Chapter 595
Sighing for Compassion at the Temple of Compassion
With the blessing of the spirit disaster item, the healing process was exceptionally fast.
Within minutes, four people were selected from the player team organized by the internet celebrities.
The squad leader was not among those selected by the border guards.
He needs to stand guard outside the instance to prevent any unforeseen circumstances, since he is the only one capable of taking responsibility here.
"Sergeants Wang Jin and Xu Weiguo of the 7th Reconnaissance Company of the Border Defense Force are reporting for duty."
Two men stepped out from among the soldiers.
He approached Wu Wang, saluted, and then spoke.
Their physiques don't appear particularly robust on the surface; at first glance, they have a rather lean build.
Years of patrolling the border and being exposed to the wind and sun have given him a dark brown complexion that is almost black. The skin on his face and neck exposed outside his collar is rough like sandpaper. His saluting hands are covered with thick calluses on the base of his thumb and knuckles, and the lines on his palms are blurred. Dark stains are embedded in the nail crevices.
Only his eyes were always bright enough to give people a sense of security.
The squad leader walked over to Wu Wang, took a deep breath, and said, "Comrade, these are my two best soldiers. I'm entrusting them to you."
"I'm not worried about Xu Weiguo, but I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to take care of Wang Jin."
The reluctance and worry in her tone were unmistakable.
The danger of dungeons in the game "Spirit Disaster" comes not only from simple direct damage.
Even if these soldiers are among the best in the real world, they are still fragile and insignificant lives under the supernatural power of the dungeon.
In a sense, experienced players of the Necropolis are currently stronger than well-trained soldiers in dungeons.
After all, most military personnel are relatively new players and lack sufficient experience in this area.
This state is estimated to take at least a month to reach, once the overall level of the troops and the number of instances they have experienced reach a certain level.
Their superior training and teamwork will truly give them a greater advantage over ordinary players in dungeons.
Wu Wang smiled and patted the class monitor on the shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, we'll win."
After saying that, he and Wu Xiaoyou led the two border guards across the blockade line to the temple gate.
The other four players selected also followed closely behind.
"【Ruoshui】Lv30, 【Passion Fruit】Lv20, 【Mug】Lv22, 【Yiyezhou】Lv19."
The four of them briefly introduced their IDs and levels.
This also served as a way for everyone to get to know each other before entering the dungeon.
[Ruoshui] is the leading female internet celebrity.
Their selection consisted of three women and one man, with the one in the middle whose ID was a mug being the only male.
The two border guards next to Wu Wang also kindly showed their IDs and ranks.
Wang Jin's name is 【Jin Xin】Lv6.
Xu Weiguo's name is [Fortress] Lv23.
It's clear that Wang Jin is a newcomer to the Necropolis player after the open beta, while Xu Weiguo was already a Necropolis player during the closed beta.
Seeing that they all looked at him with puzzled expressions, Wu Wang shrugged and showed his ID to his second sister.
【Red Spider Lily】Lv10.
【Widow】Lv48!
For a moment, everyone was stunned.
Ruoshui and the others even subconsciously rubbed their eyes, afraid that they were seeing things.
Putting aside the terrifyingly overwhelming sense of dominance that the other shore flower had when she was beating them up, why is she only level 10?
The number 48 at the end made everyone feel a little dizzy.
"Forty-eight levels? How did they do that?!" The female internet celebrity Ruoshui murmured in disbelief.
Before the open beta, the level cap was locked at 30. Now, less than a month into the open beta, how come some people are already level 48?
This is way too weird!
Holy crap! Someone's cheating!
Wu Wang didn't explain further, but simply stepped through the crack in the temple's half-open gate, saying:
"Hurry up, I'm getting impatient."
His second sister, Wu Xiaoyou, followed closely behind him, followed by the two border guards.
Watching their figures disappear behind the mountain gate, the players led by the female internet celebrity looked at each other in bewilderment and immediately followed.
However, after the first three entered, [One Leaf Boat] found that no matter what he did, he could not step in, as if there was an invisible transparent wall blocking the way.
It seems to be a seven-player instance.
As the extra person, she naturally couldn't go in when the place was already full.
He could only sigh and retreat back into the crowd.
The squad leader's gaze was fixed on the dilapidated and desolate mountain gate. Being outside, he could offer no help and could only sigh:
"I hope everything goes well..."
------
Welcome to Cibei Temple
[Number of players in the instance: 7]
[Instance Description: Compassion Temple, where incense has burned for centuries and bells have never ceased ringing. Monks here can attain Buddhahood, and the number of believers is in the tens of thousands.]
However, recently, many devout pilgrims have mysteriously disappeared from the temple, with very few returning. Those who have returned are often dazed and muttering unfamiliar scriptures.
The Buddha said: If I don't go to hell, who will?
[You who are passing through this place, do you know if you are destined to meet?]
Main Quest: Stay at the Compassion Temple for seven days
Side Quest 1: Unravel the Abbot's Secret
Side Quest 2: Find the source of the anomaly in the Compassion Temple
Side Quest 3: Become a Buddha for All Beings in the Compassionate Temple
[Basic completion reward: Unknown]
[Hidden Rewards——Unknown Conditions]
May you find your own death.
The moment they stepped through the mountain gate, Wu Wang and the others felt a sudden darkness before their eyes.
Then came a dizzying sensation, as if I were on a sailboat battling a storm on a vast ocean.
The system notification sound from the game "Spirit Disaster" gradually jolted them out of their discomfort.
"Hey, are you moving or not? If not, don't block the way."
Before they could even take in their surroundings, they heard a urging voice from behind.
They instinctively looked back and were shocked to find that they were not inside the temple, but outside the mountain gate.
Behind them stretched a continuous mountain road that led to the horizon.
This is much longer than the mountain path they took to get here.
What's even more bizarre is that the mountain path is full of worshippers climbing up to enter the temple to make offerings.
There were so many people that they couldn't be counted; all you could see were countless heads bobbing as they climbed upwards.
It was a scene of bustling incense offerings, much like a modern tourist attraction during its peak season.
However, these people were all dressed in coarse linen clothes, with occasionally some seemingly wealthy people dressed in fine silks and satins mixed in.
But there is absolutely no trace of modern technology involved.
Looking down, everyone realized that they too had changed into simple cloth clothes.
"Tsk, are they a bunch of mute people? They can't even chant sutras, what are they doing at the temple? Get out of here, get out of here!" The guy urging them from behind was getting impatient.
He took a small step forward, pushed them aside, and walked into the mountain gate.
After a path was forcibly cleared, the crowd below began to move again, all of them sweating profusely as they walked toward the mountain gate.
It's clear that climbing to this location deep in the mountains is no easy feat; the steps leading up the mountain seem endless and are incredibly daunting.
“The mountain gate has changed too,” Xu Weiguo, also known as the fortress, said.
Looking up, everyone noticed that the once dilapidated and desolate mountain gate had been restored to its former glory. The heavy wooden door, now open and gleaming, seemed to be cleaned daily, and the three large, powerful characters of "Compassion Temple" were carved on the lintel.
Slogans in pleasing calligraphy were also displayed on both sides of the mountain gate.
Sighing for compassion at Cibei Temple
Seeking Buddhahood within Buddhahood, all sentient beings become Buddhas.
"So we've gone back to the past of Cibei Temple?" Ruoshui frowned, somewhat puzzled. "Does anyone know anything about the original history of Cibei Temple? Maybe it will make our subsequent exploration easier."
She also knew that some special copies seemed to exist in different timelines of the real world.
This is especially true for instances that leave behind "disaster sites" in real life.
Today, the once dilapidated Cibei Temple has been completely transformed and looks exactly as it once was.
Upon hearing this, Jinxin (Wang Jin) immediately shook his head and said, "No, this is definitely not the Compassion Temple that ever existed in the real world."
“I am a local from Yunzhou City and I am quite familiar with the history. Cibei Temple in the local history was just a little-known temple deep in the mountains. It has never had such a prosperous period of worship. If this number of worshippers and believers were normal, it would definitely be recorded no matter where it is.”
Everyone nodded silently in understanding.
Judging from the clothing of these worshippers, this was not a modern time. Given the lack of convenient transportation, the large number of people coming and going could not possibly be limited to locals. It must have been a renowned temple attracting people from all over to worship here.
With such a great reputation, how could the local history be completely silent about it?
"So, shall we go into the temple with these people now?" Mug asked, raising an eyebrow.
After taking another look at the surrounding area, the group realized that apart from the indistinguishable pilgrims, there was simply no other information to be found.
It seems there's no other way out except to go in.
We can't just turn around and go down the mountain road now, can we?
"Um, where did Boss Wei go?"
Suddenly, Passion Fruit spoke up timidly and asked.
Everyone turned around abruptly and were shocked to find that only the Red Spider Lily was standing in the same spot, observing the surroundings with them; the widow beside her had long since disappeared.
Seeing their gazes, Wu Xiaoyou sighed and pointed helplessly at the throng of people climbing the mountain path, saying, "He went down as soon as he came in."
Everyone: ?
Dude, you actually came down the mountain?
Although they were somewhat wary of the widow's level 48 prowess, Ruoshui and the others still felt exhausted by her unruly behavior.
Fortunately, judging from their levels, apart from Jinxin and Biyanhua, none of the other players were newcomers who became players after the open beta.
They have their own initiative in tackling dungeons.
They're not the kind of player who wouldn't dare to act without a mentor or expert to guide them.
After confirming the situation briefly, they followed the worshippers into the temple.
Only Wu Xiaoyou remained where she was, saying she wanted to wait a bit before deciding, and that Jinxin and Baobao could go in with them first.
I squatted by the mountain gate, watching the endless stream of pilgrims entering the temple.
About five minutes later, Wu Wang reappeared.
He wasn't surprised to see that only his second sister was left behind. Instead, he complained, "Why didn't you come down with us? This mountain path is quite difficult to climb."
Wu Xiaoyou stood up, rolled her eyes, and said, "You have the [Seven Star Steps of Heaven] that allows you to dodge and weave, so going down to the bottom and coming back up is a piece of cake. I can't possibly huff and puff while following you, can I? I'm not that stupid. What's the situation down there?"
Wu Wang squinted and replied, "It's bottomless. I've teleported down at least several thousand meters, but it's still an endless mountain path, and there's no shortage of pilgrims. Those people down there probably wouldn't be able to reach the mountain gate even after climbing for a whole day."
Keep in mind that this is a vertical height of several thousand meters. Wu Wang suspected that if they continued to descend, this unnamed mountain might be even higher than Mount Everest.
This is clearly a copy blocking mechanism.
Just like the ghost security guard at the gate of "Fight Back to School," Happiness Island is an independent island in the sea, designed to prevent players from leaving the instance directly through outside means.
"What else? You couldn't have just run two laps, could you?" Wu Xiaoyou continued to ask.
Based on his understanding of his younger brother, if he only wanted to check the way down the mountain, he definitely wouldn't have taken this long.
Wu Wang smiled and looked at the temple gate, saying, "I heard from a kind-hearted pilgrim that it doesn't matter if it's just for simple worship."
"However, if you are going to stay at Cibei Temple for a few days, you need to perform three steps when you formally worship on the first night: cleanse your hands, cleanse your mouth, and cleanse your mind. The order doesn't matter, but you must complete these three steps before nightfall, otherwise it will be considered disrespectful to the Buddha."
"Just remind those guys who've already gone in later."
It seems like it's still quite early before nightfall.
It doesn't matter if we go in and explore for a while before completing these three tasks.
Upon hearing this, Wu Xiaoyou first asked, "Are there really such kind-hearted pilgrims?"
Wu Wang shrugged and said, "Probably. He looks like a cripple. He probably came to Cibei Temple to beg Buddha to heal his leg."
"I figured he probably wouldn't make it to the mountain entrance today, so I kindly went over and asked if he needed any help. I told him that if he just told me some rules about pilgrims visiting Cibei Temple, I could fix his two legs so they would be exactly the same, saving him the trouble of climbing so high to pray to Buddha."
"He immediately rattled off the rule to me."
Hearing this, Wu Xiaoyou sensed something was amiss and, with a dark expression, continued, "And then? How did you cure him?"
Wu Wang raised an eyebrow in confusion and said, "I didn't say I cured him, I just said I would cure him exactly the same way. Isn't that simple?"
“I broke his good leg too, so that his two legs would be the same.”
"I have a lot of experience in kicking a cripple's good leg."
Wu Xiaoyou: "..."
I feel like I shouldn't have asked.
Doing this kind of thing in front of a temple will cause your merit to drop drastically!
Luckily, you've never done anything like this in the real world before, otherwise the Disabled Persons' Association would have contacted your family and they would have thrown you in jail.
As they chatted, Wu Wang's gaze drifted to a distant spot on the side of the mountain gate where few pilgrims passed by.
There, a trickle of water was slowly flowing down the mountain.
The pilgrims seemed to pay no attention to the stream; their eyes were fixed on the gate of Cibei Temple, and they couldn't wait to get inside.
It seems that although there is a constant stream of worshippers, very few actually intend to stay at the temple for a while.
Wu Wang brought his second sister to the stream.
He stirred the water and said, "The temperature is just right, and the pH is probably neutral... Hmm? Is there something in the water?"
The stream is so clear that you should be able to see even a needle at the bottom.
But when Wu Wang reached into the water and touched something, he couldn't see anything; all he could see was the rushing water.
He simply grabbed whatever he touched and pulled it out of the water.
The second sister spread her hands, leaned over to take a look, and immediately showed a strange expression.
"These are... human fingernails? Hey, your fingernails have gotten shorter too."
What Wu Wang was holding in his hand was a large handful of milky white fingernails, and it was obvious that they were not from any animal, but definitely human fingernails.
At this moment, she also noticed that her younger brother's fingernails, which he had just washed with the stream water, were also neatly trimmed.
It happened so quietly that even Wu Wang himself didn't realize when it was cut off.
This seems to correspond to the practice of "washing hands".
Just as Wu Xiaoyou was about to reach in and wash her hands,
A sudden voice came from in front of the two of them:
"I see that you two are washing your hands. Are you planning to stay at the temple today?"
"In that case, wash your hands and then go into the temple this way. The main gate is crowded with worshippers, so it's more convenient to go this way."
The siblings suddenly looked up.
To their astonishment, they found a kind-looking old monk with white eyebrows standing before them, dressed in a golden robe and with a gentle smile.
But neither of them noticed where he came from or how he suddenly appeared so close to them.
What's even stranger is that when you look in the direction the white-browed old monk is pointing, you see...
There was even a side gate there that led into the Compassion Temple.
But before the other party appeared, there were absolutely no side gates outside the Cibei Temple!
Otherwise, those players wouldn't have followed the pilgrims straight through the main gate; they would have tried the side gate to explore the map.
The siblings looked at each other in bewilderment.
It seems they've started to encounter something unusual... (End of Chapter)