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Chapter 199 Bodhi
As he finished speaking, Zhou You disregarded the expressions of the others, and like a true Tantric master, he surveyed his surroundings with an arrogant and overbearing air.

"To be honest, I don't want to get involved in your petty squabbles at all. Who offended whom, who provoked whom, that's none of my business. All I want to do is follow the temple's orders and catch Zhengde peacefully."

Zhou You stood up and patted the huge carcass of the wild boar.

"But there are always people trying to cause trouble for me. We haven't even set off yet, and one of my combatants has already been killed—of course, the dead can't be brought back to life, and I don't want to mess up the rest of the business because of this one dead man. But I also want to ask you a question."

"—You went through all that trouble to get here, are you all here for revenge or personal grudges?"

This time, everyone fell silent.

Everyone, including the pale-faced scholar, began to consider their own objectives.

Ultimately, aren't we all here to fulfill our wishes?

Besides this goal, everything else is worthless.
Thinking of this, the people under the wild boar stopped making a fuss and all looked at Zhou You expectantly, waiting for him to give an explanation.

Zhou You lived up to expectations and spoke directly.

"I don't care what your conflicts are, or who killed this pig. I only ask one thing: you all must obediently go and arrest Zhengde. After you succeed, I will guarantee it with the reputation of Bodhi Temple. Those who have made contributions can all enter the Dharma assembly and fulfill all their wishes. Do you understand?"

A moment later, he finally received a reply.

"We'll listen to the master!"

Only in the corner, Cai Yuankui rubbed his chin, his face full of admiration.

That's really good acting.

If I didn't know him well, I would have thought he was a Tantric master.
-
On the other side, at the residence of the snake monk.

Outside the gate, the crowd remained kneeling on the ground.

This world lacks everything except suffering. The sick, the afflicted, the desperate, the begging—all are devoutly praying to that blissful land, hoping that among the myriad gods and Buddhas, one of them might glance at them, even just once.

Outside, incense smoke rose in abundance, turning into wisps that slowly ascended into the sky. Inside, only a faint candlelight provided illumination, making it as dark as if it were no longer daytime.

A short while later, a voice came from inside the door.

"Wang Erhu".

A kneeling commoner suddenly raised his head, his thin, bony face filled with astonishment and joy.

He seemed to find it hard to believe that he had been chosen.

The rest of the crowd looked at him with extreme envy until he ran into the mansion, at which point their gazes lowered again, and then the chanting suddenly rose again.

And amidst this Buddhist chanting, the faint screams coming from inside the mansion could not be heard.

The venomous monk was engrossed in the slaughtering table, extracting a bright red heart from the still twitching human body.

He tossed the still-steaming contents into the earthenware pot, wiped his hands with a towel, and then looked up.

This dark, quiet room was filled with all sorts of bottles and jars; apart from the area around the slaughtering table, there wasn't even a place to put your foot down.

Only then did the snake monk breathe a sigh of relief.

—After rushing around, we finally managed to prepare all the materials before the Dharma assembly.

I have not failed the Dharma King's trust.

After cleaning the blood off his body, the snake monk rested for a while, then found the robe he only wore on important occasions and put it on. He then carefully applied a layer of fragrant powder to his face, and after checking in the mirror to make sure there was nothing inappropriate, he clapped his hands.

A hunched figure walked in from outside.

In the dim candlelight, the man's nose, eyes, and ears were clearly gouged out, and even his teeth had been pulled out. Only his tongue remained on his entire face.

But the man seemed oblivious to his situation, simply standing respectfully by the door with his hands at his sides.

"The venomous snake monk said casually."

"Prepare the car. I've finished dealing with my things and need to get to the temple right away." However, the man didn't move. After a while, a hoarse voice came from his throat.

"Your Majesty, your chariot was lent to the traveling monk Songyang the day before yesterday and cannot be used for the time being."

"What about the spare one?"

"My lord, the spare vehicle was destroyed during the capture of Zhengde."

"Then just find me any car! Damn it, how can you be so brainless—"

The conversation abruptly stopped, and the snake monk, looking at that face, suddenly let out a mocking laugh.

"I almost forgot, you really are brainless. Tsk, you've become less and less useful over the years. It's time to replace you with a new one after the Dharma Assembly. I think Ben Shan should be quite good."

While talking to himself, the snake monk was the first to walk out of the house, followed closely by the disfigured man.

Before long, a carriage drove out of the mansion, and all the people around prostrated themselves in deep worship.

They chanted in unison.

“Teaching and showing joy, and praising and admiring it.”
-
About two incense sticks later, in front of the Bodhi Temple.

The entire temple is now enveloped in pure golden light, as if bathed in the sun. Ordinary people would be burned to ashes by this brilliant Buddhist light, let alone enter it.

...The snake monk was also somewhat uneasy at this moment.

Although he was there to deliver a mission personally assigned by the Dharma King, communication with the monastery had been cut off some time ago, and now everything was unclear; whether he could even get in was another matter entirely.

Fortunately.

Just as he was about to touch the golden light, an old voice rang in his ears.

"Is this Duen? Come in."

The snake monk was taken aback, then his face lit up with joy.

—It's the voice of the Dharma King!
—He really hasn't forgotten me!
The sharp-tongued monk hurriedly clasped his hands together and bowed, but instead of going in, he turned around and scolded him.

"I'm going to see the Dharma King, you wait here!"

Seeing the disfigured man, draped in a black robe, silently nod, Du En then unfurled his robe and walked excitedly toward the temple.

As expected, the golden light of the sun did not hinder him in the slightest, and he passed through it as if it were nothing—but the next second, his expression suddenly became dazed.

Was the temple like this before?

As the venomous snake monk looked around, he saw a forest of precious trees, palaces made of gold, tiles made of glazed tiles, and branches made of jade. Everything he saw was a beautiful and luxurious fairyland, just like the legendary Buddhist Pure Land.

At the edge of the field of vision, there is a colossal tree that reaches into the clouds, its lush green branches and leaves incredibly abundant, from which one can see countless foils engraved with scriptures.

However, the shock only lasted for a few seconds before it was replaced by great joy.

— Judging from this, preparations for the Three-Platform Dharma Assembly are almost complete!

After decades of forbearance and years of preparation, our wish is finally about to be fulfilled!
however.

In a state of ecstasy, for some reason...
Yet, there was a vague sense of unease about the snake monk.

Why does this scene look so familiar? I feel like I've seen it in some book before?

But the question is, in which book?
Before he could think it through, a kind and compassionate voice rang in his ears.

"Duen, this way."

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(End of this chapter)