The villainous bosses from their past lives have all been reborn.

In the darkness, the soldiers of Jinzhou, carrying torches, rushed into Moyun Temple and engaged in battle with the monks who were once members of the Demonic Sect and were now protecting the temple.

The soldiers of Jinzhou were well-trained in dealing with the members of the Demonic Cult. However, even with their preparations, the enemy's fearlessness still exceeded Xia Jin's expectations.

"How could this happen?"

Xun He, the chief clerk of the governor's office, rushed over. This Confucian scholar with a mustache was somewhat confused about the situation.

Hearing this, Xia Jin also voiced his doubts.

"I'm not entirely sure either. Following the trail of 'Little Wang,' we found our way here, only to discover that dozens of monks in the temple had become members of the Demonic Cult."

"A member of the Demonic Sect?" Xun He said in a deep voice, "This matter is indeed somewhat strange."

As the battle drew to a close, the Jinzhou garrison, relying on its numerical advantage, ultimately gained a slight edge, killing some of the monks protecting the temple and forcing others to surrender.

Xia Jin and Xun He continued walking inside, heading towards the main hall.

Compared to the outer courtyard, the courtyard where the main hall is located has clearly just experienced a battle, and the intensity of the battle was even greater than that of the outer courtyard, with signs of destruction everywhere.

A massive body knelt on the shattered blue brick floor, bearing more than a dozen wounds. Its enormous head drooped, and it was lifeless.

As Xia Jin approached, he was clearly surprised when he saw the other person's face clearly in the light of the torch.

"It's Mad Tiger!"

Xun He's face also showed surprise, but he was even more astonished that Mad Tiger could look like this.

"Mad Tiger is a protector of the Demonic Sect, a formidable figure. Even in a fight against your brother, the outcome would be evenly matched. Who could possibly have injured him to this extent?"

Xia Jin already had the answer in his heart, but before he could say it, Yuan Cai appeared.

"Why are you taking so long to arrive!"

Xun He, upon seeing Yuan Cai, greeted him with a fawning smile, cupped his hands in a respectful bow, and said:

"I just heard that Sanlang has been exonerated; this is truly a cause for celebration!"

"It's just a minor case!"

"How did Sanlang end up here?"

"When that 'Little Wang' brought me food, I noticed he often wore Buddhist beads from Moyun Temple, which reminded me of this place. But upon arriving, I discovered the temple had become a den of demons, and so I slew Mad Tiger here!"

Xia Jinyiqi, clearly disbelieving, questioned:

"You mean you killed Mad Tiger?"

"Exactly!"

Before Xia Jin could inquire about the details, Xun He, with a fawning expression, said:

"Sanlang truly lives up to his name; he is indeed the foremost among the younger generation of the Yuan family in Yanzhou!"

Xun He came from a humble background. Although he and Xia He were childhood friends, after entering the governor's office as an official, he was very cautious and good at appeasing his subordinates and pleasing his superiors.

After Xun He said this, Yuan Cai laughed heartily.

Seeing this, Xia Jin was somewhat speechless and asked:

"Sanlang, where are the abbot and Ying'er at this temple?"

"I've looked, but it's not in this temple."

Moonlight spilled softly, and the stench of blood lingered in the ancient temple. The pines and cypresses remained, and the night fires blazed, but the temple was no longer what it once was.

……

At the post station, Yuan Cai returned and saw Yuan Xiu holding a tattered, dusty book. He couldn't help but complain:

"You made me stand at the front, while you have the leisure to sit here and read a book?"

"This isn't a book; it's a collection of notes I found at the temple, written by the monk Xingyun, recording his daily temple affairs and his insights into Buddhism!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Cai leaned closer and asked:

"You still have time to look for this thing... wait!"

Yuan Cai seemed to realize what was happening and said:

"So, you searched the temple first before rescuing me, and then came to save me?"

Yuan Xiu glanced at Yuan Cai, then naturally changed the subject, saying:

"After reading this notebook, I can confirm that this monk Xingyun is not a person destined to be reborn."

"How could someone who isn't destined for greatness possess such abilities?"

Yuan Xiu smiled, turned to the last page of the notebook, and said:

"The events recorded in this notebook were all normal until a year ago, shortly before the ghost stories at Moyun Temple began, when the contents started to change."

"What does it say on it?"

"It seems someone told Monk Xingyun about his past life, causing him great distress. Monk Xingyun eventually believed it, but he's still conflicted about whether to join forces with that person to deal with the situation together!"

"Who is that person?"

Yuan Xiu shook his head and said:

"It wasn't written above, and this note will not be recorded any further. Perhaps from the moment the monks in the temple were dismissed, Monk Xingyun was no longer Monk Xingyun."

"If that's the case, why don't you keep this monk here and find out who's behind it all?"

Yuan Xiu stood up, loosened his muscles and bones, and said:

"I used the Heavenly Demon Soul-Seizing Technique on Mad Tiger, but it had no effect. Instead, it triggered some kind of restriction on him, taking his life. I suppose that Monk Xingyun was the same."

"So, this lead has gone cold again!"

Yuan Xiu, however, was not worried about this, and said:

"Didn't you realize that the truly crucial thing isn't Monk Xingyun, but the alchemy furnace in that side hall! Can an ordinary alchemy furnace possess such power, turning a living person into a 'fire pill'?"

"Shall we keep an eye on that alchemy furnace?"

"It's no use!" Yuan Xiu shook his head. "This alchemy furnace is so big that we can't move it. Ying'er isn't in the temple either. If the person behind this just lies low, we won't be able to find any evidence against him."

"What should we do then?"

"Now, the person behind this doesn't know whether Monk Xingyun is alive or dead, but they do know that this matter is related to you. Tomorrow we will bid farewell to Xiajin and head to Tianquan Manor to see if the person behind this can refrain from taking action."

Yuan Cai nodded and asked:

"Should we tell Natsume about this?"

"Xia Jin is not a person of destiny, and his cultivation is only at the seventh rank. If we tell him about this, it will only put him in danger."

……

Xia Mansion.

"Just got back, where are you going again?"

Xun He stopped Xia Jin, who was about to sneak out, but saw him turn around and smile.

"I'm going out for a walk!"

"I think you know something is amiss about the Moyun Temple incident and want to go find that Yuan Sanlang, don't you?"

"You knew, yet you still stopped me?"

"With your brother away and the situation in Jinzhou City so treacherous, it's clear that Yuan Sanlang is hiding something. If he doesn't want to say, do you really think you can find out by asking?"

"Then we'll just watch and see, and we still don't know where Ying'er is?"

"This matter cannot be rushed. We should first see how Yuan Sanlang is doing. If you go now, you will only disrupt his plans."

"oh!"

Xun He persuaded Xia Jin to stay, but shook his head and returned to his room.

However, Xun He did not rest after returning to the room. Instead, he knocked on the bed board, turned the mechanism, and the bed board slowly opened, revealing a secret passage.

Following the secret passage down, Xun He arrived at the secret chamber. Inside, Ying'er, who had been frightened, saw Xun He and ran over to hug him tightly.

"It's alright, the people who bullied you are all dead. From now on, you're safe."

As Xun He spoke, a strange red light flickered in his eyes.

……