Chapter 896: Entering Meditation
Today’s snow wasn’t particularly heavy; there were two neat rows of footprints on the snow, extending all the way to the backyard.
These two sets of footprints should belong to a man and a woman. One large, one small; one deep, one shallow.
Lin Tian paid more attention to the larger footprints, which seemed a bit hollow, varying in weight and not particularly noteworthy.
As for the smaller footprints, they were clearly a woman’s, uniform in distance and depth, as if measured with a ruler.
The Five Pure Ones Temple is known for having many experts, that’s without a doubt. But how could there be a female master?
With curiosity, Lin Tian followed the path pointed out by the young monk, tracing the two rows of footprints to the entrance of a courtyard with tall cornices and spacious tiles.
Standing there, the world was no longer quiet, because nearby, there was the sound of a wooden fish, accompanied by the chanting of monks reciting Buddhist sutras.
Even Yan Xinrou, who had been talkative along the way, fell silent at this moment, feeling the icy snow world, absorbing the tranquility brought by the Buddhist scriptures and the wooden fish. Her heart calmed down as well.
"This should be it, let’s go in and have a look."
Saying this, Lin Tian stepped forward again, walking into the courtyard.
The ground still had the previous two rows of footprints, evidently those two people had also arrived here not long ago.
The group walked into the courtyard, which was quite spacious, with plum blossom stakes and wooden dummies in the corner, clearly a place for daily martial arts practice.
The entire courtyard was empty, with not a soul around. Understandably, in such cold weather, one would either be nestled inside reading scriptures or busy in the main hall, who would be out in the courtyard?
Suddenly, a person appeared in front of Lin Tian.
A monk wearing a thick coat, with a shaved head and a very slim figure.
He emerged from one of the rooms in the courtyard, with ordinary features and an unhurried pace.
However, Lin Tian could sense that this monk was exceptional.
His speed seemed slow, but in the blink of an eye, he was right in front, almost like the legendary art of shrinking space.
Even the drifting snowflakes seemed to deliberately circumvent him, taking detours.
"Dear patrons, this is a meditation room. If you wish to pay respects to Buddha, please go to the front courtyard."
Yan Xinrou quickly said, "Master, we are here looking for someone, do you know if Little Master Qiyi is here?"
"Is there something you need?"
Lin Tian explained their purpose again, and then the monk pointed to a building, saying, "Senior brother is in that courtyard, whether you can find him depends on you."
"Huh?" Yan Xinrou asked in surprise, "Isn’t he there?"
"I don’t know either. You can go check yourselves." After saying this, the monk moved aside, clearing a path.
"Thank you."
Lin Tian thanked him and led the group toward that building.
This building was obviously where the monks did their duties and recited scriptures.
Not finding Qiyi on the first and second floors, Lin Tian directly went to the third floor.
The third floor was filled with bookshelves lined with scriptures, resembling a large library.
But there were very few people, only an old monk guarding the entrance.
"Excuse me, is Qiyi inside?" Lin Tian asked.
"Find out for yourselves." The reply to Lin Tian consisted of only those three words, sparing in speech.
Unable to do anything else, Lin Tian and the others began exploring inside.
The bookshelves were not labeled like in a library, wandering inside felt like being in a maze.
Indeed, after a short while, not only did they fail to find anyone, but the group even got lost.
To the left were bookshelves, to the right were bookshelves, and the front and back were still bookshelves.
"Follow me." After saying this, Lin Tian proceeded straight in one direction.
After making eight consecutive turns, the group did not see Qiyi but came across a wall with a wooden door embedded in it.
Lin Tian pushed open the wooden door. Outside the door was a balcony, where a small figure sat cross-legged in the snow, his hands placed in front of his chest, gazing ahead like a snow sculpture.
Additionally, a man and a woman stood beside the small figure, like two bodyguards.
"Why is it them?" Mei Ruyan grumbled in dissatisfaction.
The two people at the front were Zhou Chenghang and Wang Sijing, who they had seen in front of the main hall earlier.
Seeing these two, their previously joyful mood instantly turned gloomy.
Wang Sijing and Zhou Chenghang heard the sound behind them and turned around.
Seeing Lin Tian, both frowned, as if there was a deep-seated hatred. Clearly, their mood was also sour.
"How did you find this place?" Wang Sijing asked.
It should be noted that they managed to find this place through connections. Wandering inside on one’s own would only get one lost until giving up, at which point an old monk would guide them out.
Finding this place on their own was simply absurd.
Lin Tian shrugged, smiling: "Is it difficult? Just a few turns, it was easy to find."
Of course, Lin Tian wouldn’t tell them that it was because he had X-ray vision. Finding a person was a breeze.
Wang Sijing sneered at this; this person was utterly shameless, although she didn’t know how he found his way in, it must have been through nefarious means.
With a slight smile on his face, Lin Tian asked, "How did you guys find it?"
"We found it ourselves!" Zhou Chenghang replied without a second thought.
If they admitted someone led them, wouldn’t they be weakening themselves?
Wang Sijing glared at this fool furiously, almost about to explode with anger.
To say so was clearly a lie, especially lying in front of Qiyi.
Lying in front of this child, reputed to have the foremost wisdom in Buddhism, was clearly unwise.
Seeing Zhou Chenghang’s flustered and flushed expression, Lin Tian laughed.
This guy was quite handsome, just good-looking but useless. Was his brain filled with straw?
"Idiot," Yan Xinrou mercilessly cursed.
At this point, Zhou Chenghang also realized his mistake, his face somewhat embarrassed.
But admitting he’s inferior to Lin Tian would be a painful thing.
Lin Tian couldn’t be bothered with the two and headed directly toward Qiyi with Yan Xinrou and the others.
Liou Qingcheng walked up to Qiyi’s side and saw that he was wearing a thin autumn robe, the fabric very light, with his bottom directly on the snow.
He sat there, with his clear eyes open, staring ahead; even hearing the sounds behind him, he remained completely still.
"Isn’t he frozen?" Mei Ruyan was also stunned, as even an adult couldn’t endure such cold.
Lin Tian closely observed Qiyi’s complexion; it was rosy and his breathing was calm, even longer than that of a normal person.
This was definitely not someone frozen, but rather... someone who had entered a meditative state!