Chapter 31 (1/2)
Translator: Atlas Studios
Editor: Atlas Studios
The Solitary Temple’s Abbot, Grand Master Dao Zhi, looked kind and honest but was actually a despicable presence.
He had allowed the fellow monks to commit debauched acts inside the temple, lied to the believers, and pocketed the offerings himself. Upon the exposure of his crimes, he had been beheaded before the masses at the entrance of the market.
When the head of Grand Master Dao Zhi had landed on the ground, the people in the city had cheered and celebrated, wishing that the beheading could be performed once more.
However, according to the female ghost of Chai Cuiqiao, Grand Master Dao Zhi was actually not a human but a monkey demon known as a mandrill.
On the day of the execution, he had combined osteotomy and illusion to make the executioner and the spectating masses believe that he had indeed been beheaded, thus successfully escaping.
In the month of July every year, he would return to the Solitary Temple, take out the old wine he preserved deep underground, and invite various demons for company.
Chai Cuiqiao was an earthbound ghost, and her cultivation was quite on par with the mandrill’s. However, the mandrill was as tall as a giant and had a human face and long arms. Its bloodlust was extremely strong, which resulted in ordinary ghosts melting or corroding if they came too close to it. Revenge was hence impossible.
In the past, when Grand Master Dao Zhi had returned to the Solitary Temple, Chai Cuiqiao had merely hidden underneath the temple and concealed her aura. She was filled with immense hatred, yet she had no choice but to bear down and tolerate this.
Therefore, upon discovering that Li Ang and company possessed extraordinary skills, her first thought was to make them help her kill the enemy mandrill regardless of the method she would have to use.
She would threaten or lure them.
“That mandrill possesses quite a number of Buddhist Dharma instruments. One of them is an impermeable violet-gold robe, another is a violet-gold alms bowl that can absorb moonlight and transform it into Spirit Qi droplets, and the last is a Vajrasaki that can stop attacks and crush stones.”
Chai Cuiqiao added solemnly, “The most valuable of the three is the violet-gold alms bowl. An ordinary cultivator could only collect an extremely small amount of Spirit Qi even after a long time. With the alms bowl, one’s cultivation rate will soar.
“Great demons are very rare. In addition, the mandrill is indeed quite powerful. Otherwise, he would have been killed for his possessions a long time ago.
“If you guys are willing to kill that mandrill with me, I want none of the three Dharma instruments he possessed. When it is all over, I will even give all of you a huge present…”
Chai Cuiqiao did not clarify what the present would be. Instead, she smiled mysteriously.
He he… Li Ang smirked. Only a fool would believe you.
“This matter is very severe, so I can’t make a decision on my own. If you don’t mind, I will discuss it with my friends first.”
Chai Cuiqiao held onto the Molotov cocktail and nodded with a smile. Li Ang dragged Xing Hechou and the rest off to the side, pushed their heads together, and discussed this.
Li Ang asked with a frown, “What do you guys think?”
“I have no opinion,” Hanging Sword for Ten Thousand Miles said slowly. “However, I have always believed that man and ghosts cannot be together. The spirits of people killed by a tiger will be trapped near the animal and help the tiger lure others in.
“We are being trapped in the Solitary Temple with no way of obtaining any proof from the outside world to verify that this female ghost is telling the truth.
“What if she is working for that mandrill?
“She might be using this to lure us in and make us wait inside the temple while the mandrill comes to kill us.”
Hanging Sword for Ten Thousand Miles, who looked like a greasy middle-aged man had once been hotblooded.
However, in the past, several people had made use of his kindness, making him become less trusting and more pessimistic about human nature.
Since it was impossible to differentiate between the truth and lies, one had to harden one’s heart and become indifferent instead.
“From the sake of profit, I support killing her.” Hanging Sword for Ten Thousand Miles glanced at the silent teammates and then said bluntly, “She just tried to kill us. Now that we dug her bones out and pose a threat to her, we need to listen to her claims?”
Xing Hechou was hesitant, while Liu Wudai remained silent. Hanging Sword for Ten Thousand Miles took a deep breath, looked at monk Hui Bing, and tested to see if he could form an alliance. “Reverend Hui Bing, as you heard, that female ghost died because of a monk. What if she suffered from Monk PTSD after death? What if she tried all kinds of methods to kill you in these seven days?”