"Heaven cherishes life. Why must General Lu be so ruthless? We who dwell beyond the secular world have always stayed far from the struggle between the two nations. Even if we sought only to preserve ourselves wisely, we have committed no great wrong."
Abbot Fa Zheng wore a bitter expression as he pressed his palms together and pleaded.
This abbot had previously possessed the composed bearing of an eminent monk, but now he truly understood that today's ordeal would be exceedingly hard to pass.
The other side's killing intent was resolute. They had come with a great army, carrying the momentum of exterminating an entire sect.
They were even harder to deal with than Northern Zhou's troops.
Lu Wu-bing shook his head. "Abbot Fa Zheng, your words are mistaken. Why did you not speak to Northern Zhou's soldiers of Heaven's virtue of cherishing life?
"Look at Jing Province's twenty-eight cities: living beings lie in ruin, every household dressed in mourning white, corpses strewn across the wilderness.
"My Great Li has always treated those of the martial world generously. With the nation facing calamity, have you not heard that beneath an overturned nest, how can any egg remain whole...
"Your mountain's palaces and residences are lavish beyond measure. More than ten thousand monks eat, dress, and live in extravagance. Fertile fields stretch for dozens of miles below the mountain, with tens of thousands of tenant farmers. Your disciples descend the mountain to become officials and generals, enjoying salaries and emoluments to the full...
"You enjoy such blessings, yet not only do you fail to repay them, you turn around and submit to Northern Zhou, allowing barbarians to slaughter your own countrymen.
"With such conduct, how can you still have the face to stand beneath this sky?
"Since we are already enemies,