荒墟牧神 - 第256章 借劍屠真龍 - 簡牘書房

"Kill this deer, and no one will be the wiser!" The men suddenly burst into action; from their sword-caskets countless flying swords shrieked from their sheaths and became a rain of swords across the sky, killing toward the Four-Unlike. The Four-Unlike shook its body and revealed its true form, dozens of times more massive, and charged at them through the sword-rain; sword after sword struck its body, but could only pierce the hide, never wound its vitals.

With a great boom, its enormous antlers impaled two of them and slammed them against the boundary stele, and at once two splashes of blood appeared on the stone.

The other two fled in panic through the air. This Four-Unlike was a rare breed among strange beasts, face of a horse, hooves of an ox, tail of a donkey, head of a deer, and having listened to sermons at Great Thunderclap Temple for a hundred or two hundred years, it had long since cultivated vast powers and was exceedingly fierce.

The Four-Unlike shook its head, and the antlers flew from its crown, piercing one man through the chest and nailing him to the ground; the other it ran down, raised a hoof and stamped, crushing him to powder.

The Four-Unlike shook its head again; the antlers flew back and settled once more upon its crown. It looked back at the Buddha-Child's corpse beneath the stele, turned, and ran toward Great Thunderclap Temple.

Its body was stuck all over with flying swords, but they were only flesh wounds, and its speed did not slacken in the least.

Before long the sky was bright, and several elder monks, led by the Four-Unlike, came to the boundary stele. The old monks examined the wounds, and all wore grave expressions.

"The Buddha-Child is dead, just like that..." One old monk in a yellow robe frowned deeply. "The sword wounds are indeed those of the Crown Prince's men, not the swordsmanship of the Dark Demon Cult, and the weapons match as well. But the Tathagata is just now in council with the Crown Prince, settling the great plan for the world to come, to change dynasties, to correct Emperor Yanfeng's reforms, to return to the root and the source. This is a plan for ten thousand generations; if it were ruined by this..."

"The Buddha-Child's passing is indeed grievous, but it is only a stinking skin-bag; to cast it off is to be lightened, no longer to struggle in this great sea of suffering."

Another old monk said: "We cannot let the Buddha-Child's death ruin Great Thunderclap Temple's plan for ten thousand generations. The Tathagata need not know of this matter; it is enough that we Arhats of the Arhat Hall know."

"But the Buddha-Child is dead after all, and several of the Crown Prince's attendants are dead as well; this cannot be hidden."

"Then tell the Tathagata and the Crown Prince that the Hierarch of the Dark Demon Cult did it. The Buddha-Child, in kindness, escorted the Hierarch out of the temple; the Hierarch ambushed him at the boundary stele and killed him, and the Crown Prince's attendants went to stop him and all fell to his foul hand."

The yellow-robed old monks' faces changed greatly, and one Arhat shouted: "A monk does not lie!"

The old monk's long brows flew up, and he said with spirit: "You need not say it. I will. And when I have said it, I will return to lay life and leave the temple! When the future of Great Thunderclap Temple is at stake, what does it matter if I cast away my own good name?"

"Excellent, excellent! Senior brother, your righteousness is great." The monks pressed their palms together and bowed to him.

...

The monks of the Arhat Hall returned to Great Thunderclap Temple. Old Tathagata had already finished his deliberations with Crown Prince Jingping and rose to see him off, saying: "Your Highness should return to the capital at once. If His Majesty should pass away and the realm be left without a lord, and Your Highness is not in the capital, I fear some other prince may ascend the throne."

Crown Prince Jingping said gravely: "What my Buddha says is most true."