Delivering Souls to Rebirth

Before the city gates closed, Zhang Yuan returned to the county town.

Under normal circumstances, Linhe County opened its gates at Mao Time each day and closed them at Xu Time, after which no one was allowed to enter or leave.

If Zhang Yuan failed to make it in time, he would have no choice but to spend the night outside the city.

Zhang's Mother would surely worry terribly if that happened.

So Zhang Yuan always returned to the city early.

Today, he had delayed a little because he went swimming in the river. Fortunately, he had not been turned away at the gates.

In truth, running back and forth between the county town and Whale Fortress was highly inconvenient.

But Zhang Yuan was currently only a Provisional Disciple of the Raging Whale Gang. He did not even qualify to live in the manor outside the Wubao.

Much less inside Whale Fortress itself.

Only figures such as helmsmen, elders, hall masters, and Guest Elders, along with a small number of their relatives, were qualified to reside in Whale Fortress.

So his days of traveling back and forth would have to continue for quite some time.

By the time Zhang Yuan returned to the city, night had fully fallen, and scattered lights had lit up throughout the streets and alleys.

The county town was still quite lively at night. The bustling main streets in particular teemed with people.

It was full of the warm bustle of mortal life.

But when he reached Fishmonger Alley, everything abruptly became quiet and secluded, with scarcely a pedestrian in sight.

Most households had long since shut their doors tight.

The moment Zhang Yuan stepped into the familiar alley, he suddenly felt someone watching him.

He abruptly stopped and spun around, sweeping his gaze over his surroundings!

The Zhang Yuan of the past might not have been so vigilant.

But someone had watched his home last night. How could he not be on guard?

The next moment, out of the corner of his eye, Zhang Yuan caught sight of a figure quickly withdrawing into the entrance of a side alley some distance to his right.

The light was too dim for him to make out the other person's build or features.

Zhang Yuan's eyes flashed. He immediately activated the ability of his Third Host, the Golden Grasshopper, granting himself double agility.

Then he silently gave chase.

After darting into the side alley, that furtive figure moved as though a Ferocious Beast were chasing him from behind. He hurried away at top speed, turning into another alley in a panic.

After twisting and turning through several alleyways, he pushed open the wooden door of a dilapidated house.

And slipped inside!

"Old Third, why are you back?"

Three people sat gathered in the room. One of them, Scarface, asked in surprise, "Didn't I tell you to keep watch over at Fishmonger Alley?"

Old Third shut the door, leaned against it, and gasped hard several times. Still shaken with lingering fear, he said, "I was watching there, and then I saw that kid. Somehow, he noticed me!"

Scarface was instantly alarmed. "Did that kid catch you?"

"No."

Old Third hurriedly replied, "I reacted quickly and ran right away. That kid is very alert."

"What a useless piece of trash!"

Scarface cursed bitterly, furious at his failure to live up to expectations.

Then he turned to a burly man beside him with an ingratiating smile. "Brother Lu, please excuse the embarrassment."

The burly man sat arrogantly in the seat of honor.

He held a bowl of wine in one hand and a chicken leg in the other. Without even lifting his eyelids, he snorted. "You can't even handle such a trivial matter. What help can I expect from you lot in the future?"

Scarface gritted his teeth. "Brother Lu, as long as you lend us three brothers a hand, we'll gladly serve you like oxen and horses from now on."

"If this deal succeeds, we won't take a single coin. It will all be offered to you, Brother!"

He had gone through untold trouble to make contact with this man, even draining the little savings he had.

If this fell through, all his previous investment would go down the drain.

How could he accept that?

The burly man burst into laughter.

"I'm not that stingy!"

He took a savage bite from the chicken leg and chewed as he spoke indistinctly, "Once it's done, you won't be short a single coin of your share. But don't try to fob me off with half-hearted work."

"Forget it. The longer the night, the more dreams it brings. We'll act directly tonight!"

Scarface was overjoyed. "That's wonderful."

Rubbing his hands together, he said, "Brother Lu, rest assured. We've already investigated everything. That family consists of only a widow and her orphaned son, and they have no connections at all in the county town."

"As long as we move quickly, we can make sure no one knows, no one sees..."

Bang!

Before Scarface could finish, the door was suddenly smashed open.

Old Third, who had been standing by the doorway, was caught completely off guard. He only felt as though a great hammer had slammed viciously into his back, sending him flying forward uncontrollably. He crashed heavily into Scarface.

They toppled over in a tangled heap!

The next instant, a green figure flashed into the room and struck with his palm at the burly man, who had just risen to his feet.

The newcomer was none other than Zhang Yuan!

Old Third had thought he ran fast. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that Zhang Yuan would follow him all the way back to his hideout and launch a direct surprise attack.

"Hey!"

The burly man reacted quickly. Seeing Zhang Yuan attack him with the speed of lightning, he immediately exhaled sharply and raised his dark, rough palms to block.

He tightly protected his face and vital points!

Although the attack had come suddenly, the burly man was not particularly afraid.

He was also an Entry-Level Martial Artist, and he had trained in hard-body techniques. Thick-skinned and tough-fleshed, he excelled at close combat.

Crack!

But what the burly man never expected was that when his palms collided head-on with Zhang Yuan's, an irresistible force burst through the web between his thumb and forefinger and ruthlessly blasted into his body.

Both of the burly man's arms instantly bent backward, producing a horrifying sound of breaking bones.

The fractured white bones even pierced through flesh and skin, jutting out bloodily!

"Ah!"

The burly man only managed to let out half a scream before Zhang Yuan's second palm struck his chest.

Surging waves battered the shore, one after another!

The burly man's cry was forcibly driven back down his throat. Who knew how many ribs in his chest had shattered? His entire chest caved in, and he flew backward with his body arched like a boiled shrimp.

Yet it was not over.

Zhang Yuan moved like a Bewitching Apparition as he caught up, his third palm striking the man squarely on the forehead.

Bang!

That Entry-Level Martial Artist's head exploded on the spot. He could not have been deader.

He had not actually been weak.

But Zhang Yuan had calculated against him while launching a surprise attack, successively granting himself Fourfold Strength and fourfold agility, raising the power of the Surging Wave Palm to a terrifying level.

His death was not unjust in the slightest!

After killing the burly man, Zhang Yuan turned his gaze toward the other three.

Scarface and his companion lay sprawled on the floor, terrified out of their wits. Trembling, Scarface said, "A m-misunderstanding..."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zhang Yuan raised his hand and brought down his palm, smashing three skulls in succession.

In the blink of an eye, the house had fallen into deathly silence.

Zhang Yuan glanced over the mess covering the floor, then reached out and lightly pressed his hand against the burly man's corpse.

All beings suffered; only they could save themselves.

If they could not save themselves, then he would mercifully help them transcend!

In just a few breaths, the burly man turned into drifting ash.

Then came the second corpse, the third...

As he delivered them to rebirth, Zhang Yuan silently recited the Rebirth Mantra: "Namo Amitabhaya, Tathagataya..."

He felt that—

If this world also had a Leshan Giant Buddha, it would be perfectly fine for him to sit atop it himself.

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PS: Some readers said sacrificing people meant eating people, which was bad. Although I felt the two were completely different matters, I changed it to delivering them to rebirth anyway.