Daoist Hand Scroll

Zhang Chen snapped back to reality from his master's words. Looking at Xiao Lan, who was completely naked on the ground, he immediately lost his composure. Although Xiao Lan wasn't as beautiful as Wang Yizhi, her petite stature of exactly 1.6 meters, combined with her cute short black hair and delicate features, made her quite appealing. Now, her fair body lay before Zhang Chen.

"At most, I only changed Wang Yizhi's clothes, but she was wearing pajamas back then. This…" Zhang Chen's head was pounding, and he felt like he was going to get a nosebleed if this continued.

"See no evil, hear no evil!"

This time, Zhang Chen learned not to act himself. Instead, he used Telekinesis to control the monk's robe in his hand and put it on Xiao Lan, who had fainted on the ground from pain.

"I wish I'd brought some clothes. I hope Wang Yizhi doesn't find out when we get back, or it'll be really over. Never mind, I'll go roast this wild boar first to replenish our energy. I wonder if Xiao Lan ate anything in the lake."

Zhang Chen helped the clothed Xiao Lan up, letting her lean against the Buddha statue. He then took out the only Blood Beetle he had and placed it in her arm.

On the small wooden bridge in the backyard of Rodin Villa.

Jia Xin stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the thick white mist in the distance, his brow furrowed slightly.

"It seems my master was right. It's hard to achieve great things alone. To accomplish this, I can't do without Zhang Chen's help. But that huge fluctuation of ghost energy in the center of the lake just now, I wonder if that guy managed to survive."

Jia Xin sighed deeply, looking at the calm surface of the lake. His thoughts seemed to drift back to a long time ago.

On a mountain of moderate height, a little boy practiced diligently day and night on the desolate mountain. The only time he could rest was for his midday and evening porridge and sleep.

One day, as the little boy was practicing his finger techniques, a girl of similar age to him emerged from the woods on the mountain. The little girl wore a pink dress and had her hair in two pigtails. She stood not far away, gazing at the little boy practicing with her big, bright eyes, full of curiosity.

The little boy initially ignored her, focusing on his practice. However, after a few days, the little girl came up the mountain every day to watch the boy. She noticed that whenever he practiced, the boy would sweat profusely from being too focused, completely oblivious to his surroundings.

So, one day, the little girl brought an ice pop from the foot of the mountain. But because the mountain path was difficult and very steep, by the time she brought it to the little boy, only a tiny bit was left. Seeing this, the boy was deeply touched. He stopped practicing and sat with the girl on a large bluestone, chatting.

A year passed. Regardless of wind, rain, sun, or exposure, the little boy never interrupted his practice. The little girl also always brought some fruits or other items to watch the little boy on the mountain.

The boy's happiest moments each day were undoubtedly when he chatted with the girl.

However, one day, the girl disappeared. The boy, after practicing all day without seeing her, felt a sense of frustration for the first time, and he kept making mistakes during his practice.

That night, after finishing dinner, the little boy secretly left the mountain without his master's knowledge to search for the girl. However, after searching from house to house and every street and alley, he found nothing. An entire night passed without any news of the girl, and the boy's heart sank.

At that moment, it began to rain heavily. The boy walked alone by a river and suddenly saw a person in a pink outfit floating on the river ahead. That pink outfit was very familiar.

The boy was frantic. He leaped directly into the water, swimming towards the object. As he got closer, he saw that it was indeed the long-dead little girl. Traces of yin energy still lingered on the girl's face, and a peach was in the pocket of her pink dress. Looking at the dead girl's cute face, the boy was filled with rage. His eyes turned red, and he dove into the water, tearing apart a Drowning Ghost hidden beneath the surface.

He held the girl's corpse, letting the rain fall on his cheeks. He couldn't tell if the drops falling from his face were tears or rain.

The boy carried the girl's corpse to her home, then turned and left, heading back up the mountain. From then on, he never descended the mountain again. While practicing, he would gaze at the forest below, his eyes always holding a hint of tears.

"Jia Xin, do you think Zhang Chen will bring Xiao Lan back? It's almost noon, and didn't they say it would only take an hour or two?" a voice interrupted Jia Xin's reminiscence.

Miao Shuangshuang stood anxiously behind Jia Xin. Jia Xin turned around and walked into the villa without saying a word, but Miao Shuangshuang noticed a tear on his right cheek.

The burning wood emitted a "sizzling" sound. The wild boar placed on top was already roasted to a deep red all over. The aroma of roasted wild boar had already wafted throughout the entire temple.

"So hungry, so delicious!"

Xiao Lan, who had been unconscious leaning against the Buddha statue, gradually woke up upon smelling the roasted boar. Zhang Chen naturally noticed Xiao Lan's change. He used Telekinesis to compress it into a blade shape, cut off a leg of the roasted wild boar, and handed it to Xiao Lan behind him.

"Eat up. We need to be full before we can head back to the villa."

Xiao Lan seemed extremely hungry. She took the large boar leg with both hands and began to eat heartily.

Seeing that she was fine, Zhang Chen tore off a leg of the roasted wild boar and slowly began to eat. Xiao Lan was quite capable, finishing a whole large boar leg before feeling full. Zhang Chen ate even more, consuming a whole pig's thigh and half of its body before patting his full stomach and stopping.

"Swimming is really tiring. I can eat this much in one meal. It's quite comfortable to experience wild game for the first time," Zhang Chen chuckled.

At this moment, Xiao Lan behind him gently poked Zhang Chen's back with her finger.

"Um… did you change my clothes?"

After Xiao Lan finished eating, she realized she was wearing clothes she didn't know when they were put on. Blushing, she asked Zhang Chen.

"This is the second time someone has asked me if I changed their clothes, but the attitudes are very different," Zhang Chen replied, also blushing.

"After your scales were removed, you passed out. I found this monk's robe in the back room and put it on you, fearing you would catch a cold."

"Oh, um, I won't tell that girl Wang Yizhi."

Xiao Lan understood Zhang Chen's embarrassment. After all, she had been saved by him, and she had fainted without clothes in the first place. There was nothing she could do about it.

"Thank you." Zhang Chen could see that Xiao Lan was a very sensible girl. Being able to understand Zhang Chen in this situation was something most people couldn't do.

The two still felt a bit awkward, not knowing what to say to each other. After a while, Zhang Chen finally spoke.

"It will be a bit later this afternoon. If everything is fine, we can consider returning to the villa. Your friend Miao Shuangshuang is quite worried about you."

"Is Miao Shuangshuang okay?"

"Of course, she's fine. You're the only one who had an accident here. With Jia Xin at the villa, nothing major should happen. But the most important thing is that we need to get back quickly because I told them I would be back for lunch."

Xiao Lan nodded. She used her hand to support herself on the Buddha statue beside her, trying to stand up slowly. Perhaps because she had eaten, Xiao Lan was now able to walk step by step, very slowly. However, she soon broke out in a sweat and had to sit down.

"If you still can't walk this afternoon, I'll carry you back. It's okay, don't force yourself." Zhang Chen looked at a girl who, after experiencing such a terrifying event, could still maintain an unyielding spirit. It was truly commendable.

Xiao Lan still smiled and continued to walk, persevering.

Zhang Chen, having nothing else to do, took out the "Daoist Hand Scroll" from his waist.

Opening to the first page, two lines of text were written vertically in calligraphy on the far left.

"If anyone sees this old monk's hand scroll, it means I have already failed."

Zhang Chen then turned to the second page, which was filled with dense text, like a diary. However, it only contained the ordinary daily life of the old master after entering the temple.

He continued flipping until the last page, where Zhang Chen finally stopped and read carefully.

"This old monk traveled the world seeking a life of peace, free from any ties to the mortal world, so that I could pursue my Great Dao. But when I traveled to this Jiaoping Village, I knew that a life of calm seas was impossible.

In May 1932, I first arrived at Jiaoping Village. I intended to beg for alms and leave, but I discovered that everyone in the village had become possessed. They refused to eat the vegetables and fruits grown in the ground, instead consuming only raw animal meat. Knowing this, I understood that one day, the villagers here would suffer greatly, and it would even threaten people outside.

I searched the village meticulously and, as expected, found a river of blood behind the village. The river water appeared clear to the bottom, but in reality, it was mixed with the vital essence of a Blood Demon. The previous abbot had told me that while there are countless wicked people in this world, Blood Demons are few and far between. Each Blood Demon can cause a hundred miles of corpses and a thousand miles of blood.

I was not afraid, only feeling that my strength was insufficient and my cultivation limited. Thus, I followed the river to this small island. This island was surrounded by this lake of blood. Not to mention animals, even plants struggled to grow here.

I expended immense energy to build this temple and settled here. Since there were no physical resources, I could not stay here for long. Standing on the shore, a huge house on the opposite bank emanated a suffocating stench of blood. But with my meager strength, going there would be like a moth flying into a flame.

However, I discovered that although the house's bloody aura was strong, it seemed to be sealed by some power, unable to spread outwards. It could only influence the villagers downstream by affecting the lake water.

The reason I set out to travel was to pursue the Great Dao, and in the face of this immense good and evil, I had an epiphany.

Returning to the temple, I lost interest in tea and food, only for the sake of the living beings of this world. In the end, I shed my physical body and attained the Dao. I cast the sarira, formed from my physical body, into a well in the backyard, to sustain the life in this land.

If a cultivator who has attained the Great Dao arrives in the future, they may retrieve my sarira from the backyard well. However, once obtained, they must eliminate the Blood Demon in the white house, otherwise, the sarira will turn into a curse, condemning you to eternal damnation."

—Daoist Hand Scroll

"There really is a sarira. Once I've recovered a bit, I'll go to the well in the backyard to investigate."

Zhang Chen had seen in novels and on television that sariras were treasures capable of suppressing demons. If he had one, he would have a better chance of dealing with that Blood Demon.

"My Telekinesis proficiency also increased to 93% after using it underwater just now. I wonder if it will become stronger when it reaches 100%. Once I get the sarira, I'll return to the villa. Wang Yizhi must be so worried."

"Ah!" Xiao Lan, walking beside him, stumbled and fell again. Zhang Chen quickly used his Telekinesis to support her body and placed her on a meditation cushion. Xiao Lan looked at Zhang Chen with a blush, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Later, come with me to the backyard. Once everything is settled, we'll head back to the villa."

Zhang Chen said with a smile. Xiao Lan nodded and replied with a single word, "Okay."

"Boom!" Just then, a low rumble of thunder sounded in the clear sky. It started to rain heavily...

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