Wandering Gods of Day and Night
Chapter 207 - 164 Sheep Monk_2

Chapter 207: Chapter 164 Sheep Monk_2

"These sheep can mimic humans sitting cross-legged in meditation, and they rub their heads against the Buddha Tower as if they possess a soul."

At this point, De Hai pressed his palms together and said, "These sheep have gained awareness and a soul, making them no different from humans. The temple has specially allocated rooms for the sheep monks to rest."

"Where are the resting quarters for the sheep monks? I’d like to take a look," Zhou Xuan asked.

"Please, follow me."

De Hai led the three of them along a relatively smooth dirt path. They walked southeast from the Pagoda Forest and stopped in front of a large meditation hall.

"De Zhong, junior brother, open the door to the sheep room."

A monk dressed in a kasaya obeyed De Hai’s instructions and opened the wooden door of the hall.

As soon as the door opened, Zhou Xuan saw a large room filled with sheep—at least a hundred of them.

Most of the sheep had their heads lowered, their faces obscured, but a few caught Zhou Xuan’s attention, and he was able to clearly see their "features."

These weren’t sheep—they were people!

When Zhou Xuan tried to step forward for a closer look, De Hai stopped him and said, "Mr. Zhou, the sheep monks do not wish to be disturbed. They are monks too; they need to focus on reciting scriptures."

Zhou Xuan heeded the advice and did not proceed further. At that moment, he spotted another shepherd in the distance, leading two old sheep toward the meditation hall. Upon noticing people present in the hall, the shepherd halted and held back the sheep, not daring to move forward.

"If the sheep monks truly have a soul, why do they need to be led by humans?"

Zhou Xuan pointed toward the shepherd and the two sheep beside him.

"Those aren’t sheep monks; they’re just the local shepherd."

"Those two sheep look familiar," Zhou Xuan said as he scrutinized the two sheep beside the shepherd and "saw" their features.

They weren’t two old sheep—they were two elderly people!

These two individuals were people Zhou Xuan knew well—an elderly couple he had conversed with recently.

"Every sheep looks quite similar; perhaps Mr. Zhou mistook them." De Hai chuckled awkwardly.

"Master De Hai is right; I did mistake them."

Zhou Xuan turned away from the sheep and pointed toward a tower in the southwest. He asked De Hai, "Master, what tower is that?"

"That tower is called the True Buddha Tower. It was in that tower that the Great Buddha, once seen in Qiye Temple, attained enlightenment."

"Could you take me there for a tour?"

"I’m afraid that’s not convenient."

De Hai smiled and said, "Ever since the Great Buddha disappeared, that tower has become forbidden land in our temple. Not only are visitors from outside prohibited, even I cannot enter it. Only twice a year, on Buddha Festival days, is the tower opened for cleaning and maintenance. On those days, only eight temple stewards and craftsmen are allowed inside."

"In that case, we’ve pretty much explored Qiye Temple. I’ll head over to Tianwang Temple to burn some incense and then leave," Zhou Xuan suggested, feeling he’d investigated enough and had no time to continue wandering with De Hai.

"Allow me to escort our honored guests out of the temple."

De Hai’s mood brightened noticeably. He accompanied Zhou Xuan’s group of three all the way to the junction connecting Tianwang Temple and the Mountain Gate Road. Watching as they descended the mountain path, he finally broke into a smile.

"Ah, every time I fear these savvy gentlemen wandering around the temple. Fortunately, they’re gone now."

As he observed their backs fading into the distance, particularly Zhou Xuan’s, his unease grew.

De Hai couldn’t shake the feeling that the young man had uncovered something, though the man had shown no overt sign of it.

"I have the distinct impression Mr. Zhou is even harder to deal with than Si Ming," De Hai muttered with gritted teeth, his hatred for Zhou Xuan gnawing at him.

...

After descending the Mountain Gate Road and a few more steps, Zhou Xuan, Si Ming, and Yu Er exited the temple.

Outside the temple, Si Ming asked Zhou Xuan if he’d figured out why Qiye Temple’s Buddha energy felt so sinister.

Zhou Xuan deflected the question: "Master Si, let me ask you—can you make decisions regarding matters at Qiye Temple?"

"I’m Qiye Temple’s God of Wealth, of course I can," Si Ming replied.

"Are you certain?"

"Certainly." Si Ming reaffirmed.

"Let me tell you, Qiye Temple has problems from top to bottom. The entire temple is like a festering wound—it’s utterly rotten."

Zhou Xuan continued, "Given the situation, would you still dare to manage it?"

"Uh... well..." Si Ming hesitated and asked, "Is it really that serious?"

"Let me be blunt—the greatest issue with Qiye Temple lies with the sheep monks. Those so-called sheep monks aren’t sheep; they’re living humans. Remember the two sheep led by the shepherd? They were the elderly couple who chatted with us in the Heavenly King Hall.

Qiye Temple is transforming human lives into sheep lives, and the destination of these sheep lives may very well be death."

"Is that true!?" Si Ming had never considered himself a good person, but compared to Qiye Temple, his own misdeeds seemed insignificant.

"The abbot, the guest monk, the monastery director—all exhibit goat-like features. Though they appear human, they bear goat characteristics, and their connection to the sheep monks is undeniable.

The novice monks chanting scriptures in front of the Thousand Buddha Pagoda Forest are abnormal as well. I used my Bone Teeth to poke one of them, and there was no reaction!

Qiye Temple, from top to bottom, is filled with eerie phenomena."

At this point, Zhou Xuan asked Si Ming, "Old Si, be honest with me—how did you acquire the monastery director’s soul?"

"Well... I approached Qiye Temple’s abbot and got him to..."

"Why did the abbot agree?" Zhou Xuan demanded.

"Because I threatened him—if he didn’t follow my instructions, I’d expose Qiye Temple’s secrets." Si Ming admitted.

Realizing he had struck the core of the matter, Zhou Xuan pressed further, "What exactly do you know about Qiye Temple’s secrets?"

"Oh, Qiye Temple’s monks don’t adhere to monastic regulations; they secretly eat meat and drink alcohol. Moreover, they visit brothels—my people from the Tangkou have seen this firsthand," Si Ming revealed.

Zhou Xuan sighed. Indeed, when it comes to the art of communication, less is more.

Si Ming had used these revelations to threaten the abbot, even though he didn’t actually know much of Qiye Temple’s deeper secrets. De Hai’s guilty conscience had led him to believe Si Ming was referring to the true hidden secrets, prompt him to take drastic action against the monastery director.

This was a case of accidental success.

"No wonder that when you entered the temple with me, they treated us like enemies, with the abbot monitoring us the entire time."

Zhou Xuan said to Si Ming, "The sinister Buddha energy in Qiye Temple is likely tied to those chanting novice monks and sheep monks in the Pagoda Forest. If we continue digging, we might uncover something monumental—hundreds of lives, a false Buddha, perhaps even the collapse of Qiye Temple’s reputation. Do you still wish to investigate?"

Lighting a cigarette, Si Ming quickly smoked the whole thing before crushing the butt against the ground, scattering sparks as he cursed, "Let’s investigate. Otherwise, my Tangkou can’t swallow this indignation!"

Millions in annual funding—all for supposedly genuine Buddha energy—that turned out to be fake. It was like pouring money down the drain!

Within the Tangkou’s "order," Qiye Temple was considered a high-ranking site of concentrated Buddha energy, essentially under the jurisdiction of the Divine Stealer Hall.

What they thought was a well-managed major corporation turned out to be a hollow shell company!

Thinking about this, Si Ming, known for his aggressive ways, was thoroughly enraged.

"If we’re going to investigate, I need compensation for helping your Tangkou with such a big case... And one more thing—you’ve got to sign this."

Zhou Xuan pulled out a notebook and wrote a four-word title—"Liability Waiver."

"I’ll handle the investigation. If there’s no issue, fine; but if something happens and someone tries to hold us accountable, you’ll take the blame."

Zhou Xuan believed Si Ming was capable of bearing the responsibility. After all, he was the Master of Divine Stealing, and his wife was a member of the Bone Elder Association...

"Rest assured, whatever happens, I, Si Ming, will take full responsibility..." Si Ming grabbed a pen, scribbled the main content of the waiver, and signed his name.

Yu Er, somewhat reckless yet filled with a chivalrous spirit, also signed her name without hesitation.

Within rituals of shadow walking and spirit worship, such documents held significant power due to their ceremonial nature.

Zhou Xuan punctured his own fingertip with his Bone Teeth before similarly pricking Si Ming’s and Yu Er’s fingers.

The three of them let drops of blood drip onto the document, which soon caught fire and burned.

From that moment on, the three formed a contract.

"Old Si, if we want to investigate Qiye Temple, we should start with that shepherd..."

ps: Thanks for the support, dear brothers. Love you all, mwah.