Chapter 136: Meeting “An Old Friend” in a Distant Place
As the voice faded away, the dense fog quickly dispersed. The man with feathered robes and crest disappeared. The boat was still on the lake, while Gu Changqing and Zhen Hui were beside Meng Qi, still harmonizing Qi-circulation and meditating. The boatman at the back was still paddling quickly with the help of wind that was like a sharp arrow.
Looking at the glistening lake, Meng Qi felt it was a dream and yet not a dream. It seemed that the man with feathered robes and crest was only in his dream. That man disappeared when he woke up, but the yellow talisman in his hands and the complex patterns on it were reminding him that someone had just been there. The mysterious man neither disturbed Gu Changqing and Zhen Hui, nor made Meng Qi vigilant.
With such strength, he was absolutely not an ordinary person!
“Which organization is he from… ” Meng Qi frowned and quietly took the talisman in his arms. “It would be good to leave some leeway.”
Meng Qi roughly speculated that the mysterious organization was very likely the one behind Drunk Xie. After all, he had only contacted with this mysterious one. It was impossible for any others to keep an eye on Meng Qi.
“Is Qu Jiuniang also a member of this organization…” Meng Qi thought of the gorgeous landlady of the Immensity Sea Hotel No.1. “If she really has the strength of the Exterior and is also a member of this organization, then this organization is really powerful. It is really extravagant to let an expert of the Exterior be the boss of an inn.”
Contemplating for a moment, Meng Qi still had no clue, but had to restrain his mind. Then he continued to focus on meditation and restore his Energy.
By the middle of the night, Meng Qi had recovered some of his strength and was able to fight again. At that moment, the wind and rain stopped, and the moonlight broke through the clouds, which shed a clear light on the ground just like a dream.
“Here we are.” The boatman stopped the boat on the shore and looked at Meng Qi in a daze.
Meng Qi sadly took out the bag, which he got from Shen Zui, and poured out some of the precious stones, then he handed it to the boatman. “Is it enough?”
The horse bandits, for whom it was inconvenient to carry gold and silver, would always change some of it into precious stones, so various precious stones could be regarded as hard currency in the West Regions. There was an almost uniform valuation standard, but even still, it would always vary from place to place. Meng Qi had no time to care so much due to the urgent matter.
The quality of Shen Zui’s precious stones was better than Zhong Yashe’s. The boatman looked at and counted them carefully, then he returned two pieces to Meng Qi. “Too much.”
“He was quite honest… ” Meng Qi felt much better then. “Anyway, it was an unexpected fortune, whatever it would be.” He was sad before because his plan could not catch up with the changes and he failed to continue to squander Zhong Yashe’s wealth.
“Senior Brother, where are we going? Master is still in Bo Mi.” Zhen Hui looked at Meng Qi eagerly after the boatman had rowed away.
Meng Qi felt bothered and said, “Junior Brother, don’t worry, Master has excellent strength and good luck. Maybe he has beaten the Crying Elder away. We will hide ourselves in Tan Han for a few days to stay away from the trouble, and then we can inquire about his whereabouts.”
Since both sides had fought for about 10 days, then they were too close to call. Meng Qi believed it would remain unchanged for this moment. As the Shaolin reinforcements were coming, the Crying Elder would be smart enough to back off.
“Now the question is: how to send the Junior Brother back to the Master and not be caught… ” Meng Qi was very distressed.
Although Zhen Hui was dull, he was still clear-headed. He knew that Senior Brother had ventured to save him, which would certainly cause trouble. It would be dangerous if they did not hide in the coming days, so he nodded. “OK, let’s go to Tan Han.”
After saying that, he looked at Meng Qi with bright eyes. “Senior Brother, when did you learn the thunder summoning? Isn’t it a move of the Exterior?”
“My god, you come to realize that just now! ” Meng Qi was speechless. He was calm before because his reflected arc was too long.
Meng Qi restrained himself from the expression of “dislike” and said “kindly”, “I had a fortuitous encounter when I was chased.”
“Oh, a fortuitous encounter.” Zhen Hui’s eyes were brighter. In the stories he heard from others, one must have a fortuitous encounter when he traveled in Jianghu.
Gu Changqing by their side nodded thoughtfully. “It turned out that the Sky Thunder really arose from Little Meng, and that was almost part of the Exterior. I do not know what kind of fortuitous encounter it was.”
Noticing that they were really curious, Meng Qi could say nothing but giggle to distract them.
“Little Meng, why are you laughing?” Gu Changqing asked in doubt.
Meng Qi pointed to the front and said, “Having rescued the Junior Brother and come out of the besieging of horse bandits, and since then have gotten free—isn’t it worth laughing about?”
“Haha, it is really worth laughing about.” Gu Changqing was also delighted because he had consciously done something chivalric and made a chivalrous friend.
Meng Qi suddenly felt that something was wrong. “He said that in a tone like Cao Mengde. It would be bad if a team of horse bandits showed up all of a sudden to stop me!”
He shook his head to get rid of this bad thought and laughed. “We can’t stay here for too long, but must rush to Tan Han. Our name would be left in the Immensity Sea if we did not leave today!”
Gu Changqing also laughed. “I don’t know what will happen to us, but I know that you would be on the Ranking List of Young Masters and become famous if your experience was spread to the public.”
Meng Qi was able to defeat two masters who had consummated Nine Apertures no matter what move he used. This demonstrated Meng Qi’s formidable strength. So he would certainly be listed in the Ranking List of Young Masters due to his strength. Of course, that was another matter how he was ranked, whether it was his real strength or if it was possible for him to be defeated.
“I hope I would be given a good nickname… ” Meng Qi mused, then they rushed to the edge of the Oasis with Lightness Skill.
The strong sandy wind bit Meng Qi’s face. Although Meng Qi had opened the Eye Apertures and Ear Apertures, it was difficult for him to perceive the situation beyond 15 meters.
Less than half a day out of the Fish Sea, they suffered a real sandstorm on their way to Tan Han. The forces of the world were really horrible, and the sandy wind darkening the sky was so strong, as if it could bury people.
Meng Qi was surrounded by a dark gold glow, which could block the sandy wind. Thanks to his Golden Bell Shield, he was slightly affected by the sandstorms initially, but the water evaporation, dry throat, dyspnea, and other symptoms could not be offset by his current Golden Bell Shield. So he could do nothing but endure it.
Unlike him, Zhen Hui and Gu Changqing were even worse off, because they had neither Golden Bell Shield nor the experience of practicing in front of the fire swan. Therefore, they struggled forward with face cloths covering their faces.
“We have to find weathered rocks and hills to hide behind… ” Meng Qi said to Zhen Hui and Gu Changqing via Secret Voice-sending. He himself was okay, but they might be separated if the sandstorm turned more violent.
Zhen Hui quietly hid behind Meng Qi. He took Senior Brother as a shield to block the sandy wind, and suddenly said, “Senior Brother, there seems to be lights in front of us!”
“Lights?” Meng Qi was surprised, and he indeed saw a blurry black shadow behind the sandstorm, which seemed to be a house because the faint lights were revealed from it.
“There is not an Oasis here, how can a building exist?” Meng Qi was very puzzled, but he considered the current state of Zhen Hui and Gu Changqing and thought it was not a good way to keep going. Then he nodded. “We will go there to elude the sandy wind, but be careful.”
“Perhaps it is the building ruins of an Oasis from the past… ” Gu Changqing surmised.
In the Western Regions, due to the transfer of water sources and the invasion of sandy wind, some of the Oases were covered by sand and dust and abandoned by human beings. Gu Changqing had seen enough of that.
“Maybe he is right.” Meng Qi was not that worried and he fended against the wind and sand in the front to find a way out like a chariot.
Having broken through the strong sandy wind, Meng Qi was suddenly stunned because the building in front of him was not a relic, but a temple that looked very new. The temple was neither large nor magnificent, but an ordinary one built with common rocks of the Gobi Desert. It was gray and lacked brightness.
But at that very moment, there was an unimaginable peace of mind and body when he saw it in the vast sandstorm, and a bluish white lamp like a bean was inside.
“It will not cause death here, right?” Meng Qi’s senses were affected, so he just looked around roughly and then went to the temple and patted the door gently.
“Amitabha, the sandstorm is violent and you three don’t bother.” A clear voice came out of the temple.
Meng Qi pushed the temple door open and the first thing he saw was a statue of Siddhartha Gautama with a kind and pitying face. There was a mark of Nirvana on it and a bluish-white lamp swaying in front of its body, which illuminated the temple.
Then he saw a young monk sitting cross-legged in front of the Buddharupa. The monk, at the age of around 20, was not that good-featured but left a refreshed impression. That was what Meng Qi really wanted to be disguised as but he failed.
“Amitabha, thank you for giving us shelter.” Meng Qi put his palms together.
Though he had not been shaved for over 10 days and had a shallow layer of black hair, he still performed the Buddhism etiquette subconsciously.
The young monk smiled plainly. “Junior Brother, don’t bother. I built a Buddhist temple in the Gobi Desert just to provide a sheltered place for those who get lost. Pure land is everywhere, not only in the bliss world but also in the bottom of the heart, beside every devout monk.”
“Senior Brother, this temple was built by you?” Meng Qi was stunned.
If they did not know others’ Dharma names, Buddhists could call each other maester directly as well as Senior Brother or Junior Brother.
With his right hand, the young monk beckoned Meng Qi and the other two people to sit on the ground, then smiled and said, “I have been here for more than six months and built the temple bare-handed.”
“It is really a meritorious act,” Zhen Hui said with admiration.
Meng Qi frowned slightly. “Is he an ascetic monk?”
The young monk still revealed a plain smile. “On the day when I went downhill, I made a great vow in front of the Buddha to build 49 Buddhist temples in the barren areas of the Gobi Desert in the West Regions. These temples would serve as shelters for passersby.”
He paused here and said, “Maybe for the sake of merits, my Dharma name is Hong Neng. How can I call you two Junior Brothers and this donor?”
“I am Zhen Ding, he is my Junior Brother Zhen Hui and this is Gu Changqing from Gu Castle.” Meng Qi introduced them one by one. “I do not know which sect you are from? Senior Brother?”
Hong Neng was about to speak, but he suddenly smiled. “Evil spirits are not forbidden here. Please come in, donors.”
“Evil spirits?” Meng Qi and Gu Changqing were stunned and turned around toward the door. “Is there a monster?”
Zhen Hui was quite excited with his eyes brimming with radiating vigor.
The door was opened and a man with a package came in. He was slim with a thin face and wrinkled his brows slightly, showing indifference to the others.
“Senior Brother Zhen Guan!” Zhen Hui blurted out in surprise.
Meng Qi recognized this man as well. He was Zhen Guan, who had been expelled from the temple because he attacked Meng Qi due to his insanity. He went out from the secret passage of the back mountain in Shaolin. Master said he had turned into a half-monster!