Chapter 481 — The Shaman God Strikes at the Soul

Little Thunderclap Temple.

Shen Mu looked around. Most of the layout here resembled that of the Great Thunderclap Temple—after all, the Little Thunderclap Temple had existed for only a few hundred years and lacked the Great Thunderclap Temple's deep foundations, so it could only copy wholesale.

Yet the number of demon monks here was no less than that of the Great Thunderclap Temple. The Little Thunderclap Temple was arguably the only holy ground in the Wasteland, with no rival; and since the Wasteland teemed with strange beasts, the Little Thunderclap Temple flourished exceedingly.

Many demon monks came and went, all neatly robed and courteous to others. Shen Mu also saw a flood dragon coiled within the temple grounds, expounding scriptures and preaching to many demon beasts that had not yet taken human form. In other temples, great demon monks were expounding scriptures and teaching the canon to numerous demon monks, instructing them in divine abilities and passing on the methods of refining treasures.

"This is like a civilization of the demon race."

Shen Mu was full of admiration. Whatever one thought of Little Tathagata's conduct, the fact that he had built the Little Thunderclap Temple from nothing to such a state by his own strength alone was worthy of respect.

Little Tathagata and Old Tathagata were fellow disciples, of roughly the same age. Old Tathagata's lifespan had run out, and he had died in battle in the Divine Severance Mountain Range; but Little Tathagata was a great demon who had attained the Way, and his lifespan was very long.

With him there, the Little Thunderclap Temple grew more and more prosperous.

Suddenly, two great demons leaped and bounded like the wind, trading blows. Now they leapt into the clouds, now they plunged into the valley below; their attacks were swift, their moves fierce and formidable.

"These two senior brothers are no weaklings," Xu Shenghua said in surprise, glancing up.

Overjoyed, Shen Mu called out loudly, "Big fellow!"

One of the great demons was a mighty demon monk, all brawn and sinew, with only some black fur left un-shed on his face and hands. He was wielding a Zen staff against his opponent. Hearing the call, he at once knocked his opponent flying with a staff blow, bounded over, and landed with a crash, exclaiming in surprise, "Little bean sprout! Bald—where?"

That last question was meant for Little Tathagata, who could not help but fly into a rage. He slapped the demon monk right on the head and shouted, "Who calls his master a bald donkey? I didn't attain the Way from a donkey!"

Xuanliao the Demon Ape, Zhankong, hastily covered his head and stammered, "Little—where?"

Little Tathagata didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "I met him at the foot of the mountain, so I invited him over as a guest."

The Demon Ape grinned, baring his teeth, and was about to give Shen Mu a hug, only to find Shen Mu too short. Shen Mu had actually grown a great deal taller, now on par with the Butcher, only a little shorter than the Alchemist. But the Demon Ape himself was exceedingly burly; even in his youth he had already stood taller than the mountain forests.

Now that he had grown up, if he revealed his true form, he would likely be no less formidable than the Dragon Qilin.

Now, in human form, he stood nearly two zhang tall.

Suddenly, the great demon he had been fighting came charging over with a shout, wanting to resume their battle. "Senior Brother Zhankong, let's go another round!"

The Demon Ape flew into a rage. He reached out one hand and seized the demon monk by the neck. The demon monk immediately lost all his fight; his limbs drooped, and the tail behind his rump hung limp, wagging once in a fawning manner.

The Demon Ape set him down and presented him before Shen Mu, declaring loudly, "Meat, guest!"

Shen Mu looked at the bald-pated demon monk, who lay prostrate on the ground, trembling with fear. Shen Mu hastily shook his head. "Since he's your junior brother, you can treat me, but I can't eat him."

The Demon Ape scratched his head and looked at Little Tathagata beside him. The fat on Little Tathagata's face twitched wildly as he forcibly suppressed his anger. "Disciple, your friend has come—are you going to treat him to your master as well?"

The Demon Ape hastily shook his head.

Shen Mu laughed. "We haven't seen each other in a long time. You don't need to think about treating me to meat. When in Rome, eat vegetarian. Even someone as powerful as Tathagata can't be eaten."

The Demon Ape was delighted. "Vegetarian, strong!"

Jing Yan asked curiously, "Does Senior Brother Zhankong always speak so concisely?"

Little Tathagata said, "Zhankong has great Buddha-nature; he treasures every word like gold, and every word carries profound meaning. It was precisely this trait that made me take him as a disciple."

Jing Yan was puzzled. She could see that he treasured every word like gold, but she had not seen the great Buddha-nature.

Where was the Buddha-nature in grabbing your junior brother and offering him as meat the moment you met?

The Demon Ape followed them up the mountain. When they reached the summit, Shen Mu looked around and saw that it resembled the golden peak of the Great Thunderclap Temple, except there were many more stone statues, placed there presumably to ward off the darkness.

Atop the mountain stood pagoda after pagoda, each with monks cultivating there—most of them bird-headed or beast-headed human-bodied monks, draped in yellow kasayas, solemn in demeanor.

These monks were likely great demons who had attained the Way in the Wasteland. Cultivating here, they must hold no small status.

Shen Mu's eyelid twitched. These great demons' cultivation was exceedingly formidable, the demonic aura about them intense beyond measure. Some monks' demonic aura was so heavy that even he felt a stir of dread—these were likely powerhouses of the Hierarch level!

What was more, some had blood-light seeping through their demonic aura, clearly marking those who had committed no small amount of slaughter in the past!

"I can't take it anymore! Every day eating vegetarian and chanting Buddha's name, eating vegetarian and chanting Buddha's name—my mouth has gone so bland a bird could fly out of it! When will this end?"

Suddenly a yellow-robed monk with a bird's head and human body leapt to his feet. He ripped his yellow robe to shreds in one motion; his neck shook, and at once countless golden feathers sprouted madly from his neck. His body swelled wildly; from among the feathers burst bird head after bird head—nine in all. He spread his wings, and his wingspan stretched across dozens of mu!

"I've roamed and lorded over the Wasteland, eaten countless men and beasts, and long since been tangled in karmic debt. What the hell do I need to eat vegetarian and chant Buddha's name for?"

The nine-headed great bird, shaped like a peacock, beat its wings and rose, crying fiercely, "This karmic debt can't be washed away—so I'm going to eat my fill!"

Other monks rose into the air one after another; Shen Mu even saw that several monks were of the human race, joining forces to subdue the nine-headed peacock. "Senior Brother Ming, you've been seized by your inner demon again—wake up quickly!"

"A thousand years of cultivation—don't let it be destroyed by a single moment of folly!"

...

With their combined strength, the monks finally subdued the nine-headed peacock, but the great peacock remained unruly and unsubdued, clamoring to go on a killing spree.

Little Tathagata stepped forward and abruptly tore open his monk's robe. Taking a knife, he slashed his own chest, cut off a piece of flesh, and tossed it to the nine-headed peacock, shouting, "If you want to eat meat—come and eat!"