The monk gently waved his palm-leaf fan. “This humble monk comes from ‘where I came from.’ You promised to help fetch water, yet I’ve waited so long without seeing your return. This humble monk is parched with thirst, so I had to take the liberty of searching for you. Young benefactor, you’ve kept me waiting quite a while.”
With each wave of his fan, all the oil lamps in the hall flickered in unison. The vast underground hall alternated between brightness and darkness. Simultaneously, an invisible heat seemed to rapidly spread through the air, making it stiflingly hot in an instant.
Teng Yuyi was secretly alarmed. Looking up at Lin Chengyou, she noticed large beads of sweat had already formed on his temples.
Lin Chengyou nodded and smiled, “So that’s how it is. She’s young and inexperienced, prone to carelessness. Venerable monk, with your enlightened mind, why bother with her? If you want water, that’s simple enough – I’ll go fetch it for you.”
But the monk shook his head and sighed, “What a sin, what a sin. As they say, the fire of anxiety burns in one’s heart. I’ve been thirsty for so long that a mere cup of water won’t extinguish it now. Only multiple rounds of relief will quench this flame.”
As he spoke, the heat in the underground hall intensified further. The air burned slightly when drawn into their nostrils.
Teng Yuyi’s heart pounded with fear. Nai Zhong’s magical powers were far more terrifying than she had imagined. In an instant, this place had transformed into what felt like one of the levels of the Asura hell. The monk spoke of his thirst, but he was making them experience a hundredfold worse thirst. If they couldn’t find a way to leave quickly, she and Lin Chengyou would soon be roasted into human jerky.
Lin Chengyou’s eyelid twitched. He suddenly smiled and said, “The venerable monk’s words remind me of something. I hear that earlier in the peach grove, your riddle was solved immediately. In this maze-like underground hall, even with your abilities, you might not find the exit quickly. Spending too long alone in the underground palace can make one anxious. Since we’ve happened to meet, why don’t I guide you out? There’s no water down here, but plenty above. Once we’re up there, we can surely find a way to quench your troublesome thirst.”
As he spoke, he walked straight toward the monk.
Teng Yuyi grew increasingly anxious. This monk was full of tricks – the exit certainly wouldn’t be in its original location. If they followed the original route, they would surely be trapped here to die. Then she realized that Lin Chengyou couldn’t possibly be unaware of this. His sudden provocation of the monk was clearly a risky strategy. After all, this monk called himself “Hidden Mechanism” – perhaps this approach might lead to an unexpected escape.
Though Lin Chengyou had decided to take this risk, he worried Teng Yuyi might not understand his intention. As he walked, he deliberately lowered his gaze to look at her. Teng Yuyi was already looking at him. She seemed unable to bear the stifling heat, her cheeks flushed red as roses, but her eyes were bright with understanding – she had grasped his intent.
His heart eased slightly. If it were Wu Dao, or Jue Sheng and Qi Zhi, he would need to exchange many meaningful glances. No, in such a dangerous situation, even if he strained his eyes trying to signal them, they probably wouldn’t understand immediately.
He crossed the great hall toward the monk. When the demon classics listed various evil spirits and demons, they often detailed their weaknesses. For instance, with corpse demons, the classics noted their weak point was their fangs.
But regarding Nai Zhong, the classics only mentioned that before falling into demonic ways, he had been a Dharma-protecting Heavenly King of the Asura realm. As for any weaknesses, the classics made no detailed mention. The only thing he knew now was that this being loved to engage in battles of wit and riddles.
Though he had decided to gamble on this, he wasn’t particularly confident.
As they drew closer to the monk, he maintained his smile but said nothing.
Lin Chengyou kept his expression neutral, though sweat continued to pour down his temples.
Just then, there was movement in the corner. Lin Chengyou and Teng Yuyi looked over and were surprised to find a small novice monk had suddenly appeared in the northwest corner, silently sweeping the floor with a broom.
Following this, the northeast, southwest, and southeast corners also gained a novice monk, all holding brooms and silently sweeping. The four sweeping monks looked identical in appearance and age, and even swept with nearly the same rhythm.
Thus the previously silent underground chamber suddenly filled with the “swish-swish” sound of sweeping.
Looking carefully, they noticed characters written on the back of each novice’s gray robe, seemingly their Dharma names to distinguish between the four.
The monk amiably waved his fan: “One benefactor has already broken their word, how do I know this benefactor won’t also leave and not return? This humble monk is exhausted and parched, truly too weary to move. Why not have my fourth disciple accompany you? With someone accompanying, I need not worry about the benefactor not bringing water for this monk.”
The tension in Teng Yuyi’s mind eased – Lin Chengyou had won his gamble, for here was the riddle! This monk thought highly of himself; when provoked by Lin Chengyou, he indeed couldn’t resist posing a puzzle. A riddle meant hope for escape. She could almost feel Lin Chengyou’s heart pounding violently in his chest.
The fourth disciple – the monk’s fourth disciple – nervously surveyed the four corners of the hall. The four novices were identical in age and appearance, with no way to tell who was eldest or youngest.
Lin Chengyou smiled, “Very well. The venerable monk has specified clearly – not the first disciple, nor the second, nor the third, but the fourth disciple. Once we find your fourth disciple, we can take him up to fetch water.”
The monk scratched the back of his head with his fan, saying cheerfully, “Amitabha, this humble monk never speaks falsehoods.”
Lin Chengyou looked around. The novices swept with wooden expressions – questioning them would be useless. The hall grew increasingly hot; his chest felt like it was on fire. If even he with his cultivation was struggling, Teng Yuyi couldn’t last much longer. Though the monk had posed his riddle, they had little time.
His mind raced as he set Teng Yuyi down, whispering, “Go check what characters are written on the backs of the two monks behind us.”
Teng Yuyi, her mind clouded by the heat waves, quickly nodded and ran first to the southwest corner, then to check the novice in the southeast corner.
The Soul-Binding Zhi, affected by the evil energy in the hall, had already transformed into hard iron chains, jingling constantly as Teng Yuyi ran.
Teng Yuyi quickly saw that one monk’s back was written with “Ding Wu,” while the other read “Ding Hui.”
The two Lin Chengyou had seen were “Ding Ji” and “Ding Jie.”
When Teng Yuyi returned to Lin Chengyou’s side and told him, both furrowed their brows. On the surface, these four Dharma names seemed to follow no clear pattern.
Teng Yuyi pondered for a moment, then glanced at the monk called “Ding Hui” and whispered to Lin Chengyou: “The Platform Sutra says: ‘Abstaining from all evil is called [Jie], practicing all good is called [Hui].’ The one in the northeast corner is called Ding Jie, and the one in the southeast is Ding Hui. Two disciples each representing a corner – by order, wouldn’t the fourth be—”
Lin Chengyou looked in that direction. This reasoning made some sense. Besides this passage, the Platform Sutra had another that said “Wu Jie Ding Hui, encouraging people of great capacity and wisdom.” Wu Jie Ding Hui encompassed three of the disciples’ names. If guessing “Ding Hui,” the order would match again.
But he vaguely felt something wasn’t quite right.
Though Teng Yuyi had made her guess, she wasn’t entirely confident. Surrounded by rolling waves of heat, maintaining a clear mind was already difficult. Her breath burned, her skin burned, and even her hair seemed about to ignite. If they endured much longer, their internal organs might be roasted to charcoal.
Lin Chengyou also felt as if he were in purgatory, the burning sensation impossible to relieve. His clothes were soaked through, every movement producing more sweat. His heart felt like it was being fried in oil; if not for his remaining rationality, he would have stripped off his outer garments. Even so, he couldn’t control himself – while staring at the four novices trying to solve the riddle, he unconsciously loosened the white inner collar of his round-necked robe.
Teng Yuyi felt like she was being roasted on a spit. Seeing this, she quickly turned away and secretly loosened her collar. Lin Chengyou caught this in his peripheral vision and realized his earlier impropriety, but survival took priority over embarrassment for either of them. He was about to turn away when a flash of inspiration struck. Teng Yuyi also quickly turned back, her red lips parted – she had thought of something.
The robes! They exchanged a knowing look.
The novices’ Dharma names were written on their gray robes – Nai Zhong couldn’t have done this merely to help them distinguish between the four.
Ding Wu, Ding Hui, Ding Ji, Ding Jie – add the robes, and the answer becomes clear.
“Come on, prepare to leave,” Lin Chengyou turned his back.
Understanding the riddle had been solved, Teng Yuyi knew Lin Chengyou was ready to escape. Without a word, she ran behind him, rising on tiptoe to wrap her arms around his shoulders. Lin Chengyou lifted her onto his back and smiled at the novice in the northwest corner: “Acharya Ding Ji, please come with us to fetch water.”
Nai Zhong smiled from the side: “This humble monk’s riddle must be both solved and explained. If the benefactor cannot explain the reasoning, how do I know if you truly solved the riddle or merely guessed correctly?”
Lin Chengyou had already leaped toward the other side of the great hall, laughing: “Isn’t the answer in your four disciples’ Dharma names? Just looking at their names shows the venerable monk is well-versed in the Platform Sutra. There’s a story in it: When Master Huineng received the robe and bowl from the Fifth Patriarch, many tried to steal them on his journey back to the mountain. Finally, a monk named Ming caught up with him, intending violence, but was enlightened by Huineng. Deeply awakened, before parting Ming asked Huineng: ‘Where shall I go from here?’ Huineng replied: ‘Stop when you meet [Yuan].'”
Fearing she might affect Lin Chengyou’s lightness skill, Teng Yuyi continued: “The novice in the northwest corner is named [Ding Ji] – [Ji] on gray [Yi] forms [Yuan]. ‘Stop when you meet [Yuan]’ – isn’t Ding Ji your fourth disciple?”
Nai Zhong’s fan stopped waving.
By this time, Lin Chengyou had already reached the true exit and was swiftly climbing the stairs.
Teng Yuyi felt the hot wind rushing past her ears, her heart about to leap out – they had finally escaped, but she dared not look back. Suddenly feeling a cold gust of yin energy from behind, she gripped her sword hilt and said: “He’s coming after us.”
Lin Chengyou couldn’t spare a hand at the moment, so he called out: “Use your sword! This old fellow drank my bath water – how could he just idle about?”
Teng Yuyi had already thrust her sword backward, hearing a “yi-wu” sound as if stabbing into something like a sack. Looking back, she saw it was one of the novices from the hall.
The novice had delicate features but an expressionless face that looked eerily sinister. He pursued them steadily, saying: “Benefactor, please wait – this humble monk will accompany you to fetch water.”
Though the strike from Xiao Ya’s sword didn’t immediately turn him to ash, he fell heavily back into the dark underground palace.
Teng Yuyi secretly sighed in relief as Lin Chengyou carried her up the stairs. When they landed, they found themselves in the peach grove of the Yuzhen Daoist Nunnery.
Lin Chengyou had just set Teng Yuyi down when he suddenly seemed to sense something. He produced a talisman from his sleeve, holding it between two fingers, and swung his palm toward the novice emerging from the underground passage.
Just then, clear Sanskrit chanting suddenly rang out from nearby, accompanied by the “tok-tok-tok” of wooden fish drums – a large group was approaching the grove.
The novice let out a sharp cry, transformed into a cloud of turbid smoke, and instantly vanished back into the underground palace.
Still shaken, Teng Yuyi turned to look and saw dozens of monks entering the grove in formation.
Some monks held wooden fish drums while others turned prayer beads. They walked with light steps, chanting in unison. Their Sanskrit voices rang out powerful and far-reaching, carried by the spring breeze through the peach grove.
The elderly monk leading them had the bearing of a crane, extraordinary presence, eyes like lightning, and snow-white long eyebrows.
Seeing the purple kasaya the monk wore, Teng Yuyi was startled. Only one monk in the current dynasty had been granted a purple kasaya by the Emperor – this person must be—
Sure enough, she heard Lin Chengyou exclaim: “Abbot Yuan Jue.”
As soon as the monks entered the peach grove, they spread out in formation to deal with the evil being below. Yuan Jue turned his gaze to Lin Chengyou, looking him up and down several times as if ensuring he was unharmed, before turning his attention to Teng Yuyi.
Just yesterday, Teng Yuyi had heard her father say Abbot Yuan Jue would return soon. She hadn’t expected to meet this eminent figure today – likely someone had urgently summoned him because of the great evil at the Yuzhen Daoist Nunnery.
Though she had spent several days fasting at the Da Yin Temple with the Empress in her previous life, she had never met Abbot Yuan Jue face to face. Now, meeting his gaze, her heart trembled slightly. Those eyes were unfathomable as if they could see into one’s very soul.
Lin Chengyou noticed something amiss in Teng Yuyi’s expression but assumed she was still frightened by Nai Zhong. He said softly, “Let’s go.”
Teng Yuyi came to her senses and followed Lin Chengyou to stand before Abbot Yuan Jue.
Lin Chengyou bowed deeply: “This junior pays respects to the Abbot.”
Yuan Jue’s eyes immediately crinkled with a smile as he helped Lin Chengyou up with both hands: “Good child, please rise.”
Teng Yuyi also performed a respectful formal curtsy: “Greetings to Abbot Yuan Jue.”
Yuan Jue’s face was kind as he smiled and said: “Benefactor, no need for such a ceremony.”