252: Chapter 252 Unraveling the Journey to the West: It's All a Deception

Jiang Chen recalled the version of "Journey to the West" he had watched in his childhood; he had to admit, it was truly spectacular and remained vivid in his mind to this day.

Back then, he truly believed that Buddhism was compassionate, dedicated to delivering all living beings, saving them from suffering, and possessing boundless merit, as if its mere existence could illuminate the human world.

But looking back now, even this classic masterpiece was likely written under the guidance of Buddhism, hiding unspeakable schemes behind the scenes.

If that were truly the case, then nine out of ten stories recorded in the book were fake.

They could not withstand scrutiny at all and were not to be trusted.

However, there were a few characters in "Journey to the West" that he quite admired.

Counting them up, the one most to his liking was the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Sun Wukong, who wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace.

Next was Tang Xuanzang, who possessed profound virtue and was single-mindedly devoted to the Buddha.

Finally, there was Bodhisattva Guanyin, who appeared to protect them whenever they faced a crisis.

As for Sun Wukong, he had already seen him with his own eyes.

Then, should he not also go and meet that Tang Xuanzang who was still preaching in the human world, and Bodhisattva Guanyin who had long since controlled the fortune of a region?

Jiang Chen sat in the depths of chaos, his gaze shifting as his Heavenly Eye supernatural power suddenly activated. The chaotic mist was torn apart, the galaxy retreated, and his gaze, like a sword, pierced through the myriad realms, reaching Earth to begin searching and spying.

Niutou Mountain.

At this moment, Wukong and his three companions had arrived here and were taking a short rest.

Tang Xuanzang sat cross-legged and instructed the three of them:

"The common people are trapped in suffering, the cycle of reincarnation is endless, and they cannot find liberation. Humans are the spirit of all things, endowed with wisdom. As disciples of Buddhism, our realm is higher than that of ordinary people; how can we stand idly by and let them sink into the sea of suffering?"

"It is often said that all living beings are equal and should all be delivered. And among all living beings, since humans are the primates, they should be saved with priority!"

"Billions of living beings in the world are looking forward to it, waiting for us to return and save them. Tell me—can we afford to be slack?"

Jiang Chen listened from afar and sighed softly.

This Tang Monk, he feared, had been thoroughly permeated by obsession and had completely degenerated into an ordinary mortal.

Humans were already the spirit of all things, with a status of supreme reverence.

Yet he insisted on saying that humans were trapped in a sea of suffering and needed external force to transcend—was this not elevating humans to a position higher than "human," directly benchmarking them against immortals and gods? Absurd!

"Pedantic." Jiang Chen only spat out these two words.

His eyes flashed immediately, and he already had a decision in his heart: "It seems I must make a trip to the human world and plant a wisp of obsession in Xuanzang."

The so-called "Dream Planting" was to forcibly implant a thought into another person's soul.

Once successful, that person's actions, speech, and every gesture would be guided by this thought, and their fate would be rewritten accordingly.

The power of obsession was enough to reshape causality.

And humans were beings that took form through obsession and practiced through belief; as long as the method was precise, this was not impossible.

"Buddhism controls thoughts, and it is precisely this method they use."

"If I can go against the grain, improve and reverse this technique, and apply it back to Buddhism itself... would that not be using their own way to pay them back?"

He closed his eyes and pondered, beginning to deduce a new supernatural power.

Chaos had four fundamental techniques: Dragon Devouring, Chaos Refining, Heavenly Dao Derivation, and... Heavenly Dao Derivation.

What Jiang Chen mastered was precisely this last one.

At this moment, he was using the Heavenly Dao as a foundation to evolve rules.

And this had to start from "how humans become human."

Where do humans come from?

It is the entry of Yin and Yang energy into the body, and the shaping of the Five Elements.

This technique was originally mastered by the Demon Race.

Back then, when Nuwa was the Great Venerable of the Demon Race, besides gathering the five-colored stones to mend the sky, she also used the Five Elements and Yin and Yang to mold clay into humans.

What truly endowed humans with "spirituality" were the three souls and seven spirits that came with birth—carrying primitive obsessions or wills.

After the souls entered the body, they turned into obsession, governing the seven emotions and six desires; then, through acquired experiences and the influence of education, they condensed into stable spiritual energy.

Only then did a human truly become "human."

In other words, the reason humans are human depends entirely on obsession as the core.

To live is to live for this thought.

The path of cultivation is essentially the sublimation of obsession.

Obsession can transform into a ghost without desires; if it is repeatedly tempered by the power of faith, it can sublimate into "thought"; once thought is achieved, one is qualified to be ranked among the immortals, ascend to the Heavenly Realm, and become a true immortal.

After thought, it is possible to condense the Primordial Spirit, spiritual body, golden body...

This is the spiritual cultivation system commonly used in the Three Realms.

And the so-called "Buddhist thought control" is merely utilizing this point to quietly implant, tamper with, and guide the obsessions of others.

Buddhist thought is formed, and obsession takes shape.

When facing all living beings, they borrow the power of faith to quietly dissolve the obsession in people's hearts—not suppressing it, but completely dissolving it, making it impossible for that obsession to arise in the first place.

Immediately after, they turn their own obsession into curses, silently seeping into the depths of consciousness along human emotions and desires.

Using obsession to control obsession, seizing the heart to make it a slave.

From then on, mortals follow every word and are driven like puppets.

Of course, complete control is the highest realm.

Settling for second best, one can at least distort the trajectory of fate, stir up the flow of fortune, and turn clouds into rain with a flip of the hand.

This is—Buddhist thought control.

Jiang Chen stared at Tang Xuanzang, this "living Buddha," and his heart suddenly became clear.

So the methods of Buddhism were so insidious and fatal.

Under the operation of the Heavenly Dao, he decided to take action.

The power of faith?

He did not have it, nor did he disdain to cultivate it.

It was just an evil technique created by Buddhism in the Age of Dharma Decline after the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was exhausted—making deals with mortals, exchanging incense for supernatural powers.

No wonder they could dominate the world.

It turned out that their cultivation method was based on controlling all living beings.

One faith transaction after another, clearly priced, with hidden calculations.

Buddhism tried every means to expand believers, just to seize more power of faith.

Thinking of this, Jiang Chen finally realized.

The root of everything lies in the word "cultivation."

Buddhas are greedy, and humans are also greedy.

One wants power, the other seeks liberation.

They collude with each other, weaving a net together.

After seeing through the essence, he already had a decision in his heart.

Buddhism controls the Three Realms, having long disrupted the order and overturned heaven and earth.

But the evolution process of this matter was extremely complex.

Even though Jiang Chen had integrated the Heavenly Dao and mastered chaos, he could not see the full picture of the future.

After all, cultivation is ultimately cultivation, and reality always has unpredictable variables.

In the universe and starry sky, there are still countless existences that transcend the laws of the Heavenly Dao: stars evolve on their own, the earth has its own laws, none of which can be tampered with by human power.

At this moment, Jiang Chen had already realized.

The so-called immortals, Tao, and Buddhas are just a group of "spirits" that have opened their spiritual wisdom.

Like humans, they are born between heaven and earth.

Spirits enlighten wisdom, wisdom produces thought, thoughts roam the world, drifting in the galaxy.

First controlling the Earth, then driving the universe, and then deriving all things.

The gods seen today are all born from this.

Humans, on the contrary, are a life form that appeared later.

This is the deepest truth of the universe.

Now that he is in a human body, yet he has mastered chaos and governs the starry sky.

Then it is time to take action to rectify it.

He will never allow the chaos to continue to spread.

Buddhism dominates the world, a crime that cannot be pardoned.

More importantly, he must perfect his own Heavenly Dao system.

Although there is no way to start, three key figures have emerged: Tang Xuanzang, Bodhisattva Guanyin, and Emperor Taizong of Tang!

Looking at Xuanzang at this moment, he is still unchanged in his obsession, single-mindedly delivering all living beings.

Little did he know that he had long fallen into the layout of the Tathagata and was being used as a pawn.

The only one they really wanted to "deliver" was always one person—Emperor Taizong of Tang.

"Sigh, this Tang Xuanzang... what should I do?"

"What exactly is Buddhism?"

Jiang Chen whispered.

If he wanted to trace the source, he had to go back to the prehistoric ancient times.