Chapter 580: Bodhi Tree

He said, sounding somewhat exasperated, "So what if I hid it? You bastard found it anyway, didn't you? I was going to retrieve it after my soul possessed a new body, but now it's all yours, damn it! If you have any conscience, leave me one Bodhi seed."

"Bodhi seeds?" Jiang Fan asked in surprise. "What's in there?"

The evil spirit reluctantly replied, "A Bodhi tree. When we first came, it only flowered but hadn't borne fruit, so neither the Tiger Demon Emperor nor I touched it. The Bodhi tree flowers once every fifty years and bears fruit once every fifty years. By my reckoning, it should be bearing fruit right about now, in the last few years. You've arrived at just the right time."

Jiang Fan looked thoughtful. He said, "The Bodhi tree, if I recall correctly, is the Buddhist tree of wisdom, isn't it? It's said that meditating and attaining enlightenment under it yields special benefits."

The evil spirit nodded. "That's right. The Bodhi tree indeed has such a mystical effect for Buddhists; it's a divine tree that those in the Buddhist path yearn for. However, this tree is extremely difficult to grow. Even the White Horse Temple, known as 'Little Western Paradise' within the outer divine sects, doesn't have a Bodhi tree."

Jiang Fan wasn't particularly interested. He had the Grand Void Divine Tree to cleanse his soul, granting him extraordinary comprehension, so he didn't need a Bodhi tree. Besides, it was only useful for understanding the Buddhist path.

Still, since he'd encountered it, there was no reason not to take it. He carefully pushed open the door.

Inside, he indeed saw a small courtyard bathed in sunlight. He didn't know what powerful spell had been cast on this small courtyard, but it somehow drew in sunlight from outside, even though it was separated by a mountain. Bathed in sunlight, a three-zhang-tall tree with a canopy-like shape of branches and leaves quietly glowed with Buddhist light.

Thumb-sized golden beads shimmered, appearing and disappearing among the leaves. There weren't many, approximately ten of them.

The evil spirit excitedly said, "Hey, hey, don't hog them all! You must leave one for me. These things can enhance comprehension."

Jiang Fan replied, "Consider it done."

Just as he was about to step forward, his pupils slightly constricted. He discovered a monk's corpse under the Bodhi tree, clad in a kasaya, sitting cross-legged with hands clasped in prayer. A golden Zen staff lay across his knees. Beside him was also a shimmering golden alms bowl. Even his body was golden, like a small golden statue.

"What's that?" Jiang Fan asked in surprise.

The evil spirit looked envious. "That must be the master of this secret realm. To be able to meditate, attain enlightenment, and then pass away under a Bodhi tree is indeed a fortunate end. Given that his skin is golden, it's clear he achieved the Vajra Bodhisattva fruit. He was an enlightened high monk."

Jiang Fan nodded deeply. Even from a distance, he could feel the immense Buddhist power emanating from the monk. He immediately clasped his hands together and bowed. "Master, I apologize for the disturbance." He then stepped forward and harvested all the Bodhi seeds.

He also examined the Bodhi tree. Since he had found it, he naturally intended to take it as well. After a quick glance at the high monk's remains beneath the Bodhi tree, he stored both the monk and the tree within his Heavenly Thunder Stone.

The evil spirit was puzzled. "Why take that bald donkey's corpse?"

Jiang Fan calmly replied, "Let him rest eternally with the Bodhi tree."

Afterwards, Jiang Fan looked at the Zen staff and the alms bowl, unexpectedly finding their quality to be extraordinary. A thought struck him: "Could these be spirit artifacts?"

The evil spirit nodded. "A high monk who has attained the Vajra Bodhisattva fruit is equivalent to a Nascent Soul human cultivator or a Demon Emperor among demons. Naturally, the Buddhist artifacts he carried would be spirit-grade. Oh, and the kasaya he wore is even higher grade—a mid-grade spirit artifact."

Jiang Fan gasped. "Two low-grade spirit artifacts and one mid-grade spirit artifact? This... this meant he'd struck it rich instantly?"

However, Jiang Fan quickly realized something was off. "Why didn't you and the Tiger Demon Emperor take them back then? Could you two be gentlemen who don't pick up lost items?"

The evil spirit chuckled. "I was waiting for you to be overjoyed, then pour a bucket of cold water on you. It's no fun that you caught on so quickly. Buddhist items can only be activated by Buddhist power. For outsiders, they're nothing more than scrap metal. Of course, if a Buddhist artifact contains Buddhist power, it can be reluctantly activated once. But once that power is used up, it's still just scrap metal."

Jiang Fan frowned. "Even if you can't use them, you could sell them to Buddhists. They should like them, right?"

"Sell?" The evil spirit smiled faintly. "Buddhists don't engage in commerce. They only 'beg for alms,' understand?"

"Beg for alms?" Jiang Fan was confused. "If I don't give it, can they forcefully take it?"

The evil spirit scoffed. "Forcefully taking it would be the good scenario. Those bald donkeys from White Horse Temple are even more ruthless. They won't just 'beg for alms' from you; they'll directly convert you! From then on, you'll be a Buddhist disciple, a part of the Buddhist sect."

Jiang Fan was startled. The Buddhists from the outer divine sects were truly this overbearing?

"In short, let me give you a warning. Don't touch Buddhist items if you can avoid it. Even if you have them, hide them carefully and absolutely do not let them know. The Tiger Demon Emperor and I didn't dare touch these things; you'd best consider it carefully."

Uh— Jiang Fan suddenly felt the items in his hand were troublesome. He couldn't use them, nor could he sell them. No wonder no one wanted them.

Just as he was pondering what to do, a sudden loud bang echoed. The evil spirit was startled. "My goodness, that old Daoist Ox-nose really has some skills! He's already broken through to the last layer of restrictions so quickly. Kid, let's hurry to where the Nascent Soul corpse is. We absolutely cannot let them get there first."

Jiang Fan had no time to consider further, casually tossing the Buddhist artifacts into his Heavenly Thunder Stone. Guided by the evil spirit, he arrived at the corner between the South and North Halls. There, he found an opening leading to a deeper area.

Chills of eerie wind blew from within, making Jiang Fan shiver. "Where does that lead?" Jiang Fan asked, cautiously stepping back. It looked ominous no matter how he viewed it.

The evil spirit said, "It's the path to the inner realm. But don't worry, we'll stop halfway. The Nascent Soul corpse and the spatial storage artifact I mentioned are located midway. Once I possess a new body and you get the spatial storage artifact, we'll leave immediately. We won't go any deeper."

Jiang Fan's thoughts churned. He subtly touched the Soul-Suppressing Buddhist beads in his pocket, then nodded and said, "You'd better not be lying to me." With that, he stepped into the wind-swept opening.

At the same time, at the top of the mountain's core...

Reverend Qinghe's Daoist robe was drenched, sweat beaded in his hair, and his pale old face was streaming with perspiration. He held ten powerful formation flags in his hands. Looking at the final restriction at his feet, he gasped for breath: "I can't believe it's this difficult, even with the formation-breaking spirit artifact I borrowed from the Sacred Palace. Could this secret realm within the mountain be the cave dwelling of a Soul Transformation Realm expert? To think it has so many formidable restrictions."

The young girl supported Reverend Qinghe and said, "Master, please rest for a while. You've been expending too much energy for several days straight."

Reverend Qinghe nodded. He looked at Consort Yunxia and Chunni, who were following not far behind, and said, "Both of you, if you want a share, you can't just follow behind us." He spoke pointedly. It wouldn't do for him to be struggling to clear the path while Consort Yunxia and Chunni simply reaped the benefits. It was only because Consort Yunxia was the Demon Emperor's person; if it were anyone else who dared to contend for treasure with them like this, he would have long since struck them dead with his whisk.

Lu Liang gazed at Consort Yunxia's beautiful face, his heart burning with desire, and pleaded, "Master, please don't make things difficult for Consort Yunxia." He then turned to her, trying to be ingratiating. "Yunxia, don't worry. Even if Master doesn't share, I'll give you a portion of what I get."

Consort Yunxia frowned. "'Yunxia?' Is that how you address me? Not even Jiang Fan had the nerve to call her 'Yunxia.' Who was this disciple of the Myriad Tribulations Sacred Palace to do so?"

"No need," she said. "Reverend Qinghe is right; since we're exploring this secret realm together, we naturally have to contribute."

Consort Yunxia thought for a moment, then pulled something from her robe. Reverend Qinghe, who had intended to make things difficult for her, saw this and his expression subtly changed. He immediately pulled his two disciples behind him and said, "Consort Yunxia, what is the meaning of this?"