A Gift

"Jingming? Which Jingming? Could it be Senior Brother Jingming, who at fifteen was already comparable to Blood Tempering, and defeated Wang Lang, the one known as the reincarnation of the Heavenly Killing Star, nicknamed the 'Mad Wolf Butcher'?"

At Ben Zhen's words, the assembled monks of a certain age all shuddered, turning in astonishment to follow Ben Zhen's gaze.

The next moment, they saw a monk in a yellow robe, looking as ordinary as any common man, standing in a corner of the hall.

This was a monk who appeared utterly unremarkable. Compared to the sharp-edged brilliance he had shown over a decade ago when he defeated Wang Lang, Jingming now not only looked much more mature, but his aura seemed to have returned to simplicity itself.

He stood there loosely, his entire presence drawn inward, not a shred leaking out, as if he had become an invisible man. Those far away could barely notice him, and even the disciples beside him—except for Jingyuan—almost none could perceive his existence.

"Abbot, long time no see. I didn't expect that after all these years, you would still remember me."

Facing the crowd's gaze, Gu Han showed no trace of timidity. He smiled faintly and nodded to Abbot Ben Zhen.

For the decade or so that Abbot Ben Zhen and the other seat elders had ignored him, Gu Han had once harbored some resentment in his heart.

After all, he was no saint; anger was only natural.

But on second thought, Treasure Pearl Temple actually owed him nothing. In fact, in his earlier years at the temple, training in martial arts and consuming medicines had drained no small amount of their resources, and his only contribution had been defeating Wang Lang.

Moreover, hearing Ben Zhen's words just now, Gu Han felt a measure of respect.

Sacrificing oneself for others, cutting flesh to feed the eagles—Gu Han could never do such a thing, but he genuinely admired those who could.

Thus, his attitude toward Ben Zhen softened somewhat.

"Jingming, it has indeed been a long time! That matter back then was my fault. Seeing that you had no hope of breaking through to Blood Tempering, I reduced my attention to you and cut off your resource supply. Who would have thought that after all these years, you would rely on your own efforts to break through to the Blood Tempering Realm on your own? Truly a cause for celebration!"

Seeing Gu Han look his way, Ben Zhen also smiled faintly and praised him.

"Abbot, you flatter me. Jingming's talent is meager. After more than a decade of bitter cultivation, I only barely managed to break through to Blood Tempering. I dare not accept your praise. Moreover, my failure to break through back then was entirely my own fault, with little to do with resources.

But I wonder, Abbot, why today you did not choose any of the other Internal Qi experts, or even escort the temple's seed yourself, but instead selected me—a mere ordinary disciple who has just broken through to Blood Tempering? Is that not somewhat rash?"

As soon as Ben Zhen finished speaking, Gu Han politely declined.

Though he deeply admired Ben Zhen's self-sacrificing nature, he absolutely could not do the same himself.

After all, the barbarian army was now attacking the mountain. Among them, not to mention Muscle Tendon Strengthening and Blood Tempering martial artists, there might even be quite a few Internal Qi Realm experts.

If he traveled alone, or took Jingyuan with him, breaking through the encirclement would be easy. But if he had to drag along all those dead weights from Treasure Pearl Temple, and someone took notice, he would be in trouble.

Although this current body was only a simulation, it was still very important to him at this stage.

The reason was the same as over a decade ago: insufficient Simulation Points!

If the next life, or the one after that, had bad luck, who knew how long it would take to reach his current achievements again, let alone break through to Internal Qi or even Innate Realm?

"Heh, Jingming, you must understand that the barbarian lackey Wang Zhongyi knows exactly how many Internal Qi experts Treasure Pearl Temple has, and even the specific appearance and name of every single one. If one of us suddenly goes missing, it will surely draw his attention.

But you are different. Your realm may be weak, but your strength is formidable!

Back when you first broke through to Great Accomplishment of Muscle Tendon Strengthening, your combat prowess was already no less than that of an ordinary Great Accomplishment Blood Tempering martial artist. Now that you have shed your old self and broken through to Blood Tempering, I suspect you are no weaker than an ordinary Minor Accomplishment Internal Qi expert, am I right? With you escorting them, the survival rate of my Treasure Pearl Temple disciples will naturally increase greatly."

Ben Zhen spoke earnestly, his eyes pleading for Gu Han's answer.

"This..."

Gu Han found himself in a difficult position. After all, he had once owed Ben Zhen a favor. He had consumed quite a few of Treasure Pearl Temple's pills, which allowed him to quickly break through to Great Accomplishment of Muscle Tendon Strengthening, laying the foundation for his later breakthrough to Blood Tempering.

Moreover, this current body of his was also a disciple of Treasure Pearl Temple. If no one had noticed him, he could have simply taken Jingyuan and slipped away when things went south. But since Ben Zhen had spoken, there was now a responsibility, a karmic bond.

"Alas! Jingming, it seems you still hold some resentment over what happened back then."

Seeing Gu Han hesitate, Ben Zhen sighed, thinking he understood Gu Han's thoughts. He then pulled from his bosom a palm-sized golden box and a Purple Gold Secret Key, and spoke:

"Jingming, I know the temple has wronged you, and now asking you to risk your life to lead the disciples down the mountain is indeed improper.

Since that is the case, I will entrust this to you. I hope you can help the temple this once, and I also hope that if Treasure Pearl Temple can one day rebuild its mountain gate, you will return this legacy to it."

With that, Ben Zhen handed the golden box to Gu Han.

The other former seat elders and Abbot Yuanyin saw this, their expressions shifting. They opened their mouths but ultimately said nothing.

Seeing Gu Han's puzzled look, Ben Zhen explained at the right moment:

"Jingming, inside the golden box in your hand are three Great Return Pills, the last remaining ones in the temple.

Besides that, there is also a sheet of gold leaf, on which are written the temple's three strongest martial techniques, as well as the unique pill-refining and medicine-making methods that the temple has researched over the centuries.

I won't go into detail about the pill and medicine methods now, but those three martial techniques were personally created by Patriarch Bodhidharma himself. Each one is the pinnacle of martial arts in this world. Only successive abbots of Treasure Pearl Temple are permitted to practice them—even the other seat elders are not qualified.

Now, I entrust all of this to you. I hope you can escape this calamity and preserve the thousand-year legacy of my Treasure Pearl Temple. Amitabha!"

Having said this, Ben Zhen seemed to have exhausted all his strength. He closed his eyes, recited a Buddhist invocation, and fell silent.

"Patriarch Bodhidharma's martial techniques? Great Return Pills? The temple's thousand-year secret pill-refining methods?"

Hearing Ben Zhen's explanation, Gu Han stared at the small golden box and Purple Gold Secret Key in his hand. Suddenly, the tiny box felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and a storm of shock surged within his heart.