“Ah!” The Black Bear Spirit let out a final scream, plummeting from the sky.
Zhong Yuan’s pupils constricted, remaining silent.
Just now, when the Black Bear Spirit tried to escape, Zhong Yuan reacted and wanted to stop it, using the wind and fire here, he still had some chances.
But he definitely couldn’t do it this easily, or even say mysteriously.
This time, someone had intervened directly from behind, helping him.
He just didn’t know who exactly it was who intervened.
The Black Bear Spirit struggled to get back up from the ground, but he no longer had his previous arrogance, and it seemed he thought Zhong Yuan was the one who stopped him.
The Black Bear Spirit directly bowed down, begging, “Great Sage, oh no, Little Sage. Little Sage, please spare me! Little Sage, please spare me!”
“I was also coerced by the Heavenly Court. If it weren’t for being forced, who would dare to attack the plague god who caused chaos in the Heavenly Court?”
“…” Zhong Yuan fell into even deeper silence.
Meaning the Black Bear Spirit was actually involved in besieging Sun Wukong. It thinks he’s here purely for revenge…
But in reality, he has no idea about this.
The information he received from Flower Fruit Mountain was only that the Great Sage’s Six Roots should be nearby, he just came to find the Great Sage’s Six Roots.
If the Black Bear Spirit had chosen to hand over the item from the beginning, he probably wouldn’t have taken action.
Although judging from the Black Bear Spirit’s previous attitude, it definitely wouldn’t be willing to part with it.
Zhong Yuan was about to ask who else intervened back then, but unexpectedly, the Land Deity took the lead and stepped forward, saying, “What the Bear Monster said is true.”
“Even with all the courage in the world, he would never dare to harm the Great Sage himself. The one behind this, there must be someone else.”
Zhong Yuan became even more silent. Who asked this? I didn’t say I suspect the Black Bear Spirit of harming the Great Sage, did I?
What mastermind, isn’t it the Heavenly Court that did it?
Or is it saying it’s not the Heavenly Court, but someone else?
So, was it the Land Deity who stopped the Black Bear Spirit just now?
Zhong Yuan felt like the Black Bear Spirit was cooperating with the Land Deity to put on a puppet show.
The Black Bear Spirit then hurriedly said, “Moreover, this thing is very strange.”
“After getting it, I have no idea how to refine it. I can only keep it enshrined high up, occasionally tricking some small monsters to worship it for profit.”
“If the Little Sage spares me this time, I will return to the South China Sea to plead guilty, wear the golden hoop again, and never leave Putuo for the rest of my life!”
Zhong Yuan still didn’t speak, he understood now.
It’s telling him that it has a backer.
This Black Bear Spirit, I’m afraid it was just knocked down by Guanyin’s intervention, and Guanyin doesn’t want the Black Bear Spirit to take away the Great Sage’s root.
And the Black Bear Spirit, without the arrogance it had at the beginning, directly admits defeat and begs for mercy. Zhong Yuan even suspects that Guanyin might have directly told the Black Bear Spirit that whether it can live depends on whether he takes action or not.
This would also explain the Land Deity’s attitude.
The Land Deity said again at this time, “Don’t listen to his nonsense! Little Monkey, hurry up and take back the Great Sage’s relic and have a look.”
Zhong Yuan looked up at the treasure. The item that the Black Bear Spirit had taken away seemed to have a reaction, flashing with golden light, and directly transformed into a colorful bird.
Zhong Yuan simply reached out his hand, and the colorful bird directly landed on his arm.
The bird’s eyes had flames burning within them.
【One of the Great Sage’s Six Roots, Eye Root, Eye Sees Joy. The Great Sage was a stone monkey born from heaven, even after death his power won’t perish. These Six Roots are the condensation of the Great Sage’s power before his death.】
【As a Heaven’s Chosen, you refine it and you can inherit some of the Great Sage’s power.】
Zhong Yuan just touched this Eye Root, and its information appeared in his mind again.
Just like the two Golden Cores he had received before.
He could indeed feel the surging power within it. As long as he gently guided it, his power would immediately undergo a drastic change, far surpassing his current level.
But thinking about what he saw along the way, thinking about the effects of the Taiyi Purple Gold Pill before, Zhong Yuan felt a bit of resistance in his heart.
The person who wants him to get the Six Roots, might not be a good person.
Guanyin…
Zhong Yuan stared carefully at the colorful bird’s eyes in front of him. The firelight in the bird’s eyes seemed to infinitely magnify at this moment. Zhong Yuan blinked, and found that another scene appeared in front of him.
This was a story about the Black Bear Spirit.
In the scene, the first to appear was a young monk, wandering through a desolate wilderness, in his panic he encountered a giant black bear.
While the young monk was scared, the black bear carried a bag of treasure in its mouth, and placed it in front of the young monk.
The young monk looked up, and suddenly seemed no longer afraid.
They later became friends.
The black bear asked the young monk, he heard Buddha said that he saves all beings, are all beings equal, is that true?
The young monk affirmed, of course it was true, he was taught by his master that way.
The black bear asked again, can he learn Buddhism, does he have a chance to become a Buddha.
So, the young monk began to teach the black bear Buddhism, time passed, the young monk quickly grew up, he already had the experience of successfully saving the black bear, plus he also had the treasure given by the black bear, the young monk grew up and stood out among the monks, quickly became a highly-achieved monk, his Buddhism was profound.
He didn’t doubt his own Buddhism.
The black bear felt the same way.
Everyone thought so.
The black bear, who was saved by the monk, although still living in the mountains, many people had seen him, and received his help, knowing that it was all the monk’s credit.
Later, the monk became the abbot of Guanyin Temple.
Later, the monk saw a cassock worn by a passing monk, and everything changed…
A sea of fire engulfed everything.
The black bear, who was wholeheartedly benevolent and sincerely sought Buddhism, was taken in by Guanyin Bodhisattva and brought to the South China Sea.
In the bamboo forest of the South China Sea, the black bear bowed and asked Guanyin, “Master, your disciple still can’t understand, a monk has severed all worldly attachments, all earthly desires are gone, why did Elder specifically not let go of a piece of clothing?”
Guanyin said, “If I don’t put on this cassock, how will all beings know that I have severed all worldly attachments and all earthly desires are gone?”
“Hahaha.” The scene before him shattered with Guanyin’s final words, Zhong Yuan couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“Good, good, good!”
Good, how about if I don’t put on this cassock, how will all beings know that I have severed all worldly attachments and all earthly desires are gone.
Meaning as long as you put it on, no matter what you do after that, it’s all severed worldly attachments and all earthly desires are gone, it doesn’t matter at all, you don’t need to care, right?
Although Golden Pond achieved enlightenment, indeed it was only “putting on” the Black Bear’s cassock from the very beginning, so Golden Pond, who saved the black bear and taught him Buddhism, became the highly-achieved monk in everyone’s mouth.
Even Golden Pond himself who put on this cassock thought so.
Later, Golden Pond would continue to teach monsters like Guang Zhi and Guang Mou, and he could also say to the black bear, “Enter all appearances, break all appearances, and achieve liberation.”
The black bear also thought that he had indeed met a highly-achieved monk.
But no one ever thought, this was just the black bear wanting to learn. He believed from the very beginning that a monk has severed all worldly attachments, all earthly desires are gone.
Even if this monk was simply meant to be given to a young monk.
Is this Buddhism?
Is this the current Guanyin?
As long as you wear the golden hoop, no matter what you actually think, you are my Buddhist disciple, you have already let go of all your earthly desires and returned to Buddhism?
This, this Great Sage’s Six Roots, Eye Sees Joy, also doesn’t care about what I think, as long as I take it, wear it, that’s all, right?
It’s really a pity, such a good bear, in the end it went and learned these things.
Sun Wukong seemed to have seen through all this long ago.
Now it’s his turn to choose.
This cassock, wear it or not.
This golden hoop, wear it or not.