They acknowledged that she had good reason-her sister had died horribly, and her brother-in-law had been murdered. Anyone would have found that impossible to swallow.
And although that old monk had long since been expelled from Golden Light Temple, he had once been their disciple, after all. The temple bore some blame for failing to teach him properly.
So they spared her life and confined Xiao Qing to a meditation courtyard in the hills behind Golden Light Temple.
Young monks delivered three meals a day, and she never lacked tea, water, firewood, or rice. But they laid a formation around the courtyard, preventing Xiao Qing from taking so much as half a step outside.
The abbot said she was too murderous and needed to listen to sutras every day, allowing Buddhist teachings to reform her slowly.
But life was unpredictable. Ten years later, the abbot of Golden Light Temple passed away and departed for the Western Paradise.
The new abbot was cold-faced and hard-hearted. After reading Xiao Qing's records, he said she refused to see reason. In three years of listening to sutras, she had not uttered so much as "Namo." Relying solely on gentle persuasion through Buddhist teachings might never bring her around. He immediately ordered the formation removed and had her locked in Golden Light Temple's dungeon.
I once tried to rescue her, but I had not originally been a demon. Although my wife had used her demon blood, her demon core, and a lifetime of cultivation to turn me into a snake demon.
The cultivation in my body was like borrowed clothing, hanging loose and baggy. I could not gather it into a fist.
After a few clashes with the monks of Golden Light Temple left my back covered in bruises from their staffs, I understood that