Master had long noticed that 'his' beloved disciple was overly dependent on 'him', causing 'his' medical skills to stagnate and 'his' spiritual cultivation to reach a bottleneck. Additionally, Master was well aware of 'his' disciple's frequent use of meditation to secretly observe 'his' past-life lover.
To motivate 'him' to improve, Master made a difficult decision in his mind.
That day, Master was resting in the meditation hall on the second floor of the clinic and sent someone to summon 'him' over.
"Master!" 'He' entered the meditation hall and saw Master sitting cross-legged in the main seat. 'He' also sat cross-legged beside him as usual.
"Boy, how long have you been with Master?"
"Master, it's been about 200 years, I think?"
"So long?"
"Yes, Master!"
"You've always been good, but Master wants to talk about you today."
"Ah? Disciple doesn't know what mistake has made. Please advise, Master!" 'He' quickly lowered 'his' head, waiting for Master's correction.
"Well, you don't know?" Master deliberately raised his voice.
"No... I don't know..." 'He' felt a little nervous inside.
"You're still secretly watching over her, aren't you?" Master suddenly lowered his voice and teasingly looked at 'him'.
"Ah...! Master... I..." 'He' was startled but didn't dare to raise 'his' head, like a boy caught in a little secret.
"Don't worry, Master didn't say you did anything wrong!"
"Ah? Then..." 'He' was a bit confused, expecting a scolding.
"Master is saying, you should go find her." Master's tone was gentle and sincere.
"Ah?! This..." 'He' looked up in surprise, trying to confirm if this was a joke.
"You didn't hear wrong. You should go find her. Go ahead!"
"What for? Do I need to spell it out for you?"
"Yes..."
Their conversation paused. Master slightly lowered 'his' head, looking calm, gazing forward with unfocused eyes, as if pondering something.
"Then... Master, I shall..." 'He' thought it was over and was about to take 'his' leave.
"And, one more thing," Master suddenly looked at 'him', "Master is tired, want to rest a bit." Master casually said.
"Ah? Master, you...?" 'He' had never heard Master say he was tired.
"Master's ties with the world have come to an end, and Master wants to rest, but your worldly ties are not yet severed, and your skills are still insufficient. Stay and continue to hone yourself."
"Ah?!" 'He' looked at this elder who was both a teacher, a father, and a friend in horror. "Master, don't..." 'His' vision started to blur, tears began to roll down 'his' cheeks. 'He' knew what Master meant by "rest."
"Silly boy, don't cry. There's no feast that never ends." Master's gentle voice comforted.
"Master... don't leave..." 'He' sobbed, 'his' voice weak and trembling, filled with desperate pleading.
Master sat cross-legged, hands in meditation mudra. "Don't cry, observe carefully. This is the last thing Master will teach you." Master took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, then closed his eyes.
'He' knew Master had entered meditation. 'He' wiped 'his' tears and quickly sat cross-legged, sinking 'his' thoughts into deep meditation. 'He' opened 'his' divine eye and observed that Master used focused and extremely strong mental power to delve into each cell, forcibly opening several chromosomes in the cell nucleus. Several long-dormant genes slowly unfolded in the cell nucleus, initiating the massive replication of mitochondria and T-substance. A large amount of mitochondria instantly produced a massive amount of energy, detonating the T-substance, and Master's every cell began to burn!
'He' quickly returned from meditation, seeing Master's body start to glow faintly, gradually becoming brighter. In an instant, Master smiled and disappeared in a dazzling rainbow light that was almost impossible to look at directly, leaving behind a faint scent of sandalwood. Master had self-cremated and left the mundane world. Seven differently sized, bright, smooth, and variously colored spherical sariras remained under Master's seat. 'He' was still in shock but, upon recalling 'his' memories with Master, 'his' vision blurred again. 'He' couldn't help but sob softly, carefully collecting the seven sariras.
The next day, 'he' went to a jewelry store in the city and asked the craftsman to forge a gold bracelet according to 'his' design, with a lotus-shaped pattern and seven inlay holes. 'He' embedded the seven sariras into the bracelet and wore it on 'his' left wrist as a precious memento to remember Master.