Chapter 551: Chapter 543: Don’t Mess with the Dark-Hearted Little Ancestor
Master Tai Cheng issued a denouncement, chastising a Daoist within the temple who goes by the Daoist name Taiyang for secretly practicing Forbidden Techniques, thus violating the sect’s rules. Now, for the sect’s reputation and integrity, Daoist Taiyang is expelled from his master’s tutelage, and all his actions are disassociated from Jinhua Temple.
To demonstrate the sect’s adherence to the Righteous Path to the public, Jinhua Temple has decided to close for self-reflection for three days and will also engage in three days of charity and almsgiving. In addition, during Qingming, a grand ritual will be held to transcend dead souls, and believers are invited to attend the ceremony.
This proclamation was not merely issued and forgotten; a cursing Daoist Taiyang was personally driven out of the temple gates by Master Tai Cheng. Although Daoist Taiyang was besieged by guards sent by Marquis Chang’an at the gates, he luckily escaped and his whereabouts are unknown.
Daoist Taiyang’s escape technique was somewhat peculiar, as if he vanished into thin air, further solidifying his identity as a practitioner of evil magic. The rumors about this are rampant.
However, Jinhua Temple seems to be unaffected, proceeding with their charity as planned, not mentioning Daoist Taiyang even once, as if ashamed to be associated with him.
"In less than a day, they’ve cowered. This Jinhua Temple Master might as well have handed the man over when your father came knocking," said Xiong Er to Jing Xiaosi. "After the commotion your father caused, the temple’s reputation was tarnished, and now they’re using this method to absolve themselves. Any way you look at it, it seems fake, and the temple master seems not too bright."
Jing Xiaosi responded, "Who says they’re not putting on a performance? From overt to covert?"
"This..." Xiong Er scratched his head and looked towards Qin Liuxi, asking, "Junior Temple Master, what do you think?"
Qin Liuxi said: "Real or fake, it’s all about the response. If it works, that’s all that matters. If it’s real, it’s good to cut losses in time. If it’s fake, there’s no harm done; as Jing Si said, it’s simply moving from light into shadow. However, if that’s the case, you’ll have some trouble since you have definitely offended him to death. If he seeks revenge, casually performing some evil magic in your house or meddling with your ancestral grave, ha..."
A chill ran up Jing Xiaosi’s spine.
Xiong Er’s expression changed as well, "Doesn’t that mean we are in the open, and he’s in the shadows? How is that even fair?"
"Therefore, such a response isn’t exactly disadvantageous," Qin Liuxi looked somewhat gleeful as she turned to Jing Xiaosi, "If your cheap brother really is gone, Daoist Taiyang will definitely hold a grudge. They say revenge is a must; your Marquis Mansion is in danger."
Jing Xiaosi’s face darkened, his expression as if he had swallowed something unspeakable. It was infuriating.
Even though he was the victim, he had luckily survived, but now the culprit, having suffered a great loss due to his own wrongdoing, was blaming him—isn’t that pushing it too far?
The most troublesome part is, like a mouse in the dark, the opponent could conduct more evil magic, wouldn’t that be impossible to defend against?
Jing Xiaosi couldn’t sit still and looked pitifully at Qin Liuxi, as if saying, save me, master.
Xiong Er said, "Junior Temple Master, you must take this seriously. This insidious Daoist is challenging your authority, right? Xiao Si was saved by you, by going after him, isn’t he targeting you?"
Qin Liuxi glanced at him, signaling to cut out the nonsense without saying it out loud.
Xiong Er offered an obsequious smile.
"Don’t be scared of him. If anything seems amiss at home, immediately find a Daoist to break the spell. Isn’t the Jinhua Temple Master still around? He’s skilled in cultivation and Daoist Skill, just seek his help," Qin Liuxi said with a light smile. "All magic backfires once broken. He’s already suffered backlash twice. A few more and he might lose his life. So if he dares to go on, let’s exhaust his cultivation. Then, he will be at your mercy. If the Jinhua Temple Master refuses to act, then make a scene about harboring offenders. No matter what happens, blame it on Taiyang; isn’t he labeled a Demon Path practitioner? Even Jinhua Temple has denounced him for practicing Forbidden Techniques, so there’s no mistake if you say it was him."
Xiong Er and Jing Xiaosi: Wow, how can you be so sly?
Master Tai Cheng and Daoist Taiyang: They say one lacks virtue if their heart is black!
Listening to Qin Liuxi’s words, Jing Xiaosi felt somewhat reassured, thinking her plan was feasible. It’s not like Jinhua Temple is the only place with Taoists. After all, he still had the strong backing of Jinhua Temple—no fear of threats. If Taiyang dared to act, they would just exhaust him.
Still, as a precaution, someone needed to secretly watch over the ancestral grave to prevent any misfortunes.
"In the past, Jinhua Temple was flourishing with incense, worthy of being a Grand Temple. Now, seeing all this, it seems mediocre. Had the temple master shown immediate righteousness and turned over Daoist Taiyang, he might have even gained more followers, pushing the temple’s renowned name to greater heights. Who would have thought?" Jing Xiaosi shook his head, showing some regret.
Qin Liuxi said, "It’s all about choices. The current response isn’t necessarily bad; at least it preserves a capable Daoist. As for reputation and incense, as long as they have real strength, the temple will recover its fame after this incident, as long as they handle a few big jobs and perform some charitable acts. People only see tangible benefits. Those who have received kindness are one; those who seek the temple’s help with expelling evil, seeking medical aid, conducting rituals to consult on geomancy, or even to change their fortunes or prolong life—if one truly has the ability to help, who cares whether it’s a black temple or a crooked way? Ultimately, it’s just a reflection of human selfishness."
It’s a hard truth to swallow, but something seems off about it; it’s almost as if it encourages dark thoughts.
But isn’t what Qin Liuxi said true? Doesn’t everyone have such desires in this world?
Take Jing Si’s cheap brother, for instance; didn’t he want to seize a long life, which led to this fiasco? What about those power-holders, even Saints?
"The circle is truly dark," Xiong Er muttered.
Qin Liuxi: "It’s indeed important not to offend Taoists lightly; there are some mysterious and malevolent techniques that you cannot defend against. For someone like Taiyang, if encountered, you can only face him head-on with power."
Xiong Er became curious, "What would you do if you were the Jinhua Temple Master facing Marquis Chang’an?"
Feng Mi entered from outside and scoffed, "If she did it, unless she wished otherwise, how could you mortals ever find out it was her doing?"
Xiong Er touched his nose.
Qin Liuxi lazily said, "If it were me, Marquis Chang’an would never have the chance to come to me and bluster."
If the opponent comes for trouble, skip the talk. We’ll fight it out; you may bring your soldiers, and I’ll summon ghost soldiers and generals. Let’s have a real battle. At worst, the world always contains yin energy.
Xiong Er was taken aback by Qin Liuxi’s hooligan-like tone and backed off; fine, if you can’t beat them, avoid them.
He turned to Jing Xiaosi, signaling to keep a close watch on your stubborn old man; don’t let him dig his own grave in front of this little ancestor.
He hadn’t forgotten about Qin Liuxi indirectly exposing Marquis Chang’an as a cuckold; with Chang’an’s obsession with face, he must be furious with Qin Liuxi, probably already plotting in secret.
But Jing Xiaosi didn’t care at all. If the old man wanted to seek death, he’d happily watch the drama unfold, just to show him what it means to hit a steel plate—an exceptionally hardened one at that.