Buddha’s head, Buddha’s head. The head was of special significance in Buddhist scriptures. It cut off all emotions related to love, inherited wisdom and light, and was the root of all Dharma. Touching the monk’s head was like touching the dragon’s scales — sacred.
Jie Se’s face was sullen as his white clothes danced in the air. He was ready to release his pent-up frustrations.
Buddha Head uttered calmly, “Amitabha, endure.”
Jie Se restrained his anger, and closed his hands together. “Utmost tolerance leads to ascension. The secular people are not worthy to bicker with. What Master said is right, I have shallow cultivation.”
Buddha Head shook his head and said, “I mean, if you can’t beat someone else, just bear with it and don’t look for trouble.”
After thinking about it, he was convinced. “Master sees through the essence of things, and reconciles the truth. I admire you, Master.”
After that, he stood by the door and chanted Buddhist sutras, while allowing Great-Grandma to knock on his head without retaliation.
Great-Grandma was also a stubborn girl. As she knocked on his head, she hummed a tune.
“Sarira, the form is not different from emptiness, emptiness is not different from form. Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form, If you wish to know, the same is true.”
Jie Se continued to chant, “Sarira is the empty phase of all Dharma, not born or extinguished, not dirty or unclean, not increased or decreased. It’s the brain that hurts, the brain that hurts, the thought of shoveling shit…”
Jie Se was flustered.
The Gokudo Path inheritor started to lose his cool…
Buddha Head asked, “How is the child?”
Grandma stopped, and finally let go of the little monk. Instead, she started to tap on the old monk’s bald head. “Well, well, very good, he died once only. It’s the brain that hurts, the brain that hurts, the thought of shoveling shit…”
Jie Se was speechless.
Thank you, Master, for sacrificing yourself.
The whole Lianghua Temple was no stranger to War Spirit Wushuang. Li Wuxiang was a disciple of Buddha Head. He spent several years practicing in Lianghua Temple. Even though War Spirit Wushuang and Buddha Head fought fiercely in Daxiong Great Hall, destroying the Futu Tower, smashing the plaque and the statue of Buddha. No monks’ lives were harmed.
When Jie Se entered the temple, War Spirit Wushuang had been sealed into her pearl. Li Wuxiang had died. The stories about his senior and the war spirit were all told by his seniors and elders in the temple. If this scene was photographed and circulated, it would certainly cause a furore.
“The old ones are still the hardest.” Grandma was not interested in knocking on the head of the old monk. She stopped with a sigh and said, “Although I have lived longer than you, I can’t see things as thoroughly as all of you do. I have one thing that I can’t comprehend.”
“What troubles do you have, benefactor?”
Grandma snapped, “My grandson is different from my past generations of grandsons. With my previous generations, there were more or less patriarchal constraints. Except him. He doesn’t respect his ancestors. I have to threaten him before he listens to me. His brain is also more active than other generations; he always has some bold ideas. Do you think this era is good or bad?”
When people of previous generations heard the word “emperor”, they would kneel and kowtow subconsciously, but now, when people heard these words, they would pick their noses and squint at you.
Times had always been changing, but this time, the change was too much. The ancestors’ aura was no longer effective, while he was not raised up by Great-Grandma unlike Li Wuxiang. She had always thought that she had raised Li Wuxiang herself. She could not find any grandparent’s dignity in this great-grandson.
Buddha Head said lightly, We, poor monks, only know that the era is good, if all living beings can eat, clothe and warm themselves. As for your annoyance regarding the child, I have just one piece of superficial advice.”
“Speak.”
“You can’t blame the society. What does a lack of proper upbringing have to do with the times?”
“That makes sense.” Grandma skimmed her lips.
She looked at the Buddha statue and said nothing. A moment later, she whispered, “Human desire, where joy depends, why death exists. Heaven’s opportunity is the reciprocating cause of all living beings, and the end of the world arises.”
…
Outside Daxiong Great Hall, dark clouds started to assemble. The weather was sultry. It was predicted that there would be rain this afternoon. Looking at the weather, a bout of heavy rain was about to come.
In the green brick plaza were tables and chairs offering tea, refreshments, fruits and iced beer. Two bright red banners were pulled around the venue.
The one on the left read: “We warmly welcome War Spirit Wushuang to provide her guidance.”
The one on the right read: “The demon descendants of the world are a harmonious family that loves each other.”
The symposium was initiated by War Spirit Wushuang, and was held at Lianghua Temple, sponsored by Baoze Group.
The invited people included the seven big families, the famous residences of the Taoist Buddhist Association and the well-known Weapon Sect.
Wang Laoer, as the host, was constantly circling amongst the major forces. The meeting should have started a while back, but War Spirit Wushuang did not appear. Some people in the field complained about it and looked dissatisfied.
Wang Laoer pacified those who were unhappy.
Wang Laoer was thin and dark, and looked like a middle-aged peasant. He was a disciple of Lianghua Temple. His master was the eighteenth disciple of Buddha Head. He studied the Buddhist Sutra and the untouchable imprint of King Ming. When he was young, he went down the mountains to practice and earned himself the prestigious name of “Hercules King Kong”.
Wang Laoer eventually outperformed his master. He not only got the true skills of his master, but also mastered many hard skills. His smooth and exquisite character was just the opposite of his skill sets. Lightning King asked him to chair the symposium as he was related to Lianghua Temple, and that his glib tongue was suited to be the host. The worst case scenario was that he would be a good punching bag if things went wrong.
“Is the meeting going to start? If not, we’re leaving.”
“Don’t put up a front if you’re asking us for help.”
“Well, this person was just born, and yet she thinks of conquering the world.”
There were voices of discontent all over the venue. Wang Laoer was tired of dealing with it.
Boom!
The door of Daxiong Great Hall was opened. Great-Grandma, wearing a T-shirt and hot pants, stepped over the big door barricade and appeared in front of everyone, with a girl-next-door look.
The noise stifled and the scene turned quiet.
Twenty years later, the female war spirit of the Li family had revived. The young people who had seen her at that time had become middle-aged uncles. The middle-aged uncles then had white hair. As for the old people, they aged even more.
She was still flourishing in her prime years.
Buddha Head followed closely behind her, wearing a red gold-rimmed robe. His expression was ancient and clumsy.
Buddha Head and Great-Grandma sat on two big chairs under the plaque of “Daxiong Great Hall”. The square under the steps was occupied by dozens of figures of authority. Almost no one from the younger generation was present. They were all the people who could make a definite decision in all forces. At the worst, they were also the second or third elders.
Everyone was present now. Wang Laoer took up the microphone on the table and coughed. “Welcome to this symposium. As we all know, the reopening of the Great Deities Palace is just around the corner. It’s very lucky because it’s our chance encounter. Unfortunately, this is our disaster as well.”
“Every time the Great Deities Palace opens, it will inevitably bring about bloodshed. Eighty years ago, the Forgotten Demon left existing scars on the demon descendants community. 20 years ago, the turbulence caused by Li Wuxiang was near at hand.” Wang Laoer grieved and said, “Let’s not talk about the Forgotten Demon. He’s a disaster to the whole world. But, Li Wuxiang’s downfall was a pity. Those who died in his hands, are they not all your people?”
“Those people of virtue possess the treasure. Li Wuxiang does not have such a life. He only seeks his own death. If he surrendered his treasure, no one would have made things difficult for him,” someone in the crowd echoed.
His words attracted the echoes of everyone.
The person who spoke was dressed in black martial arts clothes. He had grey hair, fierce eyes — he was the Wu family’s brother-in-law, the “Soul Extractor Knife”, Wu Qilin, ranked 60th on the demon descendants’ list.
“Elder Wu has a point,” said Wang Laoer in a habitually glib manner. “However, treasures are acquired by others on their own merits. Why should they be handed over to you?”
Wu Qilin snorted, “We also took it by our abilities.”
“It’s not decent to say that.” Wang Laoer grieved and held up the microphone. “Times are different. It’s not popular to fight and kill these days, in order to stop the recurrence of tragedies and maintain social peace. After we have consulted with Elder War Spirit, the company decided to share the whereabouts of the Great Deities Palace with all of you.”
There was an uproar at the bottom as everyone conversed with each other.
“How to share?”
“We all don’t know where it is.”
Wang Laoer smiled. “As you expected, War Spirit Wushuang knows where it is. Once it opens, she will take you in. However, she has one condition.”
Several monks handed out copies of a contract to the elders present.
Wang Laoer laughed and said, “It’s very simple. As long as you represent the major families and sign on it, promising to not hurt the descendant of the Li family before the doors of the Great Deities Palace opens. In addition, all of you will stop monitoring him and pay no attention to him. Everyone’s actions are solely for the sake of the Great Deities Palace. Since the war spirit is willing to disclose its location, there is no need to pester the descendant of the Li family. Is that right?” The spokesperson of the major families, the leaders of Buddhism and Taoism, and the presiding officers started to read the contract.
The initiator, Great-Grandma, leaned against her chair, put one leg over the other, and started to text her great-grandson.
Great-Grandma: “Have you received any assignments lately? Who’s protecting you from the company now?”
Perseverance at Work: “I haven’t been on a mission lately. I’m working hard in the company. Great-grandma, I’m terrific. As soon as you left, I beat a foreigner and solved a big problem for the company.”
They talked by WeChat.
Perseverance at Work: “Where did Great-Grandma go?”
Great-Grandma: “I’m having a meeting with the big families. It’s not a solution to have them covet you all the time”
Perseverance at Work: “What is Grandma going to do?”
Great-Grandma: “I told them that if the Great Deities Palace opened, I would take them there, but before it opens, they cannot hurt you.”
Perseverance at Work: “My grandma, my dear grandma… [moved]”
Li Xianyu sent a picture of a VR helmet to Great-Grandma.
Perseverance at Work: “This is called filial piety. Also, I have a little doubt. Didn’t you say that you didn’t know where the Great Deities Palace was?”
Great-Grandma smiled as she typed, “[Caressing head emoji] Good, I didn’t dote on you in vain. Besides, I certainly don’t know its whereabouts.”
Perseverance at Work: “Suddenly, I have a bad feeling. [scared emoji]”
Great-Grandma: “You can believe it, but they won’t believe it. Instead of letting them tangle with you, it’s better to stabilise them first. You take the opportunity to grow.”
Perseverance at Work: “It makes sense to say that. However, my dad was so good at that time, yet he still died?”
Great-Grandma: “Stupid, your father’s story is different. He really went into the Great Deities Palace and got the treasure, just like how the Golden Lion King took away the Dragonslaying Knife. As long as you remain tight-lipped, they won’t kill you if they want to know its location. It’s called a reprieve.”
It didn’t matter whether she knew the location of the Great Deities Palace or not. What mattered was that everyone thought she knew. Until then, she had to know the answer herself as well. Instead of letting her new great-grandson suffer from oppression and threats, she found it better to bluff everyone and give him some breathing time.
Nobody knew when the Great Deities Palace would open. Maybe a few months, maybe a year, maybe even longer. During this period, it was enough for Li Xianyu to strengthen himself.
The spokespeople for the various big families skimmed through the contract.
“If it’s all right, sign your name and stamp, and the symposium will come to a successful conclusion@” Wang Laoer shouted.
“The Chens disagree,” the spokesperson of the Chen family remarked in an indifferent manner.
“The Shens disagree.”
“The Wangs disagree.”
…
“Huang Yunguan disagrees.”
“Wo Niuguan disagrees.”
Apart from the presiding officers of Buddhism, the speakers of the seven great families and the leaders of Taoism, less than 10% of them agreed to the terms of the contract.
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