Chapter 3: The Way to Treat Beasts

In the darkness, Shen Bai listened to their conversation, and a scene materialized in his mind.

In the scene, a young woman in simple clothes carried a medicine box into the village, her face etched with worry as she prepared to treat the sick.

But what greeted her were the vile faces of the villagers.

The woman in simple clothes fell. One strapping man after another rose and fell upon her.

Covered in filth, the woman’s face was a mask of despair, her eyes as lifeless as wood.

Then, the aged Village Chief Yang pulled up his trousers and waved. The villagers carried the woman to the Locust Tree, where they brutally dismembered her and hid her remains within its trunk.

The massive Locust Tree swayed its branches, absorbing the terrifying, resentful energy.

Shen Bai raised an eyebrow.

"The situation is clear now."

Without realizing it, he had subconsciously reached for the longsword at his waist.

Honestly, Shen Bai had been in this world for so long that he’d thought his mental fortitude was unshakable. But after hearing their words tonight, he suddenly realized the world’s evil was far more complex than he could have ever imagined.

Beside him, Wuhua placed his palms together. The nine ordination scars on his head were strikingly visible.

"Donor Shen, this humble monk’s Buddhist heart has been tainted."

Shen Bai frowned, not quite understanding.

"Xuanxin Temple’s cultivation is of both Buddhist Teachings and the heart. If the heart is stained by dust, it must be wiped clean at once."

Wuhua spoke slowly. "I know you wish to act, Donor Shen, but I ask that you give this monk a chance. This time, let me be the one indebted to you."

As he spoke, Wuhua’s gaze fell upon Shen Bai’s longsword.

Shen Bai’s longsword was already halfway drawn.

Despite the calming effect of the Purifying Heart Spell, murderous intent had still taken root in Shen Bai.

’Calm is one thing, the intent to kill is another. The two aren’t mutually exclusive.’

Shen Bai considered this for a moment. "What do you intend to do, Master?"

Wuhua intoned a Buddhist mantra. "I will act as the Furious Vajra."

The words had barely left his lips when Wuhua’s figure vanished.

He reappeared in the next instant, standing inside the ancestral hall.

The villagers stared at Wuhua, utterly astonished.

Village Chief Yang was the quickest to react, roaring, "We’ve been found out! It’s too late! Kill them!"

Village Chief Yang had planned to use the Locust Spirit, but with their crime exposed, he had no choice but to strike first.

At Village Chief Yang’s command, the crowd of villagers surged toward Wuhua and Shen Bai.

Wuhua rolled up his sleeves. A golden Buddha’s Light flared around him as he charged into the crowd, the very image of a Furious Vajra.

Every punch shattered bones and tore sinews.

In the space of a few breaths, dozens of villagers lay on the ground, howling in agony.

With all four limbs broken, they writhed and crawled across the ground.

A murderous aura radiated from Wuhua, swirling around him.

Village Chief Yang’s face was frozen in a dumbfounded expression. He suddenly dropped his cane and turned to flee.

But in the next moment, a fist smashed into his face, distorting it.

"ARGH!"

A bloodcurdling scream erupted from Village Chief Yang’s mouth.

Shen Bai pulled back his fist. "Color me surprised," he said with interest. "I thought you were going to be like one of those useless monks and try to redeem them with Buddhist Teachings."

Wuhua’s expression was grave. "The Abbot once said that in these chaotic times, the Buddhist Teachings of Xuanxin Temple are only for saving good people."

"And the evil ones?" Shen Bai asked.

Wuhua placed his palms together. "The wicked do not deserve redemption through Buddhist Teachings. When faced with evil, the monks of Xuanxin Temple must become the Furious Vajra and vanquish all demons."

Shen Bai nodded. "Master, I like your style."

If Wuhua had spoken of redemption today, Shen Bai would have made sure he got a taste of his Blood Sword Dance.

But Shen Bai was very pleased with Wuhua’s actions.

The anger in Wuhua’s eyes had yet to fade. "Besides, the Hundred Medicines Valley is a faction that has never vied for power. They only wish to practice medicine and save lives in these chaotic times. How could these animals commit such atrocities!"

"Human depravity knows no bounds," Shen Bai said, shaking his head.

He said no more, simply lifting his foot and stomping it onto Village Chief Yang’s face.

"ARGH!"

Village Chief Yang was still screaming, but Shen Bai just pressed down harder.

"Shut up."

Terrified by the voice, Village Chief Yang instinctively clamped his mouth shut.

He was terrified.

’They took down all the villagers in mere breaths. These two were definitely not ordinary people.’

Village Chief Yang remembered the moment they had defiled the woman—how she had raised a hand and sent several villagers flying.

"Sirs, spare my life..."

Shen Bai said coolly, "What is this ’Guide’? Tell me everything you know, including what happened to the woman from the Hundred Medicines Valley."

Since things had already come to this, Shen Bai decided to use the opportunity to pry some useful information from him.

Village Chief Yang swallowed hard and quickly answered, "It... it was like this. Our village has always been poor. A few months ago, a strange person suddenly appeared. He planted a Locust Tree on the island in the middle of Liu Yun Lake."

"That person told us that if we were sincere and fed the Locust Tree with our blood, a Locust Spirit would be born and bring prosperity to Huaxi Village."

"At first, we didn’t believe it. But it turned out to be true. From then on, strange things started happening in Huaxi Village."

"Whenever we went into the mountains, we would always return with a huge haul. So... we began making our offerings to the Locust Spirit..."

’Every villager had wounds on their hands. Paired with what Village Chief Yang just said, Shen Bai now knew those wounds were all from their ’offerings’.’

"Then why did you harm the disciple from the Hundred Medicines Valley?" Wuhua asked, his fists clenched tight.

Village Chief Yang stammered, "The Guide... he said... that if we used a Cultivator as a blood sacrifice, the Locust Spirit would grant us even greater rewards... So we took a branch from the Locust Tree... and used it to ambush her..."

"At the time... we saw how beautiful she was. We’d never had a woman like that before... and since she was going to die anyway... we just..."

Village Chief Yang couldn’t finish his sentence, because Shen Bai had started grinding his foot into the man’s face, again and again.

With every stomp, bits of flesh and blood flew from the Chief’s face.

In just a few moments, Village Chief Yang’s face was a bloody, unrecognizable mess.

Wuhua watched on, making no move to intervene.

When Shen Bai finally lifted his foot, his expression was visibly more relaxed.

"You had your turn to vent."

"Mind if I have mine?"

Wuhua was taken aback by the question. He replied instinctively, "Of course."

Shen Bai raised his longsword and walked from one villager to the next.

As he passed each one, he thrust his longsword into the blood vessels of their neck.

Each thrust was casual, almost dismissive.

After Shen Bai delivered the final strike, the villagers thrashed on the ground, experiencing the terror and agony of bleeding out.

To Wuhua’s eyes, Shen Bai, longsword in hand, looked like a fiend that had crawled up from the depths of hell.

He was like a reaper, indifferent to life, watching with cold eyes as the villagers slowly died.

After some time, only corpses remained. Not one of them had died a peaceful death; all had perished amidst agony and pleas for mercy.

Shen Bai turned. "How do you feel?" he asked coolly.

"The monks of Xuanxin Temple are not so pedantic," Wuhua said, his palms together. "These people had long since fallen to wickedness. What you have done, Donor, was just."

Shen Bai smiled. "Let’s go."

Wuhua paused, slightly taken aback.

Shen Bai sheathed his longsword. "It’s time to end this business with the Locust Tree."