IDWBE -Chapter 226 Lion’s Roar Technique

The courtyard walls had long since collapsed. The small, ruined yard was overgrown with weeds, and mosquitoes swarmed everywhere. Xie Jiuyun’s skill was high, but even she could do nothing against the insects, swinging her sword in vain. The blade soon became covered with a thick layer of crushed mosquito bodies.

Seeing that Ji Hai still ignored her, she built a fire and roasted rabbit meat over it, occasionally waving the skewer in front of him. Smiling, she said, “Smell this! Doesn’t this rabbit smell delicious? Why won’t you take a bite? You monks really are just like those nuns at Jizhao Temple. You say you don’t kill, but then you turn around and kill with a sword—without hesitation at all.”

“Amitabha,” Ji Hai finally spoke, unable to hold back. After all, this concerned the reputation of his Buddhist order. “Jizhao Temple bullies the weak and loves fighting; it cannot be compared to our Baiyun Monastery.”

Xie Jiuyun was pleased to hear him speak. “Then you’ve eaten meat before?”

Ji Hai said, “I ate meat before I became a monk.”

“Where is this place, and why are you sitting here?”

Xie Jiuyun asked curiously.

Ji Hai said, “This is my home. I was born and grew up here.”

Xie Jiuyun was surprised. “This is your home? It’s completely ruined…”

Seeing that Ji Hai still wouldn’t take the roasted meat from her, she took a big bite herself, chewing vigorously and muttering how tasty it was.

Ji Hai stood and looked at a flourishing peach tree. “My parents planted this when they married. It’s older than I am.”

“So you were thinking of your parents,”

Xie Jiuyun said softly. “But you’re luckier than me—you remember what they looked like. I never even saw my parents; I was raised by my master. Though I am from Chuanzhou, my master brought me from there.”

Ji Hai said, “If you’ve never seen someone, you won’t miss them.”

“That’s true,” Xie Jiuyun grinned. “The most dangerous thing is attachment. Once you have attachment, it’s very painful. Not seeing my parents might be a blessing.”

Ji Hai folded his hands and bowed his head in silence.

Xie Jiuyun continued, “Are you really not hungry?”

“I have food,” Ji Hai said, producing a sweet potato from his robe. He bit into it behind his back, the crunch loud.

“Hey, you fool! Don’t you know you can roast it? You’ve never had roasted sweet potato?”

Xie Jiuyun took the sweet potato from him, handed him a red fruit, and said with a smile, “Eat this first. I’ll roast the sweet potato for you. I’ve never seen these fruits before either—Chuanzhou didn’t have them.”

“Thank you,” Ji Hai hesitated, then took the red fruit.

Suddenly, sharp, loud “coo-coo” sounds echoed from the surroundings, each one sharper and louder than the last.

Xie Jiuyun said, “Those aren’t real birds. Someone’s making those sounds. The qi in their voice is strong, clearly a fifth-rank expert, and not far from here. Stay put; I’ll go see who’s causing trouble.”

“Miss, stay,” Ji Hai said. “You’re correct; those aren’t bird calls. They are human voices.”

Xie Jiuyun was surprised. “I guessed, but how can you be so sure?”

Ji Hai smiled. “Miss, you shouldn’t ask too much.”

The “bird calls” were a secret communication method unique to the Sanhe soldiers. Naturally, he wouldn’t reveal this to Xie Jiuyun.

He was curious why the Sanhe soldiers had come to Songyang. Were they looking for him? On second thought, it seemed unlikely—he wasn’t a soldier, just accompanying laborers for almsgiving and rites, with no real role in the army.

“Hmph,” Xie Jiuyun said irritably, “If they were rebels, with your weak skills, they’d hide immediately, not talk to me. You seem so confident—it must be Sanhe soldiers.”

“You are indeed clever,” Ji Hai said.

He tilted his head, hearing more bird-like calls. Clearly, multiple people were making them.

Unable to resist, he stepped out of the yard and shouted into the dark forest. The sound shook the woods.

“Hey! What technique is that?”

Xie Jiuyun covered her ears. “It’s unbearable! Anyone weaker than you would get internal injuries. Wow, and you say you don’t kill. Look at this poor bird!”

She picked up a motionless little bird under a large tree, confronting Ji Hai.

“Amitabha,” Ji Hai blushed, took the bird from her hands, held it gently, and said, “It just fainted. It’ll be fine soon.”

As he spoke, the bird stirred, blinking, and tried to fly, but its head banged on the ground. After a moment, it flapped its wings and disappeared into the forest.

“What happens if someone masters this voice technique to its peak?”

Xie Jiuyun asked curiously.

Ji Hai shook his head. “I don’t know.”

He hadn’t told Lin Yi either, though Lin Yi had mentioned someone who perfected the Lion’s Roar Technique to the extreme, becoming nearly invincible.

“Someone’s coming,” Xie Jiuyun reached for her sword, but Ji Hai placed his hand on her scabbard. “Wait, miss.”

Her hand brushed his, and her face flushed as she lowered her head.

“Monk?”

A voice called out from the darkness.

“Wang Tuozi, come here,” Ji Hai felt it was slightly insulting to call someone by a nickname, but he didn’t know the man’s real name, so he followed along.

“Damn, you scared me! Only I have the guts to come,” Wang Tuozi glanced at Xie Jiuyun, then at Ji Hai, grinning. “Besides you, probably no one in the world knows the Lion’s Roar Technique. My ears are killing me.”

Ji Hai asked, “Why are you here?”

Wang Tuozi said, “Pan Duo’s information is amazing. He said Jiang Kan was on that island called Niangniang Ao. I followed Zhang Mian’s ship from the south, and with those foreign cannons, forced Jiang Kan’s ship ashore. If the lord hadn’t wanted prisoners alive, we’d have turned them into porcupines. Now they’ve unknowingly fled to Songyang, hiding in the woods—it’s not easy to find them.”

Ji Hai joined his palms. “Amitabha.”

“Cut the Amitabha talk. You act like you’ve never seen dead people,” Wang Tuozi said irritably.

“Don’t worry, little brother. I’ll help you find them,” Xie Jiuyun was genuinely pleased to see Ji Hai at a loss and spoke kindly to Wang Tuozi.