Chapter 20

Lu Zheng actually triggered a minor supernatural ability, and it was the Heavenly Ear and Heavenly Eye abilities from the Six Supernatural Abilities of Buddhism. However, these were not the true Heavenly Ear and Heavenly Eye abilities, but rather a manifestation of his mind's power, creating illusions to compensate for the insufficiency of his senses, which he could not control at will. The energy consumed was not supernatural power but rather the vital energy of a human, hence they were called minor supernatural abilities.

These minor supernatural abilities can sometimes be triggered by ordinary people without cultivation, such as when they are extremely focused, or after a serious illness, or when possessed by spirits. However, over time, as the body recovers or the mental state changes, these abilities gradually fade. Some people might never realize they had these minor supernatural abilities, mistaking them for mere illusions. Of course, if they do not continue to cultivate, they truly are just illusions. But if they receive guidance and continue to cultivate, these minor supernatural abilities can serve as the foundation for triggering true supernatural abilities.

The Six Supernatural Abilities of Buddhism are the Heavenly Eye, Heavenly Ear, Mind Reading, Past Life Knowledge, Divine Travel, and Leakage Knowledge. The first five can be gradually obtained as one delves deeper into cultivation, each with different levels of attainment. The last one, Leakage Knowledge, is said to be attainable only after enlightenment, making it the most mysterious of the supernatural abilities in Buddhism. These supernatural abilities are not exclusive to Buddhism; for example, the Heavenly Eye and Heavenly Ear have corresponding abilities in Daoism, known as the Thousand-Mile Eye and the Wind-Listening Ear.

The initial level of the Heavenly Eye and Heavenly Ear abilities allows one to see extremely far and hear extremely subtle sounds. As one's level deepens, there are even higher and more wondrous levels. For instance, the ascetic monk's Heavenly Eye ability has the power to see through obstacles, which is why he can use it to examine the condition inside Lu Zheng's body.

The minor supernatural abilities are very similar to these true supernatural abilities but are actually created by one's own mind power, almost like a simulation. One could say that all supernatural abilities have corresponding minor supernatural abilities. This is because, like minor supernatural abilities, true supernatural abilities are also based on mind power, but they do not create illusions.

But why did Lu Zheng suddenly trigger these minor supernatural abilities?

On one hand, it was because Lu Zheng had made some progress in cultivating his mind power. Mind power is the foundation for triggering minor supernatural abilities; without it, it is impossible to create illusions. Lu Zheng has a simple and pure mind with few distractions. His heart was deeply affected by the sorrow of Tang Xiaojiu's death, causing his mind to become inwardly focused and detached from the outside world, which aligned with the initial state of mind required for cultivation. After learning mantras from the ascetic monk, he quickly mastered the essentials, significantly enhancing his mind power, and soon achieved a minor level of success, allowing him to create illusions at will.

On the other hand, the ascetic monk speculated that it might still be related to the yin poison in Lu Zheng's body. When Lu Zheng closed his eyes and entered a trance, emitting a dragon's roar, the ascetic monk used his Heavenly Eye ability to investigate and found that the six yin poison gas clusters in Lu Zheng's body had changed. These gas clusters, which originally did not connect to his organs but were merely situated on top of them, now enveloped his five organs and the mud pill palace, with countless fine threads tightly connecting them to the organs.

The white gas cluster that originally resided in his liver remained white, but the one in his kidneys, which was previously a light yellow, had turned completely yellow. The gas cluster in his spleen, which had originally been white with a hint of green, had turned entirely green. The gas cluster in his lungs had turned a fiery red, and the one in his heart had turned a deep black. The white gas cluster in his mud pill palace had become transparent.

The ascetic monk observed that as these six gas clusters swirled, Lu Zheng's five organs showed signs of decline, and his mud pill palace was covered in a light gray layer. He knew this was due to the gas clusters extracting the divine energy from his organs. Therefore, the ascetic monk speculated that the changes in Lu Zheng's eyes and ears were caused by these yin poison gas clusters, but he could not understand the exact causal relationship, so it remained a guess.

The reason for this was that the ascetic monk practiced the indestructible supernatural ability of Buddhism, which, although also emphasizes the cultivation of the physical body to achieve an indestructible state, differs significantly from the cultivation of the purple-golden jade body in Daoism. The latter involves understanding all changes in the physical body, guiding and strengthening it step by step to achieve the five qi converging, the three flowers gathering at the top, and finally reaching the realm of the return to the original. In contrast, the indestructible body is achieved through the method of the five aggregates and emptiness, emphasizing the emptiness of the four elements and the transformation of the mind, achieving the indestructible state in the realm of suchness. This method is simpler and more direct in cultivation, but it does not provide as much understanding of the physical body's changes.

Therefore, the ascetic monk did not understand the various changes in Lu Zheng's physical body and was at a loss, despite his supernatural powers and abilities. Currently, he could only use his supernatural powers to stabilize Lu Zheng's heart pulse and help regulate his meridians and vital energy, preventing him from dying due to blocked meridians and organ failure.

However, the fortunate part was the six-dragon jade pendant Lu Zheng possessed. The jade pendant continuously emitted a white light, protecting Lu Zheng's heart pulse from the yin poison. More remarkably, the white light entering Lu Zheng's body could be entirely converted into vital energy, nourishing his five organs, mud pill palace, and physical body, allowing him to survive.

A protective artifact that could convert into vital energy to nourish the body was not something an ordinary protective talisman could achieve. The ascetic monk speculated that the jade pendant on Lu Zheng was not a coincidence but seemed to hint at some arrangement, as if the jade pendant's appearance was to help Lu Zheng overcome this crisis. Otherwise, how could such a jade pendant be found on a small beggar!

The ascetic monk was also worried about another issue: the change in the color of the yin poison gas clusters indicated that they had absorbed the divine energy from Lu Zheng's organs and mud pill palace, becoming more powerful. As the colors deepened, they absorbed more vital energy. The jade pendant continuously converted and generated vital energy to nourish and replenish the organs and mud pill palace, but the yin poison gas clusters continued to absorb. This was akin to feeding a young tiger.

Although the vital energy provided by the jade pendant and the absorption by the yin poison gas clusters were currently in balance, as the yin poison gas clusters grew stronger, there might come a day when the white light from the jade pendant could not keep up with the rate at which the gas clusters absorbed divine energy, or when the white light in the jade pendant was exhausted. At that point, the increasingly powerful tiger, not getting enough, would leap up and devour Lu Zheng entirely!

The ascetic monk did not tell Lu Zheng about the six yin poison gas clusters in his body or his speculations about the six-dragon jade pendant. On one hand, he himself was not clear about the situation, and on the other, he did not want to add unnecessary worry to Lu Zheng. But how long could this situation, akin to drinking poison to quench thirst, last?

Lu Zheng had recently triggered minor supernatural abilities, which easily depleted his vital energy. Although he was severely warned not to use them and to avoid being immersed in illusions, it was not easy to control his mind and not be affected by the illusions, which was already a preliminary achievement in cultivation. Especially for a child, the subtle and wondrous scenes before his eyes were hard to resist.

The ascetic monk was secretly anxious and quickened his pace!

That evening, Lu Zheng woke up on the back of the ascetic monk. Since that day when he realized that what he saw and heard were illusions, he found it difficult to control what he saw and heard. The illusions were not something that could be avoided by closing his eyes or covering his ears; they were illusions that arose from his mind. The more he tried to control himself, the more he saw and heard, leading to a severe depletion of his vital energy and a few days of unconsciousness.

Upon waking, his spirit seemed somewhat improved. He looked around casually and saw a golden sun on the horizon, casting a red glow across the sky, with clouds stretching out in white lines, creating a magnificent scene. Lu Zheng felt refreshed and looked back at the path they had taken, seeing a mountain ridge stretching far into the distance, like a screen standing on the earth, steep and narrow. Looking down, he saw a sheer cliff below, with a rapid stream flowing along, crashing against the rocks, creating countless white waves.

It turned out that they were walking on a ridge that was like a screen, with only enough space for a few people to stand, and sheer cliffs on both sides, with the wind howling. The ascetic monk's robe billowed in the wind, and he carried Lu Zheng, leaping and moving swiftly. Lu Zheng, realizing his situation, felt his legs tremble, his groin grow cold, and he tightly gripped the back frame, his palms sweating.

"Little layman, you're awake. We've reached the Two-Boundary Mountain. The wind is strong here, so please bear with it. After we pass this ridge, we can rest," the ascetic monk's voice came from the wind, speaking while not slowing down his pace.

The Two-Boundary Mountain, as its name suggested, was like a giant screen dividing the land on both sides. It seemed to be a screen from a deity that had fallen to the earth, transforming into a mountain and dividing the land into two boundaries.

Lu Zheng, drenched in cold sweat, could not speak, nodding. Realizing that the monk could not see him, he mustered the courage to say, "Great monk, I'm fine. Just focus on walking, no need to talk to me."

The ascetic monk understood his thoughts and smiled, "Don't worry, although this place is dangerous, to me, it's like walking on flat ground... How are you feeling today?"

"Much better," Lu Zheng, who had come to trust the monk, felt reassured by his words and his abilities, no longer feeling as panicked. He suddenly remembered something and said, "Right, great monk, I don't even know your name yet."

After so many days, he finally remembered to ask the ascetic monk's name.

The ascetic monk stopped on a large rock, put Lu Zheng down, and the back frame served as a chair. He then said, "As a monk, our precepts differ from ordinary people. We don't have secular names, only dharma names. I practice at White Tiger Temple, and my dharma name is Baku. Let's rest for a while. Little layman, you might as well enjoy the scenery of the Two-Boundary Mountain. Once we reach the Two-Boundary Mountain, we'll be close to the cultivation world."

Lu Zheng said, "Oh," not knowing the significance of "Baku" in the cultivation world. He thought, "Baku, hehe, so his real name has a 'ku' (suffering) in it, no wonder he's called an ascetic monk. This name is quite amusing. If Jiu Ge were here, he would surely make fun of the name Baku. I wonder why this great monk, with such great abilities, still feels suffering?" Thinking of this, he almost saw Tang Xiaojiu's mischievous smile, but then immediately remembered that Tang Xiaojiu had been eaten by a monster, feeling guilty for being happy, his eyes welled up, and he felt a deep sadness, muttering, "Baku, Baku!"

Over the past few days, with the ascetic monk's guidance in chanting and mantras, and his care, Lu Zheng's mood had improved. As a young person, he did not have such deep sorrow. However, Lu Zheng, who had a reserved personality, often observed more than he spoke. He always hid behind Tang Xiaojiu, and they had a deep bond. Tang Xiaojiu was like a father and brother to him. Therefore, he never forgot the tragedy of Jiu Ge, and upon waking up and learning the ascetic monk's name, he felt an overwhelming sense of heaviness.

They had planned to steal money from Green Dragon Temple and wander the world. Tang Xiaojiu might have joined the army, achieved military honors, and become a great general. Lu Zheng would definitely follow Tang Xiaojiu, carrying the flag behind him if Tang Xiaojiu charged into battle with a sword, or waiting by the fire if Tang Xiaojiu roasted meat, always getting the best piece first...

Thinking of this, Lu Zheng couldn't help but think of many things, feeling an overwhelming sadness that he couldn't suppress. His chest felt increasingly tight, and he clutched the branches of the back frame tighter. The wind on the mountain was so strong, blowing the ascetic monk's robe and Lu Zheng's hair, but it seemed unable to dispel the sadness in his heart!

At this moment, with a sheer drop of ten thousand feet below his feet and a raging wind on the ridge, it seemed that all the fear had disappeared from this young boy's heart