I want to embrace the moon for nine days

There is a magnificent Zen temple on the outskirts of Luoyang, named Jingnian Zen Temple, which is one of the largest sects in Buddhism today.

During this era, Shaolin Temple had only been passed down to the fourth generation, Master Daoxuan, since it was founded by Bodhidharma. There were not many disciples and its influence had not grown.

Jingnian Zen Temple and Cihang Jingzhai are regarded as the leaders in the Buddhist world.

Recently, Shi Feixuan, the most outstanding successor of Cihang Jingzhai throughout the generations, who is regarded as the direct successor to the founder of the sect, has been residing in Jingnian Zen Temple.

She has black hair like clouds, dark eyebrows and a delicate face. She is not made up but has a refined temperament. She kneels on a cushion with her hands clasped together, as if she is wandering outside her body in a deep state of meditation, experiencing the world of mortals, the mountains and forests, and the emptiness and reality of things.

In fact, some learned people in the world know that the earliest nun in the Central Plains appeared in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Her name was Jingjian. She set up an ordination platform, received full ordination, showed her sincerity, and corrected her etiquette to become a bhikkhuni.

The founder of Cihang Jingzhai lived in the Eastern Han Dynasty. He was originally a martial artist, but he joined Buddhism because martial artists had long legs and it was more convenient for them to travel around the world. After being exposed to Buddhist concepts, he used them to practice martial arts.

Although she called herself a "Dini", she was actually an illegal nun.

After Cihang Jingzhai gained fame, they realized that this was not conducive to their foothold in Buddhism, but they also did not want to directly expose the shortcomings of the founder.

Therefore, it was simply stipulated that all the descendants of the past generations were to keep their hair uncut when walking in the martial arts world. They went along with the illegal behavior of nuns and explained it as a special custom and etiquette of both martial artists and Buddhists.

When people from the underworld tell them about the rules of the underworld, they say they are Buddhists. Sometimes Buddhists don't like their behavior, so they say they are from the underworld.

It is a sect that places great emphasis on practicality, and no wonder it was able to quickly develop into the level of one of the top gangs in the white world.

Suddenly, the small string of Buddhist beads wrapped around Shi Feixuan's left wrist emitted a faint light, causing her to open her eyes. The light reflected into her eyes, naturally conveying the message.

"Demon Lord?"

Shi Feixuan's expression changed slightly and she murmured something.

This whisper immediately caught the attention of Monk Liaokong, the head of Jingnian Zen Temple.

There was a flash of light outside the door, and a monk with a thin and long face who looked middle-aged appeared at the door of the hall. He was wearing a yellow inner robe and a brown monk's robe on the outside, which was neat and clean.

"Why did Feixuan mention the Demon Lord?"

When Lekong asked this question, he glanced around, as if wondering if there was any aura of the Demon Lord around.

Yesterday, the four great monks besieged the Demon Lord in the Kingdom of Dong Liao, but the Demon Lord managed to escape. When the news spread, it shocked countless people.

Although the Buddha's prophecies and the legends of the ancestors all mentioned the fearsomeness of the Demon Lord, they are just illusory things after all.

The fact that the four great holy monks of the time, with the four great Buddhist weapons, were unable to accomplish their goal when they joined forces made those prophecies and legends become truly real.

"It's not the one from Dong Liao, it should be another Demon Lord."

Shi Feixuan turned around, and the light of the rosary flashed in Kong's eyes.

"Amitabha, I never thought that another demon king would appear in Suiye Country and take away the Buddha's ninth divine weapon in one move."

Liaokong couldn't help but look heavy-hearted. "This Demon Lord Hanshan sent a message to Donor Xu and the others. It's clear that he wants to challenge me to a duel. With our strength, I'm afraid we don't stand a chance of winning. We still have to inform the Four Holy Monks."

Shi Feixuan said worriedly, "The four great saintly monks are searching for the Demon Lord Dong Liao. If we invite them over, the Demon Lord Dong Liao might not be restrained. If they get ahead and join up with the Demon Lord Han Shan, who knows what will happen."

Liaokong walked into the hall, looked at the Buddha statue in the hall, thought for a moment, and said, "Please ask Mahaye to help."

Shi Feixuan was shocked: "Him?!"

There is a jingle in the martial arts world to describe the masters of the world today: "Emperor Yang Gong, the Three Sects of Bliss, the Four Saints of Divine Feet, and the Evil Alliance of Heavenly Sword."

I don’t know who originally wrote it, but after it came out, everyone found it catchy and it spread like wildfire.

But this jingle is actually very careless. For example, some people think that "Yang Gong" refers to Grand Tutor Yang Su, while others think it refers to King Yang Lin. There is no definitive answer.

Both of them were royal relatives, but one died and the other rarely attended court, so he could be considered semi-retired.

Moreover, the ranking order in this rhyme does not represent the level of martial arts.

Many people think that the word "Paradise" refers to Mahaye, the leader of the Paradise Sect, who is very likely the best master in the world today.

The predecessor of the Pure Land Sect was Brahmaism. Although the sect has undergone great changes in theory, it is still a heresy in the eyes of the Buddhist community in the Central Plains.

It is even more hateful than the original paganism because it has evolved into heresy.

However, the four great monks, together with the leaders of the Buddhist white way, the Jingnian Zen Temple and the Cihang Jingzhai, the six forces, have not been able to eradicate the Pure Land Sect for so many years.

It’s not because of how powerful the Jile Zhengzong is or how many talented people they have, it’s simply because their leader is Mahaye.

Since the founding of the Sui Dynasty by Yang Jian, the leader of the Jile Sect has been regarded as the prime minister, and this position has not changed to this day.

The Buddhist sect had no choice but to put aside the conflict with the Pure Land Sect on the surface, but over the years, the relationship between the two sides has definitely not been good.

"Mahayeh has always had a plan for the Taiyuan Li family. Previously, it was because our Buddhist sect was determined not to let him interfere in this matter. For this reason, we even asked Ning Daoqi, a loner among the three great masters, to intervene. But he did not take action."

Monk Liaokong said, "He has always wanted to transform the Pure Land Sect into a prominent and orthodox religion that can be passed down for hundreds of generations, and he also values ​​reputation very much."

"We will first make concessions on the Li family matter, and then be humble and ask him to help in this case. He will definitely come."

Shi Feixuan hesitated a little: "Back then, Ning Daoqi looked through the secret books of our ancestors and told us that Li Yuan had the destiny of founding a country as a true dragon in order to repay a favor."

"But we have secretly investigated over the years and found that even if Li Yuan has the destiny of a true dragon, he is only an old dragon. The one who truly represents the destiny of the new dynasty and can fight against Yang Guang and others and eradicate the remaining troubles of the Sui Dynasty should be his sons."

"Mahaye will definitely take action against the sons of the Li family. If we give in like this, even if we can hold off the Demon Lord for a while, what will we do when facing those big demons like Yang Guang in the future?"

Liaokong smiled slightly: "Among the three sons of the Li family now, the eldest, Li Jiancheng, is quite heroic, the second, Li Shimin, stays at home, is cowardly and incompetent, and the third, whose character is uncertain, has flaws everywhere in his actions."

"Look at them, which one looks like they can fight against the big devil? But the daughter Li Xiuning has some plans. If she and Li Jiancheng are combined into one, maybe they will have a better chance of winning in the future."

Shi Feixuan frowned: "This is also what I don't understand. Maybe Li Jiancheng is still hiding his incompetence?"

"Ah!"

Liaokong chuckled, "Has Feixuan never thought about this? The son of the Li family may be the nemesis of Yang Guang and his people, but this son of the Li family may not be the son raised in their family."

Shi Feixuan thought about it and suddenly realized, "Could it be that Maha Ye didn't want to kidnap the children of the Li family, and tried to curse and poison them, and control them, but had secretly trained someone to replace the Li family child?"

Liaokong nodded and said, "That's probably the case. When Madam Li was pregnant with her second child, some people saw that the baby was very lucky. It was so bright and colorful that one couldn't even see the baby's condition."

"This second child gave birth to Li Shimin, and has grown up to be ordinary, which is completely inconsistent with the situation before his birth."

"Now that I think about it, Madam Li's second pregnancy was probably twins. She gave birth to two children in one pregnancy, and Maha Ye had already taken action at that time to take away the one who was really destined to be born."

Liaokong said with regret, "Poor woman giving birth, how could we Buddhists get so close to her? The four great monks didn't pay attention at the time, and Maha Ye God got the upper hand without anyone noticing."

Shi Feixuan was still a little hesitant: "But this is the case..."

"Fei Xuan, don't worry."

Liaokong was confident, "The Pure Land Sect has already absorbed a lot of the concepts of our Buddhism. If Mahayana wants to train a great leader, it is impossible to teach him too many strange ideas of the Brahma Sect."

"This Li Erlang who was secretly taught by him must have been influenced by Buddhism and has extraordinary luck. In the future, if we use some means, Li Erlang will most likely return to the right path. Even if we miss the past and do not completely destroy the Jile Sect, the glory of our Buddhist sect will surely increase instead of decrease."

Shi Feixuan looked up at the benevolent Buddha statue and said, "I mean, the Li Shimin who lives in the Li family now doesn't have many bad deeds. If we give in, won't he be in trouble?"

Lekong groaned and said, "After all, we are putting the overall situation first. This man was born from the same womb as the True Dragon Emperor. He was destined to be a pioneer for the king. It is also God's will. Alas, may the Buddha have mercy on me. I will recite a mantra for him when the time comes!"

Shi Feixuan had a few distracting thoughts in her mind, and her brows tightened unconsciously.

Liao Kongduan shouted, "Foolish boy, your sword heart is clear, how can you tolerate distracting thoughts? The Buddha is merciful and only saves those who are destined to be saved. How can you worry about those who are not destined to be saved?" "It's not like you killed him. If you keep worrying about it for no reason, you will become a demon in your heart sooner or later!"

Shi Feixuan was startled, and clasped her hands together and said, "Thank you, Master. Feixuan has learned a lot."

"You are still a little young after all. Although your cultivation is high and you are showing signs of surpassing your master, you should always reflect on yourself and slay your inner demons."

Liaokong gave a few words of encouragement, pulled out a Buddhist bead, and after imprinting it with his mind, he immediately threw it into the sky to send a message to Mahaye.

As soon as his Buddhist beads moved, another pair of Buddhist beads flew in from the air.

This Buddhist bead is transparent and appears to be invisible, making it very hidden.

Shi Feixuan could tell that these were rosary beads from the White Horse Temple.

When Buddhism was introduced to China, the first temple built was the White Horse Temple, which can be regarded as the source of Buddhism in China.

However, the White Horse Temple is not on good terms with Jingnian, Cihang, and even with the four great holy monks.

More than a hundred years ago, there was a great master named Bianhe, who had made great achievements in his practice. He gave lectures at the White Horse Temple and gathered many disciples.

Later, Master Huike, the second patriarch of Zen Buddhism, also went to Luoyang to preach. Many monks from the White Horse Temple went to listen to him. They felt that what he said was more in line with reality, easy to understand and easier to understand.

Bianhe was displeased and killed Master Huike. He also let Master Huike's body float upstream on the river for hundreds of miles to show that Master Huike had done evil things and committed suicide during his lifetime.

Master Sengcan, the third patriarch of Zen Buddhism, later buried Master Huike and burned out his relics, which attracted nearby people to worship him. Because Zen Buddhism had a very good reputation, the fact that the corpse was floating upstream in the river became a miracle.

Bianhe became angry again and beat Master Sengcan to death.

It's a pity that the third generation patriarch of Zen Buddhism didn't accomplish much before he ended up with his birth year unknown.

However, at that time, Daoxuan, the fourth-generation successor of Zen Buddhism, had already taken over the mantle and became close friends with the three masters of the Three Treatise School, Jiaxiang, the Tiantai School, and Dixin, the Huayan School.

The four people were of different ages. For example, although Daoxin had not yet achieved success in cultivation at that time, there were others who had already achieved great success. With the help of the Buddhist soldiers, they also had the allies of Jingnian and Cihang.

As a result, Master Bianhe was unable to continue.

Not many people in the world know about these secret matters, but there are many deeds of this Master Bianhe that are known to the public. He is well-known and renowned.

The "divine feet" in "the four saints with divine feet" refers to him.

Ten years ago, the four great monks had reached the peak of their respective powers, and the strength of Buddhism had increased.

Liao Kong wanted to make himself more famous, so he spread the word that he was practicing silent meditation and wanted to attain Buddhahood. He became famous overnight.

Master Bianhe could not tolerate other monks showing off like this, so he decided to attack Jingnian Temple, and the four great monks had made all the arrangements.

Unexpectedly, the thief was so treacherous that he did not attack head-on, but instead stole people one after another within a hundred days.

All the four most powerful Vajras in Jingnian Temple, from Liaokong onwards, were stolen by him.

Soon, people saw the four great Vajras, all with kind faces and a look of great enlightenment, visiting Master Bianhe at the White Horse Temple and becoming the temple's disciples.

Liaokong lost face and became so angry that he broke his silent meditation.

He did not lose heart. Instead, he learned from his mistakes and tried every possible means to place an undercover agent in the White Horse Temple.

This transparent Buddhist bead was brought by the undercover agent in the White Horse Temple.

"How can you use such a method to send a message? It's too careless..."

Liaokong said as he took the Buddhist beads, and his words of blame suddenly stopped. "I don't know what news Bianhe received last night. He sat in the quiet room for half the night, and suddenly left the White Horse Temple this morning. Before he left, he left a breath that covered the entire White Horse Temple, isolating the inside and outside."

The more he spoke, the uglier his expression became, and his nose and brows were all wrinkled.

It's all fine if you know the purpose, but it's more worrying when someone takes sudden action like Master Bianhe, whose purpose is unknown.

Especially at this critical moment when the demon star breaks through the sky and the Demon Lord descends into the world.

The undercover agent also felt that the purpose of this trip might be of great importance, so he did not hesitate to expose himself and pass on the Buddhist beads.

Shi Feixuan said: "Did they take action last night because they knew about the battle in Dong Liao and wanted to make things difficult for the four great monks?"

"But the actions of the four great monks are coordinated, so it shouldn't be that easy for him to take advantage of the situation."

Liaokong sighed and said, "If he really wanted to cause trouble for the Four Great Saints, it would be good. I'm just afraid that he didn't go there."

Shi Feixuan thought of the news about King Rongliu: "The great mage is extremely greedy for fame. Will he be like the King of Dong Liao and want to be the first to suppress the Dong Liao Demon Lord who has been repeatedly injured?"

Liaokong thought for a moment and snorted coldly: "It would be a huge joke if someone like him could rush to fight the demons."

"If he could really do such a thing, I would eat up all the mud in the lotus pond at the White Horse Temple!"

Just as this conversation and planning was taking place in Jingnian Zen Temple.

Su Hanshan had already led his men to ride on the clouds, away from Suiye, across large tracts of desert and oasis, heading eastward.

Halfway through the journey, we saw a faint golden light ahead, shining through the clouds, and the sound of Zen chanting and a fragrant aroma filled the air.

Su Hanshan pressed down the clouds and looked down. It turned out that he was above the Gaochang Kingdom.

Gaochang was originally a city in the Western Han Dynasty, where the army brought their families to open up land and build a city, and it gradually prospered.

Later, due to the wars in the late Han Dynasty and the Wei and Jin Dynasties, this place was divided into several regions and established its own kingdoms, which were repeatedly ruled over.

Today, the royal family of Gaochang State worships Buddhism and respects monks.

No matter where in the world or which sect of Buddhism the monks came from, the King of Gaochang would treat them with courtesy and arrange the best accommodation, food and service.

Because of this, the caravans on the Silk Road all knew that Gaochang loved to use various Buddhist spices, and also carried Buddhist scriptures and promoted Buddhist rituals and festivals.

With more festivals and celebrations, more caravans came here to trade and open markets, making Gaochang Kingdom prosperous.

Especially during some major festivals, the whole country would chant scriptures, burn incense, sing and dance, the air would be filled with fragrance, and the royal family would travel and enjoy themselves together with the people.

The three of Prince Harsha were feeling uneasy and had no intention of enjoying the scenery along the way. Seeing Su Hanshan stop here, they became even more nervous.

"It turned out to be Gaochang, a small country."

Prince Harsha took a look and laughed, "I have visited this small country before, but it is far inferior to the Central Plains. Senior, let's continue on our journey."

Kou Zhong nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, Luoyang in the Central Plains is truly prosperous."

Xu Ziling interrupted, "In fact, there is also Jiangdu. The scenery of Jiangdu is like the sun and the moon shining brightly in the sky, which is unique in the world. The emperors of our Great Sui Dynasty all lingered there and built palaces there, accompanied by civil and military officials. It is truly a place of great natural beauty and outstanding people!"

Su Hanshan glanced at the three of them.

Okay, now there are more than just two smiling guys, the third one is also beginning to show the true colors of Yangzhou Xiao Xu.

"Gaochang is a small place, but I think it is a place where many talented people gather, and many masters have emerged."

Su Hanshan sighed, "The clouds are invisible and loose after all. We are flying over them. If something breaks up the clouds, won't you fall to your death?"

"It's better to come down from the clouds and walk through the city. It's a good opportunity to see the scenery in the city."

(End of this chapter)