Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest-Chapter 449 - 45: Buddha Hall, Interpreting the Lots
Chapter 449 -45: Buddha Hall, Interpreting the Lots
Just yesterday afternoon, Yan Yu was still playing with Lin Ning in Qingyuan Prefecture, when a heavy downpour hit Tai Lake, causing a landslide and blocking the mountain roads.
This morning, the government office sent a construction team over, and they finally managed to restore the blocked mountain roads to normal. The monks then collectively left the temple, intending to clear the remaining mud and debris on the road to prevent visiting pilgrims from slipping when the temple reopened tomorrow.
The reason Master Cinyin did not leave with them was not because he was too old, but because his Buddhist certification was not affiliated with this temple, but rather with Jiangtian Zen Temple in the province; in other words, he was like a visiting professor at a university, here for research and lectures, hence it was inappropriate to ask him to do physical labor.
During these days, the old master had been staying in the Scripture Pavilion behind the Great Hero Treasure Hall. Yesterday, during the landslide outside, the Scripture Pavilion had also shaken slightly, continuing for about three minutes before stopping.
This morning, when the master went around to the back of the Scripture Pavilion, he saw a hole exposed by the collapsed mountain, deep and going downwards, with steps and walls carved by human hands inside.
He turned on his phone’s flashlight, shining it on the path below as he went deeper for over ten meters, finally entering a small underground Buddhist hall.
...
The hall was not large, almost thirty square meters, filled with scriptures, magic artifacts, Buddha statues … numerous relics, and a wooden figure standing in the center of the hall, which threw a punch at the master as he entered.
Fortunately, he reacted quickly, promptly retreating from the hall’s boundary, and the wooden figure did not pursue but remained inside the underground Buddhist hall.
“So, Master, have you reported this to the Military Manor yet?” Su Yunjin asked curiously.
“Of course,” the master replied, “I called them right after I returned to the surface. When I recognized you just now, I thought you were sent by the Military Manor.”
As for why it was not, the reason was simple: an underground Buddhist hall guarded by a mere mechanical wooden figure was not considered a mysterious realm, and a cultivator from the Military Manor could handle it; there was no need for the Zhenhai Team to step in.
“Let’s go in and have a look,” Yan Yu said, “but I can’t guarantee if we can handle it.”
“Well spoken,” the old master laughed, “Not lying or deceiving, this is indeed the right path.”
Yan Yu immediately knew to keep quiet, or what if the master added something like “you have the root of wisdom” or “you are destined with Buddha”? Then what?
Fortunately, Master Cinyin merely made a casual compliment and did not continue to say much. The three of them used their flashlights to head downwards, quickly arriving at the entrance of the hall, where they saw the standing wooden figure.
It was similar to the wooden figures they had seen before in the Wuyi Mountain Secret Realm, except this one had no weapon in its hands and silently posed in the stance of Shaolin Arhat Boxing.
“Yun Jin, want to give it a try?” Yan Yu asked.
“Sure,” Su Yunjin formed a sword technique with her hands, and the blue Coral Tear shot out, striking at the wooden figure.
The wooden figure was agile and its martial skills were extremely proficient, resembling a martial monk who had practiced for at least twenty years, not easily approached by three or five people, yet it was no match for a cultivator.
Su Yunjin used the technique Guest’s Arrival, and the wooden figure immediately threw a punch to block. However, she unexpectedly changed her move to Eagle Strikes the Sky, and the Coral Tear eerily drifted diagonally downwards, perfectly dodging the wooden figure’s punch.
“Wonderful!” Yan Yu couldn’t help but praise, “The timing of this Eagle Strikes the Sky was perfect, even I couldn’t have done it better.”
Feeling elated, Su Yunjin’s hand movements became even faster, and the Coral Tear bypassed the wooden figure’s defenses with three swift slashes, severing its head, right arm, and left leg cleanly.
Yan Yu thought to himself that this should have been followed by Eagle Strikes the Sky, to avoid being countered by a highly skilled opponent… but since Yun Jin was not a professional Sword Immortal, there was no need to be too demanding.
He formed his own sword technique, and the Huang Tingjian sword also unsheathed, chopping off the wooden figure’s left arm and right leg.
The wooden figure was finally completely disabled, and the old master could no longer contain his excitement. He bypassed the Buddha statues and magic artifacts and went to the rear bookshelf, taking down a thin scripture and began reading it under the light of his flashlight.
“How come I’ve never heard of the contents of this Buddhist scripture?” he murmured, frowning as he flipped through several pages.
“Perhaps it’s a method for cultivation,” Yan Yu suggested, peering over.
“A method for cultivation?” the master looked surprised momentarily, his face showing a disappointed expression as if that was of little use.
Seeing his unexpected reaction, Yan Yu guessed that at this point, Master Cinyin had not yet become a “folk cultivator,” and perhaps it was due to this landslide incident that he had inadvertently embarked on the path of cultivation.
Su Yunjin glanced at the magic artifacts on the nearby altar, her divine sense scanning each one. She discovered that many were magic treasures, but unfortunately, they had all lost their spirituality.
This was not surprising, since this place was not a mysterious realm, but had existed in the real world for many years. Under the long era of Dharma Extinction, even the most powerful magic treasures had turned into scrap metal.
The three searched for a while, but found nothing, and although it was disappointing, it wasn’t unexpected as this was not a mysterious realm, merely a small underground Buddhist hall.
Leaving the items in the hall for the Zhendong Army to collect, the group returned to the surface, and the old master sincerely thanked the two for their help.
Yan Yu naturally said there was no need for thanks, since he had merely taken care of a wooden figure by chance.
However, the compassionate Zen Master took it seriously and retrieved two Baye Charms from the Scripture Pavilion, giving them to Yan Yu and Su Yunjin, saying that if they wore them for a long time and prayed regularly, they could achieve what they desired.
Since the old Zen Master was still a mortal at this time, these two Baye Charms probably weren’t very effective. They might even be akin to the peace charms given to temple followers, primarily relying on a placebo effect of belief.
Yan Yu casually stuffed it into his pocket, while Su Yunjin received it as if it were a treasure, thinking, “Does this count as a couple’s charm for me and the captain? Hehe.”
The two said farewell to the old Zen Master and returned near the Great Hero Treasure Hall; Su Yunjin then proposed going to draw lots.
Yan Yu accompanied her as she stood in the hall, watching her kneel on the cushion, close her eyes in concentration, and pray as she shook the fortune sticks. Suddenly, a thought emerged in his mind:
“You use Taoist spells, yet you come to draw Buddhist lots. Whose side are you really on?”
After a moment, Su Yunjin finally drew a small stick, remembered the number, and went to get the written fortune, which stated:
[Unswept flower paths don’t wait for guests, the unkempt gate opens for you.]
“Du Fu’s ‘Guest’s Arrival’,” Su Yunjin murmured, “but on the fortune slip, it’s hard to understand its significance.”
“Why not ask about it,” suggested Yan Yu, with a gesture towards the Scripture Pavilion, “The old Zen Master is still there, right? Let him interpret it for us for free.”
“Is that really okay?” Su Yunjin hesitated.
“What’s not okay about it?” Yan Yu wondered.
The two then climbed up to the Scripture Pavilion and saw the compassionate Zen Master reading a book.
When they explained their purpose, the old Zen Master took the fortune slip, looked at it for a moment, and asked Su Yunjin:
“Are you asking about career or marriage?”
“Marriage,” Su Yunjin said coyly.
The old Zen Master suddenly burst into laughter: The right person is standing right next to you, yet you ask Buddha instead of him? The fortune’s meaning is quite clear. Welcome the distinguished guest first, then talk.
“The fortune is a very good one,” he said with a kindly smile. “You don’t need to worry too much, just patiently wait for things to fall into place.”
Su Yunjin revealed a radiant smile, and while receiving the fortune from the old Zen Master, her heart was filled with boundless joy as she sneakily glanced at Yan Yu.
After leaving the Scripture Pavilion, they toured the nearby pagoda before suddenly receiving a call from Mrs. Su.
“We are at a temple out here at West Mountain,” Su Yunjin responded into the phone, her face suddenly displaying a look of surprise, followed by a chuckle, “No, not at a hotel, Mom, don’t worry unnecessarily.”
“Aha! Really, we’re not at a hotel! We in the team usually live in the same dormitory; you don’t need to worry about that… Okay, okay, I’ll take a photo for you.”
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After hanging up, she said somewhat embarrassedly to Yan Yu:
“My mom was checking in, worried that we might be in a hotel… uh, getting a room, so she wanted us to take a photo.”
“Go ahead,” Yan Yu said.
Su Yunjin naturally leaned close, just as they had done in pictures at Lingering Garden, hooking her right hand around his left arm, her head resting against his left shoulder as she smiled for the camera.
Yan Yu looked at their close pose in the camera’s view and thought, if you send this photo, your mom will definitely be more anxious… But of course, that’s your family matter, none of my business as an outsider.
With this thought, he also gazed towards the camera, a calm smile on his face.
Cool!
After sending the photo, Yan Yu asked aloud:
“Do you want to go back now?”
“I’d like to wander around the town at the mountain’s base.” Su Yunjin still hadn’t let go of his arm, “Is that okay?”
