In that instant, the Buddha’s body erupted in golden light. Immediately, in the courtyard outside the side hall, a Great Sun Tathagata Dharma form ten thousand zhang tall appeared!
The Dharma form was extremely colossal, like a statue, embodying compassion for heaven and earth, with a blinding sun behind its head.
In a flash, almost everyone on Ghost Emperor Island saw this Dharma form. These cultivators of the ghost realm immediately felt their souls severely impacted.
The Great Sun Tathagata Dharma form was the Buddha’s strongest divine ability, and also the most magnificent and powerful golden divine force in the Immortal Realm, possessing great destructive power against evil spirits, ghosts, and those with dark attributes.
However, this was the Ghost Realm, filled only with eerie ghostly energy and cultivators referred to as “evil spirits.”
This was truly poking a hornet’s nest of evil spirits.
The Ghost Emperor immediately flew out and used his authority to isolate the Ghost Emperor Palace, preventing the Buddha from further harming the ghost realm cultivators. He then grumbled and left.
As soon as the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma form manifested, countless rays of golden light transformed into fine threads, entering Wan Lei’s glabella.
The Buddha himself also sat cross-legged at the head of Wan Lei’s bed, his expression solemn, his eyes closed as he murmured Buddhist scriptures.
The sun behind the Dharma form’s head grew brighter and brighter. Fang Xiaoyu was forced to retreat repeatedly by this terrifying pressure, illustrating the formidable power of this golden light.
“Tch, this old monk is so superstitious.”
Li Mengran got up, pulled Fang Xiaoyu away, and they retreated all the way to Xi Sha’s bedside. She then released her domain, protecting herself, Fang Xiaoyu, and Xi Sha. Fang Xiaoyu’s expression improved slightly.
Mengmeng checked on Xi Sha’s condition while badmouthing the Buddha to Fang Xiaoyu.
“You know what? This old monk is quite wicked, not a good person. Don’t let his current virtuous appearance fool you; he’s actually full of malice. Bah, what a hypocrite.”
Fang Xiaoyu was somewhat surprised, wondering why Mengmeng had such strong opinions about the Buddha.
Of course, she knew about the Buddha tricking the Monkey King, but Mengmeng didn't. The Monkey King wouldn’t mention it, the Buddha wouldn’t, and the Immortal Venerable certainly wouldn't publicize the matter.
“Are you surprised? Do you know the story of the young monk Hui Yu and the Nether Flower Fairy?”
Fang Xiaoyu shook her head blankly.
“Didn’t you meet them in the Five Elements Hall?”
“No, I spent most of my time in prison or in seclusion cultivating. Wan Lei probably saw them.”
“Let me tell you, over fifty thousand years ago, a child with innate Buddhist roots was born in the Western Desert, where people believed in Buddhism and worshipped Buddha day and night.
When the young monk was born, he was clutching a seed in his hand. His parents didn’t know what it was and assumed it was a sign of Buddhist blessing. They hung the seed around his neck with a string.
Later, a Buddha came to the small village to preach, and all the villagers went, including the child’s parents who carried him along.
As a result, that old monk immediately took a liking to the child’s aptitude and took him to Spirit Mountain to be raised.
See, with just a phrase ‘innate Buddhist roots,’ a child not yet a year old was taken from his parents’ embrace, with no possibility of ever seeing them again. Only the Buddhist sect could do something so inhumane, so destructive of human relations.
When the young monk was three or four years old, he planted that seed in his courtyard, diligently watering it every day.
That seed eventually bloomed with purple flowers.
Those were Nether Flowers, also known as Higanbana, which only grew in the Ghost Realm. That Nether Flower was considered the first one in the Immortal Realm.
Later, the Nether Flower absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and gradually gained sentience, becoming able to speak.
The young monk treated it as a close friend, and the person and the flower confided everything in each other.
When the young monk was in his teens, the Nether Flower also transformed, becoming a lovely young girl.
Later, they fell in love.
But paper could not wrap fire forever, and the Nether Flower Fairy was eventually discovered by the Buddha.
The Buddha banished the Nether Flower Fairy, and the young monk was furious but helpless.”
“Why did he banish her? From what I know, the Buddhist sect has females too. Why couldn’t little Nether Flower cultivate Buddhism?”
Fang Xiaoyu was greatly perplexed.
“It’s different. Nether Flowers are of ghostly origin, and after transforming, they are demons. The Buddhist sect, priding itself on being a righteous sect, how could it tolerate such ghostly demonic beings?
However, a girl who grew up in the Buddhist sect, with a pure heart, and incapable of harming anyone, yet the Buddha still banished her.
Later, the young monk stood on Spirit Mountain every day, gazing eastward, hoping to see the Nether Flower.
Until one day, he saw a piece of purple cloth blown by the wind. It was a fragment of the Nether Flower’s clothing, stained with blood.
The young monk became enraged and descended the mountain to search for the Nether Flower Fairy. After countless hardships, he finally found her in Peacock City.
It turned out that shortly after she descended the mountain, she was tricked. Those wicked people discovered her ability to force the growth of flowers and captured her. They forced her to perform for spectators, making flowers bloom, to earn money.
The Nether Flower Fairy was beaten every day. They locked her in a cage and beat her until she was covered in wounds. Even without spiritual energy, they forced her to make flowers bloom. The more she cried and screamed, the more excited the spectators became, and the more money they gave.
Hearing this, Fang Xiaoyu’s face showed anger.
“Under an avalanche, no snowflake is innocent. Little Nether Flower suffered so much, and those who watched are also guilty.”
“Yes, after the young monk found the Nether Flower, he was furious and charged out with her, causing great destruction.
As a result, after a battle with the city lord, it was a draw, but it attracted the attention of the Buddha and the young monk’s master.
The Buddha suppressed the young monk and exiled the Nether Flower Fairy to the Ghost Realm. The young monk cried out,
‘The Buddha saves all beings, but why does he not save me and her?’
But it was useless. How could the high and mighty Buddha listen to the words of a mere young monk? The young monk was captured and locked up.”
“Why were they so unfair? Then what happened? What happened next?”
“Later, the young monk achieved immortality and emerged from seclusion. He destroyed that city with a single palm strike.”
“Most satisfying.”
“From then on, he gained the title of the demonic monk Hui Yu. The Buddha personally killed the young monk Hui Yu…”
“His master killed him.”
The Buddha in the distance suddenly spoke, clearly even he, who was free from desires and attachments, could not tolerate Li Mengran’s slander of his Buddhist sect.
“You killed him! Don’t deny it, you bald donkey.”
Li Mengran glared hatefully.
“Stop cursing. What happened next?”
“Later, the young monk died. His soul entered the Sea of Suffering. He wanted to enter the Ghost Realm to find the Nether Flower Fairy, but his obsession was too strong; he couldn’t let go and couldn’t enter the Ghost Realm. He was brutally consumed in the Sea of Suffering, transforming into an evil spirit.
As for the Nether Flower Fairy, she cultivated to the Immortal Realm in the Ghost Realm and returned to the Immortal Realm.
Her footsteps traversed the Immortal Realm, scattering countless Nether Flower seeds, all in order to find…
The young monk.”