Chapter 70: The Thin Monk

When Duan Rong walked out of the dilapidated small tavern, he was already slightly tipsy, and a rich, rosy glow had spread across his dark, swarthy face.

Duan Rong walked unsteadily, preparing to return to his dormitory to take a short nap and sleep off the alcohol.

Just as he reached the entrance of the Yuanshun Escort Agency, a voice suddenly rang out from behind him.

"Might you be Escort Duan?"

At this moment, the afternoon sun was intense, and as Duan Rong turned his head abruptly, his drunken eyes were dazzled by the sun facing him.

He tilted his head, squinting, and vaguely saw a thin, long figure standing with their back to the light, not far from the stone lion at the entrance of the Escort Agency!

Duan Rong descended a few steps before he could clearly see the person; it was actually a monk, dressed in a yellow silk Buddhist robe, with a string of shiny, oily prayer beads hanging around his neck, and nine ordination scars burned onto his bald head, so thin he was nothing but skin and bones.

Duan Rong was slightly stunned, then immediately pressed his palms together in a salute and said politely, "I am indeed Duan Rong. May I ask what instruction the Master has for me?"

In his past life, Duan Rong had always treated monks, Daoists, and clergy with great courtesy, for it is said that three feet above one's head, there are gods.

Since his soul transmigrated, he believed in this even more firmly.

Since even transmigration had occurred, who could dare say that the tales of gods and ghosts were not true?

Seeing this monk now, Duan Rong was even more devout than in his previous life.

Moreover, Duan Rong held a personal bias: the thinner the monk, the more genuine a practitioner they were!

The monk before him was skin and bones, as thin as a ghost—it simply couldn't be more genuine! Thus, Duan Rong's demeanor became even more respectful.

The thin monk immediately pressed his palms together to return the salute and smiled, "I would not dare speak of instruction; my temple has a request for Benefactor Duan!"

"Oh?" Duan Rong revealed an interested expression.

The thin monk had a kind manner and a humble smile as he said, "The Abbot of my temple has a Senior Brother who serves as the abbot of Yongning Temple in Ruyang Prefecture. He originally hailed from my Kudu Temple and had an affinity with the deity statue in my temple. Although he is far away in Ruyang, he recently had a dream in which the deity statue from our temple appeared to him. He suddenly realized the meaning, and immediately wrote a letter requesting a true-to-life portrait of the deity statue in our temple. He intends to find a craftsman at Yongning Temple to recast a deity statue according to the painting!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Rong felt happy in his heart; this was more business coming his way.

What was going on today? The stars of wealth were truly shining bright!

"I wonder, Benefactor..."

"It is convenient!" Before the thin monk could finish, Duan Rong interrupted.

The thin monk was slightly stunned, then respectfully pressed his palms together and said, "Benefactor is kind and humble; you truly have an affinity with the Buddha!"

Duan Rong's heart skipped a beat, feeling that the tone of the conversation was a bit off.

This monk was flattering him so much; it sounded like he wanted to get work done for free, so he smiled and said, "As for the painting, I will naturally be happy to serve! However, regarding the silver..."

As Duan Rong spoke, he put on a look of hesitation...

"Ah, Benefactor, rest assured. My Kudu Temple receives offerings from all directions, and the incense is quite flourishing. The Abbot has already made arrangements for the remuneration; what does Benefactor think of two hundred taels of silver?"

Hearing this, Duan Rong's brow twitched. It seemed that temples in this world were also places that gathered wealth; although not comparable to the Little God of Wealth, two hundred taels was still a large sum! As expected, temples were the most ruthless at making money!

"Naturally, that is fine, naturally!" Duan Rong asked with a smile, "I wonder if your temple has painting supplies? If not, I can bring my own!"

"All necessary painting supplies are available!"

"Then... Master, let us go now..." Duan Rong walked enthusiastically up to the thin monk, with a rather familiar air.

After walking a few steps, Duan Rong noticed that not far behind the thin monk, a carriage was parked, and an old horse pulling the carriage was standing there quietly.

Duan Rong's eyes rolled; there was a carriage, which meant the place was not nearby!

A monk was not the Little God of Wealth; the carriage was not for show, it was purely a means of transportation.

Besides, what kind of show could this old horse and broken carriage put on?

His original self did not respect ghosts or gods and knew nothing about how many temples or nunneries were in Xiangu County; in the inherited memories, information in this regard was almost non-existent!

"May I ask, Master, where is your temple located?"

"My temple is located at the foot of Yin Mountain, six or seven li to the east of the county outskirts!" The thin monk smiled honestly, "We can go by this carriage. Benefactor, do not look down on this old horse; it is very steady when pulling the carriage!"

Duan Rong gave an awkward smile and thought to himself: Fine, the prized horse has turned into a broken carriage! Six or seven li is not too far; for two hundred taels of silver, it is worth a trip!

Duan Rong sat inside the carriage, and the thin monk drove.

The thin monk stood beside the horse, his body nimbly leaping backward, his buttocks landing steadily on the front of the carriage, and then a loud crack of the whip struck the old horse's bony back; the old horse felt the pain and immediately galloped away!

Duan Rong was slightly amused; this monk was quite a good driver!

It was fine at first; West Street was paved with bluestone slabs, the road was flat, and the ride was fairly smooth!

But, once they left West Street, the carriage began to sway; Duan Rong, after all, had martial arts, so he could still sit steadily!

However, once they left the county town and reached the dirt road in the suburbs, it immediately began to bump violently!

Sometimes it seemed the carriage hit a pothole, and Duan Rong's buttocks were jolted off the seat!

If he didn't have martial arts, and hadn't fully mastered the footwork and body techniques of the Cloud Snake Step, his buttocks would probably have been broken into seven or eight pieces by now...

After about half a stick of incense, Duan Rong really couldn't endure the bumping of the carriage; if it continued, he would surely vomit.

Duan Rong simply stopped sitting, stood up, and began to practice the Hunyuan Stance right there in the carriage!

Duan Rong's Stance Training already had a deep foundation, and with the addition of the Cloud Snake Step's footwork and body techniques, once he stood in the carriage, his feet seemed to take root, sticking firmly to the floor of the carriage.

Let it sway left and right, he remained unmoved!

In this way, the original dizzying, nauseating bumping sensation disappeared, and Duan Rong actually stood there, closing his eyes to circulate his Internal Breath!

The thin monk's way of driving was quite violent, and the carriage speed was very fast; after about two sticks of incense, a "Whoa!" was heard, and the thin monk pulled the reins hard.

The carriage stopped abruptly; Duan Rong's body leaned backward, but his mind was clear, the muscles in his legs moved in response to the changes in external force, and his body stood firmly!

Duan Rong opened his eyes, jumped off the carriage, and said, "Master, have we arrived?"

Seeing that Duan Rong's expression was normal and a faint smile still hung on his face, the thin monk was slightly stunned, thinking: The ride was so bumpy, how is this person as if nothing happened?

The thin monk just let the thought pass, then smiled, "Benefactor, we have arrived; that is my temple!"

Duan Rong followed the thin monk's gaze and indeed saw a rather towering temple faintly visible amidst the mountain rocks and trees.

But a trace of strangeness still rose in Duan Rong's heart; the thin monk said Kudu Temple had flourishing incense, but it was quite desolate at this moment, with no Buddhist chants coming from the temple, and not a single pilgrim to be seen nearby.

Duan Rong looked up and squinted at the bright sun overhead, thinking to himself, "Perhaps there are few people in the afternoon..."

"Benefactor, please follow me!"

The thin monk tied the carriage reins to the trunk of a white birch tree, then led Duan Rong along a mountain path toward the direction of the Temple!

The two walked along the mountain path one after the other, and after rounding a large, glistening white rock, they suddenly found themselves standing on the platform outside the Temple gate.

(End of this chapter)