novelraw Page 256
Page 256
“The royal family has always favored the Xuanmen sect. If the situation does not change, my sect will be looked down upon. As one side gains, the other loses…” Shan Tong said in a low voice, and then couldn’t help but sigh again.
“Junior brother, do not be too discouraged. Our sect has a history of thousands of years and has been passed down to this day. It is by no means something that could have been achieved without a solid foundation.” Master Shanzhi comforted him, “The Xuanmen has the path to immortality, and our Futu Sect also has the path to becoming a Buddha. For now, we must search far and wide. If there is any reclusive sage who takes pity on us disciples, he will surely appear to meet us…”
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On one side of the temple gate of Baoqing Temple, there is a huge iron ox, taller than a person, standing on the wall. The origin of this iron ox is unknown. Some say it was donated by a local gentry hundreds of years ago, while others say that after the previous dynasty unified the country, because it was a foreign invasion, in order to prevent the people of the Central Plains from rebelling, weapons were confiscated from the people in various places. At that time, Baoqing Temple melted down the various weapons of the monks and soldiers in the temple and cast them into an iron ox...
Of course, the most fantastical and currently the most well-known version is the legend of the eminent monk Daoguo enlightening the bull demon and turning it into the iron bull guarding the temple.
Of course, as a tourist attraction, this place also attracts tourists from time to time to take photos, and some even put their children on the back of the iron ox, causing the shoulders and back of the iron ox to be polished until they are shiny.
It was just past noon, and there were some vendors selling food outside the temple. The prices were slightly lower than the vegetarian meals inside the temple. Some tourists thought the vegetarian meals inside the temple were too expensive, so they bought food around the temple.
A monk in tattered, patched robes lay resting at the feet of the iron ox. He appeared old and ugly, wearing worn-out cloth shoes with a large hole in his right big toe, which was protruding. His robes were not only tattered but also covered in dust, making their original color indistinguishable. Beside him were a straw hat, a wooden staff, a bundle, and a gourd, suggesting he was a wandering monk who had traveled to this place. This is because his attire contrasted sharply with the presentable clothing of the monks at Baoqing Temple.
Perhaps because of his unkempt appearance, the surrounding tourists kept a certain distance from him, and passersby tried to walk around him.
Not far away, a family of three was resting on a stone bench. A little girl who looked about five or six years old whispered a few words to her mother, and then received a piece of bread from her mother. She then carefully took the bread to the monk and handed it to him, saying, "Grandpa... here... you eat."
The old monk reached out and took the bread from the little girl, smiled and thanked her, then calmly put it to his mouth and ate it.
The little girl had her hair in two buns and a round, cute face. The only flaw was that the corner of her mouth was slightly crooked, which seemed to be due to some kind of illness. Perhaps because of this, she also had some difficulty speaking, which made people feel quite sorry for her.
After giving out the bread, the little girl happily ran back to her mother, glancing back every now and then at the old monk eating the bread, her face full of satisfaction after doing a good deed.
The old monk quickly stuffed the bread into his mouth, wiped his hands on his clothes, and then leaned against Tie Niu's hind legs, closing his eyes for a short rest.
A short while later, a monk wearing an earth-yellow robe and carrying a small gong walked over. The monk was stout and looked around. Judging from his attire, he was probably a monk in charge of discipline in the temple.
Every so often the monk walked, he would strike his hand gong, seemingly as a way of reminding the others. When he reached the vicinity of the iron ox, he immediately spotted the traveling monk resting half-reclined at its feet. His gaze swept over the monk's patched robe and torn cloth shoes, and his brow furrowed.
He then strolled over to the old monk and circled him twice. Seeing that the old monk ignored him and had his eyes closed as if he were asleep, he turned grim, picked up the gong in his hand, and brought it to the old monk's ear, striking it twice.
Chapter 484 The Divine Monk II
After striking twice, seeing that the old monk had no reaction, he continued to strike several more times...
Then the old monk finally opened his eyes, glanced at the fat monk, and then slowly stood up, put his hands together in a gesture of respect: "Greetings, young monk. I am traveling and have come here to rest. I will be leaving in a moment."
"Where are you from, monk? Do you have a letter of introduction?" the fat monk asked, gesturing with his chin.
"As a monk, I live all over the world and have never received any letters..." The old monk smiled and shook his head.
"Go away quickly, go away quickly, don't defile this solemn place of the pagoda..." The monk felt that he had already understood the old monk's background, and immediately chased him away with a look of disgust.
The old monk wasn't annoyed. He bent down and began tidying up his belongings, shaking his head as he did so, and sighed, "All beings with flesh and blood are sentient beings; what distinction has there been between noble and lowly in this world..."
By this time, pilgrims who had come to watch the commotion had gathered around. When the old monk said this, the fat monk immediately lost face and his face turned red. So he raised his leg to kick the gourd that the old monk had placed on the ground.
"Don't kick, don't kick..." the old monk said hurriedly upon seeing this, and as he spoke, he seemingly unintentionally bent down and reached out to stop the fat monk's feet.
The fat monk suddenly felt his knees buckle, his legs went weak, and he knelt down on one knee with a thud...
"No, no... Don't kneel, don't kneel..." Upon seeing this, the old monk hurriedly waved his hand to stop him.
"Damn it, where did I kneel?!" the fat monk roared, his eyes wide.
Enraged, the monk almost leaped up and rushed forward, kicking the old monk's uncollected items on the ground with great force...
"Thump..." With a heavy thud, the fat monk knelt down this time...
"Hiss..." The fat monk's face contorted in pain as he gasped, clearly indicating that kneeling down so forcefully had really hurt him...
“I told you not to kneel! Why are you kneeling again? This old monk will leave...can’t I leave?” The old monk beside him raised his hand in a gesture of invitation while sighing.
However, by this time, some of the quick-thinking onlookers had begun to realize that something was amiss. Clearly, the fat monk in front of them was not the one they wanted to kneel down, yet he had knelt down twice, each time more heavily than the last. This... this old monk was no ordinary person!
Two tourists visiting the temple happened to walk by at that moment. Upon seeing this, the man in the couple quietly took out his phone and started recording...
By this time, a dozen or so people had gathered around. Some of them began to whisper among themselves. The fat monk kneeling on the ground, though impulsive, was clearly not stupid. His face flushed red, and he pointed at the old monk, saying, "It was you...it was you...it was you, you bastard, who tricked me..."
With that, he suddenly sprang to his feet, let out a loud shout, and charged at the old monk…
Then, amidst gasps of surprise, the old monk, who seemed about to be knocked down, calmly reached out again, seemingly casually, to block the fall...
"thump!!!"
Amidst gasps of astonishment, this time, the portly monk collapsed to the ground in a full-body prostration, this time not only his knees but also his entire face slamming straight onto the ground…
Those around gasped in shock; it looked incredibly painful… Was he going to get a concussion?
This time, the fat monk seemed a bit dazed from the fall. After a few breaths, he finally managed to prop himself up. However, even if he was stupid, he realized that something was wrong. On the one hand, he was indeed a little scared from the fall and didn't dare to get up for a moment. He just lay on the ground, looking like a fat toad lying on the ground, which was quite ridiculous.
The old monk ignored him completely, silently tidying up his belongings. He slung the tattered bundle and straw hat over his shoulder, hung the bright red gourd on his wooden staff, and leaned on the staff as he walked away into the distance…
Suddenly, as if remembering something, he stopped and turned to look at the little girl who had just given him the bread. The little girl was now clutching her mother's clothes, glaring angrily at the fat monk lying on the ground...
The old monk turned around and slowly walked to the little girl's side. He first bowed slightly to the girl's parents, then bent down with a smile, looking at the little girl and said, "Young benefactor, you have given me a meal, and I would also like to give you a small gift..."
As he spoke, he reached out and gently stroked the little girl's head twice...
The little girl's parents, realizing the old monk was likely no ordinary person, also looked at him with curiosity. Not only them, but many of the surrounding worshippers also craned their necks to look...
However, to everyone's surprise, after stroking the family twice, the old monk straightened up, bowed once more to the family of three, then turned and walked away slowly from the crowd...
The old monk walked outwards, chanting verses as he went. His voice wasn't loud, but in the bustling square in front of the temple gate, everyone around could hear him clearly...
For over a thousand years, Baoqing Temple has been locked up by an iron ox.
A hole in the hoof makes farming difficult; a nose pointing to the sky prevents one from getting pierced.
A Taoist's eye is no match for a donkey's blind eye; a temple gate is always like a prison gate.
The cold spring has water but no seagulls or egrets; it only leaves a name in the world in vain…
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Just then, a commotion arose not far away. Three burly monks hurried over. They had noticed the commotion and the gathering of people and, fearing something was wrong, came to investigate.
"Mommy, my face is a little itchy..." The little girl suddenly reached out to scratch her face.
Upon hearing this, her mother quickly looked down at her daughter, but what she saw made her eyes widen instantly: "Lingling, your mouth..."
As she spoke, she reached out and grabbed her daughter's hand to stop her from scratching her face, then carefully examined her daughter's face...
"It's alright...it's alright!!!" she murmured, and then she saw that the little girl's crooked mouth had returned to normal, just like a normal person, with no trace of crookedness at all!
Then, as if remembering something, he suddenly looked up in the direction where the old monk had gone, but all he could see were onlookers, and the old monk was nowhere to be seen.
She hurriedly ran a few steps, looking left and right, searching for the old monk from before. However, in just a short while, the lingering echo of the verses still lingered in her ears, but she could no longer find the old monk in sight!
Chapter 485 The Divine Monk III
At this moment, those who had been paying attention to this scene earlier began to realize what was happening. Someone pointed at the little girl's face and exclaimed in a low voice, "It's alright...it's alright!"
In fact, quite a few people were resting around there, and many had noticed the little girl's appearance earlier. The contrast between her rather cute appearance and her crooked mouth was so striking that almost everyone who had seen her would have some recollection of her. Now that someone had pointed it out, many suddenly realized what had happened…
"Look, the little girl's mouth is healed..." Soon, a buzzing sound filled the surroundings.
Considering the old monk's series of actions just now, many people have begun to realize that the old monk is clearly not a simple person.
Everyone searched their surroundings, but strangely enough, even though there was nothing to hide within a hundred meters, the old monk had vanished into thin air in just a short while!
"A living Buddha!!!"
"Divine monk!!!"
"The Buddha is merciful..."
This eerie scene caused chaos among the surrounding crowd. Some people surrounded the little girl and her family, bombarding them with questions about what had just happened, while others looked around, trying to find the "divine monk." Some even clasped their hands together, muttering incantations, and began to bow in the direction the old monk had just left…
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Behind Baoqing Temple, Master Shanzhi was chatting with Master Shantong when there was a knock on the door of the meditation room.
A moment later, a middle-aged monk pushed open the door. It was Yuan Kong, the guest master of Baoqing Temple. He quickly walked into the room and bowed to the two monks, saying, "Abbot, Supervisor, the disciples patrolling the gate just reported that something happened at the temple gate."
"Oh? What is it?" Seeing Yuan Kong's anxious expression, Shan Zhi asked curiously.
"The disciples patrolling outside just now saw an old monk. He must have been traveling and was resting by the iron ox at the temple gate..."
Yuan Kong recounted the news he had heard from his disciple in detail, but before he could finish, the abbot and the supervisor, who were usually composed and unassuming high monks, suddenly stood up and then ran towards the temple gate as if their backsides were on fire...
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"Abbot...Abbot...This disciple has already ordered people to search everywhere, but so far, nothing has been found..." Abbot Shanzhi and Supervisor Shantong looked around at the iron ox outside the temple gate for a long time, while Guest Master Yuankong followed behind, explaining with a slightly helpless expression.
After searching for a long time and confirming that the old monk was no longer there, Shanzhi reluctantly turned to Yuankong and asked, "Are the three benefactors, the family of three you mentioned earlier, still here?"
"Yes, yes, I have already sent someone to invite him to wait in the temple's guesthouse," Yuan Kong said repeatedly.
"Go now..." Master Shantong waved his hand and said, "Also, gather all the disciples who witnessed this. I want to ask them some questions, especially about Mingtai..." The Mingtai he mentioned was the fat monk who had gone up to drive away the old monk earlier, and it was all because of him.
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