Ji Yuan really did manage to come up with a twisted logic, but first he had to follow Lord Lu's lead. Even students who held their teacher in the highest respect liked hearing their teacher praise them.
"Inferring from one instance and ceasing killing upon hearing—that shows Mountain Lord possesses exceptional comprehension as well as admirable execution ability. However, Mountain Lord gained intelligence through cultivating from a fierce tiger. Even though you learned worldly etiquette from ghost servants, you still do not understand worldly wisdom, hehe..."
At that, Ji Yuan smiled.
"That Scholar Lu may not be a bookworm, but he is only somewhat better than ordinary scholars."
As he spoke, Ji Yuan pointed toward the group of young martial heroes in the distance.
"Why did these people come into the mountains to hunt tigers? Naturally, because Lord Lu had eaten quite a few people in the past. Unlike hunters seeking tiger skin or medicine merchants seeking tiger bones, they entered the mountains to hunt tigers only to pacify the people, not for personal gain. At the root of it all, Mountain Lord ate people first, and the heroes entered the mountains afterward."
But here, Ji Yuan's tone shifted.
"Of course, all that is nonsense. If others want to kill me, I may kill them. If I were to stick out my neck to be killed, wouldn't that make me a fool?"
Lord Lu found those words immensely pleasing, and even his tiger head nodded slightly.
"However, as I said before, they entered the mountains not for themselves but for chivalry. Knowing there were tigers in the mountain, they still marched toward Tiger Mountain. Mountain Lord, do you think there are many such people in this world?"
The fierce tiger outside the temple frowned and pondered briefly before answering respectfully.
"In reply to Mister, there should not be many!"
Ji Yuan smiled.
"Yan Fei, Luo Ningshuang, Lu Chengfeng, and the others are all young heroes of the jianghu, and they still possess chivalrous hearts. Though they may have acted with youthful arrogance, so long as they abide by their consciences, it may not be impossible for them to cleanse the jianghu world someday. It would not be wrong for Mountain Lord to kill them, but this world might lose nine chivalrous people."
"The nine young heroes have solid martial foundations, but to Mountain Lord, they are no more than child's play and pose no threat at all. That is why I spoke, hoping Mountain Lord would show mercy."
The tiger spirit said nothing. Afraid that he might overthink it, Ji Yuan hurriedly added, though his tone remained leisurely and even faintly humorous.
"Ji wishes to make an interesting pact with Mountain Lord. Would Mountain Lord do me the honor?"
"Please speak, Mister!"
This time, Lord Lu answered very quickly.
"This act of chivalry by these nine does not mean they will remain upright in character in the future. Even now, they have some intention of seeking fame, though young heroes seeking fame is understandable. Mountain Lord may as well bear witness. If, someday, any among these nine commit evil, cause chaos, and bring suffering to living beings, you shall bring them to justice again. Whether you swallow them or kill them, neither would violate Heavenly Way. But if any among them can truly bear the name of a righteous and benevolent hero, then Mountain Lord's act today would be enough to offset past evil deeds and would be boundless merit! This is an upright heart and unobstructed thoughts!"
"Roarrr..."
Lord Lu's tiger eyes gleamed, his demonic qi surging. He felt that some of his previous doubts and worries had all been resolved, and in his excitement, he could not help letting out a low roar.
He understood Mister Ji's principles, and the meaning hidden within them was also obvious. He, Lord Lu the tiger spirit, had hope to transform!
Otherwise, how could he walk the mortal world and fulfill the pact?
For a moment, Lord Lu pondered even more deeply the profound meaning behind Ji Yuan's words: "Cultivation is like being human; upright body, upright heart, upright path." He also vaguely grasped the meaning of "the Path of Heaven takes from those with surplus and replenishes those without; the Path of Man takes from those without and offers it to those with surplus." His thoughts truly became unobstructed.
Rather than saying Mister wanted to save the nine people, it was more accurate to say that, through these nine people, Mister had casually granted him a tremendous opportunity and helped him fully comprehend!
"To hear Teacher's instruction again, Lord Lu offers a grateful bow!"
The fierce tiger replied excitedly yet respectfully toward the temple, then turned to look at Lu Chengfeng and the others, startling the somewhat dazed group fully awake.
"Lord Lu shall naturally obey Mister's command. Do you require me to escort them down the mountain?"
"No, no, no! We can go down ourselves! We can go down the mountain on our own!"
Lu Chengfeng and the others hastily refused. Even knowing that the tiger spirit would not eat them now, they still did not dare truly remain with a demon.
Ji Yuan also hastily went along with it.
"Let them return on their own. The mortal world holds deep prejudice against demons. Lord Lu, you should return to the mountain to cultivate!"
Now that his thoughts were unobstructed, Lord Lu had long wished he could immediately race away. He had only said that just now out of consideration for Ji Yuan's dignity. Seeing Ji Yuan tell him to hurry back and cultivate, he could only think that Mister truly was a celestial being.
Just as Lord Lu was about to bow and leave quickly, a thought suddenly struck him, and he spoke once more toward the Mountain God Temple.
"Having received Mister's enlightenment again today, Lord Lu has nothing to repay you with for now. But I can grant a favor to several who do not know dea... grant a favor to several young heroes..."
With that, the fierce tiger turned and approached the young people. After looking them up and down and seeing that they were too frightened to move, a human-like smile appeared on his tiger face as he spoke.
"When you descend the mountain today, you may speak directly to the outside world: the man-eating tiger in these mountains has been brought to justice. From this day onward, mountain guests need no longer fear being eaten by the fierce tiger of Niu Kui Mountain."
After saying that, Lord Lu actually let out an "Aow!" and spat out a white tiger skin. Its fur was stained with blood, as though it had just been flayed.
Then Lord Lu's tiger eyes flickered. Turning again toward the Mountain God Temple, he made a fierce tiger bows with claws together.
"Mister Ji, this student takes leave!"
Seeing that Ji Yuan did not immediately say anything to object, the tiger spirit secretly rejoiced and hastily leaped away as if fleeing. He moved so fast that he seemed to leave afterimages in the wind. If you say more, I won't hear it, won't hear it!
Only after Lord Lu had gone far away for quite some time did the people inside and outside the temple slump down as if they had been through a bath.
One side sighed that they had muddled through it once again, while the other was filled with the relief of survival.
But after relaxing, Ji Yuan suddenly felt numb and itchy as if electrocuted. Raising his hand, he could even see tiny electric arcs darting about. In a daze, a phantom of a chess piece gathered between his index and middle fingers, then sank into his finger and disappeared. Ji Yuan's body trembled with it.
When Ji Yuan came back to his senses, everything from before seemed like an illusion. He stretched out his hand and examined it from every angle, but could not make heads or tails of it.
After resting for a while, the people outside the temple recovered and hurried into the Mountain God Temple to offer thanks to the master who looked like a beggar, pulling the suspicious and paranoid Ji Yuan back to reality as well.
The campfire inside the Mountain God Temple was nearly out, leaving only a pile of red-hot charcoal. The five who could stand all bowed with clasped hands, while Yan Fei and the other four gravely injured people thanked him as best they could.
But they had to hurry down the mountain for medical treatment, so Lu Chengfeng, standing at the front, cautiously asked.
"Thank you, Mister Ji, for saving us. We regret not heeding Mister's advice earlier. We shall remember today's kindness for all our lives! But our companions are severely injured and cannot remain on the mountain for long. Mister, would you accompany us down the mountain?"
Fortunately, they had not forgotten what they had promised before, saving Ji Yuan the trouble of reminding them. Naturally, he would not refuse the proposal.
"My body is unwell. If it is convenient, I would of course follow you down the mountain."
These people desperately wanted Ji Yuan to accompany them. How could it possibly be inconvenient?
Whether they were young heroes who had narrowly escaped death or the master Ji Yuan, none dared remain on the mountain. After extinguishing the open flames in the temple, they immediately set off.
The others besides Ji Yuan had practiced martial arts since childhood, so they were not afraid of a little slippery ground or darkness.
What happened that night left a deep impression on Lu Chengfeng, Yan Fei, and the others. They realized that demons, monsters, ghosts, and goblins truly existed in the world, as did hermit masters. A measure of reverence had been added to their hearts, and naturally, the pact weighed heavily on them as well.
Before, becoming a great hero renowned throughout the realm had been a dream. From now on, it seemed they would have to think even more about keeping their lives!
The four carried the injured on their backs, while Lu Chengfeng carried Ji Yuan. With wind beneath their feet, the group raced toward Shuixian Town at the foot of the mountain as fast as they could.
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