The Holy Bodhisattva Had Always Treated All Living Beings Equally

The bean-sized flame swayed faintly in the dim room, casting light over the figures of the three people.

It was already deep into the night. Inside and outside alike lay in complete silence; not even the chirping of insects could be heard.

Yet Yang An's heart was bursting with wild joy.

He had been wondering what excuse he could use to leave Jiu Nan Town with these two genuine cultivators, only for Pan Shi to take the initiative and ask to travel with him.

It was like a pillow arriving just as sleep overtook him—exactly what he had wished for.

Still, Yang An did not show much excitement, and his expression barely changed.

He knew he needed to maintain the unruffled bearing a "cultivator" ought to have, so that he would look the part. Thus, he treated Pan Shi's request with great indifference.

A faintly hesitant look appeared on his face. Yang An pretended to consider it for a moment before nodding.

"Then I shall impose upon you."

When Yang An showed hesitation, Pan Shi became nervous as well.

Only after Yang An nodded in agreement did he finally breathe a sigh of relief, his face immediately brightening with delight.

"You flatter us, Fellow Daoist. My junior sister and I could not ask for more than to travel with you."

Beside him, Pan Yu wordlessly rubbed her forehead.

"Senior Brother, do you know what you look like right now?"

"What?"

"A simp!"

"..."

Although Pan Shi had no idea what "simp" meant, it was certainly not a compliment. His face instantly turned awkward. Pretending not to have heard her, he coughed helplessly twice and shot her a glare.

Yang An gave Pan Yu a somewhat strange look. Though the light in the room was so dim that he could not make out her features, she was probably quite a beautiful woman.

Of course, that was not the point.

What puzzled him was that Pan Yu had actually used the word "simp."

Wasn't that a term born from the internet in modern society? How did it exist in this era too?

Or perhaps she had not meant that at all, and merely said something that sounded like "simp"?

"Fellow Daoist Yang, if you have nothing to do now, how about we set out at once? The Communal Feast Convention is near at hand. If we miss the right time, the good things will belong to someone else."

Just as Yang An was still feeling puzzled, Pan Shi spoke.

Since Yang An had not come for White Buddha Temple, it meant he could leave whenever he wished. Setting out now would let them reach Xi Yue River sooner, and perhaps they might even gain the first move in finding something good.

Yang An naturally could not have wished for more.

He was desperate to leave this place as soon as possible, lest more trouble come knocking later.

So he nodded and gladly accepted.

"Fine. Then let us leave now."

Yang An replied, preparing to pack some clothes and bring whatever might prove useful. He also had a small amount of savings; though little, he would surely need it to survive after leaving Jiu Nan Town.

No matter what kind of world it was, without money, one could not take a single step.

But just as Yang An agreed and turned to gather his belongings—

The already dim light in the room abruptly went out.

The blood in the bowl had been completely consumed, and naturally the candle flame could no longer continue.

Yang An's body immediately trembled. He knew the blood would eventually be used up, but there was no way to stop it.

His body could no longer endure further depletion. Even if he used his own blood to maintain the Lighting Method again, he would only grow weaker and weaker.

Without the Lighting Method's effect of clearing his mind and purifying his spirit, he was already in an extremely weakened state, relying entirely on it to force himself to remain conscious.

The instant the candle went out, Yang An immediately felt an immense heaviness descend upon his body. He went limp all over, and his awareness rapidly became hazy.

In the darkness, Yang An fell to the floor with a thud.

In the final moment before he lost consciousness, he still tried his best to glance toward where Pan Shi and Pan Yu stood in the dark, able only to pray that the two would not suddenly entertain thoughts of murder and theft.

In the blink of an eye, dawn arrived.

The weather that day was drizzly and overcast. In the early morning, a dense fog had already drifted over Jiu Nan Town.

Only with a high, lingering rooster's crow was it officially announced that the residents of Jiu Nan Town had safely survived another day.

In the streets and alleys, at street corners and lane ends, people slowly began pushing open their doors, only to take a quick glance and hurriedly shut them again.

Only when someone boldly stepped into the streets did more people gradually emerge from their homes, beginning to search for whichever neighbors had fallen victim to demons and monsters the night before.

"Old Zhang from the blacksmith's shop is gone. His head is really gone..."

"Auntie Li's child too... Sigh, I heard not long ago that they were about to marry, and now they're gone."

"And that family by the river bridge to the east, the family of three also..."

"That orphan from the Yang family, how pitiful. His name seemed to be Yang An, right? Not even a body could be found. His room was full of black ash, and there was a Blood Bowl too. Even the blood in it had burned dry. How pitiful."

"When will this world ever come to an end? Do people like us truly have no way to live?"

Too many people had died in a single night. Beneath the rainy skies, Jiu Nan Town once more sank into gloom and despair.

Meanwhile, at White Buddha Temple.

White Buddha Temple was not large. It consisted only of a somewhat grand main hall and several courtyards of varying sizes, but there were quite a number of monks within the temple—several dozen in all.

Aside from the monks sent to guard the homes of wealthy families, only a dozen or so remained at White Buddha Temple to conduct their morning recitations. Their harmonious, tranquil chanting slowly rose.

But at that moment, a monk hurried into the main hall and made his way to the front.

"Abbot!"

The monk called out softly.

Before him sat an old monk in a vermilion kasaya, meditating with his eyes closed as he chanted sutras. Age spots and wrinkles covered his face, and his brows were pale white.

The old monk known as the abbot slowly opened his eyes.

"What is it?"

The monk who had entered first glanced at the other monks below, who were chanting sutras and meditating, before lowering himself and whispering into the old monk's ear.

"Something terrible has happened, Abbot. The four Holy Na Mo Bodhisattvas released last night are gone. One of them had already condensed a Holy Bone, and even the Holy Bone is gone!"

The serene-faced old monk abruptly widened his eyes upon hearing the whispered report, fury seeming to flare in them.

"Where were the remains of the Holy Bodhisattvas discovered?"

"All in the same place: inside a household on the south side of town. The Holy Na Mo Bodhisattvas had all turned to ash. Not even the Holy Bones remained."

"What of that household? Are the people still there?"

"I have already asked around. There was only one person in that household, an orphan, but he too has vanished. No corpse was found."

"The Holy Bodhisattva has always treated all living beings equally. From three thousand weak waters, only one gourdful is taken; it would not leave no corpse behind to bestow its blessing without cause. If no body was found, then that person must still be alive!"

The monk delivering the report was instantly startled.

"Abbot, are you saying that orphan may be a cultivator? That he destroyed the Holy Bodhisattvas and fled out of fear of punishment? But I asked around. He was merely an ordinary mortal of flesh and blood. Quite a few people in town knew him."

"No!"

The old monk shook his head.

"Outsiders must have interfered in this matter. But our current clues may perhaps be traced through that orphan. As long as he still lives, we must recover the Holy Bone and bring it back to beg forgiveness before the Holy Bodhisattva!"

"Go at once. Bring Guangdu and Guangxian with you. No matter who intervened, since they dared meddle in White Buddha Temple's affairs, they cannot be allowed to roam free. They must suffer the bitter sea of reincarnation, be bound by karmic flames, and fall forever into the cycle of rebirth!"

"Yes!"

The monk looked at the old monk with some fear. The abbot had truly been enraged this time. He hurriedly nodded and quickly departed from the main hall.

"Amitabha..."

The old monk pressed his palms together, and serenity returned to his face.