Chapter 32: The Blessing of the True Dharma, the Fleshly Vessel's Offering

Before the words had even left his mouth, a burst of bullets was fired toward the source of the sound. Fortunately, the shooter’s aim was terribly poor, and all the shots missed, hitting a distant large tree instead. The bark exploded and wood chips flew, terrifying the person hiding among the dry leaves into a panicked scream.

“Ahhh! Don’t kill me, please don’t kill me!”

Seeing this, Yuan Zhu quickly shook his head and raised his hands to signal that it wasn’t him.

“I—I was a bit nervous. I lost control and just pulled the trigger,” Lü Rang finally responded belatedly, his voice trembling with panic and his expression filled with regret and fear after nearly killing someone by accident.

“Damn! It was you?!” The pink-haired youth ahead of him cried out, hastily dodging as if fleeing for his life, afraid of being hit by a stray bullet.

The captain said nothing in reproach—newbies all go through this.

If someone unlucky got shot, there was still the “Fluffy King” suit to protect them. If that couldn’t stop it, then it was fate. Even divine intervention wouldn’t help—what else could one do?

“Come out, don’t be afraid, you’re safe now.”

The captain stepped forward first, leading from the front, shielding the others behind him. The gesture seemed responsible and reassuring, but Yuan Zhu inexplicably felt it was more like the captain had given up on relying on the group and had to take matters into his own hands.

Another tremor of fear came from the dry leaves, and finally, a small, thin figure rose and timidly approached the group.

As Yuan Zhu drew closer, he saw the figure was a dark-skinned, rather unattractive little monk. The distinctive tattered monk’s robe draped over his shoulders, and his shaved head bore a resemblance to monks from Southeast Asia on Earth.

“A monk?” Meng Xiyue, who had taken cover near Yuan Zhu, murmured with some curiosity and surprise. “Is this bubble world somehow connected to Buddhism?”

The little monk mustered his courage and scanned the group before finally addressing the captain: “H-hello, I am Ku Cao from the Ye Fo Kingdom. May I ask if you are here to rescue us?”

“Rescue?” The captain caught the key word. “Can you tell us more about the Ye Fo Kingdom and what exactly happened that requires outsiders to save you? You look hungry—I can offer you some food.”

Seeing the boy named Ku Cao’s hollow eyes and starving frame, the captain pulled two energy bars with red packaging from his pack, tore one open, and handed it to him. “Open it from here. The food inside can be eaten directly.”

The unfamiliar aroma of the food immediately made the little monk’s mouth water, his stomach growling loudly. Without hesitation, he snatched it and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing and swallowing quickly. His ravenous eagerness almost made him choke.

The captain handed him a water bottle next. “Drink this.”

“Wuwuwu… thank you, thank you! You are truly kind-hearted, surely blessed by the Buddha!” The little monk swallowed the food stuck in his throat with great difficulty, then, relieved, he gratefully knelt and bowed deeply to the group.

“Get up and tell me about Ye Kingdom and your experiences,” the captain said, helping the boy to his feet and asking again.

The thin boy carefully tucked away the remaining energy bar and nodded repeatedly. “Okay, okay. Ye Fo Kingdom is a Buddhist city built by the Buddhas, with a population of over one hundred thousand. The city walls are three zhang high! We lived a peaceful, law-abiding life devoted to Buddhism, but two months ago, many undead skeletons crawled out from wild graveyards and started attacking farming villagers.”

“The casualties grew, and then an invisible monster appeared—one that could possess and hide. Even the Buddhas in the temple were caught off guard, suffering heavy losses. About a month ago, the East City Vajra Temple was overtaken by these invisible ghosts, creating a terrifying Buddha corpse ghost. The Great Buddha Abbot Long Yin decided to personally exorcise the demons but was betrayed by ghost slaves hidden among the monk soldiers and fell into a trap. His fate is unknown.”

“Seeing Ye Kingdom on the brink of collapse, a mage rescued us. He drove off many monsters and ghosts, saved hundreds of us, and led us into the wilderness forest, hiding for over half a month. The mage tried to contact other escapees and Buddhist sages to regroup and reclaim the kingdom. Then I heard another Buddha hero appeared at a critical moment, subdued the evil ghosts, retook the kingdom, and took in many refugees.”

“After that, I don’t know what happened. The mage named Xiang Wen abandoned plans to return and stopped other refugees from entering the kingdom, choosing to stay in the wild. At first, it was okay, but hunting grew harder, and large forest animals dwindled quickly. Without food, some refugees couldn’t bear it and secretly returned to the kingdom, while others kept searching for food in the woods.”

“Then about ten days ago, Xiang Wen returned gravely wounded. He didn’t have time to explain much, only gathered a group of us youths, gave us Buddhist precepts before dying, and ushered us into the Buddhist path. After that, hunting parties encountered a terrifying beast, killing three adult hunters and injuring four. We children were forced to join the search for food, but the dangerous beasts increased. Some said we should ask the mage in the kingdom for help. In the end… everyone got separated.”

After listening to the boy’s story, the captain asked, “Besides Ye Fo Kingdom, are there other countries?”

“Huh?” The boy looked puzzled, unable to understand. “Is there another Buddhist kingdom? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Are there other human settlements besides Ye Kingdom?”

The boy nodded. “Yes, there are some villages in the deep forest outside the city. They long to settle in the kingdom. Also, those who offend the Buddhas, break rules, or commit crimes there are exiled far away to atone by cultivating wasteland.”

Through their exchange, Yuan Zhu could imagine an isolated, primitive city-state with a backward civilization. He wondered if the Buddhas the boy mentioned wore “Fluffy King” luxury children’s clothes, or if selling “luxurious children’s kasaya robes” to the Buddha’s disciples was common here. He also pondered whether the Buddhist sect tolerated sensual desires, as the boy seemed to describe a meat-eating tradition.

The captain said, “Let me see your precepts.”

“Okay!”

At his words, the boy immediately tore open his tattered robe and raised his right arm, revealing a filthy armpit.

At the junction of his armpit and chest, a prominent purple-red tumor bulged, its surface covered with blood vessels as if about to burst. Stranger still, the tumor vaguely resembled a Buddha’s head.

Though its facial features were indistinct, the structure of the Buddha’s head, the topknot area, and the blank face evoked an eerie chill, as if a twisted, invisible visage was staring back.

“Ugh…!” Meng Xiyue recoiled in disgust, stepping back quickly.

The others were unfazed, still staring blankly at the pigeon-egg-sized purple-red tumor, their noses seemingly detecting a rich, gentle sandalwood scent, evoking a sense of serene purity.

[Beep! Abnormal contamination detected. Mental tampering attack in progress.]

Yuan Zhu’s spirit jolted and he stopped observing the strange tumor. Inside it seemed to harbor a nascent form of corruption.

The captain said, “It’s a Buddha cocoon, apparently a blessing of the true Dharma. Tell me about your ordination.”

“I don’t really know. At the time, Xiang Wen was near death. He brought out a bowl of thick blood soup mixed with minced meat from a stone cave and had each of us take a sip. Then we fainted and slept without waking. When we awoke, Master Xiang Wen had already passed away.” Ku Cao’s voice was tinged with sadness.

“It seems to be a flesh offering. That Xiang Wen shattered his Buddha cocoon, mixed it into the meat soup for you to ingest, transmitting the Dharma in hopes of protecting you from this calamity. As for the undead ghosts you mentioned…” The captain inhaled deeply, closed his eyes to sense carefully, and murmured in puzzlement, “The underworld?”

Yuan Zhu, standing nearby like a subordinate, felt a vague awe. He wanted to join in, but lacked the knowledge to understand the specialized terms.

It seemed he had encountered a new system—the Buddhist “Buddha Cocoon.” Blessings of the true Dharma, flesh offerings? It all sounded eerie. Somehow, it seemed less reliable than the Holy Light of the Sanctuary.