Chapter 252

There are various ways to accumulate virtue in Buddhism, but the easiest method is reading scriptures aloud.

According to the doctrine of the Great Vehicle, sharing any scripture by filling the space with sound and educating others creates endless merit, meaning it is infinitely good.

Moreover, scriptures are also referred to as the “light of wisdom,” which means a great lighthouse that guides one to enlightenment (wisdom).

Thus, reading scriptures out loud becomes an action of seeking direction by gazing exclusively at that shining light amidst the dark, confusing secular world, where one can’t see even a step ahead.

Therefore, if one understands the meaning and sincerely reads it aloud, there couldn’t be greater merit.

But even if one doesn’t understand the meaning, could there really be someone who sees the sun and does not recognize the brightness?

Thus, simply reading scriptures correctly according to the teachings will naturally accumulate merit towards enlightenment.

In other words, it’s a completely effortless method of practice!

Great Master Muhak had no intention of passing on martial arts to Qing.

Since he already had a disciple, he compared Qing to Wolbong and judged that Qing fell significantly short, yet he did not despair over their connection nor was he greedy despite Wolbong’s brilliance.

Moreover, giving something he deemed unnecessary to someone else would also be considered avarice.

So, he hoped that by having Qing memorize bright verses, it would help suppress the Heaven’s Kill lurking in her heart, even if just a little.

Thus, very peculiar words slipped from Great Master Muhak’s lips. The pronunciation he exhaled transformed into completely different characters and meanings with only slight variations in tones—a way of speaking that was incomprehensible.

This was the language known as Sanskrit, originally used in the land where Buddhism originated.

However, Muhak was unaware that Qing functioned as a universal translator.

As soon as she heard the secret technique, the Martial Arts Inventory shimmered, and when Qing checked, ta-da, one martial art had been registered in a preparatory state.

And not just any martial art, but one with a splendid purple outline.

“Dragon’s Wisdom and Heart Technique?”

Hmm. Purple must mean it’s good, right?

“Alright. That’s one round. It’s a bit long, but if you slowly recite it in your heart while breathing and meditating, surely good things will come. Then, I’ll remind you again. Oh, listen—”

“Ah! Great Master? Are you going to repeat that until I memorize it?”

“Well, yes. Reciting scriptures itself is an act of merit. This wisdom was directly passed down to me from a revered master in India, so merely chanting it during breathing meditations imbues you with the profound spirituality of Buddhism. And as I said, you should memorize it now while you’re still young and your mind is malleable.”

Originally, Sanskrit is quite lengthy.

To be precise, the Chinese characters used in the Central Plain are extremely short. This is because Chinese characters are the most rudimentary and foolish symbols that encompass all timelines and the myriad worlds.

The advantage, in a way, is that they are short.

However, because they’re short, annotations need adding, and those annotations often need further annotations, doubling or tripling the work.

To truly grasp them with one’s mind would require you to listen all day long without stopping.

Qing lowered her head, closed her eyes, and clenched her teeth as she raised the martial art that was in standby mode within the Martial Arts Inventory.

When alone, she could let her guard down, rolling her eyes and expressing the horrific torment of having her brain violated. But in front of the monk, she had to do her best to keep a straight face.

Since she was told to memorize it right away, first she had to register it in her mind.

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

“Uh, I… just… studied… it.”

Due to the aftermath of her brain’s workings, her pronunciation slipped out.

“What? You memorized it all after hearing it twice? Does that even make sense? I barely managed to memorize it after half a day of meditation and being hit with a wooden stick!”

“I’ll give it a try, so please correct me if I’m wrong.”

With that, Qing read out the portions she had memorized, the Sanskrit flowing from her lips with a woman’s beautiful voice, giving an oddly mysterious and profound feeling.

Still, she really had memorized it all!

“This can’t be. Try again, once more.”

“Yes, so, um…”

“Once more.”

“Again.”

“Again.”

After forcing herself to repeat it ten times, Muhak muttered with a sense of defeat.

“If I had focused on my studies instead of onMuhak, perhaps the greatest sage in the world would have been born, but alas, I was born a woman, so it seems the heavens had other plans.”

If Seomun Sulin had overheard, she would have delivered a swift kick to his shins.

But since women’s scholarship was not recognized in the primitive Central Plain, it wasn’t entirely incorrect.

After all, the saying that governed the Central Plain’s rulers was: “All virtue is with the emperor, and all sin belongs to women.” If a country falls, it’s because of the sins committed by women, thus the blame is often transferred to beautiful women like Yang Guifei.

“Right. You’ve memorized it. If you recite it ten times in the morning, and repeat it in your heart during your breathing meditations, and then recite it ten times before bed, surely good things will come your way. Especially for one like you, who bears the ominous starlight of Heaven’s Kill, this is a precious study.”

“Yes, I understand. Ah, did you know?”

Qing was taken aback and questioned him.

This sudden unexpected approach!

Muhak snorted, a sound of delight escaping him.

“Oh, for a Number One in the World, I can tell just by a glance. It will be a great help in suppressing the Heaven’s Kill, so don’t take my words lightly and recite it morning, noon, and night. Understand?”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Well, you should be grateful.”

“Huh?”

Shouldn’t there normally be a ‘Thank you’ here?

At that, Great Master Muhak burst into laughter and spoke once more.

“The feeling of gratitude for receiving kindness is what we call thanks. I too felt a sense of gratitude when you willingly offered to return your Divine Skill. It’s not about doing nothing in return. Rather, we enhance our virtue by thanking each other; this is what we call karma.”

Qing gazed at Muhak with a puzzled expression.

What’s he talking about? Why does karma suddenly come into this? Is he saying I should pretend to be grateful?

Once again, Muhak chuckled heartily and got up from his seat.

“Cough. When you complete your secret manual, bring it to the Nameless Temple. There’s no need for an old monk to come looking for you. You should be wandering around while you’re still young.”

—-

At night, Cheon Yu-hak extended his shoes towards her.

“Here. These are shoes for your training. From now on, wear these while moving around.”

“Huh? What kind of shoes are these?”

“They’re called ‘Half-Shoes.’”

It was questionable whether what Cheon Yu-hak presented could even be classified as shoes.

The soles only attached to the front part of the foot, while the back was merely enclosed and draped with silk that hung down loosely.

And the concave arch and heel were wide open, meaning she would be standing right on the ground if she stood straight.

“If I wear these, I can only walk on my toes.”

“Exactly. That’s what they’re made for.”

“If I don’t lift my heels, the flapping part will drag on the ground and get dirty.”

“You just need to lift your heels and avoid that flapping part from touching the ground.”

“And what’s this bell for? I’m no kid; do I need to make noise with it while I walk around?”

Qing shook the Half-Shoes.

Fortunately, they didn’t seem to jingle obnoxiously as they were heavy bells, but they did create a noise as if her money bag was shaking.

“So when you walk, you must only use your toes, oh, and the soles are double-layered, so if you step hard, it’ll sound like wood clacking together. So, when you walk, step lightly so there’s no sound from the soles or the bells, moving softly with each step.”

Once you get accustomed to it, nothing will make noise while you walk.

That was the secret behind Cheon Yu-hak’s silent strides.

“Can’t I just walk around relaxed?”

“Think about it differently. Just concentrating on walking without making any noise while wearing those is already practice. Isn’t that practically free training?”

“Huh?”

Qing’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected shift in perspective.

Come to think of it, hmm? That’s true!

“That’s step one. Once you get used to it, switch to shoes with a louder tongue and bells that are lighter. If you can walk silently through all three stages, then from there on, you’ll be able to walk around without making a sound even on dried leaves.”

“Oh wow.”

There, Qing completely bought it.

And as a result…

“Geez…”

Where in the world is there such a thing as free training?

Practicing is supposed to be hard and grueling.

The simple act of walking with these made it exhausting and demanding.

The front tip of the Half-Shoes resembled a peculiar sound bell used for tap dancing in her hometown, so just a slight step made a delightful sound.

The clattering noise coming from the silk hung over her heel was from concealed bells within.

So taking a single step made a clap, clatter.

Another step later, clap, clatter.

Moreover, there’s no sole at the heel, so she had to constantly tiptoe, which required her to lift her feet much higher than usual to avoid dragging the drapes on the ground.

Still, it would be nice if Cheon Yu-hak’s words offered some comfort.

“Whoosh. They say even a snail has its own skills, and you’re starting off quite skillfully from the get-go. You’ll move to the next level in no time.”

Qing’s physique wasn’t ordinary, so lifting her heels slightly wouldn’t cause her pain or fatigue—only discomfort remained, and she managed to walk quite well.

However, then, bam!

Caught off guard by a sudden strike from nowhere, Qing sat down and rubbed her head vigorously.

The scene resembled a primitive person trying to start a fire, with her head looking like it could burst into flames at any moment.

“Yikes!”

“How dare a girl swagger about like that, shaking her behind so carelessly? With that size she has, where did she learn such a bad habit?”

When her heels lifted, naturally, her pelvis tilted back, causing her rear to thrust upward.

Not to mention that her center of gravity moving upward caused her pelvis to sway left and right to maintain balance.

Thanks to this, her posture was entirely different from the graceful strides of the alluring figures exemplified by Seomun Sulin.

“That’s not it, really! I mean, AAH!!!”

BAM!!!!

Qing lifted one shoe to show it off, but after another sudden catastrophe, she couldn’t resist and fell to the ground.

Since a single hit usually takes the senses away, a second is often needed to really knock it in.

“You brat! Why are you showing off your bare feet under the bright sun? Cover them up immediately!”

“Ugh, Master, it hurts, it hurts so much! My head—it feels like it’s splitting…”

“Hmph. You’ll come to your senses once your head splits a little. Now get up and cover those feet!”

Complaining wouldn’t help, so Qing hastily put her shoes back on.

After she explained the whole situation, Seomun Sulin frowned slightly and with a loud click of her tongue said,

“While training is necessary, there’s no avoiding embarrassment. I’ve heard the method has some merit beside the embarrassment. So you’d better quickly master it and stop that embarrassing way of walking.”

“Yes…”

Qing answered, feeling utterly defeated.

Then she had something to ask her Master—

“Ah, Master! Have you happened to hear of the Dragon’s Wisdom and Heart Technique?”

“Huh? You mean the Dragon’s Wisdom Technique? Isn’t it a divine skill of the Lamaism monks? Originally, it’s said to be from the great Deva Mantra from India. Why? Did you pick it up somewhere again? This is a wonderful divine skill you’ve brought along!”

Seomun Sulin was now trying hard to pretend she didn’t know.

“Actually, Great Master Muhak taught it to me.”

“That monk? That can’t be! Your other teachings from the Zhu Yang Mindfulness Sutra… He wouldn’t pass on other techniques without knowing your unusual physique.”

“I was told I could return the Buddha’s Physical Body, and then he recited the secret techniques for me. Although I don’t think he intended to teach me the martial arts itself,”

“Ha. If he wanted to teach genuinely, he should have done so properly. Yes, the scripture can suppress Heaven’s Kill merely by memorizing it. Wait, did that monk recognize your Heaven’s Kill? Did you reveal your pulse?”

“He just took one look at me and knew…”

Seomun Sulin felt the gap in their realms.

In truth, with a heightened level, each step they took would feel like reaching the edge of the world.

The few steps Muhak took were, in fact, a sheer distance that would seem enormous height-wise.

“Oh dear. This master was quite careless.”

Meanwhile, the Dragon’s Wisdom and Heart Technique meant a study that protects the body and mind through the wisdom of dragons and elephants.

Here, “Heart” signifies not just the mind but an anatomical term, uniquely linking body and mind together through this divine skill.

While general martial arts would mention internal mastery or external martial arts, it’s only these ultimate divine skills that unify inner and outer practices.

But what exactly is the wisdom of the dragon and elephant?

When faced with adversity, dragons and elephants break through—thus, the study also encompasses the willpower to push through and protect one’s heart.

However, more than that, it’s all about massive strength!

Dragons and elephants are synonymous with strength!

Once you learn it, it would grant you divine strength akin to that of dragons and elephants.

When one reaches great achievement, they say one wields the strength of ten dragons and ten elephants.

Of course, such claims about the martial arts secret techniques are often exaggerated and boastful. But that power was certainly transmitted.

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