Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 221 Burning of the Sutra Repository

The general layout of Shaolin Temple is as follows: after entering the mountain gate, there is a spacious square facing the Vajra Hall, which enshrines the Future Buddha and the Four Heavenly Kings.
Behind that is the Mahavira Hall, towering and majestic, and behind the hall is the Sutra Repository.

Upon hearing Jiang Mingzhe's words, Xuan Ci was even more alarmed. He turned around and looked back. Although he couldn't see the Sutra Repository through the two halls, he could still see a faint red light. He was furious: "How dare you set such a vicious fire in the Pure Zen Forest!"

Jiang Mingzhe said calmly, "Every sip and every bite is preordained. Thirty years ago, you were convinced that someone was coming to steal your Shaolin secret manual, so you killed their wife and servants, causing your family to be separated. Thirty years later, the karmic fire in the Sutra Pavilion illuminates the blood debt from outside Yanmen Pass. You reap what you sow, sow hatred and reap retribution. What is there for the old monk to be angry about?"

Upon hearing this, Xuan Ci was slightly taken aback, and his anger subsided considerably. He sighed and turned to say, "Junior Brother Xuan Ji, you lead the disciples of the Discipline Hall to put out the fire. Junior Brothers Xuan Yin and Xuan Shi will go with you."

The three old monks bowed and led more than twenty disciples away in a hurry.

Xuan Ci's gaze swept over Jiang Mingzhe and the others, finally settling on Murong Fu.

He slowly said, "That's right. Thirty years ago, I was deceived and accidentally injured that Khitan couple in the battle outside Yanmen Pass. For the past thirty years, I have been tormented every moment. It is no exaggeration to say that I have been restless and unable to sit or lie still day and night. But although this great mistake was made by me, it was the person who gave the false information..."

He kept looking at Murong Fu as he spoke, which puzzled Murong Fu. He thought to himself, "Why are you looking at me when you're saying this? You should either look at Jiang Mingzhe or Xiao Feng."
Jiang Mingzhe had already guessed his intention. The old monk had not revealed who provided the information, Murong Bo, for two reasons: first, he thought Murong Bo was dead, and second, he thought Murong Bo had also been tricked by someone else.

Later, Murong Bo appeared and introduced himself. Only then did the old monk realize that he was a descendant of the Yan royal family. He immediately guessed Murong Bo's intentions and identified him on the spot.

Just now, Duan Yu was praising the names of the Four Heroes and mentioned Murong Fu's identity as the grandson of the King of Yan. I'm afraid the old monk has already realized what he meant.

Jiang Mingzhe thought to himself, "This old monk talks a good game, but in the original story, Xiao Feng ventured into the world alone, asking around among those who knew the story. When did the old monk ever take the initiative to explain or take responsibility?"

Especially in front of the temple of the monk Zhiguang, he led several members of the Xuan generation, disguised themselves, and stopped Xiao Feng. He never mentioned the matter, which could have been explained in a single sentence. He was completely unrelated to the words "upright and honest".

The sudden attempt to point out the culprit is nothing more than a ploy to shift the blame. The Xiao family father and son certainly have the right to know who the culprit is, but there's no need to do so now.

He immediately interrupted, "The person who gave the false information certainly deserves to die, but what you, old monk, say is not entirely untrue either. You say you've had thirty years of restless days and nights? Haha, that's the most hypocritical thing you could say."

As soon as he finished speaking, more than ten monks shouted angrily at the same time: "You fiend, shut up! Don't judge a gentleman by your own petty standards."

Xuan Ci also looked calm and said lightly, "Those who know me say I am worried, those who do not know me ask what I seek. You are not this old monk, so it is not surprising that you do not know my heart."

Jiang Mingzhe couldn't help but laugh and said, "Old monk, you're quite the talker, but you probably don't know who I am! I am Jiang Mingzhe, a disciple of the Xingxiu Sect, and I hold a position of worship in the Dali Duan Clan. Have you figured out what I'm talking about?"

These words sounded nonsensical, and many monks cursed, "So they're so-called demons from the Starry Constellation Sect! No wonder they're colluding with those foreign tribes."

Jiang Mingzhe ignored him and simply smiled as he looked at Xuan Ci.

Xuan Ci frowned and said, "So you are the disciple of the Starry Sky Elder... Well, that's not a big deal. As for the Duan family of Dali, Shaolin Temple and Tianlong Temple have always been on good terms. If you hadn't destroyed the mountain gate and injured our monks, we could have turned enemies into friends out of consideration for the Duan family. But the mountain gate was destroyed, the monks were killed, Shaolin Temple's thousand-year reputation is at stake, and lives are at stake. Even with the Duan family's support, this matter cannot be let off the hook."

Jiang Mingzhe laughed, "I never intended to let this go. What I meant was, I am a retainer of the Duan family. Some time ago, the Four Evils wanted to oppose the Duan family. Did the old monk know about this?" Xuan Ci nodded, "This old monk knows. I even specially sent Junior Brother Xuan Bei to help with this matter. However, the masters of the Duan family are indeed formidable. By the time Junior Brother Xuan Bei arrived, he had already defeated the Four Evils."

Jiang Mingzhe said, "This is what I wanted to talk about. Old monk, when you sent people to Dali, was it to help the Duan family deal with the Four Evils, or were you afraid that the Duan family was too powerful and that the Four Evils would be like an egg hitting a rock, resulting in injury or even death?"

His words clearly implied that Shaolin Temple sent Xuanbei ostensibly to help the Duan family deal with the Four Evils, but secretly he was colluding with the Four Evils.

Therefore, all the monks were furious and cursed Jiang Mingzhe. Some of the more hot-tempered ones even took their anger out on the Duan family and cursed them incessantly.

Jiang Mingzhe shouted, "Shut up! You bald monks, why don't you think before you speak? If your abbot were truly upright, why wouldn't he say a word?"

The monks instinctively looked over and, sure enough, Xuanci frowned slightly, lost in thought and remained silent.

Xuan Nan, the head of the Bodhidharma Academy, exclaimed, "My senior brother is upright by nature. Why should he bother with such baseless slander?"

Jiang Mingzhe laughed loudly: "Is that so? Then Master Xuanci, you have Buddha behind you. In front of Buddha, you tell everyone that Ye Erniang, who kills an infant every day, is truly not worried about the life or death of this evil woman?"

Upon hearing the words "Ye Erniang," Xuan Ci swayed, his lips parted slightly, his eyes bulged, and his expression of horror was palpable.

Xuanbei's expression changed, and he suddenly rushed out, shouting, "Shameless demon, spouting nonsense! Shaolin disciples, follow me to subdue this demon!"

In the blink of an eye, he covered several feet in a few steps, and a "crushing pestle splitting the mountain" strike came crashing down on him with unparalleled force.

Jiang Mingzhe narrowed his eyes, thinking that as soon as Xuan Ci's weakness was exposed, this guy was the first to step forward. In the original story, he was the one sent to Gusu to find Murong Bo, and he was also the one sent to Dali. He was undoubtedly Xuan Ci's true loyalist. Anyway, this guy should have died long ago, so he might as well kill him to establish his authority!

He had been suppressing his murderous intent, but now that he had decided to kill, he felt as if he had drunk a few mouthfuls of cold tea in the middle of summer, and every pore of his body was filled with a refreshing feeling. He shouted loudly and charged forward, unleashing a "Crushing Pestle Splitting Mountain" strike.

Although Jiang Mingzhe's move came later, his fist arrived first. Xuan Bei was shocked and angry to see that he dared to use his famous kung fu to fight, and that the fierce energy in his moves was even stronger than his own. However, he dared not take the blow head-on, so he had to change his move.

Seeing that Jiang Mingzhe had suppressed Xuan Bei with a single move, the other monks also joined in. Murong Fu let out a long roar and shouted, "The Beggar Clan is colluding with the Western Xia, and Shaolin is cruel and immoral. Today, I, Murong Fu, will let you know that righteousness will always prevail in the martial world!"

He drew his sword with a whoosh and met the attack, just as Xuan Ku was swinging his blade.

Murong Fu frowned slightly, thinking that this man was Xiao Feng's master. If I killed him, wouldn't that be a disgrace to Xiao Feng?
Before the thought could even finish, the Xuan Ku Burning Wood Blade Technique was already unleashed. This blade technique is a fast-moving technique. When mastered, it can unleash eighty-one consecutive slashes on a dead tree without the blade touching the wood, yet the wood itself bursts into flames due to the intense heat of the air. One can only imagine how fast this technique is.

Xuan Ku swiftly slashed several times, as fast as lightning. Murong Fu was almost struck, only then realizing that the monk's martial arts were extremely high. He immediately focused on fighting back, and Murong Fu used his full swordsmanship to hold his own.

(End of this chapter)