ENG
Ignorance ignites a fool's fire,
Daily anguish in a somber mire.
Enduring a life of ceaseless pain,
They yearn for death, not celestial gain.
Legend has it that during the reign of the Yellow Emperor, an official of pottery named Ningfengzi learned the art of fire with five-colored fumes from immortals, and tried to ascend by roasting himself over the flames. Some say he achieved ascension; others claim he burned himself to death; no one knows the truth. The tale we have here is recounted by a runaway disciple from the Fumefire Temple in the Kingdom of Sacrifice, a place rooted in the art of the five-colored fumefire.
The master of the disciple served as the abbot of the temple. One day, the disciple accompanied his master for some liquor in town, and they came across a fugitive being pursued by officers. As the temple was short on help, and the fugitive was a wealthy one, they offered him shelter. This man, Zhao San, was a mere wastrel who lured patrons of brothels into extravagant spending. The temple was already home to various robbers and bandits, and it proved to be a corrupting influence on Zhao San. In the company of fellow criminals every day, he soon became ten times more villainous than before.
One day, Zhao San set off to rob travelers to fund his own lavish lifestyle. He targeted a wealthy family returning from their monthly worship, and in an act driven by greed and lust, he abducted the family's concubine, Meiniang.
Imprisoned within the temple walls, Meiniang endured daily chores and beatings. Despite her deep resentment towards Zhao San, she was powerless against his violence. She could only grit her teeth and bide her time, hoping for an escape.
Years later, a ceremony for ascension was announced in the temple. The disciple who tells this story was tasked with escorting Meiniang to the event, held atop a high cliff overlooking a river of lava. Zhao San had already prepared to leap into the fire for ascension with a talisman from his master. He insisted Meiniang accompany him. Amidst the frenzied cheers of the followers and the terrified cries of Meiniang, the disciple pushed the girl off the cliff as ordered.
Charred in the river of lava, their bodies swelled grotesquely as the lava, guided by the talisman, seeped into their skulls. Their distorted new forms staggered up, writhing in agony, and ran towards the depths of the black mountains. Witnessing this horrifying transformation, the disciple renounced his belief in the temple's teachings, no matter how vehemently the master rationalized it as a transcendent metamorphosis.
The story begins with an old legend and a dark warning. There is a tale about a man named Ningfengzi in the time of the Yellow Emperor who learned a strange fire called the five-colored fumefire from immortals and tried to use it to ascend. Some people say he became immortal; others say he burned himself to death. That uncertainty hangs over the Fumefire Temple in the Kingdom of Sacrifice, which practices the same fumefire art. The version we get comes from a runaway disciple who once belonged to that temple.
The temple was run by an abbot who was the disciple’s master. One day the abbot and the disciple, on a trip into town for liquor, found a fleeing fugitive being chased by officers. The temple needed servants and the fugitive, Zhao San, was wealthy, so they took him in. The temple was already full of criminals—robbers and bandits—and that environment made Zhao San worse. He was a wastrel who had made a living by seducing and draining brothel patrons, and living among criminals hardened him into a more vicious man.
Zhao San began robbing travelers to pay for his lavish life and then kidnapped a concubine named Meiniang from a wealthy family returning from worship. Meiniang was forced to live inside the temple, doing chores and enduring beatings. She hated Zhao San and resented her imprisonment, but she was helpless and had no way to escape. Her life became one of daily suffering at the hands of Zhao and the corrupt temple community.
Years later the temple held an ascension ceremony on a high cliff above a river of lava. Zhao San had a talisman from the abbot and planned to leap into the fire, claiming the fumefire would make him ascend. He forced Meiniang to go with him. The disciple telling the story was ordered to escort her, and in front of cheering followers and Meiniang’s cries he obeyed and pushed her off the cliff. Once they fell into the lava, their bodies charred but did not simply burn away; the lava, guided by the talisman, seeped into their skulls and caused grotesque swelling and deformation.
Instead of a peaceful or divine transformation, the victims rose from the lava as twisted, agonized forms and ran off into the black mountains. Seeing this horror made the disciple lose his faith completely. The master tried to explain the scene as a true transcendent metamorphosis, but the disciple could not accept that. He fled the temple and told this story as a warning: the temple’s “ascension” is a violent, corrupt ritual that produces monsters, not salvation, and the old legend of Ningfengzi remains ambiguous and dangerous when used to justify cruelty.