Chapter 1196: Meru Mustard Seed

Translator: CKtalon

“Do you know what mountain this is?” The antelope wrote down a question in return.

“No.” Zhou Wen had no idea what mountain it was. He had never been here before, nor were there any rock monuments at the foot of the mountain stating its name.

“The terror of being uneducated. Since you know that this is the Deva Realm, have you never heard of Mount Meru?” The antelope wore a disdainful expression.

“This is Mount Meru? Then is the mountaintop where the legendary Śakra Buddha lives?” Zhou Wen looked up at the mountaintop, but he still couldn’t see its end.

“You sure read too much into things. That’s not something you should be thinking about now. It’s best that you come up with a way to pluck the fruit.” The antelope continued writing. “Since you’ve heard of the word Meru, you should know of the Meru Mustard Seed.”

“This… I don’t think I’ve taken note of this word… What does Meru Mustard Seed mean?” Zhou Wen really hadn’t kept abreast of such knowledge. Mount Meru was something he had chanced upon when reading Buddhist scriptures. He had only read it as a story without studying it in detail.

The antelope was somewhat astounded as it explained, “Mustard Seed refers to an extremely tiny s.p.a.ce. Meru refers to Mount Meru. Meru Mustard Seed refers to a tiny s.p.a.ce that can accommodate a mountain.”

“A storage s.p.a.ce?” Zhou Wen immediately thought of a word.

“Something like that. It’s mostly that.” The antelope nodded slightly.

“What has this got to do with that crooked tree?” Zhou Wen sized up the tree again.

“That’s a Mustard Tree. The fruit on it is the Mustard Seed,” the antelope answered.

“The fruit is a Mustard Seed? Didn’t you say that the Mustard Seed is extremely small? Why is the fruit so big?” Zhou Wen found it unbelievable.

“Who told you that the fruit is a mustard seed?” The antelope wrote in disdain.

Zhou Wen was first taken aback before he understood what the antelope meant. He stared at the fruit and said, “You mean that there are many mustard seeds in that fruit?”

“A mustard seed can hold one Mount Meru. There are many mustard seeds in the fruit. If you reach out to pluck them, you will immediately fall into an endless s.p.a.ce. You might not be able to escape even if it takes the rest of your life.”

“Then how do I pluck it?” Zhou Wen asked.

“I don’t know. If it was that easy to pluck it, it wouldn’t still be there. Even a Calamity-grade creature might not be able to escape if it fell into the endless Meru pocket s.p.a.ce,” the antelope said.

“If you don’t even know how to pluck it, what’s the point of bringing us here?” Zhou Wen frowned.

“Solutions are thought up by people. You are also considered a person, so can’t you use your brain?” The antelope rolled its eyes at him.

“It’s not like I want that mustard seed fruit. I’m only here to find someone. Why should I think about it? If you want it, think of a solution yourself.” Zhou Wen ignored the antelope and prepared to leave the mountain.

From the looks of it, Ouyang Lan hadn’t come here at all. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for them to leave no traces when they pa.s.sed by Deva Asura.

Even if they had a way to avoid fighting Deva Asura, they should have left some traces from using their skills. However, there was nothing along the way.

“If Chick eats those fruits, it can advance to the Terror grade.” The antelope wrote calmly.

“Chick has fire-elemental attributes. If it wants to eat it, it should be eating Fire Dragon Fruits. Why would it eat something that clearly has spatial attributes?” Zhou Wen felt that the antelope was trying to trick him into plucking the Mustard Fruit.

The antelope patiently explained, “You’re right that phoenixes are fire-elemental, but have you ever thought about why phoenixes can constantly undergo Nirvana Rebirth without truly dying?”

“Phoenix’s Nirvana and resurrection are naturally fire-elemental abilities. What’s there to say?” Zhou Wen said.

“From this, it can be seen that you don’t understand phoenixes at all. It’s too superficial. Fire represents destruction and an end, as well as a new life. However, a phoenix’s Nirvana can’t just rely on the renewal power of fire.”

The antelope pointed at the Mustard Fruit and continued writing, “A Mustard Fruit is a Mustard Seed World. A thousand Mustard Seed Worlds make a small chiliocosm. A thousand small chiliocosms make a medium dichiliocosm. A thousand medium dichiliocosms makes a great trichiliocosm. Look at how many Mustard Fruits there are on that tree.”

“Three,” Zhou Wen said after taking a look at the Mustard Tree and confirming it.

“Three Mustard Fruits represent the three thousand worlds. If Chick can swallow three Mustard Fruits, it will obtain the spatial powers of the three thousand worlds. Only then can it truly obtain the ability to undergo nirvana and be reborn. As the saying goes, there are no rootless fruits in the world. If it wants to undergo nirvana and be reborn, it needs to have some kindling. If Chick leaves kindling in the three thousand worlds, then it will have the possibility of nirvana and rebirth in the future.” The antelope wrote.

“Is that so?” Zhou Wen stared at the antelope, momentarily unsure if it was bluffing him or telling the truth.

“It’s up to you to believe it or not. After all, without the Mustard Fruit, Chick will probably need hundreds of years to advance to the Terror grade. And this is under the circ.u.mstances of being sufficiently lucky. If you have the patience, keep waiting.” With that mentioned, the antelope released its hoof that was pressing down on Chick.

Chick wanted to fly towards the Mustard Fruit, but Zhou Wen called it back.

From Chick’s reaction, although what the antelope said might not be true, there was no doubt that Chick wanted the Mustard Fruit.

“How can I pluck the Mustard Fruit? Furthermore, even if I pluck it, as you said, if there are really three thousand worlds inside, how can Chick consume it?” Zhou Wen asked the antelope.

“You’ll need to think of a way to pluck it, but you don’t have to worry about the consumption. Three Mustard Fruits only represent three thousand worlds, not real ones. As long as you can pluck them, that will cut off their energy supply and the spatial powers will naturally converge. When the time comes, they will only be three fruits. How difficult would it be for Chick to eat them?” The antelope had clearly thought it through.

Even if it’s not the real three thousand worlds, the spatial powers of the Mustard Fruits are too terrifying. It won’t be easy to pluck them. Zhou Wen thought about how he could pluck the Mustard Fruits.

“You wouldn’t have had the chance if it was easy. They would have long been plucked clean by the Devas.” The antelope wrote.

Zhou Wen thought for a moment and managed to come up with a solution. Therefore, Zhou Wen said, “There’s a solution, but I don’t know if it will work. Let’s give it a try.”

With that said, Zhou Wen plucked a mountain rock from the ground beside him. He weighed it in his hand before throwing it at a Mustard Fruit.

Zhou Wen was naturally using the Sky-Stealing Sun-Swapping Art. As long as the stone touched the Mustard Fruit, he could swap them.

However, Zhou Wen wasn’t sure if this method was effective against spatial-type Mustard Fruits.