The four of them didn't say much, just braved the wind and snow to hurry, and suddenly saw the clouds and mist in front of them, the place where the wind and snow were shaking, the snow trees and silver flowers, between the peaks and strange stones, there was a faint ancient temple, flying clouds came out of it, and the cigarettes were around, wandering for more than ten miles, and there was no old monk. Bai Xingtear looked up at the sky, and then shook his finger at the ancient temple and said: "Looking at the sky, I am afraid that the wind and snow are coming, it is difficult to hurry, and I will definitely miss the accommodation, there is a temple in front, it is better to go and stay overnight, and then leave tomorrow after listening to the wind and snow." ”

The three of them nodded in agreement, and then came to the ancient temple together, but saw that the bluestone stretched the road, the weeds grew inch by inch, the snow melted the yellow soil, and the residual wood shook the way. Birds and beasts are not close, human tracks are even rarer, green smoke drifts up, and the bell dies down. This temple looks like it has been around for some years, although there are no birds and beasts outside the temple, and weeds are everywhere, which seems quite lonely, but this temple is not broken, and it also looks clean.

Shen cuttlefish stepped forward and knocked on the door, but no one responded. White Star Tears also stepped forward and knocked on the door with his scabbard, but there was still no movement. Only then did everyone find out that the gate of this temple was hidden, and Shen Cuttlefish was about to push the door in, but was stopped by Mingjue: "If you trespass so rashly, is it a bit rude?" Bai Xing tearfully said: "This ancient temple of the mountain gate, the pure land of the Buddha gate, can be entered and exited by pilgrims at will, the Buddha is a wise man, how can he blame us for being abrupt? It's a big deal to leave some sesame oil money and burn incense to worship, which can be regarded as an apology." Otherwise, if you have to wait here for someone to open the door, you don't know how long it will be. ”

Mingjue was speechless, and the four of them entered the temple one after another. Looking up, I saw the falling snow, the cigarette smoke, the pagoda towering, the eaves and beams, the high mountains covered, the Buddha statue towering, I don't want this desperate place, there is no such place. The people stood in the middle of the courtyard, and there was a little snow on the ground. Looking around, Pei Jingnian couldn't help but admire: "It really deserves to be a pure land of Buddhism." It's on par with the White Horse Temple. ”

But Mingjue felt that something was wrong, so he whispered: "Amitabha, although this place is rarely visited, but this temple does not look like a barren and abandoned place, why don't you hear the sound of bells and chanting?" Shen cuttlefish rubbed his stomach and said: "Maybe the monks are resting and fast......ing?" Hey......"

"The little monk thinks that there is something strange here, so you should be careful. "That's all Mingjue said, no more. Shen cuttlefish laughed at him for being too cautious and nervous. Everyone toured the temple for a while, and indeed did not see a monk or a couple, and the rooms were clean, but they were empty, it was really strange, Hugh said that it was a fasting meal, and even the living creatures could not see one, and even the Shen cuttlefish who laughed at Mingjue before couldn't help but feel strange.

"There is no one in the huge temple? Shen cuttlefish couldn't help but shudder. Pei Jingnian also sank his face and said: "The incense is still burning, and the room is very clean and tidy, but there is no one missing, which is really suspicious." The four of them came to the palace of the Heavenly King again, but they saw that there were still a few wisps of incense wafting from the wide hall, but it was pitch black and they couldn't see it really. I could only see the statues of the four heavenly kings through the sporadic snow light reflected outside the house.

The statues of the four heavenly kings stand quietly in the hall, stepping on the offering table, the head is on the beam, and the sky and the earth are standing, which is quite majestic. The four statues are clearly exquisitely crafted, but for some reason, they are all facing the corner, facing away from the door, there is an offering table in the middle of the main hall, which is full of melons and fruits, and there are three incense sticks in the incense burner, three long and two short, quite unlucky. Only then did the four of them see that there was a person kneeling on the futon of the incense table, not moving at all, as if praying sincerely.

When Shen cuttlefish saw it, his previous worries vanished, and he stroked his palms and smiled: "I finally saw a living person." Behold, if there is any suspicious person, will there be a pilgrim who will come to the incense? The four of them entered the palace of the king of heaven together, but as soon as they stepped into the hall, an old monk in a gray cloth robe suddenly flashed out from the side, the old monk had a gray beard, his face was full of ravines, at least sixty, and his god was withered, like a dead tree becoming a spirit, trembling in front of everyone, his hands were folded, and he saluted: "Amitabha, the old monk is polite here." ”

"Go back to the old man's ceremony. The four of Shen Cuttlefish also saluted separately, and then withdrew from the door and asked, "Dare to ask Master, why are you the only two of you here in this huge temple? What about the other monks?" The old monk replied: "It's not a secret, this temple was originally called Guangwang Temple, and there were one hundred and twenty-one monks in the temple, and it was also a peak of incense, and the worship was endless. But suddenly, another day, the number of pilgrims decreased, and gradually no one came to the incense again, and the monks in the temple walked and fled, leaving me alone. ”

Bai Xingtear asked again: "In this case, everyone else is gone, why don't you leave?" The old monk replied with a dry smile: "The incense is scattered, and the hearts of the people are scattered, but this huge temple must not be abandoned? The Buddha blames, what should I do? I grew up in this Guangwang Temple since I was a child, and this is the only place for the old monks to live, even if they starve to death and die of old age, and the leaves fall back to their roots, they should die in this temple, how can they abandon it? Cleaning and cleaning every day, tidying up, those young little monks are gone, there are always people who have to stay, stay......”

When the four of them heard this, they were a little sad, but they had a little more respect for this old monk, guarding such a large temple alone, practicing Zen Taoism, and the so-called holy monk was nothing more than that. Shen cuttlefish pointed to the pilgrim kneeling on the futon and asked, "Then who is this?" The old monk glanced at it and explained: "Oh, this benefactor often comes to this temple to make incense, and it has never stopped, and today is the thousandth day. ”

"Amitabha, the merits are immeasurable. Mingjue couldn't help but admire. The old monk glanced at the four of them and asked, "I don't know where you came from and where are you going?" Shen Cuttlefish replied: "Back to Senior Master, we are from Anhuai Mansion and want to go to Zhongping Mansion." Passing by here, I came to spend the night, there are many disturbances, and I hope to bear with me. If there is any inconvenience, we will leave immediately. Shen cuttlefish also learned this set of official words, and what he said was quite presentable.

The old monk did not hesitate when he heard this, and immediately replied: "There are many meditation rooms in the temple, if you don't dislike it, you can rest here." It's just that this food is really gone...... "Ming Jue then said: "We bring our own dry food, and the master doesn't have to worry about it." The old monk saluted again and said, "Amitabha, since this is the case, the old monk will go to clean up the room for you, please take a break." ”

With that, he walked away from here quickly, walking like flying, without his previous age, not like he was in his sixties. Pei Jingnian saw it in his eyes, and his heart felt strange. Bai Xing looked at the palace of the Heavenly King with tears, and said, "Since you are here, let's put on a stick of incense." Shen Cuttlefish also smiled and nodded: "That person has been kneeling for a long time, and he is not afraid of sore legs." The four of them stepped into the Heavenly King Palace, looked around, and Mingjue suddenly asked, "Why are these four statues of the Heavenly King facing the wall with their backs facing outward?"

Shen Cuttlefish shrugged his shoulders, put on an indifferent expression, stepped forward and patted the pilgrim kneeling on the futon, took half a step back, and arched his hand and said: "This brother, you have been worshipping for a long time, can you get up and give up a seat, and I can wait to pay homage." But after saying a lot, the man still didn't move, Shen Cuttlefish glanced at Bai Xing's tears, and said respectfully to the man: "This brother, can you let me go?"

Seeing that there was still no response, Bai Xing's tearful temper came up, and he immediately grabbed the man's shoulder, broke it back, and said sharply: "You are so rude, we respectfully invite you, but you are so at the mercy of a deaf ear!" Who knew that when the man was turned around, the four of them were shocked to gasp when they saw his face, Shen Cuttlefish was so frightened that he sat on the ground, Bai Xingxian hurriedly withdrew his hand and took two steps back.

The four of them were shocked and looked flustered, it turned out that the pilgrim who had been kneeling in front of the incense table for a long time was actually a dead corpse. The corpse still retains the expression before death, its face is full of horror, its eyes are cracked, its mouth is wide open, blood is flowing from all seven orifices, it has solidified into a dark red, and corpse spots have appeared on the corpse, which shows that this person has been dead for a long time, and he was extremely painful and frightened before death. The reason why they couldn't smell the smell of corpses was because everyone was deceived by the old monk and relaxed their vigilance, and secondly, because the smell of incense in this temple covered up the smell of corpses, so it was difficult to detect.

The corpse had been in a kneeling posture before, with his hands folded in front of him, drooping his head, looking at it that he was deliberately posed like this, and was pulled by Bai Xing's tears, his head turned up, his neck seemed to have been twisted off, and his whole body was tilted, and he fell heavily to the ground, causing a burst of smoke and dust. The four of them hurriedly wanted to go out, but the gate of the Heavenly King's Hall suddenly closed, blocking the four of them back, and the room was suddenly dark.

The voice of the old monk before sounded in his ears again, and an extremely weird, terrifying, creepy laughter echoed in the room: "Hahaha, there is really a way in heaven for you not to go, and there is no door for you to break in." I wanted to trap the officers and soldiers who came to search here, and I didn't want to arrest a few of you first. Since it was sent to the door, don't blame Lao Tzu for being ruthless, who let you be cheap, trespass into the Heavenly King's Palace, and discover the secret here! Today, none of you can get out of this place alive, you will all die!"

As soon as the words fell, Pei Jingnian said again: "Spread the sound into the secret! Everyone is calm and calm, deal with it carefully! This person has good internal skills, don't let him succeed!" At this moment, there was a sound of squirting in all corners of the house, first there was a crisp clicking sound, like a gear turning, and then a "click" sound was heard, followed by a rumbling sound like a war drum, and the candles in the room were suddenly lit together, and the dim lights reflected the faces of the four people.

The four of them also saw the changes in the room clearly, the four statues of the Heavenly King who were originally facing the four corners all turned around, facing the four people, as if they were surrounded by them, the sculpture of the Heavenly King showed a fierce light, one by one fierce gods and evil spirits, not at all like the Heavenly King who symbolized the righteous path, but like a demon crawling out of the underworld.