Chapter 108: Grandma Who Recognizes Ancient Characters
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Lin Yan could tell the shock on Chen Yuan’s face at a glance. Moreover, this ebony walking stick was soft and weak, so he didn’t dodge. He only raised his arm and let the ebony walking stick fall.
With the Tough Force protecting his body, it could not hurt him at all.
“Grandma! Stop hitting him, Grandma!”
Chen Yuan hurriedly grabbed the old woman’s arm to stop her from continuing to strike.
The old woman pulled Chen Yuan behind her and pointed her walking stick at Lin Yan. “Little Yuan’er, did this lecher bully you?”
“Grandma, you’ve got the wrong person. He’s not Xiao Changsheng. Take a closer look.”
“The wrong person?”
…..
The old woman stared at Lin Yan carefully with her turbid eyes and sized him up. “He’s much more handsome and pleasing to the eye, but I can’t be wrong about this green robe!”
After saying that, she raised her ebony walking stick and was about to smash it again.
“Grandma!”
After a while, the old woman finally understood that Lin Yan had nothing to do with Xiao Changsheng. The three of them sat down again.
“Junior Brother Lin, this is my grandmother. Grandma, this is the intelligent junior brother who taught me computing.”
The old woman leaned on her walking stick and said, “Young man, you’re in high spirits. You took the risk to come in. Are you here to look for my Little Yuan’er?”
“Yes, old senior.”
“Good, very good. You came as soon as you heard that Little Yuan’er was in danger. You’re much better than those silver spearheads who usually court her but are nowhere to be seen now, right, Little Yuan’er?”
“Grandma, what are you talking about?”
“Yes, yes, business is more important. Little Lin, how old are you this year?”
“Eighteen.”
“You’re a little young. Little Yuan’er is already 23 years old. However, you’re both martial arts practitioners. It’s nothing if you’re four or five years apart.”
“…Old senior?”
“Hey, why are you calling me old senior? Just like Little Yuan’er, you call me Grandma.”
Lin Yan:”…”
“Grandma, what’s this called serious business? You’re really too much!” Chen Yuan, who had always been straightforward, clenched her fists tightly. Her cheeks were red as she pressed down on the old woman’s hand.
She turned to Lin Yan and said, “My grandmother’s surname is Xu. You might as well call her Elder Xu.”
“Okay.”
Actually, it was not impossible to call her Grandma…
“Didn’t you ask me why 1 was here just now? Actually, I was forcefully invited’ over by the Song family with Grandma.”
“Why?”
Chen Yuan sighed and said, “It’s all because of the ancient ruins in the Guangchuan Mountain Range. After the Dragon Gate Pavilion fell, our Chen family didn’t have a Noble Realm cultivator and had no choice but to rely on the Song family to survive.
“The Song family heard that my grandmother could recognize some ancient words, so they forcefully ‘invited’ my grandmother over.”
“Elder Xu can recognize ancient words?!” Lin Yan’s eyes flashed.
“I’m old. When I was young, I liked to read some strange ancient books. As time passed, I had some insight into ancient words. I can’t say that I know them, but I can guess 30 to 40% of them.”
Lin Yan looked at Chen Yuan.
Chen Yuan was rather embarrassed. “I’ve been following Grandma since I was young. She taught me a few ancient mathematics books and I was influenced by her. I also know a little about ancient words, so I wanted to help Grandma.”
“Little Yuan’er is actually worried that I’m old and weak, so she came with me to take care of me. Although she can’t help much, I understand her intentions.”
Chen Yuan:”…”
She really thought that she could help!
Lin Yan said, “I see. I thought you were in danger.”
Chen Yuan shook her head. “The Song family is famous for following the rules. Moreover, my family is still around. Grandma and 1 are here. Other than Xiao Changsheng, there’s nothing else.”
Lin Yan heaved a sigh of relief. He took out the human skin engraved with countless small words. “To be honest, Senior Sister Chen, I’ve been exploring the ruins recently and happened to find this skin record. I wanted to ask someone to interpret it. I didn’t expect to find you after searching for so long. Elder Xu, please guide me.”
Chen Yuan took it and was slightly surprised. “Junior Brother Lin, where did you get this?”
“In a ruin.”
“You’re quite lucky. Now, the aristocratic families are buying these antiques wantonly. Just this one is worth more than a hundred taels of silver.”
“Grandma.”
Chen Yuan handed it over. After Elder Xu took it, she narrowed her eyes and read it word by word with difficulty.
As she looked, she said, “It’s very similar. I should say, it’s exactly the same.”
“Elder Xu?”
“I’m saying that it’s very similar to the human skin I saw previously. Previously, a few similar human skins were also discovered in the Guangchuan Mountains. I’ve seen one of them. The words engraved are almost identical, as if they were written by the same master.”
“Elder Xu, are you able to recognize what’s engraved on it?”
“I can’t recognize all of them, but I can roughly guess. The two human skins are engraved with the same prayer.”
“Prayer?”
Chen Yuan explained, “It’s used to chant the names of gods. It’s a prayer for the shaman to pray. It’s similar to the essay chanted when the Buddhist meditates and prays to the Buddha.
Elder Xu pressed her fingers on the words on the human skin and said attentively, “There are many rare words in this prayer. 1 can only read the general meaning.
“This opening paragraph is probably a praise.
“Look at the first few words. The meaning should be close to that of the World Honored One, the Divine Buddha, the Sacred Emperor, and so on. They’re all filled with praise.
“The last paragraph seems to be talking about a special ritual. The words that follow probably mean the body, eyes, and arms…
“After that, it seems to be about metamorphosis and rebirth. Also, this means that it’s multiple.
“I guess it means that after a certain ritual, the body will undergo a transformation and obtain multiple powers? Or will it undergo a quantitative change?”
Elder Xu was guessing, but it was like a thunderclap in Lin Yan’s ears.
His breathing instantly quickened, and his heart was in turmoil.
What he saw in the ruins was the Four-Eyed Eight-Armed Vajra. It was multi-eyed and had many hands!
Elder Xu continued to interpret. “What follows is another wave of praise. It’s not much different from the previous ones. By the way, I recognize this word. The meaning of longevity is clipped here. It probably means that one can obtain an eternal life through a ritual?”
Eternal life…
Lin Yan recalled the open coffin, the Eight-Armed Vajra hanging on the roof of the chamber, and the old monk’s wooden carving from a long time ago.
Eternal life…
The hair on his back stood on end.
“Eh? The last few words are completely different from the one I saw previously…”
Elder Xu seemed to have fallen into deep thought. Then, she said in half certainty and half disbelief, “Could this be a person’s name?”
Chen Yuan said, “Grandma, are you saying that there are two different names at the back of the two human skins?”
“It’s very likely. Carving words on the human skin is obviously a strange ritual. Perhaps the name in the end is the owner of this human skin.”
As soon as he said this, Chen Yuan subconsciously touched her arm and felt a chill.
She glanced at Lin Yan and realized that he was deep in thought. She said, “Junior Brother Lin, what did you think of?”
Lin Yan said, “Senior Sister Chen, do you have a pen and paper here?”
“Wait a minute.” Chen Yuan quickly found a pen and paper.
Lin Yan held a pen and paper and drew. His painting skills were naturally not good, but after reaching the Tough Realm, his control over his muscles and body increased greatly. He managed to draw the general physical characteristics of the Four-Eyed Eight-Armed Vajra.
“This is…”
Lin Yan said in a low voice, “I found this where I found this human skin. At that time…”
He briefly explained what he had seen and heard at that time.
Chen Yuan covered her arm and felt even more terrified. “Junior Brother Lin, why does what you said sound like a ghost story? Is that Four-Eyed Vajra dead or alive?”
…..
Lin Yan revealed a helpless expression. “It should be dead.”
On the other hand, Elder Xu had been listening very seriously. “Interesting. Little Lin, recently, these large families seem to have listened to some orders and gathered here like bees. However, none of them have seen what you’re looking at.”
Lin Yan said, “Maybe I’m really lucky.”
Elder Xu suddenly asked, “Xiao Lin, can I reveal the information you mentioned to the Song family?”
The Chen family was now clinging to the Song family. If Elder Xu did not report it, she would probably be criticized.
However, Lin Yan’s goal was to find out the truth of the ruins. He couldn’t wait for the Song family to find out more information.
Naturally, he was not afraid of being exposed. “Of course, but don’t mention my name.”
“Alright, alright. Don’t worry, I won’t listen to your information for nothing. In the future, you’ll know whatever the Song family knows.”
Lin Yan’s eyes lit up. “Thank you, Elder Xu.”
“However, the Song family hasn’t discovered much now. They only found a scripture engraved on the cave wall in a ruin. There’s nothing else.
“There’s nothing much to say about that scripture. Only the last signature reveals some information. 1 happen to recognize every word.”
Elder Xu said softly, word by word, “By Monk Guan Shan, of the Heavenly Eye Temple..”