The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Any monk would want such a Dharmic treasure!

Back when he read Journey to the West in his childhood, he had said to Zen Master One Finger, “If I ever get such a kasaya, I’ll definitely make it known. I’ll definitely show it off!”

Yet, two days later, he reached the story of a black bear demon disguised as an abbot and his theft of the kasaya. It gave Fangzheng such a fright that he chanted the scriptures for several days, afraid that demons would come to him.

But now, with Fangzheng reaching adulthood, he was no longer afraid of demons. He had the System and naturally set his sight on getting a kasaya once again. Yet he didn’t buy or make one, and one of his reasons for that was his hope for this day⁠—the day he could get this kasaya from the System.

Now with his wish fulfilled, how could he not be happy? As for his jumping, it was only because of the limited height of the room that he wasn’t jumping even higher; otherwise, who knew how high he could jump…

More importantly, he had drawn a replica before, but it was green. Unless there wasn’t anyone around, he would rather die than be caught wearing it! Now, having drawn another one, it was impossible for the System to give him an identical one based on its character. Fangzheng didn’t have any demands other than it not being green!

Hence, Fangzheng reined in his feelings and asked softly, “System, you already gave me a kasaya before. Why are you giving me another one? Is your kasaya factory going bankrupt? Is it in a hurry to sell it off?”

“Who said this is a replica?”

Fangzheng was taken aback. Not a replica? Could it be? At this thought, Fangzheng’s heart skipped a beat as he asked with a tremble, “It’s authentic?”

“Yup!”

Fangzheng laughed out loud, almost to the point of giving the System a deep kiss! He exclaimed inwardly. “A windfall!”

The System continued. “However, this kasaya isー”

“It doesn’t matter what kasaya it is as long as it’s authentic! Bring it on!” Fangzheng was truly anxious.

The System chuckled as a blob of yellow light instantly appeared in front of Fangzheng. He grabbed it, shattering the yellow light, and found a red kasaya in hand. Spreading it apart, he was dumbfounded.

This was indeed a red kasaya, but where were the so-called pearls, cornelian, and emeralds? There wasn’t a single one. Instead, there were a few patches! If one had to come up with a point that matched the embroidered kasaya, it was that it was clean.

The kasaya was very tattered, the worst Fangzheng had ever seen. Just the patches alone numbered about nine.

Fangzheng’s face darkened when he saw the tattered kasaya. He gulped and said, “System Bro, tell me, if Tripiṭaka wore this tattered kasaya to meet the emperor and Buddha, how did he not get beaten to death by them?”

The System did not respond.

Fangzheng asked a few times without receiving a response. He knew that the System was being shameless again, not giving him a chance to get a refund.

However, Fangzheng became indifferent about it. Draping on the tattered embroidered kasaya, he stood in front of the mirror, pricked up his brows, and turned around before muttering to himself. “It’s okay. It fits quite well. This Penniless Monk now knows why Tripiṭaka encountered more demons than bandits. Anyone could tell he was poor with nothing to rob him of. They knew if they took action, what they earned from the entire ordeal might not even be worth it.”

Fangzheng put the kasaya away and went to bed. He slowly fell asleep and in his dream, he found himself wearing an embroidered kasaya with all its seals unlocked standing in front of everyone⁠—for his wedding. At some point in time, Buddha suddenly appeared and struck down with his palm.

“Wait!” Fangzheng yelled as he sat up in a fright. He looked out the window and realized that it was already bright.

After tidying up the area, he got Ong and headed for the venue. They weren’t too close to the venue, so they needed to take a taxi.

However, Fangzheng realized something was amiss while enroute. The surrounding cars appeared extremely luxurious!

Cars like Mercedes, BMW, Audi didn’t even appear. The cars that drove past them were all brands like Bentley or Rolls Royce…

There were also monks riding horses.

And there were even ones who came by elephant!

As for Fangzheng’s car…

“Driver, can we get past this?” Ong asked.

“Sir, how? There’s a grand event happening ahead. Look, the police are sealing off the roads. The VIPs have to go first before it’s our turn. We can only wait,” the driver said rather helplessly.

Ong said, “What grand event is it? Are these fellows performing acrobatics?”

“You might not know, but there’s an annual religious summit for all of Southeast Asia being held right now. Even our respected king will attend. The ones passing by aren’t putting on a show but representatives of the various religions. You can say what you want here, but be careful outside or you might end up getting beaten, or even locked up.” The driver clearly wasn’t a religious person. However, he had quite a good heart as he warned them out of goodwill.

Ong instantly found it unacceptable. “Driver, we have a master here as well. We are here to participate in the summit. Tell the police to let us through.”

The driver was stunned. Looking at Fangzheng’s young age and the boorish Ong, he shook his head like a rattle. “Sir, can you not joke? You’re here to join the summit? You don’t even look like someone of religion. This Venerable One does, but he’s too young. He should still be an acolyte, right? It’s nice wanting to join, but if you barge in without the qualifications, you will only end up in prison.”

“Who’s barging in? This is China’s number one monk, Mt. One Finger’s One Finger Monastery’s abbot, Fangzheng!” Ong was quite pissed.

However, the driver shook his head. “It’s useless. Do you have an invitation letter?”

Ong fell speechless as he subconsciously looked at Fangzheng as though he was saying: “Why don’t you show your invitation letter?”

Fangzheng smiled. “The road will eventually open up. It doesn’t matter when we arrive. Just calm down.”

Ong didn’t know what Fangzheng was thinking, but seeing how carefree Fangzheng was as though he wasn’t moved by anything, he pressed his palms together and said in admiration, “As you wish, Master.”

Fangzheng may have sounded casual, but he was crying inwardly. Why was he so rash back then? Why didn’t he get rid of the letter himself? How depressing!

The driver couldn’t understand Chinese and, after the two exchanged a few words, realized that Ong wasn’t urging him any further. He then broke out into a hum as he slowly waited.

However, Fangzheng was somewhat puzzled, so he asked, “Patron, these people are all from overseas, so why are they using such luxurious modes of transportation? Doesn’t it not coincide with religious teachings?”

The driver shook his head. “Master, that’s because you aren’t aware. This is an international summit. By wearing expensive kasayas and taking luxurious cars, it’s a way to represent one’s monastery. Those who can sit in luxurious cars definitely receive plenty of incense offerings and have spare cash. On the contrary, having to walk or having to come like us is a symbol of lacking incense offerings. This is a major summit, no matter how detached one is from society, it’s still a competition between monasteries and countries. No one wishes to be simple, so they try all means to be ostentatious, afraid that others won’t be aware of their prowess.”

Fangzheng was speechless. He never expected the world to change this drastically.

Ong whispered. “Master, why don’t we rent a better car? Make you look better?”

Fangzheng thought nothing of it. “Buddhism is about your inner self, not about flaunting your wealth. There’s no need for that.”