Chapter 300: Heaven’s Spoonfeeding! A Loosening Seal? The Young Monk of the Scripture Depository.

“This thing may have its seals, but used well, it can still work wonders,” he murmured to himself.

The Radiant Gem Ruler could knock treasures out of the air, but it was ineffective against weapons. And simply possessing it did not mean invincibility.

The artifact was not automatic, and it required the wielder’s intent to control. That was why Shangguan Jin hadn’t used the Radiant Gem Ruler to knock away Li Yanchu’s Jiaoslayer. And why, when faced with Li Yanchu’s sudden strike using the Eight Trigrams Mirror, he had been unable to block and was injured instead.

The Radiant Gem Ruler was also useless against talismans. Yet, even with all these seals, it was still undeniably a very powerful magical artifact.

Killing Shangguan Jin had earned him eight thousand merit points, which was indeed pleasing.

But... the demon sealed beneath that pagoda still left a weight in Li Yanchu’s heart.

“What kind of demon could it be, that Jinguang Temple would choose to seal rather than kill?”

Unless those monks were trying to trick and harm their descendants, there could only be one explanation: it couldn’t be killed. That was a bit unsettling.

Just as Li Yanchu was deep in thought, Lady Yun’s tall figure appeared inside the room.

“Daoist Master, I have returned.”

“Mhm.”

Hearing this, Lady Yun blinked her watery, bright eyes at Li Yanchu. Daoist Master Li was far too unconcerned with her.

“Eh?”

“The room is so hot, so unbearably hot,” Lady Yun said sweetly, and her jade-like fingers played with her hair as she fanned herself repeatedly.

Hearing this, Li Yanchu raised his head slightly, his gaze turning odd. I

s this woman sick? It’s cold enough at night to freeze a person stiff. Hot, my ass. And what, does she think she’s some delicate little maiden? She’s a wood spirit, for goodness sake!

Lady Yun blinked again, her exquisite face showing a trace of expectation.

“So hot...” She stretched out her arm, revealing a slender, jade-like wrist. She radiated a seductive charm as she waved it in front of Li Yanchu.

Li Yanchu’s eyes fell on Lady Yun’s wrist, and she wore a string of prayer beads there. At first glance, they looked quite ordinary. But with focused attention, he sensed a powerful force contained within. This was a magical artifact!

And the aura it gave off was in no way inferior to his thrice-enhanced Jiaoslayer.

“Eh!? Where did you get this thing?” Li Yanchu asked in mild surprise.

Lady Yun looked smug. “Just now I was hiding off to the side, and after everyone left, I was about to return. But when I passed by a small building, this string of prayer beads suddenly flew out and landed in my hand. So I brought it back, planning to give it to you, Daoist Master Li.”

As she finished, Lady Yun slipped the beads from her wrist and handed them over to Li Yanchu.

Her face brimmed with pride, as if it read:

Hurry up and praise me! Praise me!

It seemed as if... Heaven itself was chasing him down and spoon-feeding him treasures!

Li Yanchu accepted the prayer beads, smiling faintly. “As expected of my Lady Yun, you even remembered to take some treasures back for later. Nicely done!”

My Lady Yun...

Lady Yun’s eyes lit up, and she laughed sweetly. “I was just fortunate, that’s all. When I come across such good items, of course I think of you, Daoist Master Li.”

I’ll never refuse taking credit!

Hearing this, Li Yanchu let out a helpless chuckle and gave her an encouraging look. These beads were clearly once the possession of a Buddhist high monk. As for why they would fly out on their own and seek out Lady Yun... Could it be because she had once been enlightened by Jinguang Temple’s founder?

A thought stirred in Li Yanchu’s mind, and he asked, “Which small building?”

“It had the words ‘scripture depository’ written on it.”

“

Gasp

!” Li Yanchu sucked in a sharp breath, the look in his eyes shifting.

The scripture depository!?

That was one of Jinguang Temple’s two great forbidden grounds.

He handed the string of beads back to Lady Yun. “These beads are a Buddhist artifact. I think there must be some karmic tie between them and you. Lady Yun, you should keep them for yourself.”

“But... I want to give them to you, Daoist Master Li.”

“I appreciate your kind intentions. Tomorrow, when we set out down the mountain, I’ll take you to the marketplace for a proper stroll.”

Lady Yun’s eyes lit up instantly, and she nodded obediently. Satisfied, she turned into a streak of flowing light and returned into the Dragon-Tiger Scepter.

Li Yanchu gave a soft sigh. She could track demonic auras, sought out treasures on her own, never complained, and could be pleased simply with stories and a trip to the market.

Lady Yun was truly the ultimate helper[1]!

He shook his head, then took out the Earthbreaker Pearl from his robe and examined it for a while. This was the treasure Shangguan Jin had used to try to break Jinguang Temple’s seal, and its power was tremendous.

However, Li Yanchu instinctively felt that this pearl was perhaps not so simple, so he didn’t rush to refine it.

Instead, he put it away.

“This trip to Jinguang Temple was truly not in vain!”

In his room, Li Yanchu was all smiles, and he lifted his brows with joy.

Mount Longhu’s Golden Alchemy Method, the Heaven-Earth Titan Form, the Great Confucian calligraphy scroll, the Dragon-Tiger Scepter, Bodhi Pills, Body-Tempering Pills, the Radiant Gem Ruler, and the Earthbreaker Pearl...

Plus, he had Lady Yun, a powerful aid by his side, not to mention the merit he gained from slaying evil spirits. This trip had been truly rewarding!

Tomorrow, I’ll leave Jinguang Temple. This place is far from peaceful.

The Thousand Illusions Sect remnant who had infiltrated the temple, the mysterious girl who injured Master Yushu, the terrifying demon sealed within the Temple’s Merit Grove, and on top of that, the young abbot, Master Wuse, who had lost himself to the heart demon, not to mention the sudden appearance of the Blissful Land demon within Jinguang Temple.

All of it made Li Yanchu feel that the waters here ran too deep[2]. He might end up being drawn into someone’s schemes.

He had already gained so many benefits, so it was better to withdraw. After all, he had slain demons, destroyed the Thousand Illusions Sect remnant, and averted a calamity for Jinguang Temple.

If he left now, no one could say a word against him. He sat cross-legged on the bed, calming his breath and focusing his spirit. He then began cultivating the

Yellow Court Classic

.

This technique was upright and balanced, so it was hard to grasp the basics, slow to cultivate, but its ceiling was extremely high. Though it lacked the special attributes of lightning, fire, or fierce gales, it was nonetheless endlessly profound.

Li Yanchu had a strong intuition that, later on, this technique’s superiority would surely reveal itself.

Gradually, he entered a meditative state and a realm of forgetting both self and surroundings, leaving only a sliver of clarity in his spiritual platform. The chaotic thoughts that had been lingering in his mind slowly calmed down as well.

The state of mind was something mysterious, profound beyond measure. Yet if one was not careful, it could easily slip into a lower path. Not to the point of qi deviation, but once the heart developed flaws, it could easily be exploited by others.

Decisive in killing, Li Yanchu slew demons and destroyed fiends, and his body was brimming with vigorous yang qi.

On the surface, he seemed brave, forging ahead with unstoppable momentum. But if ever he were ruled by his killing intent, he would easily be corrupted by heart demons, becoming twisted over time.

The

Yellow Court Classic

had the effect of dispelling violent qi, allowing one to maintain a detached, transcendent state of mind.

In this respect, this technique was extremely well-suited to Li Yanchu. Its cultivation might be slow, but it would never lead to disaster.

***

Back at the Merit Grove behind the mountain, an elderly monk with snow-white brows and exceptionally long earlobes stood before the tall pagoda that had earlier sealed away the demon. Behind him were four other senior monks of Jinguang Temple.

Moments ago, they had combined their powers to reinforce the seal once again. The leader was none other than Jinguang Temple’s Master Yushu, a third-realm Yang Spirit powerhouse!

“Jinguang Temple has suffered repeated calamities, yet this tribulation still has not been dissolved... could it truly be tied to Wuse?”

A trace of worry lingered between his brows. Suddenly, his expression changed. “Go! To the Arhat Demon-Subduing Formation!”

For in that instant, he sensed that Wuse’s condition within the formation had become unstable once more. Master Yushu and the four senior monks soared away at lightning speed.

Meanwhile, on the high pagoda, the seal that had seemed unbreakable began to reveal a faint crack.

***

Outside the Merit Grove, a patrolling martial monk suddenly staggered; his body swayed as his head drooped.

“Mr. Xuming, are you alright?” several fellow monks asked with concern.

Master Xuming lifted his head while wearing a gentle smile. “I’m fine. Let’s continue the patrol.”

***

Inside the scripture depository, a young monk with rosy lips and pearly-white teeth suddenly raised his head, and a brilliant light flashed from his eyes. But very quickly, he returned to his usual dazed, innocent demeanor.

Scratching his head as if nothing at all had just happened, he closed his eyes again and continued to sit cross-legged and chant sutras.

1. The term “tool person” (工具人) originally comes from management studies, where it referred to treating people as completely controlled tools. In modern internet slang, however, it describes someone in a relationship who provides help and support for another without compensation, only to be used and never treated equally or given emotional response. The term is often applied in romantic contexts, depicting someone who is constantly relied on for help but is often taken for granted, much like a tool that is used when needed.

Here I translated it as “helper” to reflect a lighter, more teasing nuance rather than the harsher connotations of the literal term. ☜

2. The phrase “水太深” literally means “the water is too deep.” Figuratively, it’s an idiom describing a situation that is far more complicated, dangerous, or full of hidden traps and schemes than it appears on the surface. I chose to retain the original literal Chinese idiom here instead of localizing it for a more immersive experience, and as it doesn’t sound too out of place in English. ☜