After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

Some of the bolder ones peeked up and saw that the dilapidated statues inside the temple were faintly emitting a bluish light, which frightened them so much that they prostrated themselves on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Thank you for your mercy, Immortal Master! Thank you for your mercy, Immortal Master!"

"It's canceled! It's really canceled! My little girl doesn't have to live in fear anymore!"

"Quick, hurry back and tell everyone this good news!"

The villagers were so excited they were incoherent. They kowtowed several more times towards the temple before running back into the village, eager to spread this incredible good news throughout the entire village.

Jiang Dusheng watched them disappear into the misty mountain path until the noise faded away completely before slowly dispelling his invisibility spell and stepping out from behind the statue.

She stared at the dried remains of the snake demon on the ground and flicked her finger, releasing a talisman to burn away evil.

A ghostly blue flame rose up, burning away the last trace of filth.

After dealing with the last traces, Jiang Dusheng turned and rushed towards Willow Village, quickly returning to Huang Aman's courtyard.

As soon as she pushed open the slightly ajar courtyard gate, Lian'er stepped forward. "Master, you're back? Are you alright?"

Lian'er's eyes were filled with worry and lingering fear. "Last night we heard a very loud and frightening noise coming from the mountains. Mother and I didn't dare to sleep all night..."

Huang Aman hurriedly came out of the house to greet them, her face haggard and her eyes dark and swollen, clearly indicating that she had also not slept all night.

Seeing Jiang Dusheng return safely, he finally breathed a long sigh of relief, clasped his hands together, and kept chanting, "May the Bodhisattva protect you, may the Bodhisattva protect you..."

Jiang Dusheng said gently, "It's over. That mountain god was actually a snake demon in disguise, and he has been killed. From now on, Willow Tree Village will no longer suffer the misfortune of the mountain god's wedding."

"Really?!" Huang Aman's eyes widened suddenly, her voice trembling with excitement. Tears welled up instantly, her lips quivering, and her legs went weak as she was about to kneel down. "Benefactor! Living Bodhisattva! You are the greatest benefactor of our entire village!"

Jiang Dusheng reacted quickly and caught her, saying, "There's no need for that. Slaying demons and monsters is simply my duty."

She helped Huang Aman to a nearby stool and asked casually, "When I came back, I heard that the sorceress Wang had gotten into trouble?"

Huang Aman wiped away her tears and whispered, "According to the Zhang family, before dawn, someone found Granny Wang lying in her yard, vomiting black blood, and she wouldn't wake up no matter how they called her..."

"I just called a doctor to take a look. He said that evil wind has entered the body and affected the heart meridian. It's already... beyond saving."

Jiang Dusheng nodded indifferently, his eyes calm.

He acted as an accomplice to evil and aided and abetted the wicked. Now that his backer has fallen, his evil ways have backfired, and he has come to this end. It is just the cycle of cause and effect, and retribution is inevitable.

She didn't say much, politely declined Huang Aman and her daughter's offer to stay for a meal, and then took her leave.

Under the old locust tree at the village entrance, a horse-drawn carriage was quietly parked.

Upon seeing Jiang Dusheng approach, the guard who had been feigning sleep with his sword on the carriage shaft immediately jumped down, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Miss Jiang, the young master has ordered me to wait here."

He handed over a bundle with both hands, saying, "A change of clothes and dry food have been prepared."

Jiang Dusheng's fingertips curled slightly inside his sleeve as he asked, feigning calmness, "Where is he?"

The guard lowered his head. "This subordinate does not know. The young master only instructed this subordinate to escort the young lady away safely, but did not tell her where she was going."

Jiang Dusheng silently took the bundle and climbed into the carriage.

The carriage left Willow Tree Village and headed towards Nanchansi Temple.

As Jiang Dusheng stepped into the gate of Nanchansi Temple, the familiar scent of incense and the fresh air of the mountains filled the air, and his previously chaotic heart inexplicably calmed down.

She looked towards the temple.

But his gaze fell directly on an unexpected figure under the thousand-year-old Bodhi tree.

An old monk sat cross-legged under the huge tree, holding prayer beads in his hand, his eyes slightly closed, his white eyebrows and beard trembling in the wind, looking as if he had entered a state of deep meditation, oblivious to the world around him.

But when Jiang Dusheng's footsteps approached clearly and reached the tree, the man who had been meditating like an old monk suddenly opened his eyes.

He caught a glimpse of Jiang Dusheng out of the corner of his eye, and his body suddenly froze. There was no trace of the clarity that came with meditation in his eyes; instead, a hint of panic flashed across them.

He hurriedly got up, put his palms together, and said "Amitabha Buddha." He flicked the sleeves of his wide robe and turned to slip away towards the meditation room.

"Master." Jiang Dusheng flashed to block his path, his brows furrowing slightly. "Didn't you say... you were going on a journey?"

Huiming stopped abruptly, nearly bumping into his own apprentice.

A few crumbs of pastry still clung to the cuffs of his wide cassock. "Oh dear, it's my good disciple who's back! Let your master take a look..."

He chuckled as he feigned surprise, looking Jiang Dusheng up and down. He reached out to pinch her cheek. "Look at this face, it's gotten so thin! You must have been busy traveling and haven't been eating vegetarian meals properly, have you?"

Jiang Dusheng turned his head away expressionlessly, staring straight at him.

Huiming felt uneasy under that gaze, finally stopped laughing, and sighed.

He shook his cassock, revealing an unusually solemn expression. "Disciple, your mind seems restless."

His withered fingers tapped Jiang Dusheng's chest from a distance. "It's a mess here. Even I, sitting under this tree, was almost startled from my meditation by the sound of your returning footsteps."

These words were like a key, suddenly unlocking the door to Jiang Dusheng's heart, which he had been trying so hard to suppress.

The confusion, panic, and unease of the past few days, along with Xie Jinchen's eyes reflecting the morning light, all surged to his throat at once.

She sat down with Huiming under the Bodhi tree and told him about Xie Jinchen in a straightforward manner.

As she finished speaking, her voice grew softer and softer, "Master, the Buddha said that from love arises sorrow, from love arises fear, greed, anger, ignorance, pride, and doubt are all roots of afflictions, and attachment to love is the cause of suffering in the cycle of rebirth. I have been familiar with these principles since I was a child, and I thought I understood them..."

She looked up at Huiming, her eyes filled with confusion, like a lost child:

"But why... does my heart race uncontrollably because of a single word or glance from him?"

Why do I feel afraid at the thought that he might leave completely? Why do these delusions, which I shouldn't have, grow like vines, impossible to cut off or untangle?

Jiang Dusheng scratched his head in frustration. "I even consulted Master Xuanji. But my letter went unanswered, like a stone sinking into the sea."

"That stinking old Taoist priest... cough cough!" Huiming almost lost his composure, quickly fiddling with his prayer beads to salvage the situation, "Buddha said one should not speak recklessly."

"Your master Xuanji spends all day either drawing talismans until he's completely absorbed in them, or calculating celestial secrets until he's dizzy and disoriented. He probably's even forgotten his own name!"

"You should ask this old Bodhi tree instead of him. It's been around for a long time and probably has more experience."

Seeing that Jiang Dusheng still looked confused and worried, Huiming suddenly reached out and plucked a Bodhi leaf from a low-hanging branch above his head, and handed it to Jiang Dusheng.

"look."

Jiang Dusheng didn't understand, so he could only stare intently at the leaf.

"Is there a breeze?" Huiming flicked his wrist, and the tip of the leaf trembled as if a gentle breeze had indeed passed by.

Jiang Dusheng carefully sensed the surroundings and found that there was indeed no strong wind in the temple at the moment. He shook his head and said, "No movement."

"Wrong." Huiming laughed heartily.

He gently pressed the Bodhi leaf to Jiang Dusheng's ear, his voice carrying a mysterious meaning:

"It is your heart that is moving. When the lake of your heart is in turmoil, you see mountains not as mountains, and the movement of leaves not as the movement of wind; all of this is merely a projection of the ripples in your heart."