Miao Hua, dragging his weary body, turned to look at Yan Shouyi. He first clasped his hands in a Buddhist salutation before speaking.
"Amitabha, Donor Yan has finally arrived."
Yan Shouyi returned the bow, surveying the withered trees and black earth. "Did my ill thoughts do all this?"
Miao Hua nodded. "Your ill thoughts grow with your strength, but no power in this world comes from nothing. Thus, when your strength surged, your ill thoughts absorbed the life force around the Maha Pagoda to enhance their own power."
"Life force can be converted into power?" Yan Shouyi asked.
Miao Hua nodded again. "Any form of energy in this world can be converted into another. Not just life force, but death qi, malevolent qi, Yin qi, ghost qi... all can be transformed."
It's just that the method of conversion differs.
Hearing this, Yan Shouyi fell into thought.
The divine peach tree was also absorbing life force, but its ultimate goal was to open the gates of hell. The energy required to open the gates of hell must be immense, which was why the divine peach tree continuously expanded its death qi.
However, opening the gates of hell was not Jiang Wuya's objective. His greater aim was likely to enhance his own strength by using the life force absorbed by the divine peach tree.
Therefore, when eliminating Jiang Wuya, extreme caution must be exercised; he must not be allowed to come into contact with the divine peach tree.
Yan Shouyi's last surge in strength was precisely because Xie Qingcang had helped him plunder half of Jiang Wuya's malevolent qi, which is why his ill thoughts had to absorb life force.
"How do I enter the Maha Pagoda?" Yan Shouyi inquired.
The Maha Pagoda had no doors; it was said to be a solid iron tower, thus capable of suppressing the extremely evil beings beneath it.
Miao Hua pointed to the "卍" symbol on the front of the Maha Pagoda. "Reach out and touch the Buddha imprint, and you will naturally enter."
Chang Shan interjected, "Because your ill thoughts are sealed beneath the Maha Pagoda, only you can enter."
Yan Shouyi waved his hand. "I am enough. You don't need to worry."
Chang Shan naturally wanted to accompany Yan Shouyi into the Maha Pagoda, and felt some guilt for being unable to.
"I'm going. You all wait for me outside. It won't take too long."
With that, Yan Shouyi walked towards the Maha Pagoda.
The closer he got to the Maha Pagoda, the stronger the agitation within Yan Shouyi became, as if he were about to meet a long-lost blood brother.
The Maha Pagoda also trembled slightly, as if sensing Yan Shouyi's approach.
Yan Shouyi arrived before the Maha Pagoda and reached out to touch the Buddha imprint. In an instant, his body transformed into a golden light and was drawn into the Maha Pagoda.
Simultaneously, the trembling Maha Pagoda fell silent.
The Zen masters responsible for guarding the Maha Pagoda could previously feel the pressure emanating from the tower, but this pressure suddenly vanished. All of them felt relieved, with some Zen masters even collapsing to the ground, sweat beading on their foreheads.
"We've finally made it through!" the Zen masters exclaimed. "I became a monk just to avoid overtime, yet I had to work overtime as a monk! If I hadn't already shaved my head, I don't know how much hair I would have lost during this period!"
All the Zen masters were overjoyed. The harbinger of plague beneath the Maha Pagoda was finally being sent away!
...
Inside the Maha Pagoda, Yan Shouyi opened his eyes to behold a massive statue of the Tathagata Buddha.
In front of the Buddha statue were the statues of Guanyin Bodhisattva, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, and Manjushri Bodhisattva. To the sides were the eighteen Arhats, each with a solemn expression and an imposing aura.
In the center were two prayer cushions, one of which was occupied by a man in black.
Although Yan Shouyi only saw his back, he immediately recognized the man as his ill thoughts.
Composing himself, Yan Shouyi gave a slight cough, about to speak, when he heard the other man say in a deep voice, "You've arrived."
Yan Shouyi froze, then nodded. "I've arrived."
"You shouldn't have come."
"But I have."
A moment of silence passed between them.
The ill thoughts slowly turned around. Yan Shouyi looked at the face, identical to his own, the only difference being a hint of shadow in the eyes, making him appear less honest and more like someone who hid a dagger behind a smile.
Yan Shouyi stepped forward and sat on the empty prayer cushion, maintaining a certain distance from his ill thoughts.
The ill thoughts spoke first, "Stop hiding it. I know the demon-subduing pestle is in your hand."
Yan Shouyi revealed the demon-subduing pestle hidden in his sleeve and asked, "How much do you know about me?"
"I am you, and you are me. Therefore, I know what you're thinking," the ill thoughts said with a sinister smile. "But you don't know what I'm thinking."
A sense of crisis arose within Yan Shouyi.
Since his ill thoughts knew he had obtained the demon-subduing pestle, he could have set an ambush within the Maha Pagoda. If he killed the main body, he could even replace him...
But the ill thoughts did not do so.
In an instant, the sense of crisis vanished. Yan Shouyi suddenly smiled.
The ill thoughts seemed surprised. "What are you smiling about?"
"Since you know everything I'm thinking, why do you still ask me?" Yan Shouyi retorted.
The ill thoughts remained silent for a moment. "The power of the Maha Pagoda is at play. Your thoughts reach me with a delay."
"I see."
Yan Shouyi said with a smile, "Since you know I have the demon-subduing pestle, you could have ambushed me just now, but you didn't. This shows you also know that I have no intention of killing you now."
"Yes, I know. I also know that you are not confident about killing Jiang Wuya, so you want to join forces with me," the ill thoughts admitted frankly.
Yan Shouyi asked, "What are your thoughts on that?"
"You will eventually kill me. What reason do I have to help you?" The ill thoughts displayed a look of disdain, scoffing at Yan Shouyi's naive and dangerous idea.
Yan Shouyi fell into a slight silence. He had anticipated this response from his ill thoughts.
"Actually, there's one more thing I'm curious about," Yan Shouyi said in a low voice. "You are my ill thoughts, a part of me. Even though you are pure evil, do you still love the people I love?"
The ill thoughts frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Do you still consider Xiao Long a brother? Do you still care about our parents? If Nian Tong and Si Yi were in danger, would you protect them at all costs?"
This time, the one who fell silent was the ill thoughts.
Yan Shouyi suddenly laughed. "You are a part of me, so you can know what I'm thinking. Although I can't know what you're thinking, I can guess it with about eighty to ninety percent accuracy."
The ill thoughts suddenly stood up, furious, and stomped heavily on the prayer cushion. "Damn it!"
Yan Shouyi became certain of one thing.
No matter how evil the ill thoughts were, even if they were murderers and drank blood, they were still Yan Shouyi.
If anyone dared to harm the people Yan Shouyi loved, the ill thoughts would also relentlessly deal with them!!
Although they were the opposite sides of good and evil, at this moment they shared the same enemy—Jiang Wuya!!!
Now, Yan Shouyi was certain that he could indeed cooperate with his ill thoughts!
Yan Shouyi stood up and extended his hand to the ill thoughts. "Jiang Wuya threatens the bratty girl, threatens Nian Tong and Si Yi, threatens everyone we love. So this time, I won't kill you. We'll join forces and kill Jiang Wuya first!"
The ill thoughts looked at Yan Shouyi's outstretched hand and, without a second thought, clasped it. Seven words left his mouth:
"Alright, let's go fuck him."
"...Yes, let's go fuck him."