Ni Cang the monk clasped his hands together, offering no reply, only murmuring, "Amitabha."
Li Shaochun's eyes were resolute as he spoke slowly, "For the sake of all under heaven, there cannot be any dissenting voices."
Upon hearing this, Ma Shaogang drained his teacup and said, "I understand. Huang Yong is my responsibility."
Li Shaochun gazed at the white-haired Ma Shaogang and teased, "You're already of such an advanced age, with only a few years left. Don't you dare die between us. That Huang Yong brat isn't weak. Perhaps I should go instead."
A smile spread across Ma Shaogang's aged face. "I've lived long enough. It's good to do something for the younger generation before I die. The sooner I die, the sooner I find release."
Seeing Ma Shaogang's resolve, Ni Cang the monk and Li Shaochun fell silent.
Ma Shaogang rose and walked towards the door, but then paused, as if recalling something. He turned back and inquired, "What about that brat Yu Shuntian?"
"You mean that kid?"
Li Shaochun didn't answer immediately, instead falling into thought. After a long while, he spoke slowly.
"As long as we confirm he's not colluding with the Divine Religion, we don't need to concern ourselves. After all, Yu Shuntian is quite hot-tempered. If he knew I'd dealt with his grandson, he might storm the Heavenly Master's Mansion and fight me to the death."
Ni Cang the monk, hearing them mention Yu Shuntian, sighed, "Speaking of Master Yu, this humble monk hasn't seen him in many years."
Seeing Ni Cang the monk's wistful expression, Li Shaochun chuckled, "Master Ni Cang is reminiscing about old times."
It turned out that Ni Cang the monk and Yu Shuntian were old acquaintances.
Furthermore, their friendship was quite deep. However, due to certain events, they had ceased contact.
Ni Cang the monk clasped his hands together, indifferently stating, "Amitabha. That matter passed many years ago. This humble monk has let it go."
Hearing this, Ma Shaogang and Li Shaochun exchanged glances and shook their heads in resignation.
Their friendship dated back to their youth.
Ni Cang the monk's original name was Duan Qingsong, and he was also known for his fiery temper in his younger days.
Despite being a monk, he favored resolving disputes with his fists.
A saying once circulated in the martial world: "Either lay down your butcher's knife and become a Buddha, or I'll send you to the Western Heaven to meet the Buddha immediately."
This was Ni Cang the monk's catchphrase in his youth.
Yu Shuntian, at the peak of his strength, was also notoriously hot-tempered.
During one of his journeys down the mountain for training, Ni Cang the monk unexpectedly encountered Yu Shuntian.
When two hot-tempered individuals meet, a confrontation is inevitable.
Their battle raged for three days and three nights without a clear victor, ultimately ending in a draw.
It was after that fight that they became close confidants.
As for why their relationship soured and they stopped communicating, it began when Ni Cang the monk fell in love.
Ni Cang the monk, being in his mid-twenties, was naturally susceptible to the allure of the mortal world.
During a training excursion down the mountain, he met the woman who would become the love of his life.
Because Ni Cang the monk had a reputation for settling matters with his fists in his youth, he had accumulated many enemies.
Unable to defeat Ni Cang the monk, these enemies turned their attention to his beloved.
They forced Ni Cang the monk's lover to ingest a poisonous Gu worm from Miao territory, demanding his compliance.
They stipulated that if he also ingested a Gu worm, they would provide the antidote.
Desperate to save his love, Ni Cang the monk ingested the Gu worm.
However, little did he know, there was no antidote. Once ingested, one would inevitably die within seven days, bleeding from all seven orifices.
Upon learning of this, Yu Shuntian immediately massacred all of Ni Cang the monk's enemies, along with their families.
He then learned that the Chen family in Miao territory possessed a sacred medicine capable of counteracting all Gu worms.
The subsequent events involved Yu Shuntian single-handedly going to the Chen family to seek the sacred medicine.
No one knows how Yu Shuntian obtained the sacred medicine.
All that is known is that Yu Shuntian eventually acquired the medicine and handed it to the two of them.
Since there was only one dose of the sacred medicine, it could only save one person.
Ni Cang the monk naturally wished for his beloved to take it.
However, the woman secretly met with Yu Shuntian, pleading with him to give the sacred medicine to Ni Cang.
Yu Shuntian was reluctant to agree but couldn't bear to see his friend die.
Ultimately, without Ni Cang the monk's knowledge, he administered the sacred medicine to him.
In the end, Ni Cang the monk could only watch as his beloved passed away.
It was after this incident that Yu Shuntian retired from the martial world, and Ni Cang the monk inherited the position of abbot of the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple.
Ni Cang the monk knew in his heart that he had no right to blame Yu Shuntian.
If it were himself in that situation, he would have done the same.
He had let go of everything over the years.
Meanwhile.
The special vehicle from the Supernatural Affairs Bureau drove Yu Daohan and the other two directly to Su Lai's small boat.
As the three alighted, Yu Daohan took a look.
He saw a brand-new large boat docked on the river ahead.
While it couldn't be called a colossal vessel, it was at least five times larger than Su Lai's previous small boat.
However, this was certainly not Su Lai's boat.
Given his financial situation, even buying an engine would have been a struggle, let alone a boat of this size.
After the Supernatural Affairs Bureau's vehicle departed, the three approached the riverbank.
Yu Daohan scanned the surroundings, unable to find Su Lai's boat, and asked with some confusion, "Old Su, where's your boat? Has it been stolen?"
Before Su Lai could reply, Yu Daohan muttered to himself, "That's not right. Your boat, Old Su, was practically empty. Even a mouse would shake its head going in, and a thief might have to pay three hundred yuan to leave."
Su Lai: "..."
Da Hu also looked puzzled. "Brother Su, has your boat really been stolen?"
Su Lai looked at these two troublemakers, trying his best to suppress the urge to curse. He replied unhappily, "Is there a possibility that this brand-new large boat you're looking at is mine?"
Upon hearing this, Yu Daohan immediately dismissed it. "Impossible, absolutely impossible. You, Old Su, could afford such a large boat?"
Da Hu's gaze towards Su Lai also became peculiar. He inquired, "Brother Su, you haven't used some sort of magic to do something illicit, have you?"
He and Su Lai were sworn brothers, and he knew exactly how much money Su Lai had.
Yu Daohan also looked at Su Lai and reminded him, "Old Su, you should just turn yourself in. I'll put in a good word with Nanjing Shuo and try to get you lenient treatment."
Da Hu nodded in agreement.
Su Lai couldn't hold back any longer and erupted in a torrent of curses. "Damn it, am I that kind of person, Su Lai?"
Yu Daohan and Da Hu exchanged glances without speaking, but their meaning was clear.
You are that kind of person, Su Lai.
Su Lai was utterly speechless. How did he end up with these two troublemakers?