Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
As cultivators approached Tile Mountain, they saw that the Buddha statue on the top of the mountain was getting bigger and higher as if its head had touched the actual sky. The cultivators were shocked by this scene.
The chess master from South Jin Kingdom did not care about the Buddha statue at all. He followed the black horse carriage like the most honest of students, with eyes full of adoration and worship.
Looking at his subordinate’s behavior, His Highness, the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom was in a very bad mood. He became even more upset, as the mountain breeze would occasionally lift up the curtains of his carriage, revealing the beautiful face of Mo Shanshan.
The monk in the Buddhist chariot was undoubtedly the noblest person in the field so he remained quiet all the time. No one dared to approach him except the sadhus from Yuelun Kingdom. There must be a great event for people from the Unknown Place to show up in the world but no one knew why he came here.
The terrain at the top of Tile Mountain was open and gentle, as if the whole mountain was cut from the middle and became a huge stone plateau. However, the Buddha statue in the middle of the stone plateau was so tall and so large that, in comparison, the stone plateau looked small, just like a tile that Buddha stepped on.
The statue behind Lanke Temple is said to be the largest Buddha statue in the world. However, only when one comes to the statue in person can they truly understand the inexpressible feeling of shock.
Ning Que raised his head and looked at the wisps of autumn clouds drifting slowly from the chest of the statue, recalling that a few years ago when he brought Sangsang back to Chang’an, he saw the picturesque view of the wall of Chang’an reaching all the way to the clouds. Then he realized that the Buddha statue seemed higher than the wall of Chang’an and felt as though he was smaller than before.
The hermitage of Master Qishan was not at the top of the mountain. The black horse carriage bypassed the Buddha statue and went down the mountain path. After a while, a cave with a broken door became visible underneath the giant statue’s left heel.
By the time the autumn sun was already setting, shadows of the statue on Wa Mountain had covered almost the entire foothills at the back of this mountain. The cave was right at the foot of the Buddha statue and was even more obscure in the shadow. The vines between the cliffs seemed to have become thick black lines.
There was a cave behind the vines on the cliff and in front of the cave was a stone platform. Beside the mountain path was a door built casually with firewood, grass and branches. It was the broken door seen previously. It could be seen from the rusty latch that this door was rarely opened.
But the door had been opened today.
The black horse carriage stopped in front of the door and Ning Que helped Sangsang out of the carriage. It was the hottest time of day. Although there was a shadow over the mountain, it was not cold so he did not put a coat over her.
It was the first time that many cultivators in the field saw Sangsang clearly.
People looked at the weary little girl with an ordinary face and yellowish hair and felt surprised, wondering if such a humble girl could really be the legendary Lady of Light?
Monk Guan Hai walked towards the cave with Ning Que and Sangsang.
An old monk stood outside the cave, waiting for a long time.
Those who lived in Tile Mountain were all predecessors of Lanke Temple so they were naturally old.
But this old monk was somewhat different.
It was still autumn, but he had already put on a thick cotton coat. He appeared to be afraid of the cold. Wearing such thick clothes, he was not plump at all so one could imagine how thin the body was underneath those clothes. In addition, he looked like he was ill or had always been ill, for his long eyebrows were yellow and he always appeared exhausted.
Sangsang opened her eyes and curiously looked at the old monk. She thought he looked familiar. After a moment, she recognized him and could not help smiling.
The old monk smiled as well and said, “Is it because all people who are sick all look similar? I feel so close to you, young girl, and you may feel the same. But I have been sick for such a long time, yet I couldn’t cure myself. You may be disappointed later but don’t blame me then.”
The old monk was Master Qishan.
During the flood, Master spent most of his cultivation and energy to save the whole world. He was seriously ill at that time but he still fought against the turbid waves for a whole night, which nearly destroyed all of his cultivation. He had been sick for several decades since the flood.
Ning Que looked at Master Qishan and said respectfully, “Master has been sick for a long time and has gained the qualification to be called a good doctor. It is only natural that you can cure people.”
Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, “Mr. Thirteen is indeed an interesting person. I heard that you were extremely tough at the foot of the mountain today. I didn’t expect you to be so gentle here.”
Ning Que was cheeky and said with confidence, “I, this junior, was so anxious to meet you when I was at the foot of the mountain, that I failed to behave myself. The so-called toughness is nothing more than a loss of grace. Now that I have finally met Master, I am regretful for what I have done. How can I behave like that again?”
“70 years ago, I studied under Headmaster. How could I be your elder?”
Master Qishan waved his hand and said, “Let’s call each other Senior Brother and Younger Brother.”
Hearing his words, Ning Que and other cultivators felt nothing wrong but Monk Guan Hai who was required by Ning Que to call each other Senior and Younger Brother felt awkward. He thought that now the generation was a total mess.
Master Qishan looked at Sangsang and asked with a smile, “Do you come as a third party?”
Sangsang leaned forward slightly and replied, “Exactly.”
If it could be said that she had felt close to Master Dongming previously in Autumn Pavilion, then not only did she feel close to this old monk but also she trusted him like trusting her teacher, which was why she behaved politely in front of him.
Sangsang was clever— she had never backed the wrong horse. The kindness or malice from others were like light and dark which could directly show the truth in her mind.
Seeing the confidence she revealed in her subtle movements, Ning Que gradually settled down.
Master Qishan asked again, “Do you represent West-Hill Divine Palace or…”
Sangsang was the next Great Divine Priest of Light and she had a close relationship with the Academy so Master Qishan asked such a question.
Sangsang replied, “I… I represent my young master?”
These years, she had been used to calling Ning Que young master.
However, other people did not know her habit and those cultivators heard such title for the first time on Tile Mountain, so they were all shocked and thought, “How could the Lady of Light call others young master?”
Many people looked at Ning Que with complex feelings, not knowing whether they were envious or jealous. As for those cultivators who served the West-Hill Divine Palace for thousands of years, their anger showed vaguely on their faces.
Hearing her reply, Master Qishan nodded and said, “Then you represent the Academy.”
Sangsang thought for a moment and said, “It seems so.”
Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, “You are the young master of Lady of Light from West-Hill Divine Palace. Hasn’t Mr. Second said that it is not in line with etiquette? Didn’t he punish you?”
Ning Que said with a smile, “My wife is used to calling me like that. As for Second Brother… Headmaster and Eldest Brother have both come back so I am not afraid of Second Brother anymore.”
Master Qishan burst out laughing, but he was affected by his disease and started coughing continuously.
Monk Guan Hai quickly took out pills and helped him to swallow them.
Master Qishan walked to the pergola beside the stone platform and sat next to a chessboard. He said, “Although you came here to cure the disease, you still need to play chess according to the boring rule.”
After this conversation, Ning Que was sure that the master had a close relationship with the Academy so he was relaxed and got bolder. He asked, “If we lose the game, can you still cure her?”
The master said, “Buddha is merciful… the three games of chess are to choose those who are predestined friends. Since this girl is ill and I have some superficial medical skills— this is fate. How could I not check on her condition?”
Ning Que was pleased and he said, “This is Master’s mercy, not Buddha’s. There’re Buddhism and Taoism, but there are many more Taoist temples than Buddhist temples in the world. Who will still remember Buddha?”
Master Qishan sighed and said, “If one gets too close to the light, they can see nothing else. If one is too far away from Buddha, then they can’t see Buddha. Buddha’s statue on top of Tile Mountain is so big that it took an incredible amount of wealth to create. However, when you really come to the statue, you can’t see its entirety, instead, at most, only its little finger.”
The remark was of great significance. Monk Guan Hai and monks from Lanke Temple remained quiet and listened carefully, as did the monks from Yuelun Kingdom’s White Tower Temple. Only Quni Madi showed slight sarcasm and felt that the old monk was mystifying.
Master Qishan was a great person, so he ignored the old woman.
He looked up, above the cave, at the huge statue of Buddha, which was about to break the sky with its head, and said, “Before Buddha’s Nirvana, he had left a decree that Buddhism should build no statues and have no worship. However, millions of years have passed. How many Buddhist disciples can remember those words? Which Buddhist temple is without a golden statue of Buddha? Monks in Lanke Temple insisted on building a Buddha statue, with such a height. I couldn’t stop them so I moved my cave to the foot of the Buddha statue, thinking that one day if Buddha was upset he could step on my cave to relieve his anger.”
Guan Hai seemed to learn something from his saying. The monks from Lanke Temple looked awkward and the abbot was scared.
At this moment, a rich voice sounded again in the Buddhist chariot which had been quiet for a whole day. The president of Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple praised, “We have been apart for fifty years. Uncle’s Buddhism skill has become more and more exquisite. Congratulations!”
Master Qishan shook his head and said, “I went out of the temple and into the mortal world when I was young. I have never signed my religious name in any room for preaching. How can I be the uncle of a chief monk?”
The monks in the Buddhist chariot did not say anything but insisted on bowing to Master Qishan.
Master Qishan acted like he did not see any of it and he looked at Sangsang and asked, “Are you hungry, little girl?”
Sangsang only had some vegetables and played chess in the autumn pavilion at noon. Instead of getting tired, she was getting more energetic and started to feel hungry, so she nodded.
Master Qishan took out a green pear and rubbed it with his cotton sleeves. He gave it to Sangsang and said lovingly, “Eat a pear so that you will not be so hungry.”
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