the monk that wanted to renounce asceticism
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Fangzheng felt his heart turn cold when he heard that. He was no longer the ignorant youth from before. The burden on him was no longer just Zen Master One Finger’s wish, but the future of countless people he had helped!
Without the System, Mengmeng would have been abducted. Dog Song would still be wreaking havoc in the village, while One Finger Village’s villagers would still be poor… The children in the southwestern mountain would still not have any water to drink. The elder would still climb the Stairway to Heaven that could cause them to fall to the ground at any moment. The docks by the Songhua River would be demolished. The girl who acknowledged him as her father might also face a life and death separation… Countless patients might be pushed into the abyss once again…
Furthermore, Lone Wolf would become that starving wolf. Perhaps, he would eat people or be beaten to death…
Monkey would still be stealing from Baiyun Monastery…
Squirrel would still be a wild rat in the forest. It was also possible that he had other fates.
Red Boy wouldn’t come. Salted Fish wouldn’t come. Scrapped Car wouldn’t awaken. Awaiting him was the fate of being turned into a pancake…
It was as if as long as he nodded, it would no longer be his fate, but the fate of countless people!
The pressure was too great… Fangzheng felt too reluctant.
“What if This Penniless Monk rejects it?” Fangzheng did not immediately agree but continued asking.
Fangzheng was afraid of being scammed by the System. He wouldn’t make a decision unless he understood everything.
The System said, “Everything will proceed as usual. Continue on your path of becoming Buddha to renounce asceticism. You will be the only true god in this world. However, Dragon Girl will be getting married in another world!”
Fangzheng’s hand trembled… He nearly dropped the Buddha Beads.
Humans weren’t plants; how could he be heartless?
The two of them had interacted with each other for a month. Dragon Girl was youthful, lively, and adorable. Her elegance had a tinge of playfulness. That had already moved Fangzheng.
In fact, Fangzheng wouldn’t have been tempted if he had been in a different environment. This was because with the System around, he was constantly taking note of his identity.
However, in the dream, no matter how much Fangzheng rejected it, he still held a sliver of hope. No one knew what happened in the dream. In the dream, it was not real. In the dream, he could choose not to abide by the rules…
Therefore, Fangzheng had relaxed in it…
“Dragon Girl is also a Buddhist disciple. How can she be married?” asked Fangzheng.
The System said, “Since she has fallen in love, she is no longer a Buddhist disciple. She can naturally get married.”
“What if her mortal heart is dead?”
The System said, “By converting to Buddha, she naturally can’t get married.”
Fangzheng smiled. “I understand. She won’t be able to get married.”
The System said, “Dragon Girl came with me. Her original duty was to observe human nature from a different angle, but she had mistakenly fallen in love with you. She knew that she was in the wrong, so she never appeared to meet you… Unfortunately, love is a poisonous seed. Once it’s planted, no matter how deep it’s buried, it will eventually bear fruit. It grows taller and produces more with time… Finally, it filled her heart.
“You wanted to do things that she doesn’t like to destroy her image of you? In the eyes of a person who loves you, that’s not wrong. If you are a god, she will be a goddess. If you are a demon, she will be a demoness. She will be by your side forever, never giving up on you.”
Fangzheng shook his head. “No, This Penniless Monk has another choice.”
“What choice?” asked the System.
Fangzheng smiled. “What if This Penniless Monk dies?”
System: “…”
The System did not say a word. Fangzheng knew that he had made the right bet. He laughed out loud. “Is that it? What’s so difficult about that?”
With that said, Fangzheng got up and left.
In the next few days, Fangzheng still did not go anywhere. Instead, he used the spread of his medical skills that saved countless people to earn countless merit points. He obtained a chance at a door to exchange for a Mountain Moving Talisman.
Fangzheng carried One Finger Monastery from the south to the northeast and placed Mt. One Finger beside One Finger Village.
Then, Fangzheng spent a few days recording everything he learned on stone slabs. There were carving techniques, medicine, and machinery techniques on it.
Fangzheng used eighteen stone slabs for each skill!
That night, Fangzheng called all his disciples over.
No one knew what Fangzheng had said. All they heard was weeping in One Finger Monastery…
On the third day, when people entered One Finger Monastery again, they did not see Fangzheng.
Monkey became more and more composed. Red Boy was no longer as mischievous as he used to be. Squirrel hid in the tree and did not come out. Salted Fish no longer collected money under the bodhi tree…
One Finger Monastery seemed to be filled with grief overnight…
On this day, Fangzheng found his parents. He originally believed that he could walk up bravely and reunite with his parents.
However, when he really saw his parents, he realized that he was like Scrapped Car. He stood opposite the road and couldn’t take a second step. He saw how they were fine and felt warm in his heart…
Fangzheng saw the necklaces on his parents’ necks. One of them had the word “Fang” on it, while the other had the word “Zheng.” From the looks of it, it seemed to be quite old.
Only then did Fangzheng realize that his name wasn’t given to him by Zen Master One Finger… To think that he had always felt that Zen Master One Finger was quite good with names. It turned out that he had been fooled.
On Mt. Tongtian’s mountain range, Fangzheng, who had put down the Mountain Moving Treasure Wheel and other Dharma treasures, stood on the mountaintop. He pressed his palms together and faced the west.
“Are you really not considering it? If you don’t die and cultivate peacefully, you will definitely become a Buddha in the future,” said the System.
Fangzheng smiled. “If Buddha is heartless, what’s the difference between him and the devil? If Buddha is heartless, what’s the use of becoming Buddha? If Buddha is heartless, not being one doesn’t matter!”
The System immediately said, “All you did was to become Buddha to renounce asceticism. If you now let everything go and renounce asceticism, what is the difference?”
Fangzheng said, “There’s a huge difference. If I become a Buddha, I will redeem all the suffering in the world! If I let everything go, the world will suffer.”
The System added, “When you become a Buddha, you can redeem the people of the world. If you die, who will save the people of the world from rushing into the sea of suffering?”
Fangzheng said, “This Penniless Monk has at least given them a good starting point. I firmly believe that the human heart is kind to begin with. It’s just that the mortal world blinds them, making them only capable of seeing darkness. But no matter how blinding the mortal world is, isn’t it still filled with love? Haven’t you seen enough along the way?
“For the sake of his lover, he had waited five hundred years amidst the elements; for his mother, she had hired someone to be her father; for the sake of his child, he sacrificed his life; for the sake of his lover, he fought alone without any hesitation; for the sake of friendship, he traveled the ends of the world to deliver military medal; for the survival of others, they removed their final defenses and charged into the sea of fire without any hesitation… There are so many people like them. What right do you have to say that the world would rush into the sea of suffering? Even if it was the sea of suffering, This Penniless Monk firmly believed that they would fish out all the people who had fallen into the sea and carry them out!
“Life is a sea of suffering. If you have love, you can be a boat, and you carry life.”
With that said, Fangzheng took a step forward.
The System said, “If you die, Dragon Girl will definitely be heartbroken.”
Fangzheng smiled. “It’s better to be heartbroken than to fall into despair, isn’t it?”
Fangzheng took another step forward.
The System said, “Do you really love her?”
Fangzheng recalled the scene of the two of them spending the past month together. Then, he said with a smile, “This Penniless Monk doesn’t know. We got along very well… She’s the only girl in This Penniless Monk’s life who confessed her feelings to This Penniless Monk. She’s also the only girl who’s willing to cook for This Penniless Monk… She brought This Penniless Monk a lot of joy that This Penniless Monk had never experienced before. It also made up for some of the regrets in This Penniless Monk’s heart. Therefore, although This Penniless Monk doesn’t know if he loves her, at the very least, This Penniless Monk knows that This Penniless Monk owes her. This Penniless Monk can’t let her bury herself because of This Penniless Monk. Therefore, This Penniless Monk has to take this step regardless of whether he loves her or not.”
“Where about your parents? Don’t you want to visit them again?” asked the System.
Fangzheng shook his head and said, “I’ve already seen them… Just like the old car, I’ve seen them and loved them. It’s also enough for them to still think of me. As for what happened back then to make them give me up, it’s no longer important. I believe that my parents who constantly have my picture on their necks must have their difficult reasons for giving up on their child. Since it’s a difficulty, why dig deeper?”
The System said, “But they didn’t return to look for you.”
“Is it important?”
The System fell silent…
Fangzheng said, “There’s no point in saying more. Thank you for your company during this period of time. You helped me redeem many people, but you also redeemed me in an invisible manner. Back then, I was just a brat. Now, I’m the real me, a real Master… I can’t even believe in my growth. I never believed that I would one day die for someone else… However, I like my growth. Thank you…”
With that said, Fangzheng leaped down from the mountain…
Fangzheng looked up slightly and pressed his palms together. He smiled. “Amitabha. Master, I didn’t embarrass you.”
Three days later…
In One Finger Monastery.
“Master, did you really jump off the cliff?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you die?”
“A scourge lives for a thousand years!”
“I’m done eating. Let’s exercise!”
“Eat, sleep, beat Salted Fish!”
…
Earth Immortal Realm, South Sea.
“Bodhisattva, am I that lacking in charm? I’ve trained my acting skills for years, but I can’t even fool a brat…” Dragon Girl sat on the ground bitterly as she looked at Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
Bodhisattva said with a smile, “How do you know that you didn’t charm him?”
Dragon Girl said angrily, “I only realized when I came back that I had a note on me!”
As she spoke, Dragon Girl took it out and placed it in front of Bodhisattva. Then, she read it out: “I can’t say anything. It’s easy to laugh when speaking. Your acting skills are terrible! Let This Penniless Monk act out an Oscar-winning show!”
Guan Yin Bodhisattva: “…”
Dragon Girl said angrily, “That’s why! Whatever nonsense that bald monk did later such as jumping off the cliff was all a show! What’s even more ridiculous is that he managed to fool the Son of Buddha Seeking System created by the Receiving Buddha. He passed the last test and became a true Buddha of that world! I’m so angry…”
Guan Yin Bodhisattva smiled and said, “Are you sure that was an act?”
Dragon Girl was stunned…
Guan Yin Bodhisattva said with a smile, “All things in the world can be real or fake. Life is like a dream. Dreams are like life. You can use dreams to confuse his life. Why can’t he use his life to fabricate a dream for you? Perhaps one day, when you awaken, all of this will be a dream…”
Dragon Girl fell silent. After a long while, she stood up and bowed. “I have learned something. When will that Child of Wealth return?”
Guan Yin Bodhisattva said, “Fangzheng has become a Buddha. Since Child of Wealth likes to follow him, let him be. If he comes back and the both of you quarrel everyday, I’ll be vexed.”
Dragon Girl: “…”
Dragon Girl said, “Then what about that salted fish? That old hooligan had Buddha give him wisdom. He won’t stay there forever, right?”
Guan Yin Bodhisattva said, “You don’t know how happy Buddha is after sending him away…”
Dragon Girl: “It seems like Buddha has no intention of taking it back…”
Guan Yin Bodhisattva: “Yeah…”
…
The End.