Chapter 27: Rewards and “Punishments”

The frigid wind howled through the cliffs like a steel blade scraping against bones. Even after changing into thicker monastic robes and undergarments, Meng Qi still shivered from the cold. He had no choice but to circulate his Shaolin martial technique, letting his inner energy flow gently through his body to dispel the bitter chill.

The path leading to the rear mountains was heavily guarded—every three steps, there was a post, and every five steps, a watch. Even the cliff edges that seemed impassable were guarded by martial monks. Meng Qi, along with Zhen Hui and Zhen Yong, had been assigned to the front of a narrow path directly leading to the rear mountains. On both sides were steep cliffs, and ahead, on either side, lay dense, dark forests.

“Senior Brother, are there Bai Gu Jing (White Bone Spirit) or Spider Spirits in the rear mountains?” Zhen Hui, who had yet to open his dantian and whose internal martial cultivation was progressing slowly, was lightly hopping in place from the cold. His eyes were fixed intently on the darkness at the end of the narrow path, which marked the entrance to the rear mountains.

“White Bone Spirit? Spider Spirit?” Zhen Yong was momentarily taken aback, then shifted his gaze toward Meng Qi, wearing that familiar expression of “what strange stories have you been telling the junior brothers again?”

Meng Qi chuckled. Amid the pressure of life-and-death challenges in the Reincarnation World, these moments were among his few sources of enjoyment. “If Senior Brother Zhen Miao says there are demons and monsters, there must be some.”

As for this topic, Meng Qi didn’t know much and intentionally brought it up to see if Zhen Yong could offer any explanation.

Zhen Yong also gazed somewhat dreamily at the end of the narrow path, muttering to himself, “Real demons and monsters… how many people have actually seen them? Since the era of ‘the Demon Uprising,’ the demonic clans have vanished without a trace. At least for ordinary folks like us, they are rarely seen. Occasionally, there are stories like a scholar meeting a fox spirit or a master subduing a snake demon. Heh, personally, I’ve never seen any.”

Meng Qi nodded and asked no further questions, as Zhen Yong clearly didn’t know much either.

The long night stretched on, and the northern wind grew even colder. Zhen Hui had already found a stone and sat cross-legged in meditation, while Zhen Yong paced back and forth to keep warm.

With the silence unbroken and the senior monks from the Dharma and Bodhi Halls guarding behind them, Meng Qi gradually focused his thoughts on deciphering the final step of the Divine Steps of Eight Movements. Suddenly, a piercing gust of wind blew past. Meng Qi shivered involuntarily, his mind instantly clearing as inspiration struck. All the previously confusing points suddenly made sense.

After unraveling the final step of the Divine Steps of Eight Movements, Meng Qi’s heart burned with excitement, and he was eager to practice.

Although Zhen Yong “knew” that Meng Qi had family martial arts, Meng Qi still felt uncomfortable openly practicing the steps unless he could disguise them with sword techniques. However, that would create too much noise, risking detection by patrolling seniors like Zhen Miao, which would lead to scolding.

Glancing around, Meng Qi held his stomach and said to Zhen Yong, “Senior Brother, my stomach is bothering me. I need to relieve myself. Please cover for me here.”

Back in the Sutra Pavilion, Zhen Yong had experienced this several times and was not surprised. He smiled and said, “Go quickly. If Senior Brother Zhen Miao comes by, I’ll explain for you.”

Meng Qi gripped his precept sword and swiftly dashed into the forest ahead with a few quick strides. Not daring to venture too far, he stayed close to the cliff wall and began weaving around massive trees to hone his footwork.

The Divine Steps of Eight Movements were exquisite and mysterious. Combined with the deep night, Meng Qi moved like a ghost, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

“Good, that’s exactly right!” After practicing a few rounds, Meng Qi nodded in satisfaction and decided to return.

As he was about to take a step forward, he suddenly heard a faint creaking sound coming from the cliff wall. Instantly alert, his mind reacted before his feet, silently gliding behind a large tree for cover.

“Could my luck be this bad? Isn’t there already senior monks and senior brothers guarding the inner layers? And there’s a thick cliff separating us!” Meng Qi’s first thought was of demons and monsters.

Peeking cautiously, he saw that next to a slightly reddish boulder, the cliff wall had silently split open, revealing a large hole from which a shadowy figure cautiously emerged.

The figure moved behind the boulder, fumbled at a certain spot, and the creaking sound returned as the stone wall slowly closed again.

“A secret escape tunnel dug by demons and monsters?” Meng Qi bitterly speculated, regretting his decision to enter the forest.

He had originally thought there would be only wild beasts at most, and even those wouldn’t be active in the bitter winter cold, making this place seemingly safe. Who knew he’d encounter such a mess!

The figure turned around, preparing to run toward the other side of the forest.

At that moment, under the dim moonlight, Meng Qi clearly saw the figure’s face.

“Him?” Meng Qi was shocked and astonished, nearly shouting out loud before barely managing to bite his lip and hold back.

The person emerging from the rear mountains was actually Zhenguan!

The very Zhenguan who had attacked him and suffered from the despair of vengeance!

“Isn’t he supposed to have been expelled from the monastery long ago?” Meng Qi thought in confusion. He believed Xuan Xin hadn’t lied to him, as Zhen Yan from the servant quarters had told him that no one had seen Zhenguan since that day.

Meng Qi didn’t make a move, watching Zhenguan disappear into the distance. He knew his own strength was far from sufficient to interfere in matters involving demons and monsters.

“One must know one’s limits; not everyone is the protagonist…” Meng Qi muttered inwardly.

If he rashly entered that secret passage, he probably wouldn’t gain rare treasures like demonic beast essence or demonic martial arts. Instead, he might be killed and eaten or turned into a puppet. After all, such encounters were reserved for “main characters,” and he clearly didn’t possess such “blessed fate” at the moment.

He quietly retreated from the forest, deciding to find someone capable of handling the situation. Although he had already resolved to leave monastic life, he was still within the Shaolin Temple for now. If chaos erupted, he might become an innocent victim caught in the crossfire.

“Junior Brother Zhen Ding, did you eat something bad?” Seeing Meng Qi return after a long time, Zhen Yong teased with a grin.

Meng Qi’s expression turned serious. “Senior Brother Zhen Yong, I encountered something strange while relieving myself. We should report it to the senior monks inside.”

“Eh? Then you should quickly launch the fireworks signal!” Zhen Yong was startled, his eyes darting around. Without asking further, he directly told Meng Qi to send an emergency signal.

Meng Qi’s lips twitched slightly. This Senior Brother Zhen Yong, usually warm-hearted and generous, was quite slippery when it came to critical moments, trying to keep himself out of trouble without asking anything.

He didn’t dwell on Zhen Yong’s small-mindedness and decided to be cautious around him. At that moment, Zhen Hui beat him to the punch, pulling out a small bamboo tube from his sleeve, aiming it at the sky, and pulling off the cap.

With a whistle, a red streak shot into the sky, exploding into a dazzling display.

“Junior Brother, you truly are action-oriented, sending the signal without even asking what happened…” Meng Qi wiped cold sweat from his brow, standing in front of Zhen Hui with his sword raised, alert for any possible attacks.

After two or three breaths, Meng Qi’s vision blurred momentarily, and before he knew it, a middle-aged monk had appeared. The monk had a handsome but deeply melancholic face. He wore a yellow robe and a red kasaya, holding a string of black prayer beads carved with Buddha images.

“Yellow robe, red kasaya… which hall’s abbot or elder is this?” Meng Qi opened his mouth to address the monk but hesitated. Should he call him “Senior Uncle,” “Senior Uncle Grandfather,” or even “Great Senior Uncle Grandfather”? He didn’t even know the monk’s identity, and the generational hierarchy was quite confusing.

However, seeing a high-ranking monk of this level arrive, Meng Qi felt a bit more at ease.

The middle-aged monk’s expression was solemn upon arrival, but upon seeing the calm scene, his face softened. Noticing Meng Qi’s hesitation, he guessed the cause and smiled slightly. “This old monk is named Xuan Bei. Why did you launch the emergency signal just now?”

Meng Qi was greatly surprised to hear that the “Xuan” generation already included abbots or elders. Still, he suppressed his inner turmoil and carefully explained what he had prepared earlier. “Senior Uncle Xuan Bei, just now when your disciple went to relieve himself in the forest, I saw a secret door appear on the cliff…”

Xuan Bei listened calmly to Meng Qi’s account, nodded slightly, and said, “You did well, not acting rashly or concealing anything. Are you sure the figure you saw was Zhenguan, the one previously expelled from the monastery?”

“Your disciple recognized his appearance, but I don’t know if it was a demon in disguise,” Meng Qi honestly replied.

After confirming the location and nearby features of the secret door, Xuan Bei gave an order. “Wait here and follow Xuan Chi back to the martial monks’ quarters. I’ll handle this matter.”

“Yes, Senior Uncle Xuan Bei.” Meng Qi was more than willing to leave. Right now, he kept worrying that demons or monsters might leap out from the surrounding darkness.

Xuan Bei didn’t move his feet or sway his body but suddenly vanished from sight, reappearing at the forest’s edge. Around him, faint Buddhist chants echoed, and tiny golden lights flickered. He appeared solemn, sacred, and transcendent, like a Bodhisattva descending into the world.

“Is this the power of someone nearing the peak of the external realm?” Zhen Yong murmured, staring in the direction Xuan Bei had disappeared.

Meng Qi looked at him in astonishment. “Senior Brother Zhen Yong, do you know this Senior Uncle?”

Zhen Yong snapped back to his senses, filled with emotion. “Apart from the Senior Uncles like Xuan Chi and Xuan Ku that we see daily, I don’t recognize the others. But Senior Uncle Xuan Bei is well-known. I’ve heard Senior Brother Zhen Chang mention him.”

Zhen Chang, the top disciple among the Zhen generation? Meng Qi knew of Zhen Chang, reputed to be slightly more powerful than Zhen Miao and Zhen Ben.

Zhen Yong continued, “Senior Uncle Xuan Bei was once an unrivaled martial expert who roamed the world, known by the nickname ‘Seven-Strike Hands.’ But later, he suffered a catastrophe that led to the massacre of his entire family. Although he eventually avenged them, his enemies had powerful backing, and a Grandmaster came after him. Already deeply disillusioned, this incident pushed him further, leading him to take refuge in our Shaolin Temple, devoting himself to Buddhism and severing all worldly ties, living the life of a monk.”

“Due to his extraordinary talent and sincere devotion to Buddhism, he was noticed by the Abbot Master, who took him in as a direct disciple, breaking tradition. He learned the ‘Mahavairocana Subduing Demon Fist,’ and proved himself remarkable, achieving a breakthrough in a short time, entering the Grandmaster realm. Later, he became the first Xuan-generation monk to reach the eighth level of the external realm, only a step away from the peak.”

“Such a figure is always filled with legend…” Meng Qi mused silently, while Zhen Hui listened with rapt attention.

Later, Zhen Miao and others arrived, along with many yellow-robed monks Meng Qi didn’t recognize. The three of them were escorted back to the martial monks’ quarters by Xuan Chi.

The next morning, just as Meng Qi was about to go out to practice calligraphy and inquire about the outcome of the previous night’s events (since he had been on night duty guarding the rear mountains, he didn’t have to wake up early to fetch water), the door was suddenly pushed open. The Disciplinary Monk Xuan Kong, who looked rather sinister, walked in, followed by a dejected Zhen Yong.

“Your discovery yesterday foiled one of the rear mountain demons’ plots. The Bodhi Hall will reward you accordingly, although it might take a few days,” Xuan Kong said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “However, Zhen Ding, you left your post during the watch. The Disciplinary Hall has no choice but to punish you. Considering your contribution, you’ll be confined to your meditation room for three days facing the wall.”

“Just three days facing the wall?” Meng Qi said with a casual “Oh,” not particularly concerned about the punishment, as it was extremely light. It would be a good opportunity to calm his mind and refine his inner energy.

He eagerly anticipated the reward from the Bodhi Hall. Would it be one of the 72 Supreme Techniques?

Three days later, after finishing his evening meal delivered to his room and completing his three-day wall-facing punishment, Meng Qi happily pushed open his door.

“Eh, junior brother, why do you look so unhappy?” Meng Qi met Zhen Hui returning just as he stepped out.

Zhen Hui replied angrily, “Today, the senior masters came to select disciples, but you were confined to your room for wall-facing punishment and couldn’t come out.”

Meng Qi’s face immediately darkened. So that was the real reason!

Was it due to his previous disrespect, or was it because of Zhen Liang’s older brother in the Disciplinary Hall?

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his tone calm as water as he said to Zhen Hui, “Let’s go to the Martial Arts Hall.”

Although Meng Qi wasn’t too eager to have a master, as it would make leaving Shaolin more difficult, he still wouldn’t be happy facing such a situation.

Just as he finished speaking, Meng Qi suddenly noticed two lines of words appearing on the thin layer of snow in the courtyard:

“The second cycle begins!”

“Please prepare mentally. The next time it begins, there will be no warning—it will pull you in directly.”