461 - A Sect Leader’s Ascension

Chapter 461: Miaoqing's Recommendation Miaoqing clasped her hands together, smiling as she bade farewell to Chu Wen until his silhouette faded into the horizon. Only then did she retract her gaze. "Sigh!" Out of nowhere, a sigh escaped her lips. Leisurely, she turned and flew off, not returning to her own nunnery. Instead, she drifted towards a small, humble temple. Upon reaching it, she knocked on the half-open mountain gate and stood quietly waiting. Before long, an elderly monk, garbed in coarse fabric robes and possessing a similar cultivation level to hers, emerged. Courteously, he greeted her, "Ah, it's Sister Miaoqing! What brings you here?" "It's like this..." Miaoqing explained in a manner comprehensible to the monk, "South of Qiyun, there exists a place rampant with malevolence and chaos, where life is treated as insignificant. Within this chaos is a man named Chu Qin, who has risen from humble beginnings and has been a source of mischief for a century. Fortunately, he's from the Taoist tradition of Qiyun, and a spark of conscience remains within him. After several reprimands from me, he seems to show signs of remorse. Thus, I'm seeking a virtuous individual to promote righteousness and bring peace to that land. I thought the Lvzong branch would be ideal for this task, so I came to seek your help, Brother." It turned out that this elderly monk was not from the Zen branch of Nanlin Temple but a disciple of the Lvzong, who focused on discipline and doctrine. After hearing Miaoqing's description, he pondered for a moment and made a decision, "This is indeed a meritorious act, and our small temple shall contribute." He then called for a young disciple to recommend him to Miaoqing. After a brief examination of the young monk's demeanor and a few questions regarding Buddhist doctrines and his state of mind, Miaoqing was satisfied and directed him towards Chu Qin's location, instructing him to depart at a suitable time. "If this is done well, Daoist Chu should be quite pleased, right?" After parting ways with the Lvzong monk, Miaoqing lingered mid-air, pondering, "Come to think of it, the Ming family girl we brought back from the outer sea is also from Chu Qin's lineage. After a decade with the ancient lights and Buddha statues, perhaps she, like Qixiu, has had an epiphany?" Having made up her mind, she decided to go see it for herself. Years ago, Ming Zhen had been sent to a nunnery that specialized in imprisoning women within the Disciplinary Hall, not far from where Gu Tan was confined. However, Gu Tan had been released in three years, having only been guilty of incitement. In contrast, Ming Zhen had shouldered the entire crime of the island massacre, making it a sentence of a hundred years—no easy time to endure. Familiar with the path, Miaoqing entered the nunnery, explained her purpose to the presiding abbess, and was led to the rear hall. This nunnery, built into the mountain, had chiseled out thousands of small caves along the cliffside, and Ming Zhen occupied one of them. The entrance was barely half a person's height, requiring one to stoop to enter. The interior was exceedingly cramped, with only a depiction of Buddhist scenes on one wall; the rest of the walls were bare and colorless. Ming Zhen's appearance had become more delicate, but she remained striking, her skin pale from years without sunlight, as she sat cross-legged before the Buddhist depiction, her eyes closed, murmuring sutras from a scripture she held. "Do you still remember me?" Seeing that Ming Zhen ignored her, Miaoqing took the initiative to ask. "Imprisoned for a century, how could I forget..." There was no bitterness or joy in her words. Ming Zhen glanced briefly at her, then closed her eyes again. "Your family spread evil; this is the rightful punishment," Miaoqing stated. "Indeed." Ming Zhen answered crisply and fell silent. "Not only must you accept your guilt, but you must also repent." Annoyed by her seemingly unrepentant demeanor, Miaoqing asked, pointing to the scripture in her hands, "Which book are you reading, and which section? Shall we debate and examine it together?" "I wouldn’t dare. I'm reading 'The Tales of Ancient Monks,' the chapter on 'Flowery Speech.'" Ming Zhen closed the scripture in her hands, indeed one of the volumes of monk's tales. "Ah... such books are for leisure reading, and there's no need for in-depth study. Your understanding of Buddhism is shallow; focus more on the fundamentals..." Miaoqing sat beside her, pulling out a 'Diamond Sutra Exegesis' from her storage pouch and handing it over. "Thank you." Softly, Ming Zhen asked, "How are things outside? My master, and the sect..." "You've been placed here to atone entirely for your sins, to seek refuge in Buddhism! You cannot speak of other matters until you've severed worldly attachments." Miaoqing felt both anger and disappointment. Just as she was about to leave, a cold snort came from beside her. "Senior Miaoqing, aren't you getting it backward? I've accepted my guilt and submitted to punishment genuinely, and I seek to be good, but I never intended to fully convert. Does Nanlin Temple force conversions now?" Ming Zhen's eyes opened, her bright gaze unyieldingly meeting Miaoqing’s surprised eyes. "Hmph! Stubborn as ever!" Miaoqing suppressed her anger, "Very well! I was going to suggest that if you truly wished to repent, I'd advocate for a reduction in your term. Clearly, that's unnecessary now!" "Heh." Ming Zhen chuckled in response, "In my idle moments, I often wonder if staunch Buddhists like you have ever, like me, envisioned someone else while meditating before ancient lights and statues?" "Who?" Miaoqing asked offhandedly. Ming Zhen covered her mouth, laughing, "Not Buddha, not a Bodhisattva, but someone who surpasses them, someone whose figure knocks on the doors of your heart, someone who can make you cry, make you laugh. Sometimes, having this figure stand quietly at your side feels perfect. Sometimes, you long for a glance backward and a smile from them. And other times, in solitary nights akin to death, you yearn for closeness and intimacy, perhaps even..." As she spoke, her tone ranged from soothing, drawing one's mind into peace, to light and agile, subtly stirring one's emotions. Involuntarily, a hazy figure emerged in Miaoqing's mind—tall, untamed... Ming Zhen unknowingly leaned closer, almost pressing against Miaoqing's earlobe, whispering, "Perhaps you wish for this figure to hold you, to love you, forever..." This figure turned, becoming clearer, resembling Chu Wen, whom she just bid farewell to. "You pray to Buddha for inner peace, yet this figure, this person, this 'he,' invades your mind time and again, making you, who have long abandoned sleep, wish to meet him in dreams..." "Oh." A flush crept across Miaoqing's cheeks, a suppressed moan escaped from her throat, recalling her first encounter with Chu Wen—bare-chested, singing and drinking extravagantly. "Sometimes, you want to give him everything—your soul, your body..." Having experienced something similar, Ming Zhen watched in derision as Miaoqing embarrassed herself, brushing her lips lightly against Miaoqing's earlobe, "What care is there for monastic rules and disciplines? You just wish to be united with him, envying neither deities nor immortals..." Miaoqing fantasized about her and Chu Wen in the dense forest of the stele trial—laughing and talking, mutual affection evident, staring into each other’s eyes, drawing closer, initially feeling that rascal kiss her ear, then shedding their clothes, baring their true selves... Abruptly, the sleep of denials was shaken by a sharp, searing feedback from the string of prayer beads at her wrist, given to her by Moi Zheng, forcibly snapping Miaoqing back to reality. "Ah!" She realized that her monk robe was half undone, and Ming Zhen lay nearby, nearly rolling with laughter, endlessly repeating, "What a romantic nun! What a romantic nun!" "Infidel harpy! Mad fool!" Realizing she'd fallen prey to some sort of seductive enchantment, Miaoqing, nettled and discomfited, hastily composed herself, cheeks burning hot as she fled, ignoring the amused laughter of Ming Zhen and the astonished stares of the abbess and other nuns. Not focusing on her reflection upon 'karma,' let's jump ahead to the revelation in Thoughtful Mountain soon after. After the Ascension Ceremony, Chu Qin's sect was joined by disciples and a unique group of visitors—practitioners hoping for 'diagnosis' from various vassal sects. "Uh..." Kneeling before the hall was a young member of the Xiong family, barely fifteen or sixteen, yet still at the second layer of Qi Condensation. Qi Xiu, shielded by his mask, found the situation both amusing and vexing, "Who’s responsible for examining your fate in your family?" "Reporting, Elder Qi, it was an independent cultivator hired at great expense. Even our family's elder reviewed it. But..." The Xiong family member looked on the verge of tears, "We've tried various co-cultivation materials, but none worked!" "Hmm, no rush..." Their method of fate examination was rooted in the 'see human nature' talent, exceptionally accurate, more so than other methods. Leisurely, Qi Xiu flipped through several fate books, only speaking once he was certain, "Your life fate, they've all mistaken it. It's not a 'Frost-Wind Silver Bear,' not even a spirit beast, but a mutated fiend beast resembling it—half bear, half owl, called the 'Wind Owl Bear Beast'..." Before he finished speaking, the boy collapsed, murmuring, "So that's it... what a waste of my years!" Suddenly, he scrambled up, asking, "Fiend beasts are hard to tame, and no one's heard of this type, doesn't this doom my future!?" "Haha, not at all, not at all." Qi Xiu waved a dismissive hand, laughing, "Others may not know, but I do. I'll teach you a way. Being a direct descendant of the Xiong family and with high expectations upon you, won't your parents be willing to spend resources on you?" "I am indeed of the main branch..." The Xiong family member hesitated, then guessed, "They should be willing, I suppose?" "Then the solution is simple!" Qi Xiu clapped, "Go home and ask them to list a high bounty at the Beasthold sect in the Nine Stars Market. They have Wind Owl Bear Beasts at Wake Lion Gorge, and the practitioners there should be able to procure one..." "Really!?" Overjoyed, the Xiong family member cried tears of relief, "There's hope for my path again! There's hope!" Bowing fervently to Qi Xiu, he backed out of the hall, eager to inform Xiong Fourteen. "Heh heh, next one!" Seeing the young man scurry out in gratitude, Qi Xiu couldn't help but reflect on his own past. "Had someone pointed me in the right direction at that age, like I'm doing for him now, perhaps I would've been even more unruly." Engaging in such activities was both fulfilling and satisfying—after all, it bolstered the potential of the Chu Qin Alliance. Why not take delight in it? As he busied himself with these tasks, Mo Jianxin entered to report that a monk by the name of "Fayin" had arrived, allegedly at the behest of Miaoqing from Nanlin Temple. "That meddlesome nun, nothing good ever comes from her!" Upon hearing the name, Qi Xiu's face darkened. Yet, when he greeted the visitor and inquired further, he discovered that Miaoqing had recommended this monk to serve as an enforcer and advisor. It left him both amused and exasperated. Initially, he had dismissed the suggestions of Tang Wanqing and Lu Gu, recommended by Ji Xinlong, in favor of finding someone suitable through Chu Hongshang. But who would've guessed that Chu Hongshang would turn to Chu Wen, who then sought out Miaoqing, resulting in the unexpected arrival of a monk from the Lvzong branch? "Establishing rules is one thing, but I didn’t plan on establishing ones beyond my control!" Qi Xiu sighed deeply, at odds with the situation. Before him stood Fayin, a young yet composed monk exuding an aura of gravitas. Now, Qi Xiu faced the dilemma of integrating him into the fold. (To be continued...)