The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

The girls stood to the side wearing excited looks on their faces. They had snacks in their hands and were split into two groups as they chatted. The more gentle girls received the boys’ clothes and placed them together, watching them meticulously.

The more outgoing ones shouted at the top of their lungs, “Go for it!”

This attracted the notice of quite a number of boys. When they heard this roar, they felt like they were injected with stimulants. They yearned for the match to begin quickly so that they could showcase their skills and make the girls fall head over heels for them, winning the hearts of beauties.

At that moment Lone Wolf asked, “Master, the way these guys are attacking looks quite familiar.”

“You’ve seen them before?” Fangzheng was astonished. Lone Wolf had spent his entire life on the mountain. When could he have seen people from the outside? This was just too miraculous.

Lone Wolf shook his head. “Of course not. But their expressions and actions look very familiar. Every spring, when the wild oxen seek their mates, those big guys who are in heat would act just like them. It’s like all of them wish to knock down their opponent in front of female oxen. I love seeing such battles. At the end of such battles, there will usually be one or two crippled ones, letting us have a feast.”

Fangzheng: “…”

Fangzheng did not know much about basketball. He had seen it before back in school and had touched the ball a few times. Later, since he was not very skilled and he was always dragging down the team, he was made part of the reserves and ended up being part of the cheering team.

Now that he was seeing a basketball court again and seeing the youthful figures, Fangzheng felt like he had returned to the past. Without realizing it, he came to the perimeter of the court. He casually and indifferently stood by the corner and watched silently.

Fangzheng’s arrival also caught the notice of the children. After all his clothes and the huge white wolf were just too conspicuous. The girls did not dare approach Fangzheng or Lone Wolf. They watched from afar and secretly discussed.

“I never knew a monk could also be this handsome…”

“I hate baldies. Look, his head is reflecting so much light, but… This bald head is quite comforting to look at.”

“What a pleasant and tranquil feeling. I never expected such a person to be in this world. Is he a real monk?”

“I have no idea, but his clothes are really pretty.”

“Is that a wolf or a dog?”

“It’s a dog. I doubt anyone would dare bring a wolf into the city.”

“That’s right. But it does look a little scary. It’s so huge. If it bites down at you…”

Although the girls were discussing in whispers, Fangzheng heard them loud and clear. He recalled that the people around Mt. One Finger were familiar with Lone Wolf, so they were naturally unafraid of him. But if outsiders were to discover that he was a wolf, that would be trouble. Upon coming to this conclusion, Fangzheng secretly kicked Lone Wolf who was scampering around. “Jingfa, shake your tail.”

“What for?” Lone Wolf would shake his tail when he was especially happy, but ever since he saw the Formosan Mountain Dogs in the village shake their tails, he stopped doing so. He felt that doing so lowered his stature. He was once an alpha male of a pack of wolves! How could he be the same as a bunch of Formosan Mountain Dogs?

“If you do not want to be locked in a cage, shake your tail. Also, when you see others, look more pleasant. We are away from the mountain. Dogs are more welcomed than wolves.”

“I find it silly shaking my tail.”

“You being silly has nothing to do with shaking your tail.”

“Master, are you saying that I’ve always been silly?”

“No, in fact, This Penniless Monk wishes to say that you look rather cool when you shake your tail.”

“For real?”

“Of course…” Fangzheng nodded his head affirmatively. However he did not finish the second half of his sentence: “You are much cooler when compared to those dogs.”

As expected Lone Wolf turned happy when he heard that, and he shook his tail.

When the girls saw this, they began chatting again.

“Look! It’s shaking its tail! I heard that wolves don’t shake their tails. Only dogs do so.”

“I’ve heard that before too. Tsk… Silver fur, and he’s so large too. I wonder what breed it is. To be honest, it’s really pretty.”

The girls nodded in unison. After confirming that Lone Wolf was a dog, their fear towards him lessened. Their topic of conversation also turned random…

The young lads could not accept the fact that the girls were paying so much attention to Fangzheng and Lone Wolf. Weren’t the two of them stealing their limelight? Why were they competing? How could it solely be because of interest or revenge? The true goal was to attract girls and get a girlfriend! Now, all of them had styled their hair and changed into their battle attires while flexing their tiny muscles. Before they could leave the girls swooning, their limelight had been stolen by a monk and a dog! They could ignore the monk, since he was a human after all. But to lose to a dog? What the hell?

In order to garner their attention again, Wang Kun shouted, “Chen Wei, cut the crap. Warm up time is over. Let’s begin!”

“I’ve been waiting for you! Liu Hai, it’s time!” Chen Wei shouted to a slightly plump man beside him.

The boy dressed in a black t-shirt nodded. He walked over with a basketball as both sides took their positions. Chen Wei and Wang Kun faced each other, prepared for the jump ball.

Indeed, the girls’ attention was attracted by the impending start of the match. However they had almost finished all the snacks already…

Fangzheng looked over with a little excitement. It was not because basketball was that interesting, but he felt that the feeling of the vibrant youth was completely different from his time on the mountain. It was very fresh and filled with nostalgia. It was a very nice feeling.

As for Lone Wolf, he had no idea what these people were doing. He grumbled. “A bunch of boys who don’t know how to grab the girls around them, but fight to grab a ball… Idiots!”

Pa!

Fangzheng smacked Lone Wolf on the head, shutting him up immediately. However Lone Wolf had no interest in the match. He sprawled on the ground as he looked around in boredom.

Liu Hai threw the basketball high into the air, and Wang Kun and Chen Wei jumped up with a furious grunt. Chen Wei was after all tall. Jump balls were his forte. He smacked the ball down to his teammates as the intense match began.

Wang Kun’s skills were not bad. He attacked from either side and came and went as he wished, like a king in the court. It was no wonder he was so arrogant previously.

However, Chen Wei was tall. He stood underneath the ring and like an anchor-like existence, would block Wang Kun from coming close. Both sides fought with all they got with angry shouts sounding out one after another. With the girls cheering, the entire court was filled with youthfulness and ardor. That feeling was extremely nice.

Fangzheng was having a great time watching when he suddenly heard a man shout angrily, “Why are all of you shouting there instead of having an afternoon nap?”

Accompanied by a roar, a man rushed into the court and disturbed the match. Wang Kun, Chen Wei, and company had no choice but to stop.

“Uncle, we are just playing basketball. It’s not against the law, right?” Wang Kun was a classic example of someone that had no fear. He was having the time of his life playing, so he was very displeased about being interrupted.