Monk Arriving on Light

"Hiss!" As Fang Mu was enveloped by the Buddha's light and his injuries rapidly healed, a hissing sound rang out.

A two-headed snake poked its head out from the main hall, fiercely hissing at him and the little monk.

"Benefactor! You rest well, I'll go teach that beast a lesson!"

As soon as the little monk finished speaking, Fang Mu saw a golden light charge into the main hall, and the two-headed snake was swept inside by a gust of wind.

As the hall doors creaked shut, a series of booming sounds of fighting erupted from within.

Outside the hall, Fang Mu stared dumbfounded as the closed doors blazed with golden light, the entire ground shaking violently as if the earth itself was turning over.

Soon, screams echoed, and spiderweb-like cracks spread across the ground.

The sounds from the hall abruptly ceased. As the doors shattered into dust, the little monk, enveloped in golden light, slowly walked out from the ruined entrance.

"Bang!" Suddenly, a sound like shattering glass rang out.

The wall of light that had surrounded the temple suddenly shattered, dissipating into specks of starlight.

Fang Mu yelped in surprise. Seeing the darkness closing in, he quickly activated his Golden Sword, which transformed into a golden light to shield him.

"Benefactor! Your sword seems like something from the Buddhist Sect. May I have a look?"

As the voice faded, Fang Mu found his Golden Sword had vanished. It was now in the hands of the little monk beside him.

Fang Mu was shocked. Just as he was about to snatch it back, the little monk proactively handed the Golden Sword back to him.

"Amitabha! Benefactor, please don't be offended. A while ago, the people of Shanfo Town were annihilated."

"I was ordered to retrieve a secret treasure of our Buddhist Sect, the Golden Buddha, but I discovered it had been stolen."

"I sensed the fragmented aura of the Golden Buddha and that's how I ended up here."

"You're saying my Golden Sword is your Golden Buddha?"

Fang Mu retrieved his Golden Sword, took a step back, and questioned him warily.

"This..."

"To be honest, Benefactor, the aura of your Golden Sword is indeed extremely similar to that of the Golden Buddha."

"It's only similar. Look, does my Golden Sword look like your Golden Buddha?"

"It's not impossible if the Golden Buddha was forged into a Golden Sword."

The little monk stared suspiciously at the Golden Sword in Fang Mu's hand.

"Damn it! He's not easily fooled!" Fang Mu cursed inwardly and quickly pressed, "Is your Golden Buddha like gold? Easy to melt down?"

"That's not the case. The Golden Buddha is a secret treasure of our Buddhist Sect. Its golden body is made of extraterrestrial meteorite iron, along with some rare materials."

"It was personally crafted by a master refiner of the Buddhist Sect, taking several months to complete."

As the little monk finished speaking, Fang Mu's eyes lit up. He retorted, "Exactly! If something is that difficult to craft, do you think I have the means to modify the Golden Buddha?"

"And your Golden Buddha was lost not too long ago, right?"

"My Golden Sword is a family heirloom. It's been with me since childhood. You can't just take it by force!"

"Sadhu, sadhu! Benefactor, please don't misunderstand. I am by no means a greedy person."

The little monk clasped his hands together in prayer, recited some scriptures, and for a moment, he too became confused, wondering if he had misjudged.

"Roar! Roar!!" Suddenly, a series of piercing roars erupted.

"Not good!" Seeing the darkness engulfing the side hall, Fang Mu exclaimed and dashed towards it.

A golden light, faster than Fang Mu, instantly shot into the side hall. Immediately after, the golden light flared brightly, illuminating the entire side hall.

After Fang Mu entered the side hall, he quickly moved to the cellar entrance, moved aside a stone brick, and leaped down.

Fang Jing and the others in the cellar were unharmed, which made Fang Mu breathe a sigh of relief.

Wen Xuan's treasured sword, emitting a green glow, protected everyone within, fending off the darkness.

He couldn't help but feel surprised when he saw the golden light emanating from Fang Mu's Golden Sword.

"Oh! What a coincidence! I didn't expect to meet a senior disciple from the Academy here!"

The little monk suddenly appeared beside Fang Mu, looking at Wen Xuan with surprise and greeting him with a smile.

Fang Mu was already accustomed to the little monk's sudden appearances.

He looked at Wen Xuan with curiosity, wondering what kind of place this "Academy" the little monk mentioned was.

"So it's Senior Brother Fo Wuying. Wen Xuan pays his respects!"

Wen Xuan seemed to recognize the little monk and returned his greeting with a bow.

"You know me?" The little monk asked Wen Xuan, slightly surprised.

Wen Xuan simply smiled and nodded, offering no further explanation.

"I am Wuying. May I know your name, Benefactor?"

At this point, the little monk suddenly bowed to Fang Mu and inquired.

"Fang Mu pays his respects to Master Wuying!"

"Great! This humble monk remembers you. I'll leave this Zen staff with you for now; I'll come back for it later. Don't you dare lose it for me."

Fang Mu stared blankly at the incredibly heavy Golden Zen Staff that had suddenly appeared in his hands, and at the little monk who had vanished like an afterimage.

"Hey, hey! Take your Zen staff with you!" Fang Mu shouted anxiously.

But the little monk ran faster than a rabbit, disappearing from Fang Mu's perception in the blink of an eye.

Although the Zen staff gleamed with golden light, clearly marking it as a supreme treasure.

Fang Mu, however, was accustomed to a low profile. He disliked being a firefly in the darkness, drawing the covetous attention of countless people.

The crucial point was that this thing wasn't his. Guarding it with all his might would be completely meaningless.

"Why don't you take this Zen staff? You know the little monk, you can just return it to him later."

Fang Mu turned his gaze to Wen Xuan, a smile appearing on his face.

"No, no, no. I'm not taking this thing."

"This Zen staff looks incredibly heavy, I don't want it. Besides, this thing is too precious. If I lose it, I might be hunted down by the entire Buddhist Sect. I definitely don't want that!"

"..."

"Holy crap! It's that dangerous?"

Fang Mu's face darkened. He felt a surge of annoyance looking at Wen Xuan, who was backing away and waving his hands, adamantly refusing.

"What if I don't take it and just leave it here, or maybe bury it?"

Hearing Fang Mu's question, Wen Xuan was taken aback. He looked at Fang Mu speechlessly and warned him, "Don't say I didn't warn you!"

"This Zen staff is incredibly valuable, a supreme treasure of the Buddhist Sect, not something belonging to Fo Wuying. If you lose it, heh heh..."

"Even if you don't die, you'll likely be captured by the Buddhist Sect to eat vegetarian meals and chant scriptures for the rest of your life."

"..."

Looking at Wen Xuan, who didn't seem to be joking, Fang Mu felt like crying.

This was truly a disaster from the heavens! That damned little monk was too wicked, carelessly discarding treasures.

If you didn't want it, why didn't you just throw it away? What does it mean to give it to me? Does he think I'm honest and easy to bully?

Fang Mu was extremely annoyed but also helpless. In the end, he could only sigh and accept reality.

However, Fang Mu definitely remembered this debt with the little monk.

He swore that once his strength grew, he would give the little monk a good beating to vent his anger and relieve his inner imbalance.

With a loud bang, Fang Mu slammed the Zen staff onto the ground, nearly throwing out his back from the effort.

This Zen staff was indeed not ordinarily heavy. With Fang Mu's current strength, holding it felt like lifting a mountain; it was incredibly weighty.

"I'll leave it here for now. I'm going out to take care of some things." Fang Mu left the Zen staff, uttered a sentence, and then flashed out of the cellar.

Watching Fang Mu leave, Wen Xuan gazed at the Zen staff thoughtfully, a flicker of an unreadable look in his eyes.

In the darkness outside the temple, two figures shrouded in light whispered to each other: "Why would the Buddhist Sect send someone to this remote place?"

"Could it be that the old head monk has deduced some news?"

"I don't know! But we need to keep a low profile during this period and try not to attract the attention of the Buddhist Sect."

"Mm! And that matter?"

"Proceed as originally planned."

As the words fell, the two figures disappeared into the darkness.