Embers Ad Infinitum

The meditation room where Buddha’s Nirmanakaya sleeps… This sentence was like a thunderclap that exploded in the Old Task Force members’ ears, leaving them shell-shocked.

Jiang Baimian barely controlled her expression and asked with a smile, “There aren’t any Enlightened living on the seventh floor?”

“That’s the place where Buddha Subhuti is worshiped, and it’s also the place where Buddha’s Nirmanakaya sleeps.” Although the young monk didn’t give a direct answer, his explanation clearly told Jiang Baimian and the others that with the Enlightened’s pious hearts toward Buddha, they wouldn’t allow themselves to be on equal footing with the Kalendaria.

“Aren’t you afraid of thieves sneaking in?” Shang Jianyao asked curiously.

The young monk whispered a Buddhist proclamation. “The Buddha’s Nirmanakaya naturally has its mystical aspects surrounding it. It’s not afraid of external devils. Besides, although the Enlightened don’t live there, they guard it on rotation.”

At this point, the young monk looked around and lowered his voice. “I have to remind you of something.”

“We mustn’t barge into the seventh floor?” Shang Jianyao immediately said.

Are you stupid? We can’t even leave this room… Long Yuehong—who was listening by the side—criticized helplessly.

The young monk maintained a kind attitude: “I don’t think you have that intention.”

He paused and suppressed his voice again. “It’s rumored that a terrifying devil is suppressed in the place where Buddha’s Nirmanakaya slumbers. Although it can’t move freely, it can still leak some of its power and create all sorts of abnormalities since the Buddha’s Nirmanakaya is sleeping.

“Therefore, no matter what temptation you encounter or what you see, you mustn’t head to the seventh floor and approach the meditation room where Buddha’s Nirmanakaya is sleeping. Otherwise, you will die in all sorts of strange ways. There were monks who disappeared without a trace because of this, never appearing again.”

Isn’t this what happened to us last night? The strange knocking, hinting to us, and bewitching us to head to the seventh floor… Long Yuehong felt a lingering fear as he rejoiced that his team leader had chosen to be cautious.

Jiang Baimian nodded with a slightly solemn expression. “Didn’t you say that there are Enlightened on duty? How could they let someone enter the seventh floor so easily?”

“The Enlightened can sometimes be lazy and off-guard.” Shang Jianyao had an expression that said, “Humans indeed have bad habits.”

The young monk shook his head. “No, it should be that the influence created by the devil can blind the Enlightened’s senses, causing an exploitable oversight during their watch.”

“That devil is really strong,” Jiang Baimian commented. This reminded her of Wu Meng in Wasteland Ruin 13.

“That’s why we need the Buddha’s Nirmanakaya to suppress it personally.” The young monk’s logic formed a closed loop.

Jiang Baimian thought for a few seconds and asked, “You said it’s a rumor, so you mean you haven’t seen it yourself?”

“Yes, a monk doesn’t lie.” The young monk pressed his palms together and gave a Buddhist proclamation. “This is also because the monks in the temple often head out to walk the Ashlands. They use this to temper their minds and cultivate their consciousness. Many of them set off on a whim while the other fellow disciples aren’t aware of their departure. They might not be able to return alive, so it’s equivalent to them going missing.”

How casual… The Crystal Consciousness Church’s upper echelons are really broadminded in this aspect… Long Yuehong muttered inwardly.

Without saying anything else, the young monk closed the door and left, leaving the Old Task Force members looking at each other with varying expressions.

“I thought such a strange and terrifying thing wouldn’t happen at the headquarters of such a large religion.” Long Yuehong sighed after a while.

“That’s not what you said yesterday and the day before yesterday,” Shang Jianyao pointed out.

Long Yuehong had a nightmare when he saw the Chief jump to his death to rid himself of his mortal coils.

Long Yuehong cleared his throat awkwardly. “What I mean is that strange and terrifying things won’t happen to outsiders like us. As for their members, they naturally have their own special characteristics. This situation makes me feel like I’m not staying in First City or the Crystal Consciousness Church headquarters, but Wasteland Ruin 13.”

“We can just ignore it.” Bai Chen gave her opinion.

This was in line with Long Yuehong’s thoughts.

Jiang Baimian turned her head to look at Giuseppe, who had fallen asleep again. “Sometimes, you can’t just avoid it by ignoring them. Mm, the devil talk might not be true. It might just be a cover-up of some other matters.”

“For example, it’s to prevent the monks from entering the seventh floor, where they might discover some secrets?” Shang Jianyao raised his hand and stroked his chin.

Long Yuehong immediately frowned. “The seventh floor is guarded by Enlightened. Ignoring ordinary monks, even Hexions and Heptadites can’t enter the seventh floor without permission.”

“What if the claim that Enlightened take turns to guard the seventh floor is half-true? Perhaps at some point in every day, even an Enlightened might not dare to stay on the seventh floor or even sense the surrounding area.” Shang Jianyao allowed his imagination to run free.

“Aren’t monks not supposed to lie…” Long Yuehong muttered softly.

Jiang Baimian chuckled. “This should only be a commandment for most Enlightened, not a price. There are bound to be times when commandments are violated.”

Upon hearing this, Shang Jianyao immediately sang: “Who’s whispering in my ear[1]…”

He subsequently shut up upon receiving Jiang Baimian’s glare.

Jiang Baimian took this opportunity to look around. “Since Yama Tiger’s sleeping place is fraught with all sorts of dangers, it’s reasonable for there to be some abnormalities with Buddha’s Nirmanakaya. However, we aren’t here to pry into the Crystal Consciousness Church’s secrets. Even if there’s anything related to the Old World’s destruction, it should be hidden in the Five Great Holy Lands. Let’s focus on our own matters.”

What was that? Find an opportunity to escape!

After Jiang Baimian said that, Bai Chen whispered, “That’s not what you said just now. We’re afraid that a situation will take its course regardless of our wishes.”

Jiang Baimian laughed dryly. “Yes, I was just talking about external objective conditions. Now, I’m talking about our subjective attitude.”

Bai Chen didn’t answer her and continued, “Perhaps the person who knocked on the door and is getting us to go to the seventh floor has some important information to tell us. The Crystal Consciousness Church spread the rumors of devils because they don’t want anyone to enter.”

“Before we figure out the general situation, I don’t recommend taking the risk. If it’s really about letting a situation take its course regardless of our wishes, we should talk to Master Zennaga about it.” Jiang Baimian’s expression turned serious. “Besides, we don’t even dare to leave the room. How can we talk about going to the seventh floor?”

Shang Jianyao immediately raised his hand and pointed at the ceiling. “There’s no need to leave through the door.”

“…” Jiang Baimian was speechless.

…

In the North Shore Wastelands, at the edge of a city ruin.

Han Wanghuo looked at the rearview mirror and said in a deep voice, “I have a nagging feeling that we haven’t shaken off the tracker yet.”

“All sorts of signs indicate that you’re right.” Genava agreed with Han Wanghuo’s judgment.

“Is that so…” Zeng Duo whispered, feeling a slight headache. She originally believed that by relying on the wasteland’s vastness and the complexity of the environment, they shouldn’t be targeted as long as they persisted in wandering around the periphery and didn’t approach the area around Early Spring Town or deliberately provoke First City’s regular army.

Genava moved his metal neck. “Apart from the power of technology, some Awakened abilities can also be used for tracking. For example, one can have a sense of smell as sensitive as a dog’s.”

Zeng Duo didn’t ask, “What should we do?” Instead, she began to think of a way to shake off their pursuers.

She thought for a moment and said, “Let’s go to areas with more serious pollution and more complicated environments to see if we can interfere with the enemy’s tracking. Yes, it’s not a problem as long as we don’t stay in those places for extended periods.”

“I have no objections.” Genava wasn’t too afraid of pollution.

Han Wanghuo nodded. “There’s no other way.”

…

The Old Task Force met Zennaga again near noon.

The Enlightened visited personally to inform them of their previous ‘request.’ “The blood sample and scan results you provided have been sent to a professional medical institution. It will take about three to five days for the report to be released.”

“Thank you, Zen Master,” Shang Jianyao said sincerely.

Jiang Baimian looked out the door and deliberated before suggesting a new idea. “Zen Master, can we take a walk in the corridor after our meals? It’s uncomfortable staying cooped up in the room all the time.”

What gave you the illusion that we aren’t in jail? Long Yuehong couldn’t help but criticize his team leader.

They were ‘abducted’ by Zennaga.

Zennaga nodded. “As long as you don’t leave this floor.”

“Alright. Thank you, Zen Master.” Jiang Baimian’s voice involuntarily became brisk.

After Zennaga left, Long Yuehong asked curiously, “Team Leader, what’s the point of making this request?”

“I’m thinking that if we don’t go to the seventh floor, the person knocking on the door might give more ‘hints.’ If we walk around the corridors more, we might be able to discover something. Uh, Zen Master, if you’re ‘listening,’ please deal with this abnormality so that it doesn’t disturb us,” Jiang Baimian explained with a smile. “We’ll send a telegram to the company tonight and see what feedback we can get.”

Is that so… Long Yuehong heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that his team leader really didn’t have any intention of taking the risk to go to the seventh floor.

Shang Jianyao excitedly walked down the corridor.

After the sky turned dark in the evening, they had just entered the corridor when they saw someone coming down from the seventh floor.

They were two gray-robed monks. Their expressions were wooden, and their eyes were dull. They carried a heavy crate between them.

Suddenly, the monk in front stepped on something and slipped. He staggered a few times and fell to the ground.

The crate also flew out of his hands and smashed down, flipping sideways.

The lid of the wooden crate fell, and its contents spilled out.

Long Yuehong—who was in the distance—saw a face using the light of the corridor lamps.

Its face was bruised, and its tongue was sticking out. Its expression was ferocious.

[1] Waiting a Thousand Years from Legend of the White Snake