Hearing their words, Yang An snorted.

"You dare attack my Attendant Monk and think you can just walk away? Fine. If you want to leave, each of you will leave an arm and a leg behind. It shouldn’t be too difficult for you, anyway.

Feel free to ignore me, but we’ll see who you trust more: the Three Prohibitions, or me, the Buddha’s Son."

The moment Yang An spoke, the temperature seemed to plummet to a freezing point.

The monks exchanged a look. They knew there was no escaping this, but it was better than losing their lives.

The next moment, all five acted at once, striking the person next to them. A series of wretched screams echoed out, and in the blink of an eye, the Zen Courtyard was a river of blood.

Not daring to utter another word, they abandoned their severed arms and legs and fled. The Immortality granted by their Visceral Stone level would allow them to recover; it was just a bit of flesh and blood.

"Do you want the power to kill people like them?"

Yang An asked Guang’an with profound meaning. The intention behind his actions was obvious.

"I do!"

Guang’an nodded without hesitation. When Yang An had ordered him to kill those men earlier, he had been struck by a profound sense of powerlessness.

If His Highness the Buddha Prince had forbidden it, none of them could have escaped; they would have been his to slaughter. But Guang’an’s own cultivation was too low—he had no way of killing those at the Visceral Stone level.

"Then let’s go."

Yang An calmly hopped off the courtyard wall and headed south. He was going to find the Round Gate Four Pavilions.

Guang’an quickly hurried out of the Zen Room and followed silently behind him.

"We’ll wander around the southern district first. With your current strength, you can only reap those at your own level. When you’ve set your sights on someone, let me know."

Yang An said with a smile. ’I feel a bit guilty, like I’m goading him into kidnapping a maiden,’ he thought. ’But then I remember the targets are those bald-headed curs in the temple, and it feels completely different.’

At Yang An’s words, Guang’an was instantly energized, as if he’d been given a shot of adrenaline. He snapped out of his earlier dejection, his face alight with excitement.

"Thank you, Your Highness the Buddha Prince! Guang’an swears to follow you to the death to repay your grace!"

Yang An smiled and nodded.

The two of them headed south, weaving through streets and alleys, transforming into hunters.

Whenever Guang’an singled out a target, Yang An would unleash his Two-Word Command—a special ability possessed only by those of higher status.

"Stop!"

When the Two-Word Command was issued, anyone with a lower status and Cultivation Level than Yang An would be frozen on the spot by the single word, unable to move. Then, it would be time for Guang’an to make his move.

An hour later, after covering most of the southern district, Yang An finally stopped with Guang’an before a place enclosed by high walls on all four sides.

To be precise, it was Guang’an who had led Yang An here. After all, Guang’an’s knowledge of the Great Virtue Temple was far superior to Yang An’s.

Yang An had wanted to see if there were any restricted places in the Great Virtue Temple that were usually off-limits. After passing several locations, Guang’an finally brought him here. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

This way, it would create the public illusion that Guang’an had deliberately guided the Buddha’s Son to this place.

And with Yang An’s help, Guang’an’s Cultivation Level had quickly reached the Early Stage of Visceral Stone, showing an astonishingly rapid rate of progress.

Having just broken through to the Visceral Stone level, Guang’an’s state was somewhat unstable. He staggered as he walked, looking as if he might collapse at any moment.

’Probably the price of his Cultivation Technique’s breakthrough acting up,’ Yang An figured. He told Guang’an to wait outside while he leaped onto the wall by himself.

Four simple walls were all that cordoned off the area, hardly enough to deter a determined spy. Yet, the Great Virtue Temple hadn’t imposed any strict restrictions, as if confident that it didn’t matter if someone approached, certain that no one could do any damage here.

Standing on the wall and looking down, the first thing Yang An saw was an empty courtyard.

The courtyard grounds were nothing but soil, yet not a single weed grew. A lone pavilion stood in the middle, and within it was a Stone Stele so tall it nearly touched the roof.

’This must be one of the Round Gate Four Pavilions.’

Yang An gazed at the Stone Stele, which was covered in countless engraved Sanskrit characters. Despite having diligently studied numerous scriptures on the orders of Elder Monk Hai Shu, he couldn’t make sense of the Sanskrit on the stele.

The Sanskrit looked complex; to him, it was as if he were illiterate.

’It doesn’t matter what the inscription says, though,’ he thought. ’Elder Zhuan Yu’s mission was just to destroy the Stone Stele.’

After a single glance, Yang An looked away, a disappointed expression on his face.

"And here I thought this place might have something good."

He shook his head, jumped down from the wall, and returned to Guang’an’s side.

"Aren’t you going in for a look, Your Highness the Buddha Prince?"

Guang’an asked, a little confused.

Of course, Yang An had no intention of attacking the Stone Stele so brazenly and without justification. He had two methods in mind, but neither was as simple as just walking in and striking it. He needed a "coincidental" trigger.

For example...

WHOOSH—

A foul-smelling gust of wind blew by as two Corpse Transformations streaked past, one after the other, several hundred meters away.

"How audacious!"

Yang An’s face instantly filled with rage, startling Guang’an.

"You dare... you dare use the wind to launch a sneak attack on this Buddha’s Son!"

"..."

In the next instant, Yang An vanished. Two loud bangs echoed from midair, and when Guang’an looked toward the sound, he saw two dark figures hurtling straight for him.

Terrified, Guang’an scrambled out of the way.

With a BOOM, the two figures smashed through the courtyard wall and continued into the empty yard, crashing into the pavilion and heading straight for the Stone Stele.

BANG! BANG!

The two figures slammed directly into the Stone Stele, but it didn’t so much as tremble. Instead, the figures themselves burst apart, erupting into a bloody mist that splattered across the entire pavilion.

As two Demon Barriers flew into his Buddhist Shrine, Yang An landed beside the collapsed section of the wall. He gazed at the unmoving Stone Stele, looking much more relaxed, as if he had just vented his frustration.

"That’s what you get for daring to ambush this Buddha’s Son. You were courting death!"

He spat, a smile even touching his lips, and was about to call for Guang’an to leave.

’As expected, this Stone Stele won’t be so easy to destroy,’ he thought. ’But that’s fine. I’ve memorized the location. Who knows when a ’stray’ arrow might just happen to find its way here.’

To say Guang’an was dumbfounded watching Yang An dispatch two Corpse Transformations with such ease would be an understatement. He obediently hurried back.

But just as the two were about to leave, Yang An suddenly stopped and turned back to look at the pavilion again.

There, inside the blood-splattered pavilion, sitting atop the Stone Stele engraved with complex Sanskrit, a monk had appeared—a young monk.

The monk appeared to be around Yang An’s age and was seated serenely atop the Stone Stele, also covered in bloodstains.

He wore a black Monk’s Robe with a red Kasaya draped over it. His expression was solemn and dignified, yet held a sinister quality that was deeply unsettling.

Judging by his attire, there was no doubt that this monk who had appeared out of nowhere was a Zombie God Zen Master. What baffled Yang An, however, was that he hadn’t sensed the man’s presence at all.

The monk brought his palms together, his gaze fixing on Yang An.

"You have disturbed me. Do you think you can just walk away?"

"Oh? And who might you be? How dare you speak so insolently to this Buddha’s Son."

Yang An’s interest was suddenly piqued. He hadn’t expected this to happen, but it undoubtedly gave him the perfect excuse to strike.

"This humble monk is named Qing Sha, the Zen Master who guards this place," he said. "Which Buddha’s Son are you? How dare you slaughter your fellow disciples at will? Such a crime is unforgivable."

"Heh. You don’t even recognize this Buddha’s Son, yet you, a mere Zen Master, dare speak to me with such insolence.

Today is the day of the Joyful Shrine Association. For trash that dares to offend me, this Buddha’s Son will kill them without hesitation—and that goes for a Zen Master like you, to say nothing of a couple of Abbots."

Yang An sneered, fully embodying the imperious air of the Buddha’s Son.

But upon hearing Yang An’s words, the monk’s eyes suddenly widened, and his clasped hands trembled violently.

"What? Today is the Joyful Shrine Association?!

Excellent! Excellent! I’ve finally lived to see this day! HAHAHAHA! Since you’re so full of arrogant talk, you can just die and stay here for me!

After I kill you, I’m going on a goddamn killing spree today!"

The monk shot to his feet atop the Stone Stele, and only then did Yang An see that the man’s legs were fused with the stone itself.

Upon learning that today was the day of the Joyful Shrine Association, the monk’s previously solemn expression twisted into one of utter madness, as if some long-suppressed impulse had finally broken free.

Seeing the man reveal his true nature, Yang An suddenly understood why Elder Zhuan Yu hadn’t sent him sooner or later, but had specifically instructed him to destroy the Round Gate Four Pavilions on the day of the Joyful Shrine Association.