Chapter 144
Chapter 144
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 144
Chapter Title: Wusheng (2)
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‘Speaking of Senior Brother Wusheng… so it really is him.’
Ouyang Jue recalled the repeated warnings from Bai Duanxian.
As a former guardian monk of the Shaolin Temple, not only were his martial arts exceptional, but he also had the support of many martial monks.
In terms of influence alone, he was in no way inferior to the current abbot, Master Wenjing.
For someone like him to appear in this situation meant…
Ouyang Jue concealed his presence as much as possible, sprinkling the ash he had saved while cleaning all over his robes to erase his scent.
‘Now that even Master Wusheng has appeared, I should be able to hear the full story of what happened.’
He should also be able to find out the reason Liu Zhangming was summoned for a friendly spar through Master Wusheng.
Ouyang Jue carefully pressed his ear against the outer wall of the Main Buddha Hall.
* * *
“Abbot, what in the world is going on!”
Seeing Master Wusheng’s face flushed, unlike his usual self, Master Wenjing tilted his head in confusion.
“Didn’t you send the message, Senior Brother?”
“...?”
“Weren’t you the one who said to summon Young Master Liu of the Mount Hua Sect for a friendly spar and use the result to dilute the conflict between our sects?”
At those words, Master Wusheng looked momentarily flustered and then shook his head firmly.
“I have never sent a message with such content!”
“...”
Hearing this, Master Wenjing frowned, looking confused.
“Are you saying you did not send the message through the young monk?”
“...I did send one, but I never wrote such things.”
“I see. So you’re saying the contents were changed along the way.”
As Master Wenjing mumbled to himself, stroking his beard, Liu Zhangming gave an empty smile.
“I apologize for getting involved in the Shaolin Temple’s internal affairs, but are you saying I was brought here not by Shaolin’s will, but because of someone else?”
“...For now, it seems that way.”
“In that case, shouldn’t we summon the young monk who brought Master Wusheng’s message to confirm the facts?”
At those words, Master Wenjing’s expression grew heavy.
“He was found yesterday with all his vital energy drained and is currently in critical condition. It will likely take some time to confirm the facts.”
Soon, Master Wenjing turned his gaze to Master Wusheng.
*As it happens, this is what I wanted to discuss with you, Senior Brother Wusheng.*
*What did you want to discuss?*
*A mark similar to that of the old Demonic Cult was engraved on the roof of the young monk’s mouth. Do you know anything about this?*
*...Hmm.*
With a solemn expression, Master Wusheng shook his head regretfully.
*I’m sorry, but I too am unaware of what happened after I gave the message to the young monk.*
*If things had gone wrong, a conflict between our sects could have escalated due to someone’s scheme.*
Having gathered his thoughts, Master Wenjing looked at Liu Zhangming with a gentle smile.
“My apologies, Young Master Liu. We nearly ended up on bad terms with the Mount Hua Sect.”
“...”
“We will investigate this matter thoroughly and inform the Mount Hua Sect. Please let us know if there is anything you require.”
At that, Liu Zhangming hesitated to answer for a moment.
‘Can I really… really let it end like this?’
Liu Zhangming’s gaze turned to Master Wenjing.
He was talking with Master Wusheng and the other martial monks, fostering an atmosphere of heightened awareness about the incident and opening a path to reconciliation.
Because Master Wusheng had forcibly quelled the sectarian conflict, the expressions of the radical faction did not look pleased.
However, since a third party had intercepted Master Wusheng’s message, altered its contents, and endangered the young monk, it would be difficult to continue the fight.
But what about his own position, caught in the middle?
Liu Zhangming bit his lower lip.
‘If it were Jue… how would he have acted?’
Liu Zhangming pictured in his mind what Master Wenjing was likely to do next.
What would be the first thing they would do?
‘Come to think of it, wasn’t the handyman who first discovered the young monk Jue himself?’
If this continued, Ouyang Jue would be in danger.
As his thoughts reached that point, his lips parted unconsciously.
“Wait a moment.”
“...?”
“Are you planning to end the discussion here?”
At those words, Master Wenjing gave a strange smile.
“Young Master Liu, would you care to elaborate?”
“Regardless of what happened, the Mount Hua Sect has been dragged into Shaolin’s internal dispute, and I was nearly injured because of it, was I not?”
Liu Zhangming gestured with his chin toward his tattered collar.
“If you wrap this up so loosely, the Mount Hua Sect will surely not tolerate it. Therefore, I would appreciate a clear token of apology.”
At his words, the eyes of the martial monks standing in rows sharpened.
As it was, Master Wusheng had sided with Master Wenjing, and the mood was shifting completely toward the moderate faction.
In a situation like this, he was telling them to bow their heads to the Mount Hua Sect?
Because of this, one of the martial monks who lost his self-control muttered to himself.
“Since when did our Shaolin have to seek the tolerance of the Mount Hua Sect?”
“Silence!”
Before Liu Zhangming could even react, Master Wenjing let out a Lion’s Roar.
“Since when does a disciple of Buddha discriminate against people based on the power of their sect?”
“...”
“The disciple who just mumbled those words will apologize to Young Master Liu immediately and enter the Cave of Repentance!”
At Master Wenjing’s fury, Liu Zhangming felt as if his eyes and ears had finally been cleared.
‘Indeed… so Master Wenjing is also one of the giants of the martial world.’
What was it that Master Wenjing had just said?
He would inform them, and asked if they required anything.
In the end, it meant he intended to resolve the matter without any real apology.
If he hadn’t challenged him, the incident would have been swept under the rug just like that.
Liu Zhangming shuddered at Master Wenjing’s calculated actions.
Just as he was pondering what to do next, he heard Ouyang Jue’s telepathic message.
*Senior Brother.*
At those words, Liu Zhangming turned his gaze to a thin wall in a corner of the Main Buddha Hall.
Judging by the flow of ki, it seemed his junior brother was watching the situation from beyond that wall.
*Did you come up with what you just said on your own?*
*...I did.*
*You’ve grown.*
Liu Zhangming almost let out a hollow laugh as he pictured Ouyang Jue patting his head.
Ouyang Jue’s telepathic message continued.
*I’m impressed.*
*...That aside, can you advise me on what to do now?*
*Please buy a little more time. I’ll be coming in soon.*
*Coming in? Won’t you be in danger if you do that?*
Despite Liu Zhangming’s attempt to stop him, Ouyang Jue gave a wry smile.
*No matter how this turns out, won’t I be detained at the Shaolin Temple anyway? Even if I were to slip away, it would come back to haunt me later.*
*That’s true, but…*
*I’ll settle this once and for all on this occasion.*
Hearing that, Liu Zhangming felt a sense of reassurance deep inside.
After all, Ouyang Jue had never failed when he took matters into his own hands.
Liu Zhangming turned his gaze back to Master Wenjing.
“So, what will you do?”
Master Wenjing’s eyes narrowed.
* * *
Having finished his conversation with Liu Zhangming, Ouyang Jue looked down at the Diamond Fist-Seal Armor, which had been vibrating faintly for a while.
At first, he thought the plan had been devised by someone from either the moderate or the radical faction.
But with that mark engraved on the roof of the young monk’s mouth, he couldn’t believe this was a plot concocted by Shaolin.
The Eight Evils.
No group lesser than them would attempt to make the Mount Hua Sect and the Shaolin Temple destroy each other.
‘Fortunately, it seems Grandmaster Jin was not wrong. One of the Eight Evils was indeed at the Shaolin Temple.’
Staring blankly at the Diamond Fist-Seal Armor, Ouyang Jue frowned.
From the moment the message was delivered to the Mount Hua Sect until now.
Ouyang Jue slowly organized the situation, mulling it over.
It felt as if his head was overheating.
‘The radical faction, whose discontent was slowly simmering down thanks to Senior Brother Liu, is now rising again because of Master Wusheng, and the message sent to Mount Hua was actually a fake…’
To put it simply, a single message, altered by a third party, was turning the situation into a quagmire.
If Master Wusheng hadn’t appeared, both Ouyang Jue and Liu Zhangming would have likely just had a proper spar and returned home.
But with Master Wusheng’s appearance, the rift that was slowly mending was now widening from a different direction.
‘Judging by the reaction of the Diamond Fist-Seal Armor, the culprit must be in there.’
But the biggest question remained.
‘Is the culprit the one who changed the message’s content, or is it Master Wusheng himself, the one who wrote it?’
Unless Master Wusheng, the one who wrote the message, revealed the original contents, it was difficult to be certain of anything.
To figure it out, the handyman who found the young monk—that is, he himself—had no choice but to step forward and observe the changes.
A cold sweat trickled down the side of Ouyang Jue’s face.
‘This is a headache.’
Unlike the Black Dragon he had last seen, this enemy felt more like a strategist in many ways.
It was like being stuck in a deep swamp.
Thinking that their martial prowess would also be formidable, Ouyang Jue unconsciously toyed with Severing Manifestation.
‘If I’m not careful, I, the one who first discovered the young monk, could become a suspect.’
A trap this way, a trap that way.
It felt like fighting countless warriors with his back against a cliff.
It would be a lie to say he wasn’t afraid.
No matter how much he had improved his own skills, he had no desire to confront the entire Shaolin Temple and the influence they wielded.
If things went wrong, the disaster could affect not only him but the Mount Hua Sect as well.
‘Still, to confirm anything, I have no choice but to step forward myself.’
Having made up his mind, Ouyang Jue rose from his spot and headed for the entrance of the Main Buddha Hall.
“…Hoo.”
He took a deep breath, steeling his resolve.
*Creeaak-*
He stepped into the Main Buddha Hall.
* * *
A snowy mountain located in the north.
At its peak, wearing the mask of a demon among the Eight Evils.
The Sword Demon, Gyo Gang-cheon, smiled at the Demonic Doctor.
“I’ve always wondered while watching you… why exactly did you join our side?”
“To help the Eight Evils rule all of the Central Plains, of course.”
Although they were now the Six Evils, the Demonic Doctor didn’t bother to correct him.
At that, Gyo Gang-cheon gave a meaningful smile.
“Are you trying to beguile me with such tiresome words?”
“Of course not. I have merely come to deliver a message.”
“A message?”
“Yama has requested that you attend the gathering at least once.”
At those words, Gyo Gang-cheon’s smile vanished, and he glared at the Demonic Doctor.
“You know as well as I do, don’t you?”
“I’m not quite sure what you mean.”
“Quite the brazen one, aren’t you. Rather than me, shouldn’t you be more concerned about the Buddha or that crow fellow?”
“The Buddha… are you referring to the Old Demon?”
“That one. He says he’s going to sort things out at Shaolin and make his debut in the Central Plains. He’s bound to clash with the crow, isn’t he?”
Despite Gyo Gang-cheon’s meaningful gaze, as if asking if that was really okay, the Demonic Doctor maintained a stiff tone.
“That has little to do with me. Even if the Eight Evils clash with each other, I will not take anyone’s side.”
“Wise.”
“Ah, and the Young Master sent this message.”
“...?”
The Demonic Doctor circulated all his internal energy into a protective aura.
This was because the message he was about to deliver was like a dagger to Gyo Gang-cheon’s heart.
“He asks if you’ve foolishly failed to abandon your lingering attachments yet.”
At those words, Gyo Gang-cheon gave a bitter smile.
“…Lingering attachments.”
*Rumble!*
At the sudden roar, the Demonic Doctor’s gaze shifted downward.
“What is that?”
“Ah, don’t mind it. There are martial artists who come to challenge me from time to time.”
“…You’re saying there’s someone who can survive picking a fight with one of the Eight Evils?”
“I go a bit easy on him, but he’s got some fierce fists. Be careful not to run into him on your way down.”
As the Demonic Doctor gave a small nod, Gyo Gang-cheon turned his back on him.
“Tell the other members of the Eight Evils as well. This Gyo Gang-cheon will not partake in games like conquering the Central Plains.”
“Understood.”
After the Demonic Doctor hurried down the snowy mountain.
Gyo Gang-cheon disappeared into a snow-covered cave.