Monk

"Speaking of which, what are you raising these chickens and ducks in your temple for?"

"Benefactor, you may not know, but raising chickens and ducks for eggs allows us to exchange them for money and grain at the market to cover daily expenses."

"I see."

So, this chicken thief was essentially cutting off the temple's livelihood. What's more, it was bizarre that they only ate the roosters. The eggs laid by the hens were unfertilized and couldn't hatch into chicks. In the long run, this was equivalent to nothing.

"Haven't you thought about buying some roosters and ganders?"

"Benefactor, you may not know, but roosters and ganders are rare poultry here. It's hard to buy them, and they're also unwilling to sell."

This was an island, and there were very few domestic fowl. Chickens and ducks were undoubtedly rare items, commanding very high prices. On the contrary, seafood was something they were tired of eating.

Speaking of which, this thief was truly wicked.

"Have you offended anyone, Tianling Temple?" Mu Zibai asked curiously.

For someone to act so insanely, they must have offended someone at Tianling Temple.

Could it be that a monk from Tianling Temple had an affair with someone, and that person's partner was seeking revenge by only eating the roosters to spite Tianling Temple?

Of course, that was just a playful thought.

Most of the people in this temple were cultivators with cultivation. To be able to steal chickens from them without anyone noticing meant they were definitely not ordinary people.

"Could it be one of your senior brothers within the temple?"

"Absolutely impossible. We only eat vegetarian. If anyone eats meat, it's immediately obvious." The monk shook his head.

"That's true."

Among a group of vegetarians, if one person ate meat, they would undoubtedly stand out like a sore thumb and be easily spotted.

"So, are you relying on this one rooster to hatch eggs now?" Mu Zibai inquired.

"We can only do that. We'll probably have to sell some chickens and ducks and then go to the market to buy a new batch of roosters." The monk sighed.

"Your Tianling Temple is quite poor." Mu Zibai pouted. The island was sparsely populated, and hardly anyone came to offer incense, so there was no incense money.

Looking at the listless rooster, it seemed to have lost hope in life, its head drooping, as if its life had reached its end.

Mu Zibai let out a long sigh, couldn't help but lament, "You've worked hard."

Tianling Temple's last hope.

Just then, Mu Zibai suddenly remembered something and opened the Shop.

[Item 1: Useless Greatsword, Price: 100 points]

[Item 2: I Love a Stick, Price: 1000 points]

[Item 3: Diamond Vajra Drill, Price: 1000 points]

[Item 4: A bottle of 1982 'Shuang Wai Wai', Price: 10 points]

[Item 5: A Drift Bottle (might contain a love letter from a maiden), Price: 1 point]

The Shop was so inconsistent. Sometimes, you couldn't find a good item, and then it would be mixed with all sorts of strange things.

Another day of not refreshing any good items.

There was no need to introduce items two and three further. For something like this to cost a thousand points, it must have its unique merits.

He had seen many items from his own world, none of which cost over a hundred points, yet this item actually cost a thousand!

Regarding these two items, there wasn't much description, only a single sentence:

"Regain your vigor! She's happy, and so am I."

If you bought these two items, "I Love a Stick" was bottled, while "Diamond Vajra Drill" came in a box, with a blonde beauty on the packaging.

He just didn't know how effective it was. Looking at the lone rooster, the only rooster left, he wondered what the effect would be if he fed it to him.

After all, Tianling Temple had treated Wenren Lingmeng for free, so Mu Zibai should express his gratitude.

Mu Zibai naturally knew the effects of the medicine. The only problem was that even if the effect was excellent, one rooster was still weak and likely wouldn't be enough.

Mu Zibai took out the Diamond Vajra Drill and gave a pill to the rooster.

"What is Benefactor doing?" the monk asked curiously. He didn't stop Mu Zibai from feeding the rooster but was just curious about what it was.

"It's something good. It's a shame you're a monk and can't use it. Otherwise, I could sell you a pill for a hundred taels of silver at a discount." Mu Zibai patted his shoulder.

The monk was startled. This thing, a hundred taels a pill? Was it made of gold? So expensive!

A hundred taels, he had never even seen that much money before.

He looked and asked curiously, "Why is this female Bodhisattva wearing so little? Isn't she cold? Also, why does this female Bodhisattva have yellow hair, and what is with that expression?"

Facing the monk's questions, Mu Zibai saw that the monk's eyes were clear and innocent, clearly understanding nothing.

"It's best that you don't know." Mu Zibai patted his shoulder.

The monk touched his head blankly, not understanding. Mu Zibai didn't explain and left directly.

Just as Mu Zibai left, a sharp glint shot from the rooster's eyes. As if reborn, it flapped its wings and charged towards the group of hens.

It rushed out of Tianling Temple and into the dense jungle outside, where not a single person could be seen.

On this island, normally, only the monks from Tianling Temple would come out to gather wild herbs. It was currently afternoon, and most of the monks were working inside the temple.

Besides them, there were also some people visiting Tianling Island.

Overall, the population was sparse, so it shouldn't cause too much of a disturbance.

He arrived at the back mountain and chose a quiet spot. The spiritual energy here was abundant, making it an excellent place for a breakthrough.

Mu Zibai sat down cross-legged, his hands resting on his knees. He circulated his cultivation technique, running through several cycles.

At this moment, the Qi within his body gradually expanded, and the surrounding spiritual energy converged towards Mu Zibai's dantian, instantly condensing into a vortex.

More and more spiritual energy gathered, reaching a peak as if it were about to explode. Mu Zibai forcefully suppressed the Qi within him.

"No wonder they say it's difficult to break through without a certain level of physique. So that's why."

Mu Zibai felt a sharp pain course through his body. Every inch of his skin ached as if he had been beaten with a club. Meanwhile, the vital acupoints in his body swelled and throbbed, his blood vessels feeling like they were about to burst.

"If one's physique isn't up to par, they probably can't withstand this intensity of pain. If the Qi leaks out, it will definitely lead to a failed breakthrough, and might even cause a decline in strength."

Mu Zibai's breathing deepened as he suppressed all the Qi, forcing it back down with sheer strength.

Over the past month, Mu Zibai had been taking the All-Purpose Great Tonic Soup daily. Additionally, the Shop would occasionally refresh with pills that strengthened the physique, as well as other spiritual elixirs. He hadn't missed any of them.

Although he hadn't broken through yet, if it came down to a physical confrontation, Mu Zibai was confident he could contend with experts in the Mystic Armor Realm.

At this moment, the chance of a breakthrough was at least seventy percent.

He took out a Mystic Armor Pill and swallowed it in one gulp. The pill dissolved instantly upon entering his mouth.

Azure spiritual energy merged into Mu Zibai's body, and soon, this azure spiritual energy permeated his entire being.

In the next moment, the spiritual energy overflowed from within, gradually covering Mu Zibai's body. The spiritual energy condensed into a layer of azure gauze.

The gauze slowly developed patterns, resembling those on a turtle's shell.

The spiritual energy within his body gradually transformed into Qi, becoming a part of Mu Zibai.

"This is the moment!"