pertwk Chapter 72 Ritual
Chapter 72 Ritual
The moon is bright and the stars are few; the candlelight is just beginning to burn.
The flickering flames of the lamps swayed in the silent night as thirty-six people sat at the table, feasting heartily. Yet, unnoticed in a secluded corner, the monk had sealed off all escape routes.
"Master, I am looking for the place of the Five Grains Reincarnation. However, these monks refuse to let me pass. I don't know why."
"Are we even being deprived of the right to freely enter and leave the temple?"
Huiming, seated on the throne in the main hall, fiddled with the prayer beads, his face still showing a kind expression.
"Hehe... We haven't set up any roadblocks to obstruct you. The road is right under your feet; whether you go or stay is entirely up to you."
The lame and hunchbacked man was about to refute the argument when he realized that he had only been prejudiced from the beginning and had never actually asked a question.
Upon hearing this, others also requested to join together to solve their own needs, and the chaotic scene broke the tranquility of the temple.
"Esteemed guests, are you enjoying your meal to the fullest?"
The thirty-six people naturally agreed in unison, and some even whimpered.
"I have not eaten or drunk anything for three days. Fortunately, I was able to give alms, which has given my weak body some strength."
"Yes, thank you, Venerable Master, for bestowing upon me such a delicious meal..."
"Just eat your fill, just eat your fill..."
A strange undertone crept into Huiming's murmurs. Only after the thirty-six people had completely disappeared from the fasting room did he coldly instruct Guang Shen, the leader.
"The ritual I have prepared is still missing five hearts and livers, three right hand bones, and seven left leg bones. Not a single piece of flesh or blood should be attached to them. Remember this..."
"Please rest assured, Master, we will have all the offerings ready before sunrise, and we will not delay your auspicious time..."
Huiming, who was in charge of the fasting room, smiled and gently patted the head of the leading monk three times.
The remaining monks all showed expressions of envy, but they dared not say a word. The monks of Da Ruo Temple were strictly hierarchical, with the head monk in charge of each courtyard usually interacting with the corresponding monk leader.
If someone oversteps their bounds and does something unnecessarily, that person will not only be demoted to a monk's slave, but if the ritual is missing some parts, they will also end up as material.
...
"I wonder, why does this usually solemn and awe-inspiring Ōrō-ji Temple seem a bit eerie at night?"
As the lame, hunchbacked man talked with the middle-aged farmers with graying temples around him, he suddenly started to shiver.
"I hope there won't be any problems after you acted so disrespectfully towards the mage..."
The middle-aged farmer was terrified, his trembling lips managing to cobble together a complete sentence after a long while. He wanted to say more, but the shadowy face that emerged from the darkness terrified him so much that he fainted.
Guang Shen, who had never held a torch, stood in the darkness, his eyes fixed intently on the limping, hunchbacked man, a slight smile appearing on his face.
"Master... what are you doing here...?"
"The master, seeing that you two had not returned for a long time, deduced that you had gotten lost. Therefore, he specially sent me to find you..."
"Then...why didn't you hold a lamp to light your way?"
Guang Shen's smile widened even more, and before he knew it, he was right in front of the man. His nine-foot frame was enough to completely conceal the man.
"Naturally, you will have achieved success in your cultivation and attained the ability to see in the night. After you thirty-six of you have been ordained, diligently cultivate for three years, and you too will be qualified to practice the methods I teach."
The man felt a chill run down his spine, and stumbled and fell to the ground, even his mud-covered trousers became slightly damp.
The strong, pungent smell instantly filled the surroundings.
The man, who could normally be considered brave, was so frightened by the strange appearances of Da Ruo Temple and Guang Shen that he lost control of his bladder.
Guang Shen frowned, the veins on his forehead bulged slightly, and his face became somewhat ferocious.
Only after he had turned the string of beads in his hand a few times did he manage to suppress his displeasure.
"Come with me. Tomorrow you will be ordained. Tonight you must burn incense and bathe to cleanse yourself of all past karma. Only in this way can you attain enlightenment and become a Bhikkhu, serving Shakyamuni Buddha."
The man, his face flushed, clutched his crotch but turned his head toward the farmer.
"And what about him...?"
"Awakening is what comes with you..."
Seemingly finding cover, the lame and hunchbacked man, disregarding the stench on his hands, spat a mouthful of thick phlegm into his palm, rubbed it carefully, and then slapped it at the man's face from both sides.
"wake up!"
After fanning him for nearly twenty breaths, the farmer finally woke up. It was unclear whether he had truly fainted or simply couldn't stand the unpleasant smell of urine.
...
After passing through the monasteries, Guang Shen led the two back into the courtyard, but this time they stood at the entrance to a dungeon on the back side.
"Master, why don't you go through the front yard?"
"Enough with the nonsense, just follow me. You'll see for yourself what's going on here. Are you worried I'll take your lives?"
Embarrassed, the two had no choice but to give up and followed Guang Shen into the dungeon. Faintly, they heard screams and pleas for mercy...
Along the way, martial monks stood guard, each wielding a staff. What terrified the two was that all the monks were staring at them greedily...
"Now that everyone has arrived, if we don't keep a close watch on them and they die in prison... you all know how serious that would be..."
"Senior brother, we are naturally aware of this... but we still do not know which master requires what materials to perform the ritual?"
"Once it's processed, just send it to the fasting room. Also, don't ask questions you shouldn't. Do you want me to mistakenly believe you're trying to steal the ritual materials?!"
Guang Shen angrily rebuked him, his words carrying a subtle threat.
"Senior brother, please calm down..."
Having had his fill of playing the role of a guru, Guang Shen finally turned and left.
"Where...where am I...?"
The hunchbacked, lame man hurriedly called out to inquire, but none of the monks present answered. The defeated monk then swung his club at the man, who fled in terror, begging for mercy.
The man, forced to venture deeper into the area, grew increasingly terrified by the sights along the way, and even his legs began to falter.
Inside the prison
There are many people with missing hands and feet, blindness and deafness, and some have even had their skin peeled off, leaving only the oozing flesh.
The two, terrified and with tears streaming down their faces, could no longer move. They knelt and kowtowed to the monk behind them.
"I don't want to convert anymore, please let me go..."
They were met with a merciless beating, and the two men, beaten all the way to the prison, could only endure the pain and angrily rebuke the monks outside the fence.
The remaining thirty-four people who were destined to be imprisoned were all limited to ten people each and were placed in different cells.
"Don't waste your energy, they won't let us leave this hellhole alive... We're good training material for them..."
A chilling voice came from the end of the passage. Following the candlelight, one could see a middle-aged monk who had taken vows.
He was seen with iron chains piercing his collarbone, his entire body tightly bound to the wooden frame by iron chains as thick as his wrist.
If a chivalrous knight were here, he would surely recognize this man as the monk he had met once before.
...