Chapter 33: Impressions, Time Left and Origin Energy
"That's just plain wrong isn't it?" The monk scratched his chin, as he felt a lot, of Origin Energy within his Dantian, it was akin to a whole lake of Origin Energy.
'Amitabha, only the King seems to have more Internal Energy than I have Origin Energy in this room. He's supposed to be the strongest though, so I'm not sure what this First Prince Guy is spouting.'
Then, the monk breathed in a bit, and closed his eyes, doing his best to sense his Meridians as well... Only to notice that he couldn't.
'What the hell?... Where have they gone?'
In the past when he started cultivating, the monk had allowed Origin Energy to flow into his body through pathways, which he assumed were essentially meridians.
But now, he couldn't really feel any such pathways in his body, Origin Energy seemed to almost seep through his Dantian and into his muscles and appendages directly.
'That... Can't be so bad, right? I mean... I hope not... No time to think about it though, still feel healthy.'
"It's not wrong, Mo Yangling!" Another figure landed on the arena, this time a girl, one that the Monk hardly recognised.
"No need to be in denial... The only reason you've survived this far is because you have not tried to absorb Origin Energy within your Dantian, you would have already died if that was the case."
The one that had joined them in the arena was none other than the Third Princess, Gui Cuifen.
Only after seeing her green hair and red eyes did the monk finally remember who she was. Though the memories of her were quite faded.
'She's just as wrong as her brother though... Well, I won't argue with them, I guess.'
"Well, if you say so..." The monk yawned as he slowly scratched the back of his head and took another sip of his wine glass, leaving only one last mouthful in there.
"This isn't the time for such leisure! If you've cultivated External Martial Arts to this level then you've probably got less than a year left... At best, and that's only because you are young..."
Guo Shen seemed quite annoyed with the Monk's cavalier attitude.
"Meh, I feel healthy enough." The Monk yawned before subconsciously taking one last sip of wine.
He then turned to the empty wine glass with a regretful gaze.
"Well, feeling healthy means that you'll at least have an easy passing. But we aren't lying here Mo Yangling. This is something everyone can verify..." Gui Cuifen's gaze seemed to also be filled with regrets, though her exact thoughts were difficult to guess at that moment.
The Monk knew that he was not in any danger, but he decided to not show off all of his cards needlessly, especially since proving them wrong had no benefit to him.
Instead, he brought himself into a mind space to cite one of the more sombre verses of the Diamond Sutra. He achieved this by looking at his empty glass of wine, his eyes glinted with grief and sadness.
"Amitabha, no need to be so conflicted about something so trivial.
All conditioned phenomena...
Are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow,
Like dew, or a flash of lightning;
Thus should you meditate upon them."
The Monk's voice thundered into the hall, as he remembered one of his favourite verses, one that always made him feel better about himself, but that also brought back the message of just how truly meaningless all of it was.
The impermanence of all, for in the face of death and the monumental passage of time, nothing truly stood for longer than a glimpse. Neither man nor words or ideals.
But of course, there being no meaning to anything, was not an inherently bad thing. It could encourage one to think beyond the moment, to think further and in the abstract.
That was the way the Monk viewed things, till the very end of his first life, and even in his second one.
Not many could instantly grasp the meaning behind the monk's words, but everyone in that grand hall, from young masters to the elders, could feel just how profound they were, they could feel it within their very souls.
It was like a fleeting sensation, a glimpse of something greater than any of them had ever heard, read or seen.
Guo Shen and Guo Cuifen's eyes widened at around the same time, as they were the first among the youth to comprehend the meaning of the Monk's words.
'Everything in life, whether material or emotional, is as fleeting as a dream or a flash of lightning.
His words... He's trying to teach the wisdom of non-attachment to worldly phenomena.'
It was something that every cultivator needed to learn at some point, something essential as one grew older and furthered their cultivation journey along. Yet it was not something that could be taught.
Or at least that was what the cultivation world believed widely, and yet... The Monk's words seemed to have an almost otherworldly effect.
Mo Qiao immediately understood what to do when she comprehended the meaning of the short phrase. She sat down cross-legged to cultivate, her mind feeling clearer than ever.
Every young man or woman who understood his message seemed to do the same, with such a clear mind, cultivation felt more than easy.
It felt... Smooth. As if the heavens were not fighting against them, but rather encouraging them to explore further.
Many Elders also felt the same, that clear mind was what many had been waiting for entire years...
Including Mo Ling, the Grand Elder of the Mo Family, who couldn't believe his eyes or ears when seeing the scene of everyone cultivating all at once.
It was like a scene broken from a great fable he had heard as a child, a wise man had come down from the mountain to share his enlightenment with those below.
He too sat down and cultivated in that moment. Even if those of higher cultivation weren't going to benefit as much from such a thing, it was still a highly relaxing feeling.
The Clan Heads did the same as well, even if they had a lot of questions for Mo Yangling, they decided to put that behind them for now.
Kong Tingfeng also looked at the monk with an excited eye. To him, it felt as if he had found himself in the middle of a battlefield, the place that he ironically found most peaceful.
'What an interesting brat! I'll take advantage of this small gift as well then!~'
Without wars in the last few decades, he hadn't been able to reach that same clarity of mind, and his cultivation had somewhat stagnated. But now? Now he felt unshackled.
And there were plenty of others like him. Those who could only achieve tranquillity outside of meditation under normal circumstances. They all felt thankful for the opportunity and took it almost immediately.
Meanwhile, the monk looked around all over the hall, more confused than anyone else.
'Amitabha, what the hell are they all doing?!? Did the Diamond Sutra put them all to sleep like it used to put me?'
Yet, they were in no position to be sleeping. The Monk felt the Origin Energy being drained from the room and the castle in general.
'Don't tell me... Does that Mean sutras and mantras have the effect of bestowing enlightenment upon others?!?'
But as he looked closer at all of the people that had started cultivating, the monk quickly realized that they were not achieving enlightenment.
It was tranquillity, with only those who were more talented achieving the tiniest glimpse of enlightenment, but it was far from the full thing.
But tranquillity alone was a great thing since a cultivator's state of mind was among the most important things to them.
The only person in that room who had not stopped to cultivate was the King himself, Guo Zhu, who also seemed to be just as amazed as Mo Yangling himself.
Guo Zhu immediately got off his golden chair and reappeared in front of the Monk, his eyes shining.
"You! Have you truly achieved enlightenment?! And to be able to bestow it upon others at that..."
The Monk sighed, he could feel Guo Zhu's excitement seep through his skin. The excitement of meeting a sage... But also a new toy.
'Seems like the king is interested in my enlightenment... Let us hope it is not an unhealthy interest, for his sake of course.'
"Amitabha, do not misunderstand King Guo... This is but a glimpse of Dharma, of universal truth."
"But a glimpse. huh?! What would happen if I try to force more out of you I wonder..." The King seemed to only be thinking out loud, likely trying to intimidate the monk rather than make him feel attacked.
"You could try... But I worry for you if it does come to that..." The Monk threw the glass he had been holding on the ground and brought his hands together in prayer, the wooden praying beads on his neck moving by themselves to wrap around them.
The King raised an eyebrow, confusion seemed to overwhelm his excitement for a moment.
"Worried about me? Well, my conscious would indeed be affected, but I'm sure I could bear with it. Not th-"
The King was about to continue, but now that it was only him around, the Monk was done playing nice as well.
"Amitabha, I was more worried that you wouldn't live to regret that decision..."
And in that instant, Mo Yangling unleashed all of his repressed Origin Energy outwards.
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Hey, just came home from a birthday, sorry for the late upload. Didn't manage to write much today either, in between work and job searching.
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