The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

"Hmm?" Chu Luren noticed from afar that the sweeping monk could clearly sense his presence and could roughly sense his martial arts skills!

He's not exactly weak; he's a weakling among the top ten in the entire temple. But to call him a hidden master is a bit of a joke...

As Chu Luren got closer, he realized that this person looked familiar, especially the limp he was wearing, which gave him a strong sense of déjà vu!

"Old Duan?" Chu Luren recognized him. The person sweeping the floor was none other than Duan Yanqing, the father of his third brother.

Duan Yanqing raised his fierce face, glanced at Chu Luren, and said in ventriloquism without moving his face or mouth, "There is no Elder Duan here, only an old monk."

"You've become a monk at Shaolin Temple? No offense, but we have our own temple..." Chu Luren acted as if he were a complete stranger, like the old man next door saying: We have land, why go to the city to study at an agricultural university?

“You can worship Buddha at any temple.” Duan Yanqing found it difficult to make a profound expression; the necrosis of his facial muscles made everything he said sound sarcastic and fierce.

"Then why not choose one that's close to home? Are you afraid of running into...that guy?" Chu Luren asked back.

“A monk has no home; you’re too attached to appearances!” Duan Yanqing was starting to lose interest in talking to him.

"What's that old man's Buddhist name now? What's his seniority? Why is he sweeping the floor here..."

“A Buddhist name is nothing but an illusion; just call me Duan Yanqing.”

Duan Yanqing is not actually his name, just like Emperor Kangxi was not called Aisin Gioro Kangxi; it's just a common way of addressing him.

Chu Luren recalled Xie Xun's words after his enlightenment in the original work, and thought that he could not ruin the reputation of half of the Buddhist masters, so he nodded and said, "I understand, I understand, Duan Yanqing is just an illusion."

Duan Yanqing: ...

Duan Yanqing completely ignored him.

However, having not yet seen the actual sweeping monk, Chu Luren naturally couldn't leave: "Could it be that Shaolin also outsources? Is this sweeping work subcontracted to you by a regular employee? I didn't expect the competition within Shaolin to be so severe..."

Seeing that Chu Luren was not leaving, Duan Yanqing had no choice but to reply, "I am here to cultivate with my master and am just sweeping the floor by the way. I am not a Shaolin disciple."

Upon hearing this, Chu Luren pondered for a moment and said, "Isn't this just what outsourcing means?"

Duan Yanqing: ...

"What about the old sweeper?" Chu Luren then asked.

"I don't know," Duan Yanqing replied sullenly, and continued sweeping the floor.

After learning that Duan Yu was his biological son, he became more open-minded and no longer thought about seizing the throne. However, he felt uncomfortable about becoming a monk at Tianlong Temple, so he decided to wander around the Central Plains. There, he happened to meet the Sweeping Monk, who gave him some pointers. Duan Yanqing felt that this was a true master monk, so he followed him to cultivate.

After that... the Sweeping Monk took him to the Southern Shaolin Temple for a free meal!

The old monk was very skilled. He first led him north, into the territory of the Qing government, to chant sutras for the deceased old magistrate. The magistrate would always give him some reward money. Afterwards, he took the reward money and found a small temple to donate a certificate of ordination—that is, a monk's certificate.

Why go to the Qing court?

Because of the different taxation methods, the two sides had vastly different standards for issuing ordination certificates. The Qing Dynasty issued ordination certificates directly to the temples themselves, while the Song Dynasty issued them through the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Sacrifices. The latter was not something that could be easily dealt with with a small amount of money!

With the ordination certificate, you can get free food and drinks at the big temple...

In the Southern Shaolin Temple, the Sweeping Monk was also a wandering monk who "stayed" at the temple to eat and live. Since he was just an old monk, no one paid much attention to him. However, he would sweep the temple floor in the second half of each month as a way of showing his respect.

As for the first half of the month?

Perhaps they went to visit and comfort the lonely and widowed...

In short, nobody cared!

Duan Yanqing, being a disabled monk, was also taken in by the old monk. Although the old monk not only took advantage of the situation himself, he also brought others to take advantage of the situation, which annoyed some of the younger monks in the guest house, it was not easy to drive away the old and the disabled one.

Duan Yanqing may look fierce, but he is a man who abides by the rules and regulations.

Although Duan Yanqing's lightness skill was not low, he couldn't afford to work shifts like the Sweeping Monk, so he stayed at the Southern Shaolin Temple to sweep the floors...

The monks of the Southern Shaolin Temple didn't even know that this disabled monk could speak ventriloquism; they just thought he was a wandering monk who was both mute and had a necrotic face and looked fierce!

Chu Luren couldn't find the Sweeping Monk for the time being—based on previous experience, the Sweeping Monk wouldn't even be seen by the "Mingyu Terrace," and if he didn't want to show himself, it wouldn't be easy for Chu Luren to find him.

However, at this moment, Chu Luren's Mingyutai discovered another person in the Sutra Repository...

"Is there anyone in the Sutra Repository?" Chu Luren asked Duan Yanqing directly.

"Yes, the teacher brought it back; it's very fierce."

After Duan Yanqing finished speaking, Chu Luren couldn't help but glance at him—it always felt strange for him to say those words.

“I’ll go in and take a look… You’re just sweeping, not the doorman, right?” Chu Luren asked specifically.

Duan Yanqing didn't say anything and continued sweeping.

The library is just that relaxed and laid-back...

Back then, Xuan Ci was deceived by Murong Bo, but he was also deliberately trying to make a big splash—Shaolin didn't usually seem to cherish its own martial arts that much.

Chu Luren went straight to the second floor and felt that the Sutra Repository naturally contained a sense of Zen—not from the Sutra Repository itself, but from the manuscripts of the scriptures.

After all, the scriptures here are all original manuscripts or transcribed by eminent monks. Even if the monks who transcribed them did not know martial arts, as long as their state of mind was high enough, a Zen-like state of mind would naturally remain in their transcriptions. Over time, this scripture pavilion has become a special place.

Upon reaching the second floor, one sees a bearded, somewhat haggard figure sitting in the center, his face flashing with ferocity before gradually returning to calm, repeating this pattern repeatedly... seemingly using the Zen atmosphere of the place to calm himself down.

It was Guihai Yidao!

Chu Luren thought for a moment. It seemed a bit impolite to remain silent, but what if he disturbed him if he spoke directly?

So Chu Luren approached quietly, politely and cautiously, intending to first implant a Dao embryo...

Chapter 764 Questioning

As soon as Chu Luren approached Guihai Yidao, Guihai Yidao glared at him with bloodshot eyes, as if a tiger was about to devour him.

"Hey! Did you ruin the Buddha image in the Bodhidharma Cave? You've caused the Holy Maiden to remain unconscious to this day!" Chu Luren demanded.

Guihai Yidao, who was adjusting his mindset, suddenly felt a little guilty after being shouted at by Chu Luren, and struggled with his eyes as he said, "I..."

Chu Luren felt even more guilty upon seeing him, and immediately grabbed his collar to drag him away.

Just then, the sound of books being tidied came from behind the bookshelf, and an old voice said, "Amitabha, the Buddha image in the Bodhidharma Cave was not destroyed by Layman Guihai, but returned to a person with affinity... Shouldn't Layman Chu know this better than anyone else?"

Upon hearing this, Chu Luren immediately became nervous.

It appeared suddenly again when the Chu Lu people were guarding the "Mingyutai", so it must be the sweeper!

"If he didn't break it, why did Yingying faint from the demonic energy?" Chu Luren seized on this point.

The old monk said helplessly, "The Holy Maiden's coma was indeed caused by the incident at the Bodhidharma Cave. At that time, I only had time to stabilize the Buddha image in the cave to prevent the long-accumulated demonic thoughts from going out of control. Unfortunately, the Holy Maiden still suffered as a result... Amitabha."

Sure enough, he made his move!

After thinking for a moment, Chu Luren asked directly, "May I ask, Master, what exactly happened back then?"

"I am but a monk who chants scriptures, unworthy of the name of a master..." The sweeping monk was very modest. If he was a monk who chanted scriptures, then the other monks probably couldn't even chant scriptures.

As he spoke, the old monk slowly walked over, patted Guihai Yidao on the shoulder, and whispered a reminder: "Hold fast to your original nature, guard against anger and impatience." There was a calming power in his voice.

Guihai Yidao, whose mind had been wavering after being provoked by Chu Luren, was calmed down again.

Chu Luren appeared indifferent, but in reality, he always kept his center line facing the old monk—regardless of whether he could defend against it or not, if a fight really broke out, Chu Luren would definitely be in the best possible condition to face it.

The sweeping monk couldn't possibly be unaware of this, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he continued talking to Chu Luren as if he hadn't noticed anything, about what had happened at the back of the Northern Shaolin Temple!

It was indeed Guihai who cleaved the shadow of Zen Buddhism with a single stroke, causing turmoil in the Bodhidharma Cave.

The sweeping monk was unable to stop it in time, but he arrived immediately when the situation occurred, first subduing Guihai Yidao, and then controlling the dissipation of the Buddha's shadow...

The Buddha image in the Bodhidharma Cave of the Northern Shaolin Temple is said to have helped many eminent monks throughout history to dispel their inner demons, and their own Zen spirit has also perpetuated the image.

Over time, nothing is outwardly apparent, but in reality, the Buddha image has become a place to suppress demons. Once the Buddha image is lost, the greed, anger, and ignorance within it will erupt, and all the monks in the temple will be at risk of going astray!

Therefore, the sweeping monk didn't care about anything else. After subduing Guihai Yidao, he sat down in front of the Buddha's shadow...

However, at that time, the greed, anger, and ignorance of countless eminent monks throughout history had already been revealed in a trace, which was attributed to Kumārajīva, Guihai Yidao, and Ren Woxing, who were present at the time.

Kumārajīva was originally a great master of Tantric Buddhism, who later transitioned to Chan Buddhism. He possessed profound Buddhist knowledge, yet he was obsessed with martial arts and power, unable to attain liberation. This can be summed up by the word "greed"...

Guihai Yidao was burdened by the hatred of his father's revenge, and he also cultivated the "Dominating the World" technique, which already affected his temperament. Even after Jian Jingfeng, Qilinzi, and Kongzhi sacrificed their lives to resolve the conflict, he still couldn't quell his hatred, which can be described as "anger"...

Ren Woxing was ruthless and cruel, only knowing that those who obeyed him prospered and those who opposed him perished. He was ambitious but far less capable, preferring to suffer physical and mental damage rather than recognize his own limitations. He could be described as "foolish"...

Under the influence of demonic thoughts, the three of them instantly became demons, and the sweeping monk only managed to save Shangguan Haitang, who was beside Guihai Yidao.

At this moment, Ren Woxing and Kumārajīva, in their frenzy, left the Dharma Cave, while Ren Yingying fainted at the cave entrance... Fortunately, Ren Woxing, despite his demonic thoughts, still retained a shred of humanity, and not only did he not harm her, but he also stopped Kumārajīva.

After the two became possessed by demons, they felt even more strongly that the Sweeper Monk was not someone to be trifled with. After a brief argument at the cave entrance, the two left one after the other.

On the contrary, Guihai Yidao, having been possessed by demons for a long time, was more accustomed to it and still retained some rationality. He stayed in the Damo Cave, sitting cross-legged and resisting demonic thoughts.

After stabilizing the Buddha's shadow, the sweeping monk wanted to save Ren Yingying again, but he was already too weak and exhausted.

During this time, Kongzhi discovered the strange phenomena in the Bodhidharma Cave and Guihai Yidao. After willingly being killed by Guihai Yidao, his Zen mind further shook his demonic thoughts...

On his deathbed, he discovered the great skill of the old sweeping monk and entrusted Guihai Yidao to him.

The sweeping monk found Guihai Yidao, who had just caused a great disturbance at Shaolin Temple, and discovered that he had been influenced by the Buddha's shadow and demonic thoughts. After falling into demonic possession, he had gained a deeper understanding of the "Three Blades of Avici Road," which was even more demonic than "Dominating the World"!

Fortunately, Guihai Yidao himself had also lost his demonic nature because he had accidentally injured Haitang. So the Sweeper Monk took him to the Southern Shaolin Temple, hoping to use the Zen teachings of the Sutra Pavilion to help him expel the demonic thoughts.

Not long ago, after the Sweeper Monk had fully recovered, he returned to the Northern Shaolin Temple to prepare to save Ren Yingying.

The Sweeper Monk mastered six supernatural powers, one of which, the Divine Foot Power, allowed him to travel between the Northern and Southern Shaolin Temples in just eight hours each way...

However, upon returning to the Northern Shaolin Temple, the Sweeper Monk discovered that Ren Yingying was no longer there, and even... the Buddha image in the Bodhidharma Cave had disappeared!

The sweeping monk was also shocked by this—it was not surprising that someone could break the Buddha's image with external force, but to completely activate the Buddha's image and be completely unaffected by the demonic thoughts within it... this must be the Arhatship, right?

Later, the sweeping monk also "inquired" and learned that it was Chu Taisui and an unknown Shaolin monk who visited the Bodhidharma Cave, after which the Bodhidharma Cave was no longer open to the public.

Using the Heavenly Ear to "inquire" is incredibly easy; as long as it's useful information, even if it's not what was said at the time, it can be heard.

However, the Chu Luren and the dog bastard had already been observed by the sweeping monk as soon as they arrived in Xinghua...

When he first heard about this, the sweeping monk also thought that "Layman Chu" was so Buddhist. However, after seeing the two people, he immediately became convinced that it must have been the work of this nameless boy!

At this time, Guihai Yidao received "consecration" here every day, so the Sweeping Monk stopped going to the North Shaolin Temple to take his shift and stayed in the South Shaolin Temple.

Haitang went back to report for the time being, and Guihai Yidao did not want Haitang to appear by his side before the demonic nature was eliminated.

Ren Woxing and Kumārajīva are still missing, and even the Sweeper Monk doesn't know where they are...

After hearing this, Chu Luren believed it for the time being. He also wanted to tell the old monk that Yingying was at Leigu Mountain and that he could go and wake her up if he could. However, he then thought that if the old monk really wanted to go, he might be able to find out!

Moreover, Leigu Mountain also has Yaoyue and Sister Dongfang. If the Sweeper Monk goes there and something goes wrong, it will be difficult to handle. Therefore, it was not mentioned immediately...

"Fine! It was you who ruined Yingying!" Chu Luren reached out to grab Gui Haiyidao's collar again.