劍問蒼天 - 第58章 傷心 - 翰墨軒

Zhang Qingyue was taken aback; Lu Xueqi's face rose before his mind's eye, and he recalled how many times she had saved him down there in the abyss, and gratitude welled up in his heart. "Senior Sister Lu, mindful of the bond between fellow disciples, I naturally..." Halfway through he suddenly thought of something and turned to Tian Lingsu. "Senior Sister, you weren't there at the time -- how do you know Senior Sister Lu was frantic?"

Tian Lingsu stuck out her tongue and made a face, then laughed. "I heard it from Senior Brother Qi Hao."

Zhang Qingyue froze. Looking at Senior Sister Ling'er's sweet, smiling face, he suddenly felt the heart that had been seething ever since their reunion grow cold.

The next day, the orthodox and demonic factions clashed again.

Amid the fighting and spellcasting, the virtuous monk of Fanyin Temple and his fellows saw the ravaged trees and the wanton slaughter of the wild boars, hares, wild dogs, and snakes in the forest, and could not help sighing and chanting the Compassionate Rebirth Mantra. When they had finished, with a single "Amitabha" the Buddha's finger swept out, and a magic treasure burst forth with earth-shaking force. The demonic cultists dodged aside, and with a thunderous crash another hillock was wiped out and lives were once again laid waste, so once more they began to chant the rebirth mantra.

"You bald thieves, you damned shaven pates! If you've got the guts, shut your mouths and come fight to the death! All day long you sit there jabbering your cursed mumbo jumbo -- if you don't curse us to death, you'll nag us to death!"

"Amitabha. Benefactor Wild Dog, your sins are grave, and still you will not turn back. I fear that after death you will fall into the Avici Hell!"

"Bah, bah, bah! Bald thief, are you even a man of the cloth? Cursing me to my face like that!"

"......"

Listening from the rear, Zhang Qingyue found the voice strangely familiar, and looking closely, it was indeed the wild wolf Daoist of grotesque features from the Ten Thousand Bats Ancient Cave on Kongsang Mountain that day. He was standing at the front of the demonic ranks even now, his face livid, spittle flying, shaking his finger and cursing a monk of Fanyin Temple on the orthodox side, while Old Nian, Lin Feng, Liu Gao, and that beautiful young woman all stood among the demonic host as well.

Zhang Qingyue was still wondering that these fellows had come here too when he heard someone behind him intone a Buddha's name: "Amitabha, well met, Junior Brother Zhang!"

Zhang Qingyue turned and saw familiar faces -- Facheng and Fajing of Fanyin Temple. Of the eight who had been in the Ten Thousand Bats Ancient Cave, these two monks had always been close to him, and Facheng in particular regarded him with special favor. And from Tian Lingsu he had also learned that although it was this same Facheng who had made the decision to leave the Abyss of the Dead against Lu Xueqi's objections, his anguish at the time, by all accounts, had been something no one could have feigned.

Zhang Qingyue had been grateful ever since, and now, seeing Facheng and Fajing, he hastened to salute them. "Greetings, Senior Brothers."

Facheng looked him over carefully, let out a long breath, and smiled. "The ancients said, 'Heaven surely protects the good.' Now I believe it. Junior Brother Zhang, to survive a great calamity is cause for rejoicing; blessings must surely follow."

The tall, broad Fajing stood behind his senior, a full head shorter than he, and rumbled in his deep voice, "Junior Brother Zhang is blessed indeed!"

Gratitude filled Zhang Qingyue's heart. "Thank you both for your concern."

Facheng nodded with a smile, then glanced at the field, where the wild wolf Daoist had already begun exchanging spells with the Fanyin Temple monk. He reached out and patted Zhang Qingyue lightly on the shoulder. "We'll talk more when there's time."

Zhang Qingyue promptly answered, "Yes."