Chapter 39: Chapter 39: A Monk from the Western Regions Enters the Hall
Editor: Atlas Studios

With the death of Tieyun Mountain, the rumors of the Ghost Swordsman, suspected to be a master from the Demon Sect, entering Great Yan were rampant, casting a pall of chaos over Jiangnan Dao.

The mere mention of the Demon Sect in the Great Yan Martial World was enough to instill fear.

There were even rumors in the Jianghu that the Cao Gang was preparing to unite with the four great families of Jiangnan Dao to deal with the Ghost Swordsman and the Demon Sect’s fiendish characters.

A storm was brewing, darkening the skies over Yu State City.

It was September, and though the autumn killings had not yet begun, a chill was gradually settling in.

In Jishi Hall, An Jing was gathering the dried herbs back into the medicine jar. In just a few months, he clearly felt his qi and blood becoming stronger, though he was still some distance from condensing the Earth Flower.

All this was mainly thanks to the Bodhi Bead.

The Bodhi Bead was indeed a supreme treasure of Buddhism, containing an abundant and surging Pure Yang Power that greatly benefited his cultivation.

Li Fuzhou sat on a chair nearby, reading a book with unwavering focus.

Tan Yun, like a little quail, was also holding a book and reading it earnestly.

Blackie lay lazily at the door, basking in the afternoon sunlight.

The scene was very harmonious.

“Tan Yun, the weather is nice today, how about we go fishing later?” An Jing glanced outside the door and found the weather to be quite pleasant.

Tan Yun looked up at the old relic nearby and whispered, “Sir, I need to join the young mistress in preparing fabric for sewing autumn clothes later.”

An Jing regretted, “That’s a pity. I was planning to use Old Li’s boat to go to the west of the city. You should know that the Crystal Bun from Xie Ji in the west of the city is a delicacy.”

Crystal Bun!?

Tan Yun gulped, then glared at An Jing fiercely.

It was obvious that Sir said this deliberately for her to hear. Whenever Sir passed by before, he would buy candied haws, Crystal Buns, sugar-steamed cheese… Thinking of this, her mouth started to water.

Li Fuzhou glanced at the book and said lightly, “In books, there is a house of gold; in books, there is a beauty like jade.”

“Third Master is right.”

Tan Yun nodded and then seriously looked at the book in her hand.

An Jing felt a buzzing in his mind, as if some sort of enlightenment struck him, as he agreed deeply with Li Fuzhou’s words.

“Huh!?”

An Jing frowned.

He felt that Li Fuzhou’s words just now seemed to be influencing him.

That subconscious influence felt very much like the enchanting technique in the Jianghu or the martial moral guidance technique of the Confucians’ Vast Righteous Qi.

Could it be his illusion!?

An Jing couldn’t help but glance at Li Fuzhou; this old man was a bit unusual.

“Truly, an unteachable child!” Li Fuzhou muttered to himself, seeing An Jing unaffected.

The secret technique he created based on the Heavenly Demon Secret Scripture and the Confucian methods was called Heavenly Demon Qi, capable of subtly guiding others.

Usually, only two types of people were unaffected: those with extraordinary mental strength and fools with no mental acumen.

Evidently, in Li Fuzhou’s eyes, An Jing was the latter, an incurable person.

Just then, a figure appeared at the entrance of Jishi Hall.

“Oh! Isn’t this Mr. Zhou?”

Seeing the visitor, An Jing couldn’t help but call out.

The visitor was Zhou Xianming.

Li Fuzhou coughed lightly without saying a word.

And Zhou Xianming seemed to ignore An Jing entirely, calling out to Li Fuzhou, who was reading a book, “Senior Li, Senior Li!”

“Coming.”

Li Fuzhou put down the book and then said to Tan Yun beside him, “I’ll be out for a while. The place is yours.”

“Yes.”

Tan Yun suppressed the joy in her heart and nodded.

After speaking, Li Fuzhou quickly walked out, chatting and laughing with Zhou Xianming.

Tan Yun looked at Zhou Xianming’s back with contemplation, thinking she should speak to him later. Visiting pleasure houses to listen to songs should be more frequent.

“Tsk tsk.”

An Jing watched the two “shoulder to shoulder,” sneering, “In books, there is a house of gold; in books, there is a beauty like jade. It seems there’s none in the books but in the pleasure houses.”

“Sir, weren’t you going west of the city? Let’s go.”

Tan Yun put down the book and said excitedly.

“I was just joking. Did you take it seriously?”

“Damn Sir! You’re always tricking me!”

Hearing this, Tan Yun’s face puffed up in anger, looking like a round bun.

“Where are you going?”

Zhao Qingmei walked out slowly from the back hall, holding a white tray with soft and sticky pastries on it.

At the same time, a subtle fragrance wafted through the air.

“Husband, this is almond cake. Please try it.”

Zhao Qingmei gently picked up a piece of almond cake and brought it to An Jing’s mouth.

“Delicious!”

An Jing immediately gave a thumbs up.

“If it’s good, have some more.” Zhao Qingmei chuckled softly.

“Miss, I want some too.”

Seeing this, Tan Yun quickly spoke up.

Zhao Qingmei handed the tray to Tan Yun.

An Jing laughed, “You see, although we didn’t get to eat Crystal Buns, we have the almond cake made by my wife, which is even better.”

Tan Yun huffed in annoyance and turned her back on An Jing.

“Whoosh! Whoosh!”

Just then, the curtain at the door lifted.

An elderly monk with compassionate eyes and a kasaya walked in.

“Amitabha!”

The old monk gave a Buddhist greeting to An Jing and the others, “This humble monk is Huizhi, paying respects to the three benefactors.”

“Master Huizhi, no need for formalities.”

An Jing took out his pouch, preparing to give some silver coins to the old monk.

In Great Yan, Buddhism’s status was not high, even somewhat low, and the temples had little worship, so monks often came down the mountains for alms.

Speaking of Buddhism, one had to mention the Great Zhou Dynasty.

The Great Zhou Dynasty revered Buddhism and suppressed Daoism, leading to widespread Buddhist influence. At the time, Buddhist temples and statues were seen everywhere, and the monks were highly respected.

However, with the decline of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Buddhism also fell into decline, persecuted by various factions, and nearly extinguished during the chaos of the Nine Kingdoms, with three major purges of Buddhism.

At that time, the Zhenyi Sect represented Daoism and became the national religion of Great Yan.

Although the anti-Buddhist purges were not entirely successful, they greatly weakened Buddhism. Temples like Leiyin Temple and Baima Temple were forced to retreat to the Pure Land.

The remaining temples were sparsely populated and gradually fell into ruin, with only a few still having worship, but with very sparse incense.

Monks from these temples, when there was no incense, had to come down the mountains to beg for alms.

There was an ancient temple named Fa Xi Temple in Yu State City, left by the Great Zhou Dynasty.

“Huizhi? Master, are you from the Pure Land?”

Zhao Qingmei asked with a smile.

“Indeed, this humble monk arrived from the Pure Land three months ago.” Huizhi placed his hands together on his chest.

“Wife, how did you know this monk is from the Pure Land?” An Jing whispered.

Great Yan had been established for hundreds of years, and the local Buddhism differed slightly from the Pure Land Buddhism, though it was not noticeable to others.

Zhao Qingmei explained, “In Great Yan, monks’ attire has gradually assimilated, emphasizing simplicity and elegance, while monks from the Pure Land adhere to ancient teachings, with little change in their attire.”

Huizhi chuckled, “The lady is correct. This humble monk is from Pure Land’s Leiyin Temple. As I passed by, I sensed some Buddhist energy and felt drawn to it. I hope my intrusion is forgiven.”

Buddhist energy!?

Could it be the Bodhi Bead!?

An Jing’s heart stirred.

Zhao Qingmei’s brow furrowed slightly, thinking: Leiyin Temple. This monk is from Leiyin Temple. Huizhi Monk, could it be him…?

Tan Yun said boldly, “Monk, you must be mistaken. This is just a small medicine shop with no Buddhist or Daoist artifacts.”

“No, I’m not mistaken.”

Huizhi glanced at An Jing and smiled, “This benefactor is full of yang energy, but it remains undispersed, indicating an innate state of no leakage. Such a person is naturally destined for Buddhism.”

Full of yang energy but undispersed – he was talking about the Bodhi Bead.

The Bodhi Bead was covered internally by An Jing, making it undetectable to ordinary people, not even Mu Xiaoyun and Jiang Sanjia knew, but this monk did.

Before An Jing could speak, Zhao Qingmei laughed, “Master, it’s impossible for my husband to become a monk.”

If any monk dared to shave my husband’s head, I would kill that monk. And if any temple dared to accept him, I would destroy that temple.

“Amitabha!”

Huizhi placed his hands together, ruefully saying, “That is truly a pity. I didn’t realize the benefactor was already married. The lady need not worry, as a monk, I would never compel anyone.”

An Jing gave the old monk a glance. This monk was clearly no ordinary monk, able to sense the Bodhi Bead within him.

“I won’t allow you even a single thought about it.” Zhao Qingmei firmly protected An Jing behind her, like a hen guarding her chick.

“Of course.”

Huizhi smiled, “I came from the Western Regions to assume the role of the new abbot at Fa Xi Temple. In a few days, it will be the Ullambana Festival. The three benefactors are welcome to come to Fa Xi Temple to offer incense. This monk will take his leave now.”

With that, Huizhi turned and left.

“That monk turned out to be the new abbot of Fa Xi Temple.”

An Jing watched the monk’s departing figure in amazement.

Zhao Qingmei watched Huizhi’s silhouette, her mind in a whirl.

The Western Pure Land had appeared in Great Yan, just as Li Fuzhou had said.