157: A different master

Tang Ku's hands were enveloped in Buddhist radiance as he grabbed at the ground. Suddenly, a clear Qi was seized in his hand, instantly transforming into a palm-sized figure whose face was clearly Mahākāśyapa.

The small figure's face was filled with terror, struggling to break free from Tang Ku's grasp, but it was completely futile.

"Heh heh, so that's it. You also Cultivated a Daoist Cultivation Technique!"

Tang Ku sneered, "No wonder your strength was mediocre, yet you managed to be among the first to resurrect. It turns out you even Cultivated a Nascent Soul. It seems you were already Cultivating when you were in the Western World, and for a long time, right? Heh heh, a good idea. Soul Emergence of the Nascent Soul means you have an extra life, and an extra life means an extra chance. But don't forget, the Western Paradise has clear regulations: Buddhist practitioners are not allowed to Cultivate the methods of longevity, which belong to the Dao. For this reason alone, you are no longer a Disciple of the Western Buddhist Realm!"

"Let me go, let me go, I beg you, I beg you... Cultivation is not easy. I know I am inferior to you in every way. From now on, I will disappear from your sight and never oppose you again... Please, please let me go this one time!"

Mahākāśyapa cried and pleaded, tears streaming down the small figure's face... "Is this just about not opposing me? Heh heh, you still haven't grasped the essence of the matter!"

Tang Ku narrowed his eyes slightly, "Let me ask you, to refine this Gu Mantong, how many people did you kill in Ü-Tsang?"

"This..."

Mahākāśyapa's expression froze, "I... I don't know... I can't remember. I didn't want to, but... but for the Buddhist Realm to regain its glory, someone has to do the dirty work, right? I'm just a pawn. My killing was only to make the Buddhist sect stronger..."

As he spoke, a glimmer seemed to appear in his eyes, and the more he spoke, the more he felt justified: "...Yes, for the Buddhist sect, I did it for the Buddhist sect! I wasn't doing it for my own selfish reasons; I did all this for the entire Buddhist sect. As a member of the Buddhist sect, if I become stronger, doesn't the Buddhist sect become stronger? That's right, the stronger my power, the greater my chance of becoming a Buddha. As long as I become a Buddha, the Buddhist sect will flourish... You let me go, you let me go... I am doing this for the Buddhist sect, not for myself!"

With that, he continued to struggle violently.

Tang Ku watched him impassively, and even Pigsy looked at him with pity, muttering, "Master, I think he's in a lot of pain. Why don't you put him out of his misery!"

"What a grand and proper reason!" Tang Ku sighed helplessly, "Mahākāśyapa, to be honest, I used to dislike you greatly, but now, seeing your behavior, I truly pity you... I will ask you one question... In the entire Western Paradise, have you seen any Buddha who achieved Buddhahood by slaughtering the innocent? Even the Asura King only slaughters enemies, mostly evil people... And it is precisely because of this that he did not achieve Buddhahood... You should know, your Heart Demon has backfired, and you have strayed, essentially losing any chance of becoming a Buddha!"

Mahākāśyapa's expression was frantic as he struggled fiercely, roaring, "You're lying, you're lying... You're deceiving me, you who don't know the hunger of a starving man! Why can you become a Buddha just by retrieving scriptures, while I, who have endured countless hardships, cannot? Why do you want to stop me from becoming a Buddha? By what right?"

"By what right? Heh heh, well asked!"

Tang Ku suddenly roared, "By the right that I care for all living beings, by the right that I am still striving for it to this day! You ask why you can't become a Buddha, you ask why I want to stop you, heh heh, you think too highly of yourself. Even if I didn't stop you, there would always be others to stop you. You slaughter innocent people; forget becoming a Buddha, even achieving a Golden Body Arhat is extremely difficult. If you weren't the Personal Disciple of the Tathagata, you wouldn't even have the chance to stay in the Western Paradise! Me stopping you? Heh heh, how ridiculous. I am not stopping you from becoming a Buddha; I just can't stand your methods, that's all! I, Tang Sanzang, once swore an oath to the heavens: whether immortal, Buddha, demon, or monster, as long as they commit evil, I, Tang Sanzang, will bury them!"

After saying these words, Tang Ku gave him no chance to retort. Golden light suddenly bloomed from his right hand, the War God Gauntlets covered it, and the 'Seizing the Earth' technique erupted with a roar, striking the tiny Nascent Soul with a punch.

Boom!

Mahākāśyapa's soul was attached to the Nascent Soul. With just that one punch, all his life force was severed. From then on, there was no longer any existence of Mahākāśyapa, the Personal Disciple of the Buddha, in this world.

Gazing at Mahākāśyapa, who vanished into specks of starlight, Tang Ku fell into a momentary daze. Then, he clasped his hands together, lowered his eyes, and murmured, "Namo Amitābha... Since I, Tang Sanzang, became a Buddha, I have killed many enemies, yet I have always had a clear conscience. What you did... was too much!"

"Master, that guy is dead, so don't be sad for him. I didn't expect you to have such power now. This punch's destructive force, isn't it about thirty percent of Monkey Brother's Golden Cudgel? Heh heh, this truly shows how much a person can change after a short absence!"

Pigsy watched in shock, "And this decisive, ruthless manner... why do I feel like you're not Master anymore?"

"Heh heh, it's a long story, but the fact that I am your Master is undeniable..." Tang Ku said with a faint smile, "And, I'm not sad for that guy. He's not worth it. I just wonder, if there were fewer villains like him in this world, would the world be a better place?"

Pigsy's eyes widened: "Are you embracing the world? How about we two go to the capital of Ü-Tsang, seize its empire, and you govern the world..."

"Slap!"

"Ouch..."

Before Pigsy could finish speaking, he received a slap on the back of his head. Tang Ku angrily said, "What the hell are you thinking? Did you take the wrong medicine? Even if your Master becomes a Universe overlord-level expert, I'm still a man of the Great Tang. Besides, you little rascal are a renunciant; don't think about such frivolous things. Hurry up and find a way to get to the pan tao tree; that's the proper thing to do!"

...Didn't you just want to expel me? Now I'm a renunciant again?" Pigsy clutched the back of his head, "Do you know how strong that slap was? It hurts so much..."

Tang Ku pouted, blowing on his palm. Old Pig, seeing this, suddenly jumped up and ran towards the show building in the back, saying as he ran, "Master, I'm going to say goodbye to Cui Lan. You do your thing... Sigh... Really, the old Master was so gentle. I miss him so much!"

The monk pouted, picked up a clod of earth from the ground, and threw it at the back of Pigsy's head. In the middle of the night, a pig-like scream echoed through Gao Family Village, accompanied by someone shouting, "I'll never talk behind your back again..."