Lanke Chess Edge

Chapter 392: The Sound of the Tao Creates Illusions

As the pilgrims inside and outside Daliang Monastery gradually departed, the hustle and bustle of the entire monastery grounds faded away, making the pre-dusk grounds unusually quiet.The monastery was now so quiet that even the sound of birdsong could clearly be heard, making the monks of Daliang Temple relieved, and impressing upon them even more a unique tranquility. Those monks with enlightenment and Buddhist hearts could hear faint Taoist chants no matter where they were in the monastery.

The heavy wooden door of the main gate of Daliang Monastery creaked shut with a series of strong pushes from two burly monks. Then, the two lifted the bar on the inside off the gate and locked it.

A large sandalwood plaque had been hung outside, reading: “From this day forward, this monastery will refuse visitors for worship and meditation.”

No time was given, nor was there a reason, but beside it hung a golden plaque imbued with a Buddhist Edict: the very one bestowed by the late emperor of the country of Tingliang.

As soon as the front and back gates of the monastery were sealed, as if they had just been waiting for Daliang Monastery to close, the sounds of philosophical discussions and strange phenomena began to emanate from under the big tree in the back courtyard of Daliang Monastery. A hazy, misty scene spread across the entire courtyard, even engulfing the rest of the wine, covering about half the monastery grounds.

Within this area, the more one approached the center of this discourse, the more pronounced the sounds of the Tao and the extraordinary visions became, and the greater the pressure the beholder would face.

At this moment, of all the monks of Daliang Monastery, only Monk Huitong was able to stand just a short distance from the tree. The other senior monks of Daliang Monastery, including the former abbot, had long since succumbed, either leaving on their own or being carried out by monks who had sealed their own ears.

On the periphery, monks either took their own prayer mats or simply sat on the ground, meditating at appropriate distances, and gradually moving outwards as time went on.

However, although almost all the pilgrims outside cooperated, with so many people coming to Daliang Monastery every day, there were naturally some rebellious and curious individuals. Those who believed themselves to have some skill were prone to acting boldly or seeking to satisfy their curiosity.

More than an hour later, as the sun began to set, the area around Daliang Monastery was enveloped in the golden light of dusk. The shadows in front of the monastery stretched long, and visibility became dim and tinged in yellow.

At that moment, several nimble men quietly approached the deserted market outside the monastery from afar. Although there were no vendors or shoppers, there were still many stalls and stands remaining.

Approaching quietly, the group quickly found a stall on the outskirts and crouched down, using the stall and the tables and chairs inside as cover.

From this vantage point, the front of the monastery complex appeared dark and shadowed, while illuminated from the back by the setting sun, making it seem as if it were bathed in golden light. It exuded a very strong Buddhist aura.

A man in gray robes peeked out and looked around for a moment before asking the person next to him.

“Hey, brother, what exactly happened at Daliang Monastery?”

“If I knew that, why would I even be here?”

The speaker was a man dressed in dark brown clothes, with a thin face and a small mustache.

Another man nearby, dressed in a blue, close-fitting robe, chimed in with a comment.

“Everything was normal at Daliang Monastery up until just now, but suddenly a large number of monks came out and asked the pilgrims to leave. They even used the National Temple’s Buddhist Decree, which had never been used ever since it was bestowed upon them, making it all seem extremely hasty.”

The man with the mustache pondered for a moment, then his expression suddenly changed.

“Brother Tan, could it be that something happened to the Princess inside?”

However, the man in the blue robe immediately shook his head.

“No, no, I asked Sixth Master before, and he said that the Princess went to see Monk Huitong today, but he was still with a guest, so she had already returned to Tongqiu Vlla. What happened at the temple should have nothing to do with the Princess.”

“Hmm, let’s wait until it gets a little darker before going in and taking a look!”

The three fell silent for a moment, watching the afterglow of the sunset gradually fade and the night grow darker.

“Brother, Brother Tan, I’ve heard that there are really eminent monks at Daliang Monastery, the kind who can exorcise demons and ghosts. There’s also Master Huitong, who is said to be over fifty years old, but he still looks like a handsome young man in his early twenties. Is it okay for us to go in like this?”

“Haha, Brother Tang, you are right, but there’s no need to worry too much. As Sixth Master said before, the skilled monks rely on Buddhism to subdue demons and exorcise ghosts. Buddhist techniques are not very effective against us healthy people with vigorous vitality and energy. Martial arts are more useful. With our qinggong, we can leave before the monks can even react.”

“Indeed, I may not have much confidence in other areas, but I am very confident in my movement techniques.”

Finally, night fell completely, However, for the three men, the weather was not cooperating tonight, as the stars in the sky were even brighter than usual.

Under the starlight, the surroundings felt even clearer than they had been at dusk. However, they couldn’t worry about that now; hoping for clouds to gather tonight was impossible.

“Let’s go, remember to walk quietly!”

“Okay!”

The three emerged from their hiding place and, with a few quick leaps, reached the outer perimeter of Daliang Monastery. However, did not head for the main gate, but rather a corner of the wall.

They glanced at the sandalwood plaque hanging at the entrance to Daliang Monastery from afar. The imperial gold plaque next to it was still quite visible under the starlight, with a touch of gold embellishing the wooden plaque.

“Aren’t the monks of Daliang Monastery afraid of having their imperial gold plaque stolen?”

“Who cares!”

After whispering a few words to each other, the group circled along the wall to one side of the monastery. They listened carefully, but heard no sound from inside. After nodding to each other, they all simultaneously climbed over the wall.

Like three nimble swallows, they leaped over the wall and landed on their feet, their qinggong technique making it such that their movements made almost no sound.

This location was a small square outside the Mingwang Buddha Hall. The three men looked around, but found that it was completely empty. Apart from the ever-burning lamps in the hall, the other monks’ quarters and halls were completely dark.

Daliang Monastery was unusually quiet tonight. They could neither hear chanting, nor could they hear the sound of bells ringing.

But the three men, skilled and daring, felt no fear. Besides, this was the Daliang Monastery, there were no evil spirits or monsters to be found here.

The large number of people at Daliang Monastery had led to the construction of walls around the various courtyards of the temple to prevent people from feeling crammed together. While this made it easier to get lost, there were usually monks waiting around to help people find their way.

However, there were certainly no monks to guide them now. The men walked through several courtyards without seeing a single individual.

“Strange, where have the monks from Daliang Monastery gone?”

The younger man, surnamed Tang, was about to step out of an archway when his older brother stopped him and pointed to a corner ahead.

The three of them cautiously looked over there and saw a dozen or so monks sitting in a row against the wall. Some sat in a meditative posture, while others leaned against the wall as if asleep.

“What?”

“Don’t disturb them. Let’s go around from another direction.”

The three changed course, wanting to go deeper, but after circumventing that location, they still found monks sitting and meditating elsewhere. They changed directions several times. Sometimes there were only one or two, sometimes there were more than a dozen. There were always monks sitting on the outer edges, mostly leaning against the wall.

After a long while, the three stopped in front of a courtyard wall on the west side, where two monks lay on the ground in front of them.

“They seemed to have formed a circle, but we didn’t find any elder monks. There must be something strange going on inside that circle!”

“Good, let’s go in this way!”

After a brief exchange, the three of them, without stopping, leapt over the courtyard wall where the monks were unconscious, then leapt again into the courtyard about four or five zhang behind it, like three light swallows.

Seeing that there was nothing unusual around them, the three continued walking forward. However, as they walked, the youngest one began to frequently shake his head.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Brother, I keep hearing sounds like poetry in my ears. Some of them are long, some of the verses are short, and I can’t understand them at all.”

“What poetry? Stop talking nonsense and calm down!”

After walking for a while, the man with the mustache, surnamed Tang, also noticed something unusual. As they passed a small pond, they discovered that lotus flowers were growing and emerging from the water, quickly blooming into golden lotuses, emitting a delicate fragrance.

“Golden lotuses?”

The man exclaimed in surprise. He used his qinggong to leap over, intending to touch a lotus petal and break off a golden lotus flower…

Water splashed and rippled the pond, but there were no lotus leaves or flowers, or indeed any golden lotuses in bloom.

“Shh… Brother Tang, what are you doing?”

“Golden lotus, golden lotuses were blooming!”

“What golden lotuses? Are you possessed? Quickly, pull your brother out!”

The two of them pulled the mustachioed man out of the small pond, slapped his face to wake him up, and then continued forward. Along the way, they saw several more unconscious monks. However, even though the latter were unconscious, they still had serene expressions and smiles on their faces.

As they made their way forward, it was no longer just one person experiencing hallucinations; faint indistinct rainbow lights drifted around them, and the starlight in the sky shone brightly, like silver rain falling down.

They could hear faint conversations, sometimes like thunder, sometimes like the babbling of a clear spring, sometimes like an old monk chanting sutras, and sometimes like a refined scholar playing the zither amidst flowing water and towering mountains.

The three of them had long since stopped in their tracks, their senses and perceptions overwhelmed by a powerful shock.

On several occasions, they even saw enormous mythical beasts floating in the air, falling from the sky and brushing past them. They saw cranes dancing, transforming into smiling immortals as they approached.

Many times, the three of them almost cried out in surprise, but they managed to restrain themselves with their remaining composure.

“Immortals, Buddhas, spirits, demons, monsters… all sentient beings in the world have a heart that yearns for the Tao.”

“Sir, you are mistaken. For now, let us set asideaside immortals, Buddhas, spirits, and monasters… That is certainly not the case for demons!”

“What the master said makes sense, but allow me to correct you. Some demons still have a heart that yearns for the Tao. For example, the demon of obsession, or the demon of fanaticism. Only those with firm will can become demons.”

“Indeed! Without desire or creation, demons would never exist. When one’s desires become excessive, demonic thoughts also become excessive. Seeking gold and silver, seeking official positions and power, seeking immortality and longevity—the stronger the desires become, the stronger the lusts…”

As soon as they heard these voices, the minds of the three martial artists who had snuck into the area were thrown into turmoil. It was as if their desires were being stirred up layer by layer, yet they were surrounded by others angrily reminding them that this was not the right course of action.

“Ahhh, I can’t take it anymore!”

The young man surnamed Tang couldn’t help but swing his fists and feet wildly, knocking his swaying older brother and friend back a few steps. However, the two did not sober up. Instead, they wandered around as if drunk, their faces sometimes showing surprise and sometimes crying.

“Praise be to the Mingwang Buddha! You three benefactors should not have come!”

An old monk appeared in the courtyard and decisively subdued the three men. He then pressed acupoints on their bodies, stimulating them and infusing them with a trace of spiritual energy.

“Master…”

The man surnamed Tan stared blankly at the old monk in front of him.

“You three benefactors, this is the reason why our Daliang Monastery is closed to visitors. Please leave immediately!”

“Yes, yes, yes! We’re leaving right now!”

“Yes, yes, we’ll leave immediately!”

“Excuse me, please forgive us, we are leaving!”

Seeing that they had not offended the monk, the three men felt as though they had been granted a pardon. They quickly leapt monk had not offended them, the three of them felt as if they had been granted a pardon and quickly leaped away, using their movement techniques to the fullest extent to escape the area before their heads became dizzy again. They then fled far from Daliang Monastery without looking back.

T/n: cool tidbit, a lot of the (very watered down) Buddhist philosophy that JY and the monk are discussing actually heavily influenced the Jedi culture of Star Wars. Therefore, I encourage you to imagine the monks as Jedi for the next couple chapters. Heck, JY basically has a glowing laser sword of unstoppable destruction already, as well as basically telekinesis.