Sanctimonious

When the Beggar Gang's Four Great Elders saw the newcomer, their expressions immediately turned solemn and respectful as they cupped their hands and bowed to him.

The gray-robed old monk before them was Master Zhiguang of Mount Tiantai. Though he was not well known in the martial world, he was a true Holy Monk.

Years ago, a plague had broken out across Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong. To save the innocent people infected by it, Master Zhiguang had braved mortal danger, crossed the seas, and traveled far into the savage lands overseas to gather the bark of an exotic tree.

Though Master Zhiguang ultimately cured the plague, he fell gravely ill twice as a result and lost all his martial arts.

"This poor monk came today at the joint invitation of Elder Xu of the Beggar Gang and Judge Dan of Mount Taihang, but I did not expect there to be another reason behind this matter."

Master Zhiguang pressed his palms together. "Chief Qiao, though you are indeed of Khitan descent, you were raised and taught from childhood by eminent Shaolin monks and Chief Wang. How are you any different from a Song man? Do not trouble yourself over nothing."

"Chief Qiao, this old monk is right. You need not trouble yourself over nothing."

Xiao Feng nodded slightly. "Though Liao Kingdom and Great Song often wage war against one another, not all Khitan are bad people. Some Khitan have always dedicated themselves to fostering friendship between the two nations.

"Your birth father was originally named Xiao Yuanshan. From childhood, he studied martial arts under a Han master and attained exceptional skill. He earned the deep trust of Empress Dowager Xiao of Liao Kingdom, who appointed him Chief Instructor of the Imperial Guards of the Shushan Great Tent.

"Influenced by his master, Xiao Yuanshan devoted himself to peaceful relations between Song and Liao. Time and again, he urged Emperor Daozong of Liao not to wage war, and he was beloved by the common people and scholars of both Song and Liao.

"Unfortunately, thirty years ago, when Xiao Yuanshan took his wife and child back to Yanmen Pass to visit relatives, he was ambushed and besieged by twenty-one martial arts experts from the Central Plains.

"Xiao Yuanshan had once sworn that he would not kill a single Han person in his life. Therefore, even when besieged by those people, he continued to show mercy at every turn, merely forcing them back and wounding them.

"However, those who ambushed Xiao Yuanshan had no sense of martial honor. Seeing that they were no match for him, they actually turned their attention to his wife and child, who had no strength even to truss a chicken.

"Only after personally witnessing his wife and child being killed did Xiao Yuanshan completely lose his mind and begin a massacre!

"By the time Xiao Yuanshan came to his senses, more than half of the Central Plains experts who had ambushed him had already been slaughtered.

"Overcome with grief, Xiao Yuanshan no longer had any desire to live. In the end, he chose to embrace the corpses of his wife and child and leap from the cliff to die with them.

"But Xiao Yuanshan had not expected that his son had not been killed, only temporarily knocked unconscious.

"Thus, when Xiao Yuanshan discovered that the child was still alive, he could only use all his strength to throw the swaddled infant back up onto the cliff.

"Later, that child was placed in the care of Qiao Sanhuai's family beneath Mount Shaoshi and was named Qiao Feng.

"Among the Central Plains experts who ambushed your father that year were your benefactor Wang Jiantong and this great monk standing here. Therefore, you owe Wang Jiantong and the others nothing. Rather, they owe you a great debt."

"Crack, crack, crack..."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Feng could not help clenching his fists. His tiger-like eyes reddened as he asked, "Master Zhiguang, is everything Young Master Xiao said true?"

"Amitabha. A sin, a sin."

Master Zhiguang sighed. "What this Benefactor Xiao said is correct. This poor monk has saved countless people in his life and has a clear conscience. Only regarding that matter from years ago am I truly ashamed to speak."

"Why?!"

Suppressing his rage, Qiao Feng demanded, "My father was clearly devoted to peaceful relations between Song and Liao. Why did you ambush and kill him? Was it simply because he was Khitan?"

"Because thirty years ago, the heroes of the Central Plains received word that a large group of Khitan warriors were coming to launch a surprise attack on Shaolin Temple, intending to seize all the Martial Arts Manuals that Shaolin Temple had treasured for hundreds of years."

Master Zhiguang said helplessly, "If those Shaolin Martial Arts Manuals had truly been seized by Khitan warriors and widely spread throughout their armies, how could Great Song's soldiers possibly remain their match on the battlefield?

"This matter was of utmost importance. If those Khitan warriors had truly succeeded, Great Song would have faced the danger of national ruin and the extinction of our people. Therefore, we had no time to verify the information.

"After learning that those Khitan warriors would pass through Yanmen Pass, we traveled day and night under the lead of Big Brother Leader and arrived at Yanmen Pass ahead of time to set an ambush.

"What happened afterward was exactly as Benefactor Xiao described.

"Originally, we did not know that we had wrongly killed good people. It was only because your father carved an inscription in Khitan script onto the stone walls outside Yanmen Pass before leaping from the cliff.

"We made rubbings of those words and found someone who understood Khitan to translate them. Only then did we realize that we had committed a terrible mistake."

"Who was Big Brother Leader?"

Having learned the full story, Qiao Feng felt that the fury in his heart had nowhere to go. He grabbed Master Zhiguang by the shoulders, his eyes bloodshot as he shouted, "Tell me quickly! Who was that Big Brother Leader?"

"Chief Qiao, Big Brother Leader was deceived back then and only then committed such a grave mistake. He is now highly respected in the martial world. If this matter were made public, it would surely damage both his reputation and Chief Wang's. Please forgive this poor monk for being unable to speak plainly."

Looking at Qiao Feng, who was on the verge of madness, Master Zhiguang pressed his palms together. "If Chief Qiao wishes to take revenge, he may strike this poor monk dead with one palm. I only hope Chief Qiao can let go of the hatred in his heart."

"You..."

Qiao Feng raised his right hand in fury, but when he saw Master Zhiguang's expression—eyes closed as he awaited death, as though saying, If I do not enter hell, who will?—he truly could not bring himself to strike.

Truthfully, Qiao Feng deeply admired people like Master Zhiguang. Thus, even knowing that Master Zhiguang had avenged his father's death to answer for, he was willing to believe that the monk had been deceived by villains and did not wish to kill him ruthlessly.

"Hahahaha..."

Just as Qiao Feng found himself trapped in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat, a burst of mocking laughter suddenly rang out and drew everyone's attention.

Xiao Feng looked utterly disdainful as he said, "Old monk, do you know that Big Brother Leader, whom you are willing to protect with your life, actually has a son in secret? And the mother of that son is Ye Erniang, the woman known as 'One Who Commits Every Evil'!"

"Impossible! You are talking nonsense!"

Master Zhiguang's expression changed drastically. Unable to restrain himself, he rebuked, "Big Brother Leader is highly respected, and he is also... How could he possibly have a son with Ye Erniang?"

The reason Master Zhiguang had chosen to become a monk was partly because he felt his sins were too grave, and partly because he had been influenced by Big Brother Leader.

Master Zhiguang had always regarded Big Brother Leader as his idol. Learning now that he had not only broken his vows but also had a son with Ye Erniang was more painful to him than death.

"Young Master Xiao, do you know who Big Brother Leader is?"

Qiao Feng cupped his hands toward Xiao Feng with a solemn expression. "Please tell me plainly, Young Master Xiao. Qiao Feng will be eternally grateful!"

"You cannot!"

Ignoring Master Zhiguang's attempt to stop him, Xiao Feng announced loudly, "That person is none other than the current abbot of Shaolin Temple—Abbot Xuanci!"