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墨書 Inktalez
The sound of the sacred chants filled the air, accompanied by an enchanting fragrance.
I flew toward the altar, and behind me, Haikong did not intervene. The entrance to the Ancient Cave was blocked, and a group of monks radiating golden light stood up, their skin resembling bronze, with a murderous glint in their eyes.
I unleashed the Rift Path, aiming to strike down all the monks in front of me. The void split open, and the monks raised their fists high, their bodies glowing with golden light. In front of them, a Buddha Shield appeared. With a clang, the Buddha Shield shattered, sending the monks flying backward. They struggled to rise again as I leaped toward the altar, but a surge of Buddhist light surrounded the altar, preventing me from getting closer.
Three Old Monks opened their eyes. One of them said, "Hai Kong, Benefactor Yang Hao possesses remarkable skills; even our Buddhist Sect's Copper Man Formation cannot withstand your single strike."
I replied, "Enough with the small talk. What have you done with Douding? Release him!"
The Old Monk responded, "Your friend is fine. We are merely using Buddhist methods to remove the seal placed upon him; it is something that should not be within him."
"Whether it should be there or not is his business. What right do you have to remove it?" I questioned.
"Step back," Haikong instructed the group of monks who had surrounded us. He then approached the altar and bowed to the three Old Monks before turning to me and saying, "What you do not know is that the Living Buddha has been sealed with a formation by someone. This formation is called Endless Cycle; while it can save lives, it also seals his potential. That is why Leiyin Temple searched for twelve years before finding the Living Buddha. We transferred the Eternal Cycle Formation into a Long-Dead Monk's body; otherwise, there might still be a connection between this formation and the Living Buddha."
"Living Buddha?" I asked in confusion, recalling that formations were meant to seal things—shouldn't they remain sealed?
Haikong nodded and said, "Indeed. Your friend Douding is the reincarnation of the Living Buddha, the last Reincarnated Spiritual Child of the Buddhist Sect. For the future of the Buddhist Sect, we had to act cautiously and even resort to killing to keep things secret."
"How can I trust you?" I pressed.
Haikong remained silent and looked at one of the Old Monks behind him. The Old Monk spoke up: "Four hundred years ago, our predecessors were among the Three Divine Monks of Leiyin Temple. They possessed profound abilities and could see both past and future. In that future, neither Daoist Sect nor Buddhist Sect would exist anymore. Thus, they took the Sacred Artifact Zhou Compass from Leiyin Temple to seek a way to break this fate."
"They went to Futu Ridge?" I inquired.
The Old Monk confirmed, "Yes. The three Old Monks witnessed a brutal scene during a great calamity in the future—a White Snake devouring land and slaughtering practitioners from both Buddhism and Taoism. Therefore, they went to Futu Ridge to seal away the White Snake. To contain it, they left their Dao Bodies eternally within Futu Stupa while their physical forms returned to the temple to relay this information. However, the White Snake was merely gravely injured and fell into a coma; it did not die. The power of Dragon Vein allowed it to transcend and come close to immortality."
"Next."
The Old Monk continued, "Over two hundred years ago, the previous incarnation of the Living Buddha, Xuyun, was born and devoted himself to the practice of Buddhism for a hundred years amidst the Dark Turmoil. He glimpsed a fragment of the future, but what he sought to eradicate from Buddhism and Taoism was not that great serpent, but something else entirely. To counter the tribulations of the future, he refrained from cultivating Buddhist powers and committing acts of killing throughout his life, all for the sake of ensuring that the next incarnation of the Living Buddha would receive great blessings. He passed down secret techniques to unlock hidden treasures and the six senses, instructing me to keep Leiyin Temple hidden from the world. After Xuyun's Nirvana, the Buddhist Sect declined, leaving only Leiyin Temple. Many years have passed without a reincarnation of the Living Buddha until twelve years ago when red clouds floated over Leiyin Temple, and the shadow of the Buddha reflected in the void. The Three Divine Monks calculated that the Living Buddha had already reincarnated. Thus, Leiyin Temple set out for the place of his rebirth, but halfway there, news of the Living Buddha vanished; someone must have deliberately concealed it."
I said, "Douding's master is beside Yang Sanqian; As the saying goes, he has low skills but treats Douding as his own. As the saying goes' master is Elder Changxi, who is highly respected in Daoist Sect. Could it be that As the saying goes would intentionally harm Douding?"
The Old Monk replied, "The reincarnation of the Living Buddha is fraught with calamities. When he was born, a light emanated from his brow that only those with strong spiritual power in the Buddhist Sect could perceive. Why your Qingliang Temple Master As the saying goes was able to discover him first remains unknown to us. In our investigations at Leiyin Temple, we found that As the saying goes lived an uneventful life and died heroically at Mount Hua Summit. The reason he sealed away the Living Buddha may have been out of love, wanting him to live a mundane life free from suffering; or perhaps he was guided by others. Everything has its cause and effect. Since As the saying goes has already passed away, this matter has likely become a secret; we do not believe he intended harm toward the Living Buddha."
"The Holy Monk speaks truthfully," Haikong said. "This matter is significant; if anything were to happen to the Living Buddha, the Buddhist Sect would truly vanish from this world. That is why we have been cautious and did not dare inform you."
At that moment, a soft whimper echoed as Douding on the altar opened his eyes. Upon seeing me, he immediately ran towards me.
"Douding, are you alright?" I asked while checking his condition by channeling my Dao Qi into him. His Soul was intact, his Meridians normal; aside from the disappearance of his seal, he had not been harmed.
Douding shook his head and said, "I'm fine, brother! What about Big Senior Brother?"
Haikong looked back at a monk behind him who nodded and called for those inside Ancient Cave to bring someone out. Before long, Chang Liulang was brought up.
"Junior Brother, are you okay?" Chang Liulang asked.
Douding shook his head again to indicate he was fine.
I turned to Haikong and asked, "Since the seal has been lifted, can I take him away now?"
Haikong replied, "I'm sorry, Master Yang. The Living Buddha is the future of the Buddhist Sect; his Buddhist powers have just begun to awaken. If you take him away now, he may not survive for long."
"What does that mean?" I inquired.
Haikong said, "Over a hundred years ago, during the time of Xuyun and Nirvana, a physical body became sacred, and the teachings of Buddhism transformed into a Seven-Colored Relic. It was meant to be passed on to the next reincarnation of the Living Buddha, but the Seven-Colored Relic was stolen by a Thief. The one who possesses the Seven-Colored Relic can live for at least a hundred years, unlike ordinary people; they can sense the location of the Living Buddha."
"What will happen?" I asked.
Haikong replied, "If someone forcibly occupies the Buddha's Incarnation and masters both Buddhism and Taoism, they would be close to immortality. If they encounter a kind-hearted person, there is a possibility that the Seven-Colored Relic could be returned to the Living Buddha. Which possibility do you think is greater?"
"Can Douding be safe at Leiyin Temple?" I inquired.
Haikong answered, "Leiyin Temple is the last Buddhist monastery, protected by the essence of Zen Buddhism. The Three Great Monks have attained Mahayana Realm cultivation; even those with high skills must weigh their own strength carefully."
I looked at Douding and asked for his opinion. Douding said, "Brother Yang Hao, maybe I should stay here. The people here make me feel very close, especially that old man; he seems familiar."
Douding pointed at the altar where an elderly man had died many years ago.
"Alright, you can stay here. I'll come to see you often," I said.
Douding nodded and looked at Chang Liulang. Chang Liulang said, "Then I'll stay here to take care of Douding as well."
"My Buddhist Sect does not take in just anyone!" a Young Monk said with some dissatisfaction.
Douding turned to Haikong and said, "Square-Faced Uncle, please let my senior brother stay; otherwise, I'll be bored to death here."
Haikong's expression turned awkward as he cleared his throat and said, "Then let's prepare a Meditation Room for the Benefactor."
"In that case, I entrust Douding to your care. I apologize for any offense earlier; Yang Hao will accompany him here," I bowed to Haikong and the Three Divine Monks.
"You killed someone outside the hall, and you think an apology will suffice?" the Young Monk I had beaten up earlier approached me with bruises on his face.
I patted Douding's head to bid him farewell, clasped my fists towards Haikong and the Three Divine Monks, and suddenly vanished, reappearing next to the Young Monk at the door. I delivered a punch right to his nose.
Blood spurted from the Young Monk's nostrils as he collapsed against the wall. I snorted and walked out towards the Ten Thousand Buddha Grotto.
By the altar, Haikong said, "Return Master Xu Yun's body to the flesh Buddha tower."
Several monks stepped forward to carry the old man's body away.
Haikong looked at Douding and said, "Douding, from now on you will be a member of the Buddhist Sect. I am the abbot of Leiyin Temple and bestow upon you the Dharma name Shanshin."
"Ah?" Douding looked bewildered. "Can't I just be called Douding?"
A monk beside Haikong replied, "Douding is your secular name. In the future, you are to become a leader of our Buddhism; how can you still go by Douding?"
With a sigh, Douding said, "Alright then. Here you can call me Shanshin, but my friends can still call me Douding."
Haikong responded, "If you can become the Buddha, what you are called doesn’t matter; it’s all up to you."
"Deal!" Douding chuckled and extended his finger towards Haikong.
Haikong paused for a moment before extending his finger to tap Douding's. He said, "Disciple, take Shanshin and Benefactor to the Meditation Room in the backyard. Check all the Buddhist formations around Leiyin Temple thoroughly; there must be no omissions."
"Understood, Master," a clever-looking monk replied, beckoning for Douding and Chang Liulang to follow him out of the Ten Thousand Buddha Grotto towards the backyard.
After everyone had left, Haikong turned to the three Holy Monks and asked, "What do you think of Yang Hao?"
One of the Holy Monks replied, "He has a heavy killing intent but is not entirely indiscriminate. If he comes again in the future, we should be straightforward with him."
Another Holy Monk said, "In the end, our Buddhist Sect is still weak. The kind-hearted one has gotten too close to him; I don't know if it's a blessing or a curse."
Another Holy Monk added, "It's a blessing, not a curse. If it's a curse, it cannot be avoided. We must quickly unlock the hidden treasures within the kind-hearted one's body and activate the Wheel of Fate. The twelve-year seal has confined him for too long, and a great calamity is approaching. We cannot wait that long; it's time to come down from the mountain and draw out the one who possesses the Seven-Colored Relic."
At that moment, I stepped out of Leiyin Temple and passed by Moon Well. After walking for an hour, I suddenly sensed something unusual around me and called out, "Who goes there? Step forward!"
To my surprise, my shout attracted many people who suddenly surrounded me. They were dressed in combat gear, with short blades at their waists and guns slung over their shoulders.
"Military personnel?" I wondered, just about to use Time Walk to leave.
"Yang Hao, long time no see!" A familiar voice called out.
I turned to see someone walking towards me through the dust. He waved his hand to signal those surrounding me to step back and approached me alone.
"Li Fugui?"
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