The Monk That Wanted To Renounce Asceticism

In the darkness, Fangzheng heard a helpless, aggrieved cry of despair. “Believe me! What I said is the truth! The truth…”

Following that, the darkness shattered, and Fangzheng discovered himself appearing in a huge modern city.

After sweeping his surroundings, he found whiteness everywhere covering the trees. Snow clearers were clearing the accumulated snow to ensure that there wasn’t any snow on the streets to prevent skidding.

The pavement had pedestrians hurrying along. On such a cold day, even northeasterners didn’t wish to stay out for long.

“Wow, the buildings are rather tall. But, why don’t they fly up?” Salted Fish suddenly spoke, his voice with a hint of astonishment and puzzlement.

Seeing how there wasn’t anyone around him, nor was anyone bothering about him, Fangzheng explained patiently. “Human technology hasn’t reached the point of overcoming gravity yet. This is the mortal world, not a world of immortals. From this moment forth, shut up, or I’ll throw you away, and you’ll be sliced up!”

“Tch.” Salted Fish expressed his indignation but didn’t dare utter another word.

Fangzheng took a deep breath and walked forward.

It was a commercial street they were on, and although the streets appeared more desolate than they probably normally were, there were still people walking on them. Fangzheng’s unique way of dressing naturally attracted the attention of many, but the passers-by were only slightly surprised. This left Fangzheng somewhat curious. Usually when he visited cities, even if he wasn’t the focus of attention, he still attracted quite a number of curious gazes. Why was he only attracting this bit today?

When Salted Fish saw this, he could not help but whisper. “Aren’t they curious why you’re wearing so little?”

Fangzheng smacked Salted Fish’s head, indicating him to shut up. He too was curious about the situation Salted Fish commented on. However, just as he was feeling puzzled, a group of people rushed out from a store beside him, sweeping him into the crowd!

Fangzheng was immediately given a fright when he saw it!

Salted Fish whispered. “Careful! A bunch of demons have appeared! Oh no, you’re surrounded…”

Fangzheng smacked him directly to get him to shut up while looking at the crowd. Instantly, he realized why everyone had given him such normal looks. There were a bunch of people hidden around who were even more special than him!

They were a group of youths, and their heads were a myriad of colors or cartoonish hairstyles, or they were dressed oddly. Some were dressed like they were attending a white-tie event, others were in iron armor. But no matter how he looked at the costumes, they appeared to have been made out of newspapers and the like. Some even dressed as western-style princesses…

And these people were the people who Salted Fish had called demons. However, Fangzheng knew that they weren’t demons but a group of cosplay aficionados. To put it simply, they were a group of people who dressed up as characters from animations, movies, or games. They dressed up as characters they liked to express their love for a franchise. However, Fangzheng was a little puzzled. Weren’t they cold wearing so little on such a cold day? There were even some girls with bare legs! On careful look, their legs were already red from the cold! Fangzheng could not help but sigh. “These are really a bunch of kids who give their all for a thing they love.”

Just as Fangzheng was appreciating the scene before him, a girl dressed up as a long-haired princess walked over and patted Fangzheng on the shoulder. “Hey, bro. Your outfit looks pretty good. It’s quite cool! Who are you cosplaying as? It’s not Ikkyū ¹ , right? If it’s Ikkyū, you seem a little too big?”

The moment Fangzheng heard that, his face darkened. Did she have to talk about size just like that? Besides, it was clearly a misunderstanding!

Before Fangzheng even said a word, though, a huge bus stopped by the side and the group of aficionados who couldn’t take the cold any longer hurriedly lined up to get on the bus. A suited man with a mask waved his hand at the long-haired princess and said, “Kang Rui, quick! We’re getting on! It’s time to join the comic con! Phew, it’s so cold outside.”

Fangzheng stole a glance at his outfit which consisted of a simple western tailcoat. The thin fabric made Fangzheng feel cold for the guy.

“Alright!” Kang Rui smiled and pulled Fangzheng up the bus without even turning her head. “Quick, if we aren’t quick…”

In his momentary daze, Fangzheng was pulled into the moving crowd and ended up boarding the bus. By the time he sat down, he was embarrassed to discover that he didn’t belong on the bus!

Fangzheng was wondering if he should get off the bus, so as to prevent himself from missing the mission of the Formless Door. He subconsciously activated his Heavenly Eye to sweep the area, only to see darkness everywhere before a dark scene appeared—the glint of a blade, blood… Upon seeing this, Fangzheng’s heart palpitated. Despite preparing to stand at first, he now sat down even more stably.

“Monk, you haven’t answered me. Who are you cosplaying as?” Kang Rui was clearly quite a scatterbrain, simple girl. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have mistaken him for one of them.

Before Fangzheng could even speak, he heard a voice. “You aren’t one of us right? Why haven’t I seen you before? What’s your name on QQ?”

A person appeared in front of Fangzheng, and it was none other than the man in the tailcoat who had urged Kang Rui to get on the bus. For some reason, Fangzheng saw deep animosity in the man’s eyes. However, he thought nothing of it. After all, he didn’t belong on the bus and was about to explain.

By the side, Kang Rui frowned. “Mo Qun, what are you doing?”

Mo Qun shook his head and said, “Nothing. This monk is a stranger, so I’m asking. Kang Rui, we pooled money to hire this bus, so we can’t just let someone else get a free ride, right?” With that said, Mo Qun looked at Fangzheng with a provocative look.

Mo Qun spoke rather loudly and had raised his voice, so he immediately garnered the attention of many.

When Kang Rui heard that, her face flushed red as she stared at him. When Mo Qun saw this, he glared even more angrily at Fangzheng. It was as though he wasn’t just getting a free ride, but had killed his wife and daughter.

At this moment, a girl with a cold expression wearing an army cap and a machine gun behind her back turned around and asked, “There’s someone else who got on?”

Mo Qun hurriedly said, “Sister Qing, this punk is trying to get a free ride.”

“That’s not how it is, Sister Qing.” Kang Rui attempted to defend Fangzheng, but the moment she spoke out, she realized that she was unsure of how to do it.

Sister Qing got up and went to the back and looked at Fangzheng, before looking at Kang Rui. Finally, she looked at Mo Qun before revealing an understanding smile. She said to Fangzheng, “I know everyone on the group chat. You aren’t one of us, right?”

Kang Rui was just about to say something when Sister Qing cut her off with her eyes. Fangzheng looked gratefully at Kang Rui for defending him despite their first meeting. That was enough. He felt that he could handle the rest himself. Therefore, Fangzheng pressed his palms together and said honestly, “Amitabha. This Penniless Monk is indeed not a member of your group chat, Patron. This Penniless Monk happened to pass by and was pulled in by the crowd.”

“Pfft!” Mo Qun burst out laughing when he heard that. He said with a hint of mockery, “Do you think we’re fools? If you had not wished to board the bus, would we have been able to force you up?”

The moment that was said, Fangzheng subconsciously looked at Kang Rui who turned red. Back when she pulled Fangzheng, he had obviously struggled a little and had wanted to say something. But she had silenced him. On second thought, it did seem like she had forcefully pulled him onto the bus.

When Sister Qing saw this, she narrowed her eyes, seemingly gaining an understanding of the situation.