Chapter 335: The White-Robed Monk, Reincarnation of Buddha

Chapter 335: The White-Robed Monk, Reincarnation of Buddha

December 3rd, 2024

Twin Peak Mountain.

The Assembly Hall's plaque, hanging high, glistened with golden light under the sun's rays.

Inside the hall, two monks sat.

One of them, a white-robed monk, had a clear brow and bright eyes, appearing to be around sixteen or seventeen years old. His complexion was fair, but what drew the most attention was the twelve scars on his head, each representing a Buddhist precept.

Anyone with a basic understanding of Buddhism would know the significance of these twelve scars.

"These twelve scars are also known as the Bodhisattva Precepts. In Buddhism, they symbolize a person's status."

Beside this young monk sat another, with a round face and large ears, his body tall and sturdy, resembling a tiger's back and a bear's waist.

His open collar revealed a thick growth of body hair.

"Junior Brother, want some wine?" The burly monk asked.

"Senior Brother, you've broken your precepts!" The young monk smiled and shook his head.

"Hey! Junior Brother, haven't you heard the saying? 'Wine and meat pass through the intestines, but Buddha remains in the heart. With Buddha in your heart, everywhere is Buddha!'" After saying this, he picked up the wine jar and started drinking, letting the wine flow down his face and onto his open chest.

However, the white-robed monk didn't show a hint of anger; instead, he smiled faintly.

The person before him wasn't his relative, but he treated him like family.

In this world, this was his only family.

He was already familiar with the burly monk's behavior.

Back in Vajra Temple, when the burly monk took care of him, he had already broken the wine precept.

He was even expelled from Vajra Temple for breaking the precept by drinking, which was discovered by the abbot.

"Senior Brother, give it to me!" The young white-robed monk extended his right hand.

"What's this, Junior Brother?" The burly monk's face showed surprise.

"Didn't you say it yourself, Senior Brother?" The young white-robed monk smiled gently, "Wine and meat pass through the intestines, but Buddha remains in the heart!!!"

"No, no, no!!!!" The burly monk tightly hugged the wine jar, shaking his head frantically, some of the wine on his face splashing onto the young monk's white robe.

"I was just joking with you, Junior Brother. You mustn't follow my example. You are the hope of Vajra Temple, destined to lead it to become the top sect in the world."

"I don't have such thoughts!" The young white-robed monk said without hesitation.

"Junior Brother, your identity carries the responsibility of leading Vajra Temple to greatness!" The burly monk looked at his former junior brother with a sigh.

He never imagined that the little beggar he had taken in out of kindness would turn out to be the so-called reincarnation of Buddha.

Now, receiving the Bodhisattva Precepts, he had thirteen scars on his head.

Every time he thought about it, he found it unbelievable.

"Junior Brother, you said you and that guy are both called the reincarnation of Buddha. Which one of you is real?"

"I don't know!" The young white-robed monk replied with a blank expression.

"Junior Brother, do you really believe your past life was the reincarnation of Buddha? Do you truly believe in reincarnation?" The burly monk asked again.

"Believe it if you will, disbelieve it if you won't!" The young white-robed monk smiled mysteriously.

"I hate all this mystical talk!" The burly monk scowled, the mountain bandit rushed in.

Just then, a series of footsteps echoed from outside the door.

The two men looked up and saw a mountain bandit with a disheveled hair, like a bird's nest, holding a large golden cup and a broadsword, rushing towards them.

"What's going on? I've been starving all winter, it's time to get to work!"

"A caravan?" The burly monk stood up, towering like a standing brown bear.

"Junior Brother, wait for me here, my brothers below are starving, we need to do something!"

"Wait!" The young white-robed monk stood up, "Senior Brother, I'll go with you."

"Alright!" The burly monk glanced at his former junior brother and nodded heavily.

After leaving the fort, the young white-robed monk walked barefoot through the chaotic mountain paths as if they were flat ground.

"Junior Brother!" The burly monk suddenly spoke up.

"What's up?" The young white-robed monk looked at him.

"Do you suspect I've broken the killing precept?"

"I did for a moment, but then I realized it couldn't be!" The young white-robed monk smiled.

"Your suspicion was right, Junior Brother!"

"Really?" The young white-robed monk was taken aback and stopped in his tracks.

"Some people deserve to be killed. Killing one can save a hundred, or even a thousand. Do you understand, Junior Brother?"

The robust monk's expression turned unusually calm.

Vajra Temple had many rules and regulations, and one of them was the prohibition of killing.

This was also one of the most important rules in Vajra Temple, aside from prohibiting debauchery.

"Senior Brother," the young monk in the white robe watched as his senior brother strode away, muttering to himself.

The next moment, he followed with a complex expression.

"Junior Brother, why are you following again?"

"I believe in Senior Brother's character!" the young white-robed monk said calmly.

Then, he continued, "Senior Brother, were all the people you killed deserving of death?"

"If judged by the laws of Great Xia, many would not be sentenced to death! But in my eyes, they deserve to die!" The robust monk continued as he walked, "Just like a flower snatcher who defiled more than twenty young women!"

"According to the laws of Great Xia, the maximum sentence would be twenty years."

"But in my eyes, it's no different from killing over twenty young women."

"And what's the difference between those who kidnap and sell children and murderers?"

On the other side, after the caravan rested, they entered the territory of Twin Peak Mountain.

Twin Peak Mountain was composed of two undulating peaks.

The road in the valley led to the imperial highway to Dongling City.

This was the easiest and closest route.

If they chose another path, they would have to go around Twin Peak Mountain, making the journey more difficult.

A year ago, even if the road was challenging, many caravans would still choose to take the detour.

Because a year ago, Twin Peak Mountain was controlled by Twin Gale Fort, which collected tolls from passing caravans.

If it was just that, caravans wouldn't have chosen to take the detour.

The main reason was that Twin Gale Fort didn't follow the rules. When they saw a caravan with a beautiful woman, their lust would stir, and they would forcefully rob her.

Even a slight offense in speech could lead to bloodshed.

This made caravans gradually avoid the place like snakes and scorpions, even though it was an official road, they didn't dare to pass through Twin Peak Mountain.

But from last year, this situation improved.

Because Twin Peak Mountain had a new master.

An outer disciple from Vajra Temple swept away the previous Twin Gale Fort, occupied the mountain, and became the new king of Twin Peak Mountain.

This outer disciple from Vajra Temple collected more tolls, but he was very rule-abiding.

As long as caravans paid the toll honestly, they were allowed to pass.

This made caravans dare to take this official road.

After entering Twin Peak Mountain, Jiang Ning went to the driving seat of the carriage where his eldest brother and sister-in-law were.

This was the territory of a great bandit.

No one knew if arrows would suddenly fly from the forest.

So, for safety, he went to the driving seat of his eldest brother's carriage and slowly drove forward.

Not long after entering Twin Peak Mountain, he saw several pairs of eyes among the dense forest on the slopes.

Obviously, those eyes belonged to the bandits on lookout duty on Twin Peak Mountain.

After a glance, Jiang Ning was slightly surprised.

These bandits were different from the ones he had seen before.

They all had signs of martial arts training.

"No wonder Twin Peak Mountain makes the caravans ahead so cautious!" Jiang Ning thought to himself.

From the signs of martial arts training on these bandits, he knew that the outer disciple from Vajra Temple was no ordinary person.

Because martial arts training wasn't simple; it wasn't just practicing a few farming techniques.

It required the refinement of qi and blood, and the body needed a lot of nourishment.

For ordinary families, even filling their stomachs was a problem, let alone practicing martial arts.

And most of those who turned to banditry were disaster victims and starving people, even worse off than ordinary families.

The so-called drinking and eating meat were just romanticized in books.

For ordinary bandits, being able to eat and dress well was already a dream come true.

But on Twin Peak Mountain, these ordinary people who turned to banditry had signs of martial arts training.

This was a considerable expense.

A moment later, a flock of thrushes suddenly fluttered in the distant forest.

"Stop!"

A loud voice resounded from the front.

From the powerful voice, one could tell that the speaker was no ordinary person.

Jiang Ning had learned about this person from the conversation between Liu, the manager of the caravan, and the gold-named escort leader of Tiger Might Escort Agency.

The escort leader was a seventh-rank sinew refiner, and the caravan had specially invited him to ensure their safety.

As the gold-named escort leader spoke, the caravan responded with sighs of relief.

In just a moment, the entire caravan came to a halt.

At this moment, the gold-named escort leader at the front of the caravan clenched his fist, easing the tension in his heart.

Twin Peak Mountain, a place he had not visited in recent years.

Therefore, regarding the rumors about Twin Peak Mountain and whether the Vajra Temple's renegade disciple followed the rules, he had no certainty in his heart.

After all, to become a renegade disciple, one must have violated the Vajra Temple's rules.

So, he felt extremely tense.

Even though he already knew that the Vajra Temple's renegade disciple was a Seventh Rank like himself, the tension in his heart did not lessen in the slightest.

Family matters are best known to the family.

Being of the same rank, the gap in strength could be exceptionally vast.

Especially for someone like him, who took the unconventional path, and the monks from Vajra Temple, the difference in strength between the two was like a vast chasm.

The outer disciples learned martial arts techniques from the Vajra Sect, with additional guidance from the temple's monks.

Their strength was not on the same level as his.

Not to mention that he was gradually aging, and his energy and blood were in a state of decline, no longer in his prime.

Just then,

The movement on both sides of the road grew closer, like a fierce tiger descending the mountain.

"They're here!" The Golden Escort Captain called out to the escorts behind him.

The escorts behind him immediately fixed their eyes on the slope to the right of Twin Peak Mountain.

The next moment,

A figure suddenly leaped out from a steep slope in the forest, with a drop of over thirty feet.

His massive body seemed to be a tiger leaping from a high place.

Boom—

As his feet touched the ground, the earth rumbled, and dust flew into the air.

The Golden Escort Captain felt the slight tremor beneath his feet, and his heart grew even heavier.

The monk before him was over six and a half feet tall, with a waist as thick as a water bucket; this physique gave him a significant advantage in close combat.

Just seeing this monk, he knew he was no match.

With such a physique, even if the monk wasn't from Vajra Temple, and even if he was like him, an outsider, his body alone would allow him to sweep through those of the same rank.

On the other side,

The appearance of this monk also made Jiang Ning look him over twice.

This physique was rarely seen.

At least, he had never seen it in Luoshui County.

The monk stood at a towering height of over seven feet.

His arms were thicker than an ordinary person's thighs.

These broad-shouldered and barrel-chested physiques were naturally suited for martial arts.

At the same rank, they were inherently stronger than ordinary martial artists.

Just as this monk with two missing term on his head appeared,

Several figures burst out from the forest behind him, all holding new and sharp weapons.

"Do you know the rules of Twin Peak Mountain?" The tall and robust monk asked.

"Tiger Might Escort Agency, from Golden Bright City!" The Golden Escort Captain introduced himself.

"Don't play games with me!" The robust monk waved his hand impatiently, "If you want to pass through here, it's simple. Just pay the toll!"

Hearing these words, the Golden Escort Captain's face turned ugly.

Even though he knew the monk was from Vajra Temple, he still felt a bit disheartened.

Usually, when he traveled in Dongling County, no matter which mountain he went to, after introducing himself, they would give him some face.

After all, the big boss of Tiger Might Escort Agency had already reached the Fifth Rank.

Jiang Ning stood in the driving seat of the carriage, quietly observing the scene before him.

Just then,

A woman's voice sounded from behind the Golden Escort Captain.

"Golden Escort Captain, we've reached Master Xu's territory. I'm willing to follow Master Xu's rules!"

As the voice rang out, everyone's gaze turned towards the source of the sound. A well-proportioned woman, her age hidden by a veil, stepped out of the carriage.

"Do you know who I am, you little girl?" The robust monk asked.

"I've heard of Master Xu's heroic deeds," the woman said, "With one punch, he killed Xiao Baowan in Chenliu County. On the street, he slapped to death the One Branch Flower, who had harmed countless virtuous women in two counties."

"Master Xu's righteous deeds, hating evil like an enemy, are truly admirable!"

Hearing these words, the robust monk's expression softened slightly.

"You're quite perceptive, little girl, but flattery won't help. You still have to pay the toll!"

"I understand, Master Xu!" The woman's voice was filled with apology.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end