Start practicing from Mr. Fox

Chapter 150 Imperial Rice Cake

On Mount Sendai, the White Maiden was explaining the questions from the previous test paper to a group of foxes when she suddenly caught a glimpse of a kingfisher in the sky.

Raise your slender fingers to catch it as it falls, and raise your eyebrows.

"Aren't you Master Xiyun's messenger bird? How did you get here?"

"Chirp."

The messenger bird looked up in response.

Miss Bai nodded slightly as she listened.

"I see. Go back and tell Mr. Chen that I understand."

The kingfisher then flapped its wings and flew away again.

Mr. Su also understands bird language, and only showed a worried expression after the kingfisher had completely disappeared.

"Miss Bai, if what you said earlier is true, and the matter of Lady Hongci is related to the City God and those monks, will Mr. Chen be in trouble?"

The white girl shook her head.

"Mr. Chen went to Qingfeng Temple. With Daoist Xiyun and the old abbot there, he should be fine. Besides, Mr. Chen's skills are profound. He only needs to understand the situation, so he is naturally safe."

"Indeed, I forgot about Mr. Chen's cultivation level."

He looked towards Qingliang Mountain and sighed.

"If one did not know, how could one believe that this was a practitioner who had only been practicing for less than a season?"

"I wonder how far Mr. Chen will go in the future."

"Perhaps he can become a true immortal on the righteous path, but as for what comes after that, I'm not sure."

Miss Bai said slowly.

Mr. Su was taken aback.

He spent more time on the mountain and knew that Miss Bai was extremely perceptive in judging people, but he never expected her to evaluate Chen Ji in this way.

After a pause, he asked Miss Bai, "Didn't you say earlier that Chen Ji's fate was still unclear?"
"I can't see clearly, but that doesn't stop me from knowing that you are very skilled in cultivation."

After saying this, he smiled slightly, as if he had seen something, and waved his hand to erase the non-existent trace in the air.

"Let's continue the lesson."

"okay."

Mr. Su nodded, not giving it much thought, and continued explaining the test questions to the foxes.

Meanwhile, on Mount Sendai, Chen Ji had already seen the gate of Qingfeng Temple in the distance and noticed that Daoist Xiyun was standing in front of the gate.

He quickly controlled the wind to land, then stepped forward and bowed.

"Why are you waiting for me at the door, fellow Daoist?"

“Master said that fellow practitioner has arrived, so let us come to greet him.”

After returning the greeting, Master Xiyun spoke slowly.

"The old abbot's cultivation is indeed impressive."

Chen Ji sighed, but Daoist Xi Yun just smiled and then started talking to Chen Ji about the matter.

"Sending a message by kingfisher is indeed quite urgent."

"how?"

"The Baishou Temple that you asked about earlier is the one that is under construction in the mountains. We spread the word that we had acquired some copper ingots, and they came to us, begging us to let them send some over to cast Buddha statues for them."

"We agreed and had one of our young Taoist priests deliver the copper ingots, but we never expected something like this to happen."

"Have the disciples of the temple encountered danger?"

Chen Ji looked over.

He had asked his fellow Daoists at Qingfeng Temple for help with this matter, and he would feel bad if any of the disciples in the temple got into trouble because of it.

"No, it's just that he noticed some of the lay Buddhists in the temple seemed a bit abnormal."

"Moreover, the monks in the temple did not allow him to talk to believers or other monks; they simply took the copper ingots and sent him back."

"So a few days ago we said that we were preparing for a grand religious ceremony and it was inconvenient to send it over, so we asked them to come here and collect the copper themselves, and sure enough, we found a problem."

“The monks in the temple have an eerie aura, and the believers look somewhat dazed.”

"Is that so? Didn't the old abbot notice?"

"It was Master who saw it, but it can only be seen in the temple. It was only by chance that I bumped into that young Taoist and discovered that he had some demonic aura, which is why I asked him about it."

"Moreover, the salt expert also discovered that they had eaten a pastry called Imperial Rice Crisp."

"This stuff has a unique smell, and it's easy to get addicted if you eat too much of it. It can also cause hallucinations. I've been to Baishou Temple and I did find that they planted a whole patch of it, but I didn't see any demonic aura about it."

Chen Ji looked over in surprise.

Master Xiyun's cultivation level is not low either; even he didn't realize that Baishou Temple indeed has some tricks up its sleeve.

However, he didn't ask why the old abbot hadn't been invited to take a look.

That's how spiritual practice is; there will always be times when you have to go out and experience things on your own. You can't ask the old abbot to step in every time something happens.

But Master Xiyun understood Chen Ji's meaning and spoke with a smile.

"My master did say he wanted to go, but I thought if he went, he might just use a spell to flatten Baishou Temple. So I couldn't get any other information out of him."

"So I'll let you know first, in case we discover anything."

"indeed so."

Chen Ji nodded his thanks.

"Then I'll go and see for myself."

As he spoke, he looked back at the demons and ghosts behind him.

"Bringing you along would make your demonic aura too strong, making it difficult to conceal yourselves. It's better to stay here. I'll go and take a look with the Stone Mill Demon."

"Of course I should accompany you, fellow Daoist."

The stone mill demon did not refuse and burrowed into the peach fairy's body to conceal its presence.

Chen Ji then changed his clothes and led the Stone Mill Demon down the mountain. Like a normal person, he climbed the mountain along the path and made his way to the place where the temple had been built earlier.

In the past, when traveling from the air, the road didn't seem very long. But now, after climbing up from the foot of the mountain, it took almost half an hour to see the fork in the road.

The previous timber and stone materials along the way had been used up. The mountain gate stood tall, and the golden hall was magnificent. In the distance, one could see the ebony plaque at the entrance of the temple that read "Bai Shou Temple," and even hear the sound of Buddhist scriptures being recited.

Neither the art of observing qi nor the art of geomancy could discern anything amiss; it appeared to be a majestic and awe-inspiring sight.

"As expected, it won't work."

Chen Ji looked away.

I had initially thought I would be able to discover the problem once I arrived, but now it seems I was overthinking it.

Continuing towards the temple, the mountain paths on both sides had been burned white and then dug out and filled with gravel.

Chen Ji had seen Bai Qi and his group working on the road for so long, so he naturally knew that it was in preparation for paving the road.

Nowadays, without cement, the best material for road construction and wall building is this glutinous rice mortar, which makes the bricks and stones bonded together exceptionally strong.

Bai Qi and his group relied on magic to build roads. The stones were thick and heavy, making them compact, and the cost was high, so they didn't use magic.

They never imagined using such a luxurious thing when they were building roads for the village.

Perhaps only temples, Taoist temples, and city walls would be willing to part with such things.

But looking up, the road is more than a kilometer long, and there are foundations for a wall in the distance.

If we use all of these materials, I don't know how many thousands of dan of glutinous rice and river sand we would need. I roughly calculated the cost.

Chen Ji sighed.

No wonder a single Buddhist ceremony at Baishou Temple costs five hundred taels of silver.

Without such an expensive religious ceremony, it would be impossible for them to afford to build this temple.

Chen Ji sighed as a group of people carrying stones walked by. They found a good spot by the roadside, tilted the stones down with a whoosh, and then headed back the way they came.

Even when he saw Chen Ji, he didn't glance at him twice.

Chen Ji glanced at the group and immediately understood what Master Xi Yun meant when he said that the believers in the temple didn't seem quite right.

The people carrying loads in front of me were dressed in different ways: some wore hemp clothes and short jackets, some wore coarse cloth clothes, and some even wore thin silk.

But their gazes were almost identical, focused solely on the stone in front of them, oblivious to everything else.

"Please wait, believer."

Chen Ji shouted and stopped the two people who were tilting stones beside him.

Perhaps because the sound was a bit loud, or because they used their magic, the two of them shuddered and stopped.

The two looked at Chen Ji and blinked, but when they spoke, it was as if they had returned to their previous way of speaking.

"Is there anything I can help you with, benefactor?"

Chen Ji raised an eyebrow. He had just used a soul-binding technique, which had given him quite a fright.

If these people were under an illusion, they should have woken up by now, but they still haven't recovered.

This confirms that their souls were not disturbed in the temple.

However, the way it can turn a person into this state is somewhat unlike the methods used in the righteous path.

“If you have nothing to do, believers, we still need to carry stones to repair the road, so please don’t tease us.”

One of the porters began to complain.

Chen Ji had no choice but to clasp his hands in apology.

“I am a villager from the foot of the mountain. I am a sculptor who carries loads. I heard that the temple is a place where prayers are answered, so I came to pray. I don’t know how to get there though.”

"That's right."

Hearing Chen Ji's words, the porter's eyesight improved somewhat, but he still corrected Chen Ji.

"This isn't about praying to gods, it's about worshipping Buddha."

"The bodhisattvas and Buddhas in the temple are indeed very efficacious. If you are sincere, don't skimp on the incense money, and you will be satisfied."

"We all volunteered to repair the road in the temple because we believed that the Buddha's prayers had been answered."

"You don't know that there are 1,080 steps on this staircase, representing the 108 afflictions. Each step you take can eliminate the karmic debts of one lifetime. Once you have completed all the steps, you will naturally achieve perfection in ten lifetimes and become an unsurpassed Arhat..."

The man carrying the load had a gleam in his eyes as he spoke of these things.

Chen Ji frowned.

Ordinary believers don't get this excited when talking about these things, which is indeed a bit strange.

"Why don't we talk as we walk, without disturbing you two as you choose stones?"

“Excellent!”

The believer smiled and turned back, walking towards the temple with Chen Ji, then lowered his voice.

“Let me tell you, I donated two hundred taels of silver to qualify for this road repair. If you are late, you may not have this opportunity.”

"Two hundred taels?"

Chen Ji stared at the clothes on his body.

Although it was a silk garment, the cuffs and collar showed signs of wear and washing, indicating that it was worn frequently. The family was probably not well-off, and the two hundred taels of silver would likely have been a significant financial burden for them.

So they inquired about these things indirectly.

A moment later, they learned about his family situation.

He bought some cheap goods in Zhanshui Town and sold them to a traveling peddler. He bought low and sold high, but he didn't earn much. He only made about twenty or thirty taels of silver a year. These two hundred taels of silver were his savings of ten years.

"So they can actually come up with two hundred taels of silver?"

Chen Ji looked ahead and saw many porters dressed in coarse cloth and short linen clothes, all doing the same thing as the road repair work.

Even if they sold all their possessions, they couldn't scrape together twenty taels of silver, let alone two hundred.

"They are different."

The speaker shook his head.

“They were tenant farmers who voluntarily sought refuge at the temple, which is why they had this opportunity.”

"I see. Thank you for clearing up my doubts."

Chen Ji understood a bit, and before he could ask anything else, he saw a thatched hut in the distance, where several monks were standing and emptying stones from baskets with the others.

The man pouring the stones chanted Buddhist prayers as he did so. Another monk sat at a table, a string of prayer beads around his neck. He was broad and stout, and Chen Ji vaguely felt that he had seen him somewhere before.

But upon closer inspection, I have no recollection of it.

The monk was carefully tending to the bronze stove beside him, holding a palm-leaf fan, while pastries were laid out on the table.

When the porters returned, he would proactively brew tea and serve them pastries.

The porter in silk robes stepped forward, took the tea and pastries, and then explained to Chen Ji.

“Building roads in the temple is not hard labor. The tea and pastries are extremely delicious. They are made with imperial rice and are very tasty. Even if the believer does not build roads, they can still try them after explaining their purpose.”

"Zhang Shanxin, who is this benefactor?"

As they were talking, the monks inside the shed noticed Chen Ji and clasped their hands together, asking for his guidance.

Chen Ji then repeated the words he had spoken to Zhang Shanxin earlier.

"I wonder which craftsman is your helper."

"Song San".

"It's him."

The monk seemed to be deep in thought, then smiled and looked at Chen Ji.

"I never expected that he would have a gentleman like him carrying the load. It seems that Buddha has eyes."

"Since he is a relative of the Song craftsman, then he has some connection with this temple. You may use this tea and pastries."

He then served Chen Ji a cup and gestured for him to take the pastries himself.

"Thank you, Master."

Chen Ji took the tea and picked up the pastries, and sure enough, he smelled a wonderful fragrance.

But remembering what the salt master had said, she didn't dare to eat it immediately. Instead, she asked what it was made of, since it smelled so good.

"This is imperial rice, which was discovered by the temple's patriarch. It's not commonly found in ordinary places, and only the temple grows a patch of it."

As he spoke, he looked to one side and pointed it out to Chen Ji.

Chen Ji looked over and was momentarily surprised; even with his cultivation level, he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

He had previously heard Daoist Xiyun talk to monks, and assumed it was corn or imperial rice, but upon seeing this thing, he suddenly remembered that there was another thing with this alternative name.

No wonder the salt expert said that this stuff can easily cause hallucinations and addiction.

If it's made with this kind of imperial rice, it would be strange if it didn't have these two effects.

Taking advantage of the monk's inattention, they secretly put away the pastries and splashed water on the ground.

Thanks to the documentaries and education I received back then, even though I have now attained a certain level of spiritual cultivation and am no longer an ordinary person, I still dare not touch this thing.

"How is it? Isn't it beautiful? Within a radius of hundreds of miles, I'm afraid only our Baishou Temple has something like this."

The monk said smugly.

Chen Ji snapped out of his daze and hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting.

"It is indeed beautiful. With such a poisonous creature in Baishou Temple, no wonder the incense is so popular!"

The monk thought it was a rare treat and thanked him with a smile. Then, noticing that Chen Ji had run out of pastries, he asked him for another one.

"No need. I already feel warmth in my stomach. Such a divine object should be left for the next person. I'd like to go and offer my prayers first."

“Very well, Minghe, take this benefactor to have a look.”

"Yes, please, benefactor."

A young novice monk stepped forward, clasped his hands together in a gesture of respect, and then gestured for Chen Ji to accompany him.

“Zhang Shanxin, then I will…”

Chen Ji turned around, about to thank the silk-clad porter, but saw that he was already eating the imperial rice cake with a smile on his face, oblivious to what was happening around him, so he had no choice but to give up.

He squinted and followed the young novice monk.

They took the opportunity to inquire about the situation at Baishou Temple.

"There are many temples and monasteries on Mount Sendai, so why do you still want to build a temple here, Master?"

"Naturally, it was arranged by our master. He said that this place has Buddha-nature, so he specially moved us here so that we could cultivate ourselves properly."

The young novice monk, unsuspecting, answered willingly.

Where were you before?

"Near Fenshan Town."

“It’s certainly not as peaceful there.”

Chen Ji nodded slightly.

On the way thereafter, he acted like an ordinary person, talking about topics from the nearby villages, but he still managed to gather a lot of information.

Soon, after passing through the three mountain gates, the young novice stopped in front of a large hall and looked at Chen Ji.

"Esteemed benefactor, we have arrived at the Hall of Eight Treasures. Would you like to go in and pay your respects?"

Chen Ji looked up and saw the three large characters "Eight Treasures Hall" on the plaque above the hall's entrance, which made him feel puzzled.

"The first hall of an ordinary temple is not the Hall of Heavenly Kings, so why does your precious temple abandon the Buddha and enshrine the Eight Treasures?"

(End of this chapter)