Yuan Ya grinned at the Black Bear Spirit's praise, then turned to look at Xiao Hua in the distance. Well, perhaps it was Changling. Then he stepped to one side.
"Who dares be so bold?" After a moment, three to five soldiers clad in armor ran out, roaring as they came. But when they saw the vicious-looking Black Bear Spirit and Yuan Ya standing coldly beside him, they shrank their necks and hurriedly ran back inside.
Before long, a troop of bald monks rushed out from within, dressed in simple monk robes and carrying weapons.
"Oh?" Xiao Hua was somewhat taken aback. Aside from their bald heads and monk robes, how did these men resemble monks in the slightest? Every one of them wore a ferocious expression, their eyes brimming with savagery. Their muscles were hard and solid, and several even bared their chests, looking exceptionally fierce.
"Are these... monk soldiers?" Xiao Hua suddenly realized and turned to ask Xiao Jian.
Xiao Jian hurriedly replied, "Reporting to Master, that is indeed so. The Gaza Kingdom was founded upon the Buddhist sect, so its Buddhist sect forces are naturally monk soldiers! These monk soldiers resemble Daoist soldiers. They do not study Buddhist scriptures, only train in Buddhist sect supernatural abilities, and they do not abstain from meat or pungent foods."
"Alas, how is this... the doctrine of the Buddhist sect?" Xiao Hua sighed. "For power and profit, they have cast away their very roots!" By now, he understood that these monk soldiers likely followed the path of Buddhist Protectors as well, but their cultivation was utterly incomparable to that of true Buddhist Protectors.
"You there, brat!" The foremost monk soldier, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, pointed with the eyebrow-height staff in his hand. "Why did you destroy my cave residence's stone gate? Do