Yang Yitian looked at the little monk. At first, he thought the child was somewhat well-behaved, but now that he thought about it, his so-called well-behavedness seemed to lack liveliness. To put it more harshly, he lacked a touch of earthiness.

The little one, who's currently munching on a fruit, puffs out his cheeks, looking a bit like a squirrel.

Yang Yitian was very lenient with obedient children and gave him some extra fruit.

The little monk naturally wanted to refuse, but Yang Yitian said, "If you consider me a friend, then don't refuse. Look at you, a child, acting all mature and boring. Let me tell you, I have a son, who is very mischievous. Even though I have such a good temper, I get angry every time I see him. But I think children should be like him."

The young monk pondered for a moment and replied, "But I am not a simple child; I am a disciple of Buddha." His status was noble, and apart from his teachers, everyone else greeted him with respect. Monks of his age would only regard him as a noble disciple of Buddha and would not dare to play with him. Thus, he could not possibly understand what friendship was.

“What you said makes a lot of sense,” Yang Yitian said dryly.

The young monk accepted the spiritual fruit from Yang Yitian, then took out a string of Buddhist beads and handed it to Yang Yitian: "Since we are friends, I will also give you a gift."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony." Yang Yitian naturally wouldn't look down on the Buddhist beads because they had been used. In fact, these spiritual artifacts are only the best when they are used by Buddhist cultivators. Qi Zhiheng has just begun his Buddhist and Taoist practice these days, so it's perfect for him to use these spiritual artifacts.

However, since this was a gift from the young monk, he felt he should ask the original owner's opinion before giving it to someone else: "My Daoist partner has recently wanted to learn about Buddhism and Taoism. I wonder if I could give him this string of prayer beads?"

The young monk said, "Since I have given it to you, you are its owner, and it is up to you to go wherever it wants."

Yang Yitian put the Buddhist beads into his pocket and said to the little monk, "I also need to ask for your opinion. After all, some people feel that it is disrespectful for others to give away the things they send. You seem so mature for your age, you might be the one secretly doing this."

The young monk shook his head and said, "Benefactor Yang, you are overthinking it. Who this item will eventually end up in and what use it will have is all up to fate. Some things cannot be forced. Just let nature take its course and follow your heart."

Yang Yitian thought the child was a bit eccentric, but then he thought that maybe all children are like that, so he didn't ask any more questions.

Yang Yitian looked at a large tree in the yard; it was a Bodhi tree. He asked, "May I pick a branch from this tree?"

This is the little monk's courtyard, and he can make all the decisions here. After Yang Yitian asked, he nodded in agreement.

Yang Yitian went out and cut a branch about two fingers thick, peeled off the bark, and shaved out three pieces of wood. Then he took out his tools and prepared to make a Buddha amulet.

Yang Yitian doesn't know how to refine weapons, so it would be difficult for him to obtain any good spiritual weapons. However, he does know how to make a few Buddhist amulets.

This amulet is different from ordinary talismans. Its effect may be less in one's own hands, but it may have unexpected results when used by a Buddhist cultivator. However, Yang Yitian is not familiar with Buddhism and Taoism, so he is not sure whether the amulet he engraved using the method of engraving talismans will be effective.

He had engraved talismans on the back of the amulet, and he wasn't sure if this would cause any conflict. Nevertheless, he gave all three amulets to the young monk: "I can make these little things on the spot, but I'm not quite sure about their effects. They might be useless, or they might have some conflicting restrictions. You can ask the old monk first if this will offend the Buddha. If there's no conflict and they're not effective, just treat them as decorations and wear them casually."

The young monk knew about talismans, but had never actually handled them. He was quite happy to receive Yang Yitian's return gift. However, when he tried to find something else to give Yang Yitian, he discovered that he only had another string of Buddhist prayer beads left.

He paused for a moment, then simply sighed.

Seeing his somewhat dejected look, Yang Yitian comforted him, "You don't need to give me a gift in return. The Buddhist beads you gave me are already very kind. They look very Buddhist and their value must be quite high."

The young monk ultimately failed to find anything for Yang Yitian, and aside from being somewhat discouraged, everything seemed normal.

Qi Zhiheng quickly found Yang Yitian. Knowing that Qi Zhiheng was looking for him, Yang Yitian bid farewell to the little monk and went to find Qi Zhiheng.

When Qi Zhiheng saw Yang Yitian return, he asked, "Did you go to find the Buddha?"

“Yes.” Yang Yitian excitedly took out a string of Buddhist beads and said, “The little monk even gave me a gift. Aren’t you studying Buddhism recently? With this bracelet, you might be able to get started faster.”

Qi Zhiheng replied, "I have already entered the initial stage." However, these prayer beads can be used as spiritual tools for Buddhist cultivation.

"You're giving this to me, little monk, won't you be angry?" Qi Zhiheng asked after accepting it.

Yang Yitian replied, "I've already asked him, and he doesn't mind." As for those words about fate and destiny, let's just forget about them.

Qi Zhiheng nodded in response, then added, "By the way, we're setting off back tomorrow. I promised to go see what summoned you. But it seems we won't be able to go so soon; we need to deal with the trouble the Tianyuan Sect has prepared first."

Yang Yitian nodded and said, "I understand. Let's solve the problem at hand first."

The young monk followed Yang Yitian's advice and delivered the three Buddhist amulets to the old monk, asking him to check if there were any conflicts between them.

Wuxin immediately noticed that the young monk was missing a string of prayer beads, and asked in confusion, "Where are your prayer beads?"

The little monk Puci had been wearing his Buddhist prayer beads ever since he was brought back at the age of three. They were supposed to be a spiritual artifact that would accompany the little monk throughout his life, but unexpectedly they disappeared. That might represent Puci's future combat strength.

The young monk was not greatly moved by this, as if he had given away just an ordinary string of Buddhist beads. He said in a calm tone, "I gave it to someone who is destined to receive it."

Wu Xin sighed softly: "Why did you think of giving away Buddhist prayer beads to someone else? This is related to the power you will gain in the future."

The young monk said, "These are all external things. Isn't true power found in self-cultivation?"

Wu Xin nodded and said, "Since you think so, then it is correct." He didn't ask any more questions. He helped the little monk examine the amulet in his hand and, after confirming that there was nothing conflicting about it, he let the little monk leave.

Xu Yuanzhou, on the other side, had already gathered the disciples of the sect here, wanting them to go with him to the territory of the Slaughtering God Sect.

Qi Zhiheng didn't intend to run away, and the next day he led his sect's disciples back home without being able to set off.

Xu Yuanzhou was still waiting for the monks from Wuchen Temple and other temples, preparing to set off with them.

While waiting, Xu Yan arrived at Wuchen Temple. With a Nascent Soul stage cultivator like him in charge, even Wuxin would give him some face.

As the abbot, Wuxin will not go out for the time being, but he will send some disciples out with them.

Xu Yuanzhou found Xu Yan and expressed some of his doubts: "Ancestor, since we don't have a solution for the Netherworld Seed, if we let it grow unchecked, won't it also pose a threat to the Tianyuan Sect?"

Xu Yan had been in contact with the people of Zhongzhou, and he even received the original body of the Netherworld Fungus given by Zhongzhou. He said calmly, "There is no need to worry too much. As long as the envoys from Zhongzhou arrive, we will be able to find a solution."

With the Buddhist cultivators' delay, twenty-odd years is not a problem at all. When the people from Central Continent arrive, the matter here can be resolved, and he will have completed the task assigned by the Central Continent envoy. Moreover, this time, he can go to Central Continent with the Central Continent envoy. Even if a mess is left here, it will not concern him.

Others may not know, but Xu Yan is well aware of the Central Continent envoy's thoughts. Just as Tian Qi Zhi Heng once mentioned, even if they were to cultivate the Netherworld Fungus, they would definitely not place it within their own territory. However, the instigators far away in the Central Continent had placed the Netherworld Fungus in the small place of the Southern Continent for cultivation.

As for the more specific purpose, that was beyond the comprehension of someone as insignificant as him.

Meanwhile, Qi Zhiheng led Yang Yitian and a group of disciples from the Lu Shen Sect back to the Lu Shen Sect.

Upon arriving at the sect's territory, Qi Zhiheng felt relieved: "This mission can be considered a complete success."

Completing the task means there's a reward to be won, which is equivalent to the spiritual veins that several disciples have obtained.

After the group disbanded on the spot, Qi Zhiheng went to find Que Hanhai to discuss the next steps.

They had a brief exchange during the communication, but there were still some parts that Momotani didn't discuss in detail.

Upon arriving at Lufeng Peak, Qi Zhiheng immediately reached out to claim his reward. While sect affairs were important, his own reward was just as crucial!

Que Hanhai was speechless at his actions: "You haven't been back for so long, and when you come back you ask me for things. Do you have any shame?"

"How can I be embarrassed? You didn't tell me beforehand that this mission would take so long." Qi Zhiheng genuinely felt he was losing out! This course took several months, yet Que Hanhai didn't feel guilty at all!

Que Hanhai was aware of the situation and felt a little guilty, so he gave Qi Zhiheng the spiritual vein he needed first.

Qi Zhiheng received the spiritual vein and smiled, "Thank you, Sect Master! Alright, let's get down to business."

Que Hanhai described the recent gathering of various sects by the Tianyuan Sect. He even notified several sects that were on good terms with the Lushen Sect, giving the reason that he wanted to go to the Lushen Sect to find out what was going on.