Encounter

Originally, Lu Yang had planned to hawk real questions for the Dao Seeking Sect's entrance exam. But since the other party already knew they were from the Dao Seeking Sect, selling fake test questions would reflect poorly on them if someone came knocking on their door later. After the four left, black-robed figures approached the two one after another to buy the aphrodisiac blood. Presumably, they had felt too embarrassed to buy it in front of everyone back in the side hall. For the first time, Meng Jingzhou experienced the joy of making money. Just as Meng Jingzhou thought there was finally no one left to buy and they could wrap up and head back, another black-robed figure drifted down. His steps were steady and measured, and he held one palm vertically before his chest, courteous and polite: "Benefactors, do you still have any of that aphrodisiac blood left?" Meng Jingzhou: "..." *Monk, at least put some effort into disguising your identity.* *You're violating the precept against lust. If the Buddha comes looking for trouble, will he pin it on you or on me?* The polite monk continued, "Furthermore, this poor monk has no spirit stones. May I perform Buddhist rites to offset the cost? A monastic does not speak falsely; this poor monk is well-versed in rituals, whether for celebrating a birth, extending lifespan, exorcising evil, or delivering departed souls." Hearing this, Meng Jingzhou gave it serious thought. Celebrating a birth required having a son; extending lifespan required one's lifespan to be dwindling away; exorcising evil required an evil entity dare approach him; and delivering departed souls required him to be dead. It seemed none of them was of any use to him. Lu Yang's mind stirred, and he suddenly asked, "May I ask the eminent monk's Dharma name?" The polite monk answered readily, "This poor monk is Shi Chan." "Fellow Daoist Shi Chan?" Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou cried out in unison. They hadn't expected to run into a fellow daoist from the Hanging Temple here. Shi Chan was quite surprised to hear their familiar tone. Among the people he knew, none seemed to be peddling aphrodisiac blood. The three pulled off their black robes simultaneously, revealing their true faces. Shi Chan had handsome features and wore neat cassock robes. His expression was aloof and serene, with a smile of having seen through the mortal world lingering at the corners of his mouth. One glance told that he was an eminent, enlightened monk. Though they had never met formally, they had seen portraits of one another. "Are you two Fellow Daoist Lu Yang and Fellow Daoist Meng Jingzhou?" Seeing them, Shi Chan was overjoyed. His pitch rose a few notches, and his detached expression melted somewhat. Over half a year ago, when he visited the Dao Seeking Sect, hadn't his main purpose been to find these two to learn the Lu-Style Arhat Fist and Bachelor Curse Fist? It was just bad luck that he had missed them. "To think I would meet both senior brothers here. It truly is fate." Lu Yang was also surprised. Back during the Grand Qingzhou Festival, of all the outstanding disciples from the Five Great Immortal Sects, only Shi Chan hadn't attended because he had gone to a slaughterhouse. And during the Golden Core tournament finals, because Master Jiesha was practicing the Silent Chan, he hadn't notified Shi Chan. "If I recall correctly, shouldn't Senior Brother Shi Chan be at a slaughterhouse right now?" Shi Chan shook his head gently. "Originally, I was. Alas, three months ago, a place called Come Again Barbecue bought out our slaughterhouse. When the barbecue shop folks learned of this poor monk's identity, they fired me." Lu Yang thought to himself that they were probably afraid Shi Chan would discover the Nine Nether Cult was behind the barbecue shop. After all, our demonic cult and your immortal sects are irreconcilable enemies. "However, it mattered little. This poor monk was about to leave anyway. Right around that time, I attained full enlightenment regarding the meaning of 'putting down the butcher's blade and becoming a Buddha on the spot.' I successfully shattered my core to form a nascent soul and stepped into the Nascent Soul stage." The three walked toward the city as they talked. Great Xia had no curfew. Even at night, the city remained bustling and lively. The three stowed their black robes away and showed their everyday attire, blending seamlessly into the crowd. Lu Yang asked offhandedly, "Then how did you end up going to the black market? Didn't you say you had no spirit stones?" Could one actually beg for alms in a black market? Shi Chan smiled faintly. "Report them to the authorities, and I will." "..." At this point, Shi Chan's tone took on a hint of regret. "Originally, this poor monk assumed it was the kind of demonic black market that trafficked in souls. Alas, after walking around, I discovered it was merely a petty black market for evading taxes. "Back when Master could still speak, he told me that such minor black markets are tacitly permitted by the authorities and shouldn't be reported. "Though I couldn't report the black market, meeting both senior brothers there was already a remarkable harvest. "Blame this poor monk's dullness for failing to connect aphrodisiac blood with Senior Brother Meng. The senior brothers from the Dao Seeking Sect told me long ago that Senior Brother Meng is a rare cultivation genius with a Dao heart as unyielding as iron, abstaining from women just to grow stronger. "Now that Senior Brother Meng has cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage, it stands to reason that his blood would possess aphrodisiac effects." "Then what do you want Old Meng's blood for? Could it be that you have a sweetheart?" "Senior Brother Lu jokes. This poor monk is a monastic. How could an ordained monk have a sweetheart? "This poor monk wishes to refine pure yang blood to temper my state of mind to the realm of remaining untempted even with a beauty in one's lap." Shi Chan stopped, stretched out his right hand, pointed toward a bustling brothel nearby, and smiled placidly. "This is precisely where this poor monk tempers his state of mind. "With a beauty in one's embrace, yet the mind remains in deep meditation, viewing flesh and blood as pink skulls—only then can one's mental realm reach perfection. "I have heard that Senior Brother Lu's master, Daoist Buyu, is a cultivator who practices secular cultivation within the mortal world. Presumably, Senior Brother Lu is familiar with methods of mortal-world cultivation and can understand this poor monk's actions." In truth, Lu Yang wanted to say that the place where his master practiced his mortal-world cultivation was usually inside a prison cell, not in a place like this where you had to spend money. But saying that would disgrace his sect, so there was no need to explain. They were all disciples of immortal sects, and a few drops of blood weren't worth that much anyway. Being generous, Meng Jingzhou gave Shi Chan twenty drops directly. For an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator, a single drop would take effect. But for a genius Nascent Soul cultivator like Shi Chan, one or two drops wouldn't do much; if he wanted any, he needed twenty drops in one go. Feeling the yang energy in the blood, Shi Chan pressed his palms together and bowed slightly. "Shi Chan offers his thanks to both senior brothers first." Without standing on ceremony, Shi Chan swallowed all twenty drops of blood. "It truly is effective." Shi Chan's eyes lit up. The effects of Senior Brother Meng's blood were far stronger than he had anticipated. His body had already begun to react—a sensation he had never experienced before. Seeing that he could not suppress Meng Jingzhou's blood, he strode straight toward the brothel, his expression detached and transcendent. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had no idea how long Shi Chan would stay in the brothel, so they could only wait in a small tavern next door. It was also a good opportunity to count the money earned tonight. "One hundred fifty thousand spirit stones, five hundred thousand spirit stones, one hundred thousand spirit stones... A total of 2.3 million spirit stones!" Meng Jingzhou broke into a broad grin. He had made so much money in his very first business venture; it seemed he had quite a talent for commerce. However, this business couldn't be run continuously. The blood sold tonight wasn't just casually dripped from his body; it had been compressed and refined into something akin to essence blood. He would need to rest for a few days before refining a second batch. "Still, as long as I proved I can make money, why keep selling blood forever?" 2.3 million spirit stones—even Nascent Soul cultivators couldn't produce this much all at once. "Here, half of it's yours." Grinning, Meng Jingzhou pushed half the storage rings over to Lu Yang. Even though that dog Lu Yang's promotional pitches hadn't sounded very flattering, they had been a huge help and had contributed to the subsequent blood sales, so splitting the spirit stones was only right. Lu Yang didn't refuse and accepted the spirit stones. The two chatted over complimentary water, ignoring the tavern owner's furious glares. "Shouldn't Shi Chan be coming out by now?" Just as they spoke, Shi Chan walked calmly out of the brothel. His expression was just as it had been when he entered, devoid of joy or sorrow. Lu Yang waved, gesturing for Shi Chan to come over. "How did the mental tempering go?" Shi Chan smiled placidly. "The tempering failed."