âNamo Bhaiá¹£ajyaguru VaidÅ«ryaprabha TathÄgata, my sins!â
Lu Jin glanced at the Buddha statue that was just within reach, realizing that he had been discussing Buddhist doctrines with this demon right in front of it.
He instinctively pressed his palms together and silently recited a Buddhist invocation.
However, regret? Definitely not.
After all, setting aside the question of whether true Buddhas even exist in this worldâEven if they did, the venerable Buddha wouldnât bother paying attention to such trivial matters.
And even if he did know about his irreverence, so what?
Chant a few more Buddhist scriptures, burn some incense, and all sins would be washed away in an instant.
That was precisely what he liked most about Buddhismâno matter what kind of mistake one made, even if one had slaughtered countless lives, there was always a path to redemption.
Moreover, he was practicing the most orthodox Joyful Buddhism.
Even the Buddha himself wouldnât be able to find fault with it.
With that thought, Lu Jin glanced at the Slit-Mouthed Woman, whose arms were still tied above her head, her figure now looking even more seductive and alluring.
Without hesitation, he set aside his thoughts and engaged in yet another discussion on the truth of Buddhist doctrines with her.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman, who had been in a state of enlightenment, had only just regained her sensesâ
Only to have her sanity utterly shattered again by the vast ocean of Buddhist wisdom.
As soft moans and whispers filled the air, Lu Jin could no longer restrain himself, bringing this round of Buddhist discourse to an end.
Moments later, the Slit-Mouthed Woman, now dressed in a black long dress, picked up her scattered hat and mask from the ground.
She cast a dark, resentful gaze at Lu Jin.
She never expected that her life would be filled with misfortuneâ
And that even after becoming a monster, she still couldnât escape this cruel fate.
To have encountered such a depraved monk, one so utterly devoid of conscience that he wouldnât even spare demons.
She was starting to regret ever provoking this monk in the first place.
But now, it was too late for regrets.
Running away was impossibleâshe could only resign herself to fate.
âStill such strong resentment, huh?â
Noticing her gloomy stare, Lu Jin furrowed his brows.
After receiving his Buddhist salvation, and even gaining a brief moment of enlightenment in Joyful Zen, an ordinary person would have undergone a complete transformation.
Yet, the resentment surrounding this woman had barely changed.
This piqued his curiosity.
With that thought, Lu Jin sat cross-legged and pressed his palms together.
âCan you tell this humble monk what happened to you? Why you became like this?â
His expression was warm and gentle, resembling that of an enlightened master.
For once, this monk actually looked like a proper Buddhist practitioner.
No wonder he could deceive so many people and even become the abbot of such a grand temple.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman glanced at Lu Jin in slight surpriseâThis demeanor was quite different from the lustful and cunning image she had of him.
But he was certainly no good person.
Thinking about everything this wretched monk had done to her, her face flushed red, images of their earlier âBuddhist discourseâ flashing through her mind.
Each and every scene made her blush even deeper.
Although, to be fair, the experience itself hadnât been unpleasant.
But the thought of how he had treated herâUsing her as nothing more than a tool, completely ignoring her feelings, not even caring whether she could handle itâ
The Slit-Mouthed Woman let out a cold snort, her eyes scanning Lu Jinâs legs with gritted teeth.
If only she could defeat him, she would have taken a pair of scissors and cut off this filthy monkâs wicked tool.
âPretentious bastard monk.â
Though furious inside, she also knew she was no match for him.
And after her moment of enlightenment in Joyful Zen, she had come to understandâat least to some degreeâThat this wretched monk wasnât simply lusting after her body.
He was practicing a very particular form of Buddhism.
A practice too shameful to speak of.
And his techniques⦠were far too elaborate.
So, truthfully, she didnât hate him as much as she pretended to.
She just felt⦠irritated.
After all, he had taken her body without her consentâOf course, she was going to be pissed.
Looking into Lu Jinâs curious eyes, the Slit-Mouthed Woman fell silent for a moment before slowly speaking.
âI suppose I can tell you.â
And with that, she began to tell her story.
A while later, Lu Jin rubbed his forehead, looking somewhat perplexed.
The story she told was long, but to summarizeâShe was once an innocent, wealthy young lady.
That much didnât surprise Lu Jin.
From the moment he laid eyes on her, he knew she had to be from a rich and noble background.
Otherwise, she wouldnât have such an aura or style.
But what came next was a real melodrama.
When she was alive, she had been deceived by a scumbag.
One day, by accident, she discovered that this man had a wife.
And that the reason he had set his sights on herâAside from lustâWas because he coveted her familyâs wealth.
She overheard the man and his wife plotting togetherâBut before she could do anything, they discovered her.
In a fit of jealousy, the wife slashed her mouth open with scissors.
Fearing revenge from her family, the scumbag and his wife murdered her, dismembered her body, and dumped the remains in the wilderness.