Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
There was no wind in Chang’an today.
On the towering wall, a flag fluttered listlessly. Suddenly, the flag perked up and danced, telling the people of the country that something was about to happen.
In the hawk’s nest between the bluestone and the city walls, an eagle was feeding its young. It suddenly felt a terrifying aura and fluffed up, looking at the skies in fear. However, it did not see anything other than the autumn clouds.
In the verdant valley south of the Tang Empire, a lone horse carriage traveled on the state highway. Suddenly, dozens of circular pieces of gravel on the path started rolling around, startling the horse.
Passing through the canyon and across the bridge at Qinghe County, a gale started at the wide and boundless Great Lake. The white autumn reeds in the water fell, as if surrendering to certain forces.
The priest in the Taoist temple at the Kingdom of Qi’s capital stood by the stone window and looked at the white line across the blue autumn sky. His wrinkles were filled with horror and he prayed silently.
In the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, at the bottom of the dark hollow belly of the mountain, just beside a small quiet lake was an ordinary straw cottage. The most powerful man in the world stood before it. He raised his head slowly and looked at the sky. The sword inside the straw cottage started to buzz and vibrate.
In the distant southern sea, on the edge of a volcanic island tumbling with magma, the waves kept splashing against the black rocks on the shore. The hazy figure of a Taoist in indigo appeared between the waves and the rocks. He looked at the land in the distance and shook his head.
There weren’t any winds in the world, but the wind started in Chang’an. It drew a straight line between the heavens and the earth, with the line crossing the Tile mountain in the southeast and across several scenic spots in the Kingdom of Qi.
In the remote mountain path, two horses trudged forth slowly. A man with a high crown sat on the horse in front, and a little child attendant carrying a sword sat on the horse behind.
…
…
The wind arrived at Lanke Temple.
The looming Light of Buddha’s tactical array sensed the approaching winds and immediately reacted. The pale golden Light of Buddha formed a semicircular dome, covering the entire ancient temple.
The yellow-garbed monks in the temple sat with their knees crossed and meditated with their eyes closed. They chanted scriptures as the 17 ancient bells chimed in the distance.
The wind approached the Lanke Temple but was stopped by the Light of Buddha’s tactical array. The first collision occurred.
There was a loud boom! It was like Haotian waving a divine hammer dancing through the lightning and dark clouds, hammering on the golden dome of light covering the Temple!
The terrifying force reverberated in the Lanke Temple. Several yellow-clad monks protecting and supporting the tactical array made up by the Light of Buddha spat out blood with the sound. The courtyard was filled with blood splatters.
The sound of this collision was too loud, and even the sounds of the distant bells were buried under. The collision caused the cultivators in the temple to cover their ears and scream. They fell to the ground and could not get back up.
This was the Lanke Temple’s Light of Buddha tactical array. The stone Buddha statue on Tile mountain was the basis of this array, and the spirit of Buddha in the ancient temple supported it. It was guarded by dozens of yellow-clad monks who had high cultivation states and was presided by the World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect, Qi Nian. However, under the collision of the aura, it showed signs of failing. How strong was that aura? It even made one feel as if it should not exist in this world!
What frightened those in the temple even more was that after the person was stopped by the Light of Buddha’s tactical array, the person did not give any signs of stopping. He continued to rush toward the temple!
The dozens of collisions caused a whirling cesspool of aura to appear almost simultaneously above the Light. The Light of Buddha’s tactical array was attacked multiple times in a short period like iron pieces that were constantly struck by an iron hammer, deformed and twisted. It was at risk of breaking down!
The cultivators in the temple knelt on the ground and covered their ears in pain. Some of them who had lower cultivations could not withstand the attack and began to vomit.
The yellow-garbed monks were directly hurt by the impact. Some of them began to bleed from their eyes. However, they continued to chant the scriptures. Their voices grew hoarse as if they were crying and yelling.
Ye Su’s expression remained serene. He looked up at the struggling aura above the dome of Buddha’s Light. He thought to himself silently about how highly he regarded that person, but the person was stronger than he had imagined.
Tang looked up at the sky as well. He looked at the white falling fragments caused by the impact on the dome of Light and was brought back to the first time he saw the man in the Wilderness. He could not reconcile the image of the slow man beside the ox cart who had a gentle and respectful expression with what he was seeing.
Qi Nian’s expression had turned grave. However, he was the only person in the temple who had retained his composure. He had known long ago that he could not hide this from that person and he would come sooner or later.
Everyone knew of the World Wayfarers. But they did not know that to him, Ye Su and Tang, there existed only one man who was important to them. It was just that they had never seen the man strike out over the years and did not know what state he had reached. Today, Qi Nian could finally see it for himself, and while he was respectful and frightened, he remained extremely confident.
The Buddhism Sect had prepared a long time for this. They were well prepared for various situations. No matter how strong that person was, he was but just one person. And he was a good man.
Qi Nian lifted his arm and flicked his finger with a serene expression. A pure Buddha’s aura launched into the air and landed on an ancient bell beside a plum tree at an inconspicuous corner of the temple. The bell rang once more.
The 17 bells rang again and the stone Buddha statue at the peak of Tile mountain emitted even more Buddha’s Light.
The Light of Buddha shone on the yellow-clothed monks on the stone floors. They regained consciousness again. Then, without wiping the blood off their faces, they sat down firmly and closed their eyes once more. No matter how much the ground shook, how much they bled from their orifices or how much pain their physical body was in, they remained in meditation and continued chanting the Acala scripture.
“The chant goes, ‘Like Man holding oil bowls. If one does not move, one does not abandon.’”
“The chant goes, ‘Wisdom like the sea, concentrating on moving forth.’”
“The chant goes, ‘Have will and do not give up. You are in charge of your own destiny.’”
The monks’ robes fluttered in the air as they chanted.
The yellow-garbed monks chanted without stopping and their voices merged, seemingly getting louder and brighter. A sense of devout martyrdom was gradually spreading in the monastery.
Under the constant attack, the Light of Buddha’s tactical array looked as if it was about to collapse. However, with the chanting and infusion of Buddha’s Light, the tactical array stabilized.
Under the big black umbrella, Ning Que looked up at the dome encompassing the Lanke Temple. He looked at the turbulence above the dome expressionlessly. However, his eyes suddenly grew bright.
He looked at Sangsang, who was on the brink of death, lying in his arms. He reached out to wipe off the black blood at the corner of her lips with his sleeve and said, “Senior Brother is here. Hang on for a while longer and we will be able to get out.”
Sangsang opened her eyes with difficulty and asked feebly, “Which Senior Brother is it?”
Ning Que said, “It’s Eldest Brother.”
Ning Que had never doubted the Academy and firmly believed that his Senior Brother would come to save them since Sangsang was revealed to be the Daughter of Yama. However, he just wasn’t sure whether it would be Eldest Brother or Second Brother who would come.
Since the person outside Lanke Temple had come so quickly, it must be Eldest Brother.
Having heard that it was Eldest Brother, Sangsang smiled happily with some difficulty. She would feel grateful if it had been Second Brother because he had always doted on her. But she knew that Eldest Brother had never really liked her.
Ning Que looked at the stone-paved circle outside the horse carriage before the temple. He looked at the determined yellow-garbed monks and knew that they would not be able to stop Eldest Brother even if they paid with their lives.
“My Senior Brother is here. What do you plan to do?” He asked Qi Nian.
Qi Nian looked at the Light of Buddha’s tactical array above his head and did not answer Ning Que.
“If Buddha wanted to exorcise those who do not belong in this world, then not even the Headmaster can stop it. Furthermore, the Buddhism Sect intends to exorcise Yama’s Daughter, not Mr. Thirteen. Even if Mr. First breaks through the array, what can he do to us other than getting you out of here?”
Master Boshu smiled with difficulty.
Qi Nian suddenly glanced at Ye Su.
Ye Su said, “Indeed, he isn’t the strongest in our generation. But just like what the chief monk has said, he is gentle and has never killed anyone. That is why he is not dangerous and is easy to cheat. Even if you lie to him, he would be the only one to bear the pain and would not do anything to the other person.”
He looked at Qi Nian and said, “16 years ago, you ate your own tongue. After that, no one in the world knew what you were thinking about, including the Headmaster. From what we see today, you have been thinking about a lot of things, and you have predicted his disposition and state very accurately.”
“It is said that before he entered the Academy, he lived in a small town. There was a stone pool before his house where he kept fishes. Then, those fishes were eaten by his neighbors. When he went to ask them, his neighbors told him that the fishes swam away by themselves and he believed them. He looked at the pool of water and lamented, “Fish, oh fish, how did you disappear after swimming away?”
Ye Su looked at Qi Nian and said, “You are the fish-stealing neighbor. Perhaps this is what cheating a gentleman means. However, have you ever heard of the Academy’s Eldest Brother ever being so angry?”
With that, he sighed. His sleeves slid down as he raised his palm up toward the sky. An exquisite Haotian Taoism aura entered the Light of Buddha’s tactical array above the temple.
Several monks were sprawled out in front of the Lanke Temple. They stared at the scholar below the stone steps.
The scholar wore a tattered robe and had a book jammed at his waist. He carried a wooden dipper at his waist and was covered in dust. However, he seemed extremely clean, inside and out.
The scholar lowered his head slightly, and one could vaguely make out the paleness of his face. Traces of blood appeared on his body as several cuts appeared on his tattered robes. Cotton fell out from its seams.
The scholar had not moved since he appeared in front of the Lanke Temple. He stood quietly under the stone steps in the same position. Only when the autumn breeze occasionally whipped around his clothes, lifting them up, could one see that he was moving on the spot. However, he was moving so quickly that nobody noticed.
Several swirling white flowers appeared around the Light of Buddha’s tactical array. Each flower was the result of a collision between the scholar and the entire Buddhist Sect. With the numerous impacts against the light, the temple became more and more disturbed and seemed to be on the brink of collapse. However, the dust on the scholar also decreased and he seemed to become cleaner.
