Yan Budu was immobilized after being hit on his acupoints, so he decided to close his eyes and take a nap. Monk Kongshi recited scriptures for an hour and eventually fell asleep as well. 

The storm outside had subsided, leaving the cave in complete silence except for the crackling of the fire.

Shi Jingzhi and Yin Ci were both lost in thought and not really feeling sleepy. The two main characters fell into silence, and the two of them started to have nothing to do. 

After a while, Shi Jingzhi stood up and walked over to Yan Budu. He tried to pull out Yan Budu's red jade smoking pipe like pulling out a turnip, but the pipe seemed to be stuck in mid-air, and he couldn't even move the tassel.

"In this inner realm, everything can be touched, but the state cannot be changed," Yin Ci said, noticing Shi Jingzhi's frustration. 

"Ah, I saw a soft fish demon eye hanging on that pipe and wanted to take a closer look."

"No wonder the scenery here is so complete," Yin Ci smiled.

Soft fish demon eye...this fox's eyes are as sharp as ever.

Soft fish demons are rare, and their fish skin can be made into "Word Cloths" to transmit information. A pair of fish eyes are connected to each other and can store and transmit images. However, the processing is extremely complicated and cumbersome, and only people like Yan Budu, who can be extravagant, would use it as a smoking pipe's tassel.

It's no surprise that Yan Budu uses a demon eye to record the surrounding scenery at all times. Whether it's for defeating enemies or hunting for pleasure, he can analyze or reminisce about it afterwards, which is very convenient.

If Kongshi had agreed to Yan Budu earlier, with Yan Budu's arrogant attitude, as soon as they left here, he would have sent the images to the entire Jianchen Temple for appreciation. 

As soon as Shi Jingzhi saw Yan Budu, he seemed to have thought of something and his face slowly wrinkled. 

He tried to take Yan Budu's pulse again, but unfortunately an image was just an image and he couldn't get any information from it. Yin Ci watched his master fumble around for a while before obediently running back. 

"It's just an inner realm, why is even the temperature so realistic?" Shi Jingzhi sat down cross-legged next to Yin Ci. "Ah Ci, do you want to take a nap? Even if your body isn't tired, it can help pass the time." 

Yin Ci shook his head. "If you want to sleep, go ahead." 

Shi Jingzhi didn't move, he just watched Yin Ci by the flickering firelight. 

It was as if he wanted to engrave him into his heart with his gaze. 

"From the first time we saw the Red Hook Sect assassins, to the Ghost Tomb and the Yuanxian Village, and now... Ah Ci, you seem to be afraid of nothing and know everything." 

Yin Ci thought he was just trying to test him again. "What do you mean?" 

"It's really good to have you by my side. I feel so at ease. If I had fallen in here alone, I would definitely be confused and scared to death," sighed Shi Jingzhi, but he didn't ask any further questions. 

His tone was gentle and sincere, and he no longer referred to himself as his "master".

Yin Ci looked back at him quietly.

Shi Jingzhi rubbed his hands together and smiled. "At first, I thought you were just an ordinary mountain dweller. Then I thought you were a skilled expert with a hidden identity and purpose."

"And now?"

"Your looks are extraordinary, and your temperament is just right... Are you an immortal who has come to accompany me on my last journey?" 

Shi Jingzhi didn't look at Yin Ci, but instead gazed at the snowstorm outside the cave. The flames cast an orange glow on the rocks. They were immersed in a long-gone era, completely detached from the world, with only the two of them in boundless solitude. 

In a place like this, neither gods nor Buddhas could be seen. It felt like anything could be said, and all wishes could be understood.

Yin Ci said, "Shizun, you're just physically weak, but your mind also become muddled."

"But I've never felt so at peace before," he replied.

"Are you not afraid that I have ulterior motives?" Yin Ci asked.

Shi Jingzhi laughed heartily, a rare sight. "The Buddha's Heart Formation has awakened me. I have nothing but my life, what else could you possibly want from me?"

Yin Ci fell silent.

Looking at the man's smiling face, he had a fleeting thought of wanting to run away. There were more people in the world who could use the power of the Yang fire than Shi Jingzhi, and there were also others who sought the Shi Rou.

It wasn't like he couldn't do without him.

While it was exactly opposite for Shi Jingzhi. As time passed, Yin Ci felt like he had drawn the worst lot. For a moment, he suddenly understood Yan Budu's helplessness when faced with Kongshi. 

If Shi Jingzhi were an ordinary person, he could have watched coldly and used him mercilessly until the very end. But Shi Jingzhi was not an average person.

How many more years of waiting is worth his remaining one year of life? How much longer can he hold on to his rationality with just a glimpse of this setting sun and a fleeting moment of beauty?

Just for the sake of a little warmth and vitality, should he give up on using this person? 

...It's really a headache.

Yin Ci reached out and slowly placed his hand on Shi Jingzhi's head. The latter trembled and almost blurted out "you have no respect for your elders", but managed to hold back.

In this inner realm, this person was also warm and comforting. Yin Ci couldn't help but lower his gaze - Shi Jingzhi still hadn't realized that the two of them, pressed together, were both borrowing each other's body heat.

Forget it, Yin Ci thought. Let's just go with the flow and see what the future holds. 

Before he made his final decision, for this person who was willing to exchange sincerity for sincerity, it's not impossible for him to give a little.

"Nothing but your life? What kind of words are those, Shizun?" Yin Ci let out a breath, his tone relaxed but not disrespectful. "This disciple can still scheme after your person."

Shi Jingzhi choked for a moment, then slapped the back of Yin Ci's head: "Have you been possessed by Yan Budu? You're talking nonsense."

In the next moment, both of them burst out laughing. Shi Jingzhi lay down again, resting his head on Yin Ci's lap, his long hair flowing like water on the ground. This time he didn't sleep, his amber eyes still clear and transparent. 

"Since we both can't sleep, let's chat. Last time I share about so much scenery, now it's your turn, Ah Ci... as a well-traveled disciple, you must have many stories to tell."

As he spoke the latter half, he used a teasing tone, unable to suppress the laughter in his voice. 

Yin Ci squinted at him and said, "Shizun, your disciple is particularly good at telling ghost stories. The atmosphere is just right now. Do you want me to tell you a few to pass the time?"

Shi Jingzhi: "..."

Shi Jingzhi: "Beloved disciple, please spare me."

In the end, Yin Ci was unable to tell Shi Jingzhi any ghost stories. The two of them chatted aimlessly, letting their guards down and passing the night peacefully.

Morning arrived, and the wind and snow had not stopped. The second day began with Yan Budu's friendly greeting.

"I still love your face. I really want to find a way to peel it off and put it in my immortal tomb."

Kongshi carefully sliced the wild mushrooms and replied, "You flatter me."

After cooking some mushroom and vegetable porridge, Kongshi released Yan Budu's acupoints and pushed a bowl of porridge over. 

Yan Budu lifted his bowl of porridge and smiled like a poisonous flower. "If we're talking about bald-headed monks, I've killed nearly a hundred of them. One 'high-ranking monk' even cried and begged to lick the soles of my boots in exchange for his life. Those poor monks who died horribly would be so disappointed to see how you behave, Kongshi."

Kongshi smiled kindly, without a hint of anger in his expression. "Is one bowl not enough?"

Yan Budu: "..." He hesitated for a moment before silently pushing his empty bowl back towards Kongshi. He began to suspect that the monk might be a little crazy.

But Yan Budu was not one to give up easily. After finishing his meal, he attempted to provoke Kongshi again. He roasted his damp boots, and pressed the soles of his feet against the monk's chest. 

"Bald donkey, why recite scriptures when we can play chess*?"

*T/N: refers to Chinese chess, or weiqi.

Kongshi looked up with a calm expression. 

Yan Budu spun the red jade smoking pipe, and his true energy scattered, carving a chessboard onto the hard rock. The broken stones that were carved out rolled around chaotically, and when they stopped, they had become round pieces.

With a flick of his sleeve, the stone chessboard was brought to the center between  the two of them, and the stone chess pieces were divided into two piles. Yan Budu made a cut on his injured arm, and blood gushed out, staining the chess pieces next to him a dark red color.

The colors of the chess pieces were distinct: light gray against dark red.

Yan Budu licked his wound and lightly kicked the Kongshi him, saying, "Everything is ready, let's play chess."

The Kongshi grabbed Yan Budu's ankle and pushed his leg back, saying, "Alright."

Yan Budu smiled brightly and said, "Since we're going to compete, why not make a bet? How about this: for every game, the loser cuts off a finger. Eating plain porridge makes one's mouth taste like a bird, adding some meat wouldn't be bad either." 

His words revealed no intent for negotiation. Kongshi sighed and ignored him. 

Seeing the commotion, Shi Jingzhi and Yin Ci also joined in and sat down in front of the chessboard. Little did they know, within half an hour, this game of chess would become a torture for three people.

It was all because Kongshi was placing his pieces extremely slowly. It was so slow that compared to it, his chanting seemed much more exciting and thrilling. 

Yan Budu had to finish the game he started himself, even if it meant gritting his teeth. In order to undermine Kongshi's prestige, even if he was so bored that he wanted to fall asleep, Yan Budu still forced himself to stay alert and kept talking.

"Your moves are grand and powerful, as if you have the strength of a thousand catties. But why are your chess moves so sticky and cowardly, as if you're afraid of death? It reminds me of the time when I dueled with Su Zhi." 

Yin Ci: "..." 

A hundred years ago, even though they were evenly matched, he didn't want to truly let go and fight with Yan Budu. It wasn't because he was afraid of death - if Yan Budu found out he was immortal, who knows how much trouble it would cause. 

But with Shi Jingzhi listening on the side, even though he knew nothing, Yin Ci still felt like he had lost a bit of face. 

Fortunately, Kongshi tore through him with a single sentence: "Perhaps the Sect Leader Su just didn't want to deal with you and was simply showing you the way out." 

Yan Budu asked, "How do you know?" 

Kongshi smiled and said, "I empathize with him and put myself in his shoes." 

"Not bad, then I insist on saying more," Yan Budu sneered, but before he could continue, he coughed up more blood. 

Kongshi's hand holding the chess piece stopped in mid-air, "This humble monk can diagnose your pulse for you." 

"No need. I've seen all the famous doctors in the world since I was young, but my strange illness can't be cured... except for the terrifying blood vomiting, there's nothing serious about it." 

Yan Budu's face was pale and his lips were stained with blood, making him look extremely enchanting, causing people to avoid eye contact.

However, Kongshi fixed his gaze on him, as if he was looking at a wounded deer or an old man coughing up blood. 

"Amitabha." After a while, Kongshi withdrew his gaze and made another move in the game.

Yan Budu wiped away the blood and smiled, "Compared to my illness, you should worry about something else - you want to take me back to the Jianchen Temple and lock me up for a lifetime. Unfortunately, if I can't become immortal, this life will soon come to an end. It's a pity that you are trapped in the wind and snow, and stuck in the mud, it's all for nothing." 

"Even if you can only live for one day in the dungeon, the suffering ones can witness your ending with their own eyes, and the rest of their lives need not be plagued by Heart Demons," said Kongshi, clasping his hands together.

"Suffering ones? Monk, do you know why my Ghost Tomb took ten years to build, but the righteous path only recently besieged my sect?" Yan Budu's smile grew thicker.

"At first, it was ten taels of silver. I found that as long as there were ten taels of silver, I could buy a life - someone was willing to sell their family members to me; someone was willing to sell themselves to me for the sake of their family; and there were also those who cried and begged for the dead, but after taking the silver, they shut their mouths. Later, everyone had different prices, and it was a matter of being willing to suffer."

"Too many people were used to clean up the Ghost Tomb, and there were many troublemakers. You only barely came up with the label of 'cruel and tyrannical', and took the opportunity to settle old scores."

Kongshi did not answer. 

"Life is predetermined with differences in each person's quality, that's fate. Most people in the world are as stupid as pigs and as foolish as dogs. Animals are worthless, so if I want to kill them, it's just following the will of heaven." 

Kongshi looked up and said, "Differences in quality? Children are ignorant, and the elderly are confused, yet they live longer than you. Why only mention one aspect and not the other?" 

The monk's tone was gentle as always. 

"Furthermore, sheep eat grass, and tigers eat sheep. When a fierce tiger dies, its body is devoured by the grass. The law of nature is cyclical, and you are also among all living beings. There is no need to belittle them so lightly." 

Yan Budu raised an eyebrow. "It's only natural for tigers to eat sheep, so what crime have I committed by killing children and women?" 

The monk didn't even blink. "If you believe that you are innocent, then you are innocent." 

"I thought I was crazy, but you, baldy, are crazier than me." 

"Responsibility for one's actions is like the Buddha's Heart, and one can only reflect on oneself. However, regardless of your thoughts, being able to play chess with this humble monk is also a result of cause and effect, and the consequences will not be pleasant." Kongshi pointed to his giant sword and smiled even more calmly.

"You see all living beings as pigs and dogs. In the eyes of this humble monk, you are no different from pigs and dogs, and can hardly be considered inferior to them." 

Yan Budu: "..."

Suddenly, Shi Jingzhi shrank back, and Yin Ci turned his head and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Ah Ci, Master Kongshi is not just insulting people, he really thinks that way." 

Yin Ci frowned - if Shi Jingzhi could see it, then Yan Budu could definitely see it too. Those who have an equal Buddha-like attitude towards all living beings may seem compassionate, but in a sense, great compassion is also great indifference.

Yan Budu's plan to disrupt the monk's chess with his own ferocity may be in vain. 

Sure enough, Kongshi confidently placed his chess piece and said, "Three cycles of calamities are faced by all, will you give in to yours?" 

Yan Budu remained silent, but did not show any anger, as if he was calculating something. 

Seeing no response from the other, Kongshi withdrew his hand and said, "Then let's call it a draw and play again another day." 

Finally, Yan Budu slowly raised his head, and his pair of red eyes seemed to ignite. He stared at Kongshi tightly, and the smile on his face gradually twisted. 

"Interesting, I must win against you once. Monk, I'm going to take your head." 

Kongshi spoke kindly, "This poor monk needs to keep his head to chant scriptures, it's not convenient to give it away. Please forgive me."

After that, Yan Budu no longer made any comments about the past. For some reason, this Demon Lord restrained himself and even looked somewhat like a normal person when he was with Kongshi. 

In the following days, the two of them played chess whenever they had free time. As they played, they chatted about the state of the martial arts world and analyzed different techniques. Their conversations flowed smoothly and harmoniously.

However, in every game they played over the next few days, the monk's chess speed was as slow as an old ox pulling a cart, yet he still managed to create all sorts of strange and unusual situations on the board. They played all kinds of bizarre games, and neither of them gave an inch.

Despite this, Yan Budu never showed any signs of frustration. In fact, he seemed to be enjoying himself immensely.

As time passed, Yan Budu's injured arm gradually began to heal. One evening, he made a proposal that lifted the spirits of the disciples of the Ku Mountain Sect: "Kongshi, I'll go out with you tonight. I need to get some meat - I've been eating porridge for so long that my wounds are healing too slowly."

"Your injuries haven't fully healed yet," Kongshi replied.

"I have no choice. You won't chop off your arm to feed me," Yan Budu joked. 

"Sir, feeding your own body to another can only be done by a tigress feeding its cubs. We monks do not feed tigers just because we see them." 

"So, I can only hunt for my own food to eat. It's a pitiful situation." 

Seeing that he was about to leave, Shi Jingzhi's whole being was radiant. However, after dragging Yin Ci along, he couldn't withstand the cold outside the cave for more than three sticks of incense. The wind and snow had stopped, but everything was still covered in a white blanket, with no magnificent scenery in sight. 

The wind carried snowflakes that slapped against their faces, and Shi Jingzhi was immediately blown around by the cold wind. 

"Yan Budu is really something... Last time I was practicing my skills with my internal energy blocked. When the cold wind blew, I coughed up blood so badly that I couldn't sleep." 

Shi Jingzhi shrank his neck, feeling a sense of sorrow. 

"I understand the desire for meat, but there's no need to be so hasty." 

"Is he really being hasty?" Yin Ci tightened his grip on Shi Jingzhi's wrist, his gaze not leaving Yan Budu.

Shi Jingzhi immediately realized what he meant and took a deep breath.

Yan Budu was not only playing chess in the cave, but also in reality. He wrapped himself tightly in the fox fur coat and stared intently at Kongshi who was breaking through the illusion realm with the Breaking Nightmare technique. Even though the cold wind was biting, he didn't even blink.

Yan Budu was secretly learning the Breaking Nightmare technique.

It was too similar. Yin Ci looked at Shi Jingzhi, who was completely absorbed in the Breaking Nightmare technique, just like when they were in the Ghost Tomb and he was secretly learning the Green Maiden Sword technique.

...It was really too similar. 

The symptoms, aptitude, and resentment towards all living beings were all too similar to be a coincidence. After walking the earth for hundreds of years, Yin Ci had never seen reincarnation. There was only one possibility: there was something in this world that he had yet to discover.

Yan Budu and Shi Jingzhi were undoubtedly of the same kind. 

Kongshi formed a formation out of thin air, and his true energy replaced the iron bowl and copper hammer to activate the formation. Even if the wind and snow obscured his vision, the monk spun around. Even if the flow of internal energy was extremely complex, the coordinated hand movements were extremely exquisite. 

After a dazzling demonstration of the Breaking Nightmare technique, Yan Budu's mouth slowly curved upwards.

He had learned it.

The only reason Yan Budu had kept Kongshi was for the Breaking Nightmare technique.

Kongshi was no longer useful to him.

The author has something to say:

Surprise! The sect leader of the Ling Sect actually carries a camera with him. 

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Demon Lord Yin: The fox has gone soft, and so has its heart. Let's just avoid the situation for now (?)

Fox Shi: The plan is working (×)."