Urban Martial Saint

Out of the forest came another person wearing the same monk’s robe. His appearance resembled that of the previous monk; they seemed to be monks from Brahmanism who came to Huaxia seeking the reincarnated True Buddha.

This new monk appeared older, holding two children in each hand. One of the children kept crying and sobbing, seemingly frightened by the monk. Yet the monk ignored the child’s cries and rushed into the pavilion with both children.

”Boye, you’re quite fast,” the older monk glanced at the younger monk and said, ”Why, did you only bring back one?”

”Elder, this child could very well be the reincarnated Spiritual Child of the True Buddha!” Boye, the younger monk, said excitedly, ”I happened upon an orphanage and found some Buddhist symbols on the walls outside. These symbols were drawn by him!”

”Really?” The older monk immediately looked at Broom Star, a hint of surprise in his eyes, ”Boye, are you sure? Were they truly Buddhist symbols?”

”Elder, although I don’t fully understand Buddhist texts, I have seen those symbols before, so I’m sure they are correct!” Boye paused and said, ”Moreover, this child possesses great wisdom, fitting the characteristics of the reincarnated True Buddha. I believe this time, we’ve truly found him and can take him back to lead Brahmanism. We can let the other children return, as it’s unnecessary to bring them back to Brahmanism.”

”Boye, whether he is truly the reincarnated True Buddha, the church will personally verify, it’s not up to us,” the older monk said as he placed the two children on the ground, ”For Brahmanism, the key is to retrieve the reincarnated True Buddha. Thus, we must proceed carefully; finding a wise child does not mean he is the reincarnated True Buddha. There’s an old saying in Huaxia: Rather kill by mistake than let one pass. Among these children, one may still be the reincarnated True Buddha. If we only bring one back and he isn’t the reincarnated True Buddha, will we have to return to Huaxia to search again? Boye, we’ve been searching for so long, it’s not easy. To ensure no mistakes, the best approach is to bring them all back for the church’s test.”

Boye looked at the two sobbing children behind the elder monk and whispered, ”But, Elder, among many of these children, surely not all are the reincarnated True Buddha. Bringing them back won’t pass the identification. I think we should return them to their families where they’ll be happy. Otherwise, if brought back to Brahmanism and they aren’t the reincarnated True Buddha, they’ll be placed with local herdsmen for adoption, not seeing their families again.”

”Boye, you’re worrying too much!” The elder monk frowned slightly and said, ”The human realm is suffering. Do you think being with their families is better than with the herdsmen? Staying with the herdsmen, they receive Brahmanism enlightenment from a young age, experiencing the Great Brahman God’s call, which is a blessing. Being brought to Brahmanism already shows their connection to the Great God, so why worry?”

Boye opened his mouth but said nothing more. He knew clearly that the elder monk wanted to bring all the children back due to personal interests; the Four Great Elders were competing to find the reincarnated True Buddha. Whichever elder found him first would gain a higher position in Brahmanism. Hence, the elders shared the same mindset: they’d rather mistakenly kill one thousand than let one pass, bringing many children back to ensure no potential True Buddha is missed. If another found him first, they’d regret not acting sooner.

”Elder, I’m back!” Just then, another voice came from the side.

Boye and the elder monk turned to see another monk approaching with three children. Compared to the elder, he brought even more children.

Seeing the three children brought by the monk, the elder smiled with satisfaction and nodded, ”Good, it’s quite a harvest today. With these six, we’ve gathered one hundred already. Let’s send these one hundred back to Brahmanism for testing first, and continue searching here. This time, we must not lose to the other three!”

”Yes!” the monk replied promptly, while Boye hesitated slightly but nodded. After all, he was subordinate to the elder and had to follow his orders.

”Let’s go!” The elder swiftly picked up Broom Star from the table and led the way out.

Boye reluctantly picked up the two children left by the elder and followed the monk to the roadside.

Near the road, a large truck was parked outside a small grove. The truck’s back was a tightly sealed iron box. In the truck was a monk and a driver; seeing the three monks approaching, the monk jumped down, helped open the truck’s rear door and let Boye and the others place the six children inside.

At a glance, it was shocking to see that the box was filled with children about Broom Star’s age. Once opened, children’s cries erupted from inside. In such a dark environment, many children were understandably scared.

Seeing the children, Boye frowned and whispered, ”Elder, many children inside are frightened, certainly not the reincarnated True Buddha. Shouldn’t we send them back first?”

”Boye, I made it clear before: rather kill one thousand mistakenly than let one pass; do you not understand?” The elder glared at Boye, ”The other three elders have captured more children than me, we are already behind. If they find the True Buddha first, our position within the church will decline. Do you want to spend your life under their gaze?”

”Well...” Boye scratched his head, ”But these surely aren’t the reincarnated True Buddha.”

”We won’t know till we go back for identification, don’t worry!” The elder closed the truck door, ”I’ll take these children back first. Boye, you and Weiye stay here, continue searching for potential reincarnated True Buddha, don’t be slower than the other elders!”

After speaking, the elder left in the truck, leaving Boye and Weiye at the location.

”Senior brother, you’re overthinking!” Weiye said to Boye, ”These children sent to Brahmanism will grow healthily, no different than staying here, why worry for them? Urgently, find the reincarnated True Buddha before others do, ensuring prosperity during his rule for us. Stop overthinking, focus on searching for the True Buddha!”

Boye nodded, though he was uncomfortable with the situation, knowing finding the True Buddha was crucial. In fact, Boye believed Broom Star was the True Buddha, making further search seem futile.

”Alright, let’s go!” Weiye pulled Boye’s clothes, leading him toward the roadside, continuing to persuade Boye along the way.

Just before reaching the road, distant engine roars echoed, a car seemed racing at high speed, truly a striking sound.

Both paused, turned, seeing a sports car approaching. The driver was Ye Qing, focused on driving, unaware of the monks beside the road.

Ye Qing had Zhao Chengshuang pull surveillance footage to track Boye; Zhao Chengshuang was quick and soon found Boye’s trail on the road. Ye Qing didn’t hesitate, drove Li Lianshan’s sports car to intercept Boye, aiming to take Broom Star back.

Yet, chasing along the road, Ye Qing found no human presence, let alone a monk.

This made Ye Qing anxious. He calculated the distance, believing it was the area. Yet, seeing no sign of monks, he worried whether he took the wrong path or missed them in the forest.

In such worries, a large truck suddenly appeared ahead; Ye Qing immediately perked up, slightly pressed the brake to slow down and approached, intending to ask the truck driver about any monks, which would confirm if he was on the right path.

But when Ye Qing’s car reached the truck, turning to greet the driver, he also noticed, astonishingly, two monks inside the truck, dressed identically to the monk at the orphanage earlier.

Ye Qing’s expression changed drastically, it seemed he searched high and low in vain, yet it was within reach. He thought he was on the wrong path, but indeed found the monks aboard the truck.