Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Shaolin Temple
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Dang Mujin doubted his own ears.
When they were repairing the Wooden Men Lane, hadn't it been Precepts Master Qingyue himself who praised it as a good deed while watching the monks swing pickaxes in Dang Mujin's place?
He hadn't said a word back then, but now he was suddenly flipping his stance and spouting such nonsense. Dang Mujin couldn't fathom the reason why.
It was truly the behavior of a spider.
Digging a trap and waiting patiently for the prey to struggle until it bound itself up tight.
How could a human being utter words so filled with malice?
Dang Mujin glared at Precepts Master Qingyue. But there wasn't a trace of malice on his face.
His expression was even drier than Mokin's, as if his words were utterly natural and reasonable.
Feeling a surge of something rising within him, Dang Mujin opened his mouth.
"Last time, you didn't say anything like—"
Dang Mujin's protest was cut off the moment it began. Monk Qingfu's shout drowned out his voice.
"Qing—yue!"
It wasn't quite a lion's roar, but Qingfu's voice carried the righteous force of a Shaolin high monk, shattering evil and revealing truth.
With such a thunderous voice exploding right beside him, one might expect a reaction, but Precepts Master Qingyue's face didn't change as he looked at Qingfu.
"What's the matter?"
"What's the matter? What do you mean? Donor Dang suffered for months to restore the Wooden Men Lane. Unlike your average charlatans, Donor Dang delivered results that far exceeded all expectations!"
"True. I think so too."
Precepts Master Qingyue nodded indifferently. Whether that attitude felt like mockery, Qingfu's face flushed red.
Qingfu was honest by nature, without pretense or hidden agendas. Unlike others, he had openly voiced his dissatisfaction with the Wooden Men Lane.
But now the situation had changed. The Wooden Men Lane was no longer an obstacle blocking his path but a beacon lighting the way ahead. So Qingfu was ready to express his goodwill toward Dang Mujin without reservation.
Qingfu's voice grew even louder.
"You're saying that knowing full well? Three hundred years! The Shaolin Temple has reclaimed the Wooden Men Lane after three centuries. This is an achievement beyond comparison to some miracle elixir of the ages!"
"Is it?"
"Of course! An elixir's effects are limited to one person, but the Wooden Men Lane will grant enlightenment to countless monks from now on. And that's not all? It'll reignite passion for martial arts in those who've given up on advancing. Even lost techniques have returned through it!"
His enthusiasm outpaced his thoughts, so Qingfu's words spilled out in a jumbled mess.
But his intent was clear, and easy enough to understand. The surrounding monks nodded slightly in agreement.
Everyone except Precepts Master Qingyue.
"Listen, Qingfu."
"I'm listening."
"So what?"
"What?"
"Isn't it clear that Donor Dang violated the great precepts of the Three Realms?"
Shock appeared on Qingfu's face. He flapped his mouth wordlessly for a moment before bellowing again.
"That's insane!"
"Patriarch Bodhidharma himself decreed that no one can learn Shaolin martial arts without a master. If you claim Donor Dang didn't violate the precepts, there's no choice but to reveal from whom he received instruction."
Qingfu's eyes and mouth twitched like a man buffeted by wind. If not for his position as Fierce Dog Successor Monk, he might have unleashed curses unfit even for the marketplace right in Qingyue's face.
Qingfu's breathing quickened with rage. He spoke in a voice that sounded almost like gasping.
"Precepts? Is that what matters now? Sure, precepts are important! But you can't invoke them in a situation like this. We should be expressing gratitude openly and pondering how to repay him—and that's barely enough. It's the duty of a Buddhist before being a Shaolin martial monk, and the bare minimum of humanity!"
"Listen, Qingfu."
"Go on. I'm curious what brilliant excuse you'll come up with."
"Excuse? No need for one. That's precisely why they are precepts—no excuses required."
Precepts Master Qingyue continued.
"I'm not saying we shouldn't praise his efforts. I too believe Donor Dang deserves ample compensation. At the same time, we must cripple his meridians or end his life."
His utterly unyielding attitude left not only Qingfu, but Dang Mujin and all the listening monks speechless.
In this world. Not even offsetting merit against punishment, but applying both reward and penalty together. Was that even sane?
The one who broke the silence was Manli Monk Qingwu. Red veins bulged on his forehead.
"Qingyue! I've known you since you were a boy, but I never knew you were this kind of person. I'm truly disappointed."
The other monks rushed to vent their criticism and anger at Qingyue.
"Precepts Master, don't disappoint me further."
"Qingyue! How do you expect Donor Dang and this donor to view Shaolin? If word of this spreads, what will people say of us? Even calling us an infernal cave of the world's most ungrateful wretches would leave us no ground to argue! Not even base beasts or demonic cults would stoop to such talk!"
lifelong acquaintances hurling such abuse. Yet Qingyue's demeanor didn't waver in the slightest.
"Are rumors and reputation above the precepts? We'll discuss punishment at the next assembly. Be advised."
"What will discussion change? Do you think even one person will agree with you? Foolishness! It's nothing but smearing your own face and Shaolin's name!"
Personal attacks nearly as vicious as curses popped up amid the tirade. Words unfit for brother-monks who'd shared decades together.
The monks' fury was so fierce it was daunting even to interject, leaving Dang Mujin—the very party involved—unable to utter a word.
Yet Precepts Master Qingyue silently endured it all. He offered no lengthy defenses.
He merely repeated that the precepts must be upheld.
Words flew back and forth, but no true dialogue took place.
Just as the tension threatened to erupt into blows, one man entered the room.
An elder far older than the Azure Robe martial monks. He had a long, snow-white beard and an aura distinct from the others.
If the other monks evoked hard, solid gravel, he felt like a cool breeze through the woods.
A strange-robed monk whispered.
"It's the Divine Monk. Looks like he's emerged from seclusion."
The Shaolin Abbot. One of the Six Righteous Venerables. A name never absent from lists of the world's supreme masters.
All eyes turned to the Divine Monk.
"What a mess. What disgrace is this before donors?"
"Abbot! The Precepts Master—"
"Silence."
At the curt command, the room fell utterly still, as if by magic. Breaths were audible in the quiet.
As if aware of the conversation within the Wooden Men Lane, the Divine Monk spoke precisely.
"Proposing punishment for precept violations falls under the Precepts Master's authority. No objections."
Dissatisfaction filled the martial monks' faces.
But no one openly contradicted the Divine Monk.
There were two reasons. His authority was that absolute, and no one believed Dang Mujin would actually be punished.
The Precepts Master's authority allowed proposing and debating punishment, not deciding the target or the penalty.
In other words, for Precepts Master Qingyue to punish Dang Mujin for violating precepts, other monks' agreement was required.
The problem was that the other monks had no desire to punish Dang Mujin.
Precepts Master Qingyue surely knew punishment wouldn't follow. That only made the martial monks comprehend him even less.
Precepts Master Qingyue announced to the monks.
"We'll hold an emergency assembly tomorrow to discuss this matter. Those who wish to speak, attend at the Longevity Hall."
With that, Precepts Master Qingyue left the Wooden Men Lane.
The mood sank heavily.
Many martial monks wanted to challenge the Wooden Men Lane, but the grim atmosphere left them turning away.
Dang Mujin too departed the Wooden Men Lane with a heavy heart.
*
Dang Mujin didn't return to the guest quarters to rest. There was somewhere he needed to go first.
He passed through the temple gate. The Nahantang martial monks guarding it didn't detain him despite all the talk of precept violations.
Dang Mujin's destination was Dan Xueying's dwelling. She sat by the waterwheel, lost in thought.
However, her hands held no pickaxe or chisel today. It was the first time he'd seen her so idle.
Hearing his footsteps, Dan Xueying turned and looked at Dang Mujin. She patted the spot beside her. A gesture to sit.
Dang Mujin sat next to Dan Xueying. Instead of her usual sweat, a faintly sweet, sticky scent wafted from her. Familiar yet unfamiliar.
Dan Xueying turned to the seated Dang Mujin and asked.
"How was it? Did the Wooden Men Lane work well?"
What had happened inside the Wooden Men Lane came to mind. Precepts Master Qingyue's voice debating punishment before reward.
But Dang Mujin didn't want to burden Dan Xueying with such talk. She deserved at least one day of joyful stories.
"Of course. With the wooden men moving, the skeptical monks nearly fell over in shock."
"Really?"
Dan Xueying's face lit up brighter than ever. Seeing it, Dang Mujin smiled faintly.
"Naturally. There was this monk named Qingfu who always glared sullenly whenever I passed by. Today, he was the first to challenge the Wooden Men Lane."
"Yeah. What happened?"
"Want me to show you?"
Dang Mujin stood, mimicked Qingfu's movements for a few steps, then acted out getting pummeled by invisible wooden men and tumbled to the dirt floor.
Finally, sitting with a dazed expression while looking around, Dan Xueying burst into laughter.
Dang Mujin brushed the dirt from his clothes and stood.
"He barely made six steps before the wooden men knocked him down. And he wasn't some average hack. A peak master, no less!"
"Really?"
"You bet!"
A riddle isn't satisfying unless someone fails it. Especially one that stumped a renowned peak master. Pride bloomed on Dan Xueying's face.
"Did anyone make it all the way?"
"Nope. Know Manli Monk?"
"I've heard the title. Second only to the Divine Monk, right?"
"He only managed eleven steps. Not even halfway—barely a third."
Dang Mujin described the Wooden Men Lane in exhaustive, meticulous detail, recounting the monks' reactions. It was the first time he'd ever talked so animatedly.
Dan Xueying closed her eyes, listening intently. In her mind and beneath her lids, Dang Mujin's words painted vivid pictures: the wooden men, the awestruck and delighted high monks.
Dang Mujin watched her. Strands of hair swaying in the breeze and her beaming smile stood out.
When he finished, Dan Xueying opened her eyes. She flashed her white teeth in a satisfied grin.
"Perfect. No regrets left."
Hearing that, a question arose in Dang Mujin's heart.
What would Dan Xueying live for now?
"You've fixed the Wooden Men Lane. What next?"
"What do you mean? I'll stay here, managing the waterwheel to keep it from breaking. Now that I have some spare time, I might even stay down in the village."
"You're staying here?"
"Of course. Where else would I go?"
Feeling an inexplicable pang of regret, Dang Mujin voiced the question he'd held back.
"Aren't you sad you never saw the Wooden Men Lane?"
"Silly. What do you mean, never saw it?"
"Huh?"
"Everyone else just saw it now, but I've been able to picture it perfectly whenever I close my eyes since I was ten."
Dan Xueying smiled confidently.
Yet watching her, Dang Mujin felt a twinge of regret.
The regret that she couldn't smile even brighter.