Volume 4: The Revelation Unveiled Chapter 433: Things Not Yet Resolved
The Black Rope Hell was thousands of miles away from the Living Hell. Wukong and his companions arrived in an instant, seeing not a single soul along the way.
Wukong grew uneasy and said, “Could it be that Tathagata has abandoned the Buddhist hells?” Xuan Nu replied, “That’s impossible. The Buddhist hells are the foundation of the Stupa Tower. Without their inner power, how could the Great Sun Tathagata manifest a third body?”
Wukong pondered and said, “Could it be that Tathagata is using the Pool of Creation as a trap to catch us all?”
Xuan Nu turned to look and smiled, “The Three Thousand Buddhas are invincible, the Great Sun Tathagata is invincible, the World-Honored Tathagata lacks sufficient cultivation, and the Bodhisattva of the Mud Pit is too injured to act. What does he have to catch us all?”
Wukong said, “I still think there’s a trick!”
“Oh? Tell me then.”
“Vairocana Buddha has great cultivation and possesses the extremely special Tathagata body of ‘Corpse Abandoning Buddha.’ Inside him lies the Precious Earth Spirit Pearl, split from the Pangu Axe. Such an important figure was captured by our group’s attack without a single person coming to help. Isn’t that strange?”
Xuan Nu thought for a moment and said, “I understand this logic too, but today is a rare opportunity. Even if there are tigers in the mountains, we must not retreat.”
Wukong glanced at the bald ghostly servants busily working in Black Rope Hell and sighed, “Do these Buddhists even know what they’re doing?”
Dayu suddenly asked in return, “What are we doing then?”
Hearing this, Wukong had a strange thought—was what he was doing really right? How many steps of the cosmic scheme had he truly understood?
Laojun replied to Dayu, “Eliminating evil is to promote goodness!”
Ran Deng stepped forward to explain, “Black Rope Hell: Sinners are tied up with hot iron ropes. Ghost soldiers chop, slash, or saw at them, causing them ten times more suffering than in the Living Hell. Those who commit crimes of killing or stealing are sent here.”
Ksitigarbha watched for a long time before sighing, “Among those suffering here, few are truly evil. Killing and stealing are just fabricated charges.”
Since Ksitigarbha said it wasn’t true, then it surely wasn’t. Xuan Nu waved her hand and said, “Let’s go find the Pool of Creation first. If there’s any obstruction… Sigh!” Xuan Nu also knew that these ghost soldiers were no different from those in the netherworld—they merely followed orders. Killing them all was too cruel. But under Tathagata’s rule, they were extremely loyal, foolish, and fearless of death. In truth, they were just living corpses.
The group silently entered Black Rope Hell. Unlike the Living Hell, it was surrounded by mountains, with a large hall built in the center. The Pool of Creation was located in front of the hall.
Xuan Nu said, “Wukong, go and enter the Pool of Destiny. We will protect you.” Wukong followed her advice and leaped toward the pool. Halfway there, he suddenly felt a strong wind blow. He stopped and saw more than a dozen figures rushing out of the hall—several of them were familiar faces. Leading them was the Blue Glass Medicine Buddha from the Western Heaven, accompanied by the Buddha of Melodious Sound, the Buddha of Guidance to Truth, and others. Wukong and his companions hadn’t concealed their identities because it seemed pointless; a battle was inevitable anyway. Yet they were stopped unexpectedly.
Ran Deng stepped forward upon seeing the Medicine Buddha and said, “So you are the Black Rope Buddha King.” The Medicine Buddha replied, “Ran Deng, it’s a pity that after years of cultivation, you’ve taken a wrong path.” Ran Deng replied calmly, “It’s not that our paths differ—it’s that the Tathagata’s selfishness outweighs heaven and earth.” The Medicine Buddha said, “Where is there any heaven or earth? I see only an empty shell.”
Xuan Nu stepped forward and stood between the two, preventing them from talking. Time was critical—Wukong entering the Pool of Destiny was the top priority. When the Medicine Buddha saw Xuan Nu, a fighting spirit flashed in his eyes for the first time. He still resented being defeated by her with just one palm strike last time. Xuan Nu sent a message to Wukong: “Enter the Pool of Destiny first.” Without hesitation, Wukong flew in. The Buddha of Melodious Sound and the Buddha of Guidance to Truth had already blocked the entrance to the pool. Dayu, Qilin, Hou Tu, and others joined the fight against those two. Wukong seized an opportunity and dived into the pool like a swallow soaring into a forest.
With Xuan Nu right in front of him, the Medicine Buddha couldn’t bother himself with Wukong. Xuan Nu glanced at him and said, “You’re no match for me. Why go to such lengths?” The Medicine Buddha replied, “Only by trying something impossible can one truly show devotion to Buddhism.” Xuan Nu said nothing more. In a flash of light, she disappeared from sight. Palm shadows swarmed toward the Medicine Buddha. Xuan Nu was only as tall as an ordinary person, while the Medicine Buddha was ten zhang tall—there was a huge difference in physique. But when he saw Xuan Nu attacking, he didn’t dare to parry even once and retreated rapidly until he reached the entrance of the hall.
Everyone thought the Medicine Buddha was afraid to fight and tried to break through the door to hide inside. But when he reached the entrance, he leaned against it, his blue glass-like body glowing brightly, standing tall as if reaching the heavens. Noticing something strange, Xuan Nu stopped mid-air and asked, “What’s so special about this door that it can greatly enhance your cultivation?” The Medicine Buddha raised his palms and said, “When the Tathagata was born, I discovered ten gates in the essence of my Mahayana scriptures. This is the fourth gate—the Gate of Precision.”
Xuan Nu nodded and emitted a “hm” sound. She had heard of the ten schools of Buddhism, but though she had lived in the West for a long time, she had not come there to study Buddhism, so her understanding was not deep. She originally thought these ten schools were merely conceptual ideas, but to her surprise, they actually existed. Given that the Medicine Buddha was now cultivating even more, it truly fit the name “School of Precision.”
Xuan Nu asked, “What’s the use for you to rely on this school?” She floated forward and pointed at the Medicine Buddha, who in turn stretched out his finger to meet hers. Their fingers touched and then separated immediately.
Xuan Nu remained motionless, yet the Medicine Buddha’s finger shattered, with cracks spreading all the way to his wrist. Xuan Nu sneered, “Well?” At that moment, a loud noise came from inside the hall, and many people began chanting scriptures. The Medicine Buddha’s finger instantly returned to its original state. He said, “If you can’t take my life with a single move, you can’t defeat me.”
Xuan Nu also became competitive. In this world, she believed she couldn’t defeat the Third Body of Tathagata, and even if she encountered the Bodhisattva of the Mud Pit, she might not necessarily lose. As for the others, including the Phoenix, they were beneath her notice. How dare the Medicine Buddha, who had once been defeated by her, speak like this just by relying on a Buddhist school?
Xuan Nu said, “How about I first kill all the Dharma Arrows in your hall?”
Suddenly, Yuan Shi shouted from behind, “Don’t enter this hall!” He had already noticed that the entire hall was surrounded by mysterious arrays. Though he didn’t know how dangerous they were, it was better not to take risks lightly.
Upon hearing this, Xuan Nu understood what Yuan Shi meant. She flew backward, her thoughts swirling. She was almost certain that Tathagata had already figured out that someone was coming to attack the Buddhist Hell!
In the Living Hell, Vairocana and Sakyamuni were willing to suffer defeat and were captured by the Three Pure Ones. Then, who had set up the array in the great hall of the Black Rope Hell? Aside from Xuan Nu, the Three Pure Ones, and those from Qi Tian Ling, who else would attack the Buddhist Hell? Ran Deng also knew a lot about the Buddhist Hell. If there were arrays, why had he never mentioned them? These arrays must have been set up recently!
Xuan Nu began to think more about what Wukong had said earlier—there was deception in the Buddhist Hell!
The Medicine Buddha also knew that if he left this school, he wouldn’t be a match for Xuan Nu. Thus, the two ended up in a stalemate. Meanwhile, the Buddha of Melodious Sound and the Buddha of Guiding to Truth were already in a losing position. Several other Buddhas stepped forward to help, but they still couldn’t match up against the Wood God, Metal God, and others.
Xuan Nu went to Yuan Shi’s side and whispered, “With a situation that seems certain to be won, why are you so uneasy?” Yuan Shi replied, “Perhaps Tathagata’s intention is to buy time to help the Bodhisattva of the Mud Pit recover?”
As soon as he finished speaking, a massive shock shook the entire Buddhist Hell, and the atmosphere around them became eerily unpredictable, as if the Buddhist Hell had been dead before but suddenly came to life.
Lan Deng’s expression changed as he shouted, “Bad! Ni Li has emerged!”
Xuan Nu said, “I thought he was severely injured, but I didn’t expect him to appear so soon.” Yuan Shi replied, “Healing within the realm saves a great deal of time—how could Ni Li not know that?”
A shrill scream was heard, followed by a dark crowd surging from the west like dark clouds. Xuan Nu smiled bitterly—had this surprise attack on the Buddhist Hell ended without success?
Xuan Nu yelled, “Run quickly!” She first entered the Creation Pool and pulled Wukong out. Still in meditation, Wukong was startled as she dragged him out and asked, “What’s going on?”
Xuan Nu, undeterred, released Wukong and said, “Ni Li has awakened. Today’s plan won’t work.”
Hearing about Ni Li, Wukong also felt uneasy. Even someone as powerful as Hou Yi found it hard to withstand Ni Li’s attacks—it was better to stay far away from him. Though the situation in the Buddhist Hell was urgent, as long as there were still living beings, there would always be resources.
Wukong also shouted, “Then let’s leave!”
Everyone quickly retreated eastward, with Buddha in hot pursuit, and even the Medicine Buddha left the “Purity Gate” to chase after them. Xuan Nu said, “You all retreat first; I’ll hold them off!”
Xuan Nu flew back, unfurled her sleeves, and summoned a strong gale that froze at least a hundred Buddhas in place. Only the Medicine Buddha rushed forward.
“Why don’t you use your magic barrier?” Xuan Nu teased. As she spoke, she kept moving forward and soon reached the Medicine Buddha. The Medicine Buddha hadn’t expected Xuan Nu to dare face them alone, but retreating in front of so many Buddhas would be inappropriate, so he channeled his power to confront her. Their palms met, and a thunderous explosion rang out. The Medicine Buddha’s blue body turned white instantly, covered in cracks, leaving him unable to fight again.
Apart from the Medicine Buddha, none of the other Buddhas could match Xuan Nu even for a moment. Fortunately, she only aimed to delay them and didn’t engage in full-scale combat. Soon, more Buddhas like the Buddha of Guidance arrived. Seeing Xuan Nu blocking their path, they exchanged glances before scattering to the sides. Xuan Nu knew their intention—given the vastness of the Buddhist Hell, they wanted to bypass her. She took out a silver-threaded duster, shook it, and silver threads flew out, seemingly gaining eyes as they entangled the Buddhas.
Fighting a hundred enemies alone, no matter how powerful her magic was, it was hard to hold them off. The Buddhas used magical artifacts or escape techniques to break free from the silver threads, but their movements were slightly slowed. Xuan Nu thought to herself that this was the best she could do.
Wukong and the others rushed forward. The entrance in the east was just ahead when a strange figure appeared—it was Bodhisattva Ni Li.