Seeing Guan Shanyue's state, Huo Yuan couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
After all, he was an elderly man, yet he had been deceived by his own words. He had sincerely joined Shaolin and treated Huo Yuan with such respect. This made him feel moved.
"Forget it," Huo Yuan thought. "I'll fulfill his wish. I'll find an opportunity to make him an official disciple."
At this point, the guest rooms were mostly ready. Several large dormitories could sleep hundreds of people, and there were also more than ten private rooms, which would accommodate higher-ranking monks in the future.
Su Can and Tie Niu were both lay disciples, but they were now directly living in Shaolin Temple.
Su Can, a beggar with no home, and Tie Niu, who had nowhere else to go, both stayed in the temple.
In Huo Yuan's focused period of cultivation, Shaolin recruited eight more lay disciples, but they would not stay on the mountain every day.
After thinking it over, Huo Yuan gave Guan Shanyue a separate room. After all, he was the father of a governor and was about to become a congenital expert. He couldn't be treated like an ordinary disciple.
This gesture deeply moved Guan Shanyue.
In fact, in Guan Shanyue's eyes, Huo Yuan was a rather terrifying person.
He himself had reached the peak of the post-natal realm, unmatched in Henan Province. But after meeting this young abbot, he realized that there were always mountains higher than the one before.
First, this abbot had outstanding courage. When Guan Shanyue threatened him at the temple gates, he had been completely unconcerned.
Second, Guan Shanyue had seen his lightness kung fu, which was extremely advanced. He estimated that fewer than twenty people in the martial world could surpass him in this regard.
Third, when the abbot had shouted at him, even Guan Shanyue, a peak post-natal master, had felt his spirit shaken. This indicated the abbot's hidden power.
Guan Shanyue suspected that the abbot was compassionate by nature, unwilling to show his full strength, and preferred to win people over with virtue.
But the most important thing was that the abbot could communicate with the Buddha. He remembered the abbot's words after the divine miracle, something like "May the Buddha be well."
My heavens! Is he really familiar with the Buddha?
Guan Shanyue's heart was still racing as he thought about it. He felt fortunate that he hadn't confronted the abbot. Otherwise, he would have likely ended up neither joining Shaolin nor escaping without a beating.
He realized just how wise his choice had been: begging and kneeling, shaving his head—all of it finally moved the seemingly cold-hearted abbot, allowing him to join Shaolin. Guan Shanyue believed that as long as he performed well, his official acceptance as a Shaolin disciple was within reach.
After entering the temple and hearing where he would rest, Huo Yuan headed toward the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda because Bai Ma was still there.
Seeing the abbot walking toward the pagoda, Guan Shanyue thought for a moment and decided not to return to his room, instead following behind him, vigilant and saying, "Abbot, it's getting late. I'll protect you."
Huo Yuan couldn't help but laugh. This old man was truly amusing. Not only did he want to see the Buddha Pagoda's divine miracle, but now he was also offering to protect him.
However, Huo Yuan ignored him and arrived at the pagoda. He called out silently to Bai Ma.
A flash of white light appeared, and Bai Ma quickly ran out from behind the pagoda, heading straight for Huo Yuan.
The horse was so fast that Guan Shanyue barely saw it in the dim light. All he could feel was a white light coming at him, and before he could react, the horse leaped over his head.
Guan Shanyue was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized it was just a horse. He had thought someone was riding it and was about to strike, but Huo Yuan, from behind, calmly said, "This is my horse."
The words carried the force of a lion's roar, causing Guan Shanyue to freeze. He quickly stopped his action.
Bai Ma came to Huo Yuan's side and affectionately nuzzled his shoulder.
Huo Yuan patted the horse and said, "Find a comfortable place for yourself. When I need you, I'll call for you."
Bai Ma trotted off, its hooves sounding clear. As it left, its large eyes glanced at Guan Shanyue.
Guan Shanyue was stunned for a long time before he snapped back to reality and said, "Abbot, that... that horse just glared at me!"
"This white horse was sent to me by the Buddha in a dream. You should consider yourself lucky that it just glared at you."
Guan Shanyue fell silent, deeply shaken. It seemed that his choice had been incredibly wise. Shaolin was indeed the Buddha's paradise on earth, and this abbot was undoubtedly the closest person to the Buddha.
The next morning, the Shaolin monks gathered for breakfast and saw an old monk in a white robe, with a gray beard, standing with the abbot in front of the dining hall.
Hui Zhen and Yi Jing, who had seen Guan Shanyue the day before, were surprised but said nothing as they sat down to eat.
During breakfast, Huo Yuan addressed the group, "This is your new senior brother. His Dharma name is... well, let's call him Yi Chen."
Guan Shanyue, while holding his chopsticks, paused and then bowed respectfully to Huo Yuan, his face full of gratitude.
He knew that there were other monks in Shaolin with earlier entry dates, like Hui Zhen and Hui Ming, who had not been granted a Dharma name. But now, only the abbot, Yi Kong, and Yi Jing had single-character names. Now, he was granted one as well. It was clear that the abbot favored him.
The others respectfully greeted Guan Shanyue, who was now officially called Yi Chen.
Afterward, Huo Yuan explained, "From now on, Yi Chen will join in both the morning and evening lessons. After the lessons, Yi Chen will teach you martial arts. Yi Jing, you will follow Yi Chen in learning martial arts as well."
Huo Yuan then added, "Your senior brother Yi Chen is close to reaching the congenital stage."
Everyone was shocked, and Yi Jing, in particular, was overjoyed. He was a martial arts enthusiast and had already perfected the basic Tiger Fist, but he had reached a bottleneck. Although he had received the Iron Head Skill manual, it was a basic technique and not advanced enough. The sudden appearance of a super expert nearing the congenital stage made him ecstatic.
Tie Niu and Su Can were also happy and respectfully greeted Yi Chen.
Su Can had grown up begging for food, often looked down upon, and had a little martial arts background, but in Shaolin, he was considered weak.
Tie Niu, on the other hand, was naturally strong. Huo Yuan had noticed that it was difficult for Yi Jing to teach Tie Niu because, while Yi Jing had some skill, Tie Niu's sheer strength was overwhelming. Now that Yi Chen was here, the overall martial strength of Shaolin would surely see a great boost.
After breakfast, everyone except Huo Yuan went for morning lessons.
The location for morning and evening lessons was currently on the first floor of the Buddha Pagoda. Later, when Huo Yuan acquired the Mahaviro Hall, they would move to that new location.
As they were about to begin the morning lesson, the lay disciples began arriving, all eight of them.
But when they counted, Yi Kong noticed that Huang Feihong had not arrived.
Huang Feihong was usually the most punctual, never late. What was going on today?
Just as Yi Kong was about to inquire, Huang Feihong rushed in, panting heavily.
He immediately asked, "Where's the abbot? Where's the abbot?"
Huo Yuan, who was planning to return to his cultivation, heard Huang Feihong and walked over. "Feihong, what's the matter?"
Huang Feihong caught his breath and said, "Abbot, it's bad. There's been a divine miracle at Fahwang Temple!"
Everyone was stunned. Fahwang Temple had a divine miracle too?
Since the divine miracle at Shaolin, Buddhist followers around Mount Shaoshi had flocked to Shaolin, many even camping on the mountain's edge, waiting for the temple to open and admire the divine miracle at the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda.
Shaolin's prosperity had led to the decline of Fahwang Temple, a Buddhist monastery nearby. It had become so empty that they could catch sparrows in the courtyard.
Huang Feihong had only just heard the news of a divine miracle at Fahwang Temple and rushed over to inform them.
It was said that a large Mahaviro Hall had mysteriously appeared at Fahwang Temple, and they were planning a grand celebration on the 8th of the seventh month to mark this divine event.
The news made everyone exchange glances.
Huo Yuan did not speak. Undoubtedly, the miracle at Fahwang Temple was fake. There was no way another person like him existed in this world, someone who could easily build temples with a construction token.
It was clear that Fahwang Temple had secretly constructed it and was now creating a spectacle to compete with Shaolin.
As Huo Yuan thought of the arrogant old monk Lixuan from Fahwang Temple, who had once threatened to destroy Shaolin, his anger surged.
So, you want to compete with me? Fine, let's see what you've got! I was still thinking about how to deal with you, but now you've already jumped out and tried to win people over with a fake miracle. If you succeed, I'd rather keep my hair!
Huo Yuan remained calm on the outside but silently began formulating a plan.