Fang Ling hadn't slept all night, because his master Zhao Manzi had been shouting and screaming the entire time.
"Don't be afraid, little Fang Ling. Your Master Manzi is having an episode. He'll be back to normal in a while."
The Old Monk stayed beside him all night, giving Fang Ling a deep sense of security.
"First Master, why is Master Manzi like this?" Fang Ling asked.
The Old Monk pondered for a moment, then turned toward the place where Zhao Manzi was being restrained. "Ask your Master Manzi yourself once he's recovered!"
"Even First Master doesn't know the reasons very clearly. He's only heard a little about them."
"Mm-hmm!" Fang Ling nodded, while his mind went over what his masters had said about one another.
He had always thought they were lying to him, but now...
"First Master, they all say you've killed the most people and are the worst of them. Is that true?" he asked again.
The Old Monk stroked his white eyebrows and smiled. "They're not wrong!"
"I took a crooked path once, and I did kill far too many innocent people."
"Back then, First Master fell into madness. Anyone who wouldn't take refuge in me, I'd kill with a single slap!"
"Take refuge? What does that mean?" Fang Ling asked.
"It's a Buddhist term. It means wholeheartedly embracing a faith, or placing your faith in a Buddha," the Old Monk explained.
"I was determined to become a Buddha, so I made others take refuge in me."
"Anyone who refused was a heretic in my eyes, and the fate of heretics was destruction!"
"So First Master killed everyone who wouldn't take refuge in me."
"If it were me, I'd gladly take refuge in you, First Master. You're so kind!" Fang Ling said with a giggle.
To him, his First Master was the kindest person in the world.
Of course, aside from himself, his world currently contained only five people.
At those words, the Old Monk smiled faintly and stroked Fang Ling's little head with doting affection.
Around noon, Zhao Manzi finally quieted down after his long frenzy.
Sword Demon and the others emerged from Zhao Manzi's Meditation Room one after another, looking utterly exhausted.
Keeping the frenzied Zhao Manzi restrained without hurting him had put them through no small amount of suffering.
"Little Fang Ling, your Master Manzi wants you to come over."
The big fat man walked over, the fat all over his body wobbling, and spoke to Fang Ling.
"Got it!" Fang Ling wasn't afraid. He immediately patted his backside, stood up, and headed toward Zhao Manzi's Meditation Room.
Upon entering the Meditation Room, he looked at his master Zhao Manzi, who was leaning against the wall and had returned to normal.
He was once again the honest, good-natured man Fang Ling knew, the sort whose presence made him feel completely at ease.
"Master Manzi." He stepped forward and took hold of the hem of Zhao Manzi's robe.
Zhao Manzi forced a faint smile. "Little Fang Ling, did I frighten you last night?"
Fang Ling nodded. "A little... It was the first time I'd seen a different side of you, Master Manzi."
"It's an old ailment of mine. It flares up quite often," Zhao Manzi said, a trace of weariness in his eyes.
"When I grow up, I'll find a good doctor to come and cure you, Master Manzi," Fang Ling said.
Zhao Manzi smiled and shook his head. "An ordinary person couldn't cure this ailment, but hearing you say that still makes me very happy."
"I practiced an extremely evil cultivation art called the Taotie Divine Art."
"It strengthens your body by having you eat people."
"But in the later stages of cultivation, this divine art's drawbacks begin to show."
"The people I swallowed alive in a single mouthful were filled with resentment."
"That resentment lingered, gradually gathering together and invading my Divine Soul."
"When I have an episode, it's those vengeful souls shrieking and roaring, driving me mad along with them."
"So that's how it is." Fang Ling more or less understood.
"But the Blood Sword Divine Art Sword Master taught me also requires constant killing to grow stronger."
"Will I end up like you one day, Master Manzi, haunted by vengeful souls?"
Zhao Manzi shook his head. "No. When you refine a sword with blood, the target is your Life-Bound Blood Sword."
"The blood sword has an unrivaled edge and is steeped in killing intent. The souls of those who die beneath it are utterly shredded. They don't get the chance to become vengeful souls."
"But although it won't cause episodes like mine, the blood sword will gradually affect your temperament."
"It can easily make you brutal and impulsive."
"Don't be fooled by how refined and gentle your Sword Master looks now, as though he's risen above worldly affairs."
"He used to be an outright madman."
"Master Manzi, teach me the Taotie Divine Art!" Fang Ling blinked and spoke again.
Zhao Manzi's expression darkened, and he murmured, "Why do you want to learn it? Didn't I tell you that this divine art has terrible drawbacks in its later stages?"
"If I hadn't stopped practicing it and eating people years ago, I'd have long since become a mindless, man-eating monster."
"I've taught you the Galaxy Boundless Fist, so you've already inherited my mantle. There's no need to practice this evil art as well."
Fang Ling muttered, "First Master said I could learn it."
"First Master said his Golden Soul Mantra can keep vengeful souls from invading."
"If we stop the vengeful souls from invading right from the start, then it won't..."
In fact, Zhao Manzi had discussed this with the white-browed Old Monk before, and their conclusion had been exactly what Fang Ling had just said.
But this man-eating cultivation art was ultimately a heretical practice, far too evil, and despised by all...
"The little fellow is our disciple, and you still expect him to walk the righteous path?"
"This ruined temple has no resources at all. Sooner or later, he'll have to leave the mountain."
"And we old fellows can forget about leaving for at least several thousand years, if not ten thousand. He'll be out there all alone, with no backing and no one to help him."
"So right now, even skills for stealing chickens and sneaking off with dogs have to be taught to him."
At that moment, Zhao Manzi heard Flower Thief's voice transmission from afar.
After weighing it briefly, he raised his hand and pointed a finger at Fang Ling, passing the Taotie Divine Art to him.
"The first step of the Taotie Divine Art is to cultivate the Inner Practice."
"Everyone's constitution is different, so I can't help you with how to cultivate the Inner Practice."
"You'll have to explore it carefully and truly familiarize yourself with your own body before you can succeed," Zhao Manzi said.
"Understood! I'll master it as soon as I can!" Fang Ling said with a smile.
He wanted to cultivate it because he thought that, after practicing it himself, he might someday find a way to cure his Master Manzi's ailment.
"There's one more thing you must remember," Zhao Manzi added.
"Once you leave the mountain, you mustn't let anyone else know you possess this divine art, or everyone under heaven will hunt you down."
"If you want to eat people to cultivate, you must do it when no one else is nearby."
"If someone happens to see you, eat that witness as well. No matter what, you can't let anyone find out."
Fang Ling said, "I'll remember!"
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