Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes.

Chapter 235, Section 233: All Evils of the Human World

Ignoring the still-smoking charred wood and the scorching heat, he frantically searched through the collapsed beams and the melted remains of the Buddha statue.

"Found it! Haha! I found it!"

He suddenly let out a wild scream of joy and pulled an iron box from under a pile of scorching rubble. Ignoring the heat, he hugged it to his arms, his face filled with the fervor of Fan Jin after passing the imperial examination.

"The Ksitigarbha Array Diagram! Hahaha, with it! I am the new abbot! The path to immortality is right before my eyes!"

He turned around laughing wildly, only to bump into Daoman Xiaoche, who had come running at the sound of his voice.

In an instant, it was as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over his head. The monk's maniacal laughter instantly turned into extreme terror. He tried his best to suppress his laughter: "Benefactor?! You...you're still alive?! Buddha, thank goodness! This is wonderful! The temple has suffered a great calamity. The sorcerers set fire to the temple, and the abbot and the others...they are probably..." He stammered, trying to cover up his embarrassment.

Xiao Che's gaze fell on the iron box he was tightly holding in his arms, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

He slowly drew the Demon-Slaying Crimson Blade from his waist, brought the blade forward, and gently touched the monk's throat.

"Hand it over." The voice brooked no refusal.

The monk trembled, his face turning deathly pale. He instinctively clutched the iron box tighter, forcing himself to remain calm: "What are you handing over? Have you perhaps lost something, benefactor? I returned only to search for the abbot's remains to pray for his soul's rebirth, but I found nothing!"

His eyes darted around, still trying to get away with it.

Xiao Che pushed the tip of his knife forward slightly, and the cold touch and heavy pressure made the monk feel suffocated.

He realized that the person in front of him was no ordinary person, and that he could not be swayed by words.

But when asked to hand it over, a ruthless glint flashed in his eyes, and he abruptly turned to run.

Xiao Che frowned. He really didn't want to cause any more bloodshed unless absolutely necessary.

He picked up a piece of gravel and snapped his fingers.

"what!"

A muffled thud was followed by a scream.

The fleeing monk suddenly felt a sharp pain behind his right knee, and his entire leg instantly went numb.

He lost his balance and fell forward violently, landing headfirst on a thick, charred but still scorching hot pillar of charcoal.

"what--!"

The piercing screams startled the birds in the forest. The monk covered his face and rolled frantically on the ground. Blisters quickly formed on the scalded areas, and the iron box fell to the ground.

Xiao Che didn't even glance at the monk who was screaming and rolling around in agony. He walked over, bent down, picked up the item, and opened it.

Inside was a book carefully wrapped in animal hide.

The Nine Formations of Ksitigarbha

He turned to a few pages, which contained intricate arrays drawn with cinnabar mixed with some kind of dark pigment, accompanied by dense, obscure annotations.

At first glance, there is nothing evil about it.

Just as he was about to burn this source of trouble, his master's dying words suddenly echoed in his mind.

"Power is neither right nor wrong, it's all about how it's used" (Dongshan promptly inputs a command to remind him).

Xiao Che paused, silently looking at the array diagram in his hand.

Destroying it would certainly solve the problem once and for all.

But who can guarantee that there won't be another such array diagram in the world? Who can guarantee that there won't be another Kuai Xian? There are too many people who covet immortality; it's impossible to kill them all. If it falls into the hands of someone with more power, it will be an even more terrible disaster.

Rather than that, it's better to take control ourselves. Only with complete control can we find a way to deal with it.

He carefully wrapped the array diagram again and tucked it into his bosom, close to his body.

He needs to destroy this thing to feel at ease, but before destroying it, he needs to learn how to use it first.

Xiao Che ignored the monk who was still screaming and was about to turn and leave when the folding fan in his sleeve trembled.

Whoosh!
A long tongue shot out from his sleeve like lightning, instantly engulfing the charcoal-roasted monk covered in black ash.

The monk didn't even have time to let out a second scream before he was instantly dragged toward the folding fan.

A perfectly healthy person was thus caught up in the folding fan in the sleeve.

With a muffled gulp, the monk's figure, along with his wailing, vanished completely with a flick of his sleeve.

"Hmm, the charcoal-grilled flavor, cooked to medium-rare, is really good." Zhu Hai said, still wanting more.

"It seems the lesson I taught you wasn't enough." Xiao Che took out a folding fan and opened it, Zhu Hai's name appearing faintly on the fan surface.

The folding fan swayed slightly, and Zhu Hai's ugly half-body emerged, grinning with a theatrical, fawning smile: "Wait, wait, Master, calm down! This humble servant is all loyal, determined to eliminate any future troubles for you! Look at that person's character; he clearly knows a lot about the temple's shady dealings, and now he even knows that you took the treasure that could grant immortality."

"If we let him leave, he can embellish the story and spread all sorts of nonsense, saying that you committed arson and murder and stole the temple's treasures of immortality. Tsk tsk, the surrounding villages will be in big trouble! There will be chaos and bloodshed, which would be even more contrary to your benevolence."

It licked up non-existent blood from the corner of its mouth and chuckled softly as it explained.

Xiao Che pondered for a moment. He knew that what Zhu Hai said was not without reason; that monk was indeed a hidden danger.

However, there are other ways to deal with this than eating it directly. The main issue is that Zhu Hai has been corrupted by negative human emotions, transforming him from an ordinary person who was unwilling to eat anything unclean to someone who now eats anything raw or cold without any restrictions.

Seemingly sensing that Xiao Che hadn't been completely convinced, Zhu Hai's eyes darted around, then he changed direction, his voice carrying a hint of deliberate worry: "Master, are you really so comfortable letting that child go back on his own?"

Xiao Che narrowed his eyes: "What do you mean? He Ye, did you personally take her home?"

He Ye immediately assured him urgently, "I delivered her! Master, I absolutely made sure she got home safely! Her older sister hadn't slept and was sitting in the yard! The two of them hugged each other and cried and laughed as soon as they saw each other, I saw it with my own eyes!"

"Tsk tsk tsk," Zhu Hai shook its strange head, making an annoying smacking sound, its vertical pupils filled with the filth of the world.

"Master, oh master, your eyes can easily see through demons and monsters, so why can't you see through the wickedness in people's hearts?"

"Those who commit evil are never just the high-ranking nobles and bald monks in robes. The most ordinary and inconspicuous people in this world may harbor evil in their hearts that is no less vicious than theirs."

"In the years I've been trapped in a dark and hopeless place, the excrement I've eaten the most comes from the resentment, jealousy, and fear that grow in the hearts of these so-called ordinary people, carrying the smell of earth and sweat."

“That child just went back like that, and you even taught her to say things like ‘the nursing home is a demon temple,’ which is blasphemous in the eyes of the ignorant masses. Hey, what do you think will happen to her and her family?” Xiao Che’s breath hitched slightly.

Zhu Hai had foreseen this, but he chose to speak out only at this moment, his intentions being self-evident.

However, he doesn't have time to worry about that right now.

Zhu Hai's words pierced the lingering hope he was unwilling to delve into.

He never wanted to believe in the theory that human nature is inherently evil. If he had believed in such a theory, he would not have felt guilty about the Mingli fire.

Since all living beings are evil anyway, it's good to burn them all away.

Without further hesitation, he turned and sped off towards Qiushang Village.

Qiushang Village, the main road within the village.

From afar, Xiaoche heard an unusual commotion, filled with angry shouts and commotion.

Xiao Che's heart sank, and he quickened his pace.

As he approached, he saw a large group of villagers with bloodshot eyes gathered in the middle of the village road.

Holding hoes, rakes, and wooden sticks stained with mud and dark red blood, they were cursing loudly at several blurry clumps on the ground, spitting as they spoke:

"Pah! You jinxes! A whole family of monsters!"

"Dare to slander a monk? You deserve to die!"

"Kill them, so they won't harm the village anymore!"

"They're the ones who brought the drought. Only after killing the cat demon family will the heavens open their eyes and send rain!"

The curses were vicious and noisy. Some sharp-eyed villagers saw Xiaoche rushing towards them and recognized him as the warrior who had accompanied Master Fashan yesterday. Their faces instantly filled with fear, and they dropped their farm tools and knelt down by the dirt road, burying their heads deep and trembling like leaves. This was the class distinction that had been instilled in them since childhood.

The closer he got, the slower Xiaoche slowed down. He passed through the crowd, his gaze fixed on the few scattered corpses on the dry earth.

Xiao Che couldn't recognize anyone else, only the little girl.

Their bodies were covered in blunt force wounds, their skulls were cracked, and their limbs were bent unnaturally.

The little girl and her sister embraced, their parents shielding them tightly beneath their frail bodies in a desperate and futile act of protection. Blood flowed down, but was quickly and greedily consumed by the long-parched earth.

"Master Takeshi!"

A villager kneeling on the ground mustered his courage and shouted in a trembling voice.

"No, it's not our fault! The child ran away last night on her own! We didn't bring her back! Please, sir, understand! Don't blame us!"

“Yes, yes!” someone immediately chimed in, their voice trembling with tears. “She… she was spouting nonsense! Saying the nursing home was a demonic temple and the monks were demonic monks. It’s utter utter rubbish! She’s clearly possessed by a demon! She’s even tarnished the holy names of Master Kuai Xian and Master Fa Shan! After we found out, we wanted to take her back, but her whole family refused! In order not to anger the heavens, we had no choice but to do this.”

The villagers offered their own explanations and tried to shirk responsibility, looking at Xiao Che with fear, as if this warrior, who knew Fa Shan, had come to interrogate them.

However, all they ever worried about was the girl slandering the monk and angering Heaven; they never actually believed what the girl said.

Xiao Che didn't speak. He squatted down, reached out, and checked the breaths of the several cold bodies.

The parents and the little girl were already lifeless.

Only the older sister's chest was still rising and falling slightly.

However, that was only the last moment of his life; his organs had ruptured, and even a miracle couldn't save him.

However, he seemed to hear what the girl's older sister was saying.

Xiao Che leaned down and put his ear close.

"No. Apricot. Monster"

A pale white bolt of lightning suddenly struck down, plunging the world into darkness in an instant, followed by a deafening roar of thunder.

Even though there were no dark clouds, a torrential downpour suddenly began, as if the Milky Way had been reversed and was pouring down.

Dense, soybean-sized raindrops pounded down relentlessly, striking the parched, scorching earth and stirring up swirling, murky white mists of water vapor that instantly enveloped the entire world in a torrential downpour.

"It's raining! It's really raining!"

"Thank God!"

"It's a miracle! The sorcerer's exorcism has worked! Killing that cat demon family was definitely the right thing to do; this is God's approval of us!!"

"There's hope! The crops are saved! We won't starve to death!!"

The deafening cheers instantly drowned out the thunder. The villagers, as if driven mad, jumped up from the ground, abandoning all restraint and shouting excitedly.

They spread their arms, roared to the sky, and danced wildly in the mud, their faces contorted with ecstatic joy.

They cheered and jumped, recklessly treading across the pool of red mud, which had been wildly washed by the rain and seeped into the wounds of the corpse.

They turned a blind eye, as if the heavens had bestowed the sweet dew only because they had promptly killed the girl's family.

He Ye sensed Xiao Che's agitated aura and couldn't help but let out a soft, fearful whimper.

From within the folding fan, Zhu Hai let out a sneer that only he could hear.

Daoman Xiaoche stood up in the heavy rain, raised his head and looked up at the sky.

The rain was so heavy, so dense, that it blocked out the view like a thick curtain.

If you looked down at this land from the sky, at this small village and family in the rain, you probably wouldn't be able to see anything clearly.

Rainwater can wash away the bloodstains on the ground and temporarily fill the cracked gullies.

But it cannot wash away all the evils of this world.

(End of this chapter)