Chapter 71

(Zhizunbao: Oh, recently I've been hovering between first and second place on the supernatural charts, feeling quite conflicted and sentimental, and all sorts of things are not going well... Everyone, shall we take the lead in clicks and recommendation votes on the supernatural charts?)

When Zhizunbao encountered the tall and thin monk, he suffered a significant loss, and he had a bit of fear towards the monk. Although he was chasing to save someone, he was uneasy and did not dare to run at full speed, only following the trail left behind. As the footsteps left by the monk on the mountain path became fewer and fewer, he couldn't help but feel anxious.

Not far ahead, Zhizunbao suddenly heard a few light sounds and saw a fine horse tied by the road, with a lot of horse droppings around it. He had a sudden realization and immediately guessed that this was the mount left for the last person. Seeing the surrounding grass being eaten and the piles of horse droppings, he recalled the situation of feeding the donkey in the ghost market and noticed something — the horse droppings were initially formed into lumps, but later became scattered and messy.

He was overjoyed!

It turned out that although mules and horses are herbivores, they are not usually allowed to graze directly on fresh grass when raised at home. Generally, the grass is cut and dried, and when fed, things like soybean cake and bran are added to make the horses stronger. Typically, they are not fed fresh grass directly.

Occasionally, horses might nibble on a bit of grass outside, but if they were tied here for a long time and ate a lot of dew-covered fresh grass, their stomachs would not be able to handle it, leading to diarrhea!

The unformed horse droppings were a clear sign of this.

When Zhizunbao's ambush on the two monks was detected, he naturally feared that the horse might have been tampered with and did not dare to ride it. He followed the trail of horse droppings urgently — as long as the horse droppings continued, there was no way he couldn't catch up.

The path the monk took was quite hidden, but the horse droppings were intermittent and continuous. Zhizunbao followed for half a night, finally leaving the Wanmang Peak and arriving in the Kunlun Mountains.

By then, the sky was beginning to lighten, and the white mist and fog again enveloped the mountains.

As he walked, the horse droppings gradually increased, and footprints of people walking on the ground also appeared. He knew that the horse must have had diarrhea, and the monk had to dismount and walk, making him even more elated and his steps lighter.

"Even if you are stronger than me, as long as the horse is not in good condition, you will have to rest and treat it. I still have a chance!"

After a while, he finally saw a wisp of smoke rising slowly from the trees ahead!

Zhizunbao knew that the monk must be resting there. His heart raced, and he put all his things on the ground, then quietly crept to a high place and lay down to peek:

The monks were resting in a sparse area of trees, with a golden pot boiling over the fire. Some unknown herbs were added, and the smoke was extremely pungent and foul, almost making one want to vomit. The tall and thin monk sat cross-legged under a tree, with two monks kneeling on the ground, holding a golden bowl to offer him food and water. One was constantly adding wood to the fire, while two others were searching in their bags.

"One, two, three, four, five, six... Yes, all six are here. I don't have to worry about anyone seeing me from behind," Zhizunbao thought.

About a dozen fine horses were tied nearby, some lying down and some standing, but all looked rather listless. The disciples of the Yin-Yang School stood beside them like wooden statues, not moving or speaking, like living dead people. One of the monks took something out of his bag and approached to ask:

"Master, should we feed them?"

The tall and thin monk nodded slightly, and the two immediately went to the disciples, pinching their jaws and forcing them to open their mouths. They then stuffed something into their mouths, and the disciples swallowed with a gulp. This was repeated dozens of times until all the items were fed to everyone.

They then reported: "All have been fed."

The tall and thin monk clapped his hands and stood up, saying, "Good! Since the nectar pills have been fed, you can now give them some food. We need to get going soon." He then said to the one tending the fire, "There's no need to add more wood. Just wait for the pot to boil, then let it cool a bit and give it to the horses to drink. Once the horses are treated, we will set off immediately."

The three immediately responded, "Yes!"

The tall and thin monk nodded slightly and was about to speak when a strange expression appeared on his face!

The monk who had been kneeling and holding the golden bowl stood up, and the tall and thin monk leaned over and whispered something. Immediately, both chanted, "Welcome, Master's Great Incense!"

The five monks immediately bowed to the ground, chanting together, "Master's Great Incense, virtue nectar, offering to all directions, great virtue monks!"

The tall and thin monk's expression was solemn as he slowly said, "In the vast world of the three lives, countless as the dust, I make immeasurable offerings before the Buddhas, with virtues surpassing the cultivation of the lands of the Buddhas of the three worlds by ten thousand times!"

Zhizunbao watched in amazement, thinking, "Are they about to perform some ritual? They look so solemn and serious, it's truly impressive — but this is good, I can take the opportunity to add something to the pot! Treat the horses? I'll let you treat a ghost!"

Seeing the tall and thin monk turn and walk away, the two immediately took out some golden basins and followed, while the other two took some things to feed the disciples. Only one monk remained by the fire and the golden pot. Zhizunbao saw this as a good opportunity and immediately crept around a large circle to approach.

He picked a bunch of grass that donkeys couldn't eat, crushed it as he walked, and wrapped it in his clothes. Just as he approached, he heard the monk tending the fire mutter to himself, "Sigh, this medicine won't cool down for a long time. When can I feed the horses... If the Master blames me, how can I bear it?"

The monk feeding the disciples called from a distance, "That's not hard. Take a leather bag, and when the medicine is ready, pour it into the bag and soak it in the river. It will cool down quickly."

The monk was delighted, "What a good idea! I'll find an empty water bag!" He then left the pot and started searching on the horses' backs.

Could it be... that there really is such a thing as a stroke of luck?

He saw that the others were all facing away from him. Despite his heart racing and his breathing quickening, he still crept over, unwrapped the bundle, and dumped it all into the pot, stirring a few times before fleeing...

He squatted far away, still feeling his heart pounding, thinking, "Indeed, there is such a thing. Heaven has truly opened its eyes!"

After a while, he saw the monk return to the pot, holding a water bag and starting to pour the medicine into it. He felt a bit more at ease — just as he was about to return to his hiding spot, a thought came to him:

"I'll go see what the tall and thin monk is doing. It might help me be more cautious."

He circled around and headed in the direction the tall and thin monk had gone. The trees were sparse, and Zhizunbao didn't dare get too close. He saw a flash of red and yellow and immediately crouched down to peek.

He saw the tall and thin monk squatting on a stone, his pants already down, exposing a white, fleshy buttock. Behind him, someone was holding a golden basin, positioned right under his buttocks. Another person was crouching to support him, and another was holding a cloth...

Although everyone's faces were solemn and serious, as if in a very important ceremony, in Zhizunbao's eyes, after watching for a while, he had only one thought:

"What a ridiculous thing! This is just defecating, isn't it?"

Suddenly, a long piece emerged from the buttocks and plopped into the golden basin — it was indeed defecating, and there was no doubt about it!

The "Great Incense" turned out to be feces.

Zhizunbao felt a wave of nausea and thought it was boring and wanted to leave, but just as he was about to go, he heard the tall and thin monk let out a moan, seemingly in extreme pleasure!

He turned back and saw the monk had already wiped his buttocks and stood up.

Zhizunbao didn't dare underestimate him and crouched down again, thinking he would wait for them to leave before moving. However, as he crouched, he saw an unimaginable scene:

The monk took the golden basin to the side, gently removed the feces, and opened a cloth on the ground. He took out a clean red cloth from the first bundle, wrapped the feces carefully, folded it, and tied it with a yellow and red ribbon. He then took a yellow cloth, sprinkled some grayish-white powder on it, and placed the red cloth-wrapped feces inside, folding it again.

He opened the second bundle, which already contained many yellow cloth packages of various sizes. He placed the new package next to them, carefully tied the bundle, and carried it on his shoulder...

"Wow, this is really something! I've only heard of 'treating money like dirt,' but I never thought I'd see 'treating dirt like money' today — damn, what a disgrace! The Wu Lun Sect was driven off the mountain by such a person, this is truly embarrassing!"

Seeing the monk's bizarre behavior and the collection of these filthy things, Zhizunbao couldn't help but feel that these people were extremely strange and mysterious, adding another layer of caution to his mind.

The tall and thin monk had already left, and the two monks left to clean up were more relaxed. As they cleaned, they started to chat:

"This time, there's a lot of Great Incense. After we return, we can make a lot of nectar pills, and we can share some..."

"Of course! Every time we go out with the Master, we always get more when we return."

"Unfortunately, this time there's less Small Incense..."

"Ah, too bad, too bad. If we had met someone with the right karmic connection, it would have been even better to have some white bodhi seeds."

"Yes, yes..."

Seeing the two finish cleaning and return, Zhizunbao also sneaked back. He was particularly attentive to the bundles, and upon closer inspection, he saw that the bundles were placed on a fine horse's back, with several water bags nearby. If he guessed correctly, those water bags should contain... the so-called Small Incense!

Great Incense is feces, so Small Incense... could it be urine?

PS: The "Daindian Jing" says: "Bao Sheng (Buddha) is said to be blood (a woman's menstrual blood), (semen) is said to be Infinite Light (Buddha), Akasha (Buddha) is said to be large meat (five meats), Acalanatha (Buddha) is said to be perfume water (a great practitioner's urine), and Vairocana (Buddha) is said to be Great Incense (a great practitioner's feces). These are the five nectars." The items made from the five nectars are the nectar pills.

"Another method called 'honey-refined Great Incense': After following the prescribed diet, take the Great Incense from one's own body, place it on a clean stone slab, spread it evenly, and dry it in the wind. Mix it with honey and butter, add a little water, and boil until the water dries up. Grind the dried Great Incense into powder, mix it with the honey and butter, and form it into pills the size of sheep droppings. On the first day of the month at dawn, take one pill, ... and continue this for a year, and one can achieve the ability to abstain from food without visible veins. These methods are also part of the practice of offering the heart of enlightenment, leading to the supreme nectar achievement."

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