Fa Ling, the monk, walked out from the mountain gate and stood beneath the statue of the Peacock King, coldly watching Qin Ye Xuan ascend the mountain.
The surrounding believers looked at the handsome young man with curiosity, wondering about his origins.
But when Fa Ling appeared, the entire mountain echoed with excited cheers.
"The Living Buddha has arrived! It's Master Fa Ling!"
Fa Ling clasped his hands together, his monastic robes fluttering in the mountain wind. Coupled with the incense smoke filling the mountain, it truly felt like a Living Buddha had descended.
He smiled and chanted, then looked at Qin Ye Xuan, saying loudly, "You are the college student from Chaoge, where demons run rampant?"
Fa Ling's voice was not loud, but with a microphone hidden within his robes, the speakers concealed in the mountain forest amplified his voice a hundredfold, ensuring everyone could hear clearly.
Thus, this single sentence caused the entire congregation of believers to erupt.
Some believers even comically raised incense sticks and prayer beads, chanting exorcism spells.
Qin Ye Xuan smiled slightly, "Indeed, I am from Chaoge. That place is filled with demons and overflowing with demonic energy. That is why I, as a disciple under the King of Myriad Manifestations, have come to drive out demons."
He also clasped his hands, his countenance solemn. "The Buddha said, 'If I do not descend into hell, who will?' Chaoge is in hell, yet I have not seen any masters from Dongling Temple, only a group of Dongling Guards who are more of a hindrance than a help! So, where have all the masters of Dongling Temple gone?"
Qin Ye Xuan certainly did not use microphones or speakers, but his voice resonated like a great bell, echoing through the mountains and islands. Not only could those on the mountain hear him, but even those at the Ten Thousand Buddhas Platform below could hear him!
The believers stared, dumbfounded, listening with ears ringing, their faces filled with shock.
Especially the phrase, "If I do not descend into hell, who will!"
Fa Ling was speechless, frozen in place.
Fo Lian, within the temple, stood up and stomped her foot in anger. "Useless! Fa Ling, you waste! He's rendered speechless by a single sentence?"
Seeing Fa Ling stuttering an explanation, claiming that Dongling Temple had already arranged for eminent monks to perform rituals for Chaoge, and that the Dongling Guards fought valiantly, representing the Buddhist temple, and so on.
The believers fell silent. For the first time, they realized that this Master Fa Ling could also stammer, completely unlike his eloquent demeanor when accepting donations from believers.
Fo Lian's face turned green. "Fa Yue, you go out. From now on, Fa Ling's title as Master is revoked. When he returns, he will work in the cellar! I am promoting you to Head Sermon Master!"
A young monk below eagerly climbed out, quickly put on the red moon monastic robe symbolizing a master, and after striding out, he merely gestured with his lips. Monks from the temple then dragged the still chanting Fa Ling away.
The microphone was turned off, and his robes were stripped.
Fa Ling was terrified, contemplating Fo Lian's methods and fearing he would be confined to the cellar for life.
He struggled, turning his head and shouting, "Mr. Qin, I have inside information about Dongling Temple! Save me, save me! I want to report Dongling Temple..."
If only the microphone hadn't been removed, who knows what trouble it might have caused.
Fo Lian in the temple almost fainted. She waved her hand remotely, "Kill him! Bury him underground as fertilizer!"
Poor Master Fa Ling, unable to utter another word, instantly became fertilizer for the sandalwood trees.
Fa Yue emerged, invigorated, speaking impassionedly. He began by chanting Buddhist scriptures, then quoted classics. He was truly eloquent, speaking like a surging ocean.
All the believers were captivated, chanting praises.
This was the true caliber of a Great Master of Dongling Temple.
Qin Ye Xuan, however, remained silent, his expression calm and disdainful.
His eyes were like those of a god. He saw that Fa Yue was filled with malevolence, his cultivation inferior to that of the previous fool.
He was merely eloquent and good at speaking sophistry.
Inside the temple, Fo Lian grew increasingly uneasy.
She wasn't afraid of Qin Ye Xuan debating Dongling Temple on the spot; she feared this man's silence!
"This is not good. Prepare emergency measures. If necessary, have our people blend in with the believers. Then we'll surround him. Let's see how he handles that!"
Fa Yue was speaking flowery words, directly portraying Qin Ye Xuan as the embodiment of a demon. The believers were like weather vanes. After years of indoctrination, they were incited to hurl stones at Qin Ye Xuan.
They cursed, acting in the name of Buddhist believers, yet committing the most heinous acts of murder.
The scene appeared terrifying.
These "benevolent" believers, young and old, now had contorted faces.
Countless stones, water bottles, and trash were hurled at Qin Ye Xuan.
They rained down like a downpour, sharp objects flying, certain death if struck.
Qin Ye Xuan, however, remained standing. A wave of spiritual energy silently enveloped him, and the airflow subtly surged, pushing the stones to change direction instantly.
Monk Fa Yue, still chanting Buddhist scriptures excitedly, was suddenly struck in the head by a stone.
Clutching his profusely bleeding bald head, Fa Yue looked around in shock, "Who? Who is it?"
"Great Master, be careful..." the believers began to exclaim.
Fa Yue looked up and was stunned into silence.
Ahead, countless stones appeared like a rain of arrows, densely obscuring the sky overhead.
No, this is wrong. Why are they hitting me?
Aren't they supposed to hit that guy in front?
Fa Yue cried out and turned to run, weeping as he fled, "Mother Buddha, save me! I'm so scared, I'm so scared..."
Fo Lian and the others in the temple were also frozen in place.
Ultimately, Fa Yue could not outrun the flying stones. At first, he could dodge them, even circulating so-called Buddhist inner energy, which was actually demonic cultivation taught by Fo Lian.
But there were too many stones. They were thrown with great force by the believers, and with the added spiritual power from Qin Ye Xuan, each stone was like a cannonball.
Fa Yue stumbled and was struck down beneath the statue of the Mother Buddha, instantly buried by the stones.
Silence fell over the entire scene, only the wild mountain wind raged.
Qin Ye Xuan remained silent, not uttering a word, even with his hands behind his back, he watched the scene with a smile.
When the pile of stones and trash formed a tomb, he clasped his hands and said, "Those who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind. These believers' stones are meant to smash demons and monsters!"
With a whoosh, the mountain gate opened again.
This time, various Buddhist music filled the mountains, and the surrounding sandalwood incense grew even thicker. Rainbow lights danced, and eighteen Buddhist boys appeared first, all cute children no more than twelve or thirteen years old, clad in white monastic robes.
Then came eighteen girls, carrying flower baskets and adorned in robes of colorful clouds.
Finally, eighteen Arhats carried a lotus platform for the Mother Buddha, crafted from Buddhist wood from Nanhai Putuo. Seated on the lotus platform was a graceful woman draped in a dragon-phoenix feather robe, wearing a nine-jade Buddha hat, with a veil of jade cicada covering her face.
Instantly, the mountain and surrounding areas erupted in cheers and exclamations.
The momentum even surpassed that of the surging ocean waves.
The Peacock King Mother Buddha herself had appeared!
Qin Ye Xuan looked at the lotus platform across the colossal statue, a smile curving his lips: "Miss Lotus, you finally couldn't help it and came out to face me yourself..."