The cool moonlight poured down, and a pair of enchanting eyes met a pair of rotten, pupil-less sockets.
At this moment, time seemed to stop.
The scene before them rippled like a lake stirred by the wind, gentle waves spreading across its surface.
“Third Junior Brother, Master asked you to go down the mountain to buy some glutinous rice.”
A monk dressed in a cyan robe walked up to a room and knocked on the door.
“I know, I’ll head down the mountain right away.”
The door opened, and out came a dark-skinned young monk, holding a small notebook in his hand.
“What are you writing, Junior Brother?”
“Oh, a diary. It’s a habit of mine.”
Behind the Senior Brother, Bai Nian stared blankly at the scene before her.
This is a dream!
Why have I entered the dream of a zombie?
Before she could think further, the scene changed again.
Following Senior Brother’s perspective, she found herself in the main hall, where worshippers came and went in an endless stream.
All around were people lighting incense, praying to the Buddha for blessings or fate.
At this moment, the main hall was still brand new, freshly coated with bright red paint, the Buddha statue above gleaming with golden splendor and exuding infinite majesty.
The courtyard was spotless, the bronze incense burner still standing in place, sending up curling wisps of blue smoke.
Not long after, a young woman arrived at the temple.
She had a fine figure and a pretty face, with a light touch of rouge and powder making her especially beautiful.
Unlike the other worshippers, she had not come to pray for marriage or safety, but to pray for a child.
Standing to the side, Senior Brother originally thought she would leave after burning incense, but to his surprise, she walked straight toward the back courtyard.
He hurried over to stop her.
“Miss, this is a sacred Buddhist ground. Please do not proceed further.”
“I wonder if this little monk could help announce me? I wish to see Master Nan Yi,” the woman said politely.
Senior Brother frowned.
“Master has been busy, and he hasn’t met with visitors in years.”
“I met Master Nan Yi once at the foot of the mountain and asked him to bless me with a child. The Master said if it did not work, I could come up the mountain to find him. I’m not here to cause trouble, just hoping the little monk could be accommodating?”
the woman explained the situation.
Senior Brother looked embarrassed and went to the back courtyard to find Master Nan Yi without further thought.
Bai Nian could tell this Senior Brother was a straightforward person.
When he arrived at the back courtyard and saw his master, she immediately understood.
Her previous guess was right—the corpse lying in bed was indeed the abbot of Nan Yi Temple, and the one who killed him was none other than Senior Brother, who became a zombie.
The truth from the past seemed to be slowly revealing itself to Bai Nian.
“So that’s it. I can do more than just Dream Probing,” Bai Nian muttered to herself.
“In that case, it seems a lot easier to get to the bottom of the truth.”
Master Nan Yi really did agree to meet the woman and took her to the back courtyard.
The scene changed.
In the blink of an eye, it was evening.
Senior Brother was holding some glutinous rice, cinnabar, ink, and other materials to bring to his master—these were all things the disciples had been told to purchase earlier that day.
“Strange. Why does Master always buy these things?”
Although Senior Brother was curious, he never asked more.
He believed Master must have his reasons.
But when he arrived at Master’s door, he heard lewd noises coming from inside.
A woman’s voice, lascivious and unrestrained, reached his ears, making the inexperienced Senior Brother flush red.
The dim candlelight inside cast the shadows of the two figures against the paper window, looking as though they were galloping on a fine horse at full speed.
Even Bai Nian hadn’t expected this outcome and couldn’t help but admire how vigorous Master Nan Yi was for his age.
So this is how the blessing for a child is given, huh.
Senior Brother’s curiosity kept his feet rooted; he crept closer to the window, poked a hole with his finger, and pressed his eye to watch the show.
Bai Nian was also forced to become an audience, but her Dream Probing perspective was not limited to just the target’s front.
Instead, she could see all the details around them clearly.
At that moment, Third Junior Brother came back from sweeping.
He spotted Senior Brother’s strange behavior from afar, broom in hand, and walked over.
“Senior Brother, what are you doing?!”
The sudden shout startled Senior Brother, and the candle in the room instantly went out, plunging everything into darkness.
Panicked, Senior Brother ran toward Third Junior Brother, not even bothering with the things in his hands, worried he might say something else.
Master’s affairs must not be discovered by the other disciples!
He made up some excuse to brush it off, pretending as if nothing had happened.
That night, Senior Brother lay in bed unable to sleep for a long time.
Every time he closed his eyes, the image of the two “galloping on horseback” would surface in his mind.
“Master has broken his vows. He always told us to keep our six roots pure…”
The next day, he changed his clothes and bedding.
From that moment on, the Senior Brother who trusted Master Nan Yi most began to feel suspicion toward his master.
He started to secretly investigate Master’s odd behaviors, hoping to find some answers.
One day, Master bought a Red Coffin.
Senior Brother asked why, and the other only said he had calculated the date of his own passing and was preparing in advance.
By now, even Bai Nian realized that there was something seriously wrong with this Master Nan Yi.
He was likely the culprit behind all these events.
But Senior Brother, having been raised by him since childhood, was unwilling to admit any of it on a subconscious level.
The scene changed again.
Nan Yi Temple had lost its former prosperity.
Only a few monks remained in the temple, and the gates were tightly shut.
Bai Nian looked around and saw the place had become quite desolate.
The paint on the outer walls had faded, and the green tiles atop the walls were cracked.
“This must be a scene from several years later.”
Bai Nian turned to glance at Senior Brother, noticing his eyes no longer shone with vitality, instead dull and weary, his appearance more worn.
From the monks’ conversation, Bai Nian learned that the outside world was experiencing a Great Rebellion, which was the root cause of the temple’s decline.
The quiet temple gate was knocked upon, and for the first time in a long while, Nan Yi Temple welcomed two visitors—a mother and her child.
The woman looked haggard and wore filthy clothes, like a refugee.
The child was young, about four or five years old.
Despite the change in appearance, Bai Nian recognized her instantly—the woman who had once come to pray for a child.
As for the child, his appearance resembled the resentful spirit that once clung to her shoulder.
Everything was gradually coming to light.
“So, the child’s father is likely…”
Senior Brother beside Bai Nian also recognized them.
His eyes betrayed no surprise as he quietly continued his work, but the other disciples seemed completely unaware.
The following events, Bai Nian already knew most of from Third Junior Brother’s diary.
A few days later, Master Nan Yi formally took Third Junior Brother as a personal disciple.
It was from this moment that monks in the temple began to mysteriously disappear.
In Senior Brother’s perspective, Master Nan Yi never left Nan Yi Temple.
Why then does Third Junior Brother’s diary say he went down the mountain to conduct rituals—