Chapter 22: Reaction
Translator: Christina Editor: Rundi
Previously, Meng Qi had worried about not having the opportunity to leave the Ch.o.r.es Yard. Now that someone abruptly announced that he had been transferred to the Warrior-monk Yard, he had a feeling comparable to being hit by a diamond falling from the sky while he was simply standing on the road and doing nothing. He was not only confused, but also very astonished and happy. In fact, he felt way more astonishment than happiness, and at the time, he had a dull expression and didn’t know what to respond.
Xuan Chi wasn’t surprised at Meng Qi’s reaction. He explained in a deep voice, “Zhang Yuanshan from Zhen Wu Sect and Jiang Zhiwei from Xi Jian Pavilion both talked to the big brother in charge of guest reception. They complimented on your politeness, your sense of propriety, your cultivated style of speaking, and your ability to restrain yourself. It is very rare that benefactors from other sects would give such compliments to a Shaolin char monk. For this reason, we have decided to transfer you to the Warrior-monk yard and let you learn kungfu, so that in the future you can be a reception monk.”
To be a reception monk of a great kungfu sect, you must be relatively strong regarding kungfu to properly represent the sect.
“The, the only thing I did was to try my best to control myself.” Meng Qi finally understood what happened. He felt grateful towards Zhang Yuanshan and Jiang Zhiwei, and expressed all the joy in his heart.
“As a reception monk, the most important thing is to restrain yourself, control your anger, and thus protect the reputation of the sect.” Xuan Chi replied casually, and turned back and left. He walked majestically, not like a monk, but like a heroic master who had freely lived in Jianghu for many years.
Xuan Ku gave a deliberate glance at Meng Qi and said, “After you enter the Warrior-monk Yard, always remember that trickery will be no use. Only by understanding Zen, calming your mind, and working hard, you will be on the right path. From this aspect, Zhen Hui is better than you.”
Meng Qi knew what he was implying. He was suspecting Meng Qi for being an apple-polisher who wanted to use Zhang Yuanshan, Jiang Zhiwei, and other visitors to break away from the Ch.o.r.es Yard. In his eyes, Meng Qi still used too much trickery.
“Is it okay to judge someone merely based on your guess and a.s.sumptions, and when you haven’t seen anything with your own eyes, or heard anything with your own ears? Uncle Xuan Ku, having this kind of obsession in your heart is like falling into the rimless h.e.l.l.” Meng Qi was never the kind of person that would silently endure unjust judgments and wronged accusations. When there was nothing he needed to care for, he would fight back reasonably.
At first, he wanted to quote from Buddhist scriptures, but after the over half a year he had spent at Shaolin, he still hadn’t graduated from the studying of Sanskrit and the morning chants. As a result, he didn’t know any scriptures, and had to rebut using the language he was the most familiar with.
He also put his palms together on purpose and chanted with a solemn expression, “Namo Amitābha.”
“You!” Xuan Ku glared at Meng Qi. Obviously, he didn’t expect Meng Qi to satirize him. What made him the angriest was that what Meng Qi said was very reasonable, and he had no idea how to refute back.
“Sigh, uncle Xuan Ku is too dogmatic and stubborn. It would be hard for him to avoid falling onto the evil path…” Meng Qi thought. On the other hand, Xuan Ku walked very fast and had already disappeared from the square.
At this time, Zhen Hui gripped tightly onto his broom and looked at Meng Qi confusedly. “Big brother, are we going to the Warrior-monk Yard?”
“Of course. How long does it take for you to react?” Meng Qi looked at Zhen Hui with astonishment. He had talked for a while with Xuan Chi and Xuan Ku. Zhen Hui’s reaction speed was too shocking.
Zhen Hui showed an innocent and naïve smile. “Nice, now I am one step closer to Buddha’s Palm.”
Meng Qi had to admit that he could not follow this stupid boy’s thinking.
But he quickly adjusted himself and said to Zhen Hui joyfully, “Buddha’s Palm is still very far away from us. But after we achieve a great success in Qi-cultivation, we will be able to learn the 72 Ultimate Arts. By that time, I must learn Flower-pinching Finger, Form Denial Finger, Cross Lake as One Reed, and other ultimate kungfu!”
“Why?” Zhen Hui looked at Meng Qi puzzledly. He didn’t understand why Meng Qi picked these three kungfu.
Meng Qi answered in high spirit, “Because these kungfu are handsome and cool! In the future…”
Meng Qi wanted to say something like they could wear handsome white clothes and fight with swords at the speed of lightning. But he immediately noticed that they were at Shaolin, so he made some small changes to his “ideal future self”.
“Little brother, I’ve told you about the story of Monk Wu Hua, right? We need to achieve his level. Think about it, standing on a small rowboat that floats on the water, wearing a robe that is as white as snow, and holding a flower in your hand with a smile. How cool is that! We would look fantastic! Hehe, and when we meet someone we dislike, we can say this to him: benefactor, the bitter sea of life has no bounds. It is never too late to change yourself and go back onto the right path…”
His sprit grew higher as he spoke, yet he suddenly thought about Iron Cloth and Blade Art of Five Tigers Cracking the Gate, and his enthusiasm gone away quickly.
“It’s no big deal. They are just for temporary use, and in the future, I will definitely follow a completely different route…” Meng Qi comforted himself and retrieved his enthusiasm. But as he prepared to resume to his speech, Zhen Yan, who was standing beside them, suddenly interjected,
“Congratulations, little brother Zhen Ding and little brother Zhen Hui. Now you can break away from the Ch.o.r.es Yard and the endless suffering here. However, as your big brother, I have to remind you that the Warrior-monk Yard is not an Elysium. Even if you accomplish great success in Qi-cultivation, only disciples chosen by the teachers can learn the 72 Ultimate Arts. The other monks will have to stay in the Warrior-monk Yard and continue to practice the Dragon-subduing Staffsmens.h.i.+p, and be a member of the Arhat Formation. Therefore, you shall never be too optimistic.”
He made a smile while he spoke, but Meng Qi could feel the reluctance and unwillingness behind his smile. His words also implied jealousy and sourness.
“Thank you, big brother.” Meng Qi could understand Zhen Yan’s feeling. If it was him who had experienced three years of life as a char monk and always hoped to get into the Warrior-monk Yard but never succeeded, and in contrast, newcomers around him easily broke away from the suffering he would continue to endure, his smile would be similarly reluctant and fake.
They returned to the Ch.o.r.es Yard without exchanging another word. The silence was only broken when Zhen Hui occasionally giggled foolishly.
Meng Qi knew that everyone around him was pathetic people just like Zhen Yan and Zhen Ying, so he didn’t show off as he didn’t want to provoke them.
When it was time for dinner, Meng Qi particularly warned Zhen Hui not arbitrarily to speak about what happened today.
Clap clap clap. Meng Qi was enjoying the meat in front of him when the sound of applause came from the doorway.
Meng Qi turned around and saw monk Xuan Xin walking inside, who clapped his hands with a dazzling smile. “Special day, it is a special day for our Ch.o.r.es Yard! Finally, today there are two disciples chosen to be members of the Warrior-monk Yard!”
Immediately, countless chopsticks fell onto tables and the floor at the same time. Except for Meng Qi, Zhen Hui, and Zhen Yan, all other char monks froze in place as if time had stopped to flow. A strange silence filled up the whole cafeteria.
“Zhen Ding, Zhen Hui, aren’t you going to say something to us?”
After this sentence, the char monks who had turned into sculptures became alive again. They all turned their heads and stared at Meng Qi and Zhen Hui. Their eyes were dark and gloomy, which made Meng Qi a little frightened.
“Uncle Xuan Xin, thank you for making me clean the Meditation Yard.” Meng Qi knew that he couldn’t hide the reason of his relocation from Xuan Xin, so he said so deliberately.
Xuan Xin laughed. “You should also say thanks to your cleverness and eloquence. I know you love to listen to Jianghu stories, so don’t forget about here in the future, all right? Eh, why are you staring at Zhen Ding and Zhen Hui? Shouldn’t you congratulate them?”
A char monk slowly stood up, and said with a smile that was even uglier than a crying face, “congratulations to little brother Zhen Ding and little brother Zhen Hui for becoming warrior monks.”
“Congratulations to little brother Zhen Ding and little brother Zhen Hui for becoming warrior monks.” The other char monks also stood up, and their different voices echoed in the cafeteria. Some were self-pitying, some were bitter, some were resentful, some were painful, and some were jealous, and so on and so forth.
Meng Qi sighed. “It’s just that I am blessed by Buddha. If big brothers sincerely respect Buddha, you will receive the same blessing as well.”
“Big brothers will also enter the Warrior-monk Yard if you concentrate on sweeping, concentrate on eating, and concentrate on sleeping.” Zhen Hui said foolishly.
Meng Qi knew what Zhen Hui said was the right way to do it. But from the char monks’ expressions, while some of them were sneering bitterly and some were glaring with hatred, none of the monks seemed to have taken Zhen Hui’s words seriously. If it was not that they knew Zhen Hui was a sincere and dumb person, they might even think Zhen Hui was making fun of them.
Putting his palms together and chanting the name of Buddha, Meng Qi dragged Zhen Hui to sit down with him and resumed to eating. Dinner time ended in awkward silence. So did Xuan Xin’s “storytelling corner” begin in such an atmosphere.
“Little brother Zhen Ding, little brother Zhen Hui, I knew there’s something special about you. After you come to the Warrior-monk Yard, let’s look after each other.” Zhen Yong, who came to listen to the stories as usual, said joyfully.
Meng Qi was pretty close to Zhen Yong so he said honestly, “big brother Zhen Yong, remember to take care of your little brother!”
Zhen Yong chuckled. “Actually, the big and little brothers of the Warrior-monk Yard all love Jianghu stories. But they are more prideful than I am, so they always wait for me to go back and retell the stories. As a result, I am doing pretty well in the Yard. Hehe, if you often talk about similar stories, they won’t treat you bad either.”
“Well, that’s what I am good at.” Meng Qi slightly nodded. Zhen Hui also nodded energetically. “I know a lot of stories, too!”
Xuan Xin made a cough to stop the whispers below him. “Regarding how we politely sent the visitor sects away today, you don’t need to take it seriously. It’s only that we Shaolin people put an emphasis on etiquettes, but not that we are afraid of these sects. Think about it, there are merely three Dharmakaya-level masters in the Great Jin Dynasty, and we Shaolin have one of them. How can the other sects contend against us?”
“Do you know what the most explosive news in Jianghu is in the past 10 years?”
“Well, this monk has a very strong sense of pride for Shaolin. Look at how he looks down upon the other sects…” Meng Qi quietly shook his head, and answered loudly, “We don’t know what it is. Please teach us about it, uncle Xuan Xin.”
The other char monks also answered weakly that they didn’t know.
Xuan Xin didn’t care about their low spirits and continued complacently. “A few dozen years ago, a peerless genius appeared in Mie Tian Sect, one of the Nine Evil Paths. He successfully attained the Demon’s Body before the age of 50, which is nearly comparable to the Demon Emperor from the era of myths. His last name is Han and first name is Guang, and he calls himself the ‘Evil Master’. His name overawed the entire Jianghu, and among the sects of the evil powers n.o.body was able to disobey him. Nevertheless, perhaps it’s because the Evil Master conducted too much wrongdoings, he had his retributions. Less than a year after he attained the Demon’s Body, his whereabouts was exposed, and he was found by His Abbots.h.i.+p.”
“That battle nine years ago…Hmm, the earth cracked, the mountains burst apart, and everything between heaven and earth was covered by darkness. A large lake also emerged as a result in the center of the Tai Yue Mountain Chain. Only His Abbots.h.i.+p walked out from the battlefield alive. Rumor says that the Evil Master has been killed or suppressed by His Abbots.h.i.+p.”
“After this battle, Shaolin’s reputation and fame completely overshadowed all the other sects!”
Xuan Xin ceaselessly boasted about how the various eminent monks of Shaolin domineered in Jianghu. Listening to these stories, Meng Qi and the others became very excited and enthusiastic, and really wanted to become the monks themselves.
“How many days, months, and years later can I be as powerful and as strong?”
After the “storytelling corner” ended and they had returned to their rooms, Zhen Guan and Zhen Ying straightforwardly went to sleep and completely ignored Meng Qi and Zhen Hui. On the other hand, Zhen Hui meditated crosslegged for a while, and went to sleep quickly as well.
Meng Qi practiced Iron Cloth and tossed and turned for a long time before he could restrain his excitement and go to sleep. From this aspect, he was a little jealous of Zhen Hui for being simple-minded and having little distracting thoughts.
Surrounded by darkness, Meng Qi felt breathing was becoming increasingly difficult. His body also felt like it was pinned down by thick dirt.
“Is it a sleep paralysis?” In his sleep, Meng Qi had a little consciousness. He struggled to wake up, only to find a distorted, hideous face before him.
Zhen Guan strangled Meng Qi by the throat with both of his hands, and pinned Meng Qi down with his body. His expression was ferocious and his voice sounded like balderdash.
“Go to h.e.l.l, go to h.e.l.l!”
“You took away my chance to get into the Warrior-monk Yard!”
“If I can’t get in, n.o.body can!”