The Monk

After finishing the diary, Zhou You was left speechless for a long time.

He'd killed his father first, then his wife, and after that his son and daughter. He'd done it all so cleanly, without the slightest hint of remorse...

"Born in the modern age, this guy's talents are wasted. What's a city's richest man, anyway? If he'd been born a few hundred years earlier, he'd have been a bandit chieftain wreaking havoc across the land..."

Zhou You closed the book, his heart full of emotion.

"As for now... The system's given me two options. One is to leave right away. The other is probably to team up with the monk and fight that Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva. But judging from the clues I've seen lately, this thing definitely won't be easy. So which should I choose...?"

He glanced at the diary again, then finally shook his head.

"Forget it. I'll go see the monk first, then decide after I've seen the final story."

With that, Zhou You brought up the system menu and chose to enter the daytime of the fourth day.

But as the scene shifted, he suddenly felt as if he'd forgotten something.

..

Well, if he'd forgotten, he'd forgotten. Since he couldn't remember what it was, it probably wasn't important.

The sun outside the window was still bright.

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Zhou You felt that the sunlight today was much warmer than before. The midday light streamed through the window lattice, spreading over him like a sheer veil and filling him with warmth from head to toe.

The security booth looked just as messy as before, with nothing changed. The only difference was that a spot had been specially marked in red on the patrol map by the entrance. It was a name that hadn't appeared before.

"Guanghua Temple."

The mist outside the security booth had thinned considerably, too. The pedestrians, once hazy and unreal, had become tangible. They still had vacant stares and didn't react to anything, but at least they gave the neighborhood a sense of reality.

Everything seemed to be improving, yet Zhou You couldn't shake his unease.

The closer daytime came to reality, the more its opposite—the night—might draw near to the Demon Realm.

So he quickened his pace.

It took Zhou You a little over half an hour to reach the place.

Although it was called Guanghua Temple, it was barely any larger than the security booth. It was just a typical vermilion gatehouse in the neighborhood. In fact, it was so narrow and tall that at first glance it looked as though it had been squeezed between two apartment buildings. There wasn't even a sign above the entrance; only the few sticks of incense burning in the censer by the door showed that it was a place of worship.

Walking through the wide-open entrance, Zhou You found that the little temple had everything it needed. It had all the usual fixtures of a temple hall, and a wooden Buddha statue stood at the far end. His knowledge was limited, though, and he couldn't tell what kind of figure it was.

At that moment, an Old Monk sat cross-legged before the statue, his body bowed as he murmured an indistinct sutra, seemingly praying for something.

Out of courtesy, Zhou You stood by the entrance and listened for a while. Unfortunately, the monk was so absorbed that he didn't notice another living person had entered the temple. After waiting for some time, Zhou You could no longer hold back. He went over and gently tapped the monk on the shoulder.

"Sorry to bother you. I'm—"

Before Zhou You could finish, the Old Monk slowly turned around, moving with extraordinary sluggishness.

Yet that simple movement nearly made Zhou You draw his dagger!

There was no other reason. The man's appearance was simply too terrifying.

At first glance, his face seemed to be nothing but a layer of wrinkled skin stretched tightly over bone, with nothing in between—not muscle, fat, or even blood vessels. He looked like a skeleton that had been forced into a human skin, more like a ghost than a man.

You could even say that the Landlady in Building Four looked better than he did.

But the problem was, the bell hadn't rung.

And the man was still breathing.

Seeing Zhou You on guard, the skeleton with only a layer of skin wasn't the least bit bothered. He tremulously rose to his feet, bent at the waist, and solemnly bowed to Zhou You.

"Thank you, benefactor, for breaking the seal and saving this old monk's life."

"And..."

His mouth was slightly open, his voice hoarse as if rusted.

"May I ask..."

"Could you get this old monk something to eat?"

A little over ten minutes later, they were still in the temple hall.

"...In short, that's what happened. Back then, Liu Shang deceived this old monk. He said he wanted to donate money to restore the temple's golden statue and strengthen the seal. But then he joined forces with Gui Po and sealed this old monk inside the temple. For three whole months, I had neither food nor water, and was forced to practice meditation to stay alive. In the end, I became this half-human, half-ghost thing..."

Unlike his terrifying appearance, the monk spoke in a calm, measured voice. But his mouth was full of food, so his words came out somewhat indistinctly.

Zhou You sat on a cushion across from him, watching as the monk tore into a chicken leg. It was the only thing he'd managed to sneak from a street stall outside. Zhou You asked quietly, "Master, is it really all right for you to eat meat?"

"Normally, it wouldn't be. But under the circumstances, it doesn't matter anymore. Besides, if I don't replenish my strength while I can, how am I supposed to fight that thing later? Compared with the lives of everyone in the city, which is more important? I can tell the difference."

The Old Monk carefully tore off a strip of meat and put it in his mouth.

But he wasn't enjoying himself.

From his expression, it was clear that he wasn't used to eating meat. He furrowed his brow with every swallow, but in the end, he forced down every last bite. Then he wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth and said to Zhou You,

"Benefactor, I think I understand what you mean. But I should tell you that this Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva won't be easy to deal with. Despite the title, it's actually a demon that was suppressed here several hundred years ago. It offers flesh and blood as sacrifice and feeds on the five organs. If the Three Venerables Temple were still standing, I might be able to reinforce the seal. But now the three temples have all been tainted. Unless the Buddha himself descends, there's nothing anyone can do."

Zhou You was stunned.

"...Then why did you just say you'd fight it?"

"I can't just leave all these people to their fate." The Old Monk's expression was calm. "For now, it's only causing trouble in this illusory realm. But once it breaks free, the whole city will become a ghost town. This old monk is indeed near the end of his life, but I still have a little magic left. If I put everything into it, I can get past one of the vengeful spirits at the intersection. So..."

The Old Monk sighed softly.

"...I can only do what I can and leave the rest to fate. All I can do now is see whether one temple can delay it. As for you, benefactor... This really isn't a place to stay for long. Fortunately, I've recovered a little strength, and I can just barely send one person out. But I have one request: once you're outside, please go straight to Qingjing Temple on the nearby mountain and tell my fellow monks that the Bodhisattva's seal has been broken. Have them hurry down the mountain and evacuate the city, so that more innocent people don't die..."

His words left no room for argument. He hadn't even given Zhou You a chance to offer an opinion.

Well, looks like this dungeon ends here. Though there seems to be a side quest. I just don't know what that Qingjing Temple...

After listening to the Old Monk's rambling words, which sounded like he was making his final arrangements, Zhou You could only brush off his clothes and stand. He was just about to take the monk up on his offer and leave when his expression suddenly froze.

Zhou You had just thought of something crucial.

"Wait. You said you could only get past one Sinister Object. Does that mean if I help you get past the other two, you can break the seals on those three temples and seal that Jixiang Jimiao Guimu Bodhisattva away again?"