Chapter 26: My Fiancée

Chapter 26: My Fiancée

Right after I said farewell to the elite people, I turned to find Senior Brother Guanghuai standing behind me. It startled me. “Senior Brother, did you hear me talking to anyone just now?”

Guanghuai looked astonished. “You were speaking to someone? I arrived three to five minutes ago. I only saw you standing alone, your figure somewhat insubstantial. Only just now did you suddenly solidify, which surprised me greatly. Did your spiritual consciousness go elsewhere?”

Really? I’d been here the whole time.

So when I talked with the elite people, I’d nearly stepped through a door into another space? No wonder that girl told me not to follow. But it had felt like I was still in the hall.

Seeing my confusion, Guanghuai explained further. “Before you became solid, did you see anyone? Your insubstantial form stood perfectly still, much like the rainbow-body phenomenon recorded in Buddhist teachings. I thought you’d achieved great enlightenment, or your spiritual consciousness had departed. So I didn’t dare disturb you.”

Rainbow-body phenomenon?

That was unique to eminent monks whose physical bodies transformed into rainbow light—often passed down in Tibetan Buddhism regarding Living Buddhas entering nirvana.

Had I exhibited that too? Did that mean some relationship existed between the elite people’s Hidden World and the rainbow-body phenomenon? I couldn’t make wild guesses. For now, only a provisional hypothesis.

I said softly, “I was indeed speaking with formless people inside the hall just now. They’ve left. Let’s go to the retreat compound and talk. Call the other chief monks and all the stewards.”

Half an hour later, at my Moonshadow Retreat.

The four halls and eight stewards arrived one after another.

I openly informed them of what I’d sensed over the past days. “There seem to be some higher-dimensional people affecting this temple. My summary: First, they bear no malice. They’re focused on their own work, and our halls along the mountain simply lie on their route. What they’re doing, I don’t know. Second, they can see and affect us, but we can’t see or affect them. Third, the air vortices—ghost walls—should be temporal-spatial disorder from spacetime boundaries they deploy, occasionally affecting our monks.”

Everyone present looked astonished. I understood their confusion, so I explained further.

“By higher-dimensional people, I mean a metaphor—my own understanding. It may not be accurate. Since I can sense them, physically they’re still in our dimension. I don’t know how to define them yet. But they’re certainly not beings of the six realms and carry no karma. We might understand them as the Hidden World.”

“The Hidden World? You mean they’re still human, only in a different field of perception?” the Western Hall chief monk asked.

“Exactly. I call it the Hidden World because we can’t see their world. Guanghuai discovered I exhibited the rainbow-body phenomenon while communicating with them, so the Hidden World may relate to that. Therefore I believe they still belong to the human realm. Besides, they have human names, and their communication and thought patterns match ours. They may simply have mental interconnection, using consciousness to contact one another.”

“Abbot, you can converse with them?” the Rear Hall chief monk asked.

“Yes. When Guanghuai saw me, I was speaking with them. But they weren’t willing to communicate much. And because they exist in the Hidden World, Guanghuai didn’t sense their presence. Our conversation was actually consciousness interaction, not sound transmission. During my observations, I could only sense their existence—couldn’t see or touch them. But I could hear their conversations. Clearly their level of existence is higher than ours. Since they haven’t affected us, there’s no need to investigate further.”

I emphasized further, “I’m informing you so everyone in the temple can feel at ease. This isn’t the six realms crossing over. Not ghosts running wild. Not criminals. Not the Sweepers enforcing law. The Hidden World is a realm still awaiting exploration. Currently we’re in mutual noninterference. Everyone need only cultivate in peace, spread the Dharma, and do good deeds.”

After arranging these matters, I stopped paying attention.

No point.

Those Hidden World people clearly existed at a higher level and disdained interacting with mundane people like us. Since I couldn’t reach them and they hadn’t affected me, why bother? It would only create trouble.

Just as I wanted quiet cultivation, Du Xinlang arrived.

Du Xinlang was Xuanhong’s fiancée—an engagement from before he became a monk.

Before becoming a monk, Xuanhong’s secular name had been Gu Yuehu. It sounded fake, and he shared my surname. He’d worked at the Du Group in Silicon Valley and met Du Xinlang there. Later, unable to endure her pursuit, he became a monk.

Gu Yuehu had thrived in Silicon Valley, thanks in no small part to Miss Du. The Du Group had trained him as their successor. So though unwilling, out of gratitude and obligation he’d become engaged to her. But he’d only been a person for eight years and couldn’t explain the truth, so he could only flee into Buddhism.

I suddenly remembered Min Long calling me Xuanhong’s stand-in. Thinking about it now, that hadn’t been an insult—it was the truth.

I didn’t want to take over Xuanhong’s legacy, including the beauty. But I’d been forced to accept his memories, insights, skills, and status, including Tansong Temple’s abbotship.

None of this was what I wanted.

I felt I’d only just become an adult. How had I suddenly reached the point of discussing marriage?

Du Xinlang’s arrival made me unwilling to hurt her. Her beautiful face and deep eyes revealed irrepressible devotion.

But I really didn’t want to take another man’s beloved. So I brewed her good tea. We sat down, and I slowly explained everything.

I told her everything I’d seen in the Sweeper base: my spiritual communion with Xuanhong, doing face reading for the black-clad men, my fight with Min Long, CWP’s recruitment offer, and meeting my beautiful classmate Zhu Zhaojie. I even mentioned Lin Xiaowen and the invisible person, and witnessing Xuanhong’s self-immolation. Of course I wouldn’t mention the green jade tokens or the list. Those were my secrets.

Du Xinlang rested her chin in her hands the entire time, pretending to listen seriously. Occasionally she’d interject—Was Zhu Zhaojie pretty? You beat Min Long? That’s amazing. But I could sense she wasn’t taking my words seriously at all.

I had to emphasize repeatedly that I was Xuanchen, and Xuanhong had self-immolated in the Sweeper base. I’d seen it.

The silly girl still answered with a wicked smile, “I know, my Brother Xuan.”

I @#￥%.

I couldn’t explain this clearly, could I?

I was trying to discuss serious matters, but she treated it like a joke, a story, some lie I’d invented to escape her. What love potion had Xuanhong fed her?

I was so anxious I had no idea how to prove myself.

Suddenly I asked, “Miss Du, can you name one obvious feature on Xuanhong’s body? A black mole somewhere, perhaps?”

If experiences and appearance couldn’t prove anything, physical features couldn’t be identical. If she found one and checked, she’d give up.

Du Xinlang hesitated before finally remembering that at the base of both Xuanhong’s ears was a tooth mark—a natural skin pattern that looked like a bite mark. The moment I heard that, I was delighted. I didn’t have that.

So I called in the attendant who’d come with her as witness. Then I slowly pulled up my ears to show her.

“Ha—still saying you don’t? Look, isn’t this it?”

Du Xinlang gave a coy little cry and pointed it out to the attendant.

“Mm, Master Xuanhong, you really do. I can get you a mirror.”

The attendant brought two mirrors. I used the reflections to look.

What?

I really had it.

How had I never known? Grandma never told me. Ye Ziping had tugged my ears when we were little and never mentioned tooth marks.

I really hadn’t known.

I @#￥%.

Fine. I admitted it. A beauty—who wouldn’t want one? I was a man, after all. Xuanhong, don’t blame me.

I no longer wanted to argue with Miss Du.

No point.

This couldn’t be explained.

So I let her link her arm through mine and stroll through the flowerbeds. I listened to her discuss company gossip. Occasionally I could add comments about acquaintances Xuanhong had known, which made her grip my arm tighter.

The Du Group and Gu Group belonged to the same field but different industries. Du focused on software and hardware—chips and components. Gu focused on industrial robots.

The Du Group’s former headquarters had been in Malken. Before Malken fell, the family brought their team back to Pingdu City ahead of time. The Human–Machine War affected the Du Group’s businesses, destroying and damaging nearly half of them. After the war they recovered somewhat, but their scale was clearly diminished. The Du Group was both a key target of CWP’s precautions and one of their partners. CWP relied on Du companies for research, development, and maintenance of many products.

Du Xinlang insisted I visit her home and her father. I hesitated but agreed. Grandma had said running was never the answer. Xuanhong was clearly inferior to me on that point.

Nothing much to pack. After informing Guanghuai, I carried only a small bag and got into Du Xinlang’s car.

The car took the outer ring road straight toward Yanqi Lake in the suburbs—where Du Group chairman Du Changfeng lived.

Du Changfeng had been Xuanhong’s boss and had recognized Xuanhong’s talent and given him opportunities.

So before visiting, I called Du Changfeng to greet him. It wouldn’t be convenient to go as a prospective son-in-law or temple abbot. Instead, I’d visit as a former subordinate.

The Du family villa was extremely luxurious yet understated, its location well hidden, surrounded by flowers and trees that blocked the view. Ordinary passersby would never know a mansion stood there.

From the entrance gate to the main residence, the car had to drive quite a distance. Many servants and staff worked there. As soon as we arrived at the inner gate, the butler stood outside to welcome us.

After entering the reception hall, Du Changfeng walked toward me with reasonable warmth.

But I could tell—he was ill.