The old monk slowly turned the scroll on the ground and rolled out the yellowed scroll bit by bit.
As the scroll unfolds, the changing white clouds, steep solitary peaks, mountain streams and waterfalls, and rugged withered pines are outlined in a few strokes of ink, creating a picture of green mountains with white clouds and ancient pine trees.
Landscape picture?
Zheng Xiu looked carefully and was suddenly startled.
It seems, nothing special.
The old monk's movements quickened.
Zheng Xiutong shrank and found a bright spot.
In this landscape painting, the entire picture is painted with thick ink and rough outlines, using a minimalist style to depict a majestic scenery. In the atmosphere, it gives people a sense of aloofness, as if they are above the heaven and earth, overlooking the world from a high place. Zheng Xiu saw at a glance that there was a solitary tomb on the top of the solitary peak. The small solitary tomb was as inconspicuous as a small bun on the top of the solitary peak.
It's inconspicuous, so why did Zheng Xiu notice that lonely tomb at a glance?
Because, Zheng Xiu vaguely saw the words written in blood on the solitary grave.
As the saying goes, a little red among the greenery, such a strong contrasting color makes the bloody words on the lonely grave the finishing touch, making it unforgettable at a glance.
What words are written on it?
Zheng Xiu stood up unknowingly, and the bloody words on the lonely grave suddenly became distorted and became larger and larger. Zheng Xiu's widened eyes began to become bloodshot, and he felt as if a deep vortex appeared on the picture scroll, attracting him closer, attracting him forward, and attracting him to see more clearly.
Zheng Xiu felt that he was about to see clearly what the bloody words on the lonely grave were.
"Wait a minute!"
The old monk clasped his hands together, rolled up the scroll, and at the same time let out a soft drink, waiting for Zen's magic to come out.
The three words "Wait a minute" were like an invisible big drum, banging in the minds of the three of them. Zheng Xiu felt that on the seemingly ordinary landscape painting, the twisted blood words were no longer twisted, and the whirlpool It also disappeared, and the painting was quickly moving away from his sight.
Blinking, Zheng Xiu was surprised to find that the painting was still there, just rolled up again by the monk and not far away.
What just happened?
Zheng Xiuru woke up from a deep dream. Only then did he notice that he had stood up at some point and took two steps towards the old monk's futon.
Next to him was Feng Bei.
Feng Bei seemed to be attracted by some strange attraction. He stood up and walked towards the old monk.
The two of them did not sit down again. A simple painting made their faces look more solemn.
"Susu!"
A monk was heard exclaiming from the side. When he looked back, he saw that Chu Susu, who should have been covering her eyes, fell backwards, her eyes dull.
After the monk called a few times, Chu Susu's dull eyes regained their brilliance. After opening them, she said blankly: "Where am I?"
Ruchen said angrily: "You stole it again?"
Chu Susu said weakly: "I didn't!"
"You peeked!"
"I, I, I, that was an unintentional mistake!"
Ruchen shook his head: "If the master hadn't said something to save your life, you would have lost your life long ago!"
Chu Susu was suddenly speechless, her lips turned white, and she didn't know how to argue.
"Heart disease is difficult to cure!"
Ruchen sighed again and accused Chu Susu's behavior of being a heart disease.
Want to steal everything.
But he didn't know that this was the weirdness of Menjing Qigong. The more you stick to a certain rule, and it becomes almost pathological, you can get a glimpse into the door.
…
It was because of "stealing" that Chu Susu had a heart attack, so she entered the "Stealing Gate". She always wanted to steal everything she encountered.
Seeing that Chu Susu was fine, Zheng Xiu looked away.
After a moment of silence, Zheng Xiu whispered: "I saw a mountain, a waterfall, a few dead pines, and a grave."
Feng Bei's eyes flashed with obvious surprise, and he asked instead: "Are you sure?"
Zheng Xiu frowned: "What's wrong?"
Feng Bei lowered his head, raised his fingers to gently support his chin, and said after a moment: "I saw a lush forest. There were traces of fighting in the forest, and there were bloody corpses. The most important thing is..." Feng Bei raised his head, In a calm tone, he said something that shocked Zheng Xiu: "I saw a waist tag hanging on the tree. If I read it correctly, it should be the Twenty-Eight Stars, the Eastern Seven Stars, and Xinhu's waist tag. .”
So weird?
Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei saw completely different pictures on the same painting.
Paintings come from the heart?
Zheng Xiu suddenly turned around and asked Chu Susu: "What did you see?"
"I..." Chu Susu was about to argue that I didn't see it, but when she saw Zheng Xiu's sharp gaze, she could only say honestly: "I saw the scorching sun on the yellow sand, and there was a horse on the desert. The horse seemed to be sitting on it Man, I just wanted to see who was sitting right away, when I was woken up by the master."
Three people saw different pictures on the same painting.
At this time Zheng Xiu looked at Ruchen again.
Ruchen knew what Zheng Xiu wanted to ask, so he shook his head: "The young monk didn't peek."
The old monk put the painting away again, wrapped it in oilcloth, and tied it firmly.
The movement is slow.
It wasn't until he carefully put away the painting by Gongsun Mo that the old monk said, "Ruchen, see the guests off."
Ruchen nodded, stretched out his hand towards the main hall door and saluted: "The monk has already completed what I promised you two. I believe you two have fulfilled your wish. Please come back."
Feng Bei looked at Zheng Xiu.
Zheng Xiu shook his head slowly.
When the two were about to step out of the door.
"Wait a minute."
Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei stopped at the same time.
At this time, Zheng Xiu couldn't tell whether he stopped due to the influence of thaumaturgy, or whether he stopped after hearing those words.
But it doesn't matter now.
The candlelight in the main hall flickered on and off, and the old monk's figure disappeared into the dark hall.
"The old monk has a saying...give it to the almsgiver Zheng Shan."
"Please say."
“It is difficult to distinguish between reality and reality, between black and white, and between right and wrong.”
Zheng Xiu was stunned: "Master, what do you mean by this?"
"You... take care of yourself."
After the old monk finished speaking, he stopped replying.
Zheng Xiu was speechless.
The old monk's "Waiting Zen" made Zheng Xiu lose his temper.
After walking out of the main hall, Ruchen saluted inside and then respectfully closed the door of the main hall.
At this time, Ruchen let out a long sigh of relief: "Master has hardly received outsiders in these years. I never expected that master would make an exception to see you today."
"Thank you, Master Huahua."
Zheng Xiu nuzzled towards Fengbei and walked towards the outside of Yunliu Temple.
Ruchen followed the old monk's instructions and sent him respectfully all the way to the door.
The remaining monks were still counting supplies in the aftermath of the fire and looking around to see who had set the fire.
…
On the way, Zheng Xiu mentioned that he saw a figure hiding in the woods.
Ruchen smiled when he heard the words and said that Yunliu Temple was safe and sound because there were masters waiting for him.
"I apologize for your worries, but you can rest assured."
Ruchen smiled.
"I would like to ask, how did you master Master Bao Bao's 'Bai Bao Zen'?"
Zheng Xiu was really curious.
Ruchen suddenly chuckled, and there was a bit of weird wretchedness on his face, but the strange expression disappeared in a flash. Ruchen coughed twice and replied: "The young monk once heard that when he was young, Master Waiting was just a gatekeeper. When a monk sees someone visiting, he will take the initiative to say, "Wait a minute." When the visitors see the master's kindness, they can't help but stop. After waiting, stopping, and talking, decades have passed by, and suddenly there is In one day, he becomes a master.”
Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei looked at each other.
Can this be accomplished?
Zheng Xiu was certain that Master Waiting's thaumaturgy had nothing to do with him.
Wait, how old is the master?
In other words, before Baili Village, magic had already existed in the world, but it was just hidden too deeply and no one cared about it.
Zheng Xiu was relieved, said goodbye to Ruchen, and walked out of Yunliu Temple.
In the mountain forest, Feng Bei and Zheng Xiu walked side by side. Feng Bei said calmly: "The painting has its own world, and it is most likely that it has become a special ghost."
"You think so too?"
Zheng Xiu smiled: "Do you think that painting is a strange thing?"
Feng Bei thought for a moment, then shook his head: "In my opinion, it doesn't look like it. If Gongsun Mo who lived two hundred years ago was really a natural stranger, once he died, the strange things attached to him would disappear. Between heaven and earth. One day, strange things will appear on their own and choose another master to be born with them. Unless..."
"Unless something."
Feng Bei: "Unless Gongsun Mo is still alive."
Zheng Xiu was noncommittal.
He thought it was impossible.
But as of now, nothing is impossible.
Feng Bei then said: "They are fixed in the painting. It is a cannibal painting. If there is a ghost inside that painting, everything will make sense. They are all pulled into the painting."
Zheng Xiu frowned: "But there is one thing that doesn't make sense. The conditions for the generation of ghosts are extremely harsh. They need to be formed at the interface between the eternal darkness and the eternal world. To get close to the eternal darkness, a large number of human souls need to attack the barrier of the eternal darkness and the ordinary world. It's just a mere A painting... No, maybe it only makes sense if Gongsun Mo is truly a natural stranger."
Zheng Xiu originally wanted to say it was impossible based on conventional theories. But when he thought about his experiences during this period, Zheng Xiu felt that as long as he had something to do with strangers, nothing was impossible.
Strangers are born in the doorway and cannot be inferred by common sense.
This is true whether it is Zheng Xiu's [Prisoner] or Feng Bei's [Executioner].
"But since the painting is in the hands of Master Waiting, with Ye Weiyang's style, it is not convenient for us to snatch it away."
Fengbei Road.
Zheng Xiu looked helpless: "Indeed, we have no enmity with him. We even asked to take a look at the painting, and the master complied with us. If it were a hard grab, Zheng would be a little reluctant. But then The weirdness of the sub-painting really aroused Zheng’s interest.”
Feng Bei nodded: "If there is really a ghost hidden in that painting, the missing Xingxu and Xiaxiansi must be trapped in the painting. The Ye Weiyang waistband I saw at a quick glance doesn't seem to be fake."
…
Zheng Xiu smiled and asked, "What do you think? Do you want to fulfill Ye Weiyang's duty to save people?"
A slight smile appeared on Feng Bei's face: "Whatever Brother Zheng thinks, Feng Bei will do."
The implication is that Zheng Shan has the final say.
"Two sisters and uncle..."
Chu Susu was like a child who had done something wrong, her eyes flickered, and she raised her hand weakly: "There is one thing...I...I..."
"I couldn't help but try it before I left."
"I want to say that the old master is kind-hearted and doesn't know how to curse."
"did not expect,"
She took out her hand hidden in her clothes, and as if by magic, pulled out a long oil-covered object from her thin chest.
Chu Susu lowered her head and handed over the cannibal painting: "I stole it accidentally and succeeded."
Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei looked shocked and were speechless for a moment.
Chu Susu knew she had done something wrong.
I couldn't hold it back for a moment and stole the painting.
Looking at the expressions of his uncle and sister at this moment, he thought they were angry.
After all, my uncle said not long ago not to do anything without his orders.
"I just couldn't hold it back." Seeing the silence between the two of them, Chu Susu thought that Feng Bei and Zheng Xiu were angry, so she asked timidly: "Then, do you want to return this painting?"
…
Not long after Zheng Xiu, Feng Bei, and Chu Susu left.
In Yunliu Temple.
In the main hall with the door closed, the old monk was alone, beating the wooden fish in the darkness.
The hollow and dull tapping sound of wooden fish echoed in the empty main hall, once, twice, three times, four times...
The old monk's movements of knocking on the wooden fish became slower and slower.
suddenly.
The old monk stopped banging the wooden fish and sighed.
stop.
The long-burning candles in the main hall swayed violently, and in the blink of an eye, they were extinguished one by one.
In an instant, the main hall was dark and lightless, and it was impossible to see even one's fingers.
"ah--"
At some point, a dark raven stood on the beam of the main hall. Until the candlelight in the room was completely extinguished, the crow crowed, shrill and strange.
"Since you're here, why don't you show up?"
The old monk said to the empty door.
The raven on the beam seemed to understand the human words, swooped down, and flew around the door at a low speed.
As the raven flew, black crow feathers began to fall from the raven's body.
First, one of the crow feathers twisted and squirmed in the darkness, turning into a second raven like flesh and blood.
The second raven continued to fly, its crow feathers floating out.
More and more ravens were flying in the main hall, and the crow feathers seemed to become fresh flesh and blood, turning into agile black ravens out of thin air.
The rotating flock of ravens is like a storm, and the flying crows attack each other and twist together. The raven screamed, and each raven turned into blood and minced meat in the collision.
The blood and minced meat forcibly mixed together in that corner were like a deep black hole or an abyss. At this time, a figure with unusually slender limbs slowly walked out.
The black figure was wrapped in tattered black cloth. The most eye-catching thing was his messy snow-white dry hair. His thin face and eyes were covered with several thick layers of red cloth. In the red cloth, six points of bloody light flickered vaguely, like six eyeballs hidden behind a red blindfold, which was chilling.
…
If Zheng Xiu were here at this moment, he would be surprised to find that the abyss-like haze made of raven flesh and blood is somewhat similar in shape to the transmission channel when Zheng Xiu opened the [Inn] in the prison of his heart.
The strange man with slender arms and legs and white hair who looked both human and inhuman walked out of the passage and stood quietly aside.
"call--"
"call--"
When "his" chest rose and fell, the sound of "his" long breathing echoed in the main hall.
"Ye Weiyang, crow breeder."
The old monk revealed the identity of the weirdo, but his cloudy eyes did not stop at the "crow keeper", but stared at the crow passage.
"Master of the State, Master of the State," the old monk sighed: "How are you?"
"The Imperial Master is dead, and I am the Night Lord." A powerful voice came from the passage, but he did not show up.
The old monk was silent.
The Night Master smiled and said, "Thank you for delivering the painting to the human pillar with your own hands."
The old monk closed his eyes and frowned: "This is their choice and has nothing to do with the old monk."
The Night Lord was silent for a moment and said: "Old friend, you don't need to feel guilty. This is just a big empty dream. You already knew this, so why bother with it."
The old monk said: "If you don't wake up from the dream, then it is true."
"A dream is still a dream, and it's hard for a fake to come true. What I did was just to bring order out of chaos and get everything back on track."
Old monk: "Sin."
Night Lord: "Not a crime."
The old monk showed pain on his face: "Please come back."
From beginning to end, the mysterious Night Lord never showed up.
Tuk-tuk-tuk.
The old monk struck the wooden fish again, his heart sinking.
The crowkeeper turned silently and walked back into the passage.
The dark and deep passage gradually narrowed, and before the passage completely disappeared, the Night Lord's voice seemed to come from the horizon, long and loud.
"One thought arises and one thought dies. You and I are both born in illusions and die in vain."
"She... must not wake up."
Leaving behind a strange word, the crow keeper, the passage, and the night master completely disappeared in front of the old monk.
Puff, puff, puff, puff.
After the passage disappeared, the extinguished candles were rekindled, and the light returned to the main hall.
Where the Raven Passage disappeared, a dark and viscous liquid like asphalt was left behind.
boom!
suddenly.
A figure smashed into the palace door, lying on all fours like a beast, its nose twitching as if it smelled something.
This man's face was ferocious, his face was upside down, and he turned out to be Ruchen who had seen off his guests.
"Ahem! Old bald donkey, you actually want to harm me!"
Ruchen's face looked crazy, his throat trembled, and he let out a hoarse roar.
He waved his arms and rushed towards the old monk, but his feet stepped on the dark and sticky liquid. He slipped and rolled towards the old monk.
"Wait a minute."
"Wait a minute."
The old monk performed the Waiting Zen, and the speed of rolling like dust became slower and slower. When it arrived in front of the old monk, it landed little by little in mid-air, and happened to kneel on the futon, with his eyes closed tightly.
"Wait a minute, don't rush."
The old monk's solemn brows gradually softened, and he touched Ruchen's bald head.
"Don't be anxious."
The old monk's hands crossed left and right on his bald head. The more he crossed his hands, the calmer his expression became.
The words "Wait a minute" were like a magic voice that hit my ears. Ruchen's twisted expression turned into an innocent child in an instant, and like a white lotus growing in the mud, spotless and revealing his true heart.
Ruchen opened his eyes, winked playfully, stuck out his tongue and said with a smile: "Hehehehe...Thank you so much, master~"
The candlelight was bright, illuminating Ruchen's tongue, which had strange tattoos.
The writing on the tattoo is clear, clearly the word "Renchen"!
