Cyber ​​Daming

Chapter 582 Monks and Demons
"Tell Dad and Mom that there is still hope in this world."

A deep voice singing the same ballad was heard in the Yumo area, thousands of miles away from Nagqu City.

In the chilly wind, the man's strong upper body was naked, his felt robe fell to his waist, and he was holding a heavy stone in his scarred arms.

"Dunzhu, shut your stinky mouth!"

The old man walking beside him scolded in a low voice, his two skinny hands tightly grasping the shoulder straps. The backpack full of stones bent his back, so he could only lean forward as much as possible and try his best to move forward.

"The masters are in a bad mood recently. If you cause trouble again at this time, the whole village will be punished. Do you know that?"

While being scolded, the old man suddenly felt the pressure on his back eased and turned around in surprise.

It turned out that the man moved the big stone in his arms to his shoulders, and freed one hand to hold up the backpack on his back.

"Don't be angry, I remember."

The man grinned, revealing a mouthful of clean white teeth. He raised his chin towards a bright yellow canopy in the distance and said with a smile, "Besides, those masters are so far away that they can't hear it at all."

"Be careful so that you can live longer, keep your head down so that you can go far. Many people have lost their lives because of a careless word. How come you have not learned this lesson yet?"

The man laughed and said, "Village Chief, I just sang a song, it's not that serious, right?"

The old man sighed, looked at the distance with caution, and then whispered: "Dunzhu, you are a good child, and you are the one with the greatest hope of becoming a Buddhist in the village, so you must be more careful. Those restless thoughts in your mind will not help you practice, but will only bring disaster to you."

“Can someone like me become a Buddha?”

"It certainly can!"

The old man's eyes were firm and his tone was determined as he said, "Although we are just slaves of Buddha who are entangled in sin, Buddha is merciful and loves us. Whenever any of us pays for part of our sins with actions, Buddha will bestow grace and lead us to the Buddha's kingdom. And you are the one who will be blessed by Buddha!"

"It's those words again."

Listening to the old man's endless teachings, Dunzhu felt helpless.

He didn't care whether he had Buddha's blessing or not, he only cared about when this corvee would end.

If this continues, winter will be here.

The winter in Yumo is cruel.

"Village Chief, when can we return to the village?"

Taking advantage of the time when the old man took a breath, Dunzhu immediately changed the subject.

"The masters said that we must lay the foundation of Ganquan Temple within this month. As long as we can complete it on time, the masters will allow us to return home and will also reward us with a batch of winter supplies to help us survive the cold winter."

At this point, the old man suddenly frowned and cursed viciously: “This is all the fault of those barbaric Ming people. If they hadn’t blasphemed the Buddha and destroyed Ganquan Temple, the masters in the temple would not have asked us to perform corvee labor at this time.”

"At this time of year in previous years, we should have been preparing fodder for the cattle and sheep. I don't know if the masters will agree to give us some more fodder this time."

The old man talks a lot, and his sighing tone makes people feel uncomfortable.

Dunzhu remained silent. His sturdy physique, which was rare among Buddhist slaves, did not require him to exert too much effort. He could see far away just by raising his head.

The crowds of people following one another formed a long and narrow line, walking in the misty snow and wind.

Whether they were middle-aged men or the elderly, women and children, everyone in the team carried stones of varying sizes.

They followed the orders of the master of Ganquan Temple and built a grand temple with their bare hands in the most primitive way.

Because only in this way can they demonstrate their sincerity to Buddha and their redemption from their own sins.

This is the rule of the place.

As the team moved forward, some vague black shadows appeared faintly in the wind and snow on both sides of the road.

When they got closer, Dunzhu could see clearly that these black shadows were actually people who had been stripped naked.

They were hung on wooden stakes with their hands tied tightly. Frost had condensed on their bodies and dark purple frostbite was all over them. The stillness of their chests proved that they were all corpses.

However, what frightened Dunzhu even more was the fact that these people had appearances that were clearly different from those of ordinary people.

Either the feet are covered with mane like animal feet, or there is a long tail hanging behind the buttocks, or the limbs are covered with green scales.

There are quite a lot of these wooden stakes, like a bare forest.

Further away, there were burnt-out houses, the remains of a village.

"They are all from Daba Village. For unknown reasons, the entire village became corrupted overnight and turned into abandoned children of the snowfield and man-eating monsters. In order to stop the spread of corruption, the masters of Ganquan Temple performed salvation for the entire village."

The old man explained softly beside Dunzhu.

He stopped, put his hands together, and bowed to the wooden stakes.

"But now their souls have returned to the embrace of the Buddha. This is already a good ending."

The old man who was chanting Buddhist scriptures in a low voice did not notice that Dunzhu, who was standing behind him, had an extremely ugly expression.

His physical fitness far exceeds that of ordinary people, allowing him to see farther in the wind and snow.

In addition to these wooden stakes deliberately placed on both sides of the road, there are many people further away who have no obvious beast features at all.

The distorted expressions of pain and the bloodstains all over their bodies proved that they were still alive when they were nailed to the stakes, and were frozen to death later.

These people were clearly not corrupt, so why were they killed anyway?

Just as Dunzhu was puzzled, there was suddenly a commotion and a woman's terrified scream from the front of the team!

Dunzhu turned his head suddenly, only to find that there was only an overturned backpack at his feet, and the old man had already rushed over madly.

Snapped!
A whip swung and knocked the running old man to the ground.

He didn't care about the wound on his face and the blood flowing, and knelt on the ground with his head down and humbly.

Behind him was a thin young man who fainted from overfatigue.

The boy's mother was standing next to him, but she didn't dare to reach out to pick up her child. She could only open her tearful eyes and helplessly hold the stone in her arms.

Laying down stones for building a temple without the master's permission is an unforgivable sin.

"Master, calm down. He just fainted temporarily and will wake up soon."

Another crisp sound interrupted the old man's plea for mercy.

"So what if he wakes up? The sacred stone he carried has already fallen to the ground and has been contaminated by the mortal world. This is a blasphemy to Ganquan Temple!"

The whip tore another bloody wound on the old man's face, and the supervising monk stepped on the old man's palm.

"Also, old man, where is your magic stone? Did it fall to the ground as well?"

The grinding of the shoe soles caused his palms to be rubbed bloody, and the severe pain made the old man's body twitch constantly, but there was no resentment on his face covered in blood.

"Master, you forgot that I am the leader of the village's Buddhist slaves. The Ganquan Dharma King specially granted me that I don't have to carry the sacred stone. I only need to manage these lowly slaves for the Ganquan Temple."

The old man endured the pain, lay on the ground, looked up and smiled.

But suddenly, he seemed to remember something, turned his head abruptly and looked behind him, shouting: "Dunzhu, stop! Don't forget what I told you!"

The burly man who was running towards him was frightened by the ferocity in the old man's eyes and had no choice but to stop.

"He is the Foze of your Jinzhu Village?"

The monk looked up and down at Dunzhu's figure, and after clearly sensing the boiling Buddhist thoughts in the other's body, a trace of jealousy and resentment flashed in his eyes.

A lowly Buddhist slave who is not qualified to practice Buddhism is born with such a strong wisdom. He is truly favored by the Buddha.

"Old Jianjiu, you are so lucky."

The monk moved his foot away from his palm, and the old man quickly turned over and knelt down.

The old man said respectfully: "It is all because of the Master's mercy that he bestowed the Buddha's blessing on Jinzhu."

“This master is not talking about him.”

The monk looked down at the old man and said, "Ganquan Temple has so many villages under its jurisdiction. Do you know why the Dharma King chose your Jinzhu Village to build Ganquan Temple?"

"Because the villagers of Jinzhu Village are the most devout believers of Ganquan Temple."

"Wrong, because there is also a demon in your village."

The monk looked arrogant and said, "That's why you are specially recruited to move the sacred stone. This is a chance given to you by the Dharma King to atone your sins. Do you understand?" Upon hearing this, Lao Jianjiu was struck by lightning and stood there in a daze.

The surrounding Buddhist slaves showed expressions of extreme fear, and like cattle and sheep being attacked, they gathered and shrank towards the center.

"No, it's impossible."

At this moment, Lao Jianjiu forgot the pain in his body and muttered to himself.

"Don't believe it? Then Master Ben will let you see clearly."

The monk wrapped in a red robe was very satisfied with the reaction of these Buddha slaves and clapped his palms lightly.

"Bring people here."

Wow wow wow
A sound of metallic friction came from under the canopy.

Four adult Buddhist slaves dragged an iron chain as thick as their wrists and pulled over something covered with black cloth and shaped like an iron cage.

"Old Jianjiu, just open your eyes and watch."

The monk squatted beside the old man, reached out and pulled his gray hair, pulling his drooping gaze up little by little.

The black cloth was lifted, revealing a 'beast' imprisoned in a cage.

It is called a 'beast', but it has nothing in common with the tigers, leopards, jackals and wolves that the Buddhist slaves have ever seen.

It has a slender body, thick back hair, white bone spurs on the inside of its limbs, and a long tail with a heart-pounding hook at the tip. Its whole body exudes a strange beauty.

What frightened them even more was that the beast's face resembled that of a young girl.

And this face, they know
"Azhuo."

Old Jianjiu knelt weakly on the ground, his unfocused eyes fixed on the girl's face, looking miserable and helpless.

The girl's eyes had no pupils, but were filled with turbid dark yellow. She growled in a low voice at the Buddhist slaves around her, but when she looked at the monk, the roar suddenly turned into a low groan of fear.

"A few days ago, Old Jianjiu, you reported to Ganquan Temple that your granddaughter was missing, right? Now this master has helped you find her. It's a pity that she has fallen and corrupted into a man-eating monster."

The monk let go of the old man's hair, stood up and walked to the cage.

The demon with a human face and a beast body was restless, constantly hitting the iron cage with its sharp claws. Its tail with a sharp hook was raised high like a scorpion's tail, and a hissing sound came from its mouth.

The monk clasped his hands together and shook his head gently. With his back to the crowd, there was no pity on his face, only cold disgust.

"Azhuo!"

As he shouted, the girl suddenly covered her ears with her front paws. The sharp claws cut bloody wounds on her face. Her body rolled over and over in the iron cage, and her sharp tail whipped the cage, causing sparks to fly.

As the monks continued to chant scriptures, the girl in the cage gradually stopped struggling and fell to the ground weakly. Her dark yellow pupils gradually turned from yellow to black.

The beast-like roar faded away, replaced by the sound of the girl's sobbing.

"wake up."

A faint calling voice came out from the monk's mouth again.

The girl's body kept twitching, and she slowly assumed a strange posture while struggling.

I saw her two ferocious claws stretched straight out, her scaly palms facing upwards, her body kneeling on the ground, her forehead and chest pressed tightly against her chest, actually bowing to the monk.

The red-robed monk is like the Buddha who has come to the world, and the sound of Buddha's voice subdues the evil demons.

In the eyes of the Buddhist slaves of Jinzhu Village, this scene was like the divine deeds recorded in the scriptures, which shocked their hearts and minds. They knelt on the ground and kowtowed, shouting the name of Ganquan Dharma King, with pious and fanatical expressions on their faces.

"Sinful slave Azhuo, I pay my respects to the master."

Amid the noisy shouting, the girl finally spoke, but her voice was filled with tears and unspeakable fear.

Azhu felt as if he had fallen into a nightmare from which he could not wake up.

In her dream, she saw her village engulfed in flames.

The familiar companions of the past killed each other like crazy in the firelight. They tore each other's skin with their teeth, revealing beast-like manes and scales.

Azhu was very scared, but he still mustered up the courage to rush out of the house.

She wants to find her grandfather, he needs her.

The fire grew bigger and bigger, and more and more demons were fighting around.

The scorching heat burned her skin, and the melted snow made the ground like a muddy swamp, with rotting flesh and body parts mixed in the mud.

Azhuo ran woodenly, constantly calling his grandfather's name, but even when he was hoarse, he still didn't get any response, instead he attracted the attention of the group of demons.

Eventually, he was locked in an iron cage, surrounded by countless demons of all sizes.

They twisted their bodies excitedly and even knelt on the ground like humans, with their ferocious heads swaying up and down in joy, as if they regarded themselves as food to be fed or a toy to be teased.

Just when despair was about to completely consume Azhu, she suddenly saw a holy red dress standing in front of her.

It’s the master.

The master stood in front of her and called her name softly.

Azhu, crying with joy, knelt on the ground, kowtowed, and chanted the name of the Buddha on the lotus seat, hoping to be saved by the master.

"Azhuo."

She heard the master's warm call, and when she looked up, she saw a cunning and sinister old demon suddenly pounce on her.

The master was caught off guard and fell to the side of the cage. During the fight, the demon accidentally knocked open the bolt of the iron cage.

"run!"

Amidst the horrifying sounds of biting and swallowing, a wailing cry broke out.

Azhu couldn't tell whether it was the master's voice or his own inner hallucination.

She rushed out of the cage using her hands and feet. In an instant, the surrounding demons let out a roar like a tsunami.

At this moment, she felt very real. The snow on her head was cold, the tears on her lips were salty, the muddy water smelled fishy, ​​and the demons exuded a foul odor.
This isn't a dream at all.
run!
Run!

She tried her best to take a step forward, but she was already exhausted, and a few stones that rolled out of the backpack easily tripped her to the ground.

There was a roar behind my head getting closer and closer.

The girl, no longer able to struggle, could only look back in despair and watch a gigantic demon rushing towards her.

The demons further away who were holding back were swaying their bodies and roaring with excitement, as if they were expecting to see her being eaten alive.

The girl opened her mouth, and at this moment she subconsciously wanted to beg for the Buddha's protection and to give herself hope to survive.

But the words of prayer sounded like a sharp, piercing scream.

Azhuo widened his eyes, unable to believe that this was his own voice.

At this moment, the demon had already caught up and pounced on him and bit him fiercely.

boom!
"Let her go."

Dunzhu glared at the strange man in front of him, and held the unconscious girl tightly with his strong arms.

Li Jun held Dunzhu's head in one hand and lifted him up with one arm. He looked down at the monster in his arms, then looked up at the red-robed monk in the distance who was furious and trampling on the old man's body.

Without thinking too much, Li Jun instantly understood what had happened here.

"This damned place really opened my eyes!"

A suffocating and terrifying pressure swept over, and the noisy prayers instantly turned into dead silence.

The Buddhist slave, who was lying on the ground unable to move, looked in horror at the group of strangers who suddenly appeared and the stones that fell around him.

When the stone falls, the head falls.

In an instant, desperate cries broke the silence and filled the air.

(End of this chapter)