Looking back and raising his hand, Xia Xiao grasped the bamboo slips that were coming towards him with his slender fingers. He knew what was inside just by looking at the shape. The look he cast towards Wang Ling was full of gratitude and surprise.

"Thank you very much."

"Stay alive."

Wang Ling didn't know what expression to show to Xia Xiao, so he had no expression on his face. But the latter held the bamboo tube and turned around to continue his journey. For Wang Ling, it was really hard to imagine what Xia Xiao would face. In fact, he himself didn't know clearly. He only had a vague impression of it, which was nothing more than bizarre monsters and demons. But he was now a demon, a human, and a demon, no worse than them.

"What's in it?"

"Can't you see?"

Ah Zhu stared for a long time and shook her head. What could she see just by looking? She moved her sensitive little nose and sniffed, causing Xia Xiao to roll his eyes at her.

"What look?"

Ah Zhu was about to take action after he finished speaking, punching Xia Xiao on the shoulder, but in the bamboo tube that opened, there was a scroll full of talisman arrays, just as Xia Xiao had thought. Although there were only fire talisman arrays in it, one could feel their tyranny, estimated to be 100,000 patterns, and there were even a few extremely exaggerated talisman arrays that could absorb Xia Xiao's vitality in an instant.

With the talisman formation, Xia Xiao was obviously more confident. He and Azhu continued to walk in the wilderness, as if they were guided by dozens of talisman formations.

The faster and longer they walked, the closer Xia Xiao was to Tanghua Temple, but he didn't dare to go straight to it, so he and Azhu took a big detour. In this way, Xia Xiao and Azhu disappeared from everyone's sight as if they had evaporated from the face of the earth, with a better camouflage ability than a chameleon.

The five elders of the Qingtian Sect broke free and questioned the four people from the academy in anger. They were looking for Xia Xiao and Ah Zhu. The self-inflicted injuries on their bodies made them look like they had just fought a battle. However, the suspicion of the Qingtian Sect made them face more controversy. However, the attitude of these elders only earned the contempt and anger of the people from the academy. They acted like they were in control of the situation. Who were they doing this for?

The five elders summoned stronger practitioners, but instead of continuing to search, it would be better to stand by the sea and wait for them. This idea soon became a reality. A group of people stood on the cliff ten miles apart, waiting for Xia Xiao, not knowing where he would come from.

"It might be better if he rushed directly into the South China Sea."

"He also needs vitality. His previous state was not enough to rush directly into the Nether Sea and face unknown dangers. So he hurried on his way while recovering. It can be said that he was cautious, but he was still too confident. The gap in strength can't be made up by brains in many cases. What's more, I am not a useless person like you!"

Apart from Grandpa Pan, the deputy leader of the Qingtian Sect, the strongest cultivator in front of him is Yan Meng. He has his hands folded across his chest. The elder next to him, who had just fought with Xia Xiao, did not dare to refute or get angry, but only nodded.

The sky gradually darkened, and the wilderness fell into a deeper silence. Everything seemed dead, and Xia Xiao and Azhu also stopped. Now was a good time to recover his strength. He had to fill every part of his body with vitality to break through.

Sitting cross-legged, Xia Xiao and Azhu formed seals together, but the speed of absorbing the vitality of heaven and earth was very slow. Fortunately, Xia Xiao could absorb it through the four elements at the same time, and Azhu still had a lot of vitality in his body, so he had to hurry on at midnight.

"Should we just charge forward?"

"Um!"

Xia Xiao knew it was dangerous, but he nodded heavily and looked at Ah Zhu and asked her:

"Are you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid."

As Ah Zhu said this, she held Xia Xiao's hand tightly. It would be strange if she wasn't afraid, but she still followed Xia Xiao to the south. After walking only a few hundred meters, in the vast darkness, Xia Xiao saw two streams of life energy being sent by the powerful vitality twisting the space.

With a frown, Xia Xiao raised his arm to protect Ah Zhu, and with one hand he pulled out a sharp knife, pointing it at the darkness ahead. But in his extremely short field of vision, two little monks, who were not even as tall as his chest, appeared. They were holding lanterns, without any murderous intent, and did not put any pressure on Xia Xiao and Ah Zhu.

In the past, Xia Xiao and Ah Zhu would not mind sending them home, but now they decided to forget it, so they wanted to hide in the dark and leave. However, before they left, the little monk said in a serious tone:

"Please stay, benefactor."

It seemed that these two little monks came specifically for him. Xia Xiao turned around and found that one of the little monks looked familiar.

Although the two young monks were almost the same age, their appearances were very different. One had skin as white as jade, was tall and handsome, had delicate features, elegant manners, and was lively. He looked active but intelligent. The young monk next to him was much shorter, like a ball of black charcoal, so dark that his expression could not be seen clearly. At this time, he slightly lowered his eyes, but Xia Xiao had seen him on the barbarian grassland of Gou Longbang's clan. So he was not a stranger, but he did not know his Buddhist name.

Seeing the latter, Xia Xiao and Azhu stopped in tacit understanding and asked him:

"What's the matter?"

"The host asked us to come find you."

"What? To persuade us to put down our butcher knives and become Buddhas right now?"

"No, he wanted me to see Master for the last time."

Xia Xiao's self-mockery was in stark contrast to what the monk Xiao Heitan said, making the former look like an unforgivable bastard. But the monk Xuanmiao suddenly felt that Xia Xiao was different from other demons. In fact, he had never seen a demon before. He had no chance. All demons were eliminated and saved by the masters and law enforcers in the temple. But Xia Xiao was no different from a human now, which made him feel at a loss for what to do with his demon-killing mind.

Xuanmiao, who was always prone to daydreaming, observed Xia Xiao's every move. Seeing the emotion in his eyes, he forgot the words he had prepared earlier.

"He helped me suppress my evil nature, and I am very grateful to him, but I don't know how to let you see Senior again."

"I have my own way, but before that, I want to tell you something about Master. This is what Master told me."

"What's up?"

The one who asked this question was not Xia Xiao, but the young monk Xuanmiao. He seemed a little anxious and very immature compared to the calmness of the monk Xiao Heitan. This was also the reason why many monks disliked him. Xuanmiao sometimes did not look like a monk, but the monk Xiao Heitan always believed that his words and deeds were cultivation, so when Xuyun left, he just shed tears as a small monk, then packed his luggage, crossed thousands of mountains and rivers, and returned to the temple alone.

"Sit down and talk."

Xia Xiao put the knife and backpack aside to show that he was not a threat. When the young monk Xuanmiao was still hesitating, the young monk Heitan had already sat down cross-legged.

"Isn't this a bit dangerous?"

Xuanmiao approached the little monk and asked him a question, but he said calmly:

"We were heading east before, so we shouldn't have run into them. They wouldn't be so stupid as to keep heading towards Tanghua Temple. But the abbot sent us out and made us meet, so he certainly wouldn't let anyone else interfere with our conversation. We can talk without worry, and they are not dangerous."

The little black charcoal monk is the "he" mentioned by the abbot. He is not a big shot in Tanghua Temple, and in the eyes of many monks, he is not one of the people who can become the abbot in the future, but he has learned enough from Xuyun. Now that the latter is gone, he is another Xuyun. Although it is difficult for him to speak as bluntly as him, and even throw out a few swear words, he is clear and organized in his work.

Hiding his gaze, Xuanmiao looked at Xia Xiao. He didn't look like a good person who was harmless to people and animals. But the danger he was worried about was different from what the little black charcoal monk said. But with the abbot here, he was worrying too much.

"Please go ahead."

Xia Xiao looked at him, thinking back to the days when he was in Goulongbang clan. The little black charcoal monk at that time had not changed much in appearance, but he was more mature, and his words became more reasonable, even memorable. His attitude was extremely correct, just sitting there, watching, and listening.

"Master said that you are more likely to fall than others if you walk on the edge of the abyss, and facts have proved that he is right. After falling in, no matter what you see, don't forget where you came from. There will be a bright light waiting for you to return. And...Master has seen the other side of darkness."

"After we met that year, Master left me some last words, most of which were about you. In Master's words, you are someone who came from afar, the incarnation of the ancestor of the spiritual bond. No matter what this existence represents, you must experience suffering that others have not experienced. The other side of the darkness is an extremely exaggerated and huge ambition, which is related to the Qingtian Sect."

The previous words were not as good as the last three words, which made Xia Xiao frown and asked:

"Is it because of your special status that you didn't tell the world?"

The little charcoal monk nodded. For a monk like his master who had fallen into the devil's way, Tanghua Temple could no longer accommodate him. His range of activities was limited to the grassland of Goulong Bang's family. Who would believe what he said?

On the contrary, if this sentence were known to others, it would probably lead to a barrage of attacks from the Qingtian Sect. Tanghua Temple was isolated from the world, and did not want to cause that kind of trouble because of Xuyun, but this matter was taken over by Xia Xiao because he fell into the devil's way. Xia Xiao originally suspected the Qingtian Sect, and now because of the words left by Senior Xuyun, he was more convinced that they had problems, so he wanted to investigate. But no matter what he did, he had to finish the matter here first.

"Master also said that the end of the devil's path might not be what he thought."

"What's the meaning?"

"After Master fell into the devil's way, he never dared to take a step forward, but the call from the other side was very strong. He originally thought it was bad, but as the devil energy in his body formed, his feeling became clearer and clearer, like a way to become stronger and able to climb the mountain."

This kind of words became more and more vague, but Xuyun had said something similar to this to the monk Little Black Charcoal at that time. He was not clear about it either, and hoped that Xia Xiao would comprehend it thoroughly. However, the latter pondered for a long time and asked back:

"Have you ever cleared the fog?"

The little black charcoal monk shook his head.

"Master has always been in the clouds."

"Then I won't waste any more words. I understand what you mean, Senior. I will investigate the Qingtian Sect later and will also try my best to keep my original aspirations in the path of magic. But if there is nothing else, we have to set off. There is no point in delaying any further."

Having said that, Xia Xiao still bowed deeply to express his gratitude. But when he and Azhu were about to leave, the little black charcoal monk said:

"Wait a moment, I need to meet with my master."

The little black charcoal monk said that he had a way, but everything he did was just to fulfill the will left by his master, but would the master appear? He didn't know, and Xia Xiao didn't know either, so he just listened to his command and sat cross-legged on the ground again.

"Master, you once said that whether I come back or not, I will find your relics. Now I have found them. Please appear and guide me."

The little monk muttered to himself, forming seals with his hands, and performed some mysterious Buddhist seals with extremely weak vitality. The whole process was a bit strenuous, but soon, Xia Xiao's body seemed to be pulled, and vitality began to surge. Streams of golden light continued to gather and formed a golden stream, which was extremely dazzling in the night. They were extremely soft and extremely pure, and slowly entered the body of the little black charcoal monk.

This vitality did not belong to Xia Xiao, but came from the relic left by Xuyun. It enabled Xia Xiao to suppress his evil nature and walk in the wilderness at night. Most importantly, it left a considerable legacy for the little monk.

The two young monks looked at it in disbelief. It was not easy to leave behind such pure energy after passing away, but the achievements of Monk Xuyun were beyond the imagination and achievement of ordinary monks.

The stream of tears in the monk's chest did not stop for a long time. He stared for a long time, and a crystal tear reflected Xuyun's fat face. The latter was looking at him, and although they were separated by a world, his eyes were full of worry. Although Xuyun was a monk, he still regarded the monk as his own relative when he was alive. He was the only person he cared about.

The stream in his chest carried many thoughts, which made the little monk feel the sorrow of his master. He used to regard the common people as everything, saving the dying and the wounded, and doing everything a monk should do, but there was no place for him in the wilderness. He had not left the barbarian grassland for a long time, and even when he died, he died far away from Tanghua Temple, without returning to see the yellow fruit tree that he had been thinking about.

All of Xuyun's hopes were placed on the monk Little Black Charcoal. Although he often taught him a lesson and even bullied him, Xuyun knew that he would die sooner or later. Before he left, he wanted Little Black Charcoal to have the ability to survive. Monks cannot escape from the mundane world, chant sutras, or knock on wooden fish to realize their own value. On the contrary, they have to endure the suffering of sentient beings in order to seek peace for them.

After Xuyun left, the young monk was very calm. He returned to Tanghua Temple alone and put down the blame he had always carried. The old monk in the temple saw him and didn't know how to comfort him. But he didn't need comfort, he knew that his master had been liberated, but Xuyun couldn't feel this emotion, this short-lived consciousness was far inferior to the subject.

A person whose consciousness was eroded by the devil's energy was destined to be treated as a mad dog by many masters and monks in Tanghua Temple, but Xuyun still considered many things at the last moment of burning himself and passing away. Therefore, Xuyun became three parts. One was in the Devil's Plain, where the giant Buddha stone statue as tall as the sky looked up at the north of the wilderness. The second was in Xia Xiao's body, helping him suppress the devil's energy and calm his mind. The third was in the body of the monk Xiao Heitan, turning into his vitality to help him practice.

At this moment, in a deep room in Tanghua Temple, a yellowish-brown flame among hundreds of candles finally extinguished its last spark. The little black charcoal monk opened his eyes, with some panic and urgency in them, as if he had an extremely strong desire for something and had to get it.

"Walk!"