Invasion Myth: Starting with the Schoolteacher

Chapter 1009 The God of War Emerges from Seclusion
Da da da da da…!
The heavy, rapid sound of horses' hooves shattered the tranquility of the outskirts of Suiyang City.

At this moment, Prince Liang was like a tiger descending from the mountain, filled with boundless anger and murderous intent. He took the lead and headed straight for Linji Temple on the outskirts of the city.

Although they were relatively inexperienced in many areas, horseback riding and hunting were high-class activities in this era, so they were naturally skilled at them.

Wearing a set of flashy armor, he truly has the air of a young general.

Behind him followed dozens of people, a truly impressive lineup: there were elite guards from the royal palace dressed in light armor and wielding sharp blades; there were monks and Taoist masters from the palace with calm demeanor and sharp eyes; there were even several monks and Taoist masters who had been temporarily invited, as well as several martial arts masters with renowned reputations in the martial arts world.

These people were specially transferred from the palace and other places by the princess because she loved her son. They were ostensibly there to assist, but in reality, they were there to protect him.

The princess may be blind to certain things and spoil her son, but she is actually well aware of his character and knows that this trip will surely cause trouble.

If they couldn't stop him, they could only arrange for more people to follow him, hoping to protect him and at least prevent him from suffering a major loss.

However, the tiger tally of the "General Who Pacifies the South" was forcibly confiscated and not taken away.

She knew that the Prince of Liang was currently in the capital for study and was in a very sensitive situation, so it was best for her family not to make any mistakes in such a sensitive matter as military mobilization.

The princess's maternal family may not be considered the most prestigious, but it is only slightly less powerful. They still possess the necessary political acumen and caution.

Thus, this "luxurious provocation group," composed of dozens of guards, worshippers, monks, Taoists, and martial artists, arrived in a grand procession in front of the Linji Temple gate.

After dismounting, Prince Liang looked at the silent temple before him, but instead of showing any fear, a morbid excitement surged up on his face.

"Are you sure Xu Xuan is inside?"

Upon reconfirmation, the voice became somewhat shrill with excitement.

A trusted guard beside him quickly bowed and replied, "Yes, General. Our men have been watching him day and night and have confirmed that he has not left since returning the day before yesterday."

It is worth mentioning that when Liang Shizi was out, he particularly liked his subordinates to call him "General" and disliked adding the words "Pingnan" before it.

Because the title of "General Who Pacifies the South" was merely a nominal title of the fifth rank, and in the northern lands where powerful and influential people were as numerous as hairs on a cow, the fact that he held the position of a ninth-rank military officer made him feel somewhat ashamed.

Simply addressing someone as "General" adds a touch of majesty and imposing presence.

This shows how much he values ​​his reputation and how hurtful rumors are to him.

Of course, at this point, Prince Liang was blinded by rage and didn't care about titles at all.

He strode forward and barged into the temple. When the guest monk who had come to greet him came forward to ask questions, he did not stop at all and rudely pushed him aside. His attitude was extremely arrogant, as if this ancient Zen temple was his backyard.

The retainer following behind him froze instantly upon seeing this, inwardly exclaiming:
"Holy crap! This little brat is getting too arrogant! You may not be afraid of offending people and act recklessly because of your status as the prince, but I'm scared!"

He immediately felt a pang of despair.

This Linji Temple is the orthodox lineage of Zen Buddhism!
The most powerful monks among them almost all cultivated the Arhat Golden Body, making them strong and resilient. Not only were they tough and thick-skinned, but they also had Buddhist teachings to protect their minds. Their supernatural abilities were fierce and unparalleled, and their average combat strength was definitely among the top of the cultivators of the same level!
If you offend them, do you still want to have a place in the cultivation world of the North?!
So, disregarding the prince's expression, the monk hurriedly stepped forward and carefully helped the staggering guest monk to his feet. With an apologetic smile, he repeatedly pleaded, "Young monk, I'm so sorry! I'm truly sorry. My prince is in a bad mood today and offended you. Please forgive him..."

They were afraid that the other person would actually lie down on the ground and then loudly chant a Buddhist prayer, attracting all the monks in the temple, and then they would be accused of "beating a monk and blaspheming Buddhism."

Forget about completing the mission, you might even get "converted" on the spot by these muscular monks!

After he did that, the originally fierce momentum of Prince Liang immediately weakened.

After all, he had just knocked someone flying and acted arrogantly, and then the core experts he brought with him went to help the person up and bowed and apologized...

This whole thing is so ridiculous, it's like losing half your face on the spot.

However, since the servant held a very high position in the Prince's mansion and was not an ordinary servant, the heir apparent could not reprimand him in front of everyone.

A breath gets stuck in my chest, I can't breathe, and I feel suffocated.

His face turned pale and then flushed, looking terribly unwell.

Xu Xuan, who was posing in the main hall and waiting for the "distinguished guest," was sensing the movement at the mountain gate through his spiritual sense, and his expression was quite subtle.

He knew it the moment that fool walked out of the palace, and even began to feel fortunate that the gears of fate had finally started to turn.

The biggest flaw in the Prince's Mansion is now moving at high speed, actively "throwing itself into his arms".

However, considering that the other party was currently too angry and full of hostility, making normal communication impossible, I had secretly planned a number of small scenarios to gradually dampen their arrogance and temper their sharpness, so as to achieve the effect of calming them down and communicating better.

What's somewhat ironic is that before he even started to exert himself, the people this guy brought with him gave up first, offering to help others up and apologizing.

"No one else can compare..." Xu Xuan shook his head inwardly.

"The real tricks I've been planning are coming up; there will be plenty of opportunities for this guy to suffer."

But just as this thought crossed my mind, an "unexpected" event occurred at the mountain gate.

As the protagonist entered the mountain gate and climbed the long stone steps, he was so focused on making a "powerful and imposing" entrance that he kept his eyes fixed on the main hall in front of him and didn't even look at his feet.

As a result, the foot that stomped down landed precisely on a bluestone step that originally only had some minor cracks.

Logically speaking, the stone steps of Linji Temple were exceptionally sturdy. Even a muscular monk like Abbot Huiren would walk on them every day without incident. But today, the bluestone crumbled like tofu underfoot, with a sharp crack!
"oops!"

The prince suddenly felt his foot slip, his center of gravity instantly lost its balance, and he almost tumbled down the steps.
The monk who had just helped the guest master was shocked and hurriedly stepped forward again to support the prince, who had almost embarrassed himself. He thought to himself, "You came here today to seek revenge and establish your authority, not to provide a laughing stock for your enemies!"

The young master Liang was helped up and steadied. The expression on his face could no longer be described as ugly; it was as black as the bottom of a pot.

I felt a surge of anger rush to my head, and the rage in my heart almost solidified into a tangible form, visible to the naked eye.

He broke free from the support and continued to forge ahead, but the "powerful and swift" steps he used to take were completely gone, replaced by cautiousness, and his eyes began to follow the path carefully.

Xu Xuan, who was in the distance, frowned slightly as he sensed the "wonderful" experiences the young master had encountered along the way through his spiritual perception.

He looked up at the sky thoughtfully, then looked down at the unsteady, unlucky prince, and suddenly understood something.

"Good heavens... Has the calamity energy been completely activated and begun to backfire on him? I don't even need to lift a finger; the heavens and earth are already repelling him?"

He had originally planned to watch a good show, but now he changed his mind.

"Forget it, let's have the monks remove the last few 'small checkpoints' we prepared. Judging from the situation, we probably won't need those little tricks today."

He was even a little worried that he might actually kill this 'God of War of the North'... which would make it difficult to carry out the follow-up plans.

However, what makes the God of War the God of War is his unique personal style and his ability to always push things in unpredictable directions through his magical actions, whether proactive or reactive.

In the short distance of just a few steps from the mountain gate to the front hall, a series of unbelievable misfortunes unfolded:

My foot suddenly slipped, and I almost fell again, twisting my ankle on flat ground.

Birds flying overhead seemed to be dropping bombs with pinpoint accuracy, and a puddle of bird droppings landed squarely on his shoulder.

He angrily flicked his sleeve, and with a "rip," a hole appeared under the arm of his magnificent brocade robe...

Such a dense wave of bad luck would cause people in an ordinary world without supernatural powers to exclaim "There's a ghost!"

In this world where gods and monsters exist and fate and destiny are valued, this is an extremely terrifying omen, representing the decline of fortune and impending calamity!
The offering man's face had turned extremely pale. He leaned forward again, his voice trembling almost imperceptibly, and whispered his advice:
"Your Highness...it seems that today is an inauspicious day, and your luck is not good. Perhaps...we should return to the manor for the time being? The manor is protected by good fortune, and we may be able to avoid these minor worldly troubles..."

But would Liang Shizi choose to slink away in disgrace?

In his view, these were just insignificant accidents. Even if he were faced with mountains of knives and seas of fire, nothing could stop his determination to settle scores with Xu Xuan!
Xu Xuan, who had been watching the situation closely from behind, also became a little serious.

Realizing that he couldn't let this unlucky fellow wander around outside any longer, otherwise he might really be killed by the robbery and have his plans ruined.

We decided to take the initiative to go out and meet them, to launch the operation ahead of time, and to bring this uncontrollable factor under control.

Then, turning to the monk standing to the side, he instructed:
“Junior Brother Huixin, go and invite that ‘distinguished guest’ over. Lead him directly to the quiet room at the back.”

He planned to begin the "PUA" process in a relatively closed environment.

"Yes, Zen Master." A bald monk with a wiry build and extraordinary bearing respectfully accepted the order and strode out to lead the way for the unlucky prince.

While it may be a bit immodest to say this, Xu Xuan has indeed built up a great reputation and achieved a superior status within Linji Academy in just ten days.

When he first arrived, he was already known as a "high-ranking monk of the Pure Land School," and his humanitarian achievements in suppressing Yunmeng and clarifying the water veins were widely circulated.

In addition, Abbot Huiren's lavish praise and flattery, as well as his occasional Buddhist lectures and guidance to the monks in the Dharma Hall over the past few days, all demonstrate his unfathomable Buddhist cultivation and wisdom.

This person thrived in this group of monks' den, and his prestige grew daily.

Especially when the entire temple was being targeted by the aura of divine punishment, and people were filled with fear and their faith was wavering, Xu Xuan's composure was like a stabilizing force, which was of paramount importance.

Of course, what impressed these Zen monks the most, especially the higher-ups, was their willingness to go to the scripture library to help those monks who were being punished by copying scriptures to calm their minds due to inner demons.

In matters involving the mind, karma, and even entanglements of cause and effect, his background as both a "White Lotus Holy Father" and a "Pure Land High Monk" makes him a perfect fit for the profession.

No one understands how to "subdue demonic nature" better than Xu Xuan.

That "sudden awakening" technique, which combines the essence of Zen Buddhism with his own understanding, is even more authentic, sharp, and effective than the direct lineage of Zen!

With a single palm strike and a shout, the illusion was dispelled, allowing the trapped monks to suddenly see the light.

This scene left the Zen monks watching in awe, as if they were witnessing the Zen patriarchs' spirit of "directly pointing to the mind and seeing one's true nature to become a Buddha."

In just a few days, the accumulated inner demons in the Sutra Repository were swept away, and countless inner demons were "killed".

This move not only rescued the trapped monks, but also freed up all of the Linji Temple's high-end combat power.

The monk who went to escort Prince Liang at that moment was the head monk who was the first to be punished for his sectarian prejudice and forced to copy scriptures in the Sutra Repository.

Having personally experienced Xu Xuan's enlightening rebuke, I benefited greatly and now have complete respect and admiration for the Zen master.

(End of this chapter)