The First Sword of the Earth

It took the two of them a lot of effort to find Ziyan Temple, but fortunately, they are all monks in the Birth Formation Realm, and although the mountain road is rugged, they will not be too embarrassed.

But in front of Ziyan Temple, Wang Sheng was somewhat disappointed...

This temple, which is the much larger 'Wudang Courtyard', really has nothing to do with the word 'magnificence'.

The courtyard wall is dilapidated, and the courtyard gate is barely complete, but the colors of the left and right gates are different; the plaque with the three ancient characters "Lingyan Temple" has peeled off the paint, and there are still many winding wormholes.

If some trees, vines and dead leaves are arranged here, people will believe that it is 'Lanruo Temple'.

The gate of the temple was ajar, and there seemed to be a few monks sweeping the floor inside. Wang Sheng's spiritual thoughts shrouded the place, and he immediately sensed more than 20 monks' aura, most of which were in the state of condensing breath and concentrating spirits. See through directly.

At the same time, he also discovered a few places that he couldn't find out with his spiritual thoughts, which should be several eminent monks in the monastery.

Fei Lianzi smiled, and said in a low voice, "There are really good people here."

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard a Buddha's chant coming from Ziyan Temple. The speaker's voice was very old and his tone was quite peaceful.

"Namo Amitabha, I don't know what the two priests of Jianzong are doing here, please come into the temple to talk."

Through the gap in the door, two bald heads looked out, but they were two young monks in their teens. Seeing that there were people outside, the two hurriedly opened the door. There were also several monks wearing monk clothes in the front yard of the Buddhist temple. look out.

Seeing that Wang Sheng and Fei Lianzi were not wearing Taoist robes, these Buddhist cultivators were also somewhat disappointed.

Fei Lianzi walked inside while cupping his hands, and said with a smile: "Fei Lianzi, the ninth elder of the Pindao Sword Sect, has nothing to do and is very quiet and wants to move. Come and drop by. It's time to move around, isn't it?"

In the main hall, an old monk wearing cassock stepped out. The cassock had lost its light in the sun, and there were still a few patches.

The old monk's beard is all white, and he is a little thin, but his eyes are bright, and he gives people a rather gentle feeling.

"My old man is Xuan Ku, the abbot of this temple."

Wang Sheng suddenly didn't know how to answer the question... What should they call a Taoist priest when they see a monk?

Feizizi thought to himself,

The old monk must be of the same generation as the master master, so he made a salute and said: "I have seen Abbot Xuan Ku."

Wang Sheng followed suit, "I've seen Abbot Xuan Ku."

"Please come to rest in the hall, both of you." The abbot of Ziyan Temple was quite polite, "Our temple and Jianzong have a very close relationship, but in recent years, there have been fewer walks around. It is really true that the two immortals can come here today. Let me feel happy."

Fei Lianzi smiled and said some polite words, the two were led into the hall by the host, and sat on some wooden chairs in the corner.

It can be seen that the economic situation of this temple is indeed not optimistic.

Not to mention other things, the golden paint on the Buddha statue was almost peeled off, but it was impossible to cross another layer.

In ancient times, monks went around asking for money, firstly for food and clothing, and secondly to save money to put gold paint on the Buddha statues in their temples, which is also a kind of practice for monks.

Wang Sheng didn't look around much, he came here just out of curiosity, and wanted to get in touch with Buddhist practice and broaden his horizons.

The two young monks who opened the door for them quickly brought tea.

Abbot Xuanku said warmly: "Cucha Mountain Spring, don't be disgusted, the two of you came here today just to walk around the neighborhood?"

Fei Lianzi nodded, and was about to reply when Wang Sheng said:

"The younger generation was ordered by the master to come to greet a friend of the master. This senior's dharma name is like the wind..."

This Buddha's name is a bit weird.

"Master Rufeng?" Abbot Xuanku nodded with a smile upon hearing the words, "He is indeed practicing in this temple, Immortal, wait a moment, I will let someone call him over to meet you."

"Trouble senior."

"It's okay," Xuan waved his hand with a wry smile, "Ziyan Temple and Jianzong are on guard for each other, so there's no need to be so polite."

Soon, several middle-aged monks came together, and except for one of them, Wang Sheng, who couldn't see through his cultivation, these middle-aged monks were all only at the level of concentration.

The strength of Buddhist cultivation in Ziyan Temple does not seem to be too high.

In his previous life, Wang Sheng had seen some analysis posts of "Internet Cultivation Masters", among which he analyzed the reasons for the "decline" of Buddhism's strength, and what he said was quite reasonable.

The root of the problem seems to be in the Buddhist scriptures.

No matter how many Taoist inheritances there are, the 'roots' are all in one "Tao Te Ching". The inherited skills and the pursuit of each Tao Cheng are all developed on the basis of the "Tao Te Ching", which can be mutually confirmed .

Most of the exercises that can be practiced in Buddhism come from various scriptures, but these scriptures do not have an "authoritative benchmark" like the "Tao Te Ching", which makes the existing Buddhist inheritance in Dahua Kingdom very complicated.

There are a large number of Buddhist monks and many believers, and the spread of Buddhist scriptures is much higher than that of Taoist classics. Since Buddhism was introduced to China in ancient times, it has blended with the culture of ancient China and has a great relationship with the Buddhism of ancient Tianzhu. There are different differences in practice, and the methods of cultivation are not the same, so they cannot be used as a reference.

In the millennium after the vitality was cut off, most of the cultivation methods of various scriptures have been lost.

So much so that nowadays, many eminent monks have recited the scriptures for a lifetime, their vitality has recovered, and their realm has also been achieved, but they don't know how to use their vitality for their own use.

If you use other exercises as a supplement, it will damage your realm instead, so it's better to explore slowly by yourself.

Another important reason is also the root cause of the constant conflict between Buddhism and Taoism thousands of years ago——

Buddhism cultivates the afterlife,

First of all, Buddhist practice is a believer. They regard practice as a means to go to the Western Paradise. They have come to suffer in this life. Only when they reach the ultimate Nirvana can they become Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

The ideas advocated by Taoism are much more pragmatic, respecting the parents of heaven and earth, cultivating one's own soul and body, and seeking transcendence and ascension in this life.

Reincarnation?

That's something only immortal cowards who can't cultivate Taoism will do!

A successful Taoist monk must either bathe in the celestial light and pursue immortality, or he can sublimate the Tao and say that he is happy in this life.

Therefore, thousands of years ago, the Taoist school and the Buddhist school started a scolding war, and later they fought fiercely. Both of these two righteous forces did not like each other.

In today's world of cultivating Taoism, Taoism is the orthodox orthodoxy, and Buddhism is declining, and at this time it can only be regarded as a supplementary force for the forces of righteousness.

With the official pressure of the Great Hua Kingdom, it is difficult for Buddhism and Taoism to dispute again; even if Taoist temples and temples are next to each other, most of them are in peace.

These middle-aged monks stepped forward and saluted the presiding officer. The monk who Wang Sheng couldn't see through his cultivation looked at Wang Sheng and Fei Lianzi, and said with a smile, "Who wants to find me?"

Wang Sheng stood up and said with a smile: "Junior Wang Sheng, recently came to Jianzong to practice, and my master Qing Yanzi specially asked me to come to Ziyan to pay a visit to Senior Rufeng."

"Qingyanzi?" The middle-aged monk's eyes lit up, and then he laughed twice, his slightly long eyebrows twitched, and he became more energetic.

Zen Master Rufeng smiled and said: "Are you Qing Yanzi's disciple? He has accepted another disciple? In the past, I traveled with your master for several months. The poor monk really admired his profound knowledge. By the way, your master has found you now." Mistress?"

Wang Sheng replied: "I found it, I just found it in the past few days."

Chan Master Rufeng said with a smile: "It's good to find it, and his infatuation is not in vain!"

Abbot Xuanku smiled and said, "It's not too late to sit down first and then talk."

But a monk sighed: "The two monks from Jianzong came at the right time. If you don't come today, we will go to Jianzong in a few days."

"Don't talk about it yet," Abbot Xuanku said, "There is no conclusion yet, so don't panic."

Wang Sheng and Fei Lianzi looked at each other, and at the same time, they remembered what Fei Lianzi said in the morning, and suddenly felt a little ominous.

This matter, you can't just come and talk...

Abbot Xuanku smiled and said, "I wonder if the two immortals have dabbled in Buddhism?"

"We don't understand Buddhism." Fei Lianzi smiled awkwardly, and asked with a frown, "I just heard what this master said, could something have happened?"

Abbot Xuanku frowned slightly, as if unwilling to mention it, he just recited a Buddha's name.

"Namo Amitabha."

"Abbot," another middle-aged monk said while performing Buddhist rituals, "It's better to let the two Jianzong come to take a look at this matter. If this is true, Jianzong is close at hand, and it is bound to be involved... ..."

Zen Master Rufeng also said: "Master Abbot, it's better to gather everyone's ideas for this matter. If it's just a false alarm, then everyone will be happy."

Abbot Xuanku finally let go and sighed: "Forget it, just take the two immortals to the well in the backyard to have a look."

Wang Sheng and Fei Lianzi looked at each other, why didn't these Buddhist monks ask them if they would like to go...

Forget it, since this matter has caught up, and it is also related to Jianzong's safety, Fei Lianzi has to take care of it.

The two followed several monks to the backyard of Ziyan Temple. The layout of the backyard was also a bit strange. There were monks' rooms everywhere, but a well was in the center of the courtyard, and there were twenty or thirty futons around the well.

A monk introduced: "It is the practice of this temple that the daily morning class is not held in the front hall, but chanting sutras here."

"This place is called Fengmo Well, and it has been passed down from generation to generation. This well is the only entrance and exit left by the Great Formation of Sealing Demons, and it is reserved for future generations to inspect the Great Formation.

Before there was so much Buddha energy in the world, there were Buddha statues placed in the well, and there was also a cave in the water.

Today, after the recovery of vitality, the Demon Sealing Formation was reactivated, but the cave has disappeared, but a month ago, this place has changed again," Xuan Ku sighed, "Zen Master Rufeng, your Dharma is profound, and it is a blessing for the two of you. Fairy demonstrates. "

Zen master Rufeng nodded slightly, went to the well and recited a mantra, and sucked in his palm against the mouth of the well, a stream of water penetrated into his palm and turned into a water ball.

Then, Zen Master Rufeng walked over holding the water polo, and recited the Buddhist state in his mouth, and the water polo started to boil inexplicably.

After a while, a wisp of black and red smoke escaped from the water polo and disappeared with the wind.

Fei Lianzi stared: "This is it!"

"The devilish energy," Zen Master Rufeng shook his head helplessly, "has leaked out."