Chapter 273 Who Wins and Who Loses
The sky was gloomy, and the little incident caused by Zhao Duan's arrival quickly subsided.
People once again turned their attention to the empty arena in front of them and the upcoming fight.
"When does it begin?"
Zhao Duan looked down from a high position, his eyes cast towards the two stands facing each other on the left and right.
Those are the locations of Tianshi Mansion and Shenlong Temple respectively.
His eyes instinctively looked for the golden tablet, but he couldn't find it. He only saw Gongshu Tianyuan among a group of sorcerers wearing priest robes.
This craftsman magician, whose head is full of strange ideas, changed into a brand new robe today, and did not carry the big bamboo tube of the fox fairy that he kept as a "pet".
He stood in the crowd with his hands behind his back, looking serious and solemn. As if sensing the gazes from this side, Gongshu Tianyuan looked over with a hint of surprise.
Then he nodded towards Zhao Duan.
"It's almost time, haha. If you come a little later, you will miss it." The old eunuch in the python robe said leisurely.
The two sat side by side, talking in low voices, not attracting any attention.
Seeing Zhao Duan looking around, the wrinkled master smiled and teased:
"Don't look for it, it will come out later."
...Zhao Duan said stubbornly:
“I’m just surprised that there aren’t that many strong men from the two families coming.
It's fine that Zhang Tianshi's disciples are all wandering around, but why is there only one Bian Ji at Shenlong Temple? "
As he spoke, his eyes turned to the stands of Shenlong Temple.
The big monks wearing yellow or brown robes formed a beautiful scenery, and the handsome monk Bian Ji in white robes stood out among them.
Eunuch Hai was almost lying in the spacious armchair. Like a magic trick, he picked up an orange in his hand, slowly peeled off the orange peel, and then tore the orange fibers one by one.
He said "Oh" and said:
"Two of the three Bodhisattvas of Shenlong Temple are outside, only Prajna is here.
Haha, but this little nun has a strange personality and doesn't want to come in person, but it doesn't matter, after all, it's not far away. Have you seen the falcons raised by the Buddhist sect? Send a message and they will arrive in an instant."
A 52-year-old little nun... Yes, compared to your age, father-in-law, she is indeed a "little nun"... The corners of Zhao Duan's mouth twitched.
The image of the dazzling white goddess beside the pond under the moonlight that night came to mind. After thinking for a moment, he said:
"Who do you think will win this battle, sir?"
Hai Gongfu broke open a slice of orange, put it in his mouth, and muttered:
"What's it to you?"
Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment, and suddenly he heard a melodious and low bell sound coming from deep within the Tianshi Mansion.
In an instant, the noisy chatter of the huge crowd suddenly stopped.
Everyone stopped talking at the same time and looked at the light curtain in the air with excitement and anticipation.
"It's about to begin!" The female official Mochou suddenly said beside her, as if giving a reminder.
Zhao Duan closed his mouth and looked towards the arena. A ball of bright light, like a comet, was coming from the end of the gloomy sky, dragging a long and sharp tail flame.
In the exclamation.
Landing on the circular arena, it condensed into the outline of a petite girl wearing a black priest robe with gold lines, a delicate pale face, and slightly curled black hair.
It was the Priest Jin Jian who had not been seen for many days!
"Junior sister, show these bald asses some color! Don't lose face."
At the back, the chubby little Gongshu Tianyuan took out a trumpet-shaped magic weapon from his hand like a magician, put it to his mouth and shouted to cheer.
Jin Jian, who had been preparing for war behind closed doors for a long time, looked indifferent today.
The moment he stepped onto the stage, he reached out to the air with his right hand, lowered his wrist slightly, and slowly "pulled" out from the rippling air a staff with a golden single eye embedded on the top.
He reached into the inner pocket of his robe with his left hand and placed a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his delicate nose.
There were tiny specks of light at the hem of the priestess's robe, expanding and contracting, and she seemed to be immersed in the rippling sea of stars.
Then, in full view of everyone, the petite girl "grew up" quickly.
His height kept rising, his short legs became longer and slender, his long hair grew wildly, and in the blink of an eye it fell to his hips, with silver starlight pouring down from the top of his hair.
Transform...what magical girl...
In the stands, Zhao Duan was stunned, and suddenly recalled the night when he and the girl dealt with the rebellious priest together.
At this moment, Jin Jian suddenly turned his head, looked over here, and looked into his eyes.
"Zhao Duan?"
Jin Jian was surprised, she thought this friend would not come.
Now, through the lens, she could clearly see Zhao Duan nodded at her and made a strange gesture that seemed to be encouraging.
Jin Jian raised the corners of his mouth slightly and nodded. Then he sensed something and turned his head to look across.
…
In the stands.
Under the strange looks of Lao Hai, Mo Chou, and Xu Junling, Zhao Duan silently lowered his scissor hands and pretended nothing had happened.
"That Tian Hai is going to appear too."
You seem to be hiding something... "Big Ice Block" Mochou had a blank expression on his face.
What kind of gesture is this? It’s so weird… Could it be some secret way of transmitting information… Xu Junling, who looks like a lady from a noble family, was fantasizing wildly.
"Bang!"
On the Shenlong Temple side, among the many great monks, a muffled sound suddenly came from the center.
Behind the group of monks, there was a young monk sitting there, his body hidden.
The young monk named Tianhai was sitting with his arms folded, as if dozing off, with his legs crossed and a strange "Zen stick" with two hexagonal prisms across his knees.
At this moment, the young monk suddenly opened his eyes, pressed his hands, and the ground collapsed three inches.
The whole person leaped up like a cannonball, and in full view of everyone, he drew a high parabola and fell heavily on the ring!
This caused countless exclamations from the crowd.
Zhao Duan finally saw his appearance clearly.
"Tianhai" is indeed not very old, and looks about sixteen or seventeen years old.
He was wearing a yellow-brown monk's robe, with no Buddhist beads on his body. He was a little thin and had an ordinary appearance, dressed like a standard "warrior monk".
The forehead is wrapped with a yellow silk ribbon, which is quite eye-catching.
At this moment, he was standing on the ring, holding a long stick made of brass with slender prisms at both ends and a protrusion at the end, leaning on the ground. His expression was indifferent, and his eyes were fixed on the golden tablet without emotion.
"He is Tianhai? The unsociable Buddhist demon?"
Zhao Duan heard the officials around him talking.
Obviously, after three days of fighting, this person appeared for the first time.
Mo Chou, wearing a wingless black gauze, had a strange look in her eyes:
"Is that ribbon covering his natural vertical eye? I thought he could see it."
No... You are a famous "female prime minister", why are you so keen on curiosity? Can't you ask some constructive questions... Zhao Duan complained and said seriously:
"Eunuch, is that a weapon or a talisman in this man's hand?"
The old eunuch in the python robe ate his orange slowly, looking like someone who had seen a lot of things. He said leisurely:
"It's both a weapon and a talisman. It's called the 'Six Paths Stick' and is a treasure of great significance.
The ends of the stick contain the six paths of the Buddha's teachings... However, this little monk's realm is too low to fully utilize the profound aspects of this weapon, so he only uses it as a handy weapon."
At this time, the Tianshi Mansion and the Shenlong Temple each sent out a sorcerer to read out the rules of the battle.
Follow the process.
Then, a thin, smooth, inverted glass bowl-shaped cover suddenly rose up around the ring, isolating the ring from the viewing area.
The atmosphere in the whole venue suddenly became solemn and serious.
The middle-aged priest who was battling with the abbot announced:
"The battle begins!"
On the ring, Jin Jian and Tian Hai, with their momentum rising steadily, met in battle.
…
…
Deep inside the Tianshi Mansion, in a small courtyard.
Zhang Yan, who was lying under the big banyan tree, raised his head and looked at the female emperor who appeared opposite him, and said with a smile:
"Your Majesty is here?"
The Empress of Dayu, dressed in white casual clothes and without any ornaments, walked towards them gracefully despite her incomparable beauty.
He lowered his eyes to look at the banyan tree, in front of Zhang Yanyi, where a square table with tea and snacks had been set up, as well as two empty bamboo chairs, and whispered:
"The Heavenly Master is thoughtful."
Zhang Yan smiled, looking very kind, and said with emotion:
"Hundreds of years ago, on the day of the battle, Emperor Taizu would invite the current Heavenly Master and the Buddhist abbot to a private gathering to drink tea and watch the battle. What a scene that must have been."
Xu Zhenguan leaned forward, sat down in the bamboo chair, raised his delicate hands, fiddled with the tea bowl, and said with a smile:
"At that time, Emperor Taizu was the undisputed number one in the world, and the masters of the Xu Dynasty had also stolen the limelight from both Buddhism and Taoism. Emperor Taizu invited both parties to a small gathering, but his motives were not pure, and he wanted to show off and intimidate them."
Zhang Yan laughed and pointed at her and said:
"I wonder what Emperor Taizu would think if he knew that his descendants were making up stories about him like this."
Xu Zhenguan smiled casually:
"With the broad minds of our ancestors, I believe they wouldn't care about these things."
Zhang Yanyi sighed:
"Yes, what a pity. I wasn't born in that era. After Emperor Taizu passed away, this annual gathering tradition fell apart. The successive abbots of Shenlong Temple stopped participating, and the successive Heavenly Masters also showed little interest."
Xu Zhenguan picked up the teapot and poured three cups of clear Longjing tea himself:
"But our Xu clan emperors have always adhered to this unwritten tradition. Whenever there is a duel, they will come to the appointment. Just like the Heavenly Master will leave two empty chairs."
Zhang Yanyi sighed:
"As people get older, they become more concerned with traditional rules that younger people don't understand. Ultimately, this is just an attempt to leave some traces of the past."
At this moment, the sound of bells rolled through the courtyard.
Xu Zhenguan smiled, pushed one cup to the Taoist priest, and kept one cup for himself:
"The battle outside is about to begin."
Zhang Yan smiled, swept his sleeves, and the third cup spun around, splashing tea into the air, forming a curtain of water.
In the water curtain, there is a monk and a Taoist priest facing each other on the stage.
…
Jizhao nunnery.
As part of the Shenlong Temple, the nunnery looks extremely deserted today.
Most of the nuns went to watch the battle, leaving only a few to maintain the daily operation of the nunnery.
Princess Yunyang, who likes to wear red skirts but now has only monk's robes to wear, walked through the autumn courtyard and arrived at the small courtyard with a pond.
The pond is full of withered lotus leaves.
shore.
The female Bodhisattva, wearing a light, pure white monk's robe, with skin as white as snow and a plump figure, was clearly fifty-two years old, but her appearance and temperament made Princess Yunyang jealous. She had a distorted face and was humming a song while combing her hair.
"I thought an old nun like you would go to watch a magic fight." Princess Yunyang sneered sarcastically.
Prajna Bodhisattva stopped singing, smiled, and looked at her with loving eyes:
"If I leave, won't that make you run away?"
Princess Yunyang shuddered for no apparent reason, covering her hips with her hands and staring at her, unwilling to be outdone.
"I'm calculating the time. The bell for the start of the battle has been ringing for quite some time. I'm afraid the battle is over by now."
"so?"
"I want to know who wins and who loses."
Prajna Bodhisattva looked at her for a while, sighed softly, looked up at the sky, and saw a falcon flying towards them from afar.
She waved her hand, and a scroll of paper from the hawk's mouth floated down, with a few large words clearly visible on it:
Buddhism wins!
(End of this chapter)
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