Each with Their Own Schemes, Stealing Scriptures

If you don't see eye to eye, even half a sentence is too much.

Anger flashed across the Xuan Sheng Xuansheng's face.

Shaolin Temple values its reputation above all else, yet the Reverend Shenshan were absolutely right in their criticism.

Indeed, some people in their Shaolin Temple did violate the precepts, and it was extremely shameful.

But this matter has been handled internally and absolutely cannot be discussed outside.

Unfortunately, Abbot Xuan Ci also had to pay the price for his mistakes. To protect the century-old reputation of Shaolin Temple, he was beaten to death in front of all the high monks.

The Xuan Sheng Xuansheng witnessed it firsthand.

The heartache felt during that time was indescribable.

The words spoken by the Reverend Shenshan were naturally an insult to the death of Abbot Xuan Ci, even though the Reverend Shenshan himself was unaware of this matter.

But that's how it is in the eyes of Xuan Sheng and his Xuan Sheng.

Xuan Ci's reputation, which she had protected with her life, was thus trampled upon.

What angered Xuan Sheng even more was that the Reverend Shenshan had accidentally stumbled upon the truth.

That hit their sore spot.

This further enraged the people of Shaolin Temple.

The Xuan Sheng Xuansheng suppressed his anger and said.

"Why do you say that, Senior Brother? You are a guest from afar, but if you were to tarnish the centuries-old reputation of Shaolin Temple, that would be quite impolite."

The Reverend Shenshan said, "Your Shaolin Temple is neither an official government nor a bandit group, so why are you detaining outsiders and preventing them from leaving? Can such domineering behavior still be considered a benevolent Buddhist place?"

The monks of the Xuan generation all glanced at the India monk Zheluoxing in unison. Everyone understood why these people had come to Shaolin Temple.

I felt a little more at ease.

After all, they have solid evidence for this matter.

Zheluoxing has sent people to inquire about their situation more than once, and they have naturally handled the situation with ease.

"Senior brother, please speak frankly."

The Reverend Shenshan said, "May Buddha have mercy. Hasn't your temple been detaining Master Boluo Xing, the junior brother of Brother Zheluoxing, for several years without allowing him to leave?"

Master Xuan Ji, the head of the Vinaya Academy, stepped forward.

He was in charge of the Shaolin Temple's disciplinary rules and was impartial and incorruptible.

"Seven years ago, Brother Boluo Xing visited our temple. All the monks were overjoyed and received him with great respect."

"My senior brother said that Buddhism has declined in India over the past few hundred years, and most of the Buddhist scriptures have been lost. Therefore, he came to China to seek the true scriptures."

"The Buddhist scriptures were originally obtained from India. It is an honor for our Shaolin Temple to return from the superior country to seek scriptures in the East."

"At that time, Xuan Ci personally accompanied Brother Boluo Xing to the Scripture Repository to introduce the scriptures, which numbered no less than seven thousand volumes. If there were copies, Brother Boluo Xing could take them. If there were only unique copies, our temple was willing to send dozens of monks to help copy them."

"Because the journey to India is long and there is a risk of the scriptures getting lost along the way, our temple is willing to send dozens of monks to escort them along the way to ensure that all the scriptures arrive safely in the land of Buddha."

Upon hearing Xuan Ji's words, all the monks bowed their heads and chanted Buddhist mantras.

"Amitabha, excellent, excellent!"

Daoqing of Pudu Temple praised, "Abbot Xuan Ci's actions are truly Mo Da merit, comparable to those of the great masters Master Kumārajīva Xuanzang."

Xuan Ji continued, "This senior brother is reading scriptures in the Scripture Repository. We have sent someone to accompany him in copying them, and we dare not slack off in the slightest."

"Who would have thought that four months later we would discover that this senior brother would sneak into the Scripture Repository every night to peek at martial arts manuals."

"When we learned of this, we didn't immediately cause him any trouble. Instead, we kindly advised him and told him that these martial arts manuals were created by eminent monks throughout history. They didn't come from India and have absolutely nothing to do with Buddhism."

"According to our rules, these martial arts manuals must never be revealed to outsiders. Since Senior Brother Boluo Xing has already read part of it, then so be it, but he can never go to the Secret Pavilion again."

"But he readily agreed and apologized repeatedly, saying that he didn't know the rules of Shaolin Temple and swore to the heavens that he would never peek again."

"But who knew that a few months later he pretended to be sick and secretly dug a tunnel. He went to steal martial arts manuals, and it wasn't until several years later that he was discovered. By then, he had already secretly read quite a few of the temple's martial arts manuals."

"When Xuan Can intervened, it was only during the fight that we discovered that he had not only secretly read many secret manuals, but he had also mastered at least three of the Seventy-Two Ultimate Techniques."

The Shaolin Temple monks spoke angrily.

The onlookers, a group of martial arts heroes, were already making a fuss.

"I thought he was some kind of high monk, but he's just a despicable and shameless person."

"Stealing the secret manual is truly despicable!"

Some of them spoke harshly, making Xiao Feng uncomfortable.

"As expected of barbarians, they have no shame."

The eminent monks invited by Da Xiangguo Temple all gave Zheluoxing and the Reverend Shenshan a reproachful look.

How can he have the nerve to call them over to be witnesses after doing something like this?

This foreign monk is one thing, but why is the Reverend Shenshan also so inconsiderate?

Before they could blame the Reverend Shenshan, he spoke up, saying, "What you've said is only the Shaolin Temple's side of the story. What is the truth? None of us know."

"We don't know the truth, but it is true that Shaolin Temple imprisoned this India monk for seven years."

"I've also heard that this Senior Brother Zheluoxing has been in India for several years without receiving any news from his junior brother. He was worried about him and sent some people to Shaolin Temple to find out what was going on. But Shaolin Temple won't let them meet with Boluo Xing. Is that true?"

When the Reverend Shenshan spoke again, he provoked these martial arts practitioners to hurl insults at him.

What do you mean by saying that Shaolin Temple's version of events is just one side of the story? Does that mean that Zheluoxing's version of events isn't just one side of the story either?

They hurled vile insults, and Zheluoxing kept his head down, half-understanding their words, or pretending not to understand them.

His expression remained unchanged, as he waited for the Reverend Shenshan to lead the charge.

The Xuan Sheng Xuansheng nodded.

"That's right, we didn't let them meet. Boluo Xing has already secretly learned our Shaolin Temple's martial arts, so we can't let him tell others about them."

The Reverend Shenshan laughed heartily.

The sound shook the roof tiles and made the bronze bell in the main hall of Shaolin Temple hum.

These monks of the Xuan generation inevitably got angry.

"Senior brother, if an outsider goes to your Qingliang Temple of Mount Wutai and steals your Tiger Subduing Fist, the Fifty-one Stance Demon Subduing Sword, your Mind-Intention-Qi Primordial Chaos Technique, and the Universal Gate Staff Technique, how would you deal with them?"

Everyone nodded in agreement. In the martial arts world, who doesn't treasure their own secret manual?

But the Reverend Shenshan smiled slightly.

"The level of martial arts skill depends on the individual; the quality of the secret manual is secondary. If someone secretly comes to Qingliang Temple and steals our secret manual, what can this old monk say except admit his incompetence? Does he expect someone to take his life just because they see your martial arts? Does he expect to lock them up for life? That's outrageous."

Duan Yu nodded repeatedly, muttering to himself.

"I didn't expect this monk to be so magnanimous. What he said is quite right."

Ji Boying burst out laughing upon hearing this.

He neither deliberately lowered his voice nor deliberately raised it.

She is plain and unassuming and doesn't shy away from others.

Pointing at the bald man, he said, "Listen to this old guy acting all righteous here. He's so magnanimous only because his martial arts skills are mediocre. What difference would it make if he made it public?"

Upon hearing this, the Reverend Shenshan's expression instantly changed.

This touched a nerve, humiliated him, and trampled his face on the ground.

When the Reverend Shenshan came to Shaolin Temple to become a disciple, he was not even eighteen years old.

When Zen Master Lingmen talked with him, he felt that he was too arrogant and too sharp-tongued, and was not a person who could pass on the Dharma.

If we leave him at Shaolin Temple, he will surely be unwilling to be subservient to others, and over time, trouble will inevitably arise.

Therefore, he politely declined and instead went to Qingliang Temple.

He became abbot of Qingliang Temple before he was thirty years old. He was indeed very talented and had exceptional insight, making him a martial arts prodigy. It's just a pity that the martial arts techniques stored in Qingliang Temple were far inferior to those of Shaolin.

Over the past forty years, his internal strength has become increasingly profound, far surpassing the level of the martial arts classics passed down by Qingliang Temple, but his fist and foot skills are still far behind.

This always made him feel both envious and resentful whenever he thought of the Seventy-Two Ultimate Techniques Shaolin Temple skills.

"Who dares to humiliate our Qingliang Temple?"

The Reverend Shenshan blushed and roared.

His internal strength is indeed very profound, and it is not unfounded for some people to believe that he is slightly better than Abbot Xuan Ci.

This roar caused many people with insufficient internal strength to experience a buzzing in their heads.

Jiumozhi stood to the side, but had already lowered his head when he heard Ji Boying speak.

Seeing the majestic roar of the Reverend Shenshan, I couldn't help but raise my chin slightly in surprise.

His bright eyes were filled with admiration and respect.

He stood among the monks, becoming increasingly unassuming.

Although the Reverend Shenshan was acting aggressively, Ji Boying didn't take him seriously.

Now that he already felt some disgust towards the monk, Ji Boying would naturally not be lenient if he did anything more annoying.

The Reverend Shenshan suddenly turned his head to look at Ji Boying.

Although he did appear to be handsome and dashing, Ji Boying did not seem to pose any threat to the man.

How could he possibly sense it with his abilities?

Just as he was about to continue his anger, he suddenly noticed a burly man standing next to Ji Boying.

Isn't that Xiao Feng?

He was quite familiar with Xiao Feng.

The Reverend Shenshan suppressed his anger once again.

He didn't want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

He merely snorted coldly and continued to question the people from Shaolin Temple.

The Reverend Shenshan was also somewhat alarmed, worried that Ji Boying would expose his plans.

He felt that Ji Boying seemed to have seen through him.

Reverend Shenshan was not originally acquainted with Zheluoxing; it was his junior brother Shen Yin Shenyin, who led Zheluoxing to Qingliang Temple.

Zheluoxing then recounted this matter.

The Reverend Shenshan knew something was wrong as soon as he heard it.

Although he spoke ill of Shaolin Temple, he actually knew in his heart that Abbot Xuan Ci of Shaolin Temple was kind and the rules of Shaolin Temple were very strict.

After all, Shaolin Temple is still the white moonlight in the hearts of the Reverend Shenshan, even though he is now the abbot of Qingliang Temple, and even though he has turned his love into hatred.

There's no need for the perfectly good Shaolin Temple to detain Boluo Xing.

The Reverend Shenshan also a man of skill, using both soft and hard tactics to trap Zheluoxing in Qingliang Temple for more than half a month.

By slowly coaxing information out of him, they successfully elicited Zheluoxing's words.

However, Zheluoxing stubbornly denied that he wanted to steal martial arts skills.

The Reverend Shenshan immediately understood the reason.

He thought to himself, "If Boluo Xing hadn't stolen the martial arts, it would have been fine if Shaolin Temple had just kicked him out. But now they've kept him locked up for years. This shows that Boluo Xing not only stole the martial arts, but also memorized them. I'll stand up for him and get him out. Once Boluo Xing is in my hands, I'm not worried that he won't reveal Shaolin Temple's martial arts secrets."

It was with this idea in mind that the people of Shenshan invited Master Guanxin from Daxiangguo Temple in Kaifeng, Master Daoqing from Jiangnan, and others.

As for Jiumozhi, he also encountered Ji Boying in Lingzhou, Western Xia, and was further provoked.

I felt like I would never get ahead in my life, and I would never be able to reach that level.

This made him lose his appetite and his will to help Prince Zongzan snatch a wife.

After much thought, he realized that only the Muscle Tendon Changing Scripture Classic) in his body could turn the impossible into reality and significantly improve Jiumozhi's skills.

Jiumozhi still set his sights on the Shaolin Temple.

As the saying goes, all martial arts under heaven originated from Shaolin, Shaolin Temple is the Mount Tai martial arts in the Central Plains.

He obtained a copy of the Muscle Tendon Changing Scripture Classic) from the Shaolin Temple that no one practiced, and he has already benefited greatly from it.

If I could acquire a few more Divine Skill Manuals, I might be able to advance to the next level.

So the information he had gathered came uninvited, and he voluntarily joined the group of the Reverend Shenshan.

After a brief probe, the Reverend Shenshan knew that Jiumozhi was a powerful ally.

Moreover, he not only coveted the martial arts of Shaolin Temple, but also the skills of Jiumozhi.

That's how the group got together and went to Shaolin Temple.

The Shaolin Temple had long known that the Reverend Shenshan was exceptionally skilled, and that Jiumozhi had also made a name for himself in the martial arts world.

Abbot Xuan Ci had just passed away, so there was always some turmoil.

Many of the eminent monks who witnessed the event were found by the Reverend Shenshan. Although these were all eminent monks, Shaolin Temple was still not entirely at ease with them.

Therefore, a call to arms was issued, inviting heroes from all over the land to come and witness this event.

Faced with Zheluoxing's stubborn denial and the aggressive approach of the Reverend Shenshan.

The monks of the Xuan generation discussed it and concluded that if they refused to let Boluo Xing come out to meet them, it would make it seem like there was something fishy going on at Shaolin Temple.

He then sent word to have someone summon Boluo Xing.

Before long, four old monks accompanied Boluo Xing to the front of the main hall.

Boluo Xing was short in stature and had a dark complexion.

Upon approaching and seeing Zheluoxing, she immediately rushed forward and hugged him, bursting into tears.

The two of them chattered away in the local dialect of India, speaking rapidly and at a pace that no one else could understand.

The two talked for a while before finally stopping.

Na Zheluoxing then loudly proclaimed in the Central Plains language, "The people of Shaolin Temple are lying. My junior brother has never stolen any martial arts from Shaolin Temple."

"He just secretly read some Buddhist books. Buddhist books originally came from India, so reading them doesn't break any precepts."

"Master Kumārajīva and Patriarch Bodhidharma were also from India. They gave you Buddhist scriptures and martial arts, but you detained our India. You are truly ungrateful... that... that... anyway, it's a bad thing..."