Chapter 698 - 272: Donor Xiao, You Must Have an Affinity with the Buddha
Chapter 698: Chapter 272: Donor Xiao, You Must Have an Affinity with the Buddha
"Huh, what’s going on here?"
Curious, Xiao Chen followed them into the courtyard.
The courtyard was even larger than he had imagined.
Other than a row of green bamboo planted along the walls, there was no other landscaping or architecture on either side.
Sitting cross-legged on the stone slabs were Loose Cultivators of varying Cultivation levels—at least a thousand of them!
And on the far left, a young Arhat in a Moon White Monk’s Robe was holding a Wooden Fish, chanting scriptures as he walked and tapped it.
"The Buddha told Nan: All sentient beings..."
"From a beginningless past, have been subject to a multitude of inversions, their karmic seeds naturally clumping together..."
His voice wasn’t loud; you could even say he was mumbling to himself.
If someone were to pass by outside the gate, they would only hear the crisp sound of the Wooden Fish, not the words of the scripture.
Yet the sound of his chanting fell clearly into the ears of every Cultivator present.
Even Xiao Chen, standing at the entrance, heard it perfectly, without a single word or note out of place.
If he were the only one here, that would be nothing special.
But considering there were over a thousand people present, achieving this alone represented an utterly terrifying level of control over one’s True Essence.
"Hey, fellow cultivator, standing at the door is no good. Hurry up and sit over here."
Suddenly, a very low reminder came from his right.
Xiao Chen turned to look and saw a thin old man with goat-like eyebrows and a Fu Manchu mustache, sitting in the last row, waving at him.
He gestured with his eyes for Xiao Chen to come and sit in the empty spot next to him.
"Hey, you’re not sitting right. You have to do it like us."
Seeing Xiao Chen sit down cross-legged on the spot, the thin old man whispered another reminder, "Your left foot has to go on your right thigh, and your right foot on your left thigh."
"The other way around is fine too. In any case, your feet can’t touch the ground."
"They call this the ’full lotus’ posture or something. Only people who do it this way can get a Spirit Fruit at the end."
"Just yesterday, some young fellow didn’t know the rules and ended up with nothing."
’Huh?’
As Xiao Chen adjusted his posture, he whispered curiously, "A Spirit Fruit? What kind of Spirit Fruit?"
He actually already had a guess, but he needed to confirm it.
"Heh, what’s there to be secretive about?"
The thin old man smiled, subconsciously stroking his mustache. "Who here isn’t present just to get a Spirit Fruit? There’s no shame in admitting it."
"You don’t really think people are here to listen to them preach Buddhist Scripture, do you?"
"Hmph. Who has that kind of time to waste?"
Hearing this, Xiao Chen observed his surroundings again.
Sure enough, he saw that only the Cultivators in the first two rows were listening to the scripture with rapt attention.
Many of the Cultivators in the back looked like they were listening intently, but their minds had long since wandered.
’So that’s why there are so many Loose Cultivators here in a Buddhist Sect, listening to scriptures.’
’Turns out the real reason is to get a Spirit Fruit.’
"Hey, fellow cultivator, when that Long-eared Bhikkhu comes over later, let’s vouch for each other."
The thin old man waited patiently for the young Arhat to turn around and walk back to the left before speaking again. "Just say we both got here at 3:00 PM."
’Well now, so that’s what this is about.’
’No wonder he pulled me over for no good reason.’
But he shook his head slightly. "I’d like to help you, but I don’t think that’ll work. They’re watching over there."
The thin old man’s brows shot up. "Ah, you’re just too honest. With so many Cultivators here, how could they possibly remember everyone clearly?"
He actually had a point.
There were over a thousand Cultivators here, all of whom seemed to be strangers attracted by the Spirit Fruit. It really wouldn’t be easy to tell them apart.
But that only applied to ordinary cultivators.
In the Compassion Sea, however, Xiao Chen might not be a household name, but he was definitely not a nobody.
It was normal for this thin old man not to recognize him. After all, Loose Cultivators didn’t have intelligence networks and couldn’t get timely and accurate information.
But the major factions had surely circulated his portrait already.
They might have even seen a Memory Stone recording of his arena battles.
In fact, Xiao Chen’s guess was correct. The moment he stepped through the gate, the two Arhats in the courtyard noticed him immediately.
It was just that one was busy preaching the Buddhist Scripture, while the other was hidden in the back hall maintaining the Sound Amplification Array.
They simply didn’t have a moment to deal with him.
"Please continue listening to the scripture, fellow cultivator. I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be taking my leave."
Xiao Chen smiled and, to the thin old man’s astonished gaze, stood up and left directly.
He had only come in out of curiosity.
He had no time to waste putting on an act just to get a not-so-valuable Spirit Fruit.
On a normal day, Xiao Chen wouldn’t have minded staying to learn more about the Buddhist Sect.
But with a new Relic about to open, he had other things to prepare for first.
"Amitabha Buddha, Donor Xiao, why the rush to leave?"
At the entrance, however, an old monk in a bright red kasaya had appeared at some point. "The Buddha saves those with a karmic connection."
"This old monk sees that Donor Xiao must have a karmic connection with my Buddha."
The man smiled and gestured invitingly. "Why not come to the back hall for a chat? See through the sea of suffering and clarify your true heart."
’What a "karmic connection"!’
Xiao Chen waved his hand, refusing decisively. "No thanks, I don’t have time."
Hearing this answer, a look of sorrow appeared on the old monk’s face. "Alas, the mortal world clouds the mind. Donor Xiao, you have been blinded by inner demons. Your bright heart is already covered in dust."
"If you do not awaken in time and cultivate yourself, I fear you will sink into the sea of suffering and be trapped in the cycle of reincarnation in the future."
He spoke with such sincerity and earnestness, as if it were all true.
But the problem was, what on earth was he talking about?
Xiao Chen had no idea what he was saying.