A white bone slowly protruded from the dark river. The scene was very strange and horrible. Behind the white bone, there was a huge black shadow, emitting infinite power.
The river gradually parted, and the white bone moved forward. Then two more white bones appeared below. These two bones had no joints and were very smooth and sharp, looking like two spears.
It turned out that the thick white bone that appeared at the beginning was not a whip at all, but a very long trunk. The flesh and thick skin on it were all gone, leaving only the ghastly white bone.
Only an elephant's trunk could be so long, and the two sharp white bones below were elephant's tusks. Looking at the huge figure in the dark river, Ning Que slowly clenched the hilt in his hand.
A giant elephant appeared at the bottom of the river. It was dozens of feet high and as huge as a mountain. Compared with it, the sunken ship seemed very small. The flesh and blood on the elephant had long been eaten away, leaving only the ghastly white bone.
The bone elephant slowly walked to the sunken ship, and the Vermilion Bird was wrapped in the front end of its long trunk, which was composed of countless fine white bones. The Vermilion Bird had no strength to struggle and seemed to be dying.
As the giant bone elephant walked, a majestic and gloomy aura of Buddha pressed to the bow of the ship. Ning Que's body became a little stiff, but he thought that the elephant's trunk should have no bones.
This was the Buddha's Nirvana, a hellish river bottom. The elephant's trunk should have bones, but the resentful soul refused to disperse. How could he reason with it?
If he couldn't reason with it, then he could only fight. However, looking at the monk sitting on the back of the bone elephant and feeling the powerful Buddha's power, Ning Que did not dare to fight casually.
The monk wore a Buddhist crown decorated with ten square gems, a kasaya embroidered with thousands of miles of golden threads, and a nine-ringed golden staff in his hand. The river passed through the head of the staff, making a crisp sound.
Sitting on the back of the bone elephant, the monk seemed very small, but he was very tall. His face was compassionate and firm. Countless rivers flowed in front of him, but he was still calm, giving people a feeling of unfathomable.
In this world, Ning Que had met many Buddhas, such as the Masked Buddha transformed by Monk Qingban, and the ancient Dipankara Buddha on the street. Some Buddhas were very powerful, and some were very weak. But no matter how powerful they were, they could not hold on for too long before he and Sangsang joined hands.
It was not until now that Ning Que saw the skeletal elephant and the monk on its back that he knew that he and Sangsang had finally met a truly powerful opponent. He even felt a little scared.
The skeletal elephant slowly walked to the sunken ship. The river gradually cleared.
Ning Que looked at the monk and shouted, "Who are you?"
The monk replied, "I am not a Buddha, I am a Bodhisattva."
Ning Que was slightly startled and said, "I have seen countless Buddhas in this Nirvana, but I have never seen any Buddha stronger than you. Why haven't you become a Buddha?"
The monk replied calmly, "If hell is not empty, I swear not to become a Buddha."
These simple words made Ning Que silent for a long time. He asked with mixed emotions, "Ksitigarbha?"
The monk looked resolute and compassionate. The jewels in the Buddhist crown and the golden threads on the kasaya shone brightly, illuminating the bottom of the river. Even the river of tens of thousands of miles became clear.
The remaining skeletons and the Wandering Souls hiding in the dark river and mud all showed up. They were not afraid of the Light of Buddha. Instead, they became much calmer and knelt down to the monk on the skeletal elephant. Countless skeletons and Wandering Souls bowed to him. There was a dense rubbing sound at the bottom of the river. It was the sound of bones rubbing against each other. Even the broken bones that were cut by Ning Que floated up.
The dark river like hell was purified by great compassion. This was the state of Ksitigarbha. Although he was a Bodhisattva, he emitted a stronger Light of Buddha than any other Buddhas.
If a Buddhist follower saw this scene, he would probably be moved to tears, kneeling and worshipping the monk on the bone elephant. Even Ning Que was a little moved, but he calmed down faster than Ning Que.
Only devout followers of Buddha would have their consciousness come to the chessboard and enter the Nirvana after death. Then where did the resentful souls, imps, and skeletons under the river come from?
Ksitigarbha seemed to know what Ning Que was thinking. He said slowly, "As long as the sinners believe in Buddha, they will also be brought to the Nirvana after death."
"Heaven is also hell."
Ning Que understood it quickly. He looked at Ksitigarbha and asked, "These sinful followers are brought to the chessboard after death and suppressed at the bottom of the river to suffer endless pain. How can they be empty?"
Ksitigarbha looked at the ghosts at the bottom of the river and said mercifully, "As long as they sincerely convert to Buddha and achieve good results with good intentions and deeds, they will finally be freed."
As soon as he said this, tens of thousands of ghosts bowed again and cried together. The river was full of repentance.
Ning Que looked at Ksitigarbha and said, "You are the same as other Buddhas. You all like to talk nonsense."
As soon as he said this, tens of thousands of ghosts rose together and were angry. The river was full of anger.
Ksitigarbha was not angry. He put his palms together and asked, "Please enlighten me."
Ning Que pointed at the ghosts and skeletons in the river and said, "Good intentions are easy to talk about. But this world is full of Buddhas. Where can they go to do good deeds? And if they were sinners when they were alive, they should be suppressed in hell and never be able to rise again. They can be freed by chanting a few words of Buddha. What will those who were harmed by them think? "
Ksitigarbha said, "You are wrong …"
Ning Que was not willing to reason or talk about the Dharma. He raised the iron cutlass and stopped Ksitigarbha from talking. He looked at Ksitigarbha and his eyes became unusually bright, as if there was golden light overflowing.
"Maybe I am wrong, but I will not be wrong. You are not Ksitigarbha at all." He looked at the monk and shouted, "Don't even think about escaping my fiery eyes! Quickly show your real body, or eat my staff! "
He felt that his words were proud and funny, but only Sangsang in his heart understood it. Ksitigarbha did not understand and looked a little lost. Countless ghosts began to roar angrily.
How disrespectful it was to call Ksitigarbha a fake Bodhisattva in front of him!
Ksitigarbha was still not angry. He said with a smile, "If you say yes, then yes. If you say no, then no. It doesn't matter whether you are a Bodhisattva or not. What matters is what you do."
The ghosts at the bottom of the river were overjoyed and bowed again after hearing the wonderful words.
Ning Que was not moved and shouted, "Patience is as still as the earth, and meditation is as deep as a secret! I don't know which Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple you were when you were alive, but you cultivated the Vajra Body. After you passed away, you came here to guard the Ghost River. Buddha arranged a good job for you, but you are not ashamed to talk about mercy! "
Ksitigarbha looked slightly serious and looked at him quietly. After a long time, he said, "I first opened the Wisdom Eye, and now I have the Heavenly Eye. You are right. I am the second Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple."
The first Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple was Buddha, and he was the second Chief Monk, which meant he was Buddha's eldest disciple. From the perspective of the secular world and the cultivation world, he was the Chief Buddha of Xuankong Temple.
Ning Que heard him admit it and thought that it was no wonder he had such a powerful state. He said sarcastically, "You are indeed a fake Bodhisattva."
Ksitigarbha said, "Buddha was a secular prince when he was alive, and he became Buddha after Nirvana. I was the Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple when I was alive, and I became a Bodhisattva after Nirvana. Why can't I?"
Ning Que was speechless and thought that it was true. Whether it was the Buddhas or the Bodhisattva position, it was the Buddhism Sect's own business, and they were all positions assigned by Buddha. Buddha made this monk Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, so he was Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Even if Ning Que saw through his previous life, what difference would it make?
He had such a strong reaction because he felt that his feelings had been cheated. He was not a Buddhist, but he still admired Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva very much. But he did not expect …
"You were the Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple when you were alive, so you naturally know the miserable world under the mountain. You swore not to become a Buddha until hell was empty? That is the real hell. You didn't even empty the hell in the human world, and that hell was even created by Buddha and you. How can you have the face to say these words? "
Ning Que stared at Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva on the back of the skeletal elephant and said, "My Senior Brother is now leading millions of hungry ghosts to break the hell you left behind. He wants to bring those hungry ghosts that have been suppressed by you for countless generations back to the human world. You swore not to become a Buddha until hell was empty? Even if someone wants to become a Buddha, it should be my Senior Brother. It's none of your business! "
After a while, the skeletal elephant sent the Vermilion Bird tied to its nose to its back. Ksitigarbha reached out and took the Vermilion Bird. He looked at Ning Que who was standing at the bow of the boat and said calmly, "Your bird is in my hands. It's none of your business."
Ksitigarbha's words were Buddhist words, and his words were sharp. Just like the monks in the human world, they liked to solve or create differences by debating. Unfortunately, he was talking about Ning Que today.
Ning Que didn't understand anything from his words. Instead, he was extremely angry. After that night in the Divine Hall of Light, he hated to hear anything related to birds, not to mention that his bird was in Ksitigarbha's hands!
He was furious. His psyche moved, and the Vermilion Bird in Ksitigarbha's hand suddenly turned into a ball of fire, spreading to all sides of the river, and then disappeared. The next moment, the Vermilion Bird returned to the body of the iron cutlass, chirping in pain. It closed its eyes and covered its feathers to recuperate.
The Vermilion Bird was a killing talisman of the God-stunning Array. It was completely controlled by Ning Que's psyche. Even Ksitigarbha couldn't really control it. At first, he wanted to pretend to let the skeletal elephant catch the Vermilion Bird. When the battle started, he would let the Vermilion Bird attack and see if he could gain some advantages.
Now he took back the Vermilion Bird because Ksitigarbha's state was too high, and the Vermilion Bird's sneak attack would be meaningless. More importantly, he couldn't bear to let his bird continue to be held by Ksitigarbha, even for a moment.
"Ksitigarbha, eat my rod!"
If he wanted to play, he had to play the whole set. Ning Que swept from the bow to the side and came to the front of the skeletal elephant. He held the iron cutlass with both hands, as if he was carrying an iron rod, and smashed it at Ksitigarbha's head.
The skeletal elephant roared, and the river suddenly became chaotic.
Ksitigarbha looked at Ning Que in the air quietly. His left hand on his knee had formed a Wishful Gesture, and the nine-ringed golden staff in his right hand faded and turned into a monk's staff.
Ksitigarbha had made a great wish to save all living beings in the Six Realms of Samsara. Therefore, he often appeared in the Six Realms with different Dharma Images and different magic weapons. They were called the Six Ksitigarbha.
At this time, sitting on the skeletal elephant was the Treasure Seal Ksitigarbha.
The Treasure Seal Ksitigarbha was specialized in saving animals.
Ning Que had been cultivating Buddhism for countless years, so he knew the reason. Seeing the Treasure Seal Ksitigarbha, he was even more furious. He poured the Great Spirit and Haotian Divine Light into the iron cutlass and violently chopped it down!
…
(To be continued … If you like this work, please come to Qidian.Com to vote for me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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