The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 544 Transcendence
On the fifth day of the fifth month of the twenty-sixth year of the Jiajing reign.

Japan, Settsu Province, Nishinari District.

It was midsummer, and the temperature was gradually rising. Seosung County, the granary of the capital region, was in the tillering stage. The paddy fields on both sides of the road were covered with tender green rice seedlings, which stretched out as far as the eye could see until they met the bright sunlight.

Ryota Miyoshi wiped his sweat and looked up at the sky.

"So boring."

he thought.

It's already the beginning of the plum rain season, and the air is full of humidity. Although the temperature is still relatively cool, the afternoon sun makes people feel sticky and heavy all over.

His haori was soaked with sweat. Ryota Miyoshi fanned himself a few times by lifting the hem, but it didn't make him feel much cooler. He wiped his hands on the hem, touched the hilt of his sword at his waist, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming it wasn't slippery.

He had to ensure he could draw his sword at any moment.

Because he had entered the heart of the war-torn region of Japan, only a step away from Kyoto. The Emperor had lost control of the territory, which was inhabited by demons who tested their swords on living people, outcasts from sword dojos, warrior monks who did not abstain from wine and women, and deserters who committed all kinds of evil.

And since he was carrying a knife, he was an even easier target for these people.

He should be especially wary of any unusual passerby, as any random person passing by might suddenly slash him with a knife... At least that's what his master told him before he left home.

Take that oxcart in front of us, for example.

Ryota Miyoshi squinted as he looked ahead.

He had been traveling alongside the oxcart ahead for some time, but he had always kept a distance, and the other vehicle had not shown any intention of communicating with him.

The three people in the car were unusual.

One man and two women.

The older woman drove the car ahead, occasionally turning back to chat and laugh with the man. The younger woman knelt beside him, massaging his shoulders and legs like a maid.

From top to bottom, inside and out, nothing feels right.

First, there's their appearance and demeanor. These three men are so handsome it's enviable, and their speech exudes an air of nobility, even the maidservant. Such people should be drinking and making merry in the city's high-rises, not traveling under the scorching sun in a dilapidated oxcart.

Secondly, clothing.

Ryota Miyoshi wiped his sweat again.

"The two women's clothes were fairly normal, but that man... wasn't he hot?"

He could only see the man's head, but his body was tightly wrapped in a black bearskin. Although he was sweating profusely, the man seemed to be in the dead of winter, and he could hear faint coughing from time to time.

"Tuberculosis? A cold?"

Ryota Miyoshi speculated.

Ahead, Lu Wushuang turned around and smiled.

"Sir, that brat is watching us again. Should I go and deal with him?"

Li Miao coughed a few times and smiled.

"Don't worry about it. I'm not at the point where I'd kill any random Japanese kid."

"Are we about to enter Enryakuji's territory?"

Lu Wushuang translated, and Nanako carefully identified the direction, calculated the distance in her mind, and replied in a low voice.

"It's still a hundred li away from Mount Hiei."

"But this area is already close to the Enryaku-ji Temple's territory. If we go a little further ahead and pass Akutagawa Castle, we can see the warrior monks coming and going."

Lu Wushuang relayed the message, and Li Miao nodded.

"Oh... how far is it from Toshodai-ji Temple?"

"It's about a hundred miles, but you have to go southeast."

Nanako replied.

“Enryaku-ji Temple and Toshodai-ji Temple are 120 li apart. Unless you take a detour, they are not on the same route.”

As she answered, she carefully observed Li Miao's expression.

Enryaku-ji Temple is the center of Buddhism in Japan. As a Buddhist, she really didn't dare to think about what the consequences would be if Li Miao entered Mount Hiei... Although she didn't witness the events at Izumo Taisha Shrine herself, she later learned the general outline from passersby.

She didn't dare voice her true thoughts, only hinting that it wasn't on her way. Fortunately, Li Miao wasn't particularly interested in Yanli Temple to begin with.

"Then let's go to Akutagawa Castle first."

"Rest for one night, tomorrow... cough, set off for Toshodai-ji Temple."

Li Miao covered his mouth and coughed lightly, which made Lu Wushuang look at him with concern.

"My lord, your injury..."

"It's just a little inconvenient."

Li Miao pulled open her shirt, revealing a transparent hole in her chest, through which one could even see the clothes on her back.

"This is the first time I've used my internal energy to simulate internal organs for such a long time. Occasionally, I make a few mistakes, which is why I cough a few times. But it doesn't affect anything else."

"However, it is indeed a bit annoying. In my current state, I can still beat up weaker opponents, but it's a bit difficult against stronger ones... Hopefully, I can find some clues at Toshodai-ji Temple."

Lu Wushuang had not yet completed his cultivation as a Celestial Being, and did not know what to say. He could only nod, turn around, and drive the carriage, hoping to reach the next city as soon as possible so that Li Miao could rest in peace.

So the oxcart continued on its way.

After walking for a while, Lu Wushuang suddenly heard Li Miao say something.

"What were they saying in front of me?"

"Little Deer, translate this."

Lu Wushuang held her breath and listened intently, only then did she vaguely hear a series of voices coming from a distance ahead. The voices were not loud, but they were babbling on and on, as if they were reciting something.

“Shariputra, I speak these words because I see this as beneficial. If any sentient being hears these words, they should aspire to be reborn in that land… This is like the Buddha’s sutra.”

She turned to look at Nanako.

"What scripture is this?"

"The Buddha spoke the Amitabha Sutra."

Nanako's eyes flashed, and she answered.

"What is this for?"

"Hmm... in a place like this," Nanako looked around at the desolate landscape, "they're probably performing a ritual to appease the spirits of the dead, or perhaps someone died and they've hired monks to perform a ceremony?"

Lu Wushuang relayed this to Li Miao.

Li Miao raised his eyebrows and smiled.

"Perform a ritual?"

"Heh...Do they bleed people during rituals in Japan?"

Lu Wushuang frowned.

Even without Li Miao's explanation, the chanting of sutras in front of them gradually became clearer as they spoke.

Along with the chanting, a fresh smell of rust and incense ash became clearer, along with the sounds of taiko drums being struck and tin staffs being shaken.

Nanako's face turned ugly.

Having traveled with Li Miao, she had seen and tasted quite a bit. How could she not smell that fresh, rusty smell was the smell of human blood?
Even Miyoshi Ryota, who was following behind the oxcart, had changed his expression. He reached out and grabbed his knife, rushing forward while shouting something, as if trying to persuade Li Miao and the other two to stop for the time being.

But the distance was already too close.

The oxcart rolled over the gentle slope ahead and stopped at the highest point.

The three people on the oxcart saw that in the paddy field ahead, a pool of blood was seeping out from several piled-up corpses, flowing into the field and mixing with the green rice seedlings.

A naginata was stuck in the pile of corpses.

Several monks dressed in black and white robes were chanting sutras over the corpses with their heads bowed. Not far away, a monk was raising his naginata and carrying a corpse back, as if he was about to throw it onto a pile of corpses.

The three watched quietly, but Miyoshi Ryota caught up from behind. He glanced at the monks, then suddenly covered his mouth, disregarding his suspicions about Li Miao and the others, and whispered.

"Don't look, run!"

“Those are warrior monks from Enryaku-ji Temple… If they find out you saw this, you won’t be able to leave Settsu!”

(End of this chapter)