Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1491 1163. Dirty Painting
"Burn it! Kill it!"

"Burn it! Kill it!"

The faint and low wailing sounds, like the sound of wind before an earthquake, flowed and echoed from the pillars and corners of the courtyard.

It spoke human language, but the emotions and texture of its voice did not sound like a living thing at all.

The huge and thick filth is accumulated and maintained on this painting.

The monk with a peaceful face was still kneeling peacefully in front of the scroll.

There were two candlesticks placed beside him, as if he was concentrating on appreciating the painting in front of him that was full of resentment and hatred.

He did not have the compassion of a monk, nor did he have any intention of purifying filth; he was simply appreciating and savoring it.

Rinpoche is the creator of this painting.

Of course, what he created was certainly not this painting. That was just a painting that was barely mediocre.

This painting was just a room ornament bought by a wealthy family from a calligraphy and painting shop for a few silver coins.

What he created was the filth and hatred in this painting.

"Namo Myoho Renge Kyo."

Master Higo chanted the Nichiren sect's Buddhist mantra while fiddling with the Buddhist beads in his hand.

He still remembers several interesting experiences he had in creating this painting.

The accumulation and strengthening of the "residue" to such an extent that it can harm countless people just by itself within a period of more than ten years.

In this process, in addition to the accumulation of [filth], there will naturally also be resentful spirits, hatred, and other messy things.

After all, there are a lot of things left behind after a person dies unnaturally.

[Residual filth] is just equivalent to the corpse fluid left behind by a dead body. Although it stinks, it usually only makes you feel uncomfortable for a few days if you get contaminated by it.

As for souls that are full of resentment and fear, it is common sense that they will become different things due to various factors.

Most of them will become resentful but harmless souls. After wandering in the human world for a period of time, they will either dissipate naturally or be liberated by priests, monks, or onmyojis.

A small number of them will become monsters because of their resentment.

A woman who loses her child and feels guilty and resentful may become a guhuo bird.

Those who are tortured by hunger and cannot forget that feeling until death may become hungry ghosts.

An old person who is abandoned by his children in the mountains and dies with resentment may become a mountain witch.

And so on and so forth.

However, under the management of Master Rihu, among the large number of people who died due to [filth], none of them became monsters or even wandering souls in the outside world.

"It's all in the painting." The guardian spirit [Dream-Eating Tapir] was squatting beside him. Even if Master Rihu put his hand on the scroll and stroked it gently, what could the resentment and filth in the painting do to him?

He still remembered that there was resentment in the painting, which was about a woman who killed her husband and then committed suicide in front of her young daughter.

She had been tortured by [Filth] and had completely lost control.

But even so, after her death she turned into an equally filthy wild soul, but she was able to temporarily get rid of the influence of [Residual Filth] and had a moment of clarity.

And what did this woman do?

The woman who sold bamboo baskets in the city to supplement her family income, had a muddled mind throughout her mediocre life, but her mind suddenly became brighter after her death.

Maybe all the wisdom of this life was used in that moment?

She immediately realized that her soul and the filth produced after death were controlled by something.

But she did not, like others, beg Master Rihu to let her pass away.

She only asked that her daughter not be entangled with the filth of her own death.

A smile appeared on the corner of Master Higo's mouth.

He always smiles whenever he thinks about the situation.

Because after that, he deliberately let the "filth" produced by this woman entangle her daughter.

Now, they are all in the painting.

For this reason, even though this woman has become a wild soul filled with resentment and hatred, she will still cling to him relentlessly.

But
"You lowly thing, you still want to touch the noble's body?"

When Master Rihu touched the scroll, the wisps of black air on the painting seemed to be entangled with it.

But when the Dream-Eating Tapir next to it sniffed, the black air filled with resentment and persistence could only be unwillingly but helplessly sucked back into its nose, and then sprayed back onto the painting.

"Haha! Hahaha!"

Even though it has been more than ten years, Master Rihu still enjoys this situation.

"You lowly thing! You lowly thing! You still want to climb up? You still want to overthrow your superiors! For all eternity, even if you want to dissipate, it is not your turn to decide!"

Just like tasting a glass of mellow and refreshing wine, Master Rihu always likes to take out this scroll to appreciate it when he has nothing to do.

The luxurious robes rubbed against the tatami. Feeling happy, he rolled up the scroll again and put it back into the long box.

At this time, a monk who had been waiting outside dared to come in and speak with his head down.

"Master." The monk was strong and powerful, and he knelt down respectfully as soon as he entered the door. "This is the recent account book." As he said this, the monk took out a book from the lining of his robe, bowed his head respectfully, put the book on the ground and pushed it forward.

During the Warring States Period in Japan, temples and monks were no small players.

Seriously speaking, there are only a few daimyo in the entire Japanese archipelago who can hold their heads high and speak in front of a temple.

Monk? That's the monk!

Just like the path that powerful religious groups always take.

In the process of development, the temple gradually expanded from a religious institution to an economic institution.

The temple began to lend money, accept deposits, and invest in businesses. It was like a loan shark that was growing wildly and with overwhelming force.

In troubled times, money means people and fists. The quality and armament of the monk soldiers and the defense facilities of the temples often leave the nominal leaders and daimyo of the region dumbfounded.

However, in Mino, it was cleaned up by Saito Dosan when he rebelled more than ten years ago.

Moreover, although the abbot of Changzai Temple was not purged by Saito Dosan at that time, his identity was also sensitive.

Therefore, compared with other temples of the same reputation in Japan at the same time, the power of Changzai Temple can be said to be too shabby.

But even so, it is completely okay to regard Changzai Temple as a top noble family in Mino. And it is a noble family with a violent and unreasonable style of behavior.

Master Rihu did not go to get the account book.

He just smiled kindly and asked, "Or is it the Thirteenth Sakura Village?"

The monk who brought in the account book to report was silent for a while, but still nodded.

In fact, the account books show that there is a profit. Even in the eyes of many humble people, the amount of profit is a figure that they would never dare to imagine in their entire lives.

These days, for any big temple, it’s just a matter of how much profit they can make. How is it possible to make a loss?
But what Chang earns in the temple is considered "little" in the eyes of the monks and the abbot.

And they are very unhappy with this "little", even angry.

"Jusanzakura Village also rented out cattle and horses this year, and the number is still larger than last year. Our temple rents out cattle and horses, right?"

The monk looked up at the host cautiously.

“Should we lower the rental rate?”

It is common sense that during the farming era, working animals were more valuable than humans.

As temples have a long history of usury, they also rent livestock.

The rules and regulations are strict. Breeding has one price, work has another price, and there are corresponding prices for different types of work and how long they take.

There are corresponding contractual clauses regarding the weight changes of livestock before and after leasing, and whether they lose fat.

But in Shisanzakura Village, the livestock fostered in their village are surprisingly easy to raise.

As time went by, he actually snatched part of the leasing business from Changzai Temple.

So much so that everyone in the temple often hated this village and said that they were disrespectful to Buddha.

"Don't worry about them." Master Rihu said calmly, as if he didn't care about the account books and interest rates at all.

But the words that followed, although still calm, made people feel chilled.

"Soon, tonight, they will no longer be able to do business."

The words were so chilling that even an outsider who only heard half of them could sense the ill intention and chill in them.

But the monk who came in to deliver the account book showed a happy expression: "Ah! Does the master have a way to punish those beasts who disrespected the Buddha?"

He doesn't care about the compassionate Buddhist teachings, he only cares about the temple's business.

In fact, if they were not worried that the Mino Viper would find an excuse to suddenly attack Changzai Temple, these monks would have used force to cause trouble for Jusanzakura Village long ago.

Master Rihu just smiled and said nothing, while the monks bowed and saluted wisely, then left the courtyard with joy.

"The [Residue] has accumulated to the limit. Come, give it a try."

After the monks left, Master Rihu gently stroked the long box containing the scroll beside him, his face looking peaceful.

"Try and see what I can do to the Mino Kingdom you usurped! Hourenbo!"

As he spoke, Higo-sama's face became ferocious.

He looked at the Nagara River and Inabayama across the courtyard, especially at the "abscess" on Inabayama that was encroaching on the greenery - Inabayama Castle.

Although he didn't know why, he always felt in his subconscious that although his temple was only a stone's throw away from the world-famous Mino Castle, Saito Yoshitatsu, the son of Saito Dosan who was in charge of the temple, would not notice his actions.

However, as a monk who had received family education and later converted to the Nichiren sect, he still kept the opposite city in mind.

Saito Dosan has become a monk and stepped down from the position of head of the family.

Few people in Mino have ever seen what methods the current head of the family, Saito Yoshitatsu, has.

But it's never wrong to be careful.

Relying on his resentment and vigilance towards Saito Dosan's experience of stealing the country, Master Higo carefully resisted the inexplicable relaxation deep in his heart.

The Dream-Eating Tapir, which was emitting a dreamy golden light like a spiritual stone, sat beside him with a look of neither joy nor sadness.

(End of this chapter)