The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

Ying Zi agreed. “Indeed, although the drumming makes me feel frustrated, the bell’s gong immediately wipes all my frustrations away. It’s like… It’s like…”

“Just like when you’re constipated! The drumming is like the muscle relaxant that lets it all spew out, while the bell’s gong is like the toilet paper you wipe your ass with. It’s obviously gonna be comfortable to have a nice sh*t and then wipe yourself clean,” interjected Zhang Zi.

“Screech!” A jarring screech was heard as the brakes were engaged. The van came to a sudden halt to the side of the road.

“Uncle Da, are you crazy? Doing an emergency stop like that can kill, you know!” exclaimed Zhang Zi.

“If you can die from a bit of emergency braking, what’s the point of having you? Get out!” shouted Uncle Da.

“Ah… Ah? Get out? We haven’t reached our destination yet, right?” Zhang Zi asked.

“Congratulations, you succeeded in disgusting me. Although what you said was distasteful, that’s not a problem, but it was just too disgusting! Get out!” said Uncle Da as he pricked up his brows.

“No, it was just an analogy!” cried out an aggrieved Zhang Zi.

“Hehe, Zhang Zi, you should know Uncle Da’s temperament well. His word is final. If you are asked to get out, get out. Haha!” Ying Zi giggled loudly.

Zhang Zi looked at Uncle Da like an aggrieved kitten, but all he received was a determined look. Finally, he obediently alighted.

The van drove off the next moment as Zhang Zi stood on the road bitterly. “Who did I offend…” Following that, Zhang Zi began running after the van.

“Uncle Da, are you going to let him run?” Ying Zi felt her heart pain for Zhang Zi.

Uncle Da scoffed. “A young man like him should run a little. It’s good for his body.”

“Uncle Da, are we entering the mountains today?” asked Ying Zi.

“Entering the mountains? Not right now.” Uncle Da looked up in the direction of the bell gongs and drumming. “This bell’s gong is deep and majestic. It has an ancient but simple sense of the vicissitudes of time to it. It’s quite obvious that it’s something with some age to it. And those drumming sounds are oppressive and mighty. The drum is also not something ordinary. Let’s see what these two treasures are before entering the mountains.”

“Uncle Da, don’t tell me… We are tomb raiders, not robbers who philander,” said Ying Zi.

“Bullsh*t tomb raiders. Is there a difference robbing from the dead or the living? We are still robbers! Since we are robbers, it will depend on whether the treasure is worth it or not,” said Uncle Da in disagreement.

Ying Zi was shocked. Although what he said was quite scoundrelly, it did seem to be true.

After Fangzheng finished drumming, he began his usual daily routine. He studied the scriptures and swept the temple hall and the fallen leaves in the yard. He ate his meal before opening the monastery’s door to welcome the visitors for the day.

Presently, One Finger Monastery was no longer the unknown One Finger Monastery from before. With the effects of the Frost Bamboo and the continuous effects of the Yongle Bell, as well as the people who came to pray for children all successfully having children, more and more people came to One Finger Monastery. Besides, there were all sorts of rumors on the Internet such as his crossing the river on a reed and it being the film location of City-Toppling Beauty .

Of course, another reason why there were more people was because there were adorable creatures apart from Fangzheng!

Among the three animals, Lone Wolf was tall and majestic, but he was harmless. Taking a selfie with him was even better than taking a picture with a tiger at the zoo.

Squirrel was cute. He would even press his palms together when seeing people. Occasionally, he would gift visitors with some of his pine nuts, attracting countless fans.

Although Monkey really looked mature and cool headed while dressing like a human, he was mainly just thought of as a monkey who was extremely good at mimicking. In any case, his every action resembled a human’s, so he was extremely interesting to them.

As for Red Boy?

The little guy who still had a tiny lock of hair on his head used to wear a dudou and run around with his butt naked. But now he was even more adorable wearing a monk outfit. However, his temper wasn’t that nice. He would glare at people for no apparent reason. He often shouted at people he would stew them like a little demon king… However no one really believed him to be a demon king. They only treated him as a cute child. He ended with even more fans as a result.

As for Fangzheng, who was the abbot, he was a radiant young man. He wore clean white robes and when he stood there, he made for quite a gorgeous sight. He was eye candy for both men and women. This was made even more apparent by the cleanliness that stemmed right from the bottom of his heart. He was like an invigorating spring wind.

Furthermore One Finger Monastery did not have many rules, nor were there any unnecessary expenditures that deviated from the orthodox norm. Everything was peaceful and tranquil, separate from the world. There was no superficial sense of a monastery which only cared about money. People who entered it felt truly relaxed.

As such, apart from the people who came frequently to pray to Buddha, many brought their children up to the mountain as though it was a zoo and to see a hunk…

Anyways, One Finger Monastery was turning more lively with time.

With regards to this phenomenon, Fangzheng stood under the bodhi tree every day, watching the visitors. When he was greeted, he would return the greeting. He would also activate his Heavenly Eye to see if anyone had a calamity awaiting them, so that he could save them to gather some merit. Unfortunately, people with true danger looming were just too few. At the very least, Fangzheng had not met any in a long time. At most, there were people with some minor difficulties.

At that moment, there were an additional four people outside the monastery. Fangzheng pricked up his brows. Having seen so many visitors, he was no longer the rookie from before. He had a keen eye. The four people—three men and a woman—had shimmering eyes, but they had quite a banal air to them. Clearly, they were not good people. And such people seldom had any religious beliefs, nor would they believe in anything for that matter.

However Fangzheng had no intention to probe them. He glanced at them from afar before continuing to read his Buddhist scriptures.

“Uncle Da, look at that huge bell! It doesn’t look like an ancient item. It looks really new,” whispered Ying Zi.

Uncle Da looked up at the Yongle Bell and nodded slightly. “Regardless if it’s an antique or not, such a huge bell is probably the biggest in the world. When there’s a bit of age to it, this item will be a priceless treasure.”

Ying Zi and Zhang Zi drew a cold gasp of air.

At that moment, Mute took out a pair of binoculars to look at the Yongle Bell. Following that, he made a few grunting sounds.

Ying Zi and Zhang Zi were at a loss. They did not know what Mute was saying.

Uncle Da said, “He’s saying that the workmanship of the bell is extremely good and very intricate. Even if it’s something built in this day and age, its price would still be astoundingly high. It would be more valuable than anything we got so far!”

“What!?” Zhang Zi and Ying Zi were shocked. They would find it acceptable if such an item had appeared in a thousand-year-old ruin or a huge monastery. It would even be suitable for it to be at a national museum or at an emperor’s tomb. But how could such a valuable item appear in such a poor and rural area on this tiny temple on a tiny mountain? It was unbelievable!

“Gulp.” Zhang Zi said greedily, “Uncle Da, shall we…”

“No hurry. Let’s go up and take a look.” With that said, Uncle Da walked towards the Yongle Bell. Just as he was about to reach the bell tower, there was a blur in front of him. A silver wolf had appeared in front of the empty bell tower’s door. The wolf yawned as he looked at them in boredom. He lay by the door and showed no intention to leave.