Buddha at the Door

After watching for a while, Qiu Yan shook his head.

"The events in the city have nothing to do with me. Let's proceed step by step and settle the eight spirits first. Besides, the Void-Driving Dao Lord may arrive at any time, so we need to prepare in advance. However, since he has been invited to help, and strange phenomena have occurred in the Eastern Capital, he will likely be quite busy."

Thinking of this, Qiu Yan turned and left, heading towards the houses and temples.

He hadn't walked more than a few steps when he stopped, a look of surprise on his face. "Hmm? I didn't expect that there would be Great Rui in the Five Marshes who believe in me, yet this has caused such a change! Since they are believers, I can't ignore them, and besides, this is also an opportunity..."

Yuan Shoufang stood atop the village fence, gripping his bow and arrow tightly. He was extremely tense, yet he managed to calm his fear, his eyes fixed on the outside, not daring to relax for a moment.

Although it was dark, the torches still allowed us to make out the general outline of the surroundings.

Their village is surrounded!

Suddenly, a loud voice came from outside—

"Listen up, people of the village! Surrender immediately, destroy the statues of the evil god, and welcome the Buddha into your hearts! Otherwise, not a single chicken or dog Fenglin Stockade!"

The speaker was full of energy and used his strength to amplify his words, which rolled on and spread throughout the village. The men, women, and children in the village were already trembling with fear, and upon hearing these words, many women and children immediately burst into tears. In an instant, a cloud of sorrow filled the air, and everyone's hearts wavered. In the blink of an eye, the entire village was shrouded in a sense of despair.

"Father, we can't hesitate any longer! So what if we convert to Buddha? What's the big deal? What difference does it make which god we worship? Let's get through this difficult time first!"

Deep within the village, in a relatively large house, Zhang Xue was arguing with someone.

Opposite him sat a burly man with a pale face, dark circles under his eyes, and a cloth wrapped around his body with bloodstains visible on it.

This man was none other than Zhang Lin, the chieftain of Fenglin Stockade.

Zhang Lin's face was full of sorrow. "Is it as simple as you say? I've heard about this so-called Buddha before, and many tribes in the Five Marshes have already converted to it. However, this religion is extremely heretical and obscene, almost indistinguishable from animals. They also have this so-called Five Nectars, which are said to be formed from excrement, urine, and yin essence. We are descendants of the Celestial Dynasty, how can we eat excrement and drink urine? How can we behave like wild beasts?"

"We'll talk about these things later. If Father doesn't agree today, the whole village will be wiped out, and then there will be no future." Zhang Xue shook his head, then gritted his teeth and said, "Speaking of which, it's all Yuan Shoufang's fault. After he returned, he spread rumors about the Kitchen God and made us worship him. Now that I think about it, maybe it was because of worshipping the Kitchen God that we angered Buddha, and that's why we're in trouble!"

Hearing this, Zhang Lin sighed and waved his hand, saying, "This isn't Shou Fang's fault. Even if he hadn't returned, those Marshfolk tribes who worship Buddha would have attacked sooner or later. I was negligent before, thinking that Buddha was like the Five Marshes Gods—something you could believe in or not. Who knew he would force people to convert..."

Despite this, it did not dispel Zhang Xue's resentment. He couldn't help but recall the scene when Yuan Shoufang returned.

Fenglin Stockade Village, as its name suggests, is named after Zhang Lin, but it is also located in a dense forest, adjacent to Nine Spirits Mountain.

This village is not located within the territory of Great Rui, but on the south side of Nine Spirits Mountain, in the Five Marshes area, and its people are known for their fierce and unruly nature.

Like many villages north of the mountains, the Fenglin Stockade are not as keen on plundering as the Marshfolk. Instead, they live by fishing and hunting, though they sometimes do some risk-free business.

The forests surrounding Nine Spirits Mountain are teeming with ferocious beasts and monsters. Hunters from the Fenglin Stockade into the forest must do so with trepidation. Fortunately, there are fewer Great Rui in the south of the mountain, so the competition is not fierce, and one can make a harvest without venturing too deep. However, it is inevitable that some will occasionally fall into traps.

However, this situation began to change a month ago.

The changes it brought about were precisely those of Yuan Shoufang.

When talking about Yuan Shoufang, one must mention his complicated life story.

Yuan Shoufang's father was a desperate merchant who gambled everything on iron trading. He was discovered by the border army, his caravan was seized, and he was pursued. Under the protection of his guards, he escaped into the Lin Zhong, but encountered a small group of Marshfolk. His guards were killed, and he was seriously injured. Fortunately, he was quick-witted and managed to save his life. He stumbled and fled to Fenglin Stockade, where he eventually married into the family and became an adopted son-in-law of a hunter's daughter.

With such a background, Yuan Shoufang was often ridiculed and discriminated against from a young age. However, he had a ruthless streak, and the more others mocked him, the more determined he became to make a name for himself. At a young age, he took the initiative to enter the forest and quickly gained some fame.

Unfortunately, this happy period didn't last long. A few years ago, a merchant caravan from the Central Plains passed by, which aroused Yuan's father's interest. A few days later, he abandoned his wife and children and disappeared without a trace.

Yuan Shoufang sent away by his mother and maternal grandfather to find his father. He was gone for two years and only returned a month ago.

Upon his return, he immediately caused a stir in the village. His martial arts skills had greatly improved, and he challenged the bravest men in the village, defeating them one by one.

During this period, there were provocations and counterattacks, with many twists and turns. Before long, Yuan Shoufang challenged the top young master of Fenglin Stockade Village.

This person was none other than Zhang Lin's son, Zhang Xue.

The clash between Yuan Shoufang, who was discriminated against, and Zhang Xue, who was high and mighty, naturally sparked much speculation. If a novelist knew about it, they might even be able to write a story of tens of thousands of words about it.

The outcome of this battle was that Yuan Shoufang had a slight advantage. Instead of a scene of mutual respect between heroes, Zhang Xue saw Yuan Shoufang and found fault with him at every turn.

However, after experiencing this series of challenges, Yuan Shoufang's prestige in the village has greatly increased, and there are even calls for him to become the next village chief. In particular, his original low status and lack of popularity, and his current turnaround, are quite legendary, which makes the younger generation in the village admire him greatly.

Using this prestige, Yuan Shoufang explained the origin of his transformation. It turned out that after failing to find his father, he returned to the north of the mountain and went hunting with hunters many times. In the battles with wild animals, he developed his eyesight, hearing, and strength.

But this statement only earned him Zhang Xue's sneer.

"What a joke! The mountains aren't just home to wild beasts, they also harbor demons. Hunters who venture into the mountains dare not go too deep. At most, they might catch some pheasants or rabbits. What skills could they possibly learn from that? And you say you've entered the mountains multiple times? Demons devour people; entering once a month is already a rare feat. But according to you, you've entered almost every three days—that's an exaggeration!"

In response, Yuan Shoufang said, "Nowadays, all the villages north of the mountain worship the Kitchen God, which can protect them and ensure their safety. When hunters enter the forest, they silently pray to the Kitchen God to avoid being attacked by demons. However, when fighting wild beasts, they still have to rely on their own abilities. The people of Fenglin Stockade are fierce and can compete with the Marshfolk, but the Marshfolk are no match for the wild beasts of the mountains."

This initially only aroused curiosity, but in the following days, more fragmented news came, making the villagers eager to try. They erected a clay sculpture of the Kitchen God and then tried to enter the forest. They were not threatened by demons and were overjoyed.

Speaking of which, the villagers of Fenglin Stockade, although they are also descendants of Miao people from the Central Plains, have been living in the south of Nine Spirits Mountain for a long time and have become accustomed to the customs of the Marshfolk. Instead of using temples or ancestral halls to worship gods, they erect a clay sculpture in the village, just like the Marshfolk.

This continued for a month. Fenglin Stockade reaped a great harvest, although they lost a lot of manpower, but compared to what they gained, it was nothing, and it was a world of difference compared to before.

As a result, despite Zhang Xue's hostility towards Yuan Shoufang, he could not stop the latter's prestige from rising. Even Zhang Xue's father, Zhang Lin, grew to appreciate Yuan Shoufang more and more.

Unexpectedly, disaster struck.

Today, Zhang Lin led the villagers into the deep mountains again, but they were ambushed. After a fierce battle, Zhang Lin escaped with his life, but all the other villagers were brutally murdered.

The attack came suddenly, without any prior warning. The enemy was clearly prepared, lying in ambush on the path Zhang Lin and his men were sure to take. If Zhang Lin hadn't been skilled, the entire army would have been wiped out. If the enemy had returned to attack the stronghold, the stronghold would have been leaderless, and the fate of Fenglin Stockade have been predictable.

Not long after Zhang Lin returned to the village, villagers who had been out and about started returning in twos and threes, all looking disheveled, many injured, and bringing news with them—

"A large group of Marshfolk were sweeping around the area. Of our group of more than ten people, only the two of us escaped back!"

"They were all killed! If I hadn't faked my death and escaped, there wouldn't have been anyone to warn me!"

"We saw that things were not going well, so we came back immediately."

Regardless of whether these messages revealed courage, fear, or cowardice, after being compiled, a serious problem lay before Zhang Lin—

Fenglin Stockade has been completely surrounded, and many of its soldiers have been wiped out.

It should be understood that in this perilous place, those who dare to go out during the day are mostly young and strong men. These people are the main fighting force of the village. Now, the sudden sweep has resulted in more than just a few deaths; the military strength of Fenglin Stockade has been significantly weakened.

"What are the Marshfolk's goals? Why did they suddenly join forces to attack?"

Having lived in the Southern Marsh for so long, Fenglin Stockade was no stranger to the Marshfolk and had a lot of information about them. They had also fought against them many times before, and regardless of victory or defeat, the village had always survived. Although this incident was sudden, after a brief summary, Zhang Lin realized that it was not just one tribe that had made the move, but multiple tribes working together.

This puzzled him. He knew that the Marshfolk were not united and often fought each other. They had even been manipulated and instigated by Zhang Lin before. But it was rare for several tribes to unite like this today.

Moreover, judging from what happened, the Marshfolk clearly had unified command. They first ambushed, then swept away, and finally besieged the area. It already showed the characteristics of Military School. From any perspective, it was by no means simple!

"Could it be that they know we have a bountiful hunt and want to rob us? But that doesn't seem right. The Five Marshes are teeming with poisonous insects and ferocious beasts; they don't need my few wild animal pelts."

Zhang Lin's doubts didn't last long; as night fell, the other party finally revealed their true purpose—

The purpose of making such a big fuss is to get Fenglin Stockade to convert to Buddha!

This led to the argument between Zhang Lin and his son Zhang Xue. (To be continued...)