Players Invade Cyberpunk-Chapter 901 - 292

A sword, a ball, a four-handed divine statue

It stood wearing a compound helmet amidst the loop of the city's highway, indifferently watching every passing car around it.

In front of that huge metal pedestal, several monks continuously bowed in worship, chanting scriptures that others couldn't understand, their expressions devout.

In such a modern city, advocating technology and self-modification, it's indeed bizarre to have large and small statues of the same deity everywhere, along with a group of monks who show no signs of modification worshiping them.

Brother Ni, who had been investigating cults, tried asking many people about the origin of this statue and what it represented.

But the answers he got were all different.

Some said it was the God of Myriad Machines, and as long as you served it happily, even your car would run out of fuel, and you could fire a gun without bullets — a total nonsense kind of story.

Others said it was just a unique art installation in Night City without any special meaning, and as for those monks, they probably had gone insane, wanting to worship anything they saw.

Yet when asking those monks, they babbled a lot of religious Zen phrases Brother Ni couldn't understand, but seemingly they had nothing to do with the cults he previously encountered, appearing quite normal.

But as the saying goes, having no issue is the biggest issue.

Living in the same trade, even if not fighting each other, how could they know nothing?

Therefore, Brother Ni specially invited a master of Buddhism today to conduct a field study on these foreign monks.

And after speaking a few words, that master bluntly told Brother Ni

"These are Zen monks of a sort."

Brother Ni was shocked

"Aren't they monks?"

"Monks differ from one another." With the wig removed, the New Dynasty Elegance's shiny bald head could be used as a bulb; he pointed to these monks with tilted robes and half-bared arms.

"Don't think just any bald head you see on the street is a Zen monk; these are Esoteric Buddhism monks."

"Their English title is tenzin, not Zen master; the two terms are different." (The translation as Zen masters is wrong; these monks belong to Esoteric Buddhism and have nothing to do with Zen.)

"How would I know your monk affairs?"

Brother Ni felt aggrieved; on TV, monks are all bald, and all monks in the world come from Shaolin Temple sub-temples. Who knew these bald donkeys are also divided like those bearded ones.

Indeed, all world religions are the same; what Shia and Sunni, what Eastern Orthodox Church, Catholicism, and Christianity.

While perceptive people know it's merely about power struggles for scriptural interpretation rights, then accusing others as heretics, it doesn't stop many from believing it.

This matter is nothing special.

"What exactly is Esoteric Buddhism, different from the monks we usually see? Why are they worshiping this damned statue?"

Brother Ni got more and more confused, just hoping New Dynasty Elegance could quickly explain.

"Esoteric Buddhism is a branch of Buddhism, primarily flourishing around Nepal and Tibet, different from Tibetan Buddhism and Huineng's Chinese Zen; heavily influenced by Hinduism and Bon, their disciplines and practices are vastly different. You should call these people lamas, not monks."

"As to why they worship this statue... it's hard to explain to you in a short time; it's a long story."

"Then make a long story short; explain it clearly, and next version I'll take you to farm high-level monsters to earn money."

Hearing that the boss is willing to take people, what more needs to be said.

The statue's location was on Japan Street, where there were small stores everywhere. New Dynasty Elegance pulled Brother Ni to sit in front of a skewer shop, slowly explaining.

"Like this, let me briefly explain, Esoteric Buddhism believes the world is composed of the six elements: earth, water, fire, air, space, and consciousness."

"This includes humans who are also made up of these six elements, and even Mahavairocana's Dharmakaya; that is to say, everyone, is like Buddha but is confused by desires in body, speech, and mind, causing them to repeat a sinful life in the cycle of birth and death. Only by practicing the three secrets can one be liberated, purify the three actions, obtain the 'Diamond Heart' and 'Diamond Body,' attain perfect virtue and achieve enlightenment, i.e., become Buddha."

Nothing new under the sun, religions are all the same; they tell you this life is sinful, you're born to suffer, and only by believing in their Buddha, worshiping their temples, and practicing their methods can you be freed from the sea of suffering.

Brother Ni caught two sensitive terms from New Dynasty Elegance's words

"Diamond Body? Diamond Heart?"

"It means the living Buddha; Esoteric Buddhists believe that if you practice hard enough to become Buddha, your flesh can turn into a golden body, remaining undecomposed for years, like a mummy, but in reality, most of those golden bodies you see are fake, either soaked in oil or preserved in special conditions."

In this era of gaming youths, who would actually believe in those godly and ghostly things; haven't they seen what kind of thing the head monk of Shaolin Temple is?

Even if it's Esoteric Buddhism, before liberation forces stormed Potala Palace, it was no different from a demon king's castle; if these practitioners can become Buddha, then perhaps the Tathagata has truly come?

Oh, Tathagata!

"Oh, I get it now, Two-faced Sukuna, right."

Brother Ni suddenly understood

Have an evil person cultivate into a living Buddha, early on mentioning Two-faced Sukuna would have settled it, wouldn't it?