The entire sect is obsessed with love, but I'm the only one who's truly insane.

After the group subdued the tiger demon and returned to the village, Yan Qing and Mo Lin didn't know why their junior uncle denied that she had set up the formation herself. All the way, they kept looking at the boy who was playing with a folding fan and smiling with his eyes downcast.

The fan, which looked so cold to the touch, took on an eerie, metallic color in the snow. It didn't resemble a folding fan; it looked more like a heavy, deadly weapon.

They had seen Lin Du unfold his fan before; the fan was shimmering and colorful, with a fluttering effect of ice and snow. But they never expected that the fan would become obscure when it was not unfolded.

Lin Du casually twirled the fan, the short, straight iron block spinning in the air before landing steadily in his open palm, as if the fan had eyes.

She appeared nonchalant, but in reality, she had already gone through all the details in her mind.

It's true that tigers eat cows, but humans aren't necessarily eaten by tiger demons. The cub was too small and had limited hunting skills, and the scene was littered with blood and flesh.

It looks like... a mark left by someone deliberately crushing it.

This game was played too crudely; it underestimates the intelligence of the disciples of the Supreme Sect.

"Fellow Daoist Shao, was your injured fellow disciple also injured by a demonic beast?" Lin Du suddenly asked.

Shao Fei was taken aback and looked at the young man in the blue robe who was surrounded by the crowd. "Yes."

Lin Du tapped his chin with the handle of his fan. "Then let Tian Wu take a look at that fellow Daoist."

Before Shao Fei could speak, she continued, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to refuse. Within the territory of our Supreme Sect, we'd even fix the broken legs of any passing ant before we moved on, wouldn't you agree, Senior Nephew?"

She turned her head and smiled at Mo Lin.

Mo Lin, who had been pondering what kind of magical treasure his junior uncle's fan was, immediately straightened his back. "Junior Uncle is right!"

Shao Fei chuckled, "That would be perfect, but my fellow disciple is shy and has a strange temper. His injuries don't look very good either, and he's somewhat reluctant to seek medical help..."

"No problem, we can just knock him out and treat him later," Lin Du said with a sly smile. "Health is the most important thing, and we should act expediently in times of emergency."

Shao Fei: ? What do you mean by "acting expediently in times of emergency"? Even if the Daoist Ancestor were alive today, he wouldn't be able to define it like you.

She gave a fake laugh, "Fellow Daoist Lin, you really know how to joke."

Lin Du smiled faintly, a hint of something unsettling, and met her gaze across Mo Lin Yuan Ye's eyes. "I never joke."

"Yes, our junior uncle never jokes," Yuan Ye added. "That's the spirit of our sect—we're pragmatic and realistic."

After all, if she says she'll crush a skull, she does crush a skull.

Shao Fei was completely speechless.

Do all the disciples of the Supreme Sect have some kind of problem?

Ni Jinxuan was inside the village chief's main room. Sweet and easygoing, she easily blended in with the villagers. Seeing someone lift the curtain, she immediately stood up and greeted them with a smile, "Junior Uncle, you've arrived?"

Yuan Ye remained with the curtain drawn, waiting for his junior uncle to enter first.

Lin Du felt the chill on his body grow heavier with each step he took. When he saw the smiling faces inside, he slightly dispersed the murderous aura he had been suppressing on the way, mobilized his spiritual power to dispel the icy chill on his body, and then stepped into the room.

"How is that mother?"

Ni Jinxuan said, "Second Senior Sister fed her a calming soup."

"Have you questioned them?" The Lin family, including the village chief, nodded, took a brocade pouch from their waist, grabbed a handful of orange candies, and gave them to the child who was leaning against Jin Xuan.

"I asked my junior uncle to ask, so of course I have," Ni Jinxuan said, but Lin Du raised his hand and gestured to stop her.

Shao Fei said gently, "That would be a bit heartless. The incident just happened, and to make that mother relive it like this would be like stabbing her in the heart. Why don't we let that mother rest for now?"

Just as the village chief was about to say that there was nothing that could be done about it, he heard the young monk, who was clearly the leader, speak up, "You're right."

"I can't discern your cultivation level from Fellow Daoist Shao. May I ask what it is? That tiger demon fled as soon as it saw you; it must be a very powerful cultivator, right?"

Xia Tian came out from the inner room just then and said gently, "She's already fast asleep after drinking the calming soup. I reckon she'll be more stable when she wakes up. I'll leave a few more packets of medicine for her. I'll trouble Aunt Li to take care of her when she gets back."

Mo Lin took the medicine pot and bowl from her hands. "Junior Sister, did you brew this medicine yourself?"

Is it okay if it's cooked like this?

Xia Tian used his divine sense to transmit a message: "I'm not so bad that even a simple herbal medicine can cause an explosion."

"But last time you cooked a pot of crispy rice cakes for Junior Uncle," Mo Lin relayed back.

"I wanted to try out my strange fire then, but this time it's normal fire!"

Shao Fei's gaze shifted back and forth between the two young men. The aloof woman was also dressed in white, but the fabric was of excellent quality, embroidered with intricate dark patterns. The red plum blossoms on the collar and cuffs stood out against the cold. As she looked at Mo Lin, her usually stern face showed a change in expression. The two looked at each other, their eyes filled with a strange and intense emotion.

She couldn't help but speak up, diverting everyone's attention.

"I am not like you. I was born with a severed meridian, but I was fortunate enough to inherit the Gu technique in Yunnan. So now I can use this Gu to cultivate, but I don't have a specific realm yet."

"But I believe this is an opportunity given to me by Heaven. I will definitely work hard to cultivate and repay Fellow Daoist Mo Lin for saving my life."

"No need, I didn't save you." Mo Lin realized the situation. "I really didn't save you."

You can't just rescue a beauty by the roadside. Who knows what kind of debt of gratitude might turn into? As my junior uncle said, great kindness can turn into great enmity.

[Host, aren't you asking a question you already know the answer to? Didn't I give you a script?]

"What do you mean by asking a question you already know the answer to? I'm just being humble and asking questions."

[Did you use the wrong word?]

"No, not at all." Lin Du held the fan handle, unconsciously tapping his chin with the tip of the fan, and glanced at Xia Tianwu, noticing that she had indeed frowned slightly.

"So you're a Gu Master." Xia Tian's eyelashes trembled slightly as she glanced at Mo Lin again.

Mo Lin innocently raised his hand and scratched his head, "Our Supreme Sect really doesn't have that, I don't know."

The Gu Master is a truly unorthodox sect, not even qualifying as a Taoist sect. Moreover, it exists only in legends and has been passed down through generations without any detailed written records.

"There are 3,600 unorthodox schools of Taoism, and some people can achieve enlightenment even within these unorthodox schools. As long as you have a righteous heart and a solid foundation, Heaven will grant your wish, and you will surely succeed." Lin Du stood behind Ni Jinxuan with a smile.

Whether it was a misperception or not, Ni Jinxuan felt that her junior uncle emphasized the word "righteous heart" very heavily.

"Junior Uncle is right." Ni Jinxuan turned her head to look at Shao Fei. "Fellow Daoist, would you like to sit?"

"No rush, Tianwu. Come with me to pay our respects to the fellow Daoists of the Flying Star Sect. They say they were injured by a demonic beast and are staying here. Out of a sense of duty, we should go and treat them. Otherwise, with the mountains blocked by heavy snow, what will happen if they don't receive timely treatment?"

As Lin Du spoke, he placed his hand on Ni Jinxuan's shoulder.

Ni Jinxuan understood and used her divine sense to transmit her voice to Lin Du, "The village chief said that these two people came to stay overnight yesterday, and then the cow was eaten at night. Fellow Daoist Shao said that the monster might be of a higher realm, and she is too weak to deal with it alone. The village chief said that this place is the territory of the Supreme Sect and is under the protection of the Supreme Sect. If anything happens again, he will notify the Supreme Sect so that she will not feel burdened."

"But Fellow Daoist Shao said it would be better to call them sooner rather than later. The monster's footprints were very large, so it must be at a very high level. Eating a cow might not be enough to satisfy its appetite. If it saw blood, it might try to kill people. The village chief thought that made sense, so he notified our sect. Before we came, everyone stayed at home and dared not come out. Suddenly we heard a shout, and then Fellow Daoist Shao said to come and see."

"What happened next was pretty much what the village chief said. Fellow Daoist Shao chased away the monster, but he was too late. The child had already been eaten. The man of this family risked going into the mountains in the autumn to store up food for the winter, but he fell and died. Because there was no man to hunt, the widow and her child had a hard time making a living in the winter. The mother went out to exchange for two eggs so that her child could have something better to eat."

After listening, Lin Du suddenly understood why that family hadn't put up any spirit talismans.

Because the Supreme Sect distributes spirit talismans around October each year in Dingjiu City according to the registered household information, the child was still young, and it was difficult for the mother to leave to take care of him. Moreover, they were all ordinary families who could only make a living by being self-sufficient. They did not have any means of transportation, so it was impossible for them to walk more than 20 miles into the city.

October was around the time their husband died.

The mother probably didn't have time, or perhaps she simply didn't have the mind to think about it.

A rope always breaks at its thinnest point, and misfortune always seems to target those with a hard life.

She tightened her grip on the fan handle slightly; the sins people commit are unforgivable.

This isn't over yet.