Big Data Cultivation

Chapter 577: Chapter 577: By Any Means Necessary

The middle-aged Taoist finished speaking about these causes and effects and glared at Zhuang Haoyun not far away, “Have I wronged you with what I’ve said?”

“You haven’t wronged me,” Zhuang Haoyun admitted frankly.

But he had something to say himself, “Daoist Ma, Mr. Zhuang was also compelled by circumstances. I emphasized repeatedly to your Heavenly Master that I only wanted to borrow and take a look, and we could negotiate the price. Alas, he refused me, leaving me no choice but to use this last resort.”

Daoist Ma grew even more incensed, “He refused you, and so you should steal? If my Maoshan Sect agrees to lend something to you, it’s a favor. If we don’t, it’s our right… Is there anyone who forces buying and selling like you do in this world?”

At this point, he looked at Feng Jun, “Donor, do you think what he’s done is right?”

Before Feng Jun had a chance to speak, Zhuang Haoyun chimed in.

With a cold expression, he declared, “This concerns my son’s life. You must lend, whether you’re willing to or not… Kind words didn’t get a yes from you, and you wouldn’t name a price, so I had no choice but to forcefully borrow it.”

Daoist Ma actually knew the details of the situation and sneered upon hearing this, “No one can cure your son, not even the ancestral plaque… Mr. Zhuang, while I understand how you feel, I still must say, don’t be deceived by others.”

“Deceived by others?” Zhuang Haoyun sneered, then took out his mobile phone to make a call, “Son, get out of the car and walk a few steps!”

Though he had not been at Luohua Manor these past few days, he had called multiple times daily and was all too aware of Zhuang Zesheng’s condition.

Indeed, it was for this reason that he was determined to go to Maoshan to borrow the Ancestral Plaque.

Strictly speaking, if he had the intent, he could also have borrowed a few Daoist scriptures from within the clan.

But he had come to a clear conclusion: those clan scriptures… were probably useless!

He didn’t read online novels and thus was unaware of theories like the “Age of Dharma Decline.” He simply knew that since his son became ill, none of the clan’s cultivation practitioners had been able to make a difference.

Further, he considered the cause of his son’s illness; the clan members had failed to detect the “evil spirits”—in fact, those shards of stone were scattered about unchecked by anyone in the family.

Under such circumstances, how could he dare hope that the Daoist scriptures, hard-won from the family, would be impressive to Feng Jun?

Zhuang Haoyun thought it over and felt that the Maoshan Ancestral Plaque might be of some significance—the plaque hadn’t cured his son’s illness, but seeing how reverently the Little Celestial Master and others treated it, perhaps the plaque was fine and the problem lay with the Maoshan disciples.

In fact, if one were to speak of renown within the Taoist circles, Maoshan wasn’t particularly notable; the reputations of Wudang, Quanzhen, and Zhengyi far surpassed Maoshan.

Within the Buddhist branches, there were also quite a few that exceeded Maoshan.

However, while those branches might indeed be impressive, after traveling across most of Huaxia for his son’s illness, Zhuang Haoyun only found some authenticity in Maoshan among these potential supernatural powers.

Whether the Ancestral Plaque was useful or not, it was treated with solemn respect, and he felt that the object was… quite ancient and solid.

As for the Five Hundred Arhats Blessing, the Big Dipper Formation, and the like, they seemed to be merely ceremonial.

In summary, he had seen the best of Maoshan, and others might have better, but he was not even given the chance to touch their offerings.

Thus, he went to Maoshan to request the Ancestral Plaque, only to be refused.

Refused… well, he would just have to figure out a way. With business as big as his, with relatives in officialdom and cultivation—even some mixed up with society—Zhuang Haoyun couldn’t simply be an innocent fool.

Once the item was in hand, he headed straight for Luohua Manor. As he initially intended to borrow the Ancestral Plaque—wanting to pursue peaceful negotiations before resorting to force—he found himself promptly on the list of prime suspects, pursued doggedly.

Fortunately, he made it into Luohua Manor just before being caught.

In his opinion, what he did was not wrong—at least from the standpoint of a father, he felt he had every right to use any means necessary for his son’s health.

Zhuang Haoyun hadn’t had a chance to explain all this when the door of the coach, over two hundred meters away, swung open, and Zhuang Zesheng stepped out.

He didn’t come out alone; he used a crutch in one hand and leaned on Driver Ge’s shoulder with the other, getting off the bus with much difficulty—after four years in bed, just physical recovery would take three to four months.

But anyway, his legs touched the ground and could move alternately, which was enough proof that he was getting better.

Daoist Ma was dumbfounded on the spot.

When Zhuang Haoyun first came to seek help with his son, Daoist Ma experienced it firsthand along with Junior Sister Zeng, who was present with him. For Maoshan, an offering of five hundred thousand in incense money wasn’t particularly common, so the ritual was definitely conducted with greater importance.

Of course, five hundred thousand wasn’t an extraordinary amount. Some devotees spent one or two million in temple renovations without batting an eye, and there were also generous contributions from devout visitors fulfilling their vows.

But Zhuang Haoyun wasn’t renovating a temple or fulfilling a vow; he just spent fifty thousand to request a ritual, and when it didn’t yield good results, he didn’t make a fuss and simply left.

That’s why Daoist Ma had a deep impression of him and also remembered the bedridden youth very well.

Seeing that the other party could actually get out of bed and walk now, his astonishment was imaginable, “Is this… really cured?”

Daoist Zeng next to him was also exceptionally astonished, “Isn’t this supposed to be an incurable disease?”

“Whether it’s an incurable disease or not, we don’t have the final say,” Zhuang Haoyun saw his son moving more and more briskly, and felt very relieved, believing that his risk had not been in vain. He sighed deeply with emotion, “It was worth my steadfastness, those who persevere… are not disappointed by fate.”

His tone was relatively gentle, which actually didn’t match his character, especially after the other party nearly hit him with a car.

But he had already gotten the ancestral tablet into his hands and had arrived at Luohua Manor, so his goal had been achieved, and his mood was also quite good.

Originally, he could have mocked Maoshan a bit, but now he didn’t bother to quibble—why needlessly offend people to death?

However, the people from Maoshan didn’t think the same way. After his surprise, Daoist Ma pointed at Zhuang Zesheng, his face darkening as he spoke, “This sickly individual, you call this… cured?”

Zhuang Haoyun didn’t mind the other party’s unpleasant words like ‘sickly individual.’ If this had been ten days ago, he would have never let anyone talk about Shengsheng like that and gotten away with it. But now that his son’s recovery was within sight, he was indifferent to these comments.

Thus, with a smile, he replied, “My son has only been treated for nine days, recovery always needs a process.”

Seeing that the other party had as many as seven strong men, while they only had three men and a woman, Daoist Ma also didn’t dare to apply any forceful measures.

But in his heart, he was still quite annoyed, “Your son is about to recover, why bother coming to afflict Maoshan?”

Zhuang Haoyun was finally displeased. He pointed at Feng Jun, “My son can recover, it’s because this master’s cultivation is profound!”

“Master?” Daoist Ma turned his head to take another look at Feng Jun, a hint of disdainful smile emerging on his lips, “Profound cultivation?”

Feng Jun had guessed the course of events approximately, including why Zhuang Haoyun snatched the ancestral plaque. He secretly bitterly smiled: this guy really has… character.

This matter made him feel somewhat overwhelmed, but since it involved his own karma, and because Maoshan didn’t suffer significant losses, he felt it wasn’t appropriate to make a big fuss—after all, all Daoists under heaven are a family.

So, he didn’t take offense at Daoist Ma’s rudeness, but instead looked around.

There were two people setting up stalls at the gate of the monastery, but only one came today because of the cold weather. There were also no visitors coming to burn incense.

Even though there was only this one person, he stared dumbfoundedly at them.

However, just because there was no one now didn’t mean there won’t be people later. Feng Jun also didn’t want to be gawked at, so he spoke solemnly, “Four Daoist friends, how about this… Let’s go to that pavilion and sit down to talk?”

Daoist Ma also thought it wasn’t proper to make a ruckus at the front gate. Since he had caught up with Zhuang Haoyun, the ancestral plaque should be inside the briefcase he was carrying.

Just then, the short pudgy Taoist called out, “How nice for you to think. What about our car?”

Feng Jun glanced at Lu Xiaoning and gave a slight nod of his chin, “Gazi?”

Gazi stepped toward the BMW. Although he didn’t seem to walk fast, within a few steps he reached the car. He had only practiced Wind Shadow Kick for about ten days, but his progress was very evident.

Approaching the car, he bent over without any apparent exertion and flipped the BMW over directly.

“Why not wait for the traffic police…” the short pudgy Taoist shouted, clearly very dissatisfied, but upon witnessing this scene, his shout abruptly halted, getting stuck in his throat.

Gazi glanced at him, intentionally or unintentionally threatening with his eyes: If you’re thinking of causing trouble, buddy, you better weigh your options.

While everyone marveled at Lu Xiaoning’s superhuman strength, only Daoist Nun Zeng kept staring at Feng Jing’s car, pointing to it and shouting loudly, “She can’t leave!”

Director Mei had an activity at her unit in the afternoon, and she had already pushed her schedule to come out. Even a traffic jam could delay her, and today’s incident and her curiosity had led her to stop for a while longer to hear the outcome. She now thought of driving away.

Hearing the female Daoist nun forbidding her from leaving, she simply turned the wheel and drove back, “If I can’t leave, then I won’t leave, just talk nicely and show some self-cultivation!”

Everyone came to the pavilion near the No. 1 pump and sat down by the stone table. Daoist Ma wasn’t polite either and directly confronted Zhuang Haoyun, “I’m not even asking whether you understand what profound cultivation means… I’m just asking, if your noble son is going to recover, why did you snatch away our Mount Mao ancestral plaque?”

“First, I must correct one of your views,” Zhuang Haoyun extended a finger, “I wasn’t trying to snatch your Mount Mao ancestral plaque, I just wanted to borrow it… You wouldn’t lend it for money, so I had to ask someone to boldly borrow it.”

Daoist Ma snorted coldly, “Boldly borrow? The last one who was so bold and reckless…”

“Ahem, ahem,” Feng Jun coughed lightly, the sound really very soft, but in Daoist Ma’s ears, it seemed to thunder twice, “Let’s be a bit civilized, one speak after the other finishes.”

He really disliked those who didn’t follow order.

(Update till here, the end of the month, there will be extra updates as usual during the early morning, set for the minimum guaranteed monthly tickets in August.)