Chapter 60: Make a Great Vow |
Seeing Zhu Guangfa and his daughter leave, Shen Siyuan eagerly summoned the Ten Thousand Souls Banner again.
A thread of Merit entered the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
A Golden Light, like a golden flood dragon, weaved and tumbled across the banner's surface, repairing the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
The originally deep purple flag now shimmered with threads of golden light, making it look even more magnificent and extraordinary.
Merit was like a panacea; it could be transformed into anything you wanted, achieving any desired effect.
Therefore, Shen Siyuan didn't use the remaining thread of Merit to continue repairing the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, nor did he use it to condense Magical Power.
Instead, he used it for Tempering the Physical Body.
He made this choice because this world no longer had any Spiritual Qi.
Even if he had Magical Power, it would be like a rootless duckweed, unable to advance in the slightest, unless he had a massive amount of Merit to convert into Magical Power, which would be like a bottomless pit.
It was the most suitable way for him to build a foundation for his frail body.
Coupled with his own Exercise Training, he could achieve some initial success with the technique, The Great Arhat Eighteen Forms, in a short time.
This was far more cost-effective than condensing Magical Power. After all, the path of External Cultivation was still open, while the path of Internal Cultivation had long been severed.
As the thread of Merit empowered his body, Shen Siyuan didn't feel refreshed. Instead, his whole body began to itch, his joints ached excruciatingly, and his muscles convulsed.
He cried out in pain and collapsed to the floor, tears and snot streaming down his face as if he were having an epileptic fit.
The bone-deep agony felt as if someone was sawing his body apart and then shattering all his bones with a hammer.
Shen Siyuan knew in his heart that this was a kind of growing pain, similar to what adolescents experience when their joints ache during a growth spurt, caused by strenuous activity and rapid bone growth.
But Shen Siyuan's Skeleton and Muscles had long since set.
Now, however, they were breaking their limits. A surge of vitality erupted within him, and they began to grow anew.
This process was compressed into an extremely short period, which was why he felt such immense pain.
Because he understood this, he gritted his teeth, endured the pain, and assumed the first posture of The Great Arhat Eighteen Forms.
Each of the Great Arhat Eighteen Forms didn't consist of a single movement, but six.
And these six movements represented the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind—the Buddhist Six Roots.
Therefore, The Great Arhat Eighteen Forms comprised a total of one hundred and eight movements.
Previously, the very first posture of the First Form had made Shen Siyuan sweat profusely.
Now, not only did he complete it with ease, but he directly finished all six movements of the First Form.
He only got stuck on the third movement of the Second Form, at which point a wave of hunger washed over him from his abdomen.
This was already tremendous progress. Just a few days ago, the first posture alone would have consumed a massive amount of energy, making his stomach feel like it was on fire.
Forcing himself to continue would have caused severe physical depletion, and he might have even lost his life.
But now, with just a single thread of Merit, he had directly surpassed the First Form and reached the second level of the Second Form.
As Shen Siyuan concluded the exercise, the pain vanished. He felt transparent and refreshed, and as he stretched his arm and clenched his fist, his entire body surged with vigorous energy.
He looked down and touched his abdomen. His once uniformly round belly now sported an eight-pack, which felt as hard as iron when he pressed it.
He hadn't expected the First Form to have such an effect. Shen Siyuan couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.
If he managed to master all Eighteen Forms, he would definitely be considered a mini-superman in modern society.
However, this would require a large amount of Merit.
Although one thread of Merit had gotten him to the second level of the Second Form, and by that calculation, mastering all Eighteen Forms might not seem to need that much Merit.
But it couldn't be calculated that way.
The Eighteen Forms grew progressively harder, and the required Merit would surely increase.
Opening the Refrigerator, he found some high-energy food to replenish his body's energy, and the hunger he had just felt finally subsided.
Seeing that his entire body was drenched in sweat, he grabbed a Change of Clothes and went into the Bathroom.
Water sprayed down from the Shower Head, flowing from the top of his head, over his cheeks, and down along his shoulder blades.
Shen Siyuan suddenly clenched his fist, his entire body tensing up. The stream of water instantly reacted as if hit by a shockwave, atomizing into tiny droplets that shot out in all directions.
“This is great…”
Shen Siyuan extended his arm, sighing in his heart. This is what it means to be a real man.
But then he suddenly thought about the two threads of Merit from tonight.
One thread was obtained by helping Du Xiuzhi fulfill her wish, which he could understand.
The other, however, was gained merely by promising Zhu Tingting he would help her mother enter Reincarnation. He could actually gain Merit from that.
You have to understand, this hadn't even happened yet; it was just a verbal promise.
This reminded him of the legends where the Guiding Buddha and Cundi Bodhisattva made the Forty-Eight Great Vows of the West to Attain Enlightenment and Become a Saint.
So, could he follow their example and take out a loan from the Heavenly Dao?
At this thought, Shen Siyuan's heart couldn't help but start pounding.
He turned off the Shower Head and stood in the Bathroom, stark naked, and declared with a solemn expression, “If I attain the Supreme Dao, I will surely restart Reincarnation, so that all living beings may face the consequences of their good and evil deeds… Have compassion for the world, and deliver all sentient beings…”
And then—
Shen Siyuan felt like a complete idiot.
A complete idiot who was naked and swinging his junk around. Even he felt awkward; his toes were about to carve out two acres of land.
Thinking about it, it seemed impossible. If one could become a god or a saint just by making a Grand Vow, then who knows how many divine beings would have been born throughout history.
Attaining Enlightenment and Becoming a Saint through this method wasn't something just anyone could do. To take out a loan, you first needed to be qualified for a loan.
The fact that Shen Siyuan could gain some Merit by promising Zhu Tingting meant that he was qualified, but not very.
It was just like a Bank Credit Limit.
He had a certain limit, but it wasn't high. He definitely couldn't get a large loan, but taking out a Small Loan should be fine.
Moreover, the reason for the loan had to be practical and the goal clear. It couldn't be some grand, empty promise.
Only then could he “borrow” Merit.
Having figured this out, Shen Siyuan quickly turned on the Shower and continued with his unfinished business.
Just as he stepped out of the Bathroom, he saw Doudou riding a gust of Yin Wind, hurriedly flying in through the window.
“Oh no, oh no…”
“What's 'oh no'? You're in such a panic,” Shen Siyuan said, a little speechless.
“Sweet Potato Bwother, I saw a strange old man.”
“Is there anyone stranger than you?”
Doudou: →_→
“Alright, alright, stop giving me the side-eye.
Go on, what happened?” Shen Siyuan said, picking up a towel to dry his hair.
“I saw an old man with a Feather Duster! He was chasing me from behind, and I got so scared I ran away…”
“A Feather Duster?” Shen Siyuan was quite surprised to hear this.
“What's a Feather Duster?”
“It’s the kind with lots of fluffy stuff! I saw one at my Maternal Grandmother’s Home. My Maternal Grandfather said they used it to spank my Maternal Uncle’s bottom when he was little.
I asked my Maternal Grandfather to try spanking me, and he hit me once. It really hurt…”
Doudou rattled on and on.
“So you’re saying an old man with a Feather Duster was chasing you to spank your bottom?” Shen Siyuan looked utterly baffled.
But inwardly, he wondered, 'Could it be that Doudou ran into another eccentric person who can see ghosts?'