"Hmph!" Liuli snorted irritably. She flicked her whip, throwing the spear to the ground with a clang, and said coldly, "You two actually dared to gang up on the little monk! You've gone too far!"

Numerous small Buddhist artifacts continued to swirl around Shi Chan, his hands clasped together, watching Liuli's retreating figure with a complex expression. Upon hearing Liuli's words, his body trembled slightly.

These two demons were two young men who looked to be only in their early twenties. They had followed Li Molin around many times when he was robbing rare treasures, so although Liuli did not know their names, she was somewhat familiar with them.

The two men exchanged a glance, both seeing the helplessness in each other's eyes. They knew very well what place this girl, Liuli, held in Li Molin's heart; given how much Li Molin doted on Liuli, they dared not offend her in the slightest.

"Miss Liuli." After a long silence, the two men bowed simultaneously and addressed her respectfully.

"Get out of here!" Liuli flicked her long whip and said coldly, "Get out of here now!"

The two demon men exchanged a glance and said in unison, "...Yes."

Liuli watched as the two men put away their weapons, turned around, and hurriedly left to join the attack on the other righteous youths.

Liuli put away the Winged Spirit Whip, turned to look at Shichan, and asked with concern, "Little monk, are you alright?"

At that moment, Shi Chan stood there, lost in thought, his mind a jumble of ideas. He remembered the Buddhist precepts he had heard in the temple since he could remember, he thought of his master, Zen Master Daming, with his ever-gentle face, and he thought of Shi Ning's earnest teachings.

He recalled the way his senior brothers and sisters had looked at him with a mixture of curiosity and pity when he and Liuli escaped hand in hand from the foot of Lingxiao Peak, and the faint hint of disappointment in his master's eyes. He also remembered the extremely pained look in Shi Ning's eyes and his expression of anger at his son's lack of ambition in the meditation room of the imperial palace in Yingyang City many days ago…

Thinking of this, Shi Chan trembled and felt a pang of pain in his heart.

These past few days, he has been constantly thinking about his relationship with Liuli, and he keeps telling himself that he must be ruthless and cut off this overly intimate relationship, and nip all inappropriate thoughts in the bud...

He had thought countless times about what he should say when he saw her again, but even with her right in front of him, he couldn't say a word.

"Little monk?" Seeing that Shi Chan hadn't responded for a long time, Liu Li became even more worried. She raised her voice and asked, "Are you alright, little monk?"

Shi Chan suddenly came to his senses and subconsciously replied, "I...this humble monk is fine."

"Oh." Liuli was slightly relieved. She smiled and said, "It's good that you're alright."

Seeing Liuli's appearance, Shichan's eyelashes trembled, and his heart ached even more. She had treated him so well, always putting him first, constantly concerned for his safety. She had repeatedly put herself in danger to save him, repeatedly shielding him from peril...

Shi Chan was neither plant nor wood, nor was he a fool; how could he not understand her feelings? Yet, for the sake of Buddha, for his master, for his senior brother, he could not respond to her, even if…

Even so, he liked her too.

"Miss Liuli." Shi Chan's expression was complicated, his eyes filled with sorrow. He bowed in a Buddhist gesture, then stood with his palms together, his eyes lowered, and said in a low voice, "Miss, could you do me a favor?"

"What kind of help do you need?" Liuli smiled and said, "Little monk, why are you being so polite with me? Just tell me, and I will definitely help you."

Shi Chan glanced at Liu Li, then quickly lowered his eyes again. After a moment of silence, he said in a hoarse voice, "This humble monk would like to ask you, young lady... that you need not save me anymore, nor need you pay any attention to me. I also ask that you maintain a sufficient distance from me, so that I may not be misunderstood by my fellow disciples, nor may I break any precepts..."

Upon hearing this, Liuli was taken aback. Her smiling face slowly darkened, and after a long while, she whispered, "Little monk, what do you mean?"

Shi Chan dared not look at Liuli's small face. He lowered his head deeply, his brows furrowing slightly. After remaining silent for a long while, he hardened his heart, raised his eyes to look directly at Liuli, and said in a firm voice, "This humble monk is a member of the Buddhist community, and should not have too much involvement with you, young lady. If my fellow disciples see that I am too involved with you, they will surely mistakenly think that I have broken the precepts, and I am afraid that they will expel me from Bodhi Temple, or even from the Buddhist community... I hope that you will have pity on my heart devoted to Buddhism and will not pay any more attention to me."

A hint of sadness appeared in Liuli's eyes. She pouted and said aggrievedly, "I understand, little monk. You mean that my place in your heart is far less than that of your Buddha, your master, and your senior brother, right? So for their sake, you're going to never talk to me again, is that it?"

Zen Master lowered his head, looking sorrowful, and remained silent.

"You speak!" Liuli raised her voice slightly, frowning as she asked, "Is it right?"

Shi Chan lowered his head and remained silent for a long while before slowly raising it. His face was somewhat pale, and his usually exceptionally bright eyes were now dull and lifeless, as if shrouded in gloom. He looked directly at Liuli, nodded, and said softly, "Yes. I hope you, young lady, will grant this humble monk's request."

Hearing Shi Chan admit to this truth she had always refused to face, Liuli felt a pang of sadness. The sadness spread to her face, causing her eyes to glisten with tears. She pouted and said sadly, "Little monk, I've been so good to you, yet you say I'm not important to you at all. You have no conscience!"

“I’m sorry, young lady,” Shi Chan said softly. “In this world, under the Buddha’s radiant light, I can bear everything, but only… I cannot bear your love.”

A single tear silently slid down her cheek, then, like a broken string of pearls, it formed a continuous line on her delicate face. Her voice choked with sobs, she cried out in distress, "Little...little monk, you can't do this to me...you can't...waaaah..."

“Miss…” Shi Chan stepped forward, his expression flustered. His hand reached out but quickly froze in mid-air. Looking at the tears on Liu Li's face, he racked his brains for words to comfort her, but after a long while, he truly didn't know what to say. Finally, all his unspoken words condensed into two: “I'm sorry…”