and the others stopped fighting and tried to capture it. Unfazed, the Qilin charged into the midst of the Buddhas, using its horns and feet to fight, while also casting various elemental spells. The Buddhas were in disarray and utterly unable to deal with the Qilin.
Eager to fight, the Qilin roared, “Randeng! Come out!” It had long known Randeng was powerful and had intended to challenge him even before arriving here. Hearing the Qilin’s reckless behavior, Hou Tu cursed inwardly, “This fool has no sense of what’s possible!” Though brave, in Hou Tu’s eyes, the Qilin could never compare to Randeng’s profound magical powers. To dare act so arrogantly on Mount Ling—the Qilin was truly insane.
Hou Tu didn’t realize that the Qilin was clever despite its rough appearance. Knowing Randeng was Wukong’s master, he thought that even if he couldn’t defeat him, Randeng would at least hesitate to kill him harshly. Since he had come to Mount Ling, his fighting spirit couldn’t be suppressed. Failing to challenge a greater master would leave him feeling incomplete.

The Qilin called out several times, but no one responded. Tathagata was also stunned—everyone else had reached the doorstep, yet Ran Deng still pretended to be calm. Seeing the Qilin showing off its strength, Tathagata became even more determined to capture it, so he secretly sent a message to call for reinforcements.

Hou Tu noticed that although the Buddhas on Ling Mountain were retreating step by step, they all looked angry and had sealed off the perimeter tightly, clearly intending to keep everyone there. Ling Mountain was their territory, and there might be many more troops yet to engage. Continuing like this would inevitably lead to losses.

Hou Tu sent a message to the Qilin, saying, “Find a way to break through!”

The Qilin was having fun fighting with no one to challenge it. Hearing Hou Tu’s reminder, it came to his side and asked, “What? Are we stopping now?”

Hou Tu replied, “We came here to save people, yet you only care about your own pleasure!” The Qilin laughed heartily and said, “If we want to get out, it’s extremely simple. Follow me!”

The Qilin charged eastward with its horns forward, meeting Guizhen Buddha and Maitreya. Maitreya held up the Backheaven Bag to capture the Qilin, though he was also somewhat uneasy. Even Dayu couldn’t defeat that bag—would the Qilin be able to tear it apart? As he pondered, a yellow light flashed, and the Backheaven Bag grew heavy, filled with countless rocks and soil. Its immense weight pulled him down along with it. This was clearly Hou Tu using his Heavy Earth spell.

With Maitreya retreating, Guizhen found it even harder to withstand the Qilin’s might. Just as the Qilin seemed about to break free, a blue light appeared ahead, and countless Buddha palms formed a seamless wall to block its path.

The Qilin paid no attention to what was in front and charged straight through. Its horns pierced through countless Buddha palms, but eventually, exhausted, it stopped.

Looking around, there were eight great Buddhas in a row. In the middle stood one entirely blue, as if made of blue gems—this was the Medicine Buddha, also known as the Blue Glazed Light Medicine Buddha King. On Ling Mountain, he was the second most powerful being after Ran Deng. Whenever he acted, seven Buddhas accompanied him, known as the Eight Medicine Buddhas. Among those seven was Tathagata as well.

Next to the Medicine Buddha stood two more bodhisattvas, the Sunlight Bodhisattva and the Moonlight Bodhisattva. Behind them were twelve Yaksha generals who had sworn to protect the Medicine Buddha’s Dharma, each leading seven thousand Yakshas. The wall formed by the Buddha’s hand earlier was a manifestation of the divine powers of the Medicine Buddha and the other seven Buddhas. Although the qilin had already injured all the Buddhas, the eighty-four thousand Yakshas chanted mantras in unison, and their wounds healed instantly! This was the power of the Eight Medicine Buddhas—no matter how severe the injuries, as long as the Yaksha generals and the Yakshas chanted the “Sutra of the Medicine Buddha’s Original Vow,” the wounds would be restored to their original state in an instant.

The Medicine Buddha sat high on a lotus throne, holding a medicine pot in his left hand and forming a gesture of offering in his right. Looking down at the qilin, he said, “By hearing my name, you have already attained purity and will not fall into evil realms!”

Seeing that this man blocked his path and that the Buddha himself sat at the feet of this giant blue Buddha, the qilin realized this Buddha must have an extraordinary origin. Raising his head, he said, “Fall into hell? Get out of the way! Your body can’t withstand even one of my blows!”

The Medicine Buddha smiled and said, “Go ahead and try!”

The qilin gathered all his strength and stamped heavily on the Medicine Buddha’s chest. A crack appeared as if an ice flower had bloomed there. The qilin exclaimed, “So hard!”

The twelve Yaksha generals chanted a Buddha name together, and the eighty-four thousand Yakshas chanted the sutra. After just a few lines, the crack on the Medicine Buddha’s chest gradually closed, leaving no trace of damage.

The qilin turned to ask Earth Mother, “What kind of power is this?”

Earth Mother replied, “It is said that the Medicine Buddha is never injured. So this is how it is.” When the Medicine Buddha first began his spiritual journey, as a novice monk, he made twelve great vows to relieve suffering for all beings, to help them develop their faculties, and to guide them toward liberation. Later, through these vows, he attained Buddhahood and resided in the Pure Crystal World, which symbolizes the pure lands in all directions of the Western Heaven, a realm as magnificent as the Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Hidden behind, Ksitigarbha immediately understood that the Medicine Buddha had orchestrated such a grand display by leveraging the power of the twelve Yaksha generals and the eighty-four thousand Yakshas chanting the sutra. The spiritual energy from the sutras was transformed into a healing force. Knowing this, he deduced that to defeat the Medicine Buddha, he only needed to disperse the Yakshas behind him, and victory would be assured. But while it sounded easy, it was extremely difficult in practice. The Medicine Buddha was protected by two bodhisattvas and seven Buddhas, along with the twelve Yaksha generals—how could they be eliminated in such a short time?

Now surrounded by the Buddhas of the Spiritual Mountain from all sides, he was truly trapped in an inescapable net. Seeing Earth Mother frown, the qilin asked, “What’s wrong? Fight!” Earth Mother replied with a bitter smile, “Can you even defeat him?” From behind, Ksitigarbha transmitted a message: “First, destroy the Yakshas, then attack the Buddhas!”

Qilin shouted, “Fine, I’ll join in too!” He leaped into the air, aiming to pass by the Medicine Buddha to capture the Asura generals. The Medicine Buddha raised his right hand in the gesture of granting wishes and declared, “May all beings be at peace, free from fear!” This mudra transformed into an infinitely large halo that enclosed the Asuras behind him. The 84,000 Asuras immediately became energetic and proclaimed, “Thanks to my merit, divine power, and might, we shall be freed from all suffering.” Their voices merged in the air, forming a Buddha mudra that rushed toward Qilin. As Qilin collided with it, he tried to resist with his own strength against thousands of foes, but he was blocked and forced back.

When Qilin landed, Earth Mother said, “Your innate supernatural powers are truly remarkable. Why don’t you use them?” With a grim expression, Qilin replied, “My powers are meant to ward off evil and protect against all kinds of curses—they work against blood curses, but they’re useless now.”

After saying that, he glared at Earth Mother and Ksitigarbha and demanded, “Why aren’t you two stepping in?” Earth Mother smiled and said, “It’s pointless to act right now. I’m still thinking of a strategy!”

Qilin snorted and said, “By the time you figure it out, we’ll already be prisoners!”

Earth Mother looked around and said, “With us four here, they won’t dare to act rashly!”

Ksitigarbha said, “I’ve heard much about the power of Buddhist formations, but I’ve never seen one before. Today, I get to see something truly amazing.” Suddenly, countless Arhats appeared around them, forming intricate and eerie patterns that surrounded the four of them.

Qilin said, “Once the formation is complete, they’ll likely attack!”

Earth Mother smiled and said, “They’re here!”

“What’s here?” Qilin asked in confusion.

At that moment, chaos erupted behind the 84,000 Asuras. Countless spells, arrows, and talismans were unleashed, killing 1,800 of them in an instant. Qilin looked closely and saw Dayu, Houyi, Jiu Ling Yuan Sheng, Dapeng, and the Bull Demon King leading the demons from Qitianling charging forward. Then, a storm of purple fire descended—it was the Fire God Zhurong arriving. The twelve Asura generals had just taken off when they were entangled by invisible vines and unable to move—the power of the Wood God’s spells was indeed immense.

The Medicine Buddha closed his eyes slightly and, along with the other seven Buddhas, began reciting the Sutra of the Original Vow. Instantly, the wounded Asuras recovered, full of vigor once again. Buddhas like Guanzhen Buddha and Baodang Buddha naturally didn’t dare delay and rushed forward to confront their enemies.

Seeing reinforcements arrive, Qilin and his companions’ morale soared. They charged into the ranks of the Arhats like tigers among sheep—no one dared stop them!

The Tathagata was deeply worried as the enemy gained more strength. He had hoped to capture the four of them, but instead, he ended up losing more than he gained. Yet he couldn’t figure out who had informed Dayu and the others.

Dayu shouted, “Tathagata! How about we stop this fight today?”

Tathagata closed his eyes and ignored Dayu, silently sending a message to the Medicine Buddha. It was unknown what he said. The Medicine Buddha opened his eyes and threw the medicine pot in his hand into the air. The pot paused mid-air, stood upside down, and then flew toward the Nine Spirits Sacred One.

The Nine Spirits Sacred One was having a great time fighting here. He charged into the formation of the Yakshas. Ordinary Yakshas were no match for him. He opened his nine giant mouths, spraying smoke or flames, killing anyone who came into contact with them—there was no way to save them. Suddenly, he felt his body lighten as a powerful force lifted him up. Then everything went dark before his eyes, and he fell into the medicine pot.