Chapter Summaries

Qu Zan worked out the Ghost-Fallen Guanyin’s killing pattern and led the survivors in a blindfolded escape so they could alert the Corpse Camel Temple. One monk’s stumble drew the Vengeful Ghost’s attention, leaving the others to flee knowing that even a single mistake could be fatal.

• Qu Zan explained that the Ghost-Fallen Guanyin made people fall toward whatever they looked at, and the others understood how that had killed Nacang and Tseten.
• Qu Zan estimated the Vengeful Ghost’s range at two to three li and warned that its power could grow stronger after nightfall.
• Qu Zan told everyone to cover their vision, run toward the side room, split up, and report the Vengeful Ghost to the temple.
• The monks covered their eyes and ran outside while Qu Zan used his [Extensive Learning] ability to navigate the courtyard.
• A monk stumbled, glimpsed the Ghost-Fallen Guanyin, and was killed as it drew him into contact with it.

Qu Zan led the surviving monks away from the Ghost-Fallen Guanyin while keeping their eyes covered, and they learned that darkness itself meant certain death. After the Sutra Academy Abbot arrived, Qu Zan noticed signs that the abbot wielded ghostly power and asked him about the Vengeful Ghost.

• Qu Zan warned the monks that they were still within danger and guided them onward while counting the time.
• A monk fell and uncovered his eyes, then died after closing them in darkness, revealing that darkness was fatal.
• The survivors reached another menial monk and had him report the Ghost-Fallen Guanyin to the Sutra Academy Abbot.
• The abbot arrived and told the group they were beyond the ghost's influence, allowing them to lower their robes.
• Qu Zan spotted dead hands beneath the abbot's robes and asked whether the Vengeful Ghost was named Ghost-Fallen Guanyin.

Qu Zan reported Ghost-Fallen Guanyin’s killing pattern to the head of the Sutra Academy, who rewarded him with a ring containing Fortune Essence before entering the Ancient Empty Courtyard to subdue the Vengeful Ghost. Days later, Rinchen arranged new paths for the survivors, and Qu Zan, Doje, and Gonbo were assigned to train in different academies.

• Qu Zan told the head of the Sutra Academy how Ghost-Fallen Guanyin killed, and the head gave him a coral-set ring that contained Fortune Essence.
• The head warned that those who encountered a Vengeful Ghost might encounter one again, then carried a Golden Benba Bottle into the Ancient Empty Courtyard to deal with the ghost.
• Qu Zan, Doje, and Rinchen returned to the Servants' Courtyard, where Qu Zan absorbed the ring's Fortune Essence and speculated that Ghost-Fallen Guanyin had escaped from a Lama's quarters near the Meditation Courtyard.
• The monastery suppressed news of the ghost, and Qu Zan continued his usual work and scripture studies over the following days.
• Rinchen appeared at the servant monks' task assignment and arranged for Gonbo to train as a Medicine Monk, Doje as a warrior monk, and Qu Zan as a Scholar Monk.

Qu Zan and Doje were promoted after surviving the Vengeful Ghost, and Rinchen explained the secret of empowerment as he led Qu Zan to his new room at the Sutra Academy. The chapter ended with Qu Zan settling into the prospect of having a private room and beginning his new life as a Scholar Monk.

• Rinchen announced that Doje and Qu Zan had been promoted, prompting envy among the servant monks, while Miba congratulated Qu Zan.
• Rinchen told Qu Zan, Doje, and Gonbo that the academy head had subdued Ghost-Fallen Guanyin but suffered grave injuries in the process.
• Rinchen explained that Ghost-Fallen Guanyin had emerged from a monk during a secluded retreat and described how eminent monks could bind Vengeful Ghosts.
• Rinchen revealed that he had received lineage empowerment and could begin practicing esoteric methods, then explained the four categories of empowerment.
• Rinchen took Qu Zan to the Sutra Academy and gave him the key to a private room opposite his own.

Qu Zan settled into life as a Scholar Monk at Corpse Camel Temple, attending prayers and lessons while enjoying better food and rest than before. After speaking with the exhausted martial monk Doje at lunch, Qu Zan entered his afternoon debate class and noticed the Scholar Monks were unusually tense and punctual.

• Qu Zan slept in his private chamber and joined the Scholar Monks for morning meditation, prayers, and breakfast.
• Qu Zan began studying collected topics and learned that Scholar Monks needed a master's guarantee to borrow scriptures.
• At lunch, Qu Zan saw Doje exhausted by martial monk training and asked him to teach him martial techniques later.
• Qu Zan entered the afternoon scripture debate class and noticed that the Scholar Monks had arrived early and sat unusually upright.

Qu Zan learned about the monastery’s ranks and the strict scripture teacher Nepa Lama, then attended Nepa’s class and impressed him with his explanation of Collected Topics. After class, Qu Zan met Doje in the dining hall and asked whether he had encountered the old menial worker again.

• Rusu and another Scholar Monk told Qu Zan that Nepa Lama was a formidable teacher who could punish students and was qualified to enter the Ancestral Temple.
• A Scholar Monk explained Mìdì’s temple hierarchy and the Scholar Monk advancement ranks, while Qu Zan learned that Nepa could deduct students’ allowances for poor conduct.
• Nepa Lama entered the scripture hall surrounded by a chilling darkness, and Qu Zan suspected he carried a Vengeful Ghost.
• Nepa asked the students to explain Collected Topics, and Qu Zan gave a clear answer that earned Nepa’s praise.
• Qu Zan attended the afternoon lessons, noticed wealthy Scholar Monks taking notes on expensive paper, and later met the exhausted Doje in the dining hall.
• Qu Zan asked Doje whether he had seen the old menial worker again.

Qu Zan sought Huode's help to study more scriptures and discovered that reading them could improve his consciousness and grant him techniques. The chapter ended with him gaining Pain Reduction lv1 from "Eight Sufferings, Five Chapters."

• Qu Zan and Doje wondered whether the gap-toothed old servant had been a hidden monastery figure, and Doje volunteered to search for him.
• Qu Zan thanked Huode for his guidance and secured permission to attend the next Dharma Assembly.
• Huode guaranteed Qu Zan access to three scriptures, which Qu Zan read at the repository.
• Qu Zan's consciousness rose by 0.3 as he studied, and he visited Meiduo during a day off.
• Qu Zan finished reading "Eight Sufferings, Five Chapters" and gained insight into Pain Reduction lv1.

Qu Zan worried about finding warmer housing for Meiduo and Duimu, then began the monthly assessment, hoping his studies would help him earn a good ranking. He excelled at recitation but drew his classmates’ attention, and the written test began under Lama Nyepa’s watchful eye.

• Qu Zan considered using his savings and any competition winnings to find a warmer home for Meiduo and Duimu.
• Doje told Qu Zan that the mysterious gap-toothed old servant was named Yeluo and tended horses in the monastery stables; they planned to visit him the following evening.
• Lama Nyepa explained that the monthly assessment covered recitation, a written test, and scripture debate, with scores affecting the Scholar Monks’ prospects.
• Qu Zan flawlessly recited the verses on effects and earned twenty points, prompting Nyepa to praise him in front of the class.
• The written test began, and Nyepa threatened Qima after catching him trying to peek at another student’s answers.

Qu Zan took part in a scripture debate assessment and defeated Chima by exposing a contradiction in his argument. Lama Nyepa declared Chima the loser, leaving Qu Zan’s ring and Chima’s twenty taels of secret silver at stake.

• Namkha handed in his exam first, and Nyepa awarded him eighteen points while giving Gyatso a perfect score for his answers and calligraphy.
• Nyepa began the scripture debate assessment and paired Chima with Gyatso after Chima volunteered to face him instead of Namkha.
• Chima offered twenty taels of secret silver as the debate reward, and Gyatso put up a valuable saddle-shaped ring.
• Chima argued that everything white was an impermanent visible color, but Gyatso disproved the claim by pointing out that Chima had called the definition of white white and then denied that its whiteness was real.
• Nyepa declared Chima the loser and explained that the debate required distinguishing concrete objects from attributes and abstract concepts.

Qu Zan won the reading assessment, received a tea brick from Nyepa, and enjoyed brewing it in his room. He later went with Doje to meet Yeluo, the old stable worker, and sought a private conversation with him about tending horses.

• Qu Zan accepted Chima’s twenty taels of secret silver after winning their scripture debate, and Nyepa awarded him fifty-nine points for his first assessment.
• Qu Zan placed first in the reading assessment with ninety-nine points, received a tea brick and salt from Nyepa, and saw the Scholar Monks’ attitudes toward him improve.
• Qu Zan brewed the tea brick and found comfort in its warm, sweet taste.
• Qu Zan’s Consciousness increased from 2.6 to 2.7 after the day’s studying and assessment.
• Qu Zan and Doje went to the monastery stable to meet Yeluo, and Qu Zan offered butter to the servant monk before asking to speak with Yeluo alone about tending horses.

Qu Zan concluded that Yeluo might become a different person when drunk and could predict the future, so he planned to investigate by getting him alcohol. After arranging to learn Doje’s Yoga Method, Qu Zan continued studying and looked forward to their training session on the seventh day.

• Qu Zan questioned Yeluo, who remained confused and barely spoke, then learned from the Attendant Monk that Yeluo had tended the temple’s horses for over twenty years.
• Qu Zan told Doje he believed Yeluo was the same person they had met before, and theorized that alcohol caused his shaking hands and changed his behavior.
• Qu Zan and Doje suspected Yeluo stole liquor from the Lay Disciples' Courtyard and decided to find a way to get him drunk, though they rejected stealing alcohol themselves.
• Doje offered to teach Qu Zan the Yoga Method on their day off, and Qu Zan agreed to learn the Warrior Monk practices.
• Qu Zan kept studying over the following days as his mental consciousness and [Extensive Learning] progressed, and he anticipated that Yoga Method training would improve his physique.

Rusu took Qu Zan to Jieyou Alley, a marketplace near Corpse Camel Temple, and then brought him to the Consort Lodge, a place for practitioners of esoteric sexual rites. Rusu went upstairs to meet a consort, while a woman offered to find one for Qu Zan.

• Qu Zan listed his four goals and worried that most of them would require more money than he had.
• Rusu invited Qu Zan to Jieyou Alley, and Qu Zan collected his free dinner before setting out with him.
• Rusu paid a warrior monk to let them pass through a guarded gate and explained that the nearby estates belonged to living buddhas, officials, and nobles.
• Qu Zan inspected the alley’s shops for items bearing fortune essence, while Rusu warned him that the goods were fake and overpriced.
• Rusu led Qu Zan into the Consort Lodge and explained its practice of sexual union.
• A woman offered to find Qu Zan a consort after Rusu headed upstairs.

Qu Zan refused an offer of dual-body cultivation, then searched Jieyou Alley for alcohol and antiques. He met Namkha and Tuya, enjoyed the snacks Tuya bought, and followed them to an antique shop Namkha said was relatively trustworthy.

• Qu Zan rejected dual-body cultivation because he feared it violated monastery precepts, then bought two boiled potatoes and searched Jieyou Alley for alcohol.
• Qu Zan met Namkha, Madam Yangjin, and Tuya, and recognized Madam Yangjin as the woman who had sought a son from the monastery's elder.
• Madam Yangjin went to buy a tapestry while Namkha took Qu Zan and Tuya to browse antique shops.
• Tuya bought Qu Zan a succession of snacks and asked about his scripture debate victory over Chima.
• Namkha led Qu Zan to an antique shop and explained that about half its goods were probably fake.

Qu Zan and his companions visited an antique shop, where the shopkeeper warned them about Shaktism followers after a dreadlocked practitioner tried to sell medicinal oil. Qu Zan found two antiques containing secret essence and bargained to buy them, learning they had recently come from the Vast Sea.

• Qu Zan, Tuya, and Namkha entered the antique shop and encountered a Shaktism follower selling Tila medicinal oil.
• The shopkeeper explained Shaktism’s beliefs and Sacred Wheel gatherings, then warned the companions to keep their distance from its followers.
• Tuya mistook a ceramic melon for food, while Qu Zan searched the antiques for secret essence.
• Qu Zan found Fortune Essence in a vajra bell and another antique, then haggled with the shopkeeper.
• Qu Zan bought a vajra and vajra bell for sixteen taels, and the shopkeeper said both had come from the Vast Sea.

Qu Zan absorbed fortune essence from two antiques and strengthened his body, consciousness, and Patience. He planned to find warmer housing for his younger sister, learn the Yoga Method from Doje, and compete in the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly.

• Qu Zan bought two antiques from the Vast Sea and absorbed 2.8 fortune essence from them, bringing his available points to 3.4.
• Qu Zan increased his Body from 2.4 to 3.6, his Consciousness from 2.7 to 3.8, and his Patience progress from 20% to 56%.
• Qu Zan declined Rusu's invitation to practice at the Consort Wisdom Court and continued studying for the next few days.
• Doje offered to teach Qu Zan the Yoga Method, and Qu Zan agreed to learn it and test himself against Doje after visiting his younger sister.
• Qu Zan told Doje he would look for warmer housing for his younger sister, and Doje offered him money, which he declined.
• Rinchen encouraged Qu Zan to compete in the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly, and Qu Zan studied scripture with Huo De Lama before leaving before dawn.

Qu Zan took Duimu and Meiduo from their cold wooden hut to find a sturdier home before winter. He rented a detached stone house near Corpse Camel Temple, then returned to the temple for his yoga lesson.

• Qu Zan saw Meiduo shivering in the cold hut and decided they needed a stronger house before the snow came.
• Qu Zan took Duimu and Meiduo to a trading house and asked to see detached stone houses.
• Qu Zan chose a stone house near Corpse Camel Temple and negotiated a rent of one tael and nine mace a month.
• Qu Zan arranged to exchange the wooden hut's remaining rent for dried cow dung and settled into his own room in the new house.
• Qu Zan returned to the temple after lunch to learn the yoga technique.

Doje taught Qu Zan Tummo Meditation, which awakened spiritual heat and increased Qu Zan’s physique and consciousness. Doje then taught him the Tummo Saber Technique, and they sparred before heading out to celebrate Qu Zan’s family’s move with mutton.

• Doje explained Tummo Meditation and invited Qu Zan to test his newly trained strength, but Qu Zan’s charge knocked Doje down.
• Doje guided Qu Zan through Tummo Meditation, helping him ignite and gather tummo fire as his physique and consciousness increased.
• Doje taught Qu Zan the Tummo Saber Technique, and the two practiced fighting and sparred together.
• Doje told Qu Zan that some warrior monks doubted fighting techniques could help against vengeful ghosts, and Qu Zan argued that every skill opened another path.
• Qu Zan invited Doje to his home for mutton to celebrate his family’s move, and Doje eagerly agreed.

Qu Zan and Doje found liquor and brought it to Yeluo, whose changed demeanor revealed him as the Gap-Toothed Old Man. Yeluo asked Qu Zan to fetch a Golden Benba Bottle from the Golden Roof of the Corpse Camel Temple.

• Qu Zan, Doje, and Meiduo shared noodles and lamb, and Duimu obtained home-brewed liquor for Qu Zan.
• Qu Zan and Doje visited Yeluo at the stables and urged him to drink while Doje took over his work.
• After drinking, Yeluo's cloudy eyes cleared and his bearing transformed, startling Doje.
• Qu Zan confronted Yeluo about their earlier meeting and its connection to fate.
• Yeluo said he could see signs of the future and asked Qu Zan to retrieve a Golden Benba Bottle engraved with a hand from the Golden Roof.

Qu Zan learned that Yeluo wanted him to fetch the Golden Benba Bottle in exchange for a wish, but he withheld his answer after discovering Yeluo could alter memories. Qu Zan then prepared for the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly, which began with him and Namkha among the assembled monks.

• Yeluo asked Qu Zan to fetch the Golden Benba Bottle and offered to grant him one wish within his power, but Qu Zan delayed committing.
• After Yeluo touched Doje's arm, Doje forgot who they had come to meet, and Qu Zan suspected Yeluo could alter memories through contact.
• Qu Zan stayed away from the stable and focused on studying scriptures for the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly.
• Namkha told Qu Zan that the dzong governor had come to watch and warned him to watch out for Jiumo, a talented Senior Druptsawa nearing graduation.
• The Dharma Assembly began, and the monks sat in the cold before the Sutra Academy's main hall.

Qu Zan, under the Dharma name Gyatso, impressed the assembly with his flawless recitation of the Sutra of the Excellent Lion's Roar and placed third in the first day's rankings. The Debate began the next morning, while the Sutra Academy Abbot's unsettling presence left the presiding officials uneasy.

• Qu Zan recited the Sutra of the Excellent Lion's Roar without hesitation, earning praise and applause from the scripture masters and spectators.
• Huo De told Qu Zan he had placed third, behind Gama and Dunzhu, while Namkha placed ninth.
• Huo De and Namkha advised Qu Zan to prepare an unassailable thesis for the Debate the next day.
• Doje and Gonbo discussed the Debate's reputation for provoking furious arguments, and Gonbo warned that outside factors could influence the contest.
• The Debate began as the Sutra Academy's officials presided, unsettled by the Sutra Academy Abbot's vivid crimson robe and shadowed presence.