Sun Lichai was doing very well at Yigu Nunnery.
The bhikkhunis were all peaceful and kind-hearted people, and the younger disciples her age were mostly innocent and lively.
The Yigu Nunnery's inherited Guizang Internal Energy only reached the sixth-rank, which was naturally much worse than Shaolin's, but the relationship between martial arts realm and cultivation technique rank was not that significant.
Simon was able to reach the Xiantian realm with a ninth-rank internal energy, which showed that as long as one had talent and comprehension, the quality of the 'vehicle' did not affect the scenery along the way.
There were countless sects and aristocratic families in the pugilistic world that used Guizang Internal Energy as their foundation, but the most famous and powerful were only three: the Yuanshan Sect of Shanxi, the Kongsang Sect of Liaodong, and the Bloodhowl Sect of Jiangdong.
Among them, the Bloodhowl Sect was the strongest, with its internal energy reaching the Divine First-rank, while the other two sects only reached the Mysterious Fifth-rank at most.
The Yuanshan Sect's internal energy integrated both Buddhist and Daoist teachings, making it a leader in the pugilistic world in terms of spiritual demeanor.
The Kongsang Sect's internal energy combined with medical arts, possessing the miraculous effects of 'shedding one's mortal coil' and 'resurrection'.
And the Bloodhowl Sect's internal energy used witchcraft and evil arts as its core, making it bizarre, terrifying, and infinitely powerful.
Compared to these three sects, it was no wonder that all other Guizang Internal Energy in the world was not worth mentioning.
The Yigu Nunnery's martial arts followed the Pure Land school's path in terms of mental cultivation, which was broad and convenient; sincerity of heart was enough to get started, and there was even a wondrous method where one could advance their cultivation by simply chanting Buddhist names.
Because of this, the Yigu Nunnery had a large number of lay disciples, and the areas around its base in Jingji Baozhou had many families who believed in Buddhism.
Although Yigu Nunnery had flourishing incense and endless offerings, the bhikkhunis' lives were still very austere; they themselves would not touch money, and the finances were handled by laymen, with all alms being regulated through the hands of the laymen.
For example, if a patron wanted to donate a batch of monastic robes to the nunnery, they would have to explain it to the Layman in charge of external affairs, who would then notify the bhikkhunis; once they received the news, they could then go and request the robes from that patron.
There were numerous precepts and rules, and all actions had a basis, which might be a happy life for those with obsessive-compulsive disorder, but for lively and active children, it was very dull and boring.
Sun Lichai would go to the Pure Land to play every evening, but she was a very diligent child and would ask questions of the Shaolin monks practicing in the Pure Land.
Over time, all the monks came to know this young disciple.
Her intelligence and wisdom seemed to be growing daily; Tang poetry, Song lyrics, Buddhist scriptures, Daoist texts, painting, and playing the zither—she began to dabble in all of these, and what was most commendable was not her eloquence, but her modesty and conservatism; she always followed the rules and never flaunted her talents, and everyone liked this child.
However, she was, after all, an outsider and a female, so the Bald Monks' most valued disciple was not Sun Lichai, but the boy whom Simon had once recommended to Shaolin Temple.
Many monks disagreed with Xu Ranxue's constant boasting that the so-called Bodhisattvas divided the world's wisdom, with Sun Lichai alone possessing seven-tenths; they said that Bodhisattvas were compassionate and infinitely wise, and would never give anyone an extra bit or take away a little.
That boy was now four years old, with the Dharma name Ben You; despite being held in high hopes, he had not shown any extraordinary qualities, other than being very quiet, he was just an ordinary child.
He was also given an epiphyllum, allowing him free access to the Pure Land, but he had almost never been there.
Other young bhikkhus loved to play in the Pure Land; a place where wishes came true was absolutely alluring to children.
At the temple, he was looked after by two senior brothers from the Prajna Hall, behaving like a puppet; his favorite thing was to stare blankly, and the senior brothers' daily task was to expound scriptures to him, just as they had once done for the Buddha's son; Ben You showed no reaction to this, neither restless nor sleepy.
No one could understand his behavior, just as people cannot understand what a tree or a brick is thinking.
Although the monks still believed in Ben You's infinite potential, compared to Sun Lichai's performance, he was indeed more than a notch weaker; several Zen Masters said that this child was 'great wisdom appearing as foolishness', with a heart like withered wood yet nurturing spiritual vitality.
On April 20th, the monks from Jingye Temple arrived at Shaolin.
After a night's rest, both sides began a large-scale competition of skills.
This was a rare major event with the entire temple mobilized, and all idle monks came to observe.
The venue was the Dharma Hall inside the temple, located behind the Buddha Hall and in front of the Abbot's quarters; it was a solemn and austere place for the Zen forest to expound great Dharma.
The monks outside the hall stood respectfully, but their gazes into the interior could not hide their curiosity.
Inside the Dharma Hall, two groups of middle-aged and elderly Bald Monks sat opposite each other.
Both sides agreed that a total of ten well-known classics would be used for the competition, such as the 'Sutra of Forty-two Sections' and the 'Avatamsaka Sutra'.
Shaolin had three Zen Masters: Juele, Juezai, and Zizhi; they were well-versed in Buddhist scriptures and had profound samadhi, all of them being enlightened eminent monks and great virtues.
Jingye Temple had three Vinaya Masters: Rujing, Rukong, and Rusheng; as masters who integrated precepts into their daily lives and actions, their every move was strictly regulated, like exquisitely carved beautiful jades and pearls.
In the middle of the Dharma Hall was the competition platform, where both sides sat opposite each other, with ten sets of scriptures for the contest placed beside them, and ten chess pieces on the low table in front of each side.
One would ask, the other would answer.
Rujing held the 'Heart Sutra' in both hands, his gaze following the scripture until he gently placed it on the low table, then looked up into Juele's eyes.
"Zen Master, greetings."
"Vinaya Master, greetings."
"How is Prajna interpreted in the sutra?"
"What's difficult about that? Prajna is great wisdom, and attaining Prajna can lead to the other shore."
Rujing voluntarily took away a chess piece in front of him; this meant losing a round.
He continued to ask, "How can Prajna wisdom be attained?"
Juele frowned, "This is so profound, do you truly understand?"
Rujing answered fluently, "Like hunger, like thirst; like cold, like warmth; people walk in the world, their nature is spontaneous, Prajna wisdom is inherently complete."
"Then wouldn't everyone be a Bodhisattva?"
"Your Zen school says everyone is a Buddha, so why can't everyone be a Bodhisattva?"
Juele voluntarily took away a chess piece in front of him.
Vinaya Master Rujing frequently made moves, and Zen Master Juele unknowingly had only five chess pieces left in front of him; one 'Heart Sutra' had already led to countless other classics, requiring a terrifying amount of knowledge.
After the Vinaya Master posed another question, Zen Master Juele voluntarily gave up, losing three chess pieces at once, with only two remaining.
Now it was Juele's turn to ask, and of course, he would mention the 'Diamond Sutra', as it was the fundamental great sutra of the Zen school.
After a fierce verbal battle, Zen Master Juele was ultimately at too great a disadvantage and reluctantly lost all his chess pieces, admitting defeat.
The Abbot of Jingye Temple smiled slightly at Zen Master Zixing.
After the second round began, Zen Master Juezai, however, displayed his prowess; the intense confrontation was captivating, and he ultimately won the debate by combining the 'Lotus Sutra: Chapter on Medicinal Herbs' with the 'Diamond Sutra's' idea of 'this is called X, but it is not X', illustrating that the Buddha's analogy of sentient beings is not actually an analogy of sentient beings, and that for the sake of instructing the world, there are actually no sentient beings to be instructed.
The Zen school believed that the Vinaya school monks were not good at adapting to changes and lacked understanding of transcending the original form, using this as their point of attack.
And the Vinaya school monks also saw that these rough and unrefined monks were not very familiar with the classics, so they often asked questions about obscure parts.
The third round fell into a stalemate from the very beginning.
In the end, Zen Master Zizhi had two pieces left in front of him, and Vinaya Master Rusheng had one piece left.
The Vinaya Master took out the 'Dirgha Agama Sutra' and asked, "How is 'birth leads to old age and death' interpreted?"
Zen Master Zizhi actually forgot for a moment which chapter this quote came from and fell silent.
The situation had reached a critical point.
"Zen Master, why do you not answer?"
The Shaolin monks stirred slightly, the Abbot softly chanted a Buddhist name, and the scene once again fell into dead silence.
Zen Master Zizhi looked at the two chess pieces in front of him; giving up was impossible, he could only casually ask a counter-question or give a random answer.
And that Monk Rusheng clearly had a plan in mind; counter-questioning would likely lead to losing the advantage.
It was truly a dilemma.
Just then, a commotion came from outside.
"Who is this junior brother?"
"Don't run around!"
"Junior brother, why did you run out? Don't go in!"
All the monks turned their heads in unison to look at the entrance.
They saw a small, expressionless Bald Donkey walking effortlessly into the hall.
"Grand-uncle Zizhi does not answer because if he speaks, he will be wrong; if he does not speak, there is no such karmic connection; if he opens his mouth, this connection arises."
It was Ben You who had arrived.
All the monks were astonished.
The Abbot of Jingye Temple couldn't help but stand up and ask, "Are you Layman Lu Yuan?"
Ben You did not answer, first greeting the senior eminent monks within the temple, then speaking in a clear voice, "I am but a small bhikkhu of Shaolin, how could I be Layman Lu Yuan?"
Vinaya Master Rusheng smiled and sighed, taking off his last piece.
Zen Master Zixing laughed heartily, "Having received the mental transmission of Layman Lu Yuan, this child can claim three-tenths of the world's spiritual beauty!"
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