Chapter 518 — The First Primordial Spirit Council
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 3 of 5
Wei Yong, Shen Wanyun and other old friends had spent the past two years training in the army, and their cultivation had advanced swiftly; they had grown into men able to hold their own, and Shen Mu rejoiced for them.
There were other masters in the Grand Academy who had long since made their names, most of whom had gone to the provinces to serve as officials. That Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon was also at the Grand Academy was beyond Shen Mu's expectations.
After Xing'an ran amok in the Little Leiyin Temple, the Little Tathagata could not withstand a single bow from the god Kuiwu, and his soul scattered from him; following the Little Tathagata's instructions, Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon had led the monks of the Little Leiyin Temple toward the Great Tingming Temple, meeting with many trials along the way. When they reached the Great Tingming Temple, the arrival of so many demon monks and demon priests naturally threw the whole temple into an uproar.
Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon, as a disciple of the Little Tathagata, was of the same generation as Lord Huo; the two, man and demon, debated the Dharma atop the Golden Peak of Mount Sumeru, with countless monks gathered below. Zhankong spoke little, but his words were like pearls; a sentence of his held only three or five characters, yet every one of them shook the heart and set men thinking, leaving the eminent monks of great Mount Sumeru speechless and unable to argue.
The debate lasted three days, and the monks were beaten back, until a Jingping general with a stubbled face came up the mountain, climbed to the Golden Peak, stripped off his armor, called himself the monk Chenghuai, and debated the Dharma with Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon for several days, salvaging a shred of face. The monk Chenghuai also spoke little; what he discussed was the livelihood and customs of the people, citing no scriptures, quoting not a line of the Dharma of the Great Tingming Temple, yet his words carried deep meaning, so that men felt that what he spoke was the Dharma indeed, a dazzling display of many hues.
That contest of words shook the world. Lord Huo praised the two for their unhindered eloquence, and so accepted the demon-race Buddhist sutras that Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon presented, acknowledged the demon monks and demon priests of the Little Leiyin Temple, and the two houses were made one.
This was a great event in Jingping as well, spreading through the holy lands and the academies, known as the Discourse on the Way at the Golden Peak, a famous affair and a fine tale of the times. Of course, Shen Mu had been fleeing Xing'an's pursuit at the time and could not go to Mount Sumeru to witness it; whether it was as the tales told, there was no knowing. This time Lord Huo had brought Zhankong the Dark Ape Demon, the monk Chenghuai and a host of monks, which was a sensation in itself, and with Daoist Master Lin Xuan of the Daoist sect bringing a great many Daoists to exchange ideas, it was truly a grand occasion.
When the clamor had subsided, the company seated themselves before the Grand Academy Hall, and Shen Mu brought up the matter of studying; all were astonished.
Pei Wujiu had thought he was merely being polite, and never expected that he truly meant to study. Pei Wujiu at once summoned the divine-power adepts of the various halls of the Grand Academy, who set forth their own insights before the hall, while the Daoists and monks of the Daoist sect and the Great Tingming Temple came forward as well to speak of what they had gained; for a time divine powers and arts never seen before emerged one after another, and even Shen Mu could not help but marvel, praising the wondrous ideas of these adepts. Two days later Ling Yuxiu and Ling Yushu came to the capital to report on their duties, heard of the matter as well, and came to the Grand Academy to take part in the Reform Discourses.