Borderless Heavenly Capital:
A vast fog blanketed a large valley, with many soldiers standing guard in the surroundings. A massive ritual array covered the interior, preventing anyone from seeing in.
Gu Hai’s group stepped into the ritual array.
“Your Reverence!”
The many guards and officials in the ritual array respectfully saluted Gu Hai.
Gu Hai had no time to bother with them, as there was a bright light in the ritual array, a brilliant Buddhist light. In the surroundings, golden lotuses bloomed out of nowhere as Sanskrit chanting resounded and the Buddhist light shone.
Some guards slowly pressed their palms together, feeling a compassionate conception.
When Gu Hai stepped in, he saw a bald, white-clad monk walk out from a nearby cave. It was the little beggar, Zhengfa Ming.
However, Zhengfa Ming no longer looked like a beggar. He appeared like a transcendent being. Surging Buddhist light flared around his body, and the fragrance of sandalwood wafted into the surroundings.
[TL Note: Sandalwood is frequently used for making incense.]
As Zhengfa Ming walked, golden lotuses appeared out of nowhere.
“This is…this is…?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng stammered in wide-eyed shock.
Zhengfa Ming looked around, apparently confused. Eventually, he noticed Gu Hai.
Then Zhengfa Ming pressed his palms together and bowed.
This bow gave Gu Hai an indescribable feeling, as if this bow had cleansed all the sins in his body.
“The Buddhist light Zhengfa Ming is giving off is extraordinary. It seems like just one glance can cleanse the mind,” the Unborn Man said in shock.
“This…this is not Buddhist light. This is infinite light? That’s impossible! How can there be infinite light? That is just a legend!” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng said in shock.
“Infinite light? What does that mean?” Gu Hai asked in puzzlement.
“Legend says that the original buddha is the Amitābha Buddha, also known as the Infinite Light Buddha. He is the originator of Buddhism, enlightening the masses and passing down the Buddhist Dao. He is the ancestor of all buddhas. However, that is just a legend. My Nalanda Temple even has a legend that this buddha did not exist in this world!” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng said with an unsightly expression.
“If he did not exist in this world, how could he have passed down the Buddhist Dao?” Gu Hai asked.
“It’s true. My Nalanda Temple and the Metal Temple of the past were the oldest temples, and we have records of it. The records say he appeared out of nowhere and was just an image, not a real person. He passed down the Buddhist Dao, then disappeared. He had never appeared again through the generations. To this day, all the people who cultivate Buddhism chant his name as a greeting, hoping that he will appear again one day,” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng said in shock.
“A figure that appeared out of nowhere, spreading the Buddhist Dao. Everyone who cultivates Buddhism chants his name?” Gu Hai said, feeling surprised.
“Amitābha. His Buddhist name is the Amitābha Buddha!” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng said, still shocked.
“The Amitābha Buddha?” Everyone in the surroundings looked at Bodhisattva Lian Sheng in shock.
Now, Bodhisattva Lian Sheng felt uncertain and shaken. The Amitābha Buddha that all Buddhists in the world yearned for had suddenly appeared? In Borderless Heavenly Capital?
Bodhisattva Lian Sheng found this surreal and wondered if all this was a dream.
“Mister Gu, many thanks for passing on the Buddhist Dao to me,” Zhengfa Ming suddenly said.
“You are no longer mute? You can speak now?” Gu Hai said in shock.
“Yes. After gaining Mister Gu’s Buddhist Dao and entering closed-door cultivation, I opened my mouth aperture and can speak now,” Zhengfa Ming said seriously.
“You…are you the Amitābha Buddha?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng anxiously wanted to know.
Previously, he thought his Nalanda Temple was very ancient. However, the Nalanda Temple was nothing if the person before him was the Amitābha Buddha.
“I don’t know. I only feel that countless Buddhist greetings awakened me from the boundless void.” Zhengfa Ming shook his head.
“Countless Buddhist greetings? Is it Amitābha?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng asked anxiously.
“There are two.” Zhengfa Ming shook his head.
“Oh?”
“One is Amitābha, the other is Amitāyus,” Zhengfa Ming recalled.
[TL Note: Amitābha and Amitāyus are reversed in this novel due to a poor translation choice at the beginning. Both Amitābha and Amitāyus are used on Earth, but Amitābha is a lot more common, so I had been using that throughout the novel. It turns out that this novel differentiated the usage of the two, and that caught me off-guard. However, there are way too many chapters for me to go back and change, so I’m just flipping the two greetings. They have similar meanings, one being the Infinite Light Buddha and the other, the Infinite Life Buddha. You can read more about this buddha and the differences between the two in his Wikipedia entry here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amit%C4%81bha.]
“Amitāyus? What is that?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng asked in confusion.
“Amitāyus?!” Gu Hai gaped.
That’s not right. Isn’t Amitāyus the Buddhist greeting on Earth?
“It should be said that I reincarnated more than once already. However, I never attained enlightenment. I only gained enlightenment after Mister Gu’s Great Compassion Mantra,” Zhengfa Ming said with a frown.
“You reincarnated more than once? Could you be the Dao Devouring Physique that appeared a few times in history?” The Unborn Man’s expression changed.
“I should be. In all my reincarnations, my body had an intense desire for the natural laws and could devour some of them. Unfortunately, my lifespan never exceeded one hundred years. After one hundred years, I died, and the laws returned to the world,” Zhengfa Ming explained.
“What is going on? Why can you devour the laws?” Gu Hai asked.
“I’m not sure. Perhaps those laws were not mine, and I needed my own laws, the laws that I created. Your Great Compassion Mantra was incomparably compatible with me,” Zhengfa Ming explained.
“Your laws?” Gu Hai felt slightly startled.
“If you are the Amitābha Buddha, all Buddhist laws in the world logically belong to you. You can take them in as your own. Why is Imperial Emperor Gu’s Great Compassion Mantra the only one that worked?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng asked in confusion.
Zhengfa Ming shook his head, indicating he did not know.
Gu Hai’s expression changed slightly, as he guessed something.
“Everyone, withdraw from this place!” Gu Hai commanded.
“Yes!” The surrounding Han Nation soldiers left.
“Bodhisattva Lian Sheng, can I trouble you to leave for a while?” Gu Hai looked at Bodhisattva Lian Sheng.
“Imperial Emperor Gu, what are you going to do?” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng asked in confusion.
“I wish to speak with Zhengfa Ming alone,” Gu Hai said.
“But—” Bodhisattva Lian Sheng felt slightly reluctant.
“Bodhisattva Lian Sheng, please!” Gu Qin invited at the side.
Bodhisattva Lian Sheng’s expression changed continuously. Eventually, he nodded before hesitantly leaving the ritual array.
Now, only Gu Hai and Zhengfa Ming remained in the ritual array.
“Mister Gu, you want to chat with me in private? Hah! I don’t know much about myself, either. This enlightening only restored my memories from my previous reincarnations, nothing else. However, if you still have more Buddhist Dao, they might be useful to me.” Zhengfa Ming smiled.
“No. I’m inviting someone over. That’s why I sent them away.” Gu Hai shook his head.
“Oh?” Zhengfa Ming felt confused.
Then Gu Hai waved his hand. The Life Trapper Saber immediately flew from the Soaring Palace Hall to the valley.
Gu Hai extended his hand and operated the Life Trapper Saber.
Whoosh!
A black hole suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It was the passageway between the two immortal firmaments.
“Calling for the Siddhārtha Buddha!” Gu Hai called out to the black hole.
“The Siddhārtha Buddha?” Zhengfa Ming felt slightly confused.
However, no one walked out of the black hole.
Gu Hai frowned slightly. Then he understood. The deities and experts of Earth’s immortal realm could come over. However, Laozi, Siddhārtha, and the other leaders were unwilling to leave the Sa’s Immortal Firmament. They could only barely defend Earth’s immortal realm because of their presence. Once they left and Sa noticed, Sa would launch an all-out attack. Earth’s immortal realm would be in danger, so Siddhārtha refused to come.
Nevertheless, Gu Hai spoke again. “Siddhārtha, this humble one is Gu Hai. I know you are unwilling to leave the Sa’s Immortal Firmament, just like Laozi. However, this matter is of utmost importance. I met a strange reincarnated person here, who perhaps goes by the Buddhist name Amitāyus Buddha.”
Buzz!
Right after Gu Hai spoke, a Buddhist light flashed in the black hole. As the Buddhist light poured out, it seemed somewhat similar to the light from Zhengfa Ming’s body.
“Huh?” A trace of confusion appeared on Zhengfa Ming’s face.
“Gu Hai, if you are lying to me, the Buddhist faction I lead will ignore you forever!” A stern voice rang out.
A barefoot, burly monk strolled out of the black hole.
The monk appeared to have some misgivings.
“Greetings, Lord Siddhārtha Buddha!” Gu Hai bowed slightly.
This was Earth’s Siddhārtha. Gu Hai had interacted with him for some time on Earth.
After exiting the black hole, Siddhārtha ignored Gu Hai and looked at Zhengfa Ming.
Zhengfa Ming looked back at Siddhārtha with a slight frown. “Why do I find you somewhat familiar?”
Siddhārtha felt startled. Then exultation appeared on his face as he reached out to grab Zhengfa Ming.
Zhengfa Ming wanted to dodge, but Siddhārtha was too fast. Siddhārtha immediately caught Zhengfa Ming’s wrist and sent a Buddhist light into his body.
Zhengfa Ming trembled, finding this Buddhist light extremely comfortable. He gazed at Siddhārtha in confusion.
“Is he the Amitāyus Buddha?” Gu Hai asked, feeling curious.
Siddhārtha immediately let go, pressed his palms together, and bowed respectfully to Zhengfa Ming. “This reincarnation, Siddhārtha, salutes Master, Tathāgata Zhengfa Ming, the Amitāyus Buddha!”
[TL Note: Tathāgata is a Pali word meaning enlightened one, finder of truth, or one who has attained perfection. Buddhas often used it to refer to themselves. You can read more about it in this Wikipedia entry: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tath%C4%81gata.]
“Master?” Gu Hai parroted in shock.
“I’m your Master?” Zhengfa Ming said in shock.
“My previous life was the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion. When I was in Paradise, I became Master Tathāgata Zhengfa Ming’s student and gained Honored Master’s teachings and enlightenment. After that, I received guidance from the Dīpaṃkara Buddha and became a buddha. After Master vanished, the buddhas were destroyed and vanished into silence. Sa ruled the world, and Buddhism nearly got eradicated. This disciple reestablished Buddhism and created Sahā, connecting it to Laozi’s immortal realm. I became the leader of the new Buddhism,” Siddhārtha explained while bowing deeply.
[TL Note: Here are the Wikipedia entries on the Dīpaṃkara Buddha and Sahā. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipankara and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sah%C4%81.]
“Oh?” Zhengfa Ming appeared slightly confused.
“Master does not remember your past life?” Siddhārtha asked.
Zhengfa Ming shook his head. “I only learned of some of my past lives after gaining Mister Gu’s Great Compassion Mantra.”
“Bodhisattva Guanyin authored the Great Compassion Mantra. Bodhisattva Guanyin is one of Master’s incarnations. Naturally, the Great Compassion Mantra is Master’s Dao and laws; that’s why it could enlighten you. Master, although Sa destroyed Paradise, Master’s records and books still exist. Master, come back with me, and I will help Master restore the memories of your previous lives,” Siddhārtha said excitedly.
“Do you have many Buddhist Dao and laws that I can use?” Zhengfa Ming asked, feeling confused.
“Yes. How about this disciple pass on the Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra to Master first?” Siddhārtha replied with a trace of happiness.
[TL Note: Here is the Wikipedia entry on the Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shorter_Sukh%C4%81vat%C4%ABvy%C5%ABha_S%C5%ABtra.]
While Zhengfa Ming was still confused, Siddhārtha tapped on his forehead.
Buzz!
Zhengfa Ming immediately closed his eyes, appearing to be comprehending some wondrous laws.
As Zhengfa Ming comprehended these laws, more lotus flowers suddenly appeared in the surroundings. These lotuses were of various colors—golden, purple, white, black, and many others.
“This disciple awaits Master’s reestablishment of Paradise!” Siddhārtha looked at Zhengfa Ming, who was deep in comprehension, with anticipation.
