The Shaolin Abbot Born in the 1980s

Chapter 16: May’s Draw

Seeing that Huo Yuanzhen wasn’t dodging or flinching, the burly man thought to himself, “That bald monk’s asking for it.” But he was just a thug—he didn’t have the guts to actually kill anyone. He wanted to deflect the blade slightly, but he was afraid of losing face. Before he knew it, his swing lost its force. He figured he’d just give the monk a light slash—enough to cut a gash in his head and make him bleed a little—after all, his blade wasn’t very sharp. Though the force was much lighter, the blade still struck Huo Yuanzhen’s head. Seeing this, the others who had been fighting stopped in their tracks. The thugs were all a bit frightened, thinking to themselves that someone was going to die. The monks from Shaolin Temple, however, were horrified. Yikong and the others shouted for the Abbot to take cover, while Yijing rushed over to help. Only Huang Feihong remained unconcerned; in his mind, Huo Yuanzhen was a highly skilled martial arts master with a head as hard as steel—there was no way this thug’s blow could possibly harm him. With a “clang!” the steel blade struck Huo Yuanzhen’s head, producing a metallic clang as if metal were striking metal. The blade was deflected upward, nearly slipping from the burly man’s grip. Not even a mark remained on Huo Yuanzhen’s head. With the System’s martial arts, Huo Yuanzhen had mastered them to perfection the moment he learned them. His “Iron Head Technique” had long since made him impervious to blades and spears—why would he fear a mere slash? His only concern was that the thug might swing wide of the mark. Fortunately, the blow landed squarely. Huo Yuanzhen pressed his palms together and chanted a Buddhist mantra: “Layman, lay down your blade and attain enlightenment this very moment. Otherwise, This Humble Monk will be forced to intervene.” Everyone present was stunned, including Yijing, who had come to the rescue; he stopped in his tracks and stared blankly at his abbot and senior monk. The burly man was utterly dumbfounded; it took him a while to retrieve his steel blade and examine it, only to find that it had actually been chipped. After all, he hadn’t even used much force—yet the blade was damaged. Was this monk’s head made of iron? Such prowess was beyond his comprehension. Just as he stood there dumbfounded, Huo Yuanzhen suddenly snapped his eyes open, fixed his gaze on the man, and roared, “Put down that butcher’s knife at once! Do you really want This Humble Monk to intervene and send you to the afterlife?!” The burly man’s hand trembled, and the steel knife fell to the ground. Oh no, oh no—I’ve picked a fight with a master! Just as he was trying to figure out what to do, Huo Yuanzhen suddenly raised his hand, striking a menacing pose as if he were about to flatten him with a single palm strike. The burly man finally couldn’t take it anymore; letting out a shriek, he turned and ran. The thugs had also been stunned by Huo Yuanzhen’s prowess; now that they saw their leader fleeing, they all took off running, faster than rabbits. Huo Yuanzhen waved his hand to stop Yijing and the others from giving chase—one shouldn’t pursue a desperate foe. If they chased him and he fought back like a cornered beast, someone on their side might get hurt. The burly man ran all the way to the edge of the mountain path. Seeing that Huo Yuanzhen wasn’t in pursuit, he shouted, “Don’t get too cocky, monk! Just wait until ‘Bull’ shows up tomorrow—then you’ll see what I’m made of!” As the thugs ran off into the distance, someone in the crowd—no one knew who—let out a cheer, and almost everyone else immediately joined in. These men had run rampant throughout Dengfeng County, and the surrounding villages had suffered greatly at their hands. Now that they’d actually taken a tumble at the Shaolin Temple, it was truly a source of great satisfaction. However, someone kindly warned Huo Yuanzhen, “Abbot, you’d better be careful. That Niu Er is quite skilled in martial arts, and with Chen Ding backing him up, he’s not someone to mess with.” Huo Yuanzhen waved his hand dismissively: “It’s no problem. No matter who’s backing him, I have the Buddha’s protection.” The crowd scoffed at Huo Yuanzhen’s words. The Buddha, after all—it was one thing to pay him a little respect from time to time, but could anyone really believe he actually existed? Unexpectedly, Huo Yuanzhen continued, “You may not believe me, but please go home and come back to Shaolin Temple first thing tomorrow morning to see if the Buddha will work a miracle.” With this incident having occurred, the storytelling session couldn’t continue that day, so the crowd gradually dispersed. However, as they left, the offerings they left behind were several times more than usual. In the end, after Huo Yuanzhen tallied the earnings, they had actually made over thirty taels of silver that day. But earning silver was no longer the top priority; the top priority was the safety of the Shaolin Temple. With only the handful of people they had at the moment, the Shaolin Temple didn’t even rank among the lowest tier in the martial arts world. It’s the same in any world: whoever has the strongest fist is the king. That Niu Er would definitely show up tomorrow. After all, as the leader of the thugs in Dengfeng County—whether in ancient or modern times—he had to save face. Having lost face at the Shaolin Temple, he would certainly come to reclaim it. To outsiders, it might seem that Huo Yuanzhen was quite skilled for taking that thug’s knife to the head today, but Huo Yuanzhen knew his own limitations all too well. Facing this challenge tomorrow, unless a miracle happened, he would absolutely not make it through. But in front of others, Huo Yuanzhen couldn’t show any sign of fear. If Yijing and the others were to lose confidence as a result, that would truly be the end. His only hope now rests on the next lottery drawing, which will take place after midnight tonight. If he manages to draw a martial arts manual, he might still stand a chance against Niu Er. The crowd dispersed, and night fell. Huo Yuanzhen waited in his room, waiting for midnight. In this world, time was measured using hourglasses, and the timing wasn’t very precise, so people were generally accustomed to estimating the hour. But Huo Yuanzhen was different. His system tracked the time, so he knew the exact hour. Today was the twenty-fifth of May. He had arrived on the twenty-fifth of April, so exactly one month had passed. During that time, he had gained an additional draw opportunity on the fifth day of the fifth month; the next draw wouldn’t come until the twenty-fifth of June. This draw was crucial. If he failed to obtain a martial arts manual, Huo Yuanzhen would have to find a way to lie low—at the very least, he’d need to find an excuse to leave Shaolin. But doing so would destroy everything he’d worked so hard to build. He’d then have to repay his debts to the moneylenders, and it was unlikely anyone would be willing to lend him money again. He didn’t want all his hard work to go down the drain, so his only hope lay in this critical moment. If he obtained the martial arts manual and defeated Niu Er tomorrow, then everything would be temporarily resolved. The next crisis would likely come from those two villagers he’d beaten up down the mountain for harassing Lin Rou. Those villagers had once mentioned that their “older brother” was a disciple of the Zhongyue Sect and would be returning home to visit family in August; by then, he would likely come looking for trouble. A Zhongyue Sect disciple would certainly be far more formidable than Niu Er, but Huo Yuanzhen still had time back then; this time, however, time was running short. Finally, it was midnight. The system issued a prompt, right on the dot: “Your monthly lottery chance. Do you want to use it now?” “Use it!” Thirty-six symbols appeared once again. Before drawing, Huo Yuanzhen made it a habit to carefully examine what had appeared, identify which items he wanted, and then spin the system—as if doing so would make his wishes come true. After carefully scanning through them, he found they were still the same: six secret manuals, six construction tokens, six sutras, six silver coins, six Buddhist ritual implements, and six miscellaneous items. The six manuals were: Iron Broom Technique, Two-Finger Zen, Wuxiang Technique, Great Compassion and Great Mercy Palm, Flower-Plucking Finger, and Lion’s Roar. The six construction tokens are: the Mountain Gate Construction Token, the Thousand Buddha Cave Construction Token, the Drum Tower Construction Token, the Prajna Hall Construction Token, the Council of Elders Construction Token, and the Scripture Hall Construction Token. Huo Yuanzhen did not pay much attention to the scriptures or the silver. The ritual implements include a set of bronze bells, a large drum, an incense burner, a square cauldron, Liantai, and prayer beads. Miscellaneous items included a White Horse, a dog, a carrying pole, a water jar, a crescent-shaped shovel, and the “Triangle-Shaped Light Spot” Grand Prize. Huo Yuanzhen studied them for quite a while; the quality of the items that appeared this time was quite good. At least in terms of martial arts, the “Wuxiang Cultivation” was an excellent internal cultivation technique, and the “Great Compassion and Great Mercy Palm” was also quite formidable—its palm techniques were exquisite. The only drawback was that its lethality wasn’t very strong, which is why it was called “Great Compassion and Great Mercy.” The “Flower-Plucking Finger” is a supreme finger technique, even surpassing the “One-Finger Zen.” As for the Lion’s Roar, it is an iconic Buddhist martial art—a form of sonic attack—that not only deals significant damage to those with low martial arts proficiency but can also counter other sonic attacks. Actually, the “Iron Broom Technique” and “Two-Finger Zen” would suffice—at the very least, they’d make short work of the likes of Niu Er. However, Huo Yuanzhen always had a tendency to aim too high, and since he’d previously drawn the “Iron Head Technique,” this time he truly hoped to draw an advanced martial art. However, the chance of drawing a martial arts manual was only one in six. So far, Huo Yuanzhen’s luck had been fairly good, but he didn’t know if his good fortune would hold this time, given that the future of the Shaolin Region’s development was at stake. Of course, drawing a “Pin” character light dot would be ideal, but Huo Yuanzhen didn’t harbor much hope—with a one-in-thirty-six chance, it was impossible for him to draw it twice in a row. Taking a deep breath, Huo Yuanzhen spun the light dot.