Chapter 51: Bones of Law, Supreme Rebellion

“So you truly are a confidant of the Fox Society!” Thus spoke the monk Dayou.

Such secrets, for those who overhear them, are seldom blessings; for a moment, everyone was unsure what intentions the Fox Society in Hengshan truly harbored.

Ji Ming’s words lent an air of strange intrigue to the gathering within the temple.

To speak frankly, Ji Ming’s original purpose in coming to the temple to seek Lord Boni was to borrow the mountain spirit’s authority to locate the cave where the expectant Daoist nun resided, just as he had once pinpointed the pond.

Now, by chance, he stumbled upon this clandestine matter, which unexpectedly intertwined with his own transformative fate.

It turned out that the divine transformation was not a duel of sorceries between two sects, nor the descent of a deity, but rather a calamity befalling the foundation-building patriarch of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple.

“To defy heaven’s order is to invite disaster.”

He recalled the words he had secretly overheard in the Watchfire Tower; it seemed the calamity was centered on the obstruction of the celestial path.

Ji Ming wished to learn more here, so he feigned familiarity, sitting cross-legged at one side and idly turning his string of beads.

“Little bug monster!” The old ape, unable to settle his thoughts, blurted whatever came to mind. He crouched atop the offering table and interrogated, “What else do you know?”

“He’s searching for the celestial being!” Ji Ming replied with conviction.

In an instant, he realized that the patriarch and himself shared the same goal: both sought to leverage the innate advantage of earth spirits in tracing veins of the land to find the celestial being.

He sought her birth; the patriarch sought her death.

But the patriarch of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple clearly wielded greater power, able to directly coerce the earth spirits of Lan Yin Fang to aid him.

“You know where the celestial being is?”

Ji Ming flicked his beads more rapidly, asking calmly.

“How could we know such a thing?”

Lord Boni sighed and said, “Even if we knew where the celestial being was, we wouldn’t dare tell the disciples of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple.”

The old ape grew furious, feeling stifled all over.

“I truly don’t understand what the three heavenly officials are thinking. Why not summon a bolt of lightning and strike the person dead, instead of sending down this celestial being to obstruct his path?”

Dayou the monk burst into hearty laughter, rocking back and forth.

To him, though the old ape was son of the Water Palace River God, his thoughts were far too naive.

“That patriarch, in the midst of foundation-building, has already harmonized dragon and tiger, and was early granted talismans, his name entered among the earth officials, overseeing a region’s underworld soil.

He borrowed my unorthodox Buddhist arts to extend his life—an act of defiance and hubris, but after all, he is part of the celestial orthodox lineage.

Now that a celestial being’s calamity has descended, it is a minor punishment for a major offense. If he survives, he remains a high priest of the Dao; if he fails, then the celestial being ascends.

From the perspective of the heavenly Dao lineage, either way, the flesh remains in their own pot.”

Ji Ming’s mind swirled with conflicting thoughts and calculations, while the old ape became ever more dejected, his brows drooping in gloom.

“Wait!”

Suddenly, the old ape had an idea. He scratched his ears atop the offering table, delighted, and said, “Why don’t we take the initiative and accept the celestial being into our sect?”

“Is that even possible?” Ji Ming exclaimed in surprise.

He stared at the old ape, and the thought of possibly joining his sect in future stirred something in his heart.

Ideally, he would enter Mount Taiping, or perhaps the Yellow Court Palace or True Spirit Sect, both belonging to the celestial orthodox way.

“It is possible… indeed possible!” Dayou the monk closed his eyes and pressed his palms together. “This celestial calamity is not a true deity incarnate, but a strand of divine energy from the three heavens, merged into a mortal womb.

With such celestial roots, her aptitude will surely be extraordinary.

And since she was born to obstruct that person’s path, she must be born with a Dharma bone.”

“Exactly, exactly!” The old ape was greatly pleased by Dayou’s agreement, convinced he had hit upon a brilliant plan.

“I’ve often heard that the patriarch of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple was born with a pair of Dharma arms beneath his ribs.

The celestial being, descended to block his path—surely she must be born with double pupils, or perhaps a pair of wind and thunder wings!”

Ji Ming, listening from the side, felt his heart blaze with excitement, unconsciously touching the small eye on his head.

The silent Lord Boni finally spoke, “Should we wait for that person’s disciples to arrive and negotiate?”

“We wait!”

“We do not wait!”

Dayou the monk and the old ape spoke almost simultaneously, one after the other.

“Monk…”

The old ape glared, “Are you going back on your word?”

“I said it is possible, not that I agree.

I am but an unorthodox monk, and you are a mountain spirit under seal—are you hoping the two of us can withstand the pressure of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple and succeed?”

Dayou’s retort left the old ape speechless.

“Little monster, since you know the inside story, what do you think?” In the end, the old ape turned to Ji Ming, seeking a shred of affirmation.

Ji Ming thought to himself: I not only know the inside story, but may become one of the principal actors.

If things go as they seem, should I turn into the celestial being, I would inevitably become a mortal enemy of Four Sorrows Cloud Temple—an irreconcilable one.

In transformation, there is both gain and loss, good and ill; for some reason, deep within, Ji Ming felt a strange sense of calm.

“I believe… it is possible!”

Ji Ming gave his answer. No matter what, he should side with the unborn celestial being.

Dayou the monk’s gaze was sharp as a blade. He stared at Ji Ming and asked pointedly, “Is this your own belief, or the Fox Society’s?”

Ji Ming did not answer directly, but said, “Since today we gather to discuss momentous matters, could you reveal the prophecy?”

At mention of the prophecy, everyone grew reticent.

“Sixty-six, the great reversal!” Suddenly, a voice rang out in the temple. The old ape atop the table immediately looked skyward, feigning indifference.

“Sixty-six… the great reversal!”

Ji Ming pondered whether this prophecy had anything to do with the location of the unborn celestial being.

“In any case, following heaven is better than defying it,” Ji Ming said solemnly.

“Is it, though?”

A gentle voice arrived with the wind.

On the temple wall, the tattered window paper rustled, sending a chill through Ji Ming’s heart.

A middle-aged scholar entered the temple, carrying his satchel, dusting off his clothes, then fixed his gaze on Ji Ming. He raised his hand and pointed, asking, “Little monster, how dare you speak so boldly?”

“This must be, as Dayou said, the disciple of the patriarch from Four Sorrows Cloud Temple,” Ji Ming guessed, lamenting his own ill luck.

“Friend Zhengguo, the Fox Society’s little monster meant no harm—pay him no mind,” Dayou the monk covered for Ji Ming, clarifying his background.

Ji Ming tensed, wary of the scholar erupting in anger, when a secret voice whispered to him.

“Leave the temple and wait for me on the northern riverbank.”

Ji Ming looked to the old ape atop the offering table; the ape winked at him.

“No need to be afraid. Zhengguo is the monk Dayou’s friend, specially invited to speak on our behalf. He will not trouble you.”