Under the sky

Chapter 181 A clear thought
It is unknown whether I came here after hearing that there was a living Bodhisattva in Ciyun Temple.He listened to Guangde's explanation of the scriptures under the podium, and the content and details were explained very well without any mistakes or omissions.

He stayed to discuss the scriptures with Guangde, listening more and speaking less, asking many questions, and Guangde also answered many, some of which even the eminent monks of Wenshu Monastery may not have such insightful opinions.Guangde was also shocked by the young man's intelligence. Not only was he proficient in the scriptures, but he was also extraordinary in understanding the meaning of the scriptures.

Two days later, it was the day for Monk Guangde to enter meditation.As usual, during the three days of entering meditation, Guangde will go to the meditation room behind Ciyun Temple and lock it from inside so that no one can disturb it.Guangde asked Ming to stay for an unknown number of days, and then discuss the scriptures after he came out of concentration.

Ming was willing to wait. After leaving the Shaolin Temple, he had rarely seen such a monk who was proficient in scriptures.He visited some famous mountains and ancient temples, met many eminent monks and learned a lot of knowledge.

But that didn't help him find Buddha.

He still doesn't understand, why everything in this world works, how to enjoy birth, old age, illness and death, and why to fear death?Resentment and hatred are met, and what we seek cannot be obtained. Love is separated, so why is it painful?Greed, anger, and ignorance, why are we attached?The joy of becoming a Buddha, the sorrow of all living beings, this joy and sorrow...

He still didn't understand.

Until he saw Yang Yan and Li Jingfeng.Yang Yan, Yang Yan who should have died many times anyway, survived, whether it was the Seventh Level Pill of Returning to Heaven, or in Tianshui, or in Kunlun Palace.

What does his luck or misfortune mean?
Li Jingfeng, he has seen people who do not ask for good food and clothing, but only want to be poor and happy. He has seen people sacrifice their lives for righteousness without hesitation, but what does all this mean?What is the reason that drives him to have no regrets?
In the tunnel of Kunlun Palace, Li Jingfeng pointed out his ignorance and "wanted to know", was this thought his ultimate trouble?

He remembered his act of bandaging up Little Beggar Peng. It was a meaningless thing, but he did it. Why?Because of Yang Yan?Because of Li Jingfeng?

He seemed to vaguely understand something, but more confusion emerged.What is it that makes the villagers of Niushan Village go astray?What started out as a good thing, why did it go astray?
He understands those reasons just like he understands the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.But he doesn't understand why the sun rises and sets again?
Does Master Guangde understand this?

On the second night after Guangde entered meditation, the ever-burning lamp in front of the Buddha in Ciyun Temple suddenly went out.

I heard a low "thunk" sound for unknown reasons. To ordinary people, it was the sound of something hitting the wall.

Unknown Ming got up, took out his clothes and put them on, put on his socks and shoes, and tied his leggings tightly.

"Creak, creak" is the sound of being suspended on the beam.

He was not in a hurry and tied his hair up tightly.

"Tick tock, tick tock", like the sound of water dripping.

Unknown, he opened the door. It was dark outside. There were many clouds tonight and the moon was dim. He turned on a lantern and walked through the dark corridor.

The lights illuminated the walls on both sides, and he saw a long bloodstain on the ground. Following the bloodstain, he found words written on the wall on the right. He raised the lantern and saw four large words in blood: "Blood debt, blood." "Also", there were messy bloody palm prints around.

What happened?Unknown Ming continued to walk along the blood trail, and there was a figure "standing" at the end of the corridor. When he got closer, he discovered that it was the monk named Ming Xin in the temple, and he was already dead.I saw that the corpse's eyes were empty, and blood and tears were dripping down the eye sockets. A bamboo pole penetrated the body from the waist, and one end of the bamboo pole was supported on the corner of the wall, so the body did not fall down, and blood was dripping. It turned out that this was the origin of the sound of water dripping.

Unknown Ming raised the lantern and looked at the body carefully. The wound was in the throat, which was sealed with a knife. It was a very neat technique.He thought for a while, looked around, and then exclaimed "Ah!"

The sound spread far along the corridor, and he was answered by a chaotic sound coming from the backyard.He walked towards the backyard. Just as he was about to enter the backyard, a figure fell from the sky and retreated for unknown reasons, but the figure remained motionless.

It was a monk named Mingfeng who was hung under the eaves of the corridor, his hands and feet hanging limply.

In addition to Monk Guangde, there are twelve monks in the temple, but only two are visible now.Are they all dead?Who sneaked in silently, killed these monks, and arranged it like this?Could it be that he is the enemy of Monk Guangde?
Ming Ming raised the lantern, thought for a while, and shouted: "Who is pretending to be a ghost?"

That should be correct.

A monk woke up after hearing an unknown shout and asked, "What happened?"

It turns out there are still people alive.Ming unknown loudly said: "Something happened! There is..." He thought quickly in his mind and spit out the last word, "Ghost!"

"What the hell? This is a holy land of Buddhism, and Abbot Guangde is an eminent monk!" a monk responded.

Another person was heard shouting: "Why is it all blood?" Another person screamed loudly: "Senior Brother Mingxin...ah!..."

"Eternal Light, why did the Everlasting Light go out?" It seemed that someone was frightened and ran to the Buddhist hall.

Ming and Unknown came to the Buddhist hall, and two monks were lighting the everlasting lanterns one by one. Ming and Unknown followed suit.When the temple became bright, a monk was about to chant sutras to ward off evil spirits. When he looked up, he saw a piece of blood cloth tied to the eyes of the Tathagata statue, covering the eyes.The monk was startled. He turned around and saw strange shadows on the ground. He looked up and saw four corpses hanging in mid-air at the exit of the Buddhist hall, like rag dolls.

The two monks were so frightened that their legs weakened and they crawled to the door on their knees. Suddenly they heard two miserable howls coming from the backyard, which frightened them out of strength and they rolled and crawled out.

I rushed to the backyard without knowing it, and two monks crawled out from the backyard, with pale faces, obviously frightened.

There were two corpses standing in front of the Zen room where Guangde entered meditation. They were also supported by bamboo poles. They raised their left and right hands respectively to point to the road leading to the backyard. There were two stone lanterns beside them, looking at them as if they were pointing to the unknown.

No wonder the two monks were so frightened that their legs were weak. Seeing the two corpses pointing at them, they must have been frightened.

Ming Wuwen walked forward to observe the two corpses. He smelled a sweet smell coming from the stone lantern.

Fragrance?

A figure appeared silently behind him, and the cold light penetrated into Ming's unknown neck.

But it was empty.

The assassin was startled and quickly stepped back. He lowered his eyes, but could not see clearly.

The assassin stopped and looked around intently, until he was surprised to find that he had an extra shadow.He was startled, and he didn't dare to move anymore, and slowly rolled his eyes.

Ming unknown stood behind him.

He was the one who was supposed to be the hunter. The assassin sneered: "Good work!" Without looking back, he stabbed behind him with a backhand knife faster than lightning.

Ming Wuxi sided to avoid it, and the assassin threw the dagger at Ming Wuxiang's face, all in one movement, and at the same time he drew out the knife from his waist.

Ming Ming opened the dagger, and the assassin shouted and came over to kill him. The sword flashed like thunder and was extremely powerful.

This assassin's skill is by no means simple. Among the people Mingmei met, he might be close to Fang Jingjiu's ability.

Does Master Guangde have such an enemy?

No, it shouldn't be Master Guangde's enemy. He immediately understood that the person the other party wanted to kill was him.

The sound of weapons clashing, the sounds of bodies moving and hitting, and the violent movements of overthrown flowers, plants and trees finally caught the attention of the eminent monk. Monk Guangde opened the door and asked, "What happened?"

When the door opened, he was shocked.There were two corpses standing outside the door. The young man whose name was unknown was fighting with a middle-aged man in black night clothes.Guangde's legs weakened and he fell to the ground, shouting loudly: "Help! Help!"

He wanted to go around the battlefield and crawl out, but the mysterious and unknown attack range was extremely wide. He was afraid of being affected, so he had to sit on the ground and watch. He kept turning his beads and chanting Amitabha. He didn't know where the evil spirit came from, so he could only pray. Ming unknown wins.

Unknown Ming swung Bu Wei like an iron bell covering his body, trying to entangle his opponent's weapon several times, but the man always avoided it.Mingming felt that the strength in his hand was a little weaker, and he could feel the subtle difference in the force exerted.

It's the incense in the stone lantern. This is a planned assassination. The person who comes is the Night List Assassin.

The other party is waiting for him to be stunned. It is too spacious here and the incense is not easy to work, but violent use of force will make people breathe heavily.

Ming Wuxi breathed evenly and threw out the unbelievable blow. The opponent stretched out his hand to block it, and the blade of the knife was bent three times in mid-air. He bit the opponent's wrist suddenly and cut off a piece of flesh.The assassin screamed, bleeding profusely. Knowing that it would be difficult to succeed, he jumped onto the roof to leave. He had always been very confident in his Qinggong.

An unknown figure flew up lightly, actually jumping higher than him. It was thrown out in mid-air, and the assassin blocked it with his knife.Originally, Mingwu couldn't wrap around his weapon, but his wrist was injured and he lost a little bit of strength. When Mingwu wrapped around the weapon, a strong force came, and the Huanshou sword couldn't be controlled. It flew out from his hand, and his figure followed.

The assassin immediately clung to the eaves, turned over, and flicked his fingers with his left hand. The invisible finger hit the assassin's knee. The assassin's feet went soft and he fell to his knees. The unknown chain was released two feet, and it was inserted into the assassin's calf. The assassin's big With a cry, he was pulled off the eaves by Ming unknown and fell to the ground.

Ming was dragging the assassin back for unknown reasons. The assassin could only keep up with his hands on the ground. If he didn't keep up, the blade might cut open his calf.

Ming Wuxiang shouted: "Abbott, look for the rope quickly!" Monk Guangde saw that Ming Wuxiang had restrained the murderer, so he had to find it even if his legs were weak. He hurriedly rushed to the utility room, and he had to suffer many shocks along the way?When he came back after finding the rope, Ming Wuxiang and the assassin had already entered the Zen room. Guangde carefully looked around and saw the assassin lying on the ground motionless, so he boldly entered.

"Who...is...this person?" Monk Guangde asked cautiously.

"My disciple guesses that he is the Night Ranking Assassin." Ming Ming replied in an unknown manner. "Night list?" Monk Guangde was shocked, "This...this...is your opponent?"

"Probably." Ming Wuxi thought for a while, "Or has Master Guangde ever offended anyone?"

"This..." Guangde really couldn't remember. Could it be that the incense in Ciyun Temple was so popular that it made nearby temples jealous and paid to kill him?This is too impossible.He handed the rope to Ming Wuxi and said: "The poor monk really has no such enemy. The donor...how could the donor have such an enemy?"

Who paid the murderer to kill him?Top assassins are not cheap, and there may be only one person who has such financial resources and has a grudge against him.

Yan Feixi, the leader of Huashan.

Unknown Ming bound the assassin's hands and feet and said, "We have to inform the sect."

Monk Guangde nodded hurriedly: "That's how it should be!"

Ming Wuxi looked at Guangde and suddenly smiled: "Master, watch for me, disciple, go right away."

Monk Guangde almost vomited his courage out of his mouth: "You want... you want a poor monk to watch?"

Ming unknownly said: "There are no residents or sects outside the temple. We have to go down the mountain. It is late at night and all the disciples in the temple have been scared away. The master is old and it is dangerous to walk on the mountain road."

Ciyun Temple is on Wugong Mountain, and you have to walk several miles down the mountain. Although Monk Guangde is in good health, it is too risky to go down the mountain in the dark in the middle of the night.

"It's Chou time now. Go down the mountain and inform the sect that it's almost daybreak. You'll be back before now." Ming unknown continued, "Master must keep a close eye on this person and not leave. Master sees his face, if he is allowed to escape, he will definitely do something to him." Disadvantage for the master.”

"What if he wakes up?" Guangde asked.

"Master, act according to the opportunity." Ming Ming warned in an unknown tone, "Don't let him 'escape'."

Without waiting for Guangde to ask again, he left without knowing it.

Although the hands and feet of the murderer lying on the ground were tied, Guangde was still frightened. The corpse outside looked horribly dead. I really don't know what kind of murderer could do such a vicious thing.

He wanted to leave the monastery, but he didn't dare to leave. He made it clear that the murderer knew that he had seen his face, and if he escaped, he would definitely kill him to prevent others from knowing his face.

Guangde was very scared. Although he was a famous eminent monk nearby and explained the scriptures in a clear and logical manner, he had not yet mastered the interpretation of life and death in the scriptures.He really wanted to think about that realm, devote himself to practice, and observe the precepts carefully. He hoped that he could really enter samadhi.

That's right, Guangde could not enter samadhi. Although the reason why he became a living Bodhisattva and a wise monk in the eyes of everyone was because he entered samadhi for seven days without drinking or eating, but that was just a scam.

An unexpected scam.

He became a monk at the age of 20. He studied diligently and studied the scriptures. He had great wisdom and could understand the profound meaning of the scriptures. When he talked about the scriptures, even his master admired him and praised him for his wisdom. He also believed that he would become a great monk.

However, after practicing for 22 years, he didn’t know whether he had achieved enlightenment or not.He couldn't even enter concentration.He tried many times to think quietly without thinking, but it was more like being in a daze, or forcing himself not to think about anything.

He tried to focus on his breathing and not think about other things, but he would still be distracted by every movement or sound.He felt hungry after sitting quietly in the meditation room for three hours, and it was time to eat. Even if he made it through, he would only feel hungry and have a stomachache late at night.He couldn't feel even half of the joy and concentration mentioned in the scriptures. He felt that his achievements were insignificant, and he couldn't help but feel discouraged.

It happened when he was 42 years old. On that day, his married sister came to see him.

"Your nephew is very ill." My sister cried with snot and tears. "My family is really in trouble, so I have to beg you."

Guangde asked the whole story.My sister gave birth to four children, three boys and one girl. The eldest son was frail since he was a child. He couldn't go to the fields at the age of 15. He started to wheeze just after he got out of bed and took a few steps. Fortunately, he met a good doctor and prescribed medicine to regulate his body. The doctor said he could take it. The last three years cannot be broken, and the disease will be cured after three years.

The prescription worked wonders, and my sister was relieved to see her son getting better day by day.But although the prescription is good, the medicinal materials are surprisingly expensive. The monthly cost is three taels of silver. How can you not spend hundreds of taels of silver to take it for three years?
In order to treat the child, it was not enough that the family had pawned all the land. However, her husband became ill from overwork and fell ill. The expenses were so high that he couldn't support it. The son ran out of medicinal materials and became weak again.

"I've been taking it for two years, and one year after that, the root cause of my son's disease will be eliminated." His sister kowtowed to him, "If you were at home, you would definitely save your nephew. As a monk, you also know that saving one life is worth seven lives." Level pagoda. 50 taels. As long as you have 50 taels, your nephew's life will be saved."

What can Guangde do?His sister was right. If he were at home, he would also save his nephew. Monks also know that saving one life is better than building a seven-level pagoda.But 50 taels...he couldn't ask for it from his master.It just so happened that even though he had practiced so far, he felt that he had made no progress.

Then go away and return to secular life.After 20 years of hard work, it’s still nothing?

He changed his mind and decided to steal the incense money from the temple to help his sister tide over the difficulties.It's not difficult to steal money, but he has to have time to escape.So he came up with a plan. The Zen room was in the backyard, and beyond the backyard was the back mountain. He dug a dog hole under the Zen room, covered it with wooden boards, and used several flower pots to cover the exit.

When the time came, he sneaked into the account and stole 50 taels of incense oil money. Then he announced that he was going to enter meditation, entered the meditation room, locked the door, escaped from the hole, and arranged flower pots to cover the exit.

He came to the foot of the mountain, handed the silver to his tearful sister, and thought about where to go next...

he does not know.

Although the practice days in the temple are simple, they are practical.He didn't have much thought at that time, but now...

He bought a hat to cover up his wedding scar, changed into secular clothes, and went to the inn to order meat dishes. Before he even put it in his mouth, the smell of the meat made him want to vomit, and he couldn't move his chopsticks. He was still used to eating plain noodles.

He wandered the streets for several days like a wandering spirit, not knowing what to do next or what he wanted. He even remembered how disappointed his master would be if he found out that he had stolen and escaped.

He decided to go back to the temple to receive his punishment.

He was stunned by the huge crowds of people outside Ciyun Temple. How could Ciyun Temple, which had always been sparsely visited, gather so many believers and pilgrims?He asked others and found out that there was an eminent monk in the temple who had been in samadhi for six days and had not yet come out. He was really a living Bodhisattva.

Isn’t this living Bodhisattva himself?Is it possible that he stole money and ran away without being discovered?

He sneaked back from the back mountain to the backyard, and then sneaked back to the meditation room from the backyard. On the seventh day, he opened the door with some fear.

He heard cheers and admirations. The believers knelt down one after another. Even his close brothers and sisters bowed respectfully to him.

He didn't know what to say, so he could only say: "Amitabha, please leave. Don't hinder your practice."

The abbot came to see him and admired his hard work and success.He made some insinuations to see if the abbot noticed that there was a shortage of incense money.

"There have been a lot of donations in the past few days, and the accounts are in a mess, and they are still being sorted out," the abbot replied.

Guangde breathed a sigh of relief.He became a living Bodhisattva and an eminent monk in the eyes of everyone. He felt guilty and wanted to leave, but his brothers worked hard to persuade him to stay. Even the abbot asked him to explain the meaning of the scriptures.

He is very good at speaking. He can explain every meaning of the scriptures and every detail so perfectly that no one who listens is dissatisfied.

He can only tell it, and he may understand it, but he still has not realized it. Others don't know it, but he himself knows it.

In order to maintain his lie, he hid food and water in the tunnel. Every month, he would "enter meditation" for three days. During those three days, he would lock the Zen room, read scriptures and meditate inside, and leave after three days.

After the death of the abbot, he took over as the abbot of Ciyun Temple, which was natural.

Time flies by, and in the blink of an eye, he has spent 28 years. Every day, he is full of fear, chanting sutras, reciting Buddha's name, and practicing diligently. However, so far, he cannot even achieve the most basic meditation. His only practice is to preach sutras orally.He was still afraid of death and still confused, but he hid it very well and never showed it to the public. Everyone thought he was practicing well, but in fact he just didn't seek materialistic desires.

He was worried that he would not be able to achieve the feat even if he died. The more he thought about it, the more he became afraid.

Just like he was afraid of the night list killer in front of him.

Suddenly, the assassin moved.

Guangde rubbed his eyes to make sure he was not dazzled. The assassin did move.

The assassin woke up and stared at him with a pair of fierce thieves eyes.

Monk Guangde's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and his heart beat violently.

(End of this chapter)