Chapter 471

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Chapter 471: Beautiful Looks and Muscular Monk

Oh, come to the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom, get married, get a wife—what else is there to say?

Go back to the country and surrender.

Destroy it, quickly, I’m tired…

Ever since looking at the passport documents, the atmosphere in the carriage hasn’t been quite right. They spoke and laughed as usual, but gradually, it turned into something more of a game. Bai Wei didn’t understand and didn’t wish to understand many things that only the locals of the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom could grasp.

Originally planning to drive straight out of the city, they saw that it was getting dark and decided to stay here for the night.

In Leopard Eye City, safety was questionable, and this four-wheeled carriage was a rare sight. Bai Wei asked if there were any recommended inns, and Nalan Qingshu mentioned a name. However, it wasn’t an inn—it was a homestay.

The two cities were very close, and there had already been some infiltration. Leopard Eye City remained under control, but the sudden killing of the Tiger Guards Colonel was a preemptive move to prevent this person from staying in Leopard Eye City, blocking the recovery of Bi Fang’s country. Control of the city was key to restoration.

The host was an old soldier who used to work as a postal worker at the station. After Bi Fang’s country fell, he left his position and settled in Leopard Eye City. Thanks to his previous assets here, he became involved in gathering intelligence.

Although they had planned to rest in the inn, Nalan pulled Chao Lu aside to rest elsewhere. Bai Wei wasn’t concerned about any secret conversations and went to the courtyard.

Puppets, unlike humans, don’t need to breathe or have hearts, nor can they taste. Bai Wei placed a bowl of cold water on the table. The night breeze was cool. The young man gazed at the sky and the earth, finally focusing on the bowl. With a gentle movement, it seemed as if he had poured moonlight into the bowl.

At the same time, Bai Wei sat in the courtyard of Yagyu’s residence, pouring himself a cup of tea. He drank both the hot tea and cold water in one go—tasting, yet not tasting.

He felt the subtle sensations through the movement of his fingertips.

Astral projection was supposed to be a projection of consciousness from afar, but now he could focus on two things at once. It was an experiment he had never tried before.

How could there be two of me at the same time?

If it were to happen, it would mean splitting his soul in two. But that didn’t seem likely. In reality, Bai Wei just wanted to drink tea, yet his body started moving of its own accord, synchronized with the puppet. Both sides performed identical actions, as though they were following the same instructions, producing similar feedback.

“This feeling is quite mysterious. Maybe it’s from my long out-of-body experiences and continuous practice—perhaps I’ve become even better at it.”

“The richness of my life’s experiences may not compare to the past, but my knowledge keeps growing. Over many lifetimes, little by little, I’ve accumulated enough. In the previous life, a sudden realization led to rapid progress. In this life, staying grounded allows me to see different landscapes along the way.”

With the increase in soul power, he noticed a slight delay between his body and consciousness. Bai Wei sensed something was different. The movements weren’t perfectly synchronized. The puppet’s reactions were quicker than his own body’s.

“Compared to the puppet, my original body is still fragile. After all, it’s made of flesh and blood. Without power enhancement, unless I reach Martial Saint level or take body-enhancing elixirs, I can only hope to find more vertebral bones.”

Though the puppet was useful, it couldn’t eat, drink, or participate in social activities. No matter how great it was, it couldn’t compare to the real thing.

After testing the synchronization, he sent his other self back to the room to sleep. He looked at the moonlight, feeling there wouldn’t be much else to do that night. The moon was high, and the wind was calm.

Just then, a knock came at the door. The innkeeper, startled, looked at the agile middle-aged man with a monkey-like face. He gestured for Bai Wei to stay calm, then grabbed a lantern and walked to the door.

“Who is it? It’s late, we need rest,” the innkeeper shouted.

“Ahem, after a long journey, it’s not easy to come here. Could I have a drink of water?”

“Why come here for water when there’s plenty in the Small Dragon River?”

“Cold water is bad for your health.”

“Who cares about that?”

“I can pay.”

“Is this about money?”

“Is it just that there’s not enough?”

The monkey-faced man asked, “How much are you offering?”

“Fifty.”

After thinking for a moment, the monkey-faced man shouted, “One hundred!”

“I’ll knock on the neighboring door.”

“Hey, hey! Don’t go, I’m scared of you—eighty, eighty!”

The two bargained, and the man with the monkey face opened the door. A monk walked in, but he seemed a bit different. Despite the cold winter, he wore a thin monk’s robe, without a kasaya. Prayer beads wrapped around his wrist, and his hands were clasped together. Beneath the yellow robe, his incredibly muscular arms were visible—like strong steel cables. He looked even more robust than the Demon King, yet his expression was kind, and his features were strikingly handsome.

This monk could be called a muscular monster monk, but also handsome and strong.

Bai Wei was momentarily stunned.

“I’ll go boil some hot water.” The monkey-faced man didn’t find anything wrong with the monk, so he trusted him. Seeing the monk give him money, even adding a few extra tens, he said, “I’ll cook a bowl of noodles too. You look like you’re starving and thin.”

Bai Wei thought to himself, “A muscular monster like him, with a pale and thin face? Just looking at him should be enough to scare someone.”

“Thank you, kind sir,” the handsome, muscular monk bowed politely.

The man with the monkey face accidentally revealed the Buddha statue hanging on his neck. It seemed he believed in Buddhism. No wonder he opened the door.

The monk sat in the courtyard and politely introduced himself, “I am Yuan Zhen, a wandering monk. May I know your name, sir?”

Bai Wei replied, “I am Bai Wei, from Huizhou in the Ming Country.”

“Huizhou?”

“Jinling City.”

“Indeed, you are from Huizhou.”

“Are you also from the Ming Country?”

The monk touched his bald head, “I am a monk from the Ming Country. I left Daci’en Temple.”

“Why would someone from the Ming Country come to this chaotic place?” Bai Wei asked curiously, “There doesn’t seem to be any good opportunities here.”

“Indeed, it has been a tough journey, but luckily I have some strength. Doing odd jobs, I earn enough to survive,” Monk Yuan Zhen smiled.

“Odd jobs?” Bai Wei asked, puzzled, “Is it the kind of job I’m thinking of?”

“Even when I was in the Ming Country, I worked to survive. Without effort, one cannot live. While contemplating Buddhism, one cannot go hungry. Reciting scriptures doesn’t fill one’s stomach. Should I follow the monks of Yingzhou and put a stone on my stomach?” The monk shook his head, “This frail body couldn’t take it. Skipping meals is fine a few times, but three or five days without food, I’d have to eat grass roots.”

Bai Wei was astonished, “That makes sense.”

“Back then, we survived on government aid and donations. But the abbot also made us work outside the temple,” Yuan Zhen sighed, “Unfortunately, the prices in the Ten Thousand Demon Kingdom are too high. Perhaps because I’m a monk, I face more difficulties.”

“It’s always hard to travel such a long distance. Why not return to your own country?” Bai Wei asked. “Spreading religion? Even then, not at a time like this. I haven’t seen any temples on my journey.”

“What has Benefactor Bai witnessed? Widespread hunger, countless skeletons?” Yuan Zhen clasped his hands together. “That is also what I have seen—a hell on earth. Amituofo.”

Bai Wei said, “Out of sight, out of mind. I believe the Buddha spoke of this truth. You see this world engulfed in flames, with millions of beings trapped and unable to find relief, but there seems to be no solution.”

“Even the donors have Buddha nature,” Yuan Zhen replied, “It’s been a long time since I’ve had a Buddhist discussion with someone. You are right—true gentlemen avoid the kitchen. The Buddha teaches that the spiritual realm is boundless, but if one is afraid of blood and cruelty, they won’t see the truth. The compassionate Buddha doesn’t reveal the bloody reality, so how can one understand compassion?”

Bai Wei nodded, “Exactly. It seems that those monks who walk through this place are not just empty talk. If it were just empty talk, they’d probably die, but still stubbornly persist.”

“Haha, I take that as a compliment,” Yuan Zhen looked Bai Wei up and down. “At first, I thought you were some sort of monster, but now I think this is a form of conjuring? The real body isn’t here.”

Bai Wei moved his fingertips, pretending to be shattered, “Can you tell?”

“In the Buddhist gate, the heavenly eye sees through illusions when the mind is free from distractions, pure and empty,” Yuan Zhen explained.

“Interesting,” Bai Wei said. “This is the first time I’ve met a follower of Buddhism and witnessed Buddhist supernatural powers.”

“In Buddhism, we focus on cultivating the mind. I practice both the mind and martial arts,” Yuan Zhen said. As the man with the monkey face brought the noodles, the monk eagerly ate them, blowing on the hot noodles and swallowing large mouthfuls. He wiped his mouth and said, “One of life’s joys is eating to your heart’s content. Compared to that, Buddhist teachings seem insignificant.”

The monkey-faced messenger rebelled a bit, “Are you really a monk? Don’t you respect Bodhisattva Buddha?”

“Bodhisattva Buddha isn’t achieved by just praying. Even Siddhartha Gautama, the same as any ordinary person, couldn’t do everything himself, yet later generations regard him as capable of anything. This is a misunderstanding of priorities. The Buddhist teachings left behind are guidance for future generations, not something that cannot change and is supreme.” Monk Yuan Zhen drank the noodle soup, sighing in relief. “The Buddha resides in our hearts, and the sacred place is the land of bliss. Those who awaken to truth are the ones with self-understanding. This is the limitless shore of Buddhist teachings.”

“Well said!” Bai Wei stood and said, “Now that we’ve eaten and drunk enough, shall we exercise after the meal?”

“That’s how it should be.” Yuan Zhen replied, “Benefactor Bai, let’s leave the city.”

The two stood up and moved the venue outside the city.

The Tenth on the Black List of the Jianghu Demon Kingdom was a handsome monk—strong, reasonable, capable of subduing dragons, indestructible like a diamond—and known as the Yellow-Robe Arhat.