On the pitch-black dirt road through the woods, Li Huowang held a torch high, leading the others forward.
The night was still dark, but having been scared out of their wits, none of them felt the slightest drowsiness. After all, so much had just happened that no one was in the mood to sleep.
Piled on the donkey cart were slices of freshly cut horse meat. Aside from a few Pieces of Silver from the bandits' corpses, these were Li Huowang's only spoils.
"This is good enough. Let's rest here until dawn. It's too dangerous to travel at night," Li Huowang commanded. The torches were soon stacked together, forming a new bonfire.
"If you can't sleep, at least close your eyes and rest. We still need to hurry on tomorrow—save your strength. I'll take the watch."
As the sounds of donkey hooves and footsteps faded, the dirt road returned to silence.
Sitting by the fire, Li Huowang looked back down the road they had come from. It was pitch-black. It seems the old beggar won't catch up until he's finished burying all the dead.
Recalling everything that had just happened, Li Huowang couldn't help but sigh. This place really is a mess. All sorts of chaotic things are dangerous enough, but instead of banding together for warmth, fellow humans resort to killing each other.
He poked the dying bonfire with his longsword, then grabbed some nearby firewood and tossed it in.
As time passed, the people who had scattered in the woods gradually gathered around Li Huowang's bonfire. Soon, several smaller bonfires were lit nearby.
There was no sign of the Lv Family among those who returned, but Li Huowang wasn't worried at all. When the bandits had appeared, they had run the fastest.
Top Scholar Lv really is a seasoned old hand. No wonder someone as stingy as him insisted on using horses to pull the carts. He must have anticipated a situation like this.
Time passed bit by bit. As dawn broke, the others began to stir, roasting horse meat for breakfast and preparing for the road ahead.
Regardless of how the horse meat tastes, at least it's meat. It can replenish their strength well.
Just as they were wolfing it down, a trembling figure staggered toward them from behind.
When Li Huowang saw who it was, his guard relaxed a little. It was the old beggar from before. He looks like he spent the whole night burying the dead.
The morning dew had soaked his tattered monk's robe, leaving him shivering with cold. He walked over to the fire, squatted down, and curled his body into a tight ball.
Seeing Li Huowang looking his way, the beggar gave a goofy smile.
Remembering how the man had risked his life to save someone the previous night, Li Huowang's hostility toward him lessened considerably.
Though he figured the old beggar's soft heart wouldn't allow him to survive for long in this dangerous world, no one would ever refuse contact with a good man.
Seeing Li Huowang pass him a mantou, the beggar quickly reached out for it. He mumbled while chewing, "May the Buddha bless you."
Hearing this, Li Huowang's interest was piqued. "Which Buddha are you talking about?"
"Huh? Buddha is just Buddha, isn't he? Why distinguish between them?" A look of confusion appeared in the old beggar's eyes.
"Sigh, just eat. People like you are a rare find in these times. I hope you're not deceiving me."
"How could I deceive anyone? I'm a Monk! Monks can't lie," the old beggar stated with utter conviction.
"You only know how to chant 'Amitabha' and you don't even know which Buddha you believe in. What kind of Monk does that make you?"
"Sun Scholar said Monks should have shaved heads, so I shaved my head. Tailor Wang said Monks can't take a wife, so I didn't take a wife! Constable Liu Pu said Monks can't eat meat, so I don't eat meat! And I saw other Monks chanting 'Amitabha,' so I learned to chant 'Amitabha' too! I've done all of that, so why can't I be a Monk?"
It seemed the old beggar took this matter very seriously, stubbornly arguing his case.
Hearing this, Li Huowang laughed in spite of himself. This guy's act as a Monk is even faker than my own as a Taoist. "But that doesn't mean you *are* a Monk."
The old beggar froze, holding half a mantou, and looked at Li Huowang seriously. "Then you tell me, what should a Monk be like?"
Seeing the beggar's gaze, Li Huowang opened his mouth but found he couldn't answer. Somehow, amidst his great foolishness, the man's words held a hint of profound truth.
For some reason, he saw the shadow of Master Danyang in the man—a muddled, ignorant, yet unwavering persistence.
"I'm guessing you can't read, can you?"
"How did you know? Can all you Taoist masters tell fortunes like that?"
"Heh."
"Why are you so determined to be a Monk?"
"If a Monk hadn't saved me back then, I'd be long dead. From that day on, I swore I would become a Monk too! I must become a good Monk!"
As they spoke, Li Huowang saw Lv's Troupe returning in the distance. He patted the dust from his pants, stood up, and walked toward them.
The rest of the journey went smoothly. The old Monk tagged along the whole way. Sometimes, when Li Huowang saw him so hungry he was chewing on raw wild vegetables, he would spare him a mantou or two.
After traveling like this for more than ten days, a city even grander and more imposing than Jianye appeared before Li Huowang. They had reached Xijing.
Endless blue-brick city walls rose tall and mighty. Standing before the city gate and looking up, one was struck by an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Are we finally here? Seeing the city gate, Li Huowang at last let out a long breath of relief. The entire journey had been fraught with peril, but thankfully, the scenes from his nightmares had not come to pass.
"Little Daoist Master, you can't just stay at any inn in Xijing. They'll fleece you! I'll take you to one I know, it's cheap, I swear," Top Scholar Lv offered. He was about to stride toward the towering gates, but Li Huowang pulled him back.
"Wait. Where's that Buddhist Temple you mentioned before?" Li Huowang asked impatiently. This was his most important reason for coming here, after all.
Guided by Top Scholar Lv, Li Huowang made his way toward Zhengde Temple, the temple with the most devotees in all of Xijing.
Even before he could see the temple, Li Huowang could smell the unique scent of sandalwood incense that signified a place of Buddhism. The wide streets also began to grow more crowded.
There were old men, women, adults, and children—all sorts of people.
Seeing the thick bundles of incense they clutched, Li Huowang instantly understood they were all on their way to worship Buddha.
"Is this temple always this popular?" Li Huowang asked Top Scholar Lv.
Before Lv could answer, a nearby worshipper chimed in, "Of course! The Bodhisattva at Zhengde Temple is truly miraculous! My daughter-in-law became pregnant after praying here just once."
"And the great masters at Zhengde Temple are very kind. They often distribute congee to the poor every few days."
"Yes, yes. To have such a wonderful temple in Xijing is truly a blessing earned through generations of good fortune."