Kyushu · Endless Nagato

Chapter 18
"You're half right," Han Xinzhi said, "everyone was killed, but the body that was taken away belonged to the Chief Escort. He also intentionally left a body alive so that he could send a message to the person who collected the body." , he originally took a fancy to the young escort, but after entering the escort agency, he found that the quality of the chief escort was higher. He said that in the eyes of the corpse dancers, the age of the deceased was insignificant at all, and the dead would never be old."

"Dead people will never grow old..." An Xingmian repeated, feeling that this sentence had a profound meaning, and couldn't help being a little dazed.After a while, he settled down: "So, now, can you tell me what happened 23 years ago? I know it's difficult, but for the sake of Nagato, I hope you can tell me as much as possible. "

Han Xinzhi lowered his head, hesitated for a long time, and finally nodded hesitantly: "I can tell you some incidents that do not involve the secrets of Tianzangzong. Although I don't know if it is appropriate to do so, but... as you said, If Nagato is destroyed, what is the meaning of Tianzangzong's name?"

two

"23 years ago, in the 20 years of Shengde, I entered the Yunzhong Monastery for only two years. I was just an ordinary disciple and had no right to touch the core affairs of the sect," Han Xinzhi recalled, "But I didn't feel that It doesn't matter. The real Nagato monks don't care about status, they only pursue the practice itself. Tianzangzong is not a big sect, but it has a long history and firm belief. In the Nagato classics I have read , Tianzangzong’s interpretation of the Nagato Sutra resonates with me the most, so I am very satisfied with the life in the monastery, and even hope to stay like this until my death.”

"But in the 20th year of Shengde, your hope is shattered, right?" An Xingmian asked.

"Yes, it was the winter of that year, to be precise, at the time when winter and spring meet," Han Xinzhi said with a gloomy expression, "In August of that year, our monastery sent thirty monks to the North Mangshan, to carry out a secret mission. That is not something that ordinary practitioners can understand, not to mention that for the long door monk, restraining one's excess curiosity is itself part of the practice, so no one asks about it, everyone They still lived peacefully. However, in November, the masters began to worry, because the thirty people did not come back as planned, not only disappeared, but there was no routine letter."

"This is strange. Yunzhong is so close to Beiman Mountain, so there shouldn't be any news all of a sudden." An Xingmian pondered.

"So we started to send people to look for it," Han Xinzhi said. "Four groups of people were sent successively. They searched for nearly three months. They searched for the spring of the second year, but they couldn't find it. Because of the mission of their trip It is very important. I have been paying attention to my whereabouts along the way. They all enter the mountain in batches, and they will meet in uninhabited places. Therefore, there are very few mountain people who have seen them. Most of them can remember it in November. Encountered before."

"So in the end you didn't find out any useful news?"

"Not at all. After the beginning of spring, more and more people went to the mountains to collect herbs, so we had to give up searching," Han Xinzhi said. "At that time, we ordinary monks were guessing that maybe they encountered some landslide or mudslide. They were killed collectively in a similar disaster. Because the thirty people were different from us, all of them had martial arts, and the leading ones were quite good at martial arts. They should be able to deal with ordinary beasts or robbers. Of course Well, if you run into a large group of bandits, or gangster gangs who mobilize collectively, you probably won't be able to defeat them, but...but..."

"But why would a large group of people go to make things difficult for the head monk who has nothing to do with the world?" An Xingmian finished for him.

Han Xinzhi sighed: "Yeah, that's what we thought at the time, and although it was an unfortunate thing, Nagato is not a street gang after all, and we don't need to rely on the number of people to fill the facade. We all felt that this would not be right. The monastery has caused too much influence. But I never expected that less than a month after giving up the search, the most respected masters in the monastery would quarrel themselves."

"Master fights? This is really rare." An Xingmian was a little surprised.In fact, it is more than rare, it can be said that basically no one has seen it.Nagato is originally an organization that does not involve power and interests. A monk who can be honored as a master has a noble character and a forbearing attitude. Just like Zhang Haoge, he is not angry when his teeth are knocked out, and he is not at odds with outsiders. Will quarrel, not to mention their own internal struggle?
"And the noise was very loud, even though the door was closed, it could be heard outside," Han Xinzhi continued, "We were all terrified, no one dared to persuade us, and we kept away from each other strictly following the rules. Thinking about it afterwards, I also complained that I was too old-fashioned, if I could have eavesdropped, maybe I would have known what they were arguing about."

"It's not a good thing to follow the rules too much," An Xingmian said helplessly, "Then what happened later, did they really quarrel?"

"It wasn't just a quarrel. Later, one of our masters named Cen Ming committed suicide." Han Xinzhi lowered his head.

An Xingmian realized the seriousness of the incident. For Nagato monks, penance is a compulsory course in life. Any suffering and setbacks are just like "crossing Nagato" to them. Those whose minds are really unstable, the worst thing is to quit Nagato and stop suffering. This is a free organization, and those without belief will never force them to stay.But it is really unimaginable that a highly respected wife would commit suicide.

"I guess, he may have chosen to commit suicide because he felt that he had made an extremely wrong decision that greatly endangered Tianzangzong?" He finally guessed.

"None of us know," Han Xinzhi shook his head, "but your statement may be true, because when those wives were arguing, some of us faintly heard the words 'betrayal' and 'you instigated'. That is Said that they all suspected Mr. Cen, thinking that he was manipulating those missing colleagues behind the scenes. But why they disappeared and why Mr. Cen was behind the scenes, no one knew at the time. But now I finally know, Mr. Cen and Mr. Cen Those thirty fellow disciples are all innocent, it was Xu Mizi who killed them."

"But he may not have told lies. Maybe he used lies to clear himself of the crime before he died?" An Xingmian said, "Some people value reputation more than life. Leave a good name behind."

"Then I don't know," Han Xinzhi continued to shake his head. "It doesn't make much sense to know the truth now. Master Cen committed suicide. The remaining masters in the monastery were disheartened and slowly left. The rest All the monks felt that such an environment was really not suitable for practice, so they gradually dispersed, and finally the monastery disappeared, and I followed my teacher to other places. The Tianzang Sect is still there, but its vitality is also severely damaged."

Han Xinzhi half-closed his eyes, with complicated expressions on his face, and finally only a kind of almost numb calm remained.The prosperity and splendor of Yunzhong Monastery more than 20 years ago has long gone, and only this old man who looks very old is left, and he can still trace the lost time in his memory.

An Xingmian didn't bother him, and let him reminisce quietly. Finally, Han Xinzhi took the initiative to speak: "It happened like that, but I know that you still have one last question to ask."

"Yes, I really want to know, what is the secret that your Tianzang sect keeps so hard? And what kind of secret will cause thirty monks to die and a monastery to fall apart?"

"I'm sorry, I still can't tell you that I don't have the right," Han Xinzhi's words were full of apology, "In fact, I didn't know about it in the past. Later, before my teacher died, considering the difficult situation of Tianzangzong, he decided to Violating the prohibition told me the real secret of Tianzangzong, and after listening to it, I wish I had never heard it."

"Then what kind of person has the right to tell me?" An Xingmian was very unwilling.But he also knew that once the group of Nagato monks became stubborn, there was basically no cure, and they would die like teacher Zhang Haoge knowing that they must die, so they could only think of other ways to save the country.

"No one has this power." Han Xinzhi only said this, and then continued to remain silent.

An Xingmian could only spread his hands and return to the ground.He described the conversation just now to Bai Qianyun, and the fiery Bai Qianyun couldn't help it immediately: "The heads of these monks are not just made of wood, they are all filled with shit! It's all shit !—Ah, sorry, I didn't mention you."

"It's nothing, I often forget that I'm still a long-door monk," An Xingmian smiled, "But if you don't understand what the secret of Tianzangzong is, you won't be able to solve the mystery of the emperor. And Now it seems that it is unrealistic to expect the disciples of the Tianzang sect to tell me. If it were in the past, I could still seek help from the masters in my own sect. Maybe some of them are well-informed and know about it. But right now, the long door monks everywhere are either caught or hiding to avoid disaster, to find them, and to find someone who knows about it by chance, it’s a bit of a needle in a haystack.”

"I know some very powerful mystics," Bai Qianyun said. "If it doesn't work, let's work harder and use mind reading skills to dig out what you need to know directly from that wooden head named Han."

"It's useless. Changmen monks use meditation to exercise their spirit all the year round. Although they may not know the secret arts, they must be very resistant to mind reading." An Xingmian shook his head, "But I thought One person, perhaps, can tell us the answer."

"Who are you talking about?" Bai Qianyun was taken aback.

"It's the corpse dancer who is likely to kill the thirty monks in one pot—Xumizi," An Xingmian said, "he may be the last person to meet the thirty monks, and he will definitely find something. what."

"However, the monks of the long door refused to say, is the corpse dancer just a soft bone?" Bai Qianyun was a little suspicious.

"Well, the key is that the long-door monks don't like hard and soft things, but the corpse dancers may not be able to lure them to benefit," An Xingmian said, "Although I don't know much about the corpse dancers, I also know that they want Survival requires sufficient sources of corpses and medicines, both of which can be solved with money—don’t forget that I’m a rich man.”

"Okay, rich man, be cruel," Bai Qianyun patted him on the shoulder, "When shall we set off?"

"Us?" An Xingmian was slightly taken aback.

"Help people to the end," Bai Qianyun said carelessly, "Since you have promised to help me find out the mystery of my life experience, I can't accept such a big favor in vain. I can only do something for you first."

An Xingmian laughed.He was originally a casual person, so he naturally admired Bai Qianyun's casualness, and knew that if he disagreed, this hot-tempered new friend would probably turn his back on him immediately.However, finding a corpse dancer is destined to be a very arduous journey, and countless trekking through mountains and rivers is indispensable. He sneaked a look at Bai Qianyun's leg and sighed in his heart.

"I don't object to you helping me, but I think it might be better for you to help me with another thing. It's more efficient for us to divide the work and cooperate. After all, time is already tight," he said after deliberating for a while. "What's more, this matter is very difficult. I am afraid it will be difficult to complete it with my ability. Only you can do it."

The second half of the sentence undoubtedly scratched the itch, and Bai Qianyun was gearing up: "What's the matter?"

"To find out the truth about the emperor's attack on Nagato, we can do both," An Xingmian said, "I'll look for Sumeru and dig up historical relics; you can start with reality."

Bai Qianyun thought for a while, then his eyes lit up: "You mean to find out the real motive of the emperor directly?"

An Xingmian nodded: "No matter what the emperor's purpose is, it is impossible for him to pat his head and suddenly go crazy and want to deal with Nagato. There must be some incentive. And who is the emperor? He will probably be surrounded by people when he does anything. All kinds of followers, you can probably get some clues from them. Since you are doing an underground business selling Heluo weapons, you must have a lot of contacts, and you may find some connections."

Bai Qianyun did not hesitate: "Okay, I will do as you say, you are not only smart, but also kind."

"Good intentions?" This time it was An Xingmian's turn to be taken aback.

"You are just worried that my legs and feet will not be able to withstand the toss, so you assign me a job that only needs to communicate letters or send someone to run errands, and does not require personal labor." Bai Qianyun patted him on the shoulder, "But maybe This is really the right direction, my network is more effective than ordinary court officials. I'll try it, and I won't drag these two useless legs to try my best."

"I like to make friends with smart people." An Xingmian murmured.

"However, how are you going to find that corpse dancer named Sumeru?" Bai Qianyun asked.

"Find any corpse dancer and ask about it." An Xingmian said very easily.

Finding a corpse dancer at random is easy to say, but very difficult to put into practice.Corpse dancers don't write on their faces to identify themselves, and they were originally hermits who lived alone and away from the world.An Xingmian has only been in contact with Nagato's classmates over the years, and he is really at a loss to think of a way to find the corpse dancer.

In the end, it was Bai Qianyun who helped him again.In the past two days, one of his regular customers happened to come to him to buy new weapons, so he asked the customer about the situation of the emperor and the corpse dancer.The client is a well-known swordsman and social activist in Wanzhou, who has always been well-connected and well-informed.Regrettably, he also knew nothing about the emperor's actions, and did not know any of the corpse dancers, but provided an important information related to the corpse dancers.

"Just in the past two months, there will be a seminar for corpse dancers. If you want to find corpse dancers, you can go to that seminar. If you catch them, you will find a lot of them." The swordsman said.

"Fellowship Seminar? What is that?" Bai Qianyun asked, "Could it be a boring occasion like a monk holding a Dharma meeting?"

"It's just that the name sounds boring," the swordsman laughed. "Actually, it's much more exciting than a monk's ceremony, because it's a meeting where corpse dancers compete in corpse dance skills."

"Isn't that just a martial arts tournament?" Bai Qianyun immediately showed fascination, "My good fellow, a group of corpse dancers command countless corpses to fight, such a scene is very rare!"

"It's not only rare, most people in this world will never see it in their lifetime," the other party sighed, "It's a pity that you and I are among the vast majority of people. Outsiders are not allowed to participate in such a grand event. "

"Then how did you know there was such a conference?" Bai Qianyun asked.

"It's a coincidence that it has something to do with the conference itself," said the swordsman. "I don't know any corpse dancers, but a few years ago, an old friend of mine and a few friends stumbled across the mountain when they were gathering medicine. During the seminar of the corpse dancer, several friends were killed on the spot, and the old man was poisoned and escaped home by chance. Although he tried every means to get rid of the poison, he still died of the poison two months later. Since then, his son has decided to take revenge. A month ago, he came to me to borrow a good knife, saying that he had found out that the latest seminar would be held in the Illusion Forest in Wanzhou, so he wanted to kill some corpse dancers for revenge. .”

"Kill a few corpse dancers for revenge..." Bai Qianyun thought about this sentence, and finally shook his head with a wry smile, "This is how the hatred in the world is derived. Forget it, let alone this, the Illusion Forest is far away from Yunzhong It’s not far, but the area of ​​the forest is so vast, do you know the exact location?”

"He only found out that it was near a place called Ten Thousand Snake Lake in the forest, so he had to find it by himself," said the swordsman, "What's wrong with you, and you plan to find the bad luck of the corpse dancer?"

(End of this chapter)