The monks frantically pulled Jiang Liuer away.

    Otherwise, someone would truly be beaten to death in this tranquil Buddhist sanctuary.

    A monk hurriedly examined the injuries of the young monk.

    “Oh no… such severe wounds! His head is split open, his face mangled, his teeth nearly all knocked out!” One monk gasped in shock, shouting, “Quick, carry him down the mountain to find a physician!”

    “Hurry, restrain this violent brat! Then report him to the authorities!” Another monk pointed at Jiang Liuer and yelled.

    Jiang Liuer snapped out of his furious state.

    He realized he might have caused a catastrophe.

    Yesterday, he merely angered two monks from Golden Light Temple and lost a wooden bucket. Today, he not only defied a monk but even smashed the other’s head open with a stone!

    Unsure what to do, driven by instinct, Jiang Liuer struggled free from a monk’s grasp.

    Clutching the “weapon,” he bolted in one direction without hesitation.

    Only one thought filled his mind:

    —Don’t implicate Elder Faming.

    Small and slippery as an eel, Jiang Liuer dodged the swarming Golden Light Temple monks.

    He dashed into the temple kitchen, grabbed a large steamed bun with his free hand, stuffed it into his mouth, then snatched a second, third, fourth… cramming them into his clothes.

    As his robe bulged, the monks closed in.

    Jiang Liuer nimbly vaulted through a window.

    He was starving.

    While running, he voraciously chewed and swallowed the buns like a ravenous ghost. Before escaping the temple grounds, he’d already devoured three.

    Jiang Liuer knew he’d broken one of the Eight Precepts—theft.

    If the young monk died, he might also have violated the precept against killing.

    Two precepts shattered in less than fifteen minutes!

    Was he naturally suited to cultivate the Great Vehicle Sutra of Sinful Killing bestowed by Elder Yellow Brow?

    Soon.

    Jiang Liuer reached the temple’s back gate.

    “Huh? Jiang Liuer? What are you—” A young sweeping novice who knew him started, but Jiang Liuer raced past toward the rear mountains without listening.

    The novice scratched his head, puzzled: “Why’s he in such a hurry today?”

    Then.

    He gaped as a crowd of senior monks came running.

    “Junior, did you see where Jiang Liuer went?” A monk panted, interrogating him.

    Unaware of Jiang Liuer’s crimes but inexplicably wanting to protect an acquaintance, the novice pointed in the opposite direction.

    “Thank you, junior!”

    The monks stampeded after the false lead.

    ……

    [Jiang Liuer]: “@Muscle Tang Sanzang, Senior Tang Sanzang, I’ve failed your guidance. I’ve caused a disaster!”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Oh? Started a rebellion?”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “N-no, not rebellion.”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Did you recite lewd poetry to Goddess Nüwa or Bodhisattva Guanyin?”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “Ah! Certainly not!”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “Senior, I think I accidentally killed someone today! I don’t know if he’s dead. He insulted my parents. In rage… I hit him with a stone, splitting his flesh and exposing bone.”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “And I stole buns from the temple kitchen.”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “Two precepts broken at once!”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Ho? Killing? Did you dispose of the corpse? Any witnesses?”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “I did it in front of many people.”

    Jiang Liuer felt a pang of guilt.

    Regret began creeping in.

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Good lad! Bolder than my first kill! No matter—killing’s natural. Who in this world hasn’t killed?”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Are humans nobler than snakes or insects?”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “Elder Faming said all creatures are born equal.”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Exactly! Monks boil rice bugs unintentionally. Abbots crush insects in sleep. All kill life. Killing isn’t so fearsome.”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “But they didn’t mean to…”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Did you intend murder?”

    Jiang Liuer pondered. He hadn’t meant to kill.

    Though furious, he’d only wanted to beat the monk.

    Never expecting the young monk to be so fragile…

    After four or five strikes, the man collapsed motionless.

    [Jiang Liuer]: “I didn’t intend to kill.”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Then you’re blameless. Moreover, that dog chose death with his foul tongue.”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “Had I been there, he’d already be dead.”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “!!!”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “What about the theft?”

    [Muscle Tang Sanzang]: “You didn’t swear not to return it. Just repay later!”

    Though Senior Tang Sanzang’s “comfort” felt brutally pragmatic, Jiang Liuer’s heart eased slightly.

    His guilt lessened.

    But…

    Where could he go now?

    Jiang Liuer hid deep in the rear mountains, familiar from firewood gathering. He could evade here half a day.

    But after that?

    Accused of murder and theft—could he ever return to Golden Light Temple?

    If Elder Faming learned of this…

    How disappointed he’d be!

    Suddenly, a crystalline ding-dong echoed in Jiang Liuer’s mind.

    [Yellow Brow Patriarch]: “@Jiang Liuer, Hehehe! How does rule-breaking taste, little Golden Cicada?”

    [Jiang Liuer]: “Not pleasant…”

    [Yellow Brow Patriarch]: “Since you broke two precepts today, don’t waste this prime ‘cultivation mood.’ Chant the killing and theft mantras from the Great Vehicle Sutra of Sinful Killing. Surprises await.”

    [Yellow Brow Patriarch]: “No theft? How differs banditry from me?”

    [Yellow Brow Patriarch]: “No killing? Hatred never ends!”

    [Yellow Brow Patriarch]: “HAHAHAHAHA!”

    “Golden Cicada, do you see?” Yellow Brow laughed maniacally.

    Even knowing his world’s Golden Cicada couldn’t read the chat, he roared with triumph:

    “This time, I’ve won again!!!”

    “HAHAHAHA!!!”

    ……

    Seeing Yellow Brow’s words and noting Tang Sanzang’s silence, Jiang Liuer tentatively recited the sutra’s killing and theft passages.

    Suddenly!

    The guilt-induced stagnation in his heart instantly refined into invisible energy streams flowing through his limbs.

    The Buddhist Torment Lotus Seed’s body-tempering accelerated.

    Jiang Liuer felt his strength grow.

    Was this…

    True cultivation?

    ……

    ……