Chapter 4: The Bell Rang, and So Did His Head

The monastery had one rule: when the bell rings, run.

Mu, however, had one counter-rule: when the bell rings, sip tea more dramatically.

So when the sacred morning bell rang with the intensity of a thunderclap, the disciples dashed out of their quarters like their robes were on fire.

Except Mu.

He sat beneath his tree, held up a porcelain cup, and let the echo wash over him like background music.

> "Amitābha." [+1] [Daily Serenity Bonus Applied]

Shen sprinted past, eyes wild. "Mu! The Head Monk said all disciples must report instantly!"

Mu squinted up. "Is there a fire?"

"No."

"Raid?"

"No!"

"Free breakfast upgrade?"

"Just get up!"

Mu stood slowly. "Let me greet the sun first."

> "Amitābha." [+1] [Sunlight feels 2% warmer]

---

🔫 In the Courtyard of Judgment

The Head Monk stood with his arms crossed, flanked by stone lions and judgmental silence.

"Disciple Mu," he began, "you were thirty-five minutes late."

Mu bowed politely.

> "Amitābha." [+1] [Embarrassment Resistance +3]

"Your peers completed morning formation. You greeted a butterfly. Twice."

"It bowed back."

"...It was doing wing stretches!"

A snort escaped from someone in the back.

The Head Monk sighed. "Regardless, today is your first test."

Shen leaned in. "The Spirit Harmony Bell. They hit it. We're about to be judged by the heavens."

"Again?" Mu said. "They already judged me last week. I failed their rain test."

"That was a thunderstorm. You slept through it."

Mu nodded. "Deep meditation."

---

👽 Divine Appraisal: Mu vs the Sky

The bell glowed. Heavenly light descended. Everyone stood tall, hands together, faces serious.

Mu yawned.

> [Heavenly Presence Detected] [Scanning Disciples...]

The system beeped in his mind:

> Warning: Divine Aura will attempt to assign a talent class. This may be awkward.

Light shone on each disciple, displaying titles:

Shen: "Burning Palm Prodigy"

Wei: "Flame-Step Disciple"

Lin: "Lightning Vein Seraph"

Then it reached Mu.

The light blinked.

Flickered.

Turned slightly orange.

> "Monk of Questionable Purpose"

Someone snorted.

Mu blinked. "That's new."

The Head Monk clutched his staff like it owed him money.

"Mu. Do you have any spiritual affinity?"

Mu looked at the sky.

> "Amitābha." [+1] [Passive Activated: Divine Confusion - Deity unsure how to process response]

Thunder rumbled.

The light dimmed.

And then a single lotus floated down from the sky... and landed in Mu's tea.

He sipped it.

"Huh. Floral."

> [+3] [Title Upgraded: Monk of Mild Inconvenience]

---

🤔 A Minor Divine Bureaucracy Issue

Far above the clouds, in a realm where gods filed reports using celestial paperwork and golden pens, two minor spirits sat blinking at a glowing scroll.

"Hey, what's that disciple doing?"

"The one who bowed to the lightning last week?"

"Yeah. He just got hit with three beams of talent-measuring light and it misfired each time."

"That's not possible."

They watched as Mu waved at the sky and added a sugar cube to his tea.

"He just bowed to a cloud."

"We should mark him for further observation."

"Should we smite him?"

"He did nothing wrong. He just... exists strangely."

Back in the mortal realm, Mu sneezed.

> [Heavenly Sneezed Upon – Blessing Pending Review]

---

☕ Aftermath

Back under his tree, Mu sat sipping his divine-flavored tea.

Shen sat beside him. "I think you just short-circuited a minor god."

"It happens."

"No. It doesn't."

Mu leaned back. "Do you think the next test will also involve identity crises?"

"At this rate," Shen said, "I think you are the test."

Mu raised his cup.

> "Amitābha." [+1]

The tree beside him suddenly blossomed out of season.

"See? The world appreciates consistency."

---

🌟 Bonus Scene: Kitchen Catastrophe

Mu was banned from cooking.

The reason: he once greeted the rice too much.

The result: the rice refused to cook. It achieved enlightenment and turned into a spiritual grain cloud that now occasionally rains

on the herb garden.

Mu walked by the kitchen.

The chef saw him.

"No."

"I just wanted to bless the soup."

"NO."

> "Amitābha." [+1]

The soup glowed for a second.

Everyone pretended not to notice.