Chapter 89: Origin
Chapter 89: Chapter 89: Origin
When Hodar returned from the study, he was holding the exquisite, gilt-edged booklet.
Liu the Monk gave a slight nod of his chin, and Hodar handed the booklet directly to Xie Yuan.
Xie Yuan took it and saw that it had a white cover with gold trim and was made of high-quality paper. The cover depicted the Eighteen Arhats. It was the very same Cultivation Technique manual he had seen before.
Lying in bed, Liu the Monk began to speak slowly.
"Actually, all of my skills came from this very booklet."
He seemed to be recalling distant memories. He closed his eyes slightly and continued in a soft voice,
"Years ago, I was just a young beggar, scrounging for food everywhere just to stay alive.
"I figured I’d just keep drifting along like that until I starved to death one day. But then... things changed.
"One day, after I’d begged for some food, I hid in a dilapidated temple to eat. But before I could even take a bite, several people burst in and began a life-and-death struggle. I had stumbled upon a deadly ambush.
"It was five Demon Cultists against one Great Monk. I thought he’d be overwhelmed, but the Great Monk took on all five of them and actually managed to send all five cultists to see the Buddha.
"But he was too grievously injured to even get up. Seeing this, I worked up the courage to check on him and found he was down to his last breath.
"I hesitated for a moment, but then I remembered all those stories about people who saved a master and were taught a Divine Skill in return. An idea sparked in my mind, so I helped stop his bleeding and fed him my own food.
"The Great Monk’s skills were profound, so he managed to pull through. After he recovered a little, he took me back to his temple."
Xie Yuan asked in a low voice,
"Was it Prajna Temple?"
Liu the Monk froze for a second, then let out a hoarse laugh, which tugged at his wounds and made him grimace in pain.
"Don’t listen to Cao Shan’s nonsense... Well, it’s not really his nonsense. I was the one who told him to say that.
"It was Golden River Temple in Yanbei, a cultivation Sect of moderate size. But all Zen sects in the world trace their origins to Prajna, so it’s not a huge stretch to say so."
Xie Yuan was stunned for a moment, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
He looked down at the booklet and shook his head slightly.
’So it wasn’t.’
He had been curious for so long, and now the man himself had finally put the matter to rest.
Liu the Monk continued his story.
"I thought he was going to take me as his disciple, and my heart was full of anticipation, even if it meant becoming a monk. In fact, I would have been thrilled to become a monk. They were all so well-fed. For me back then, just being able to eat my fill was the greatest thing imaginable.
"But instead, the Great Monk said he could see I was too calculating and unsuited for the Buddhist path, so he made me a handyman... Damn it, that made me so mad."
Liu the Monk smiled faintly. Although he said he was angry, recounting it now, he just sounded nostalgic.
As his personal disciples, Hodar and Lu Hong had of course heard these stories before, but never in such rich detail. They pricked up their ears and listened quietly.
Having just had a brush with death, Liu the Monk seemed to feel a desire to look back on his life, and so he continued rambling on.
"I worked as a handyman at Golden River Temple for three years. At least I never went hungry. But I always held a bit of a grudge, thinking, ’I saved the Great Monk’s life, and yet he has me doing menial chores every day.’
"After three years, the Great Monk called me to him again. He said that after observing me for three years, he’d confirmed that I truly lacked the aptitude for enlightenment and had no affinity with Buddhism, so he told me to leave the mountain.
"It turned out he had been testing me all along. A pity I was neither stupid enough nor clever enough. I missed my chance to become a Great Monk, hehe. Thinking back on it later, I felt quite regretful. That’s why I often presented myself as a monk who had returned to secular life, and eventually, my name just became Liu the Monk."
He paused here for a long time before continuing.
"But before I left, he said he still owed me for saving his life, so he taught me a version of the Iron Cloth Shirt technique that circulates in the martial world, one he had slightly improved himself—the very one our Iron Cloth School uses.
"I trained on the mountain for another five years. During that time, the Great Monk gave me meticulous guidance and provided me with good food, drink, and medicine. I finally started to see some results.
"Then, the Great Monk gave me this booklet and said it would completely settle the karmic debt between us. He said this Iron Cloth Shirt technique had a touch of Buddhist philosophy to it, and that to advance in the later stages, I would need to visualize the contents of this booklet. If I had the insight, I might even comprehend a Divine Power.
"But what insight do I have? After leaving Jinshan Temple, my progress has been slow for decades, and I’ve never been able to break through to the Third Training. I’ve worn this booklet out from reading it, but I still can’t make heads or tails of it. Since you want it, Xie Yuan, go ahead and take a look. Maybe this thing is better suited for you..."
Xie Yuan held the booklet, rubbing it slowly as he nodded.
’So the Iron Cloth School’s techniques have such an origin,’ he thought. ’No wonder it was said to have a "hidden Buddhist charm."’
He had finally figured out something he’d long been curious about. Although it wasn’t from a place with a grand reputation like Prajna Temple, this booklet might still prove to be useful.
He cupped his fists.
"I’ll take it back to study. I will certainly take good care of it and return it after some time."
Liu the Monk waved it off dismissively.
"No hurry. Hodar and the others are blockheads anyway. They’ve looked at it many times and can’t understand it."
Xie Yuan thought of something else and asked,
"Master Liu, I have a friend who helped me a great deal. I was wondering if I could pay some silver on his behalf to teach him the introductory Iron Cloth Shirt..."
Liu the Monk waved his hands repeatedly.
"Xie Yuan, there’s no need to say such things. Why would you need to pay any silver? With the kindness you’ve shown our Iron Cloth School, you can teach it to whomever you wish. Hmm, let’s just do it this way: from now on, you’re the school’s new instructional master. When you have time, come by and give some pointers, help us spread our branches and leaves. Of course, if you’re busy, don’t worry about it. Your own affairs are more important."
He was exhausted after speaking. Seeing this, the others had Lu Hong stay and care for him while they left the bedroom.
Xie Yuan had suddenly become an instructional master for the Iron Cloth School. Although it was just an honorary position, it made the seniority between them a little strange.
He saw Hodar and the others looking at him with odd expressions, so he cleared his throat and said,
"Senior Brother Huo, let’s not get caught up in titles... Ahem, I probably won’t be coming back here often. If you need anything, just send word to Yunzhao and give me a shout."
Xie Yuan politely declined their offer to stay for a grand feast. Such occasions weren’t really his style. He’d rather use the time to go back and study the booklet.
Just before leaving Panlong Town, Xie Yuan had a sudden idea. He made a special trip to stroll past the entrances of the Black Tiger Fist Hall and the Divine Weapon Hall. He saw disciples coming and going, all looking miserable. The smell of medicine even wafted out from inside, a sign that the two hall masters were being treated for their injuries.
When the disciples at the entrance saw Xie Yuan, they were both shocked and terrified.
"Xie Yuan, what... what else do you want?"
"Nothing. Just taking a walk."
Seeing their reaction, Xie Yuan smiled faintly. He knew the situation in Panlong Town was settled and he no longer needed to worry about it. Given his connection with the Iron Cloth School, what he had done was more than enough. He spurred his horse and rode back to Yunzhao.
Back in his spacious room at the Escort Agency.
"Why is it all pictures? There isn’t a single word..."
Xie Yuan was puzzled after looking through the booklet once.
The booklet was filled with images of Arhats in various poses, seemingly hinting at the pathways for channeling energy and executing techniques.
But with no written explanations and no master to guide him, what could anyone possibly comprehend just by looking at pictures?
’Back then, that monk probably didn’t give him a complete manual. It was just a collection of images to test one’s insight.’
’If Liu the Monk, with his ordinary aptitude, was supposed to understand this, I’ll be damned.’
’That Great Monk... talking about settling karmic debt. What a lack of sincerity. He just wanted to ease his own conscience. It’s all rather hypocritical.’
However, it was perhaps fitting that this incomplete karmic debt had ultimately fallen to him.
Xie Yuan wasn’t worried that he couldn’t understand it. He simply followed the first pose, standing on one leg, crossing the other, putting his hands together, and squatting slightly, mimicking the image of a cross-legged Arhat.
Gradually, he seemed to feel something. He looked up, a smile spreading across his face.