Huiming, the bald monk, rolled on the ground screaming in agony, his hands charred and smoking.
The audience was deathly silent! Everyone was stunned, as if struck by lightning!
Just then, a blinding white light suddenly shone from the wall of the tall Buddhist hall facing the high platform!
"Ah! Buddha's light! The Bodhisattva has manifested!"
Some disaster victims instinctively screamed and knelt down!
"A miracle! It must be the Buddha manifesting his power!"
More people followed suit and began to kowtow.
But what appeared in the white light was not a golden statue of a Bodhisattva, but a room and a few greasy tables.
Everyone saw it clearly—the bald monk Huiming, who was just screaming and rolling around on the stage, was now sitting on a stool, full of energy, gnawing on a greasy chicken leg!
He was holding a rough porcelain bowl in one hand and pouring murky wine into his mouth. His cheeks were bulging and greasy liquid was dripping down the corners of his mouth. He looked nothing like a high monk.
Sitting next to him was that ruddy-faced old monk who talked about "karma" all day long!
He was slamming his fist on the table, spitting as he spoke, "Hahaha! Those idiots! Donating money and grain! And they even kneel down and call me a high monk! It's hilarious!"
Another bald man, picking at the bits of meat between his teeth, chuckled and said, "That's right! They believe everything I say! 'Holy water'? Bah! They'd fight over my piss mixed with some incense ash!"
Another bald man, drunk, chimed in: "The scriptures... hiccup... need to be revised again! We need to make them feel... that washing our feet and scrubbing our backs is 'purifying karma'..."
The language is foul and offensive!
The person who had knelt down froze!
The kowtowing motion stopped!
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the familiar yet unfamiliar faces on the wall—these were the "high monks" on the stage and the "masters" standing beside them!
"It's the room where the masters eat!"
"On the wall... how could they be on the wall?"
"They're eating meat! Drinking alcohol! And calling us stupid donkeys?!"
"Holy water...is...is urine?!"
Shock! Confusion! Then came unbelievable absurdity and humiliating anger, like volcanic lava churning in everyone's chest!
The image on the wall suddenly changed!
It turned into a dark and damp woodshed! In the scene, several fierce-looking bald men are wielding sticks and brutally beating a person wearing tattered monk robes on the ground!
"You bastard! Tell me or not! Where did you hide the treasure?!"
"You're talking nonsense! You're ruining my plans!"
The sticks rained down on the monk on the ground, who curled up in pain and groaned weakly. It was the same mad monk who had shouted "Buddha didn't say" and "Don't believe it" at the temple gate!
As the camera zooms in, the monk's scarred face, with its murky, desperate yet defiant gaze, pierces the hearts of every disaster victim!
"It's...it's the master from the doorway before!"
"They're beating up real monks!"
"Damn it! They're bandits! They robbed the temple!"
"Liars! They're all liars!"
An uproar erupted in the crowd! Their last shred of hope was shattered! What Buddhist holy site? What golden Arhat statue? What karmic atonement? It was all a bunch of bandits' lies! They just wanted to swindle money and provisions from them! To trick them into becoming their slaves!
On stage, Huiming, the bald monk who was originally wailing and clutching his hands, stopped screaming abruptly when he saw the images projected on the wall!
His face turned deathly pale! The ruddy-faced old bald monk trembled all over, pointing at the wall, his lips quivering, unable to utter a single word!
The "masters" and shills around him all turned pale and shrank back in terror!
After a brief silence, came a roar like a landslide and a tsunami!
"You damned liar!!! Give me back my food!!!"
A man who had donated all his possessions yesterday suddenly turned bloodshot! He rushed toward the platform like a madman!
"My money! My jewelry! Give it back!" a woman screamed as she lunged at him!
"Beat them! Beat these beasts to death! They harmed our true master!"
More people were enraged!
"Revenge! Avenge our true masters!"
The despair of being swindled out of their last rations! The humiliation of being fooled like a fool! The anger at what happened to the real monks! All these emotions erupted at this moment! The crowd surged towards the platform like a flood bursting its banks!
The fake monks on the stage were terrified!
"Stop them! Stop them now!"
"Guardian! Where is the Guardian!"
Several bald men responsible for maintaining order tried to step forward to stop them, but as soon as they raised their sticks, they were tackled to the ground by several burly men with bloodshot eyes!
Fists and feet rained down on him!
I'll beat you to death, you bastard!
"I'll teach you to lie to me!"
The ruddy-faced old bald monk tried to run away, but an old man grabbed his leg tightly!
"Give me back my grain! You old beast!" The old man bit his arm!
"Ah!" The old bald monk let out a bloodcurdling scream like a pig being slaughtered!
The bald monk Huiming, dragging his charred hands, tried to run away, but was stopped by a woman who punched him!
"I'll beat you to death, you imposter Arhat!"
The situation is completely out of control!
The entire monastery turned into a sea of anger!
Hundreds of victims who had been deceived and exploited finally found an outlet for their pent-up despair and anger!
They surrounded the fake monks, punching, kicking, tearing, grabbing, and biting them! Curses, screams, and the sounds of fighting filled the air!
The people of Liushutun were so frightened that they retreated and quickly hid in a corner, afraid of being swept away by the out-of-control crowd.
"My God..." The village chief looked at the chaotic scene before him, which resembled hell, and his legs were trembling.
Jiang Chan pulled Xiao Tao along and quickly retreated to the base of the courtyard wall amidst the chaos.
"Let's go." Her voice was calm, without the slightest hesitation.
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