The Zhao family was united in their efforts. The old lady said, "Everyone, use more force. The master's feet are starting to move." The master's face twisted as he was gradually brought to the oil pot.
Feeling the heat from the pot, he shouted in terror, "Stop, stop quickly!" "If you continue like this, I will get angry!" Zhao Yuanwai and his family couldn't stop now. The cries from the pot were getting fainter. If they failed to catch the ghost, they would have to bear the burden of their own misfortunes. If this became known, their son's reputation would be tarnished.
Zhao Yuanwai held the master's hand and pulled with difficulty, finally placing it on the oil pot. Master Yuan Kong shouted loudly, "Let go, let go. I'll do it myself!" Zhao Yuanwai was relieved that the master was willing to cooperate, so he quickly let go. His chubby face turned red from the heat, and he panted heavily. Zhao Anming also looked at the master impatiently. Thinking back to his own shameful actions earlier, he wanted to spit on the master.
Everyone looked at Master Yuan Kong expectantly as he looked at the oil pot, then turned to look at the people around him. His chubby face trembled, and he suddenly said, "I want to use my Zen staff to borrow some power from the Buddha." Zhao Yuanwai nodded and said, "Zhao Anming, go get the master's Zen staff."
The master waved his hand and said, "I'll get it myself." He turned and began walking toward the altar. "Hey, master, where's your Zen staff?" Zhao Yuanwai saw that the master was heading in the wrong direction, so he kindly called out. At this moment, Master Yuan Kong hated Zhao Yuanwai more than anything.
After traveling the world for many years, he was being exposed like this. The master was delighted to get his Zen staff back from his offering table. He found the right direction and was about to run away when he shouted, "Move aside, or else I'll have to resort to violence!" Once he entered the crowd, it would be difficult to catch him. Thinking this, Master Yuan Kong's steps quickened.
"Huh?" The promised acceleration disappeared. The master's steps were stopped in their tracks. He even fell back a few steps due to inertia and holding onto his Zen staff. Zhao Ce, who had anticipated this, stepped forward and grabbed the other end of the staff.
He coolly said, "Master, are you trying to run away?" The remaining monks also scattered like birds and beasts. The Zhao family stood there, stunned, watching the master try to run away. The monks who were also fleeing were all dumbfounded. What was going on? Master Yuan Kong turned around and looked at Zhao Ce, who was holding the other end of his staff, with a frown and shouted, "Let go, otherwise don't blame me for being rude!"
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Zhao Ce held the other end of the staff with one hand effortlessly, while Master Yuankong struggled hard. Zhao Ce stood still, unmoved. Master Yuan Kong couldn't believe it and shouted, "What kind of monster are you? How could you be so strong?" He gritted his teeth and was about to let go of his most valuable staff.
Zhao Ce, seeing this, directly grabbed the other end of the staff in his hand and swung it to the side with force. The master didn't have time to let go and felt a great force in his hand. He was carried away by the staff and flew to the side. Meanwhile, the fleeing monks with the money bag were hit hard by the flying master, and the crowd watching the scene retreated to the outermost edge. They were amazed by Zhao Ce's strength and his ability to throw the master with such ease.
Su Cai'er watched anxiously but didn't dare to approach, afraid of causing trouble for her husband. The scholar beside her was admiring Zhao Ce's strength, saying, "This young man is obviously a scholar wearing a long robe, but he looks like he can fight a group of bandits alone..." Zhao Ce looked at the master lying on the ground and laughed, "Master, why are you in such a hurry to run away? Mr. Zhao said you didn't finish your job, so you have to stay a little longer." He thought for a moment, afraid that some troublemakers would bother him, and added, "Oh, my surname is also Zhao. I am the person Mr. Zhao sent to expose your tricks."
Master Yuan Kong was struggling on the ground, writhing and gasping for air. Blue veins bulged from his forehead, but the tall and skinny scholar in long robes held him down effortlessly with one hand on his staff. Zhao Ce turned to Zhao Yuanwai, who was standing dumbfounded, and said, "Get some rope and tie them up to take to the authorities."
Zhao Yuanwai was puzzled by the sudden turn of events. "What's going on?" he asked. "Master, why did you suddenly run away?" The gasping Yuan Kong tried to defend himself, "I didn't say I wanted to kill anyone!" Suddenly, Zhao Ce applied more force on the staff, making it difficult for Yuan Kong to speak. The ghostly wails from the oil pot had almost disappeared. Zhao Yuanwai watched Yuan Kong struggling on the ground and the other monks being held down, feeling at a loss. "What about this hungry ghost?" he asked.
"They will turn into fried ghosts!" Zhao Ce calmly replied, "They are not hungry ghosts at all. All these monks are frauds. They don't have any real Buddhist teachings to rely on. It's all just their little tricks. You asked me to expose them, so they ran away in fear of being exposed."
"Frauds?" Zhao Yuanwai couldn't believe it. "But this master hasn't eaten or drunk anything for six days, and he still looks healthy and energetic. And what about the turtle that guided us and the head of the animal we saw earlier? How can they be frauds?"
The evil ghost in the oil pot was still whimpering. It was hard to believe that the master was a fraud. "Zhao Yuanwai, do you know why I dared to put my hand into the oil pot?" Zhao Ce asked. "Do you think I, someone who doesn't believe in Buddhism, have any Buddhist protection?" Zhao Yuanwai hesitated, "I don't know..." "Maybe you are special, so Buddha is protecting you?" Zhao Ce replied, "Of course not."