Qingyuan Mountain, Fuzhou
Qingyuan Mountain was a small mountain covered with trees. There was also a water source at the foot of the source at the foot of the mountain, and the area was nice, so it was a good place for people to live.
One of the residences of this mountain was Baichuan Court, which was where Sigu Sect’s Fobi Baishi lived. It was a place that people in the world admired and regarded as a sacred place. The other residence on the mountain was Pudu Temple.
This temple was no different from an ordinary temple. There was a monk there called Wu, and he was the abbot of Pudu Temple. He was an old monk with kind eyes and the calmest and most content spirit. He was the abbot whom Monk Puhui had spoken of to Li Lianhua.
Abbot Wu had lived in seclusion in Qingyuan Mountain for more than ten years. It was said that he was once a powerful figure, but after taking charge of Pudu Temple, he lived a simple life. He seldom went out and only collected the relics three feet outside his zen room every day. He would walk and practice martial arts. But he suddenly fell seriously ill, and everyone in the temple was worried.
The stupa cast a simple, solemn, and peaceful atmosphere in the temple under the sunlight. The shadow of the stupa reflected the quietness in the room, where one could hear the sounds of the scriptures and monks doing their morning prayers.
Li Lianhua stared at Abbot Wu who was smiling and sitting upright on the bed. Li Lianhua exhaled after a moment, “How does the saying go again? Ah yes, monks do not lie…”
Abbot Wu smiled and said, “If I hadn’t said I was sick, would you have come here?”
Li Lianhua sighed, “So you aren’t sick?”
Abbot Wu shook his head, “I am as healthy as ever.”
Li Lianhua patted his hip, “Since you aren’t sick, I will leave.” He turned around and strode away. He really had no intention of staying at all.
“Noble Master Li!” Abbot Wu shouted from behind. Li Lianhua stepped out of the door without looking back.
“Li Lianhua!” Abbot Wu was helpless and shouted. Li Lianhua stopped, turned around and smiled at him, and walked back politely. He patted the dust from the chair and sat down, “What is it?”
Abbot Wu stood up and smiled slightly, “Noble Master Li, I have no intention of asking you about the outcome of the battle. It’s just that you have been missing for ten years, and there are hundreds of people who are worried and have regrets about you. Are you really determined to die without seeing your old friends?”
Li Lianhua smiled, “What does it matter whether I see them or not?”
Abbot Wu said warmly, “Seeing them will relieve the knot in the heart and prolong the life; not seeing them…” He paused, “No seeing them…”
Li Lianhua chuckled, “Not seeing them will shorten my life?”
Abbot Wu Li said sincerely, “Noble Master Li, I met you by chance in Pingshan Town that day. I do have some medical skills, and I learned that you were injured in your three main meridians. If we don’t go and find your old friends and work together to find a cure, I’m afraid…”
Li Lianhua asked, “What is it?”
Abbot Wu thought for a long time and said slowly, “I’m afraid it will be difficult for you to survive these next two years.”
He raised his head and looked at Li Lianhua, “Noble Master Li, I don’t know why you have not seen your old friends, but I dare to guess… is it because of Biqiu? You know, Biqiu came here from Baichuan Court ten years ago. His pain is still beyond imagination. Why don’t you let your mind be at ease and forgive him?”
Li Lianhua smiled and said slowly, “Old monk, you love to guess riddles. But….your guess was wrong…”
At this moment, a young monk-in-training served them two cups of tea. Abbot Wu smiled slightly and changed the subject, “Ding Yuan, please invite Master Pushen’s nephew to come to my meditation room.”
The young monk Ding Yuan said respectfully, “Master Pushen is meditating in his room, I don’t dare to disturb him.”
The abbot nodded and the young monk stepped back.
“Master Pushen’s nephew grew up in Pudu Temple since he was a child. He is the only disciple in this temple who has mastered swordsmanship. It has been his long-cherished wish to compete with the Xiangyi Sword,” Abbot Wu said.
Li Lianhua groaned, “Li Xiangyi has been dead for ten years.”
Abbot Wu asked, “Does that mean the Xiangyi Sword Technique is also dead?”
Li Lianhua coughed, “That is Li Xiangyi’s fault. When he was alive, he forgot to write a Xiangyi Sword instruction manual…”
Abbot Wu smiled bitterly and shook his head.
Suddenly there was a loud bang outside the window, and something fell. Li Lianhua and Abbot Wu looked up and saw a five or six-foot-tall branch in the backyard of Pudu Temple had broken from the treetop, hitting the roof and falling to the ground, crushing two monks’ rooms.
The two monks ran outside and looked up at the big tree with horror on their faces. They didn’t understand why the tree fell. Soon, a large number of monks gathered around the tree branch. Abbot Wu and Li Lianhua also rushed over.
After taking a look, it seemed that the branch had been eaten by insects and then was blown down by the wind.
Although this was a strange thing, it was not a big deal. Abbot Wu asked the monks to disperse, and they all went to read scriptures and sweep the floor. Li Lianhua walked around the temple a few times with Abbot Wu.
Abbot Wu smiled and said that the all-vegetarian food at Pudu Temple was very good.
“The old master of the kitchen makes the most amazing vegetarian dish with pinecones and fish. I wonder if Noble Master Li is interested in trying it?”
Li Lianhua was about to agree when suddenly a young monk reported that there was smoke coming from the woodshed and that there was a lot of firewood missing. There might have been a smoldering fire inside that had been burning for a while. Without the abbot to accompany him, Li Lianhua had to say goodbye and leave the temple. What a pity that was.
When the monks saw that the dying abbot’s health had returned to normal so quickly, they couldn’t help but praise Li Lianhua in their hearts as a true miracle doctor of the world, believing in his extremely good medical skills and well-deserved reputation.
Li Lianhua walked out of the gate of Pudu Temple. When he turned back, he saw a few wisps of black smoke rising from the stupa of the temple. He sighed, then yawned and walked towards his Lotus House, which had been left just beside the temple. Monk Puhui had spent more than ten days using four oxen to go and invite him from Xueyu Town to Qingyuan Mountain.
Li Lianhua touched the newly fixed board and was extremely satisfied with Monk Puhui’s carefulness. Then he stepped comfortably into his freshly tidied home and looked around inside, not knowing what he was looking for.
Just as Li Lianhua stepped into the Lotus House and closed the door, a galloping horse wooshed past on the path of Qingyuan Mountain. That is, past the door of the Lotus House. However, the person on the horse did not know what the house was or who it belonged to, riding right past it and heading straight for Baichuan Courtyard.
Obviously, the person on the horse was a disciple of Baichuan Academy. If he and Li Lianhua had seen one another, he would have been shocked.
The man who rode past the door was Guo Fu, who was from Cailian Manor, which Li Lianhua had visited more than ten days ago.
YOU ARE READING
Mysterious Lotus Casebook
ФентезіTen years ago, Li Xiang Yi, the master of the Sigu Sect, dominated with his superior swordsmanship and was a symbol of light in the martial arts world. However, he suddenly disappeared along with Di Fei Sheng, the leader of the Jinyuan Alliance, aft...
