Chapter 150 Boundary (1)
‘A disciple…’
It was unexpected, but maybe this was an opportunity. Although he didn’t seem to be in his right mind, he could still receive the instruction of a master who was equivalent to Cheonma. However, to prioritize emotion instead of reason…
“…”
He didn’t like it. Could he make a compromise with himself like this? Could he bow nine times to become a disciple when he didn’t want to, suppressed by a coercive power? Of course, the answer was set. Even if he died while chasing after his emotions, it might as well make him dead.
“I’ll… bow.”
It was an enemy that he couldn’t win against. He’d gained dozens of skills through {Predation}, and through powers with good synergy, he’d grown at a rate like a tiger with wings. Nevertheless, Heavenly Buddha was stronger than the current him. He’d poured everything into it, but he only took one out of his nine lives, and that was only possible because he was lucky.
That was why…
‘A nobleman’s revenge is not too late even if it takes ten years.’
He decided to sharpen a knife in his mind, engraving that proverb in his bones.
“For a nobleman to take revenge, ten years is not too late.”
“…!”
He was caught at a glance.
“What are you surprised about? Even if you try to hide it, your voice is already spiteful. I can see your thoughts clearly through Maitreya’s eyes.”
“…”
Yoon-seok did not make excuses. However, unexpectedly, Heavenly Buddha did not care much about this issue.
“Forget it. If you don’t mean it, everything will be pointless. I will receive your bow later. Stop immediately and come here.”
As Yoon-seok approached, Heavenly Buddha delicately peeled off the mask covering his face and spoke affectionately.
“You still can gain enlightenment even if we’re not in an official master-pupil relationship. I will do the minimal preparations to preach.”
Minimal preparation? He didn’t know what that was. However, his instincts rang the alarm at the word. Perhaps more enthusiastically than when his life was actively threatened.
“…What are you trying to do?”
What could it be? What the hell was he trying to do to him? When Yoon-seok stepped back, Heavenly Buddha scratched his golden glowing bald head.
“I will shave the ignorant grass growing from your head, a symbol of anguish, and put a symbol of enlightenment on your forehead.”
“But I’m not a disciple yet. I don’t think it’s too late to do it then.”
“All human beings are disciples of Maitreya Buddha upon coming into the world.”
“But I don’t intend to devote myself to Buddhism.”
“…So the Devil is involved.”
Devil, the magic word that arrived when logic lacked or there was no will to allow for persuasion. Yoon-seok cursed in his thoughts.
‘Damn it.’
He didn’t think they could communicate. When he wondered if he had no choice but to give up his dignity to live at last, Heavenly Buddha intercepted.
“How can you be so hesitant to break ties with the world? Do you have a wife left behind?”
A ray of light leaked through the cracks of despair. Yoon-seok nodded after a moment of silence. He didn’t have a wife, but this monk didn’t need to know that. Yoon-seok desperately hypnotized himself in case he was caught by telepathy again. He didn’t know why, but the first woman that came to mind was none other than Elle.
“Yes. My wife is waiting for me.”
He felt like a third-class villain begging for his life because of his sick old mother, but, simply put, there was nothing he wouldn’t do if he could protect his dignity.
“Wife… is she pretty?”
“…?”
He couldn’t understand. Did he hear correctly?
“What do you mean pretty…?”
“Hmm, it’s not that. Never mind. A punk like you has a wife, so I’ll let the bowing ceremony, ordination ceremony, and engraving pass for now.”
He was hastily trying to change the subject. And as if he was unsatisfied, the way he called him changed from you to ‘you punk.’ But, Yoon-seok swallowed the complaint. He didn’t know why, but there was no reason to risk everything when he was letting it go.
“Good for you, Amitabha…”
Heavenly Buddha recited the Buddhist prayer quietly. Regaining his composure, he looked back to Yoon-seok.
“The plan has changed. I will not take you as a disciple.”
Joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, and desire; the seven emotions that a person is born with. He had no clue why, but the voice of the Heavenly Buddha seemed to now contain anger.
He gladly accepted it, but he was curious about the reason. That would determine whether this was a good thing or a bad thing. When Yoon-seok asked why, unable to hide his helplessness, Heavenly Buddha replied dejectedly.
“To learn my secret teachings, you have to throw away perversion. However, even I am not confident in defeating the lewd Devil in your head.”
He just said he had a wife. However, he spoke as if he was a sex-driven demon who only thought about that all day long. It was ridiculous, but Yoon-seok didn’t say anything. There was nothing new about it because he knew already that this crazy monk was out of his mind.
However, feeling frustrated, Yoon-seok couldn’t help but continue to ask.
“So, what are you going to do?”
The ideal situation was that he walked away, saying it couldn’t be helped. The worst outcome would be if he tried to smash his head, saying that he would eliminate the weeds. Since he couldn’t be his master, he wanted to hear the answer quickly, even if it led to despair.
“Does it mean you must become a disciple…?”
“…”
“I cannot stand by what you will do to the world.”
The answer Heavenly Buddha replied with was as clear as day.
‘In the end, is this what happens…?’
Leaving his sorrow behind, Yoon-seok clutched his sword. Even if it was a fight he had no chance of winning, he didn’t intend to put his neck out and wait for death.
Fight until the end. With that thought, he shot a glare at Heavenly Buddha and gathered his breath.
“From what you’ve done, you seem to have nothing but a slaughter in your mind.”
Heavenly Buddha smirked.
“At least before you leave, I will purify your mind.”
“…?”
Yoon-seok tilted his head and swallowed. If he understood correctly, it seemed like he was saying that he would not kill him.
“Then I’ll start the teaching.”
The teaching began. Yoon-seok couldn’t believe it.
“There is one thing you should know before you receive the teachings of Buddhism.”
Not only did he never expect that crazy monk to guide him with words over fists…
“Maitreya Buddha is neither good nor evil. So, following Buddhism is like keeping the middle way.”
It sounded like something he’d heard somewhere recently.
Wasn’t it just about destruction for the crazy monk? As the teaching of the Heavenly Buddha continued, Yoon-seok naturally listened. Murder was a bad thing, and life was precious. His teachings were not such conservative things.
“Protecting the middle means drawing a line in the mind and finding composure.”
Something other than good or evil. Yoon-seok defined it as Demonic. However, even if it followed a similar trend, the answer from Heavenly Buddha was different.
“That’s Buddhism.”
There was no absolute good or evil in the world. If there was only one absolute thing, it was the perfect neutrality that could be reached only by abandoning the Seven Emotions and Five Desires. It was just that.
“Those who have achieved injustice by drawing lines are not biased toward anything. Therefore, you can follow the line and go the right way.”
“…”
“Not only did you not draw the line correctly, but you also failed to achieve an unshakable will, so you are a long way off.”
Yoon-seok was unconvinced. If the place where the Seven Emotions and Five Desires were abandoned was the middle, it meant he was also heading to what Heavenly Buddha called the right path. But the monk shook his head as if he was mistaken.
“Even I know the gateway to Cheonma-dong. However, the purpose of those gates is to nullify and overcome emotions, not to eliminate the emotions themselves.”
It wasn’t something he could easily understand. The more he heard about the differences, the more similar the two became.
‘Does this make sense…?’
Heavenly Demon, Heavenly Buddha. Two absolute masters who dared to identify themselves as equal to heaven and were revered in Moorim. One side followed the ‘Demon’, and the other followed Buddha. Therefore, it was too contradictory.
How could two extremes reach the same point? Suddenly, he wondered if this was what all rivers run to the sea meant, but Yoon-seok, pondering over what the two pursued, shook his head.
‘No.’
It’s similar, but not the same. It felt like he was heading to the same place, but the starting point was different.
“…”
Yoon-seok trembled slightly. The fine line between Demon and Buddha. If he could discover that, he felt like it would open a new door.
“This is it. Your eyes suddenly became clear.”
Heavenly Buddha smiled at Yoon-seok and continued his lecture. And the more he heard, the narrower the gap between Buddha and Demon grew. But there was a gap between the two. Feeling the itch that it was at the tip of his tongue, Yoon-seok bit his lips.
“You must be bored.”
“You… no, I don’t think I should say this, but…”
Heavenly Buddha pressed, and Yoon-seok responded firmly. In fact, the longer the conversation went, the more he yawned as he asked him why he couldn’t understand this easy thing. In many ways, it seemed that he didn’t have enough training to live under the name of the Heavenly Buddha, but in Moorim, the strongest was the best.
“Let’s stop here and do it properly.”
“…?”
“The reason why you don’t understand even though I’ve told you so easily is because of the interference of the Devil in your head.”
The magic word appeared again. Yoon-seok suddenly became anxious, and as always, his ominous expectations were never off the mark.
“…No, it’s not. The Devil is not involved. It’s just…”
“Your mind is still filled with killing. What does that mean? Anyway, there’s nothing to worry about. Who cares if it’s a devil or not….”
Whoosh-!
“Buddha offers enlightenment when you see it right.”
He didn’t bother to seek approval. A fist flew in, and Yoon-seok reflexively evaded. Of course, it was useless.
Punch-!
Heavenly Buddha had a brighter voice as if he was finally getting excited after punching Yoon-seok on the chin.
“What do you think? Are you feeling a bit unlucky now?”
“You crazy monk, what are you doing…!”
“Oh, it’s the Devil! Devil!”
Clench.
Yoon-seok clenched his jaw. He forgot for a moment because he looked sane while teaching that he wasn’t in his right mind.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Mercy, good deed, virtue. The three teachings stretched out their savage fists as Heavenly Buddha continued to shout.
“Devil, go away! Buddha’s mercy, come on!”
Suddenly, he wondered if this crazy monk was just mistaking a Demon as a Buddha, but…
‘This, it’s possible…?’
Unbelievably, the fog in his head gradually began to clear up. As he could see, the Demon and the Buddha were different. A picture was worth a thousand words. Sadly, Yoon-seok was good at enlightening himself using that idiom. He had talent far superior to anyone else in that regard.
Punch-!
Yoon-seok naturally read the reason in it even while being punched by a fist full of the Buddha’s mercy(?).
But before making a comparison, knowing comes first. What was the Buddha?
Punch-!
Buddhism was the middle ground. Then what was the middle ground?
Punch-!
—If there is a broken person, there is a person who piles it up.
Like Heavenly Buddha trying to guide Yoon-seok, a middle ground that can embrace everything. And this was the difference from the Demon, which breaks everything in front of them. So was this the only difference between the two?
Punch-!
He didn’t think so. Then what else was different? Yoon-seok went through the process of breaking his bones and sticking them back together with Skywrath Energy as he searched.
Punch-!
Once again, the moment his fist dug into his chin-
“…!”
The Buddha glared at him. Now, he felt like he understood a little.
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