I attained immortality in the real world.

Chapter 59 Returning from the lost path

The New Tang Dynasty, Bianjing (Kaifeng).

Jinshan Temple is located in the southeast of Bianjing City. Whether traveling by water or land, one will eventually exit through Xiaoguankou.

Therefore, the road from Xiaoguankou to Bianjing was the only way for the group from Jinshan Temple to pass through.

Qingjue and Qinghui, along with dozens of men from Black Wind Village, arrived ahead to set up an ambush.

Upon arriving at their destination, he confessed honestly: "Among these monks, there is a demon monk who can unleash a lion's roar out of thin air, causing people to lose consciousness briefly. The village has no brothers skilled in archery, nor any crossbows. The best course of action is to swarm in and hack them to pieces."

"The demonic monk! He can unleash a lion's roar!" The leader of Black Wind Stronghold showed some disdain and sneered, "It's easy to say we'll swarm him. If the demonic monk uses the lion's roar to intimidate the first group, and the ten warrior monks take the opportunity to attack, how can we not lose three or five brothers?"

Qingjue frowned: "Could it be that the chief is unwilling to bear even this small loss of two hundred taels of gold?"

The leader shook his head: "Little monk, you don't understand. When the regular army of the imperial court suffers casualties of 30%, their morale will be completely destroyed. Don't be fooled by the number of people in our Black Wind Stronghold. In fact, they only follow me for a meal and some wine. If three or five of them die, I don't know if anyone will dare to come up!"

"We bandits believe that if we can't get something, we'll rob it; if we can't rob it, we'll poison it; and only when we have absolutely no other choice will we fight to the death. If every robbery required a life-or-death struggle, who would be stupid enough to follow me, the bear?"

Qingjue now has a clear understanding of the term "rabble," realizing that as a player, he had underestimated these ancient people!

They believed that gathering a few dozen people would give them an absolute advantage, but they overlooked the fact that mountain bandits lacked execution capabilities.

No one's life is insignificant. There's no need to have the strength to defeat dozens of people. A martial monk can control the situation by killing three or five people with lightning speed and demonstrating a great threat.

Qinghui put her hands together in a Buddhist gesture of respect: "The chief is the real expert in murder and robbery, so we, as laymen, will not give orders to experts!"

"........."

On the border of Bianzhou, Qianye and his group passed through a small pass, weary from their journey.

The new Tang Dynasty honored Buddhism as the state religion, and its traditions flourished. Monks held extremely high status, and the alms they received from believers along the way were more than enough to sustain them. The officials knew they were going to Bianjing to attend the Ullambana Festival, which provided them with some convenience.

Having encountered no trouble along the way, they arrived safely near Bianjing. A martial monk pointed to the smoke rising ahead and said, "There are houses ahead; we've reached Bianzhou!"

Once they reached the border of Bianzhou, they only needed to follow the official road and pass through several county towns to reach Bianjing. However, there was a section of road at the border of the two prefectures that was uninhabited, and the group had not eaten or drunk anything for a day. The oldest elder, Elder Jinchi, was being carried on the back of a martial monk, and his spirits were visibly weakened.

After descending the mountain, Chen Jing saw an inn beside the official road ahead.

These inns, located far from the city center and near the pipeline, primarily catered to passing merchants and were sufficient to feed a dozen or so monks.

He took the initiative to say, "Brothers, you must be tired from your journey. Let me go and beg for some food."

Although Qianye was chosen by Abbot Wujie to be in charge of this trip, Jinchi was old, the martial monks were fierce and menacing, and the monk Faji was his master, so the task of begging for alms fell to him.

Chen Jing walked from the fork in the road to the inn. There were seventeen or eighteen people eating in the lobby. A waiter dressed as a man came out to check and asked, "Young monk, are you here to beg for alms?"

Chen Jing carefully examined the innkeeper. At first glance, he noticed a fierce look in his eyes. Upon closer inspection, he saw bloodshot eyes, a smell of stale alcohol on his body, and clothes that, while fitting, gave off a somewhat awkward air.

In recent days, I've had the experience of getting completely drunk, and my appearance and demeanor were completely inconsistent with the image of a waiter.

He glanced at the dozen or so burly men eating in the lobby, then pretended nothing had happened and clasped his hands together in a Buddhist gesture of respect: "Benefactor, this humble monk is from Jinshan Temple, on his way to Bianjing to participate in the Ullambana Festival. I am hungry halfway there. If it is convenient for the innkeeper, please provide some water and rice." Those participating in the Ullambana Festival are most likely monks from Jinshan Temple. He wondered if this delicate-looking monk was a target worth a hundred taels of gold.

A hint of joy flashed in the waiter's eyes, and he said, "Convenient! My boss happens to be a Buddhist, and he's been very accommodating to monks. It's getting late, and the gates of Bianjing will be closed by the time the young monk arrives! There are still plenty of empty rooms in the shop, so why don't you stay here tonight and avoid sleeping on the streets?"

“Please have mercy, benefactor! But I am with a group of eleven monks behind us, and I don’t know…”

"It's alright, there's plenty of vegetarian food, but the monks will probably have to sleep in the dormitory!"

“You have a kind heart, and you will surely be rewarded in the future. I will go and call my master and my fellow disciples.”

After saying that, Chen Jing turned around and quickly left the inn. He hadn't gone far when the waiter caught up with him carrying a food box: "I brought some steamed buns for you masters to have something to eat first."

Chen Jing quickly declined, saying, "It's really only a short walk, there's no need for you to go to such lengths."

The waiter grinned and said, "It's alright. Let me do my part and it'll be a good deed."

"........."

now.

The twelve members of the Faji group stopped to rest.

After descending the mountain, we would embark on the official road leading to Bianjing (Kaifeng).

Seeing Chen Jing return with someone carrying a large food box, he asked, "Chiba, who is this...?"

"This devout believer's heart is sincere towards Buddhism. Not only was he willing to provide us with food and lodging, but upon hearing that our fellow practitioners had not eaten for a day, he couldn't wait to bring us food..."

As Chen Jing explained the waiter's identity, he quickly formed the Fearless Lion Mudra with both hands.

A faint golden light flowed around him, and a lion's roar resounded in the waiter's mind.

There was a "thud".

The food box fell, and the waiter's mind went blank for a moment.

Chen Jing's smile vanished instantly. He instructed the two monks beside him, "Brother Qingxian, cover his mouth. Brother Qingming, break his arms and legs so that this benefactor may see the error of his ways."

Qingxian quickly covered his mouth, and Qingming also hit the waiter's arm with a stick, but he obviously didn't use his full strength, it was not enough to break bones.

The pain brought the man back to consciousness, but because his mouth was covered by Kiyoshi's chin, he could only make whimpering sounds with a look of terror on his face.

Chen Jing walked up to the waiter and asked coldly, "If you want to live, don't shout. Who gave you the guts to try and harm a monk who is participating in the Ullambana Festival?"

At Chen Jing's signal, Qingxian loosened his grip slightly, and the waiter quickly explained, "It's a misunderstanding. I just came to deliver some food to the masters. I really didn't have any bad intentions."

Chen Jing smiled, his Buddhist appearance appearing compassionate, but his voice was icy: "You'd better think carefully before you speak. If you don't repent, this humble monk will feed you the food from the food box. If you fall into a coma or show signs of poisoning, I'll have no choice but to send you to the afterlife!"

(End of this chapter)