"Reinforce the formation, hide it. Keep it hidden as long as possible!"
Yao Ranran said this with utmost seriousness.
Nie Rong stared at her, stunned. "What kind of tactic is this?"
Yao Ranran's cherry lips parted lightly. "The Turtle Technique!"
Nie Rong looked into her determined gaze. He did not see this as cowardice and quietly considered the situation.
In truth, the villagers of Longyin Village and Zhou Zongzhu's cultivation were not high. Hiding them could at least keep them alive for the time being.
Fairy Ranran's tactic was truly brilliant. Once the Fairy finished handling matters in Central Continent, she would return to Eastern Wilderness to quell the chaos.
Nie Rong's eyes flickered as he stared at the translucent white curve of Yao Ranran's cheek. This woman was indeed different from the rumors.
Yao Ranran he had known before—even though he had never met her—did not possess such calm elegance. But the woman before him now…
Not only could she ensure the safe return of those trapped by the Buddha statue, she remained composed amid the chaos in Eastern Wilderness.
Even Wuxiang Sect would hesitate if the six major powers of Eastern Wilderness clashed. They would not dare intervene recklessly.
Yet she acted as if it were nothing, and she had not even glanced at Che Lingzhi, the celestial anomaly causing panic among the world.
She truly did not see such a strange artifact as anything!
Nie Rong's heart surged, and he barely contained the twitching smile on his lips. His uniquely sharp eyes had seen through far too much.
"What's wrong with him?" Yao Ranran saw Nie Rong lost in a daze, smiling to himself. She could not help but ask Zhou Lili softly. "Elder Nie… does he have some hidden ailment?"
Zhou Lili furrowed her brow and whispered, "Fairy, forgive him. It seems he is ill. Master Han once said there are two people moving within him."
Tang Xiangyin, listening, was horrified. "Isn't this… possession by a ghost?"
Zhou Lili shook her head firmly. "If there were ghost energy, Master Han would have noticed. It is not a spirit. The two shadows are both him, though sometimes they display slight differences."
"Then I know what disease he has!" Yao Ranran suddenly realized.
Nie Rong must have schizophrenia!
"What disease?" Tang Xiangyin and Zhou Lili asked in unison.
"What are you talking about?" Nie Rong, now alert, leaned in, clueless.
The three of them immediately straightened, laughing and startled.
Yao Ranran said, "Ah, nothing. Let's leave it at that. For now, have Xiao Rong and the others hide. No one is allowed to go outside during this period."
"Understood! I'll deliver the message immediately!" Nie Rong hurried off diligently.
Zhou Lili rubbed her forehead. "I hope he can behave himself this time."
When she first arrived at Wuxiang Sect, she had been stunned by Nie Rong's position. But after seeing his fist land on Master Han's face, she realized she had been too hopeful…
Nie Rong was completely unpredictable.
"Should Physician Zhou send another message back?" Tang Xiangyin suggested cautiously.
"Is… that okay?" Zhou Lili asked, glancing at Yao Ranran.
Yao Ranran met her eyes sincerely. "Physician Zhou cares about his father and wants to speak from the heart. What is wrong with that?"
Tang Xiangyin's eyes brightened. "Of course that's fine!"
Zhou Lili understood immediately. "I'll contact my father right away!"
…
Afternoon
A small monk from Guan Fan Temple arrived at Yiyu Peak again.
Yao Ranran received him alone, curious. ""Fózǐ, can't he leave Guan Fan Temple? Why do you always come here?"
The monk replied, "The Fózǐ is being punished at the Gate of Prison. He truly cannot leave Guan Fan Temple."
"What crime did he commit to deserve this?"
"Amitabha, it is not that the master punishes him. The Fózǐ punishes himself. I do not know his sins, but if the Son does this, there is reason in it."
Yao Ranran could not understand the monk's thinking, so she stopped trying.
She fixed her gaze on the cloth bag he brought. "It looks like you brought many things. Do you want me to select personally?"
The monk said, "Master said these are spiritual materials equal in value to spiritual stones. Everything the Fairy wants is inside."
Yao Ranran took the bag, surprised, and almost could not look away.
"All of this is for me?" she asked in astonishment.
She did not expect Mu Jialing to have an empty head but a pocket that was not empty!
This bag of spiritual materials almost matched Master Han's promises to her.
"Amitabha, Master said yes. This is also a punishment. The Fózǐ should not possess so many worldly items."
"Too many worldly items result in punishment? If I go before Master Yuan Kong, who controls all the treasuries of Guan Fan Temple, would he punish all of them too?"
The thought made her eyes and nostrils widen.
Guan Fan Temple's treasures had been passed down for tens of thousands of years.
Even a single item slipping through one's fingers could be worth tens of thousands of spiritual stones.
The monk's lips twitched subtly as he pressed his hands together. "Amitabha, the Fózǐ is the disciple, the master is the master, and the treasury is the treasury."
"That makes no sense. The disciple is the master's successor. The disciple can become master, and maybe the master once was the disciple. The disciple is the master, the master is the disciple. If the treasury is in the master's hands, it is in the disciple's hands!"
Yao Ranran shook her head as she spoke.
The monk stepped back a few paces, pressing his palms together with more force. "Amitabha, Fairy, please do not confuse me. The spiritual materials have been delivered. I will take my leave."
"Not staying a while? I can make you tea!" Yao Ranran cheerfully invited.
The monk quickly waved his hand. "No, no. I take my leave!"
He left hastily. From a distance, Yao Ranran saw him almost trip over his robe.
"This monk brings treasures for free yet refuses a single sip of tea. Is all cultivation in Guan Fan Temple so austere?"
Yao Ranran shook her head in disagreement. Such cultivation was far too bitter.
…
"Finally escaped!" The monk exhaled shakily, still fearful. Just now, staring into the woman's eyes, he had almost fallen into her illusions!
The disciple is the master, the master is the disciple?
Nonsense! Nonsense!
"I must go tell the Fózǐ immediately: the treasury belongs to the Fózǐ!"
He lifted his head, eyes fixing a black focus, and shouted at the mountain gate before rushing away like a gale.
"Did you hear that? The monk said the treasury belongs to the Fózǐ!" The disciple guarding the gate widened his eyes in disbelief.
The disciple on the other side replied, "I heard it! Is this little monk trying to incite the disciple to rebel? The old master is still alive!"
"Who knows? Which disciple would dare shout that at another's gate? The old master… could something have happened?!"
…
Yao Ranran knew nothing of the events outside the gate.
She looked at the snow outside. The flakes had stopped falling.
"Why do I suddenly feel like cultivating?"