Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

"Because this is nothing new. How do you think the vast lands of Buddhist Pure Lands and the power of believers' thoughts came about?"

"Is that so...?"

In Chu Mingkong's mind, after the previous few times when the Calabash Brothers sent their grandfather away, this wave of Arhats and Bodhisattvas would come in the form of a massive army, arriving with great fanfare and besieging the city. Then, his master's wife would take action and slap them to death—that was exactly what he had thought before.

After all, the problems with the adoptive father, the old King of Chu, and later the monk Santong, were all solved by force. When the target was the more powerful Arhat Bodhisattva, the tendency was even stronger to solve the problem with violence.

Unexpectedly, they pulled this stunt. Just by casually strolling around Yuhua City, half the city's population started worshipping Buddha, directly employing the method of internal subversion and conversion.

It was a direct and unexpected warning, and quite difficult to defend against...

And this doesn't even count as openly attacking him.

As the flying sword pierced the air, Master's wife stood in front of him, her fiery and graceful curves accentuated by her snow-white brocade dress, which Chu Mingkong had no time to appreciate.

After a moment of silence, Chu Mingkong lowered his head in thought. His master's wife's long, white-stockinged legs and her high, ample breasts came into view. He looked up and found that his master's wife was standing in front of him at some point.

"Master's wife, what is it?" Chu Mingkong blinked, trying his best to keep his gaze on his master's wife's face.

The aloof and icy beauty gazed at him, then suddenly asked a seemingly unrelated question:

"Do you remember what I told you before?"

Chu Mingkong was stunned, and it took him a while to realize what his master's wife had asked.

Could it be about what was said earlier, "not being allowed to cultivate with Yunhan"? To be honest, Chu Mingkong felt a little guilty. He had just disturbed Yunhan, and if his master's wife went back now, Yunhan and his beloved master would probably still be lying on their sides, with a solidified white waterfall hanging from their peaches...

Moreover, it is estimated that they will not want to sit for long periods of time or lie flat for a while.

It's not officially considered cultivation, but it's still a bit of a word game, and whether or not to acknowledge this loophole is up to the master's wife.

"I remember. Yunhan has asked me to cultivate with her a lot these days, but I've tried my best to refuse. I haven't cultivated with her even once..." Chu Mingkong looked directly into his master's wife's beautiful eyes, still somewhat confident.

"That's good, very good." Shen Xuejun reached out and stroked Chu Mingkong's head.

Chapter 284 Merit and Incense Offerings

Upon entering Yuhua City, Chu Mingkong coughed for a while.

The smell of burning candles and incense was truly unpleasant, pungent and irritating to the eyes.

Normally, if one or two households burn incense and pray to Buddha, the smoke from the incense is enough to make the neighbors uncomfortable for a while. But now half the city has been converted, and the believers in the city burn incense at the same time.

At that time, the whole city is shrouded in thick yellow fog, so thick that you can't see more than three meters ahead.

Children could be seen moving around in the thick smoke, seemingly floating on clouds, but in reality, these were children who had gone missing and were left unattended after the problems arose.

When Chu Mingkong saw this situation, his blood pressure really rose a bit. Was he playing "Oliver Twist"?

Can't people just be normal when they're burning incense and praying to Buddha to the point of neglecting their own children?

However, after calming down, Chu Mingkong realized that he couldn't blame these ordinary people.

No one is perfect; everyone has their own flaws and shortcomings. But before this, they were all ordinary people living peacefully in the city and had never caused any trouble.

We can't always blame these ordinary people when problems arise...

How can a group that can't even fight against basic needs resist these extraordinary forces?

Chu Mingkong knew he could kill, but not save. With a sliver of hope, he asked again:

"Master's wife, you said before that the excessive development is irreversible. Is there really no way to solve these people's troubles?"

“I don’t have that. If it’s a cultivator, they can guard their mind and wait for a friend to help them get rid of the pressure of conversion. But for mortals, it depends on themselves. Some people can suddenly awaken, while others can’t.”

Shouldn't you be more concerned about the Bodhisattva? Why are you focusing on the common people now?

From Shen Xuejun's perspective, her apprentice's focus was somewhat misplaced.

If you don't focus on dealing with the people who caused the problems, but instead focus on the troubles left by others, it's like always following in their footsteps and taking on more and more troubles.

Chu Mingkong chuckled softly, feeling helpless:

"I'm feeling quite confident now... Since my master's wife said she could help me deal with the Bodhisattva, I can shift my focus and solve the problems of these common people. Otherwise, just watching the show would be a waste of my trip."

"Whatever you say, but that Bodhisattva hasn't revealed her aura yet, and my master's wife can't pinpoint her for the time being." Shen Xuejun's voice was as indifferent as ever, yet as melodious as heavenly music.

Unable to find the Bodhisattva statue for the time being, Chu Mingkong didn't want to wait idly. Of course, there was nothing he could do at the moment. He looked at the incense burning in the city and sighed:

"Can we go down and take a look first?"

"can."

Chu Mingkong and the icy beauty descended from the sky into Yuhua City. He raised his hand and waved, sending scattered specks of extreme Yin Fire spiritual energy flying away, feeding on the incense smoke from the city's Buddhist worship.

A deep black curtain of fire swept along the smoke, and in broad daylight, the sky suddenly went dark. Then the clouds dispersed and the sky cleared, the smoke was completely consumed, and even the sparks were traced back to each and every incense stick.

The incense and prayers burning in the city were instantly extinguished, and the people who had been converted cried out in panic, bewildered.

However, Chu Mingkong controlled his strength and did not cause any casualties.

As a local strongman in Xiling, he didn't bother to ask the city lord of Shangyu Huacheng about the situation, because asking would probably be pointless.

Based on the information provided by Tianya Lou, Chu Mingkong found the street where the initial conversion incident occurred.

The people on the road had bright eyes, a sparkling look that seemed to say "they have seen hope and something to look forward to in life." However, those with such eyes all had a deep black mark on their foreheads.

That was caused by bowing to the Buddha statue.

Apart from that, there were no attacks or injuries, so it was barely acceptable.

From the alleyway came the cries of several vendors, seemingly merchants who had switched to selling incense and candles, holding ancestral tablets in their hands.

"Come, come! Let's buy incense and candles! There are no Buddhist temples or shrines in Xiling. My ancestor appeared to me in a dream and said that he wanted to convert the ancestral hall into an incense offering hall, providing a place for all Buddhists to burn incense and worship Buddha!"

However, you must not bring your own incense and candles; you must buy them from my shop, otherwise you will not accumulate any merit!

Well, Chu Mingkong was initially quite depressed seeing half the city's population in a daze, but seeing this converted merchant actually made him laugh a little...

He touched his storage ring and took out the black Buddha relic that he hadn't taken out to play with for a long time—the relic of the Buddha statue of the Joyful Mother and Child.

This relic is quite strange. It's probably because he used it. The face of the Buddha statue, which is called Zimingwang, has become his face, while the face of the mother consort, who is being held by "him", is hidden under the hood.

Chu Mingkong blew off the dust, stepped forward, performed a Taoist salute, then displayed the Buddha relic, and asked with a humble and peaceful expression:

"Fellow Daoist, why can't you bring your own incense?"

The merchant in front of me was different from the ordinary people. He looked like he had been converted by Buddhism, but he also seemed like an ordinary person.

When a young nobleman spoke to him in this manner, the merchant looked on in astonishment, as if to say, "Brother, your background is a bit mixed," unable to tell whether the man was a Buddhist or a Taoist.

But regardless, all who come are guests, and those willing to spend money are even more honored guests. He chanted "Amitabha" while responding with Taoist etiquette.

"Young master, you are unaware that the incense and candles you brought have no Buddhist blessing, nor have my ancestors prayed and chanted scriptures for you. Their merit is equivalent to nothing."

Finally, there's still a lot of dust on the incense and candles, which requires us to spend time cleaning them. This not only doesn't bring any merit, but also diminishes the merit we've accumulated.

Furthermore, bringing one's own incense and candles makes it seem as if the young master lacks sincerity in supporting the Three Jewels.

Having said that, the man waved the ancestral tablets and several scriptures in his hand, and said:

"As long as you spend money, my ancestors will rush to help you overcome your suffering and bring you blessings. You can see which ancestor of my family you want to chant sutras for you, and which Buddhist scripture you want to chant. Our little temple can provide the service!"

This is really quite Buddha-like...

Chu Mingkong pretended to be thinking about the price, but secretly observed the man's expression. This merchant didn't seem to be faking it; he seemed genuinely converted. However, even after being converted, he remembered that he wanted to make money. His thinking was much more flexible than that of ordinary people, and he didn't just blindly kowtow.

Of course, Chu Mingkong also suspected that he might not have been converted, but was just pretending to be crazy to blend into the Buddhist community. But it turned out that he really was converted, and most of the merchants still had the desire to make money, which was not the reaction that a Buddhist monk with pure mind should have.

If that's the case, Chu Mingkong seems to know a way he can try to help the people in the city!

But he still asked to confirm, "Master's wife, were those merchants just now considered a normal phenomenon after conversion?"

Looking at the excitement on her little apprentice's face, Shen Xuejun wondered what novel idea he had and asked, "Mingkong, judging from your expression, have you thought of something?"

Chapter 285 Master's Wife: Mingkong, have you been converted?

"However, your teacher's wife is not trying to discourage you, but just to make things clear in advance so that you don't waste your time on this."

Don't think that just because you've had a long and fruitful conversation with some enlightened businessmen, you can easily persuade and awaken them. That's highly unreliable.

They will identify with this so-called Buddhist teaching more than you imagine, even if they can't recite a single scripture, only knowing phrases like "Master, you are excellent" and "Amitabha," they will still consider themselves devout believers.

Shen Xuejun's unusually long speech was actually an admonition to Chu Mingkong not to waste his efforts.

This is not to belittle his abilities, but simply because I have seen too many similar things.

The Buddhist Pure Land is vast. Many relatives and friends have tried to help those people who have been converted to Buddhism to wake up and "return from the wrong path." They have also asked many people to help them by tying them up with ropes and taking them to the Kunlun Taoist sect or other sects to seek solutions.

Generally speaking, it is easier for Taoist sects to purify those who have cultivated themselves; a spell like a mind-clearing technique or a soul-awakening incantation can solve the problem. But it is the most difficult for ordinary people.

If we compare the soul to a wire, the process of repeatedly bending and twisting it can easily cause the wire to break.

Chu Mingkong nodded, and said with great self-awareness:

"I won't put in much effort. My brain can't handle much effort. If a brilliant idea fails, there's basically no way out, and I can only give up."

Anyway, I can't help you find those Arhats and Bodhisattvas, Master's wife.

"Okay, then go ahead and try it." Shen Xuejun wouldn't try to persuade him repeatedly.

While advising Chu Mingkong not to waste his time and energy, she herself would not advise Chu Mingkong a second time.

Moreover, Shen Xuejun was also curious about what kind of scheme Chu Mingkong could come up with in a flash of inspiration. According to what Yunhan had mentioned before, if Chu Mingkong came up with a method on his own, it would be more or less a bit like playing around.

However, if he suddenly comes up with some inexplicable and unverifiable excuse such as "teahouse" or "old man," what he can produce is often extraordinary.

There was indeed no sign of any Bodhisattvas or Arhats at the moment, so the two of them could only wait aimlessly. Since they had nothing else to do, they might as well give it a try.

Chu Mingkong brought Shen Xuejun to an inn. The inn was still operating, but the innkeeper and the waiters were a bit too busy.

The shopkeeper, unaware of the existence of Buddhas or eminent monks, found a wall, wrote the words "Buddha" and "monk" on it, and worshipped it as a Buddhist image.

The workers were puzzled as to why the incense they had just lit had disappeared, and even the smoke rising in the air had vanished.

"Strange, where have my merits gone?"

Chu Mingkong put down a few pieces of silver: "I need a room, and I need writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones prepared. It would be best if there were plenty of paper."

The shop assistant accepted the loose silver, handed it to the manager for counting, and at the same time called out:

"Alright, we'll arrange it for you two benefactors right away. Would you like anything to eat? Our shop has vegetarian pork belly and the like."