Chapter 14
As dusk fell, the Qingyun Temple’s charity event ended. Heng Yu bid farewell to Liaowu and walked back to her courtyard, bathed in the setting sun.
There was a simple stone table in the middle of her courtyard. Heng Yu sat down and took out the jade pendant.
She had used over a thousand admiration points to break through from late Foundation Establishment to the peak.
To break through from the peak of Foundation Establishment to Core Formation, she needed at least ten thousand admiration points.
…And now, she only had 300.
Thanks to her cheap master, she had more spirit stones and heavenly treasures than most Core Formation cultivators.
But in terms of admiration points, she, a young master, was probably poorer than even outer disciples of the Hehuan Sect.
It was a stark contrast!
“According to the Hehuan Sect’s records, all disciples can gain admiration points by attracting the admiration of others.”
“To gain admiration points, it seems the only way is through pursuing someone.”
Heng Yu tightened her grip on the jade pendant.
Over the past few days, she had interacted with Liaowu frequently because of Man Xue’er’s situation. This Buddha-son of the Undying Sect was elegant and refined, a shining light of Buddhism with outstanding talent, surpassing countless peers.
He was hailed as the person most likely to achieve the pinnacle of Buddhism in history.
Besides that, from his personality to his looks and physique…
He was exactly her type.
Moreover, Liaowu was about to undergo his tribulation of love.
If she pursued him to complete her inner sect mission and gained admiration points for cultivation at the same time, it would essentially be mutually beneficial.
So, should she focus on completing her inner sect mission?
If she did, would it conflict with her pursuit of freedom and detachment?
For the next few days, Heng Yu stayed in her courtyard, cultivating and consolidating her cultivation at the peak of Foundation Establishment.
The weather in Hua City was unpredictable. After a few days of sunshine, a light autumn rain began to fall again.
Heng Yu successfully consolidated her cultivation and left seclusion. Bored at home and craving the salted duck from the restaurant, she went out with her umbrella.
Arriving at the restaurant’s second floor, Heng Yu chose a table by the window, waved to a waiter, and ordered a table full of dishes.
“…Miss, are you dining alone?” The waiter hesitated as he wrote down the order.
This amount of food was enough for four adult men.
Heng Yu: “…”
She just wanted to try every dish.
Just as she was about to speak, Heng Yu sensed something and looked down at the street. In the distance, she saw a familiar figure in green robes walking slowly with an umbrella.
“Senior Brother Liaowu, come upstairs and join me for lunch,” Heng Yu transmitted her voice.
Liaowu, who had been walking silently, stopped.
“Senior Brother?” Liaonian almost bumped into him, surprised by his sudden stop.
Liaowu looked at Liaonian. “Are you hungry?”
“A little.”
Liaowu nodded and continued walking, soon entering the restaurant.
Liaonian quickly followed.
Liaonian had initially thought his senior brother was worried about him being hungry, but upon reaching the second floor and seeing the familiar figure by the window, he understood why his senior brother had suddenly entered the restaurant.
Liaowu sat opposite Heng Yu.
The waiter, a Buddhist believer, diligently poured tea for Liaowu and Liaonian.
Steam rose from the teacups, blurring Liaowu’s features from Heng Yu’s perspective, making him appear incredibly gentle.
“Why are you out?” Heng Yu casually started a conversation.
Liaonian glanced at his senior brother and answered honestly, “Senior Brother just went to treat Zhao Fan’s father’s leg.”
Zhao Fan’s father?
Was it the old man with the limp who had opened the door for them when they went to find Zhao Fan?
No wonder Liaonian was carrying a medicine box.
Heng Yu hadn’t expected Liaowu to still remember this after so many days.
She tapped her fingers lightly on the table.
If she helped someone, it was out of pity. But Liaowu’s help wasn’t necessarily out of pity — it was likely due to Buddhist teachings, his path telling him it was the right thing to do.
It was the right thing to do, so he did it. That was all, not out of his own heart.
The dishes were served quickly. At a glance, several were vegetarian.
Before inviting Liaowu and Liaonian, Heng Yu had ordered the restaurant’s signature dishes, like salted duck and sweet and sour pork.
But since she was dining with monks…
Heng Yu had reluctantly changed the menu.
After all the dishes were served, Heng Yu picked up her chopsticks and took some bean sprouts.
After a couple of bites, she noticed Liaowu continuously turning his prayer beads without eating.
“Do these dishes not suit your taste?”
“Amitabha, this poor monk is accustomed to simple meals. These dishes are perfectly fine for me, but they might not be to Lord Luo’s liking.”
Hearing his words, Heng Yu chuckled softly.
As she took more bean sprouts, she found the dish tastier than before.
“If you don’t eat, I’ll pick food for you myself.”
Liaowu stopped turning his prayer beads and picked up his chopsticks.
Heng Yu dipped a steamed bun in condensed milk, took a bite, and swallowed. “Senior Brother Liaowu, how’s the Bodhi cake coming along?”
Liaonian glanced at Liaowu.
His senior brother had been busy explaining Buddhist teachings to the other monks these past few days and didn’t seem to have time to learn how to make Bodhi cakes.
Liaowu put down his chopsticks and said calmly, “Still learning.”
This sounded like he was still in the process of learning, not that he hadn’t learned it yet.
Liaonian choked on his rice and coughed repeatedly — did his senior brother answer like that intentionally or unintentionally?
Heng Yu raised an eyebrow. “Really still learning? Then why is your junior brother coughing?”
Was she so easily fooled?
Liaowu turned to look at Liaonian. “Liaonian, don’t eat so fast, or you’ll choke.”
This also answered Heng Yu’s question: Liaonian coughed because he was eating too quickly.
Heng Yu: “…”
She picked up a steamed bun, dipped it in a large amount of condensed milk, and took a large bite.
After finishing the bun, Heng Yu was about to take another one when —
A cry of surprise came from the street below. “What did you say? Magistrate Zhao is dead?”
“Magistrate Zhao… could it be that one?”
“Not only is he dead, but I heard he was covered in black mist. He was killed by a demon, just like Li Jia!”
“Another demon? Did the Zhao family go to Qingyun Temple to inform the abbot?”
Heng Yu and Liaowu exchanged glances. She walked to the window and looked down at the panicked street.
Liaowu stood beside her, resting his hand on the windowsill. “It seems we won’t be able to finish this meal. This poor monk and my junior brother need to go investigate.”
As long as it involved demons, the Undying Sect couldn’t stand idly by.
Heng Yu said, “I’ll go with you. I’m also curious about what happened.”
She had just reached the peak of Foundation Establishment and wouldn’t be entering seclusion anytime soon. It was better to go with Liaowu and Liaonian, both to continue interacting with the Buddha-son and to find something to do.
Leaving the restaurant and asking a vendor, they learned the identity of the deceased — Zhao Honghua, the retired magistrate.
This magistrate was at the mid-stage of Core Formation.
This cultivation level was naturally nothing to Heng Yu and Liaowu, but in this remote town, a Core Formation cultivator could practically do as they pleased.
Yet now — he had been killed by a demon.
“Let’s go to the Zhao residence and see what’s going on,” Liaowu said.
As they approached the Zhao residence, Heng Yu stopped.
She said to Liaowu, “Senior Brother Liaowu, you and your junior brother go inside and examine the body. I’ll ask around about this Zhao Honghua.”
She had no interest in examining corpses.
Besides, splitting up would save time.
Liaowu nodded and walked towards the white-bannered Zhao residence with Liaonian.
Heng Yu looked around and entered the Linlang Pavilion behind her.
Inside, the chubby shopkeeper stood behind the counter, using an abacus to calculate the recent expenses. He heard the sound of the beaded curtain and looked up, seeing a young woman in Daoist robes with a sword at her waist enter the shop. This woman had an otherworldly air, clearly not an ordinary person.
The shopkeeper smiled. “Miss, what can I do for you?”
The Linlang Pavilion sold ordinary accessories. With his discerning eye, the shopkeeper didn’t think there was anything in his small shop that could catch this immortal’s attention.
Hearing his words, Heng Yu walked to the counter and pointed at a teardrop-shaped jade pendant. “I’d like to see this pendant.”
Although puzzled, the shopkeeper carefully took out the pendant and handed it to Heng Yu.
The jade was of average quality, but the design was beautiful.
Heng Yu played with it for a moment and then asked directly, “Shopkeeper, I heard there was a murder nearby?”
The shopkeeper was clever and immediately understood that Heng Yu wanted to inquire about Magistrate Zhao.
He led Heng Yu to a table, sat her down, and personally served her a cup of tea. “That’s right, Miss. I heard cries coming from the Zhao residence about two hours ago. Speaking of which, I think Magistrate Zhao’s death was truly unjust.”
Unjust?
Heng Yu raised an eyebrow, not commenting on the shopkeeper’s judgment.
She turned the teacup in her hand. “What kind of person do you think Magistrate Zhao was?”
“He was gentle and kind to the people.”
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