The Green Snake's body trembled. Faced with the small hand descending from above, it instantly submitted and quickly spoke:
"I have deeply understood my mistake. What I just said was purely from studying too much..."
Hearing this, Chen Baiqing didn't continue his harsh actions. He silently reached out and stroked the Green Snake's tightly shut eyes before retracting his hand.
Constant pressure yields no good results; one must occasionally offer a sweet treat.
After waiting for a moment, the Green Snake didn't sense any terrifying illusion or feel its body being uncontrollably manipulated.
It slowly opened its eyes and saw Chen Baiqing, once again looking down at his book.
Chen Baiqing noticed its gaze, glanced up briefly, then lowered his eyes back to the book.
For some reason, the Green Snake suddenly felt its perception of Chen Baiqing had changed a little—he wasn't so bad after all.
Thinking about it… aside from reading, Chen Baiqing hadn't specifically sought trouble with it.
Chu Xichen didn't pay much mind either. He lifted his teacup and took a silent sip.
Ning Qianqian suddenly remembered something and quickly spoke:
"Sect Leader, wait. Yuan Kong sent a letter for you, but you weren't here at the time. He said he'd give it to you when you returned. It's been a while, and I accidentally forgot. Please wait here for a moment."
A letter from Yuan Kong?
Chu Xichen had thought this little monk didn't have the guts to come to his sect again, so this was a bit of a surprise.
"Mm, thank you for your trouble," Chu Xichen nodded in agreement.
Ning Qianqian rose apologetically and left.
Chu Xichen picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for Ning Kun, who was still somewhat reserved nearby.
This was tea brewed by Baiqing; its quality was unquestionable. Even after Ning Kun took a sip, he couldn't help but finish the whole cup.
Ning Kun quickly stood up. "How could I trouble you to do it yourself?"
Chu Xichen gestured for Ning Kun to sit down and said reassuringly:
"It's fine. You will have to work hard when we get to Zhongzhou."
Ning Kun's face showed gratitude, and only at Chu Xichen's gesture did he slowly take his seat.
The Green Snake, sensing the movement, also turned its gaze over towards the two men's teacups.
For some reason, although the Green Snake had always been indifferent to tea, today it felt some inexplicable thought towards this tea.
Smelling the aroma, it actually wanted to have a sip.
In the past, whenever the Green Snake wanted to smell the tea's aroma, it was usually the same as smelling it for nothing.
Chu Xichen glanced at the Green Snake, which was craning its neck, and said:
"You snakes drink tea too?"
The Green Snake's tone was somewhat fawning. "I'd like to try..."
Hearing this, Chu Xichen readily picked up the teacup and poured a cup for the Green Snake.
It was just a cup of tea; Chu Xichen wasn't that petty.
The Green Snake poked its tongue out, then slowly extended it to take a taste. Once it tasted it, it couldn't stop.
Chu Xichen watched as the Green Snake, at an indescribable speed, frantically licked the teacup. It felt that if the cup couldn't contain the snake's head, the Green Snake would probably bury its entire head in it.
It was lacking in elegance, but it didn't matter. He'd have Baiqing teach it some manners when they got to Zhongzhou.
Baiqing's methods of education were indeed fast and very effective.
Chu Xichen lifted his teacup and turned his gaze back to the Spiritual Fish.
After a moment's wait.
Ning Qianqian hurried over from the corridor, holding a letter in her hand.
"This is the letter from Yuan Kong."
Ning Qianqian used both hands to hand the letter to Chu Xichen.
Chu Xichen reached out to take it and gently touched it. A trace of faint spiritual energy was attached to it.
Without much hesitation, Chu Xichen opened the letter. The handwriting was a bit rushed.
[Seeing this letter is like seeing you, by Yuan Jing's own hand.]
[I, this old monk, have lived for over a hundred years, my heart set only on the Dharma. After many years of arduous cultivation, it seems I have enlightenment, yet I have not. Without enlightenment, I cannot step beyond this gate. How can I seek my own perfection?]
[You, benefactor, seem to act on a whim, yet you guard your original heart. Your actions seem willful, yet you plan before you act, and you know your own limits.]
[I have asked my heart a hundred times over, yet I cannot say I possess even one-tenth of what you do.]
[If you ask about my root of wisdom, I fear it is not even one-tenth of yours.]
[However, the world is vast, and so are its people. There are endless differences, let alone the word "perfection," which is even harder to cultivate. For now, I can only hope that in my next life, I will not waste it.]
[But you, benefactor, are different. Your wisdom is extraordinary, and your fate is supreme. I believe your path to immortality will be smooth, and you will no longer need to tread through the complexities of the mortal world.]
[Reflecting on my life, I ask myself and find I have no merit or virtue, only the actions of greed. I have practiced Buddhism for almost my entire life, but looking back, it is all a state of no enlightenment, a mess of "carelessness".]
[My mistakes in action are innumerable, and I have often relied on your help, benefactor. I truly owe you a great debt that cannot be repaid in ten lifetimes.]
[I write this letter with no requests, only to share the confusion and doubts that plague my heart, for there is no one else to tell.]
[I write this letter with no requests, only to wish your immortal fortune to soar.]
[I write this letter with no requests, only to wish your path to immortality to be unobstructed.]
Chu Xichen's gaze swept over the letter, then he slowly folded it and looked at Ning Qianqian, saying:
"Is the abbot of Zen Forest Temple, Yuan Jing, dead?"
Ning Qianqian looked a little puzzled, thought for a moment, and shook her head:
"I've never heard of it. There have been no rumors from Zen Forest Temple."
"Then what a fine 'no requests in this letter,'" Chu Xichen said, casually putting the letter into his spatial ring. He stood up and walked outside, "I'll go to Zen Forest Temple and see what that old monk has to say."
Hearing this, Chen Baiqing's gaze fell on his Master.
Chu Xichen noticed his gaze and gestured, "Baiqing, stay. I'll go alone."
Chen Baiqing silently sat back down.
——————
Yuzhou City, Zen Forest Temple.
Chu Xichen walked in through the main gate. Although he hadn't been here in a long time, the monks here clearly hadn't forgotten Chu Xichen's face.
The monk who had been looking somewhat lazy quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying:
"May I ask what business you have here, benefactor?"
Chu Xichen said calmly, "I am here to see Yuan Jing."
Hearing this, the monk quickly nodded, "Please, benefactor, follow me."
The monk led Chu Xichen to a side hall, winding their way into a meditation room.
"Please wait a moment, benefactor," the monk said, turning back. "I will go fetch the abbot."
Chu Xichen gave a slight nod.
The monk hurried out to call someone.
In just a moment, hurried footsteps approached.
The same monk led an elderly monk with a somewhat aged appearance over.
Chu Xichen looked at the elderly monk, silent, waiting for him to explain.
The monk put his palms together in a gesture of respect and said, "This poor monk is Yuan Xing."
Chu Xichen asked directly, "Where is Yuan Jing?"
Yuan Xing looked up and said calmly, "My senior brother, Yuan Jing, has already passed into nirvana. His sarira has been placed in the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda."
"Passed into nirvana?" Chu Xichen frowned slightly. "You didn't spread this news?"
Yuan Xing replied, "My senior brother said he had no merit, only an empty reputation. He was not a Buddha, just a withered bone with no spirit; worshipping him is useless."
"Passing into nirvana was his destined fate. All of it is the karma of a past life. Making a fuss and mobilizing everyone only damages one's own fortune."
"My senior brother also instructed that if we couldn't keep it a secret in the future, we should say he went out to cultivate the Dharma."
"At most, in ten years, the world will forget that Zen Forest Temple ever had a Yuan Jing. That would be best. The world suffers enough; there's no need for them to grieve for him excessively."
Chu Xichen was silent for a moment, then said:
"What about Yuan Kong? Summon him to see me."
[
I'm going to skip the fancy pitch this time and just be straight with you.
Things are tough right now. The recent mass cancellations hit harder than I expected, and I'm genuinely struggling to keep my head above water financially. Translation is my main income — not a side hobby — and when a big wave of cancellations lands at once, it hurts in a very real way.
I know I can't compete with aggregator sites. They pump out chapters faster than I ever could, and I've made peace with that. What I can offer instead is consistency and care — a chapter that's actually readable, where the same technique doesn't get three different names in the same chapter and characters don't randomly switch personalities. Quality daily updates, not a firehose of machine-translated slop.
If this story has made you laugh, or kept you up past midnight just to read one more chapter — I'd really appreciate your support on Patreon.
Here's what you get: 30 advanced chapters right away, for the price that used to get you 20. That's not a marketing trick, it's me genuinely trying to make it worth your while because I need the help and I'd rather be honest about that than pretend otherwise.
There's also ongoing monthly chapters, bonus content, and — this one I actually love — you can suggest novels you want me to pick up next. If there's something you've been dying to read in English, drop it in the comments. I'm listening.
patreon.com/Alex_Cruise
Even one new member makes a difference right now. I mean that literally. Thank you for reading, and thank you for even considering it.
]