"A!
Mi!
Tuo!
Fo!"
The Buddhist chant echoed forth, like a primordial bell tolling across the epochs of the Primordial, the Ancient, and the Archaic eras. It carried the weight of countless ages—solemn, sacred, and vast.
"Old Monk, it really is you!"
Hearing this chant, Gu Qingfeng's heart surged with excitement. This voice was all too familiar to him; it was none other than the Old Monk who had previously resided within the world of the Bone Jade of Annihilation, on that Nirvana Silence Mountain.
"Layman Gu, I trust you have been well since we last met."
"Well, very well."
Although Gu Qingfeng had never once laid eyes on the Old Monk living inside the Bone Jade of Annihilation, he had often sought out the monk for conversation and heart-to-heart talks during his moments of boredom in the past. Throughout his journey, it was largely thanks to the Old Monk's companionship that the lonely Gu Qingfeng had not felt quite so isolated.
After slumbering for ten thousand years and awakening to find the Bone Jade of Annihilation gone and unable to sense the Old Monk's presence, Gu Qingfeng had missed him quite a bit. Now, encountering the Old Monk again within the Original Sin nightmare, Gu Qingfeng's mood was naturally very cheerful. He asked, "And you? Are you well?"
"Many thanks, Layman Gu. This old monk is perfectly well."
"Well is good... Well is good!"
Learning that the Old Monk was perfectly well, Gu Qingfeng also breathed a sigh of relief. If the Old Monk had truly vanished, there would be no one to chat with and relieve the boredom on the road ahead. Who knows how lonely and isolated he would have been.
"However, Old Monk, where are you right now?"
"This old monk remains on Nirvana Silence Mountain."
"Why have I come to Nirvana Silence Mountain within the Original Sin nightmare?"
"Nirvana Silence Mountain originally belongs to the Wu Dao Age. It is not strange for Layman Gu to arrive here within the Original Sin nightmare."
"That's true."
Gu Qingfeng nodded. He knew the Old Monk was a person from the Wu Dao Age, and moreover, one who had survived from that era. Not only that, he also knew the Bone Jade of Annihilation similarly belonged to the Wu Dao Age, and the Nirvana Silence Mountain within it naturally also belonged to that age.
Looking at it this way, arriving at Nirvana Silence Mountain within the Original Sin nightmare was indeed nothing unusual.
The only thing Gu Qingfeng couldn't figure out was: where had the Bone Jade of Annihilation gone?
Upon inquiry, the Old Monk said, "Layman Gu has long since become one with the Bone Jade of Annihilation. Now, I'm afraid you are even more inseparable."
"You mean the Bone Jade of Annihilation has completely merged into my Physical Body?"
"Yes."
"But why can't I feel it?"
"It is merely a temporary inability to sense it. As Layman Gu's Physical Body gradually revives, I believe you will soon be able to feel it."
"The Old Monk is still the Old Monk, knowing me so well as always. Back when I had the Bone Jade of Annihilation, you understood me inside and out. Now that the Bone Jade of Annihilation has completely merged with my Physical Body, wouldn't you know my situation even better?"
"Layman Gu, please do not misunderstand. Although the Bone Jade of Annihilation has merged with your Physical Body, becoming inseparable, this old monk is merely a temporary resident within this Bone Jade of Annihilation. Layman Gu is the true master of this Bone Jade of Annihilation."
"Is that so..." Gu Qingfeng chuckled and said, "I heard you say long ago that you were a guest of the Bone Jade of Annihilation, while I was its master. So many years have passed, yet regarding the world inside the Bone Jade of Annihilation—whether it's Nirvana Silence Mountain or you who resides upon it—I know nothing at all. On the contrary, you, the guest, know far more than I, the master."
He paused briefly, then continued, "Look, we haven't seen each other for so many years, and I've only just awakened not long ago. Yet you already know my Physical Body has decayed. Not only do you know it decayed, but you also know it is reviving. This doesn't seem like something a guest should know."
"Since Layman Gu has become one with the Bone Jade of Annihilation, inseparable, this old monk can deduce the changes in your Physical Body based on the transformations within the world of Annihilation."
"So that's how it is. That explanation is somewhat acceptable."
Gu Qingfeng pondered carefully. If the Bone Jade of Annihilation had truly merged with his Physical Body, becoming one and the same, then the Old Monk residing within it could indeed deduce the state of his Physical Body based on the changes in the Bone Jade of Annihilation. It should be like observing the weather in nature—whether it's cloudy or clear can be seen at a glance.
"Old Monk, there's a question I've always wanted to ask you."
"Please speak, Layman Gu."
"What is the situation inside the Bone Jade of Annihilation each time I undergo Nirvana Silence Rebirth?"
"Since the Bone Jade of Annihilation has become one with Layman Gu, it naturally changes along with your transformations."
"Meaning, if I am reduced to ashes, the Bone Jade of Annihilation is also reduced to ashes. If I undergo Nirvana Silence Rebirth, the Bone Jade of Annihilation is reborn along with me. Is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Then, this time I slumbered for ten thousand years. Did the Bone Jade of Annihilation also slumber for ten thousand years?"
"Yes."
"And what about you?"
"This old monk is no exception."
"What? You mean to say I slumbered for ten thousand years, and you also slumbered for ten thousand years?"
"Not just this old monk. Everything within the Bone Jade of Annihilation experiences life, death, and Nirvana Silence Rebirth alongside Layman Gu. If it were not so, how could this be called the Bone Jade of Annihilation, and how could this mountain be called Nirvana Silence Mountain?"
"This is the first time I've heard of such a thing. Quite remarkable."
Gu Qingfeng gazed at the mist-shrouded Nirvana Silence Mountain. The more he looked, the more illusory and ethereal it seemed, its truth and falsehood indistinguishable. He asked, "Why is it that I can never see Nirvana Silence Mountain clearly?"
"When Layman Gu achieves complete enlightenment and understanding, you will be able to see through this Nirvana Silence Mountain."
"How does one achieve complete enlightenment and understanding?"
The Old Monk said, "The body is the Bodhi tree, the mind is a bright mirror stand. Constantly wipe it diligently, do not let it gather dust."
Gu Qingfeng thought for a moment and responded, "Bodhi is originally no tree, the bright mirror is also not a stand. Fundamentally, there is not a single thing—where could dust alight?"
The Old Monk's meaning was simple.
He said Gu Qingfeng's Physical Body was like an enlightened Bodhi tree, his soul like a bright mirror stand. One must constantly and diligently wipe and polish it, so as not to let it be obscured and polluted by the dust of worldly attachments, veiling its true nature.
Gu Qingfeng's reply was equally simple. Bodhi was originally not a tree, the bright mirror was not a stand. Fundamentally, there was nothing at all—so where could any dust possibly gather?
The Old Monk was saying Gu Qingfeng had matters in his heart he could not let go of.
Gu Qingfeng, in turn, replied that he stood alone, with nothing he could not let go of.
"I have comprehended the Great Nirvana Silence, the Great Freedom, the Great Compassion, and the Great Illusion. I have transcended the Great Dao, transcended life and death, transcended the mundane world, transcended all living beings. Why is it that today, my heart grows increasingly unclear, my eyes increasingly impure, my enlightenment increasingly unattained, and my entanglements grow ever more numerous?"
The Old Monk's voice was very calm. "Layman Gu is confused..."
"I am indeed confused. Not only am I confused now, but I also feel like I'm regressing the more I live. Are these Buddhist concepts of yours just too damn mysterious, or are you deliberately toying with me?"
"Layman Gu has comprehended the Four Great Mental States and has indeed transcended the Great Dao, life and death, the mundane world, and all living beings. However..." After a moment of silence, the Old Monk's voice came again. "Layman Gu has yet to transcend the self."