State Of Emptiness
After reviewing the information in the Emptiness Sutra, Leon seated himself in the standard position for meditation and started reciting the sutra's words in his mind.
'Emptiness is tranquility, and tranquility is peace; outer peace is freedom, but inner peace is enlightenment. Let go of all desires, let go of all worries, think nothing, be free, be empty, and be nothing.'
'Everything is not nothing, but nothing is everything… Life is meaningless, and possessions are worthless… Attention is fixation, thoughts are burdens, and reasons are chains… Be free, be nothing…'
Leon recited the sutra, but the deeper he went, the more creases formed on his forehead.
At first, the sutra seemed normal, showing the way to achieve the state of emptiness. However, the latter parts turned rather depressive and suicidal. It was like the sutra was saying he had nothing worth living for and should just die.
Nevertheless, Leon tried not to think too deeply into the sutra's words and just recite them without thinking.
However, reasons compelled him to think.
The Emptiness Sutra's words were simply too confusing to understand that it gave him a headache as he dwelled on it.
'Ugh, how are these the words of a wise monk imparting the ways of achieving the state of emptiness? These are more like the words of a drunken monk!' Leon thought with a big frown.
But as the Emptiness Sutra said, think nothing, and be nothing. Recite the sutra without thinking, and he will achieve emptiness.
However, the more Leon recited, the more his head hurt, and even his blood started to boil with anger.
Buddhist sutras were supposed to calm the mind, but this one only agitated him and filled him with frustration.
'This doesn't make any sense… How am I supposed to recite such confusing words without thinking?' Leon furrowed his brows, and his veins protruded.
Reciting the Emptiness Sutra was like a form of self-torture.
The second verse was like a big puzzle, triggering his OCD. He can't help but think about it; he had to understand it. It was challenging him to think when he shouldn't.
'Is this Emptiness Sutra the bane of my existence or something?' Leon wondered with frustration.
He knew that the harder he thought about the sutra's verses, the more agitated
'The first verse is about thinking nothing… Maybe the second verse is about seeing nothing?' Leon wondered. 'Argh, this is hurting my brain.'
In the end, Leon comprehended the way to switch his brain off when he recited the sutra.
However, it was also that moment that he realized switching off his brain was the answer to entering the state of emptiness.
Leon's lips twitched.
'What a nightmare. If I didn't realize this, I would have been stuck in an endless loop of "what the f*ck does this sutra even mean?" and suffer deviation in my cultivation or something.'
Eventually, Leon managed to recite the sutra without thinking anything.
And some time afterward, he didn't need to recite anything to think absolutely nothing. In that instance, he entered the state of emptiness.
A few moments later, his eyes flickered before he exited the state of emptiness.
Entering the state of emptiness was just the start of the Emptiness Sutra; it was the initial success. To master the Emptiness Sutra is to enter and leave the state of emptiness freely.
After exiting the state of emptiness, Leon exercised to enter the state of emptiness again.
After entering and leaving the state of emptiness for the third time, Leon realized the state of emptiness wasn't as simple as just having no thoughts.
In the state of emptiness, his body's energy consumption would be reduced to the bare minimum, and he wouldn't feel hunger or anything. It was a state of dormancy that could even slow down his aging, thereby allowing him to live longer.
But as incredible as its sounds, Leon didn't find it appealing.
What's the point of living longer if you can't do anything? He wasn't interested in living a long life as a block of wood.
After entering and leaving the state of emptiness for the fifth time, Leon made an even more incredible discovery.
'Incredible. I didn't realize sooner because I don't stay in the state of emptiness for long. However, my mental strength recovers at a much quicker rate when I am in the state of emptiness,' Leon's eyes flickered with surprise.
Nevertheless, after listing all the benefits, Leon realized why Buddhist monks in the mortal realms meditate; they all strived to achieve the state of emptiness.
However, Leon only spent half an hour to achieve the state of emptiness, something that would take mortal monks years to an entire lifetime to achieve.
Leon also realized why the Emptiness Sutra survived to the present era.
It wasn't a cultivation technique, but it wasn't any less incredible than those primordial cultivation methods.
'Maya recommended such a great sutra to me. I should do something for her to express my gratitude,' Leon mused.
Nevertheless, another half-hour passed before Aria, Darlene, and Faelyn finished resting. Finally, they were back to their peak states and ready to continue the journey.
"Everyone good to go?" Leon asked them.
At the same time, Aria and Darlene were astonished by Leon's lively look. They all had the same amount of rest, but it seemed like Leon's rest was much more effective than theirs.
"Yeah," Aria, Darlene, and Faelyn replied, nonetheless.
After packing up the camp, the group continued to venture deeper into the depths of Extreme Misty Forest.
Several dozen miles deep into the forest, nothing about the scenery changed. It was the same black trees and thick white mist all around.
The only difference was the level of the vengeful spirits they encountered. They were all High Rank 1 Transcendents to Peak Rank 1 Transcendents.
At a certain point, they started to encounter Early Rank 2 Transcendent-level vengeful spirits. Nevertheless, the group had no trouble dealing with them.
"We've started encountering Rank 2 Transcendent-level vengeful spirits more frequently in this place," Aria mentioned. "Would Mother-in-law be alright if she ventured this deep?"
"That's what I'm worried about," Leon replied with a big frown.