"Crack!"

In the sound of the jade amulet shattering, a wisp of black light swelled from the little round hand, covering the items in the room with a layer of dark veil.

The scenery in the room began to distort. Tables, chairs, benches, fine wine, and delicacies all disappeared, replaced by simple stone bricks instead of carpets, and caissons painted with Buddhas and Bodhisattvas instead of the ceiling. The bright candlelight burned quietly.

They arrived at a spacious and bright, quaint Buddhist hall.

Almost subconsciously, everyone looked at the Buddha statue that reached the caisson. Holding a flower and lowering its eyes, it was dressed in gold. At first glance, it looked kind and benevolent, but in fact, its half-closed Buddhist eyes concealed ferocity.

No change... everyone muttered silently, then turned their attention to the blue monk's robe-clad back sitting in meditation beneath the Buddha statue.

It seems everyone is as afraid of Master Wuhen losing control as I am, checking the Buddha statue first upon entering the hall... Zhang Yuanqing noticed that there were many more futons in the hall, just enough for everyone present.

And in the front left, stood a full-length mirror with a bronze carved frame.

The mirror's surface was blurred.

"Amitabha!" Master Wuhen's low voice, filled with enduring pain, echoed: "Please stand before the mirror, everyone, to clarify your minds, see your nature, and reflect on yourselves."

"Yes, Master!"

Xiao Yuan, hands clasped together, bowed respectfully and walked towards the full-length mirror first.

When she stood in front of the mirror, the blurred surface suddenly became clear, reflecting Xiao Yuan's appearance.

Her eyebrows and eyes were delicate, her bright eyes concealed gentleness, and the corners of her mouth were curved in a smile, as if full of expectations for the future.

Everyone looked at each other, their eyes filled with envy, jealousy, surprise, and of course, genuine relief.

"Excellent!"

Master Wuhen murmured with satisfaction.

Xiao Yuan calmly retreated, glancing at Zhang Yuanqing almost imperceptibly, then bowed to everyone with her hands clasped.

Everyone returned the greeting.

"Ba Wang Bie Ji," who identified as female, swayed her plump waist and greeted Xiao Yuan. She was so excited and hugged Xiao Yuan: "Last year when I saw you in the mirror, you were cold and aloof. This year you suddenly became cute, sister, congratulations! What has eroded the resentment in your heart?"

Congratulations are congratulations, but don't hug my Xiao Yuan, even if you think you're a woman... Zhang Yuanqing protested silently in his heart.

To be honest, he didn't really want to interact with this "sister" too much, because "she" was always giving him suggestive glances, and maybe, this "sister" was hugging Xiao Yuan while thinking about him too.

"The stench of love..." Kou Beiyue muttered.

"What did you say?" Head Instructor Lin Chong slapped his shoulder.

Kou Beiyue slumped, shaking his head repeatedly: "Nothing, nothing."

While the two were talking, the middle school girl with the Spirit Realm ID Zhao Xintong walked to the full-length mirror.

She was a pretty and lovely little girl, fair-skinned and tender, with shallow dimples, not fond of smiling, but looking docile. However, the mirror reflected a little girl with a gloomy expression and a strange, cold smile on her lips.

A faint layer of gray-black stained the smooth mirror surface, as if it had been polluted.

"How come Xiao Tong is even fiercer than last year?" Old Yang, with his gray hair, frowned: "The school is full of teachers and classmates, could it be that they are intensifying your resentment?"

The middle school girl silently left the mirror, her voice cold: "Are all teachers good people? Are all classmates good people?"

"As educators, how can they not be good people? Your classmates are like you, they are all still children, don't talk like that," Old Yang said unhappily.

"You've been a teacher your whole life, Old Yang, don't you know that children are the real demons?" Zhao Xintong retorted, silently sitting down on a futon.

Next was Old Yang. Old Yang's image in the mirror was a weeping old man, his eyes filled with loneliness and desolation, and his hands were quickly covered in blood.

The mirror surface was stained with a layer of blood.

Head Instructor Lin Chong's image in the mirror was a ferocious face with fierce eyes, combative, brutal, like a lone wolf in the forest, staring fiercely at everyone.

Then there was "Ba Wang Bie Ji". The mirror reflected a charming and beautiful woman, her features somewhat similar to "Ba Wang Bie Ji", but even more feminine.

However, the radiance flowing between this alluring and sexy woman's glances revealed not charm, but ruthlessness and disgust.

The mirror surface was also stained with a faint layer of blood.

One or two of you, you all have big problems. Looking at it this way, Zhao Xintong's issue is the lightest... Zhang Yuanqing commented in his heart.

Sixteen members came to the mirror one by one. Kou Beiyue had already resolved his issues and had no worries. The image in the mirror was a little wolf dog in a rebellious period with a bad temper, but that was all.

However, three people's images in the mirror surprised Zhang Yuanqing.

One was a middle-aged man wearing black-rimmed glasses, with an honest appearance. He looked like a refined math teacher, or an ordinary office worker, but the mirror reflected a madman laughing wildly, a major villain.

The mirror surface was stained with a layer of blood that could be described as thick, indicating that this person had a strong homicidal nature.

One was Aunt Fang, who had a gloomy aura. The mirror reflected her as an expressionless old woman, so gloomy to the bone. The wrinkled, gaunt face reminded Zhang Yuanqing of the ghost婆 from old ghost movies.

The mirror surface condensed a layer of deep darkness, indicating that this person's resentment was deep.

The last one was "Liang Chen Ze Zhu Er Shi". Unexpectedly, the image of this extremely talented Dream Master in the mirror was a timid, cowardly fat man.

That cautious, looking-around appearance was like a timid mouse.

Timid and cowardly, his hobby is finding a boss... Zhang Yuanqing looked at the little fat man's dejected round face as he hurriedly left the full-length mirror, deep in thought.

After looking in the mirror, the members commented on each other's "selves", congratulating the members whose mentality had improved, and gently advising the members whose "condition" had worsened.

It had become a support group meeting.

"Why are you such a wimp?" Kou Beiyue expressed his dissatisfaction in a low voice.

The little fat man looked embarrassed, forcing a smile to change the subject: "The Master is about to give a sermon, Boss, let's take our seats."

Kou Beiyue nodded, about to turn around, when he suddenly remembered that Yuan Shi Tian Zun had not yet looked in the mirror, "Yuan Shi Tian Zun, you're the only one left."

Hearing this, everyone looked at Zhang Yuanqing.

Yuan Shi Tian Zun was not a team member in the strict sense, so of course there was no reason for him to take the lead in this team-exclusive process. He could only experience it after the main members were done.

"Someone favored by the Devil Eye Heavenly King must be a shining angel."

"Or maybe a Balala the Fairies."

"Perhaps there's a crescent moon mark on his forehead."

Lin Chong and Sweetheart Red Devil joked a few words.

I haven't had extreme thoughts for a long time. Ever since I had the Ghost Mirror, I've been calm every day, full of beautiful aspirations for life... Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath and strode towards the full-length mirror with a bronze carved frame.

Everyone turned their attention to the mirror surface.

In the mirror, there was a... fragmented person.

A person split in half, the left side stiff and wooden, the right side evilly smirking.

This evil personality was fierce, perverse, rebellious, dangerous...

And between the two drastically different "people" were exaggerated cracks, like glass covered in cracks.

The mirror surface was stained with a thick, deep darkness, even darker than Aunt Fang's just now.

Everyone was stunned, staring blankly at the genius heavily promoted by the authorities, at the moral paragon whom the Devil Eye regarded as a kindred spirit.

It turned out to be... an evil person even more evil than them?

Such a perverse person was actually from an Orderly profession. What exactly had Yuan Shi Tian Zun encountered?

And such a bitter and resentful person actually disguised himself with smiles and sunshine, warming others...

Aunt Fang's eyes showed surprise, Red Devil and Sister Ji looked stunned, Old Yang narrowed his eyes, Zhao Xintong showed a frightened expression, and the middle-aged man pushed up his glasses, a smirk on his lips.

Kou Beiyue and the little fat man were dumbfounded, the latter muttering in a low voice: "Who is the Evil profession here?"

Is this me, is this the real me... Zhang Yuanqing stood in front of the mirror, stunned.

So this is what I look like.

Perverse and extreme, riddled with holes, schizophrenic, is this me?

A person with more resentment than an Evil profession?

"Amitabha, please take your seats, everyone," Master Wuhen's voice broke the silence.

Everyone broke free from their strange emotions and silently walked towards the futons.

Zhang Yuanqing in front of the mirror took a deep breath and walked towards the futon at the end.

"That's not your seat!" everyone said in unison.

Lin Chong, with a face full of grief, led Zhang Yuanqing to the futon closest to Master Wuhen, "This is your seat."

The others cast pitying glances at Yuan Shi Tian Zun.

Yuan Shi Tian Zun was already family.

No wonder he agreed with Master Wuhen's philosophy so much. No wonder Master Wuhen allowed an Orderly profession to become an outer member of the team. It turned out that Yuan Shi Tian Zun, like them, was a pitiful person trudging on the road to redemption.

Zhang Yuanqing: Everyone's thoughts were fluctuating, but Master Wuhen did not express his opinion. He was like a Buddha statue, sitting silently, coldly watching the joys and sorrows of the world.

After everyone was seated, the Master's low, pain-enduring chanting began: "When the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara practices the profound Prajna Paramita, he perceives that all five aggregates are empty, and transcends all suffering and distress..."

Zhang Yuanqing had flipped through a few Buddhist scriptures last night, and immediately recognized that this was the famous Heart Sutra. The core idea was that self-nature is inherently empty, believing that Prajna can transcend all suffering, attain ultimate Nirvana, and attain the Camp Tip Fruit.

It was reasonable to recite this scripture to this group of self-redeeming people, but Zhang Yuanqing did not understand Buddhism and was confused. He said to himself that this disciple was dull, greedy for money and lust, and could not understand the profundity of Buddhism at all.

But gradually, Zhang Yuanqing felt a strange power like a spring breeze brushing his heart, taking away his irritability and depression, and his mood suddenly became relaxed and his thoughts clear.

Master Wuhen's low voice also seemed to become majestic and sacred.

He suddenly understood that the Buddhist scriptures were not the point, the Master was the point.

A Nullity (Heart Devil) can stimulate the knots in people's hearts, but it can also rely on its own abilities to soothe everyone's emotions and resolve their inner obsessions.

The chanting voice echoed in layers, drilling into the ears of every member present, resonating with their hearts. At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing also had the feeling of being spiritually cleansed.

It seemed that he had forgotten the troubles of reality, no longer worrying about the various problems around him.

The shadow of the Devil Monarch, the shroud of the Dark Night Rose, Elder Cai's revenge, the headquarters' displeasure, the handle in the hands of the Military Sect... all were forgotten.

Thus I have heard, all is emptiness.

Unknowingly, the chanting stopped. Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes and had the illusion of a floating dream, waking up after a hundred years.

He looked around, somewhat dazed and calm, and found that most people's faces were tear-streaked, but their expressions were extremely relaxed.

Master Wuhen, with his back to the crowd, said slowly, "You may repent on your own."

At that moment, a strong "desire to confide" surged in Zhang Yuanqing's heart, wanting to spit out all the secrets squeezed in his heart. Spitting them out would be as easy as the fat man squeezing out two hundred pounds of oil from his body.

He only heard a "wail", and the little fat man, his face full of tears, wailed, "Master, I want to repent, I want to repent... I shouldn't have hung out with gangsters, I shouldn't have bullied classmates with gangsters, I should have studied hard and given back to society..."

Even though he was now calm and unperturbed, a string of question marks still flashed through Zhang Yuanqing's mind when he heard this.

He said to himself, which of the people here hadn't committed murder? Which one didn't have a tragic past that they didn't want to recall?

Everyone was a pitiful person with great suffering and resentment, but you're here repenting for not studying hard in your student days, isn't that too disrespectful?

"When I was in middle school, I was especially cowardly, and because I was fat, I was psychologically inferior, so I was often bullied by the school bullies. At first, they swindled my pocket money, and when they saw that I didn't dare to tell the teacher, they became even more brazen and started beating me. At first, they beat me in the dormitory, and later in the classroom."

"Later, it escalated to making fun of me, forcing me to confess to pretty girls in the school, watching me make a fool of myself in public, and forcing me to ask the English teacher out. When I refused, they beat me."

"Every day I had to bring them hot water, deliver lunch boxes, and do laundry. Because I didn't want to be beaten, I tried my best to please them, but I still got beaten for no reason. They made tormenting me their entertainment. Once they beat me so badly that the wounds hadn't healed by the weekend when I went home, and my parents saw them."

"My parents made a big scene at the school. They threatened me, saying that if I dared to tell, they would kill me. But the teacher, under the pressure of my parents, told me to speak up boldly and confidently, and the school would take care of it."

"I believed the teacher and told them who was bullying me. The teacher was very pleased and solemnly assured my parents that they would handle the matter well. But the school's handling was just calling the other parents for a verbal education, and then issuing a public reprimand to those bad students."

"I was miserable. Afterwards, the school bullies came to me and told me to stand straight when being beaten. They took turns slapping me in the face, hitting my mouth, and burning my stomach with cigarette butts."

"They told me triumphantly that it was useless to tell my parents and teachers, and the school couldn't do anything to them. They also said that I had to give them five hundred yuan to forgive me, otherwise they would burn me with cigarette butts every day."

"I had no way to do anything. Adults can use the law to protect themselves when they are hurt, but even if they beat me to death... really, there was nothing I could do."

"Until one day, I met a group of idle young punks in the arcade. Because I was good at playing video games, I was appreciated by Brother Dao. Brother Dao was the boss of those punks, and he was also a punk, but in my eyes, he was a big shot. Brother Dao said that he would let me hang out with him in the future, but I had to pay him one hundred yuan every month."

"I told Brother Dao that all my money had been robbed by the school bullies. Brother Dao was also very righteous. When school was out on the weekend, he brought people to block those school bullies and dragged them to the school playground for a beating, beating them into the hospital."

"From then on, the school bullies avoided me when they saw me. Heh, it turned out that they were just a bunch of paper tigers, only showing off their power at school."

"I started idling around with off-campus gangsters, going in and out of arcades and internet cafes, learning to smoke and drink. When I didn't have enough money, I would ask my parents for it. I also became a bad student in the eyes of teachers and classmates, but I was never bullied again."

From then on, he considered himself a gangster, taking pleasure in bullying others, and believing in evil, and had done many things that could not be forgiven.

He tried hard to forget the past, but the experiences of his youth were like an ugly, unhealed scar, still bloody when recalled.

"I must have a boss. Once I don't have a boss, that cowardly, inferior me will crawl out from the depths of my soul, like an immortal, indelible ghost. If I have a boss, I won't panic. No matter how powerful the enemy is, I dare to fight them to the death.

The little fat man prostrated on the ground, crying with tears and snot: "Master Wuhen, I want to kill that cowardly self, I want to be a good student..."

Master Wuhen put his hands together and said slowly, "Amitabha! Recognizing the true self is the first step to reconciling with the past. Congratulations, Benefactor."

The others put their hands together and said in envious and gratified tones, "Congratulations, Benefactor."

After a moment, seeing that no one else was "repenting", Master Wuhen said in a deep voice: "That's the end. I hope everyone next year..."

A voice interrupted him: "Master, your Buddhist dharma is profound, your mind is clear, don't you have anything to repent? If you want to repent, I can give you a chance."

The hall was suddenly silent.

Everyone looked at the speaker—Yuan Shi Tian Zun—with a "you're crazy" expression.

Could it be that the Master's soothing not only failed to heal the wounds in his heart, but aggravated his "condition"?

Xiao Yuan stared at him blankly, not understanding what was going on in this guy's head.

Master Wuhen was not angry, his voice echoed in the hall: "What do you mean by this, Benefactor!"

Zhang Yuanqing stared at the back in the blue monk's robe, saying word by word: "Blazing Sun and Shadow!" As soon as his voice fell, the golden Buddha that was high above suddenly opened its eyes, its face a scowl of fury!

P.S. I never expected this chapter to be so long.