As Wang Lan had speculated, Hanming Temple indeed saw a drastic increase in visitors today. To limit the number of tourists, the traffic police even implented traffic control, allowing visitors to enter in batches, layer by layer.
Hanming Temple is located on the hillside of the West Mountain. After years of tourist developnt, the path up the mountain has been very well constructed with stairs that are ten ters wide and neatly paved. Nevertheless, climbing up to the 300-ter-high hillside still requires extrely good stamina.
There was a rest area every few dozen ters where tourists could enter to enjoy themselves and purchase drinks and food, among other things. Of course, the beverages and food in these areas typically had one feature in common—they were expensive.
For those unwilling to climb the stairs, there was also the option to take a sightseeing cable car. At a cost of eight hundred Jade Coins per person, one could ride from the foot of the mountain all the way to the entrance of Hanming Temple.
Wang Lan, Jiang Xinyu, and Jiang Xinyu’s mother, Huang Jinqi, followed the crowd and slowly made their way to the mountaintop. For two Star Sea realm Star Martial Warriors, such a distance didn’t pose any difficulty. And with Jiang Xinyu and Jiang Xinchen taking turns supporting her, Huang Jinqi didn’t find it troubleso either.
Huang Jinqi had watched Wang Lan grow up since he was young and treated him like her own nephew. Huang Jinqi had never known that Wang Lan’s mother was the famous Southern Fla Emperor; now that she did, she couldn’t help but feel a wave of emotions.
The Wang and Jiang families got to know each other through a landlord-tenant relationship. Back when Jiang Xinyu’s father was starting his business, he rented office space from Wang Ling. Sotis, when Wang Ling had to go on missions, he would entrust Wang Lan to Huang Jinqi’s care. Huang Jinqi had taken a liking to Wang Lan as soon as she first took care of him.
Back then, Wang Lan was extrely clever and also very cute. With age, people tend to reminisce about the past. Along the way, Huang Jinqi kept talking about Wang Lan and Jiang Xinyu’s childhood affairs, not hiding her fondness for the pair in her words.
Before they knew it, the group reached the mountaintop. There were many tourists on the peak, and monks from Hanming Temple were selling incense at the entrance. Seeing these monks with their hair not entirely shaven, Wang Lan couldn’t help but mutter under his breath that they were quite unprofessional.
At this mont, inside the Mahavira Hall, a middle-aged man wearing sunglasses walked in with a devout expression, followed by two bodyguards carrying briefcases.
"Every year on this day, I co here to offer incense. Most of the masters of Hanming Temple know by now," the middle-aged man seed to be talking to himself, but also as if addressing the two underlings behind him.
"Lord Han has co again..." A kind-faced middle-aged monk ca over with his hands clasped in prayer.
"Master Qingming, your words are ambiguous. I can’t tell if that’s a welco or not," Lord Han replied.
"How could that be, Lord Han? For soone as devout as you, who wholeheartedly seeks Buddha, how could I not welco you?"
With a smile spreading across his face, Han Cheng snapped his fingers lightly. The two underlings behind him opened their briefcases, dumping piles of money onto the donation box. Seeing the mountain of cash, all the tourists in the Mahavira Hall let out a collective gasp of amazent.
Even the monks greeting guests at the temple were montarily stunned as they watched Han Cheng. Han Cheng ca every year and had always been very generous, so the people at Hanming Temple rembered him well. But his past generosity had only been to the tune of ten, twenty, or thirty thousand; never before had he dumped two million straight into the donation box.
"Master Qingming, is my sincerity sufficient this ti?" asked Han Cheng.
"Amitabha. When seeking gods and worshiping Buddha, a sincere heart is what makes it spiritual. The amount offered, large or small, is all the sa to Buddha, for all beings are equal," the master intoned.
"Hahaha... my na itself contains the word ’sincerity,’ and I am indeed sincere. Today I bring a true heart to seek resolution and fate. I wonder if Buddha could grant a chance," Han Cheng continued.
"Does Lord Han have doubts in his heart?"
"I have perplexities."
"In that case, please co this way, Lord Han. Master Dechan is well-versed in the Buddhist teachings and has profound cultivation. Perhaps he could help resolve your doubts."
Han Cheng was led by Qingming to the back courtyard and then into an old monk’s ditation room. The old monk was sitting upright on a ditation cushion, quietly fingering his Buddha Beads with drooping eyelids. Han Cheng entered, shut the door behind him, and then sat down on a cushion.
"Master, the Buddha says that all beings are born into this world to suffer. In the world, there are the eight sufferings: birth, aging, sickness, death, separation from loved ones, unfulfilled desires, encounters with the hated, and the five skandhas burning brightly! If Buddha is compassionate and has descended the teachings to universally save sentient beings with fate from the eight sufferings, then am I a sentient being with fate?"
"Lord Han, today you’ve co to this ditation room and sit across from , which ans you have fate with . You ca to Hanming Temple today and offered sincere worship, which ans you have fate with Buddha. Naturally, you are a sentient being with fate," the monk responded.
"If I am a being with fate, then why must I endure illnesses, death, separation, unfulfilled desires, and encounters with hatred? Each year I donate so much money for Buddha; why doesn’t Buddha save ?"
"Past life causes lead to present life effects. The causes and effects of past lives are determined in those past lives; the cultivation and good deeds in this life will affect the next. Your sincere cultivation and virtuous deeds in this life will lead to rebirth in the Pure Land, and in the next life, you will be free from the suffering of Samsara. Cultivation is about the heart, virtue, and sincerity; it has nothing to do with money."
"Past life causes? Present life effects? What were the causes of my previous life that now bring such consequences? Does the master know the causes from my previous life?"
"Amitabha," the master simply intoned.
"Would I be able to know?"
The master gently closed his eyes and murmured once more, "Amitabha."
"Even if there are causes from a past life and effects in this one, shouldn’t you tell what wrongs I committed in my past life? Just by stating ’past life causes,’ I have to suffer in this life? What does this an?" The middle-aged man’s expression grew fierce as he seemingly asked a question that pierced deep into the soul.
"The causes and effects of a past life are not ant to be known in the present one. As each person is reborn, they begin anew, a blank slate. One may choose good or evil. If one knew the sins of a forr life, one might repeat them in this life. Hence the reason for each life being a unique journey. To learn about the past and present, one needs to awaken to their true nature, understand Zen, and cultivate one’s heart. You have a destiny with Buddha and a heart inclined toward Buddha. Often recite the scriptures, understand the teachings of Buddha, and there will naturally co a ti of enlightennt. When you, Lord Han, truly attain complete enlightennt, that will be the mont you achieve Buddhahood."
"Can I still attain Buddhahood?"
"If one aspires to Buddha, everyone can beco a Buddha."
"But Buddha will not save ?"
"Buddha saves those who are destined, those who save themselves, and those who are enlightened. If you are not enlightened, what use is there in saving you? If you are enlightened, what need is there for Buddha?"
"So that’s how it is... I understand," Han Cheng finally showed a look of relief on his face and nodded slowly as he spoke.
"Well said, well said. Congratulations, benefactor."
"There’s no need for congratulations. It’s too late," Han Cheng shook his head and sighed.
"Too late? Why?"
"I’ve been diagnosed with a terminal illness that not even a Life Potion can cure. I also discovered that my wife has been cheating on all along, and the son I’ve raised for over a decade isn’t my own flesh and blood. I was born into poverty and ca up from humble beginnings, scraped together a fortune worth several hundred million over thirty years. Yet now, I find I have nothing at all. Master, don’t you think the heavens have punished too heavily?"
"Amitabha. Benefactor, why not consider the possibility that your connection with Buddha has arrived? Wealth is empty, affection is empty, descendants are empty, ancestors are empty; having nothing is a true reflection of ’all is emptiness,’ isn’t it?"
"But I don’t want emptiness. I don’t want to have worked hard all my life only to not have the ti to enjoy my wealth. I don’t want the woman I loved for over a decade to have been deceiving . I don’t want the son I poured my heart into to turn out to be soone else’s seed. I can’t accept this; I’m not content. Master, can you dissolve the obsession in my heart?"
"Only you can dissolve the obsessions in your own heart. Only by learning to let go can you achieve transcendence. If you don’t let go, you’ll only be dragged into an endless abyss by your obsessions."
"No, you can save . You can lead to salvation." Han Cheng suddenly stood up, his complexion visibly darkening. Not only did his face darken, but his eyes also beca like an abyss filled with thick fog.
"Benefactor, you..."
"Master, your understanding of Buddhism is profound. Surely you have reached the stage of sacrificing your body to feed tigers or cutting off your flesh to feed eagles." As he spoke, he grabbed Master Dechan by the throat, lifting him. Columns of black mist emanated from his eyes; a trail of black smoke and vapor overflowed from Master Dechan’s eyes and was absorbed into Han Cheng’s own.
CRASH— The door to the ditation chamber was violently flung open as two monks rushed into the room, just in ti to see Han Cheng slowly releasing Master Dechan, a look of smug satisfaction on his face.
"Respected Uncle Master! You’ve committed murder—"
"You’re here? Perfect." In an instant, Han Cheng appeared in front of the two monks, his hands clasping their throats.
Outside Hanming Temple, the tourists were so crowded they couldn’t move; all of them seed like fixed components on a conveyor belt, swaying along with the crowd.
Wang Lan and the other three were part of the throng, being pushed to the donation box, buying a few sticks of incense, and then following the flow to offer incense and pray at the Mahavira Hall. Following Wang Lan were several college students who seed to have co for fun during their holiday break with classmates.
"This must be what they call ’the trend of the tis.’ It seems that in the future, we’re bound to enter the bustling world of fa and fortune. Although I always knew that life often compels us to move involuntarily, I never truly understood it until today. Being squeezed like this makes it clear: once you plunge into the tide of humanity, not going with the flow isn’t an option. Whether to go or stay is already beyond our control, so how could we even consider paddling upstream?"
"Why should the rat swim against the current? Isn’t it better to go with the trend?"
"It looks like the rat hasn’t been battered by society yet; he doesn’t know that simply surviving in the big city is already not easy."
Suddenly, commotion erupted from the inner sanctum of Hanming Temple. A dozen terrified monks ran out, screaming in horror.
"Call the police, soone’s been murdered! Call the cops—"
But with the noise and commotion, the monks’ screams were barely audible. Among the crowd, the expressions of Wang Lan and Jiang Xinyu changed. Wang Lan whispered to Jiang Xinyu, "You protect Auntie and Xincheng and prevent a stampede; I’ll go check it out."
Wang Lan wasn’t worried about encountering any formidable enemies, but with so many tourists around, any disturbance could lead to fatalities in a stampede.
"Damn, why is there no signal on my phone?"
"Too many people, the signal is jamd. Master, who’s been killed? Who did it?"
"Everyone run, it’s a homicidal maniac! He’s already killed dozens of people!"
Inside Mahavira Hall, it was chaos. In a flash, Wang Lan transford into fluttering butterflies, crossing hundreds of ters instantly to arrive at the side door of the Mahavira Hall, his figure mysteriously appearing.
"Eh?" A startled exclamation arose as a monk looking around for help happened to see Wang Lan erge from amongst the butterflies and quickly called out, "Benefactor, are you a Star Martial Warrior?"
Wang Lan nodded. "Yes. What exactly happened? Who’s been killed?"
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