CHAPTER 45: 45

Lan Tian was cultivating on her bed and it took her a while to snap back to reality. She then realized something was off.

She was supposed to distance herself from Mo Junhua, to become strangers, but how did things turn out this way? She ended up writing him a letter. Indeed, trusting his words was a mistake; Mo Junhua in this life was even more cunning than in her past life.

Pfft, write a letter my ass! Who do you think you are? I’m not dying from your beauty.

Lan Tian was infuriated by this thought, she repeatedly recited the Meditation Technique to calm her mind, then she remembered, Mo Junhua was enlisting in the army in October this year.

In the afternoon, Lan Tian went into seclusion in the house, but Grandma Sun called out to her, "Lan Tian, go to the county town this afternoon, and you can seclude yourself after returning."

Lan Tian was perplexed, "Why am I going to the county town?"

Grandma Sun touched Lan Tian’s head with deep concern, "You don’t know, there’s a temple on the mountain next to the county government. The Bodhisattva there is very efficacious. You’ve had many misfortunes this year, it would be good to visit the temple and receive the Bodhisattva’s Spiritual Energy."

Lan Tian really wanted to say that once she came out of seclusion, she would be more efficacious than any Bodhisattva and really had no need to go worship. She looked outside the courtyard and saw Mo Yuanle leading a borrowed ox cart back, and Zhao Li packing up incense and paper money into a basket in the hall, it seemed like the entire family was setting out.

Alright then! To give Grandma Sun some peace of mind, Lan Tian followed the three adults to the county town.

The mountain next to the county government was not high, there were two paths leading up; one was steep but short, barely allowing one person to ascend via a rocky trail directly to the top. The other was a paved stone path spiraling up the mountain from the base, a much longer route.

A saying had circulated for some time that the longer path was a test given by the Bodhisattva to the people of the world. Faithful believers who came to offer incense would walk slowly up the long path, believing that sincerity brings divine response.

Those who sought excitement climbed to the mountain top via the shorter, steeper path.

From the base of the mountain, one could glimpse the lush greenery, a corner of the temple eaves painted in red lacquer, like a divine trace peeking from a heavenly palace. Famed for its efficacious Bodhisattva and revered by endless believers, the temple saw a stream of pilgrims, especially on the first and fifteenth of the lunar month when the local elderly ascended the mountain to offer incense and prayers.

Today was neither the first nor fifteenth, nor the Bodhisattva’s birthday, so there weren’t many people on the mountain. You could see only a few shadows ahead.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, Lan Tian and her group also had to leave the cart and walk up. She helped Grandma Sun out of the cart, waiting for Zhao Li to come over, but then she saw Mo Yuanle talking with Zhao Li, after which Zhao Li stayed on the cart and Mo Yuanle came over to Lan Tian and Grandma Sun.

"Auntie is not going?" Lan Tian looked puzzledly at Zhao Li on the ox cart.

"Your auntie is staying to watch the cart, it’s a long walk and I’ll accompany you up," said Mo Yuanle as he came over to help Grandma Sun climb.

Lan Tian had been to this temple once in her previous life, on Guanyin Bodhisattva’s birthday, to offer incense with Grandma Sun. The entire Mo Village, young and old, was mobilized; two ox carts were filled with people and there were still those who had to walk. The elderly rode the carts while the able-bodied walked behind. Thanks to being in the company of Grandma Sun, Lan Tian also got to ride on an ox cart.

That day, the road was crowded with people visiting the temple for Guanyin Bodhisattva’s birthday. The ox carts were even slower than walking. There were even more people in the temple; a glance revealed a sea of heads. Lan Tian’s cloth shoes were stepped on several times, nearly causing her to walk back barefoot. Offering incense and bowing heads resulted in bumping into the heels of the person ahead.

After that day, Lan Tian never visited the temple again.

Upon reaching the mountaintop, Lan Tian offered prayers in the main hall, performed the ceremonial rites, but did not kneel. Grandma Sun, who was about to scold her, held her tongue recalling Mo Yuanle’s advice on the way up, and instead prayed more fervently, mumbling in her heart, "The child doesn’t understand, may the Bodhisattva forgive her."

After paying her respects to the main Bodhisattva in the great hall, Lan Tian did not visit the other Buddha halls. Grandma Sun wanted to pray to all of the Bodhisattvas in the temple, but Lan Tian refused to join, so Mo Yuanle kept her company.

Not far behind the great hall, there was a small pavilion surrounded by lush bamboos. It was an excellent spot to rest from the sun and provided a view of the scenery on the other side of the mountain. Lan Tian agreed to wait for them there and sat in the pavilion, bored, resting her chin on the stone table, staring at the passing small paths in a daze. Faintly, she heard what seemed to be Buddhist chants, "Fairy, fate is decreed by Heaven, not to be reversed; let nature take its course, when the time comes, you will naturally understand the causes and effects. Remember! Remember!"

Lan Tian looked up, searching around, but there was no one nearby. She did see the back of a monk walking toward the mountaintop and quickly disappearing around a bend into the woods.

"Was that meant for me?" Lan Tian’s gaze lingered where the monk had vanished, lost in thought for a long time.

After returning from the temple, Lan Tian went into seclusion. In her previous life, she cultivated up to the Qi Refining Late Stage, half a step into Foundation Establishment. Starting over, Lan Tian progressed with ease, her spirit lifted, gradually closing her eyes, breathing in a rhythm, slowly entering a higher realm.

In the courtyard, Zhao Li flicked her clothes and hung them on a rack, glanced over at Grandma Sun chopping pigweed, and expressed concern, "Grandma, something seems off about Tiantian, should we check on her?"

"It’s fine, she’ll be out of it soon. Haven’t you noticed that she doesn’t get along with Hua Zi? Every time they meet, it’s like they’re enemies from a past life, and Hua Zi always seems to provoke her into anger. Don’t you find their interactions amusing?" Grandma Sun glanced at Lan Tian’s room, stood up, went to her own room to get a lock, and locked Lan Tian’s door.

Really? Zhao Li turned and pondered. Every time, Tiantian spoke politely with Mo Junhua, how could they seem like enemies?

Lan Tian was unaware of Grandma Sun’s perspective or else she probably would have been disgusted. Scenes from her previous life flashed before her, Lan Tian observed her own life as if from the sidelines; a tumultuous childhood, uneasy days in foster care, a humble marriage, the hardship of being driven out of her home in middle age, and the sudden cultivation in her later years.

Lan Tian’s chaotic thoughts gradually calmed, becoming still like water. No matter how humble her past life was, it was all slowly receding. Here and now was a renewed Lan Tian, embarking on a new life.

Gradually emptying her thoughts, she entered a meditative state; everything around her slowly disappeared – the table, the bed, the room, the courtyard, Mo Village – leaving only herself in the void of darkness.

Lan Tian knew that they were there in the darkness. Slowly, even her breathing ceased. Not knowing how much time had passed, a green light suddenly twinkled in the darkness, followed by a red light that flickered dimly in the distance.