Chapter 398: Killing a Chicken to Scare the Monkeys

What the hell is that?!

It looks like a lion, but differs from a lion in some ways.

Its fur is completely black, except for a reddish‑brown around the nose and neck; its four paws are large and thick—one swipe could crush the little monk's head from earlier.

Its head is large and square, with a broad forehead, a short, blunt snout, and scarlet‑red eyes that look especially terrifying in the dark night.

It bit the leg of the already‑unconscious little monk, dragged him inside, lowered its head, opened its huge mouth, and licked the blood off the ground bit by bit with its black tongue.

Seeing this, I became even more certain that the intruders didn't violently break in from outside; the silence at the gate is because no one inside the temple could escape at all!

Just as I was trembling with fear, footsteps sounded again from inside the gate.

This time the footsteps were steady and not loud.

Soon after, a novice monk appeared in my view.

He first patted the giant beast's head with the hand holding his prayer beads.

The beast immediately acted like a domesticated pet dog, rubbing its head against his palm, soft as a spoiled child.

The novice's hand slid down to scratch its neck, whereupon the beast promptly lay belly‑up, eyes half‑closed in enjoyment; after he said "Go," it rose, seized the little monk's leg in its jaws, and dragged him away behind it.

The novice watched it leave, turned, and swept a fierce gaze over the temple exterior; I shrank back in fright, waiting for the gate to close before I finally let out a slight breath of relief.

How could it be him?

This novice monk is clearly the one who attends Empty Silence Abbott!

Every time we come to Song Mountain, he waits for us at the temple gate; we stay at Shi Wu, and he personally brings our three daily meals, living supplies, and even hot water.

Empty Silence Abbott trusts him immensely.

Then, who is the traitor behind tonight's plot to massacre the temple?

Is Empty Silence Abbott stealing from his own post?

Or has Empty Silence Abbott himself been played by the novice monk?

Either way, Liu Junyan and the Copper Coin Person are now in grave danger.

The temple gate slowly shut, and the novice's harmless‑looking face faded bit by bit from my sight.

I felt a chill all over, unsure what to do next.

I don't know when, but the chanting stopped.

Immediately after came the roars of wild beasts, as if threatening something.

I am caught in a dilemma.

I want to find Liu Junyan, but given the situation I can't just rush into the temple—that would be suicide!

With Liu Junyan's cultivation, unless he's been trapped, even that giant beast couldn't hurt him at all, right?

If Liu Junyan is lying low, and I rush in and get caught, I'd be handing the enemy a knife.

What should I do, then?

Just as I was torn, the ground shuddered, and a white dragon tail flashed overhead in the direction of the meditation hall.

That was Liu Junyan!

Unfortunately, just as the tail cleared the wall, golden light suddenly flared above the temple, countless golden runes forming a huge net that slammed down and crushed the tail.

The whole thing took only a few seconds, yet it chilled my heart to the bone.

Such a powerful rune formation isn't something just anyone with cultivation can pull off.

This means someone had long been lurking in the temple, laying formation arrays in every corner, making the whole temple now virtually impregnable.

Now trying to climb over the wall to get in? Impossible!

Liu Junyan is trapped in the meditation hall—what about the Copper Coin Person?

For a moment, I was at a complete loss.

The temple then echoed with a few low beast growls, after which the chanting resumed.

But it's obvious the chanting is now much weaker and somewhat disordered.

Even without seeing it, I know that monks have died on the altar.

The enemy is killing a chicken to scare the monkeys.

The altar was set up to gather the Living Buddha's reincarnated spirit child; the fact that the chanting resumed after the threat shows they still want to control that spirit child.

Each altar's monk quota was fixed at its founding; the enemy's indiscriminate slaughter of monks shows they have replacements ready for the altar.

But the replacements haven't arrived yet, so they can only maintain the current state for now.

The dozens of monks on the three altars are all those who withdrew during the turmoil and now hide among the common folk.

They are precisely the dissidents the rulers wish to eliminate.

This time they happened to catch them all in one sweep.

The situation now truly feels hopeless; the only possible breakthrough seems to be Liu Junyan's side.

At the same time we must cut off the reinforcements' ascent up the mountain into the temple.

Once the replacements are in place, the consequences would be unthinkable.

But even if I now call for help, Jiangcheng is so far from Song Mountain that it's probably too late.

Don't panic, don't be chaotic—first steady yourself.

Jiangcheng is too far; I need to summon help nearby.

I hardly know anyone around Song Mountain, but Fang Chuanzong should be able to help.

The Special Affairs Handling Office has personnel spread throughout every corner of China; although Fang Chuanzong is the manager of the East China region, he maintains close ties with managers of other regions.

For now, the only way to bring in nearby reinforcements is through him.

Unfortunately, I came in such a hurry that my phone is still back at Shi Wu.

I hurriedly turned and ran back toward Shi Wu.

Returning to Shi Wu, I immediately called Fang Chuanzong; the phone rang for a long time with no answer.

I could only send him a message, explaining the situation in detail, hoping he would see it soon and make arrangements.

I had just put down my phone when I heard footsteps coming from outside.

From far to near.

I knew those footsteps too well; over the past few days I had heard them several times each morning, noon, and night, so I immediately recognized them as Xiao Shami's footsteps!

How did he come here?

Could it be that I've already been exposed?

No matter what, facing such a high-level opponent, I still have to be extra careful.

First, my phone couldn't be used; the footsteps were getting closer, I didn't even have time to delete the message, so I could only shut it down and then throw it out the back window.

I closed the window and quickly got into bed.

The next moment, a knocking sounded at the door.

Xiao Shami's gentle voice came from outside: 'Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, are you asleep? Something's come up at the temple; Liu Qiye can't leave right now, so he sent me over to help fetch something.'

I took several deep breaths to calm myself, then pretended to be startled awake from a doze, answered, put on my shoes, and went to open the door.

Outside the door, Xiao Shami said, 'Amitabha.'

I hurriedly asked, 'What happened at the temple?'

The Reincarnated Spirit Child's soul has already coalesced, but on the altar a high monk has collapsed from exhaustion; we need someone of comparable cultivation who understands Buddhism to stand in for him.' Xiao Shami explained, 'There are too few people in the temple who can substitute; now that the Reincarnated Spirit Child has appeared in the world, we still need the abbot to guide the soul into the Reincarnation Wheel Tower, while the senior monks chant to deliver it—personnel have long been assigned, so we can only ask Seventh Lord to help, filling in for that collapsed high monk.'

hearing that, I inwardly sneered, 'Fainted? He was probably bitten to death and eaten by that giant beast!'

But I kept my expression neutral, furrowed my brows, and said, 'Helping to ferry the Reincarnated Spirit Child is a great merit; Seventh Lord will surely be willing to help. May I ask what he sent you to fetch?'

While saying that, I made a gesture inviting him in, pointed to the suitcase, indicating he could find whatever he needed himself.

Xiao Shami stood politely outside the door, gave another 'Amitabha,' and then said, 'It's the middle of the night; men and women should keep apart, so it's not proper for a little monk to come inside. Please, Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, help me look for it—Seventh Lord wants a golden copper coin.'