Chapter 426: with translation of chapter title

432. Chapter 432: Situation

Master!

Lin Ke feigned awakening from the primordial stupor, stared blankly for a moment, then shouted in astonishment.

Immediately, Lin Ke, following Monk Liaofang's usual demeanor, stared and said, "Junior Brother Liaoxin, why did you harm me? Master, what did I do wrong?"

"Foolish child..."

Monk Yuanzhi clasped his hands, sighed deeply, and said, "It's not that you erred; you did too well. Junior Brother Liaoxin is consumed by the three poisons—greed, hatred, delusion—greed deep in his bones, hatred in his heart, incurable."

Hearing this, Lin Ke lowered his head, appearing unwilling to believe.

Seeing this, Monk Yuanzhi said nothing more about Liaoxin, but gently said, "You have just fully awakened; rest well today, and tomorrow come to me to learn the Sumeru Palm."

Yes, Master.

Lin Ke hastily lifted his head, answering while making a motion to rise and see him off.

Monk Yuanzhi stretched out his right hand, lightly pressing on Lin Ke's shoulder to halt his movement, signaling that no farewell was needed.

Since his motion was halted, Lin Ke didn't insist, and instead simply watched Monk Yuanzhi depart.

He is truly a good person.

He not only helped Lin Ke acquire Monk Liaofang's life memories, so that Lin Ke was no longer completely unfamiliar with this world, thus avoiding any aberrant behavior that could expose him.

Moreover, through that light press just now, Lin Ke assessed Monk Yuanzhi's strength and the overall strength of the White Horse Zen Institute.

With these two advantages, Lin Ke can better execute his infiltration mission behind enemy lines.

Although the Elemental Sage didn't say so explicitly, dispatching Lin Ke, Mo Li, Ai Rui Si, Luo Te Si Nuo, Fu Li Si Te, and Mei Di Qi six persons in the form of 'body seizure' to bypass the defenses of the three remaining Buddhist ancestors and enter the rear habitable world is itself a kind of infiltration, isn't it?

Moreover, what were the Elemental Sage's demands?

Survive, and do as you please.

This means the six will eventually be discovered by the Buddhist remnants, or by their ālaya consciousness, and face encirclement.

Then, to survive and do as you please, would that not become sabotage behind enemy lines?

This thought quickly crossed his mind; Lin Ke revealed nothing on his face, merely showing a grieving, incredulous expression as he waited for his senior brother Monk Liaochen, like a towering vajra, to speak.

He is a chatterbox who could mutter nonstop while Lin Ke was unconscious, and now that he's awake, he can't help but speak.

Indeed, Monk Liaochen spoke in a deep, resonant voice: "Junior Brother, you must study the Sumeru Palm well with Master, and give that fellow Liaoxin a good lesson to avenge your senior brother!"

After a pause, Monk Liaochen's face flushed with anger, like a vajra glaring, and he snorted: "My butt still hurts from the beating those Discipline Hall guys gave me—they showed no mercy, actually striking me with lethal force! Don't let me get a chance, humph!"

Since Lin Ke was playing a role, he couldn't reveal the truth, so he spoke solemnly: "Senior Brother, we are the Guest Hall; what opportunity could there be for you to take revenge on the Discipline Hall's senior brothers?"

Uh...

Monk Liaochen was left speechless by Lin Ke's remark.

What is the Guest Hall responsible for?

It is responsible for receiving visitors who come to the White Horse Zen Institute to pay respects to the Buddha.

What is the Discipline Hall responsible for?

It is responsible for enforcing and carrying out the White Horse Zen Institute's disciplinary rules and punishments.

According to their respective duties, only when the Discipline Hall oversees the Guest Hall does the Guest Hall rarely, if ever, have any authority over the Discipline Hall.

This fact left Monk Liaochen, after being left speechless, with his lips moving but unable to speak.

Facts always hurt the most.

Taking a deep breath, Monk Liaochen simply picked up his earthen bowl and turned to leave.

Since Junior Brother Liaofang has awakened and, as usual, remains silent, let the silent Junior Brother Liaofang stay alone.

Didn't the Master also say that the junior brother needs a day of rest?

Lin Ke watched Monk Liaochen leave the bedroom, listened closely, focused his senses, confirmed that Monk Liaochen had truly gone far, and seeing no one else inside or outside the room, he got up from the bed and moved about.

The 'Body Seizure' magical device was jointly developed by the four sages: True Spirit, Body Refinement, Artifice, and Element.

Four versus three, with intent versus lack thereof, the advantage lies with the wizard civilization.

After moving a bit, Lin Ke found no problem with bodily control, as if it were truly his original body.

Having confirmed that, he next assessed his own strength.

The Immortal, Divine, and Buddhist paths could once combine into an Immortal-Divine-Buddhist civilization, and they naturally share common ground.

During those years of lying low, Lin Ke, through the academy and Ai Rui Si, gathered much information on the Immortal-Divine civilization, including its two major cultivation systems.

Moreover, the cultivator-martialist system of the Human-Immortal Martial World is essentially inclined toward the Immortal-Divine cultivation system.

Thus, Lin Ke is not unfamiliar with this, and quickly assessed his own strength.

Equivalent to a senior third-rank wizard?

Lin Ke muttered silently, his brows slightly furrowed.

The Buddhist remnants mainly consist of three stars transformed from the three Buddhist ancestors and twelve planets.

These twelve planets are each habitable for humanity, each a world in its own right.

The White Horse Zen Institute is an ordinary power in this world, with subordinate institutions such as the Bodhi Institute, Dharma Hall, Sutra Pavilion, Discipline Hall, Propagation of Buddhism Hall, Arhat Hall, Guest Hall, and Sutra Discussion Pavilion.

The Bodhi Institute is a place for eminent monks to cultivate; it first requires profound mastery of the Dharma, then certain standards for cultivation realm.

The Dharma Hall is a place for meticulous cultivation study; each year it conducts an examination across the entire Zen Institute, and only those who pass may enter to study cultivation in depth.

The Arhat Hall is where newcomers begin cultivation; new disciples of the Zen Institute must first train there before being assigned elsewhere.

The Sutra Pavilion, as the name suggests, is where scriptures are stored.

The Discipline Hall and Guest Hall have already been explained.

The Propagation of Buddhism Hall and the Sutra Discussion Pavilion are both places for studying Buddhism; internally they study scriptures and doctrine, externally they propagate the Dharma.

Monk Liaofang entered the White Horse Zen Institute at age six before thirteen; he first studied Buddhism in the Sutra Discussion Pavilion, then trained in the Arhat Hall, after which he was assigned to the Guest Hall, and is now applying for qualification to enter the Dharma Hall for in-depth cultivation study.

Nineteen years old, a third-rank wizard.

At this age and cultivation level, placed in the wizard civilization, he is definitely a genius.

However, among this generation of disciples at the White Horse Chan Temple, he is only of an above-average level; he has a high chance of entering the Bodhidharma Hall, yet also faces fierce competition.

Yet the White Horse Chan Temple in this world is truly just an ordinary power.

"Indeed, the Buddhist remnants have managed to last this long; their power should not be underestimated."

Lin Ke muttered to himself, becoming more attentive to this mission.

Immediately, Lin Ke stopped pacing, sat on the bed, and began to think of other matters.

The Elemental Sage said, "The Body Seizure artifact will cause the six of them to randomly seize bodies."

Six compared to twelve cannot simply be reduced to 1:2.

To find Mo Li, Ailis, Fryst, Lotessno, and Medicci among the teeming billions of twelve human-habitable worlds is no small feat.

Furthermore, to lower exposure risk, the Body Seizure artifact forbade the six from using any wizard abilities and also did not allow them to carry any wizard tools.

Their sole reliance was the mutual sense of fate.

Yes, the sense of fate.

The wizard civilization merely does not obey the so-called fate, but still acknowledges its existence.

This time, the four sages jointly refined the Body Seizure artifact, incorporating the rules of fate sense into it.

Lin Ke knew this, but Lotessno was the first to lie down in the sleep chamber and then, via voice transmission, boasted to him about it.

After all, the one who studied the concept of fate most deeply in the wizard civilization was the Mystic school sage Nosutloradam.

The fate-sense rule employed in the Body Seizure artifact is precisely the discovery of the sage Nosutloradam.

Lotessno certainly had the right to boast.

At that moment, Lin Ke realized that Lotessno's apparent boasting was actually giving a hint, since Lotessno was accompanying him on a mission to fulfill the wizard world's will, having just come to execute the High Council's rear infiltration plan.

To better and faster complete the mission, Lotessno naturally wanted the protagonist of this plan, Lin Ke, to obtain more information advantageous to fulfilling the plan.

Having spent so much time earlier on 'fate' and 'predetermined fate,' Lin Ke already had a pretty good grasp of this intangible concept.

Now recalling Lotessno's hint, Lin Ke formed a conjecture and vaguely conceived a feasible method.

However, now is not the time to seek Mo Li and Ailis; he must first truly take root in this world.

Having settled his plans in mind, Lin Ke neither got up to move nor thought further; he lay down on the bed to sleep and rest.

The body is the foundation of everything; nurture the body before discussing anything else.

Master Yuanzi's meditation room.

His stature was like a six-zhang vajra, yet his appearance and demeanor were not the simple honesty of before; instead, the serene, transcendent Master Wuchen sat cross-legged opposite Master Yuanzi, accompanying him as they both gazed at the water basin before them.

Through the water's surface in the basin, Master Yuanzi and Master Wuchen could clearly see everything happening in the ordinary monk's quarters.

Lin Ke's pacing and his contemplation were both seen by this master-disciple pair.

When Lin Ke finally lay down on the bed and remained still, Master Yuanzi lightly waved his right hand, dispersing the image on the water.

"Master, is the junior brother alright?"

Master Wuchen immediately spoke up to ask.

"Amitabha."

Master Yuanzi pressed his palms together, uttered a Buddha's name, slowly closed his eyes, and said, "All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows; like dew and lightning, they should be viewed thus."

Having finished reciting that passage without preamble, Master Yuanzi fell silent.

Master Wuchen, however, understood Master Yuanzi's meaning, and anger surfaced on his face.

The master's brow lowered like a bodhisattva's, while the disciple glared like a vajra.

Elsewhere.

Mo Li dressed in a black tight-fitting outfit, stood on the mountain peak, overlooking the prefectural city at its base.

Behind Mo Li were two squadrons of well-trained elite cavalry, both men and horses utterly motionless, making not a sound.

A carriage surged up from the mountainside to the peak as if walking on flat ground; a white-clad maid leapt from the cabin, took a few strides to Mo Li's side, bowed respectfully, and said, "Lady, the prince urges you to return to the prince's mansion promptly; do not act on impulse. No matter how you speak, Governor Liu acted out of pure public spirit, having just launched corvée labor in the deep winter, driving the populace."

"Pure public spirit?"

Mo Li repeated the word in an indifferent tone.

Immediately, she slightly turned her body and gazed at another mountain.

That mountain is not tall, only a thousand ren.

Converted into the wizard civilization's measurement units, that is about 230 meters.

Yet, without tools, carving that 230-meter-high mountain into a seated Buddha statue by hand is an enormous project.

The maid's mentioned Governor Liu, in order to present a gift to the venerable monk Kongming who had recently attained the Arhat realm, in the deep winter launched corvée labor among the populace of three counties, ordering these people to complete a seated statue of Arhat Kongming within one month.

If the schedule is missed, delaying Governor Liu's offering to Arhat Kongming, the people will inevitably have their homes smashed and families exterminated by Governor Liu.

Thus, even though dozens of civilians have already fallen to their deaths or been crushed by falling stones, not a single person dares to flee.

For the sake of their elderly parents and wives and husbands, the civilians can only risk their lives, chiseling stone, opening the mountain, and carving the Buddha image.

Mo Li, who had seized the body of the lady, could not tolerate Governor Liu's disregard for civilian lives; she left home in anger, leading two squadrons of the prince's iron cavalry, intending to assassinate Governor Liu.

Who would have thought that, just as they arrived outside the prefectural city, the lady was seized.

After the core was swapped, the lady—now Mo Li—likewise disapproved of Governor Liu's conduct, but unlike the original lady, she does not act without considering consequences.

The reason she came to stand silently on the mountain peak once more, observing the enemy situation, was to await an opportunity to lead her troops back.

Now, Mo Li has waited for that moment.

"Hmph! For now, I'll spare his dog's life."

After muttering to herself, Mo Li turned away resentfully and said angrily, "If it weren't for not wanting to make things difficult for my father the king, I would never allow that cur to see tomorrow's sun."

Having uttered those words, Mo Li stormed into the carriage cabin and coldly shouted, "Return to the mansion!"

Seeing this, the maid breathed a sigh of relief, then hurried toward the carriage: "Lady, wait for me."

Just as Mo Li went down the stairs, Airis didn't know how to express her feelings.

Her 'body seizure' target was neither a cultivator nor a princess of a prince's manor, but a thin weak maid in the slums.

Airis was in the woodshed of a brothel.

Yesterday, the thin weak maid was sold into the brothel by her family, who had run out of food, in exchange for half a dou of rice.

The brothel had taken in too many people at once, lacking enough space to accommodate them, so it threw the maid who looked the dirtiest and thinnest into the woodshed.

One night it was bitterly cold; the maid no longer had to suffer, and Airis took her place in suffering.

De, de, de...

No matter how firm the will, Airis could not suppress the instinct of this thin weak body, and her teeth began to chatter.

In the freezing winter month, the woodshed was really too cold.

Fortunately, it was already daylight; the brothel manager remembered the thin weak maid's existence, sent a servant to open the woodshed door, and hauled Airis, who had hardly any meat on her body, out to a bathtub filled with hot water.

Wash yourself; come eat after you're clean.

Having said that, the servant turned and left.

In the brothel, there are all kinds of beauties; the servant couldn't be bothered with this thin weak maid.

Airis washed herself expressionlessly, put on the dry clothes placed beside the bathtub, and followed the smell of food to the cafeteria.

The girls who were sold into the brothel together yesterday were all here, gulping down food, eating the lavish meals they had never eaten before.

Airis served herself a bowl of thin porridge, accompanied by pickled vegetables and vegetable buns, and ate slowly.

After finishing breakfast, the brothel madam came, said nothing, and led the girls away.

Airis stood silently in the middle of the line and followed the movement.

Soon, the madam led the girls to the brothel entrance, had a few pimps make the girls stand in the corners on both sides of the brothel's main gate, and watch how the older sisters solicited customers.

Early in the morning, will the brothel have customers?

There are.

A monk wearing Buddhist robes walked unhurriedly to the brothel's door, palms together, earnestly saying: "I, a poor monk, have no desires; there is a Buddhist principle I do not understand. I wonder which female bodhisattva, great in compassion and mercy, would be willing to enlighten me?"

The madam glanced sideways.

Only seeing a prostitute wearing only a scrap of cloth walk out with a solemn expression, approach the monk, lightly embrace him, press his head against the firm, upright righteousness, and solemnly ask: "Monk, do you understand?"

Amitabha.

The monk raised his head, still with palms together, a sorrowful expression: "The female bodhisattva's Buddhist principle is too profound; I cannot fully understand it for now. Out of compassion for the female bodhisattva, please enlighten me again."

Come with me.

The prostitute wearing only a scrap of cloth turned, swaying her hips to tease the monk's lofty desire for profundity.

The monk stepped forward, nearly merging with the prostitute, and walked into the brothel.

Airis watched coldly, feeling that the world was utterly corrupt.

We need to purify the world!