Zanxing (Retranslated)

Chapter 289 - Buddha’s Tears (2)

In the abyss-like darkness, the golden Buddha quietly gazed at Zanxing.

Then, as if a porcelain vase had suddenly cracked, the Buddha from head to foot began to develop cracks inch by inch. These cracks rapidly spread across the golden form, turning into fragments that scattered into the dark.

The shattered pieces flew into the abyss, and the Buddha’s form vanished.

With all the golden light dissipated, beneath the Buddha’s body stood a familiar shadow.

Black hair, black robes, eyes as dark and cold as an abyss, even the staff in his hand had turned into a dark one-yard length.

Standing before Zanxing was herself, a completely different self.

This Zanxing had a demeanor of coldness and ferocity, her gaze was both frantic and subtly malicious. It was as if there were an invisible mirror between the two, reflecting two identical yet entirely different individuals.

“Buddha and demon,” Zanxing realized, “so this is your obsession.”

The Jingshan Master of the past, having spared Yang Zifeng under the pleas of the masses, saved the world but could never save himself. Even in death, his obsession with vengeance remained.

This obsession twisted and stretched, becoming an undissolvable inner demon, integrating with the tower to become an unseen trial within. Zanxing had previously believed that the correct answer to the trial was to let go of grievances and save the people. But it turned out that unwillingness to let go revealed the true nature of the trial.

Master Jingshan sought someone—someone unwilling to let go—to provide the answer to his long-standing confusion.

And the final trial of the Five-Wheels Pagoda was to confront one’s own inner demons.

So, beneath the shattered Buddha statue, emerged a demon that was entirely different from herself. This Zanxing seemed to embody all her dark sides, a cold and malevolent version of herself.

“Fight myself?” Zanxing murmured. Before she could finish her thought, the demon was already charging at her with a pitch-black staff, exuding a fierce aura.

At the tip of the green staff, countless brilliant flower-like streams suddenly appeared, flowing like an unending torrent. However, when they touched the other black staff, they abruptly stopped, blossoming into countless silver sparks in the air. These silver sparks, infused with immense elemental force, surged towards Zanxing. She sidestepped, rolling out of the way, and gathered demonic energy at the tip of her staff. She raised it and swung it forcefully at the demon’s head.

A loud bang echoed through the void, as if something had been overturned.

The turbulent elemental force spread through the air, causing Zanxing to be thrown back. She managed to stabilize herself with her Wuyou Staff and glared at the demon before her, her expression grim.

The demon’s gaze was cold and unfeeling.

This demon was a perfect replica of Zanxing, even with the same level of cultivation. Whatever Zanxing could conjure with her illusions, the demon could match with its fiery attacks. The same techniques, the same level of power, and the demon seemed to know Zanxing’s weaknesses even better than she did. Their first clash had already proven to be challenging.

Indeed, no one understands a person better than themselves. And inner demons are precisely adept at exploiting one’s vulnerabilities. Otherwise, how could even a master like Jingshan be bound by his inner demons and remain unable to escape even after a hundred years?

In the next moment, the demon, still wielding the staff, charged at Zanxing once more.

The black staff’s tip emitted a torrent of dark elemental energy. Unlike Zanxing’s own energy, which was thick and enveloping, this energy was violent and filled with a murderous intent, seemingly intent on shattering everything around it. Zanxing clashed her Wuyou Staff with the demon’s staff. The elemental forces exploded upon impact, causing her internal meridians to feel as if they were being shattered by the force. Zanxing was thrown backward, a sharp pain radiated through her chest, and she coughed up a mouthful of blood.

This wasn’t going well. Though she and the demon were evenly matched in cultivation, the demon would not suffer from injuries, while Zanxing’s injuries were real and severe. If this continued, she would be slowly worn down to death.

Dying at the hands of her own inner demon.

The ‘Zanxing’ across from her, with pitch-black eyes, locked onto her. Seeing her spitting blood, a glint of bloodthirsty interest seemed to flicker in its gaze.

Zanxing frowned slightly. She considered herself to be gentle by nature, not one to hold grudges, passionate about the world, and without much attachment to the past. She hadn’t realized she had an inner demon. Furthermore, this demon was so dark and frenzied.

Was this really her inner demon? Or was it merely a projection created by Jingshan?

Master Jingshan, unable to let go of his revenge despite his lifelong adherence to the benevolence required of a holy figure, might have imagined a demon that represented his own self-perceived descent into evil. This imagined self would be selfish, cruel, unfeeling, and ruthless.

“Why is this necessary?” Zanxing sighed. Good people often struggle with self-reflection, and in such a broken world, it was no wonder that those who did wrong found life to be more carefree.

The demon, able to replicate her past techniques and matching her in cultivation, was proving difficult to defeat. To overcome it, she might need to find a different approach.

Reflecting on her time in the Demon Realm, she had been focusing on the “Peerless Heart Sutra” and hadn’t had the chance to properly study Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff. During the Eight Suffering Reincarnations in the Five-Wheel Pagoda, while she had not reached enlightenment in the final reincarnation, the realizations and experiences from the previous cycles were not without merit.

“Is it either Buddha or demon?” Zanxing looked at her own reflection and suddenly smiled. “It’s not quite like that.”

Just because one cannot let go of hatred while appearing as a Buddha does not mean they are a cruel, hideous, and malevolent demon. Moreover, what defines a demon?

The demons she encountered in Heishi City cried, laughed, spoke in colloquialisms, rebutted when bullied, and danced in dazzling garments. They were far from the ferocious and bloodthirsty image before her.

Buddha or demon wasn’t defined by others’ perceptions. One was what one believed oneself to be.

A blue begonia suddenly appeared on her forehead. She enveloped her staff in the demonic king’s power. The azure energy mingled with the black demonic essence, rapidly spreading throughout the Wuyou Staff.

The darkness on all sides was abruptly torn open, revealing a long rift.

In the dazzling azure light, countless blue lotuses bloomed. The lotuses initially appeared as buds and gradually unfolded their petals. Despite the surrounding darkness, it seemed like the clear blue sky, filled with divine radiance. In an instant, light poured forth from the Buddha’s seat, cleansing the heart of all confusion.

Amidst the blooming blue lotuses, a Buddha’s child seemed to smile gently at all beings, radiating golden light, and spreading the essence of the Buddha.

“Flower Blooms, Buddha Reveals—”

The green staff clashed with the black staff, and countless blue lotuses scattered from the air. These lotuses bloomed and withered in the air, their falling petals like beacons, gradually illuminating the surrounding darkness.

The other Zanxing slowly dissipated from view. The darkness was gradually replaced by light, and the scene brightened.

In the silence, a sound that made one’s teeth ache could be heard.

Creeeak—