Agon Lama hung the sack on another part of the tent, took out the tools, and placed them on a platform.
"I just realized there are many buckets here, some are water buckets, and some are covered in a kind of leather-like patina like bloodstains."
There is a well beside it, the water overflowing around the edge of the well, somewhat similar to a mountain pond spring but much smaller, less than half a meter wide.
What happened afterward was so shocking even to me now, it's absolute unforgettable.
A few people then entered the tent one by one, often two people carrying a roll of fabric, the end of which could be seen a pair of dead person's feet, pale and lifeless.
There were a total of four corpses placed on the platform.
The tent is connected to that slope, and the vultures began to descend gradually, with their wide wings flapping lazily, appearing extremely excited. However, they dared not get close to the tent, maintaining a certain distance, as if waiting for a grand feast.
I noticed that there were many steps in a higher and more side part of that slope, and at the bottom were the buildings of the Five Lama Temple.
There were many people on the steps, eagerly waiting.
I realized then that those were all tourists. The Five Lama Temple was just like Kodaiji Temple, and it didn't exclude visitors from other places. In fact, many temples are like this. Except for the large temples that are too far up the mountain and difficult to reach, most temples have visitors and tourists.
Lama Agon was chanting, reciting in a language I could not understand, and then he picked up his tools and began dismembering the bodies with ease, just as if he were cutting chickens, ducks, pigs or cattle, slicing them into pieces and separating bones from flesh.
I first learned the art of funeral rites, and talking about sewing bodies together and shaving heads is already quite filthy and bloody. Compared to what I'm seeing now, it's nothing at all.
I couldn't take it anymore, so I closed my eyes.
But soon I heard a dull sound, the hammer striking bones repeatedly, and my mind automatically filled in the image.
I couldn't close my eyes anymore, because the imagined scene was even harder to bear.
The flesh and bones were put into barrels, and they were carried up the slope one by one. Lama Agon poured them out, and the vultures swarmed around, tipping their heads, shaking meat pieces in their beaks, and swallowing them whole.
Further up the steps, the visitors were running away in a panic, while others were still there but covering their mouths and retching, their sounds carrying over to us clearly.
Lama Agon returned to the tent, he fetched water to clean the wooden barrels, then more water to clean the table and tools.
There were still four skeletons left on the table, which were the heads, all of them shaved clean and without flesh and blood.
The blood smell lingered long and made my mind heavy and dull.
I have lives in my hands, but to go this far is still too difficult, too terrifying.
Black City Temple, could it be so terrifying!?
My parents respect Lama Agon so much...
But he...
"What heinous crime have they committed to be treated in such a manner?" I spoke in a hoarse voice, staring fixedly at Lama Agon.
"They have no sin; they are only full of virtue and blessings in their lives, and they can go directly to heaven after death. Even if they die of disease, they will lose this qualification." Lama Agon did not turn his head. He meticulously cleaned the bloodstain on the table, except for the glaze that could not be removed by scrubbing, and gradually restored the table surface to its original cleanliness.
"Virtue? And then die without a complete body?" I still find it hard to accept.
"You, you have preconceived notions. I told you earlier that this is ascending to heaven, where vultures flying in the sky look down on the earth, they have already transcended." Lama Agon began to wash his hands, but the dirt in his nails was difficult to clean no matter how hard he tried.
I fell silent.
Is this a matter of differing perspectives?
Perhaps, it's just that the information I received during my upbringing was that everything returns to dust and dirt, but here, it returns to the heavens and earth?
"Human beings are a medium, and also a prison. When I shed my skin and break the chains, that is when I become truly myself." Lama Agon spoke again.
His words carry a heavy Zen-like meaning, too profound and deep.
"People at Black City Temple will not be released from life. They use the medium to pray for and demand what they need. Many years ago, we all were under their sin, so-called soul cleansing, but it was actually just layer upon layer of skeletons."
"Until they were driven away, the people here became human from cattle and horses."
"Black City Temple exists widely on this land, but it is hidden more deeply now."
Lama Agon's words cut to the point, and I could only force myself to listen carefully to his story, trying to suppress the discomfort inside.
"Sacrifice of bones and flesh, soul is stripped off alive, and filth in the lotus tower rises up to heaven, they refine not the vajra hammer, but the black Rakshasa."
"Do you know what a Xingbo is, and what a Living Buddha is?"
Lama Agon asked me again.
I shook my head. This was completely beyond my understanding.
"Once, the Living Buddha was not a Living Buddha, but a disguise of a Xingbo. After the Living Buddha dies, his body does not decay, and he will be reborn. However, his rebirth is uncertain, and the place where he appears is also uncertain; sometimes he may not appear at all. Only before the real catastrophe does a true Living Buddha appear."
"And the Xingbo will directly be reborn, he will continue all of himself, continue the oppression of people by Black City Temple, and continue to exercise his own rights."
Lama Agon spoke in a deep voice again: "You, have you understood anything?"
I felt a knot in my brow, and for a moment, I was extremely silent.
"Living Buddha..."
That's the out-of-yangshen realm?
Reincarnation, is it by using so-called destined people who can see the out-of-yangshen realm souls and take over their bodies!?
So it seems that Lei Ping is like a Living Buddha.
Then the Xingbo is similar to the Taoist High Dao?
No, his cruelty would definitely be much higher than the Taoist High Dao!
"I know, you have another goal. You came here to overthrow Black City Temple, destroy everything they have, and make them not come to disrupt your life."
"Just that, you can't do it. No one can truly destroy Black City Temple, even a Living Buddha." There was a look of deep regret in Lama Agon's eyes.
"The downfall of Black City Temple will be their own extinction, and I will protect you, so you won't be chosen."
"The Xingbo is very old. He can't leave Black City Temple by himself anymore, nor dare he reach the Five Lama Temple."
"He can't find a more suitable body."
Lama Agon's words made me feel even colder, and my spine was covered in cold sweat, and I had goosebumps all over my body.
So this is the reason why the Black City Temple's black Rakshasa has been looking for me all this time!
That's why they were inviting, not killing, and even not harming me in the slightest!
No, their purpose is not just me, but also my father!
My eyes slightly turned red, and I said in a hoarse voice: "You are more foresighted than Master, and since you can find me, you should be able to find my father as well. You must have sent someone to pick him up, right? Lama Agon."
Lama Agon looked at me deeply, recited a Buddhist verse, but did not answer. Instead, he said, "You should live in the Five Lama Temple for a long time. I have talked with Muyao, and you are a suitable person. This will make the Xingbo dare not find you."
"Answer my question! We can talk about other things!" I stared at Lama Agon, speaking clearly.
