Free Web NovelChapter 40: Chapter 37: The Reclusive Hidden Cultivator Monk, The Dharma-Ending Age
When Xu Lei heard that Hui Ming was willing to tell him all about the Extraordinary in this world, he was, of course, all ears.
There was nothing to hesitate about.
So what if he had to pretend to be a Divine Monk to catch a Demon?
No matter how dangerous it was, the worst that could happen was death.
And Xu Lei wasn’t particularly afraid of death right now.
He had already fathered quite a few children, so his reincarnation ability was basically secured.
Naturally, the next step was to pursue the Extraordinary and extend the lifespan of each of his lives.
"I agree."
Xu Lei then said, "It doesn’t matter how I need to cooperate.
After all, I’m also a Buddhist Disciple. Subduing demons and devils is what I should be doing.
It’s just that I don’t have any Extraordinary Power myself and can’t deal with Spirit Monsters. Otherwise, I would have handled it myself.
Alright, Hui Ming, enough with the chatter.
Speak.
What exactly is this so-called ’Extraordinary’?
Why is it that despite clearly possessing Extraordinary Power, you’ve spent all these years living no differently from an ordinary Monk?
You’re even more low-key than a regular Monk.
You don’t even let the other martial brothers in the temple know that you have Extraordinary Power?
Now that you want to deal with a Demon, why do you need me, a fake Divine Monk, to step forward?
You even had to be secretive about killing a mere mountain bandit?
I’ve treated you well, haven’t I?
Why couldn’t you bring me along?
Since you were unwilling to talk about it before, why come to me all of a sudden?
And what exactly is the Extraordinary Skill you cultivate?"
Xu Lei fired off a series of questions.
"Amitabha Buddha."
Hui Ming said, "Since you’ve agreed, Master Wu Tan.
Then I shall clear up your doubts.
But that’s quite a lot of questions at once.
I don’t even know where to begin!"
At this point, Hui Ming paused for a moment.
"Let me first explain why I have to be so low-key."
Then he said, "You asked why I possess Extraordinary Power yet hide it so completely that even the other martial brothers in the temple don’t know.
And why I was so secretive even when killing a bandit.
And why I never told you directly, even running away when you pressed me.
This is all because Cultivation in this era emphasizes avoiding karma and practicing as a Hidden Cultivator in seclusion.
Master Wu Tan, you’ve probably heard that some masters of the Daoist Family often retreat deep into the mountains to live.
Avoiding the secular world and all contact with relatives, right?"
"I have indeed heard of it."
Xu Lei recalled some legends he had heard on Earth about Daoist Cultivators and nodded. "According to legend, Daoist Cultivation emphasizes seclusion from the world and avoiding karmic ties.
Some Daoists even have to abstain from women, severing all emotional and romantic attachments.
Some are even more outrageous—killing their wives or sisters to prove their Dao?"
"Correct. Daoism and Buddhism stem from the same source."
Hui Ming said, "Therefore, the Buddhist Dharma I cultivate follows the same principle as those of the Daoist Family.
We also emphasize seclusion as Hidden Cultivators, avoiding karmic ties.
So we cannot let others know that we are True Monks who possess the genuine Buddhist Dharma.
Not even the other ordinary Monks in the very same temple!
That is why I have never told you these things, Master.
When I killed that bandit, I also acted in secret.
I didn’t want to expose myself."
"So, can I understand it this way? In truth, the only True Monks in Longyuan Temple are you and Master Wu Gui?"
Xu Lei said, "So people like me, Brother Qi De, and the other Monks are actually just here to do menial work for the Buddhist Sect, managing its local affairs?
Let me think... why have the Daoist and Buddhist Sects been exempt from taxes throughout all the dynasties?
Is it because of the existence of Monks like you, who truly possess Magical Power and Divine Power?
But you establish temples all over the world and collect incense offerings.
It’s impossible for you to personally handle all the minor details.
After all, you still have to focus on your Cultivation. ƒrēewebnovel.com
Thus, ordinary Monks were born—those who cannot cultivate and don’t even know that the True Buddhist Dharma exists in the world.
Furthermore, the rules for entering the Buddhist Sect, like being vegetarian and abstaining from women...
I guess they were initially intended to restrain you Monks who are truly cultivating the True Buddhist Dharma, right?
After all, you can’t eat meat or be with women day in and day out.
It would be impossible for you to just watch other ordinary Monks do so.
So these rules were established.
Making all the Monks in the temple follow them.
This way, it wouldn’t affect your mindset for Buddhist Cultivation...
...and it would also maintain the image of the Buddhist Disciples.
That’s why, even though you practice Martial Arts Training, you’ve never eaten meat.
But for an ordinary Monk like me, eating meat would clearly make my body stronger.
The effects of physical training would be much better."
"Amitabha Buddha."
Hui Ming said, "Master Wu Tan, you truly are the brilliant disciple raised by a Reclusive Monk.
I only gave you a little information, yet you were able to deduce ten times as much from it and figure all this out.
That’s right. Everything you said, Master, is correct."
"Brilliant disciple of a Reclusive Monk, my foot."
Xu Lei shook his head. "Nephew, don’t say that. You’re the real Divine Monk with Magical Power and Divine Power.
I’m just a fake Divine Monk putting on an act."
"Master Wu Tan, please don’t be so modest."
But Hui Ming said, "Although you lack the talent for cultivating the Buddhist Dharma...
...your ability to save people through blood transfusions, and your contributions like the Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse, the Mathematics Right Triangle Expansion Diagram, potatoes, the Anshi Strategy, and so on, have left both me and Master Wu Gui in awe.
Therefore, the master who raised you must be a truly Enlightened Monk possessing great Divine Power.
It’s just that he probably saw that you lacked the talent for Buddhist Dharma Cultivation.
So he didn’t teach you the Buddhist Dharma.
Nor did he tell you about these matters of Cultivation.
He only taught you some Skills of Worldly Affairs."
Xu Lei nodded.
He didn’t say anything.
’But he understood now.’
’These True Monks like Hui Ming, despite cultivating the True Buddhist Dharma and possessing Extraordinary Power, really don’t know a thing about science.’
’That’s why they assumed my various feats were indeed learned from some powerful Enlightened Monk.’
’And that’s why they wanted to follow me and meet this Enlightened Monk!’
’Perhaps they want to ask him for guidance on the advanced Cultivation of the True Buddhist Dharma?’
’Besides that, Hui Ming also mentioned that I lack the talent for cultivating the True Buddhist Dharma.’
’I estimate that when I first arrived at Longyuan Temple back then, Hui Ming and Wu Gui were probably observing me in secret.’
’But later they discovered I really didn’t have any Magical Power or Divine Power.’
’However, the various things from Earth that I produced still left them amazed and impressed, even if they didn’t understand them.’
’That’s why they let me pretend to be a Divine Monk for all these years.’
’As for why Hui Ming suddenly left and then came back to find me, that’s also understandable now.’
’He needs to use my persona as a fake Divine Monk as a cover.’
’Besides, I’ve already figured out that Hui Ming is a True Monk with Magical and Divine Power.’
’Plus, we’ve known each other for ten or twenty years.’
’He trusts my character.’
’So there’s no need to hide it anymore.’
’Also, Hui Ming’s True Buddhist Dharma should be able to extend his lifespan.’
’That’s evident from the changes in his appearance over the years.’
’Therefore, if I can also succeed in Cultivation, I can definitely make the remaining nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine lives from my Ten Thousand Lives Book last even longer.’
’This is what I want.’
So Xu Lei was quite excited at this moment.
He had finally come into contact with the Extraordinary.
Even though for the past dozen or so years, an Extraordinary had been right beside him.
But back then, who could he blame but himself for not seeing it?
As for what Hui Ming said about him lacking the talent for Cultivation...
...Xu Lei wasn’t too worried about that.
He believed that with so many lives at his disposal...
...he would eventually find a solution.
"Right, Hui Ming, my dear nephew, there’s one thing I don’t understand."
Xu Lei added, "Why is it that when you cultivate the True Buddhist Dharma, you must maintain a vegetarian diet for years, abstain from women, sever emotional and romantic ties, live in seclusion, and avoid karmic entanglement? Is there a special reason for all this?"
"Because the current era is, in fact, the End of the Era of Cultivation for the Immortal Dao."
Hearing this, Hui Ming couldn’t help but sigh and said, "According to legend, in ancient times, our world had an incomparably glorious Ancient Immortal Dao Civilization.
But later, for some unknown reason, the Ancient Immortal Dao Civilization was destroyed and faded away with the passage of time.
The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi is no longer as it was in ancient times; it has become much, much thinner.
Although some cultivation methods have been passed down, achieving immortality or buddhahood is now thousands of times more difficult than it was in ancient times.
Take worldly entanglements, for example. What if a relative in the secular world runs into trouble and comes to us for help?
If we were to intervene, it would inevitably consume our Magical Power!
But in an era of Cultivation with thin Spiritual Qi, cultivating every last bit of Magical Power takes a considerable amount of time.
Helping a relative in the secular world, even just once, is a drain on one’s cultivation potential.
Therefore, whether one cultivates the Dao or practices Buddhist Cultivation, they must leave their worldly home.
They cannot cultivate at home.
This is to avoid having their energy drained by worldly affairs.
One must enter a Daoist Temple or a monastery to cultivate.
And they must sever all ties with the secular world.
The vegetarian diet is to maintain the purity of the body’s Essence Qi. Eating meat and other pungent foods will make the Essence Qi within the body impure and turbid.
This is detrimental to the Cultivation of the Buddhist Dharma.
The other rules are basically for the same reasons."
"I see."
Xu Lei had a sudden realization. "The End of the Era of Cultivation, huh?"
’So the world I’ve transmigrated to is currently in such an era.’
’I have nearly ten thousand lives. If I act cautiously and don’t get killed often, if I don’t use them up on revivals, then I might live for several thousand lifetimes.’
’In that case, I might experience many different eras.’
’If so, then this End of the Era of Cultivation will be the first era I experience.’
Xu Lei felt that if Cultivators had truly existed in Earth’s ancient history, they might have been just like Hui Ming.
Of course, there was no way to verify any of this.
But the world he had transmigrated to was, for now, in such an era.
However, even if it was a Dharma Decline Era, it didn’t matter.
As long as it could extend the lifespan of each life, it was useful to Xu Lei!
Even if he couldn’t achieve immortality, turning a hundred-year lifespan into a two-hundred-year one for each life was still great.
After all, Xu Lei’s base number of lives was ten thousand!
Although he had already used one,
he still had nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine left.
For someone like Hui Ming, cultivating to extend his lifespan by a hundred years meant he only gained a hundred years.
But Xu Lei was different.
He would multiply that gain by nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine!
"By the way, Hui Ming, my nephew, you said before that I don’t have the talent for cultivating the True Buddhist Dharma."
Then, Xu Lei asked directly, "Does that mean it’s absolutely impossible for someone like me to cultivate?
Is there any way for someone like me to also cultivate this True Buddhist Dharma that involves the Extraordinary, just like you?"
