New Times, New Hell

Chapter 63 - Online Sanskrit

Historically, little gods of low status often escaped to the mortal realm from the Heavenly court. To avoid the Heavenly soldiers, they would usually have their own unique techniques for evading detection.

The technique of music gods was to shrink themselves and secretly hide in mortals’ homes. Those a bit stronger could even transform into a mortal’s body part, thereby hiding on the mortal. There were records of an escaped music god who had once turned itself into a polyp and hidden in the nose of some heiress.

The two kinnaras kept by Bhanaka Jue Yin were the little gods under the seat of the true Great Kinnara King. Before the collapse of the Heavens and Earth, they had escaped to the mortal realm. Initially, they had turned tiny and hidden in mortals’ houses, but would often leave accidental traces, causing the mortals to feel suspicious. These mortals would then invite monks and Daoists to perform removal spells. Thus, the kinnaras were forced to keep switching hiding locations, until the enlightened monk invited by a certain household recognized that they were gods. This monk subtly captured them for his own use.

Before his death, that monk passed these two kinnaras down to his disciple, Bhanaka Jue Yin. Jue Yin wasn’t as powerful as his master, but was much better at marketing than him. He immediately recognized the value of these two gods. As such, he packaged the music gods a bit and, borrowing the name of the Kinnara King, formed the Kinnara Sect. He himself then transformed into the disciple of the Great Kinnara King, embarking on the path of scamming all the lands through spreading the supposed Kinnara Sanskrit.

Relying on his silver tongue and religious excuses, along with the music of the Western Assembly performed by the two little gods, Bhanaka Jue Yin’s preaching path was completely uninhibited. He earned an enormous amount of money.

Jue Yin had never expected that he would run into someone else who could see the true forms of the kinnaras here.

Even more unexpectedly, the two kinnaras immediately knelt in front of this person. They didn’t even give him a bit of time to mentally prepare!

Bhanaka Jue Yin was stunned. He wanted to get a clear explanation, but couldn’t expose himself in front of all these worshippers. In this moment, he became beside himself with worry, failing to get even a single word out.

The worshippers around them had waited for a long time, but the music of the Land of Bliss still hadn’t started. They couldn’t help looking at each other in confusion. Someone blurted out, “Great Master Jue Yin, where’s the music of Bliss?”

After one person spoke, others immediately followed. “So you didn’t hear anything either? I thought that I had lost my fate. That scared me to death.”

“I didn’t hear anything either.”

“What’s going on? The Great Kinnara King didn’t hear Great Master’s request?”

Bhanaka Jue Yin’s face was red with restraint. He could only force himself to hint once again, “Honorable Great Kinnara King, do you hear your worshippers’ requests? This is the faith that you wanted.”

Shang Que scanned the kinnaras. “Un?”

Both kinnaras waved their hands. “We don’t want it, don’t want it.”

Jue Yin: “……”

More and more people started asking questions. Bhanaka Jue Yin had no idea what to do. Fortunately, he had been in the art of scamming for several years, so was pretty good at improvising. His expression immediately tensed. “Ah, the Kinnara King is currently a bit busy. It isn’t convenient for him to lower the Sanskrit for everyone right now. But don’t worry, we just need to wait a moment.”

Upon hearing his explanation, the worshippers couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed. However, they didn’t suspect anything else. After all, Bhanaka Jue Yin had truly displayed his abilities previously.

Only those two foreign young people seemed completely unconvinced by Jue Yin’s excuse.

Shang Que coldly stared at the two kinnaras. He calmly said, “Come here.”

“Coming, coming. We’ll be there in an instant.” Both kinnaras immediately flew to Shang Que in panic, completely disregarding the step of even symbolically asking Jue Yin for permission. Their departure could only be described as quick, concise, and completely merciless.

Jue Yin: “……You guys!”

He wanted to yell get back here, but if he actually did, his own ploy would probably be up soon.

The two kinnaras stood in midair beside Shang Que like they were soldiers at attention: their postures were entirely up to standard. Looking at this made Jue Yin’s eyes red with anger.

Usually, he fed these two little gods the best food and drinks, all to placate them. But they had never appeared so respectful to him before.

Only, now wasn’t the time to be hung up over this. After calling the kinnaras over, Shang Que’s gaze fell on Jue Yin. With a smile that wasn’t really a smile, he said, “Great Master, weren’t you going to broadcast some music?”

Jue Yin: “……”

A thin sheet of sweat appeared on his forehead. He didn’t dare to answer at all. He couldn’t guess what the other’s identity was, or why the kinnaras had immediately submitted upon seeing the other.

However, even though he didn’t answer, his worshippers wouldn’t allow his prowess to be questioned right in front of their eyes. Someone refuted for him, “Didn’t you hear what Great Master said? The Kinnara King is busy right now……”

Shang Que was too lazy to bother with what others were saying. He only raised his chin at the two kinnaras. “Play music.”

“Okay okay.” The kinnaras immediately nodded, then one set up his drum and the other picked up her harp. They started furiously performing.

Jue Yin: “&#k2026;&#k2026;”

Yu Zhengdu: “&#k2026;&#k2026;”

The worshippers’ rebuttals for Jue Yin hadn’t even been spoken yet when they suddenly heard the music that they yearned for day and night sound out from their surroundings.

Gentle drum beats, drawn-out harp chords; like a dream and also like an illusion; in between existing and imaginary. After mortals heard it, they immediately felt purified, as if the worries and stress on their minds had suddenly disappeared.

Even Yu Zhengdu, who had prepared himself for this and knew the truth, felt himself wavering. His entire being unknowingly calmed down.

Such music was truly rare. In addition to Jue Yin’s purposefully mysterious ceremony, the fact that it was appearing from nowhere and couldn’t be found from any other source, no wonder it was capable of garnering the elders’ trust. It made sense that they believed this sound originated from the Land of Bliss.

Accurately speaking, this was indeed the music that would be performed during assemblies in the Land of Bliss. Only, the music was being performed live, not being sent from the Land of Bliss as Jue Yin had been promoting. It also couldn’t help anyone remove their sins and become saints after death.

The worshippers around them immediately became immersed. Someone couldn’t help but calling out, “This is it……Blissful Sanskrit!”

“I hear it too. It’s real……”

But a while later, someone announced their suspicions, “This time the music seems a bit rushed?”

Yu Zhengdu couldn’t help watching the two kinnaras eager to redeem themselves……This couldn’t even be considered rushed anymore. They were completely strained, okay.

Shang Que lifted his gaze to look at the kinnaras. “Hear that? Slow down.”

“We heard it, we heard it.” The kinnaras hurriedly nodded, then paused their motions. They immediately started playing more slowly. The music in the air slowed in accordance, appearing even more melodious.

At this time, someone among the worshippers finally realized something was wrong. Because Uncle Liu had been towed to the front by Auntie Liu, he could clearly see and hear what Shang Que was doing and saying. Immediately, he asked in slight disbelief, “Wait a minute. Could it be that this time, the Sanskrit… could it be that you’re the one who asked for it?”

Actually, several worshippers had witnessed this scene. Only, in the beginning, many of them weren’t too sure. After Uncle Liu shouted this out, they could no longer resist. All of them started whispering to each other.

Someone asked Jue Yin, “Great Master, are you the one who asked for this Sanskrit, or was he?”

How could Jue Yin dare to answer? But Shang Que didn’t bother leaving a way out for him. Under everyone’s curious gazes, he calmly said, “Stop.”

The kinnaras instantly stilled. The melodious music stopped as well.

As such, it became clear as day who was actually controlling this Blissful music.

Uncle Liu felt that his faith had suffered a great blow. He stared at Shang Que and inquired, “How come you can ask for the Blissful Sanskrit too?”

How could the other worshippers not be shocked? They too turned to look at Jue Yin in disbelief. “Great Master, didn’t you say that the Kinnara King is busy right now? How come this guy can invite the Sanskrit?”

“He, he……I……” In all his years in the jianghu, this was Jue Yin’s first time encountering a situation he didn’t know how to handle.

The main way the Kinnara Sect collected followers was through the Sanskrit that seemed to be from the Land of Bliss. Because it was completely unique and sounded from nowhere, these elders entirely believed in this music.

But now, two young men who suddenly appeared could easily reprise the Sanskrit, proving that this sound didn’t solely belong to Jue Yin.

That which was the basis of the Kinnara Sect naturally collapsed as well.

The old people present slowly started becoming more and more suspicious. They waited for Jue Yin to give an explanation.

Some switched their focus onto Yu Zhengdu and Shang Que instead. Perhaps these two youths could also invite the Sanskrit because they were disciples of the Bodhisattva as well?

There were quite a few people who thought this. Uncle Liu was standing in the front and also was related to Auntie Liu. Thus, he voiced everyone’s suspicions, “Young men, I want to ask how you guys managed to invite the Sanskrit?”

After he asked this question, the most nervous person among the crowd was actually Jue Yin. Those two kinnaras had completely jumped ship. It would be incredibly easy for these two young people to pretend to be Buddha’s disciples if they wanted to. He was terrified that someone else would benefit from the followers he had finally gathered through the Kinnara Sect.

Jue Yin was on high alert. But Shang Que was too lazy to bother with others’ thoughts. With both arms crossed in front of his chest, he appeared quite disdainful. “This is nothing……”

Before he managed to finish, he suddenly got tugged on by Yu Zhengdu. Shang Que paused and turned around to look at him.

Only to see a righteous expression on Yu Zhengdu’s face. The other pulled out his phone from his pocket and told everyone, “This is nothing. The Internet is so advanced these days, what music can’t you find? As long as you all download a music player, you’ll be able to hear whatever you want to hear……”

Shang Que: “……”

Shang Que completely swallowed what he had been about to say. A moment later, he quietly made a noise of acknowledgment.

Jue Yin: ????? What were they doing!

The worshippers around them were also bewildered. Uncle Liu’s entire face was twitching. He made a noise of utter disbelief and asked, “Young man, say that again?”

“I said——” Yu Zhengdu paused after each word to ensure that the elderly individuals present would be able to clearly understand. “The Sanskrit you guys heard can easily be found online……”

“Impossible!” A grandma seemed unable to accept this reality. She yelled, “Such a sound, I have never heard before in my life.”

“That’s only because you’re unfamiliar with the Internet.” Yu Zhengdu calmly and patiently explained to the grandma, “If you don’t believe me, I can show you.”

He secretly muted his phone. Upon seeing this, Shang Que immediately understood his intentions. He glanced at the two kinnaras and lightly asked, “Know how to cooperate?”

“Yes yes yes.” The kinnaras furiously nodded, like they were chicks pecking at millet.

With the Ghost King supervising, Yu Zhengdu was fearless. He looked around in a circle, then smiled and said, “Pay close attention, everyone.”

“Start.” As he spoke, he randomly pressed a button. Upon seeing this, the kinnaras hurriedly started performing.

Jue Yin: “……”

The originally undecided old people immediately widened their eyes. They looked at each other; the grandmas who had originally been speaking also listened attentively. A moment later, they finally expressed in disbelief, “Really, it really is Blissful Sanskrit!”

Everyone else could obviously tell too. This sound that could be controlled with the phone was clearly exactly the same as the Sanskrit that Bhanaka Jue Yin had previously said was incredibly difficult to ask for from the Kinnara King……

Who would’ve thought that the Blissful music they had believed in unconditionally, to the point of giving up all their wealth, was actually music from online. One could even download it onto their phones. In only an instant, everyone’s expressions became bewildered. For a long time, they were immersed in this shock, unable to recover.

After an unknown amount of time, someone finally took the lead to give a shout of despair and anger, “I see how it is, you old bald donkey! You dare to use stuff from online to fool us!”

This sound of rage awakened everyone else. They finally came back to their senses and realized that right now, what they needed to do was exact revenge on Jue Yin.

Sincere elders were the easiest to be tricked, but similarly, when they discovered the truth, they were the hardest population to deal with.

Anyone could tell that Jue Yin was about to get beaten up by his previous worshippers. He no longer cared if his own tricks would be exposed because of his explanation and pointed at Yu Zhengdu and them to shout, “They’re lying. That music’s not playing from the phone at all. The kinnaras are performing next to him.”

“Is that so?” Yu Zhengdu looked at him expressionlessly and silently pressed a button on his phone. Beside him, the kinnaras hurriedly stopped moving.

The Sanskrit immediately came to a halt.

Jue Yin: “……”

His vision went black.

With this, the elderly individuals became completely convinced that Yu Zhengdu was telling the truth. They all started grinding their teeth, then charged forward to beat Jue Yin up.

Upon seeing this, Yu Zhengdu hurriedly shouted, “Everyone, don’t get physical! That’s illegal!”

How could the elderly accept this? They immediately responded, “That won’t do. We can’t let this scammer get away!”

“We can’t let him get away, but we must follow the law.” Yu Zhengdu said, “I already called the cops earlier.”

After hearing this, Jue Yin became extremely alarmed. He did his best to squeeze through the crowd and escape, but it was already too late. The sound of police sirens drifted in from outside.

Bhanaka Jue Yin’s lectures for old people had been reported to the police by family members of those involved long ago, but Jue Yin was extraordinarily cunning. From early on, he had trained these elders to be on the lookout for him. As soon as anything seemed wrong, he would immediately disappear. Additionally, these elderly individuals were very protective of him. Sometimes, they were even a bit unreasonable. The police had no evidence, so couldn’t do anything; besides, each time, Jue Yin would pull a quick scam at each location before heading to the next. He never spent too much time in one place. To this day, he hadn’t left behind any condemning evidence.

But this time, his plan completely failed. These previous worshippers were no longer protecting him. Instead, they were all stepping up to be witnesses and provided several records of donation and money transfer. With both witnesses and physical evidence present, Bhanaka Jue Yin and disciple were thrown into prison with handcuffs on. After conviction, the money they scammed was returned to the elders who had been tricked. Even the worshippers he had collected in other areas had been forcefully disbanded. Thus, the supposed Kinnara Sect existed no longer.

Currently, the police took Bhanaka Jue Yin away, gathered some testimonials on-site, and also invited the old people who had been scammed the most money, and their families, to testify at the station.

Neither Yu Zhengdu nor Shang Que were victims. They only needed to give a testimony on-site. There was no need for them to go to the police station too.

After the police left, the remaining elderly individuals instantly surrounded Yu Zhengdu and Shang Que. They fought to hand their phones over, saying, “Young man, may I ask how to download the Blissful Sanskrit? We want to save it in our phones too.”

“That old bald donkey is truly detestable, but this music is still great. Please teach us.”

Yu Zhengdu’s expression didn’t even change as he made up an excuse on the spot. “Online music is copyrighted. It can’t be casually downloaded so easily.”

Old people didn’t really know much about copyrights, but still understand the gist of what Yu Zhengdu meant. All of them appeared extremely disappointed and regretful. “Can’t be downloaded?”

“I understand copyrights. Does it mean we have to pay for it? I can pay!”

“If it means I can download Sanskrit, I’m willing to pay.”

Upon seeing how anticipatory they were, Yu Zhengdu felt a bit of hesitation in his heart. Then, he also thought of how touching the music of the Land of Bliss truly was. Even he couldn’t help wanting to hear it once more. Thus, in a moment of impulse, he said, “How about this. When I go home, I’ll find the copyright owners and discuss with them. If I’m able to buy the copyright license, I’ll send it to everyone.”

“That’s great, that’s amazing!” After much disappointment, they finally had hope again. The elders were overjoyed, so why would they have any issues? They immediately asked to add him on WeChat. “Then please send it to us as soon as possible after you discuss with the owners about the copyright license.”

Yu Zhengdu naturally couldn’t add all of them on WeChat. In the end, he only added the people in charge, then asked them to help him create a group chat. He agreed to send the song to everyone for downloading after getting the copyright to do so.

Before leaving, Yu Zhengdu didn’t forget to remind everyone, “These days, there are all sorts of scams. If you encounter any similar situations in the future, it’s crucial to discuss with your family members first. Don’t believe others so easily.”

After this episode, those elderly individuals still felt a lingering fear. They immediately nodded. “We’ll never do it again.”

Yu Zhengdu and Shang Que left the activity center together. The two kinnara carefully followed them the whole way out. When they reached an unpopulated location, the two finally transformed into their original size, which was about the same as a normal person. They bowed deeply to Shang Que. “We little gods greet the Great Ghost King.”

Yu Zhengdu asked in confusion, “Since you’re already gods, why did you go around scamming people with that monk?”

The two kinnaras subtly exchanged glances. Their expressions seemed a bit sheepish. A moment later, they finally spoke, “……Jue Yin said doing things this way would help us achieve faith.”

When they had escaped to the mortal realm, the Heavens and Earth still existed. To avoid the Heavenly soldiers, they had no other option but to rely on Jue Yin’s master. After, when they got passed down to Jue Yin, the Heavens and Earth had already collapsed. They no longer needed to live in hiding, but then, Jue Yin had enticed them with the faith of mortals.

Kinnaras were only little gods of the Heavenly court. They had low statuses; in the past, they could only share a little bit of incense fire from the Great Kinnara King. After escaping, they didn’t even have that tiny bit of incense fire anymore. But Jue Yin’s expanded cult promotions could instantly bring a great amount of faith to them. To little gods like them, this was seriously hard to resist.

“We really know that we were wrong. Ghost King, please forgive us,” The kinnaras continuously pleaded with trembling voices.

“Boss, how should we deal with them?” Yu Zhengdu asked Shang Que.

The mistake these two kinnaras had made couldn’t be considered too great, but also wasn’t trivial. And, they were some of the only gods remaining after the collapse of the Heavens and Earth. Though they were of low status, it still wouldn’t be right to punish them too harshly.

Shang Que hummed coldly. “I’ll punish them to clean the bathrooms at our company.”

Kinnaras: “……”

Yu Zhengdu: “……”

Shang Que noticed Yu Zhengdu’s speechless expression, thought about it, and changed his mind. “You can decide.”

“Okay.” Yu Zhengdu looked at the two kinnaras, smiled, and said, “I want to ask you two to record your music so I can send it to those elderly individuals.”

The kinnaras were terrified that they would still be sent to clean the bathrooms. They hurriedly nodded, “Of course, of course. We will definitely obediently record.”

Shang Que glanced at them and coldly said, “But the copyright license will be ours.”

Kinnaras: “……Okay.”