"Ah, it seems that this journey is destined to be fruitless." Xu Qi'an finally drank the first sip of tea since entering the temple and sighed:

"Master, do you know about the recent high-profile Sangbo case in the capital?"

Master Hengqing remained silent.

Xu Qi'an gestured to his colleagues with his eyes to calm down and continued, "I am the chief officer in charge of this case, appointed by His Majesty himself. It's not because I am favored by the emperor, but because I was sentenced to death for stopping my colleagues from raping a young girl during a raid on a corrupt official's home. His Majesty gave me a chance to redeem myself by handling the Sangbo case."

"My friend said that I was too impulsive and should have waited to report the incident to the authorities after the fact, but by then it would have been too late for the young girl..."

Xu Qi'an looked pained and conflicted. "They say that Buddhism has no boundaries and can save all beings. Master, was I right or wrong?"

Lv Qing was surprised and showed a gentle light in her eyes. She realized that Xu Qi'an was not like other men.

Master Hengqing was moved and said, "As long as you have a clear conscience, you need not worry about karma."

"But do you think I was wrong?" Xu Qi'an asked.

Master Hengqing hesitated for a moment before saying, "You have a kind heart and compassion for others. There is nothing wrong with that."

Xu Qi'an suddenly realized, "I understand now! The Great Feng is a sea of suffering, and the Sangbo case is the retribution of the royal family. What are you waiting for? Let's go catch them!"

Clang clang clang...everyone immediately stood up and drew their swords.

In the meditation room, Abbot Panshu was a sixty-two-year-old monk with a bald head and a long white beard. As a fifth-ranking law enforcer, he had been stuck at this level for over twenty years.

The Buddhist system emphasizes the concept of enlightenment. Some high monks meditate for decades and still cannot progress further until they pass away. Others, however, can suddenly become enlightened and skip decades of practice.

Abbot Panshu could be either type, and until he had his own enlightenment, no one could be sure whether he would achieve it or not. This was called Schrödinger's enlightenment, a quantum Buddhist concept.

"Abbot, Abbot..." A temple servant rushed into the courtyard and shouted anxiously, "A group of Nightwatchers have come to the temple and arrested Master Hengqing, accusing him of slandering the court and disrespecting the royal family. They want to throw him into prison."Abbot Panshu opened his eyes and spoke gently, "Understood."

The door of the quiet room opened automatically, and Abbot Panshu disappeared inside.

...

The Nightwatcher escorted Hengqing to the temple gate, and along the way, more and more monks gathered with hostile gazes, forming a surrounding formation. If anyone stepped forward, they would immediately be surrounded by this group of government dogs.

However, the Nightwatcher's tyranny was too heavy, and if they surrounded this small group, a larger group might come tomorrow and raze the Qinglong Temple to the ground.

Therefore, no one dared to act rashly.

"Don't be afraid, Master. When we get to the Nightwatcher's yamen, as long as you cooperate, you will be released soon." Xu Qi'an comforted.

At this moment, Xu Qi'an's smile looked like a demon's smile in Master Hengqing's eyes, and it did not have a comforting effect.

"Amitabha!"

A magnificent and kind voice came, invisibly smoothing out the hostility and anger of the monks.

Xu Qi'an saw an old monk wearing a red and yellow kasaya appear out of nowhere three zhang away, blocking the Nightwatchers' path.

"Panshu."

"Abbot Panshu!" Xu Qi'an solemnly folded his hands and returned a bow, saying, "I have something to ask the abbot."

"Follow me." Abbot Panshu sighed.

Returning to the quiet room, this time, except for Xu Qi'an, including the three silver gongs, all the other Nightwatchers were screened out.

For a fifth-grade expert, Xu Qi'an's attitude was much more respectful. A fifth-grade law enforcer corresponds to the fifth-grade Hua Jin realm in the martial arts system.

This is a master who surpasses the bronze skin and iron bone realm.

"Abbot, I was ordered by the emperor to investigate the Sangbo case. I accidentally discovered that a captain of the Jinwu Guard can deceive the astrologers in the Sitian Observatory. After many inquiries, I learned that Qinglong Temple has a similar magical treasure." Xu Qi'an reminded, "This case is of great importance. For the sake of Qinglong Temple's safety, the abbot must tell the truth. I am not threatening the abbot, I hope you understand."

"Our temple does have a magical treasure that can shield the breath and deceive any surveillance." Abbot Panshu spoke gently.

"Is this treasure still in the temple?"

"No!" The abbot shook his head.

Xu Qi'an did not speak, waiting for an explanation.

Abbot Panshu paused for a few seconds and sighed, "The reason why Hengqing deceived you is because this matter involves an ugly scandal of our temple. If it spreads out, it may bring disaster to our temple."

"I have a disciple named Heng Hui, who is talented and promising. I had high hopes for him, but unfortunately, he has impure thoughts and had an affair with a female guest who came up the mountain. He stole that magical treasure and eloped with her, fleeing the capital."

Xu Qi'an squinted his eyes and scrutinized the abbot, casually asking, "What is the identity of that female guest?"

Abbot Panshu folded his hands and chanted the Buddha's name in a low voice, helplessly answering, "Princess Pingyang."

"!!!"

A thunderbolt seemed to strike Xu Qi'an's mind.

In the Great Feng Dynasty, there are several types of women who hold the title of princess, including the emperor's illegitimate daughters, the crown prince's daughters, the prince's daughters, and the king's daughters. Strictly speaking, except for the eldest princess born to the empress, the other three princesses are all born out of wedlock. However, Emperor Yuan Jing only had four daughters in his life, and each princess had a title, so when referring to them, there is no "jun" character in front of their titles.

Although the current crown prince has a daughter, she is still young and cannot be involved in eloping.

Therefore, Xu Qi'an deduced that this Princess Pingyang was a royal princess.

The more he investigated this case, the more complicated it became. What role did the monk who eloped with the princess play in this case? Xu Qi'an asked, "When did this happen?""Over a year ago," Abbot Pan Shu replied.

"Thank you, Master, but there's one more thing I want to ask," Xu Qi'an said.

"Please speak, layman."

"Is the Qinglong Temple the successor of the Pagoda Temple established by the Western Region monks?"

Abbot Pan Shu remained silent and nodded.

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"After the destruction of the Yongzhen Mountains and Rivers Temple, I found a large array at the bottom of the lake inscribed with Buddhist scriptures. The array was set up five hundred years ago, and the Pagoda Temple also appeared five hundred years ago. What's more interesting is that the Martial Ancestor Emperor was also five hundred years ago..." Xu Qi'an stared at the abbot.

"Is there any relevant record in the Western Region Buddhist community about that incident?"

After hearing this, Abbot Pan Shu's face turned extremely ugly, losing the calmness of a high monk.

"Your Excellency, there's only one thing this humble monk wants to ask..." Abbot Pan Shu stared at him with burning eyes, hesitated for a long time, and then said:

"Did the thing under Sangbo really...escape?"

"Absolutely!" Xu Qi'an replied affirmatively.

Abbot Pan Shu seemed to be greatly shocked, and his fear was hard to calm down. His hands trembled slightly as he clasped them together and chanted Buddhist scriptures to conceal his emotional instability.

This reaction...surprised Xu Qi'an. The old monk's reaction was a bit too extreme. He asked straightforwardly, "Is the First Generation Supervisor sealed under Sangbo?"

The old monk didn't seem to notice and just kept chanting Buddhist scriptures with his eyebrows trembling.

After a long time, Abbot Pan Shu's emotions slowly calmed down, and he said in a deep voice, "This humble monk doesn't know what is sealed under Sangbo. But there's a saying that has been passed down since the Pagoda Temple: 'When the Sangbo demon appears, the world will be in chaos.'"

It sounded like the Buddhist community was more concerned about the seal under Sangbo than the Great Feng royal family?

Well, the First Generation Supervisor was a first-grade cultivator, so it wasn't an exaggeration to say that the world would be in chaos. After all, first-grade cultivators were at the pinnacle of the world.

"This humble monk only knows this. Is there anything else you want to ask, Your Excellency?"

"No, that's all." Abbot Pan Shu nodded, and his body suddenly disappeared, as if he had been edited out.

Xu Qi'an stared with wide eyes and thought enviously: This Blink technique is pretty cool.

After the conversation ended, the sun was high in the sky, and it was almost noon. Xu Qi'an and the others stayed at the Qinglong Temple to enjoy the vegetarian meal.

"The vegetarian food at the Qinglong Temple is delicious." Chu Caiwei ate two bowls in one breath, held the third bowl, and praised it with satisfaction.

The vegetarian food at the Qinglong Temple was mixed with black rice, millet, corn, and sesame oil. The rice grains were plump, transparent, and fragrant. The vegetable dishes were also carefully prepared, with perfect color, aroma, and taste.

Xu Qi'an sat next to her, watching her eat so happily, and he was also very happy. He smiled and said, "Miss, don't just eat for yourself. I'm here to beg for alms."

Chu Caiwei protected her bowl and rolled her eyes, saying unkindly, "Aren't you eating the same thing as me?"

Xu Qi'an shook his head. "I don't eat vegetarian food."

"Then what do you eat?"

"I eat in the open air."

...

Everyone was quite satisfied with the vegetarian food at the Qinglong Temple, but the only regret was that there was no White Phoenix meat to nourish their bodies.

As the abbot of the monastery, Hengqing Master sent everyone to the temple gate. The city people were too cunning, which made Hengqing Master angry, and he didn't speak all the way.Xu Qi'an suddenly remembered something and asked, "Master, do you know a monk named Heng Yuan?"

The face of the Hengqing Prison's supervisor changed.