The Shaolin Abbot Born in the 1980s

Chapter 41: The Consecration Ceremony at Dharma King Temple

As the crowd waited for the consecration ceremony to begin, more people entered from outside. This time, a contingent of soldiers cleared the way for a procession carrying a sedan chair—the Prefect of Zhengzhou Prefecture had arrived. The Prefect of Zhengzhou was surnamed Lu; his name was Lu Xuezhang. He was one of Guan Tianzhao’s closest confidants, which was why he had been appointed to the position of prefect of the provincial capital. Guan Shanyue knew him well; in fact, as soon as the palanquin entered, Guan Shanyue informed Huo Yuanzhen that Lu Xuezhang had arrived. People hurriedly made way for the Prefect’s palanquin, which, escorted by soldiers, turned a corner and headed toward the rear. With the monks from Daxiangguo Temple and the Prefect now present, all the key figures had arrived, and the time was nearly right; it was expected that the consecration ceremony at Dharma King Temple would begin shortly. The gates to the rear and central courtyards finally opened, and people surged in, though they all instinctively kept their distance from the area where the dignitaries were seated. These commoners all knew that on such an occasion, those seated here were high-ranking officials—people they could not approach casually. Although the courtyard of the Dharma King Temple wasn’t as absurdly vast as that of the Shaolin Temple—which spans several li in all directions—it was still over a hundred meters long and wide, yet it quickly filled with people. The process of letting people in lasted nearly half an hour. As the consecration ceremony was about to begin, they finally stopped admitting people—there simply wasn’t any more room. The courtyard gates closed, and the consecration ceremony was about to begin. On the open space in front of the Great Hall of the Buddha, which was about to be consecrated, a group of monks sat cross-legged. At that moment, a senior monk finally emerged from the rear. As soon as Huo Yuanzhen saw him, he recognized him—an old acquaintance, none other than Monk Lixuan, whom he had met a few days earlier when arranging a loan. Under Monk Li Xuan’s direction, a group of young monks from Dharma King Temple began to play music. Bells, small drums, Wooden Fish, cymbals, and other instruments sounded simultaneously, while a large number of monks nearby began chanting sutras in loud voices. As the sounds began, the crowd on the other side fell silent, and everyone craned their necks to look inside. With the music and drums in full swing and all eyes upon them, Monk Lixuan felt a touch of pride. As he scanned the crowd, his gaze suddenly fell upon two bald heads in the VIP section. To be precise, it was one bald figure, because Li Xuan did not recognize Guan Shanyue. Moreover, Guan Shanyue—who had previously been an elderly man with long hair—was now bald and dressed in monk’s robes; unless one was exceptionally familiar with him, it would be quite difficult to recognize him. Even if Li Xuan had recognized Guan Shanyue, he probably wouldn’t have noticed him at that moment—his eyes were fixed on only one person: Huo Yuanzhen. “It’s him, no doubt about it. I’d recognize him even if he were reduced to ashes. I never thought he’d actually dare to come to my Dharma King Temple to watch the consecration ceremony—Shaolin Yijie!” Li Xuan’s eyes were fixed intently on Huo Yuanzhen, who stared back at him without a trace of fear. In front of others, one might sometimes need to maintain the image of a venerable monk, but in front of Li Xuan—a fellow monk—there was no need for that. They’d never been on good terms to begin with, so any pretense of politeness was superfluous. Li Xuan seemed to want to say something to Huo Yuanzhen, but with so many people present, it would be awkward—not to mention he wasn’t confident he could defeat Huo Yuanzhen with words alone. In Li Xuan’s mind, Huo Yuanzhen’s claims of being able to communicate with the Buddha were undoubtedly false. If he could really talk to the Buddha and perform miracles at will, why on earth would he go out and take out a loan? He could just have a Shaolin Temple drop from the sky. That’s why Li Xuancai was confident that building this Great Hall of the Buddha would definitely steal the spotlight from the Shaolin Temple. Yuanzhen’s arrival took him by surprise. After giving it some thought, he decided to report the matter to the abbot. Before he could return to report, the sound of drums and music grew louder once more, and a group of people emerged from the back. All eyes turned toward them. Huo Yuanzhen was no exception. Leading the procession were three people: the one in the middle and the one on the right were monks, while the one on the left appeared to be an official. The official on the left was around forty years old, with a fair complexion; he appeared to be a scholar. Guan Shanyue pointed and said to Huo Yuanzhen, “Senior Brother Abbot, this is Lu Xuezhang, the Prefect of Zhengzhou. He placed third in the imperial examinations a few years ago and later took up a post in Henan. He is quite talented and caught the eye of Tian Zhao. After Tian Zhao was enfeoffed as a Military Governor, he appointed this man as the Prefect of Zhengzhou.” Huo Yuanzhen nodded, then pointed at the two monks. “And these two?” Guan Shanyue replied, “The man on the right is Dharma King Likong, the abbot of Dharma King Temple. This old monk’s abilities are average; even in his seventies, he hasn’t reached the late stage of the Posthuman Realm, so his achievements are limited.” Realizing this old monk was the one who had written the invitation for him, Huo Yuanzhen scrutinized him closely. He wore a bright red monk’s robe, was slightly plump, and had a white beard below his forehead, though he could hardly be described as having a kind and benevolent expression. After taking a closer look, Huo Yuanzhen added, “Then I suppose the one in the middle must be Zen Master Lizhi of Daxiangguo Temple.” Guan Shanyue also took a look: “I don’t recognize this man either, but since he’s walking in the center, he must be the one with the qualifications. He does seem to possess some spiritual attainment.” Indeed, Zen Master Lizhi looked far more imposing than Dharma King Likong, much like the venerable monks one sees in TV dramas. Dharma King Likong and Lu Xuezhang walked on either side of Zen Master Lizhi, their demeanor respectful. Strictly speaking, Lu Xuezhang didn’t need to be overly deferential to Zen Master Lizhi. Although Zen Master Lizhi held a lofty status—so high that he didn’t even have to perform the full ceremonial bow when meeting the Emperor—Lu Xuezhang was a subordinate of Military Governor Guan Tianzhao, and as such, those under the Military Governor’s command were not typically very deferential toward the imperial court. The reason for his deference was likely that he, too, was a devout Buddhist and felt an instinctive respect for such a great master. Just as the group was about to approach the table and chairs on the raised platform, Li Kong and Li Xuan hurried over, whispered something in Li Kong’s ear, and then occasionally pointed at Huo Yuanzhen. Dharma King Likong also glanced frequently at Huo Yuanzhen, then exchanged a few words with Lu Xuezhang and Zen Master Lizhi before heading toward the raised platform—without coming over to cause trouble for Huo Yuanzhen. As the key figures took their seats, the drumming and music ceased. Under the gaze of the crowd, Dharma King Likong, the abbot of Dharma King Temple, rose to his feet. “Amitabha Buddha！” Dharma King Likong was very old, but his voice was surprisingly strong; standing on the high platform, he chanted the Buddha’s name in a resounding voice. “Esteemed benefactors, today marks the consecration ceremony of the Great Hall of the Buddha at our Dharma King Temple. By the grace of the Buddha, the Hall of Meritorious Deeds has been bestowed upon Dharma King Temple from the heavens. In the spirit of propagating the Dharma and saving all sentient beings, our temple has specially organized this temple fair so that all of you may witness this miraculous sight together and share in the merit.” A somewhat subdued round of applause rang out from below. Clearly, the influence of the Shaolin Temple had not yet faded; a significant portion of those present still doubted the authenticity of the Dharma King Temple’s miraculous phenomenon. Li Kong continued, “The divine miracle has descended, shaking the four quarters of the world. Yet this miracle is a gift from the Buddha and is by no means ordinary. Recently, rumors have been swirling in the Shaoshi Mountain,and some minor sects have presumptuously claimed to have received divine signs from the Buddha—a truly preposterous claim. To prevent this situation from spreading and to keep the people from being deceived, This Humble Monk prayed to the Buddha day and night, and only then did the divine sign descend. Today, we gather not only so that you may all share in the merit but also to serve as a warning: do not continue to be deceived by sects with ulterior motives.” As Dharma King Likong finished speaking, a member of the crowd below objected, shouting, “Abbot Likong, we are here at the Shaolin Temple, and we witnessed the miracle with our own eyes. One day there was no stupa, and the next day there was one. One night there was no mountain gate, and the next day it appeared. Moreover, the bell tower appeared—many of our fellow villagers saw it with their own eyes. It is absolutely true; how can you say it’s a lie?” Before Li Kong could reply, Li Xuan spoke up: “My friend, I presume you were sent here by that young monk Yijie from the Shaolin Temple,How absurd! That anyone would actually believe such a thing! That Yi Jie is nothing more than a greenhorn who knows nothing of the Dharma. The Shaolin Temple is barely scraping by—he has no choice but to go out and borrow money just to get by. To repay his debts, he’s come up with this scheme to deceive the common people. In ten thousand years, there’s never been a single report of a miracle from the Buddha—how could one possibly appear so easily in the mortal world? It’s utterly ridiculous!” Another member of the crowd grew indignant and shouted, “Then why do you claim that the Great Hall of the Buddha is a miracle? We haven’t seen any divine manifestation either—maybe you built it in secret.” Li Xuan’s attack on the Shaolin Temple sparked widespread discontent, for among the crowd were indeed those who had witnessed the temple’s divine miracles with their own eyes. In their hearts, the Shaolin Temple was already a sacred site—how could they allow it to be so easily slandered? That rhetorical question left Li Xuan speechless, his face flushing crimson with frustration. Below, Guan Shanyue watched with great satisfaction and said to Huo Yuanzhen, “Senior Brother Abbot, justice lies in the hearts of the people!” Huo Yuanzhen smiled as well. “What is true cannot be false, and what is false cannot be true. They have brought this upon themselves. After today, the Dharma King Temple will be a thing of the past.” At that moment, the elderly monk Li Zhi from Daxiangguo Temple stood up and addressed the crowd below: “Amitabha Buddha. I am Li Zhi of Daxiangguo Temple. I can vouch that the miracles of Dharma King Temple are absolutely genuine.” Having said just that, the elderly monk Lizhi sat back down, his eyes slightly closed, appearing as if he were in deep meditation. To ordinary people, the name “Daxiangguo Temple” remained quite mysterious and out of reach. Although many people believe the miracles at the Shaolin Temple are real, they don’t dare to say that the miracles at the Dharma King Temple are false—it’s possible that both are true. Many who had intended to argue back fell silent; after all, this Elder Monk Lizhi seemed to possess some spiritual attainment, so his words were likely trustworthy. Seeing that Elder Monk Lizhi had brought the situation under control with a single remark, Dharma King Likong was pleased, but for the time being, he dared not debate with the common people. Instead, he turned to Lixuan and said something. Li Xuan had been waiting for this moment. As soon as Li Kong finished speaking, he immediately stood up and addressed the crowd below: “Today, Abbot Yi Jie of the Shaolin Temple has also arrived at our temple. There are some matters this abbot does not fully understand, and I would like to consult Abbot Yi Jie in person.” Following Li Xuan’s gaze, the crowd Qi Qi and saw Huo Yuanzhen seated in the VIP section. “You can’t wait, can you?” Huo Yuanzhen sneered inwardly, but he still stood up and said to Li Xuan, “I wonder what Master Li Xuan would like to ask this Abbot. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have.” “You want to make an example of This Humble Monk? I’m afraid your blade won’t be that quick.”