241: Chapter 241 Striving to Become the Belief of Others

Chapter 241: Striving to Become the Object of Others' Faith

Dong—

Dong—

The deep, resonant tolling of the bell pierced through the mist, drifting from afar and startling a few roosting birds.

The flapping of wings and the chirping of birds intertwined, but after a moment, silence returned once more.

The monks had already finished their morning lessons, and his solitary cultivation in the mountain forest had also come to a temporary close.

Fang Cheng lightly raised his arms and stretched his body, his bones emitting a few soft "crackling" sounds from sitting for so long.

Then he stood up, tilted his head up slightly, and looked toward the faintly visible upturned eaves not far away.

Set against the morning light and thin mist, the golden roofs and red walls were arranged in an orderly yet staggered fashion, exuding a mysterious and ancient aura.

At this time, inside the temple, lamas dressed in monastic robes could be seen in twos and threes, either walking about or sweeping and offering incense.

That was the only Esoteric Buddhist temple in Dongdu, with a history said to trace back to the Yu Dynasty two thousand years ago.

Time had left its weathered marks on the mottled outer walls, but it also endowed it with a distinct sense of weight and solemnity.

It was as if it carried countless beliefs and legacies, providing spiritual solace and guidance toward transcendence for the pilgrims who came to worship.

Fang Cheng gazed in the direction of the temple.

Although he was outside the Buddhist forest, he could still feel the thousand-year heritage contained within.

This heritage even subtly influenced the surrounding natural environment and the state of mind of the tourists who approached this place.

With a slight stir of his mind, Fang Cheng took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and entered his Memory Palace once again.

His consciousness, like agile tentacles, opened the bedroom door and then extended out into the distance.

In that vast and boundless dark Void Realm, there was a faint, brilliant golden light shimmering.

The outline of a temple emerged like a mirage.

Its upturned eaves loomed in the dim light, as if struggling to break free from the fate of being swallowed by the abyss, revealing its former glory.

Various dharma wheels, treasure banners, and canopies swayed gently in the black mist, making a soft clinking sound.

Buddhist chants curled up, playing an ethereal movement, constructing an incomparably mysterious Buddhist world.

Compared to the Lingquan Temple in reality, this temple in his consciousness was countless times vaster, like a quiet, uninhabited isolated island.

The temple gates were tightly shut, isolating the inner and outer worlds, yet it could not hide its solemn and majestic feel.

Under the illusory light and shadow, the two stone lions in front of the gate squatted majestically, as if telling of the morning bells, evening drums, and the rise and fall of incense over thousands of years.

Looking at this "Buddhist Pure Land" that existed in his consciousness, close yet untouchable, Fang Cheng's heart stirred with deep emotion.

After completing his routine physical training today, he did not continue Shadow Boxing to practice his punches, but instead ran near Lingquan Temple.

He was preparing to implement his idea, which was how to absorb more external thoughts.

Prior to this, Fang Cheng had cultivated the mental Cultivation Technique gifted by the mysterious person, successfully refining distracting thoughts and extracting the essence to increase his mental attributes.

Therefore, he also began to trace back to the source, wondering where exactly these "distracting Heart Demons" came from.

When he first practiced Meditation, Fang Cheng had been troubled by various hallucinations and auditory illusions, and had to deliberately suppress his sensory perceptions.

However, at that time, this condition mainly occurred in a non-Meditation state.

As long as he smoothly entered deep Meditation, he could shield and isolate all external distractions.

Later, on Yongan Island, after special training in the deep sea abyss, he broke through his physical limits and successfully promoted to expert-level Meditation, subsequently lighting the Flame of Spirituality.

It seemed that from then on, the "distracting Heart Demons" changed, as if they had switched to another way of affecting his mind.

In daily life, they quietly lay dormant, completely unnoticed.

Once he entered a state of stillness, they would quietly awaken, constantly lingering in his ears, whispering, or producing some hallucinations to interfere with his cultivation progress.

If viewed from the perspective of the mental space, they seemed to have transformed into wisps of radio signals, floating around the Memory Palace.

It was as if they were attracted by Fang Cheng, who had become a bright lantern in the darkness, trying to penetrate into this land of light that could shelter conscious life.

And as Fang Cheng stayed inside the Memory Palace, observing the scene of the expanded room, he also had a faint, wonderful perception.

The surrounding walls, covered like a black curtain, seemed like a barrier, isolating external interference and the erosion of the Void Realm, yet they were not completely airtight.

Occasionally, some "noise" would still be transmitted.

It even sounded clearer than before, allowing him to vaguely distinguish the specific content.

It was as if someone was whispering prayers to him, the voice weak yet persistent, carrying an indescribable piety and longing.

After discovering this, Fang Cheng had an Epiphany and pondered to himself.

Where would such thoughts of prayer and wishing likely appear the most?

The answer, of course, was religious venues, such as temples, Daoist temples, churches, and the like.

People with all kinds of wishes, whether for peace and prosperity or for a happy marriage, transmitted their inner demands to the gods and Buddhas they believed in through prayer.

In such places, there would inevitably be a large amount of similar mental fluctuations.

It was highly likely the source of the "distracting Heart Demons" he was seeking.

Thinking of this, after his morning exercise today, Fang Cheng specially ran to Lingquan Temple, which was not far from the hotel.

This temple was a relatively rare ancient Esoteric Buddhist temple in Xia Country, long famous and bustling with incense offerings.

Every day, a continuous stream of believers and tourists came to worship and burn incense, making the religious atmosphere extremely strong.

However, a temple is, after all, a pure Buddhist land with many rules and regulations, making it inconvenient for outsiders to act freely and draw attention.

After careful consideration, Fang Cheng finally selected a patch of woods located on the back mountain of the temple.

The environment here was quiet, with no outsiders to disturb him except for birds and wild rabbits, making it more suitable for entering a state of stillness.

Listening to the chanting of the monks coming from the temple, Fang Cheng conducted his morning lessons with them, sitting in Meditation and focusing on his cultivation.

Sure enough, when his self-consciousness immersed into the Memory Palace.

He clearly sensed many looming radio signals appearing in the darkness once again.

They were like a group of spirits summoned by a mysterious power, surging toward the temple suspended in the Void Realm.

Fang Cheng then mobilized his Mental Energy, his entire body radiating light, attempting to attract those thoughts.

However, reality poured a bucket of cold water on him.

No matter how he tried every trick up his sleeve, those thoughts seemed to be firmly blocked by an invisible and indestructible barrier.

No matter how vigorously the flames burned on his body or how hot the light was, the mental fluctuations he emitted could not reach the thoughts attracted by that temple.

After several attempts, Fang Cheng was not discouraged; he gradually understood the key to it.

Since these thoughts originated from people's prayers and wishes in religious places, they must revolve around a core, which meant there must be an object of faith.

This target was like a celestial body in the void of the Universe, or a huge magnet, emitting gravitational waves of a special frequency to gather and attract the diverse beliefs of the believers.

Obviously, the thoughts attracted by the temple did not belong to him in the first place; they had a predetermined ownership and mental imprint.

Perhaps from the perspective of religious studies, the Mental Energy contained in these thoughts originating from faith could entirely be called the "Power Of Will".

Therefore, if he wanted to truly obtain the Power Of Will, he had to establish his own group of believers, allowing them to continuously channel their Mental Energy to him.

Thinking about this practice carefully, it was actually very similar to establishing a Meditation target, which Lin Chuqiao had once spoken about.

Except back then, in order to enter stillness, Fang Cheng needed to find a suitable target to anchor himself to in the vast and boundless world of consciousness.

Now, what Fang Cheng needed to do was to change roles, letting others treat him as a target worth anchoring to in the world of consciousness.

In other words, he had to become a lighthouse for others' spiritual faith, illuminating their confused path forward and guiding them to transmit the power of their beliefs to him.

This was undoubtedly a brand-new path full of challenges and unknowns.

At the same time, it also opened a mysterious door to a higher level, a higher Realm of life.

Fang Cheng raised his eyes to look.

In Lingquan Temple, the curling smoke rising up seemed to be the bond connecting the mortal world with the Immortal Realm.

Although today's mental cultivation did not go as wished, failing to absorb more external thoughts for his own use.

However, during the cultivation process, Fang Cheng caught a glimpse of unprecedented world scenery and comprehended hidden extraordinary mysteries.

Moreover, this quiet place surrounded by mountains and forests seemed to be filled with an indescribable sense of peace, likely due to being nourished by the incense of Lingquan Temple for a long time.

With the help of this unique atmosphere, Fang Cheng's progress in practicing Meditation had improved significantly.

He even developed a clearer connection with the few "believers" whose Power Of Will he had already absorbed.

The few threads that had originally seemed faint and flickering had, after this cultivation, become a bond that could be clearly perceived.

He believed that as his cultivation continued to deepen, this "bond" would become increasingly tight and stable, and the transmission of information would become smoother and more unobstructed.

When that time came, Fang Cheng might be able to follow the bond to find them in reality and confirm their identities.

"Coo, coo."

A crisp bird call broke the silence of the mountain forest, like a morning bell, waking Fang Cheng from his thoughts.

He withdrew his gaze, raised his wrist, and glanced at the sports watch he was wearing.

The screen clearly displayed: February 23rd, 8:05.

At this moment, the surrounding environment quietly underwent a change.

The mist, which had enveloped the area like light gauze, had gradually dispersed.

Sunlight filtered through the clouds, spilling in large patches over the mountain forest and the temple, as if the entire world was instantly lit up.

It was getting late; he had to return to the hotel immediately, otherwise he would miss the prime dining time.

Fang Cheng patted the dust off his pants and jumped down from the rock where he had been sitting in Meditation.

Then, while doing chest expansions and leg kicks to relax, he walked out of the woods along the winding mountain path.

The way was very quiet, and he barely met anyone, making him feel exceptionally relaxed and comfortable.

Although this place was also part of the Yulong Lake Scenic Area, its location was indeed somewhat remote.

On ordinary days, apart from those devout believers worshipping Buddha, few tourists would choose to come here for sightseeing.

This was also Fang Cheng's second time coming here.

Since the start of his Spring Festival vacation, over the past two weeks, it could be said that he spent most of his time in Wanghu Town.

The house where his maternal grandfather lived for retirement was currently being renovated and needed help looking after, which was only one reason.

The main reason was still that this place was very suitable for physical exercise.

There were many mountain forests, the environment was quiet, and the air quality was excellent.

It was exceptionally pure, as if it had been filtered, without the slightest odor.

Taking a deep breath, the fresh air went straight to his lungs, as if it could cleanse every cell in his body.

It could be said that it was not much worse than how he felt on Yongan Island.

Anyway, his maternal uncle had booked a room at the Yuehu Hotel for a period of two months.

Therefore, as long as there was nothing urgent at the club or Jiuchang Street, Fang Cheng would run over here.

Perhaps it was precisely because the natural environment here was extremely superior and the concentration of negative oxygen ions in the air was high.

He clearly felt that the effects of his physical exercise were excellent, and the growth rate of his fitness skills was a bit faster than when he was in the urban area.

After every intense workout, even if his body was quite tired, he could still feel full of vitality inside, and his spirit was also very energetic.

While sorting out his thoughts, Fang Cheng summoned his panel to check his training results from this recent period.

[Push-up Lv3 (165/1000)] (Master of Strong Wrists, Qilin Arm)

[Squat Lv3 (128/1000)] (The Aloof)

[Leg Raise Lv2 (269/500)] (Ape Waist)

[Pull-up Lv2 (306/500)]

[Back Bridge Lv2 (257/500)] (Iron Bridge)

[Handstand Push-up Lv2 (283/500)] (Air Walk)

[Running Lv0 (45/100)]

The two skills, Push-up and Squat, had already reached the Grandmaster level.

In the future, if he wanted to take these skills to the next level, he could only rely on daily accumulation and settling over time. This was by no means a task achieved overnight, and he could not afford to be impatient.

The progress bars for the other skills—Leg Raise, Pull-up, Back Bridge, and Handstand Push-up—had all passed the halfway mark.

As long as he persisted and practiced diligently, it was estimated that in the next one to two months, they should all be able to break through their Bottlenecks one after another and achieve upgrades.

He then looked at the combat skills column.

Although he focused more on physical training during his usual morning exercises and did not spend much time practicing his punches, the speed of his skill improvement was not slow.

[Boxing Lv2 (328/500)] (Iron Fist)

[Sanda Lv2 (315/500)] (Dance of Lightning)

[Jiu-Jitsu Lv2 (207/500)] (Elasticity)

[Muay Thai Lv1 (183/250)] (Steel Bones, Domineering Body)

[Tai Chi Lv1 (76/250)] (Force Dispersion)

This was mainly thanks to the three battles that had occurred in succession after he arrived in Wanghu Town.

After all, actual combat was the most efficient means to temper combat skills and enhance combat power.

Fang Cheng could not help but daydream.

"This place has a great natural environment, and the local customs seem quite simple and honest."

"If I could have a few battles every now and then, I reckon my Boxing and Sanda skills would also soon rise to the Grandmaster level..."

He then shook his head with a smile.

Battles were things that could only be encountered by chance and not sought after; he couldn't just go looking for fights all over the streets.

By the time he thought of this, he had already walked out of the mountain forest and saw the shimmering Yulong Lake.

Fang Cheng immediately reined in his thoughts and, along the lakeside Running track, took light and rhythmic strides to run toward Yuehu Hotel.

...

Sunlight streamed through the French windows, gently spilling into the hotel restaurant.

Fang Cheng found a seat by the window and sat down.

The food on the table was neatly arranged: steaming buns, pancakes, meat congee, fresh fruit slices, and a cup of fragrant milk.

There weren't many people in the restaurant, with only the occasional soft clinking of tableware.

The waiters moved with light steps among the tables, clearing plates with swift movements.

Because the distance was relatively far, it was already almost nine o'clock when he returned to the hotel, and there were not many people in the restaurant.

Fang Cheng had given them a heads-up last night, so after his uncle and the others finished breakfast, they went on to attend to their own affairs.

His mother had also come over from Renan Hospital these past two days to help look after his grandfather and the renovation work on the house.

Her work at the hospital wouldn't be fully handed over until the beginning of next month, but she wasn't as busy as before and had a lot of free time.

Fang Cheng enjoyed his breakfast unhurriedly, raising his eyes to look at the garden scenery outside the window.

Just then, a series of footsteps suddenly sounded.

A figure walked over, sat down directly opposite him, and then greeted him:

"Hello, friend."

Fang Cheng immediately turned his head to look at the newcomer, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes.