"Not on this shore, not on the other shore, not in the midst of the stream... With a heart, there is existence; without a heart, there is no place where one cannot exist, return to the original state, and there is no comparison, encompassing everything as one."

Buddhist Zhen Ru pointed out the meaning of Jiang Li's words and sighed, "Benefactor has a good Buddhist nature, it's a pity he does not wish to enter my Buddhist sect."

The so-called Tathagata is about understanding one's true self. If Jiang Li were to follow this path to the end, he might very well reach the highest realm of a Buddhist practitioner.

Although he did not fully accept the True Dharma Eye Treasure from Buddhist Zhen Ru, he had also comprehended profound Buddhist principles from it. With such capabilities, Buddhist Zhen Ru even wanted to knock him out with a stick and forcefully convert him to Buddhism.

"Such a pity," Buddhist Zhen Ru said with considerable regret.

'I feel the regret too.'

Jiang Li looked at the three objects on the stone table with great remorse.

He had betrayed his childhood dream of becoming the Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

These three Dao Fruits did not align with the path Jiang Li was following. The Four Apes of Chaos did not belong to Heaven and Earth, Human, God, Ghost, nor were they part of the animal category. Their Dao Fruits belonged to a category of their own, perhaps related to the demonic attribute. The Victorious Battle Buddha, on the other hand, was entirely of the Buddha attribute and had nothing to do with Jiang Li's human-God path.

If he had chosen to become the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, his past advancements in the Human Attribute Dao Fruit would have been diminished due to the change of path and he would have had to forsake Emperor Yan's Dao Fruit.

How could such a Dao Fruit, representing the Primordial Human, be contained by a non-human entity?

Not to mention the issues with the golden hoop.

Thus, this childhood aspiration could only be painfully abandoned.

'It is indeed regrettable, I am exactly lacking a fourth-grade Dao Fruit,' Jiang Li sighed in his heart.

He had prospects for both third and second grades, and if all went well, he would likely advance to Emperor Yan's Dao Fruit; if not, he was still far from the third grade, so there was no rush.

But the fourth grade, which was the next level he needed to reach, and given the increasingly dangerous situations Jiang Li was finding himself in, his choice of Dao Fruit had to first consider combat power. A Dao Fruit like the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, known for its combat prowess, would have been an excellent choice.

Unfortunately, it was not meant to be for Jiang Li.

His heart surged with emotions momentarily but soon returned to serenity.

What's incompatible is destined not to be; no matter how much one regrets, it's pointless. It's better to focus on the path underfoot and make good on the journey now.

Jiang Li stood up and bowed, saying, "This time, I've received the kindness of the resident Buddhist Zhen Ru. Should there be any tasks in the future, I will do my utmost to assist."

Although Buddhist Zhen Ru wanted to convert Jiang Li into a monk, he hadn't resorted to forceful means or claimed that "Benefactor and my Buddhist sect are destined" and then just forcefully bagged him. Moreover, Buddhist Zhen Ru had even presented significant gifts to Jiang Li — a favor that must be acknowledged.

Jiang Li dared not promise to repay kindness with a fountain of gratitude, but should he be capable in the future, he was determined to provide full support.

"Then the Mazer recognizes this favor."

Buddhist Zhen Ru, unpretentious, graciously accepted the favor and then said, "Benefactor's Zhuang Zhou Dao Fruit remains in the hands of the Mazer. It shall be borrowed for three more years. After three years, Benefactor should possess the power to bear this Dao Fruit. At that time, the Mazer will return it with both hands."

Three years!

Jiang Li was moved.

Considering his rate of advancement, in three years, he would likely be at least fourth grade. By then, he should be able to bear the Zhuang Zhou Dao Fruit, which indicated that the graded of the Dao Fruit would be third grade.

He wondered what Buddhist Zhen Ru intended with this Dao Fruit — his Buddha Fruit should be hard to reconcile with the Zhuang Zhou Dao Fruit. Even if it existed in the form of a Dao Artifact, it would be difficult to unleash its power.

But since Buddhist Zhen Ru was willing to give, Jiang Li naturally would not hesitate; he immediately agreed, then offered a polite "please" and left the Stone Pavilion.

The familiar scent of decay and corruption swept over once again, but upon contact, it was kept at bay. Unaffected by the Five Vile Qi, Jiang Li disappeared into the black mist within a few steps.

Back in the Stone Pavilion, Hui Neng watched Jiang Li leaving and couldn't help moving his lips slightly, eventually saying, "The Buddha Country needs such talent, why..."

"A forced melon is not sweet, let alone, it may not be twistable,"

Buddhist Zhen Ru spoke calmly, glancing towards Wushan with a gaze shimmering like the stars, "A single person bearing the cause and effect of the Three Clans, it'd be fine if we could accept him, but if not, there's no need to force it."

After all, there was a powerful individual from the Feng family on Wushan.

Despite the intense battles happening there, if the Great Venerable intended to intervene, he still could.

After all, Ji Jiji's incarnation had perished, and now it was not Ji Jiji holding back the Great Venerable, but the Great Venerable restraining Ji Jiji.

With that, Buddhist Zhen Ru paused his gaze, then looked at the three items on the stone table, "Let's go, let's find a new owner for this golden hoop. In three years at most, the Mazer will be advancing."

"By then, the Mazer will fight Li Boyang again. Regardless of the outcome, the Buddha Country will face purification. We still need to plan ahead and find stalwart individuals to bear the responsibility."

"Do you have someone else in mind?" Hui Neng was curious.

It would take no ordinary individual to bear such a Dao Fruit. He thought it was only Jiang Li, but there was apparently another option.

"Of course, there is."

Buddhist Zhen Ru placed his hand on the Jingu Bang, "This time, I came here because the Jingu Bang had a response."

The unimpressive staff was now flickering with uncertain golden light, revealing traces of dragon pattern phoenix seal and constellations.

At this moment, the Jingu Bang finally revealed its extraordinary demeanor.

"Good at listening, able to discern reasoning, knowing past and future, all things clear, sharing identity with the Monkey Mind, even can be called the second heart of a walker. Compared to benefactor Jiang, this individual actually aligns better with this Dao Fruit."

Buddhist Zhen Ru steadily named one individual: "Six-Eared Macaque."

As his words fell, Buddhist Zhen Ru gently waved his hand, and the Stone Pavilion gradually turned ethereal, disappearing along with the two individuals within.

...

...

'Gone.'

In the midst of the Five Vile Qi, Jiang Li stopped, 'Moving freely within the Five Vile Qi, is this due to Dao Fruit Divine Power, or some secret technique?'

'Also, this Buddhist Zhen Ru's Buddhist Law...'

Jiang Li keenly sensed the ceaselessly rotating entity in his Sea of Consciousness, resembling Taiji, while a thought prompted a Pure Land-like phantom to emerge.

'It's surprisingly compatible with the Moluo Sword Manual.'

Although he had only received the Dharma Transmission and had not yet fully integrated and synthesized various insights, Jiang Li could already detect that the Moluo Sword Manual's methods greatly matched the Buddhist practice of Buddhist Zhen Ru, almost as if they had the same origin.

Furthermore, the Moluo Sword Manual closely resembled the 'Outer Object Transformation' Divine Skills of the Zhuang Zhou Dao Fruit, which Jiang Li often used in conjunction.

Linking all three, Jiang Li discovered that the teachings transmitted by Buddhist Zhen Ru matched with his own learnings and also corresponded with the Dao Fruit.

Is Buddha originally from Dao?

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