One Pound Meat, One More Attribute Point

Jiangbei Continent, Red Jin Prefecture.

Moonlight like water.

Inside the central giant tent of the Skeleton Monks’ Camp.

The corpulent figure that was Future Buddha Jialan lay on his bed, his chest rising and falling, snoring. His brows were slightly furrowed, his eyes, nearly buried in his fat, opened with dilated pupils, his expression somewhat vacant.

With open eyes, he looked up at the ceiling.

Jialan felt as if his body was unbearably heavy, as though he were sleeping at the bottom of the sea.

His breathing was labored, as if he couldn’t catch his breath.

Was it because he had been too tired recently, or was there some other reason?

His head was empty, a multitude of scattered thoughts flashing by. Jialan couldn’t delve into deep thought, just lay there stupefied on the bed. After resting for a while, he propped himself up by his arms on the edge of the bed and slowly climbed off the large couch.

Her features were delicate, her forehead dotted with fine beads of sweat, her skin tone slightly darker than bronze, but extremely smooth. With slender fingers, the Heavenly Maiden gently touched Jialan’s arm, her voice soft as a cat’s, "Buddha Master, did this servant wake you up?"

"It’s nothing," Jialan sighed and gently patted the woman’s smooth back.

This Heavenly Maiden was once the Sect Leader of a mid-size sect in the Jiangbei Continent.

She was graceful, and her strength was considerable.

She had won the affection of Future Buddha Jialan and had accompanied him for over a month.

Beyond her profound cultivation, more importantly, this woman had a bit more charm than the usual Heavenly Maidens and Buddha slaves.

But this time...

Jialan vaguely sensed something was amiss.

There was a trace of mockery mixed in with the allure of the Heavenly Maiden’s voice.

He turned over, and looking down, their eyes met. The Heavenly Maiden’s face was smiling, but her eyes shone with a crimson blood light in the darkness. Moreover, her features, under the moonlight, began to blur, vaguely revealing another more striking and compelling face.

Jialan, a practitioner of the joyful path, had absolute control over the Buddha slaves and Heavenly Maidens beneath him.

But there was a hiccup this time, in the instant their gazes met.

Jialan only felt a tremble in his flesh, and from the woman’s unfamiliar features, he sensed a creeping cold fear.

He hurriedly moved his gaze away from her and looked elsewhere.

On the large bed, on the soft woolen blanket-covered floor, and in the corner where a cage was chained.

Faces glowing red, rising one after another like sunflowers in a field. The same features, the same smiles, all looking at Jialan at the same time.

Mocking or cold, shallow laughter echoed in the tent.

Beams of blood-red light, bright as searchlights, focused on Jialan’s corpulent body.

He only felt as though his entire body was being stabbed by needles, an intense pain. Even though he sensed something was wrong, he couldn’t think clearly, couldn’t resist.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Jialan extended his thumb to rub his temples, only to discover in horror that his head had deflated. It felt as if it were filled with nothing but air, and the brain matter, skull, and all other contents had disappeared without a trace!

"Hiss—"

The shock was anything but minor, and Jialan nearly let out a scream.

He "whooshed" up from the bed, panting heavily, sweating all over. He looked outside with a vacant gaze.

Beams of golden sunlight streamed through the open window, dancing with the fine dust in the light.

Only then did Jialan realize that what had happened was just a dream.

But a dream...

Jialan reached out to touch a cold corpse.

He then noticed that the seven or eight Heavenly Maidens lying on his bed had long been dead, their faces still fixed in an inexplicably eerie smile.

In the corner of the room, the blood incense made from the blood of imperial maidens had been ignited, and wisps of blue smoke rose in the sunlight, leaving traces.

"Zhao Yingluo..." Jialan’s brows slightly furrowed, vaguely sensing something was amiss.

But his previous memories were like fog, gradually dissipating from his mind. His eyes became vacant, incapable of thought.

At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded.

The hanging curtain was "whooshed" aside, and Bogavant entered with a somber expression.

Looking at the corpses of the Heavenly Maidens on the ground and at the future Buddha Jialan, who was out of his wits on the bed.

Anger flickered across Bogavant’s face.

Yet Jialan’s temperament had always been like this, and besides, the man was his superior.

Even though Bogavant was angry, he couldn’t say much. He simply bowed his head and advised, "I hope the Buddha Master can exercise a little restraint."

Disturbed by Bogavant, the last shred of vigilance in Jialan Gunna’s heart disappeared.

He stepped forward from his bed, casting a shadow with his towering, mountainous figure. His face regained that calm and haughty demeanor, as if everything were under his control.

"What does the General seek from me?" Jialan Gunna surveyed a painting before him.

"Amitabha," Bogavant suppressed the anger in his heart, joined his hands together, and said, "Blood Demon General Galuo has lost contact, and Iron Demon General Pang Lian intends to snatch merit. He will probably follow in the footsteps of Blood Demon General soon. That person is truly exceptional..."

"Looking at it now, it’s highly likely that the Great Black Secret King has indeed perished by this person’s hand."

Pausing for a moment, Bogavant sighed, "The Great Zhou Dynasty is vast and rich, with a large population. Whenever chaos arises, a demon of extraordinary ability is sure to emerge. It truly is troublesome."

"So..." Jialan Gunna raised an eyebrow, still unconcerned, "among the Five Great Secret Kings of the Hundred Buddha Temple, the Great Black Secret King is the least powerful. Moreover, the Hundred Buddha Temple, though it boasts a lineage of a hundred Buddhas, is wide in scope but lacks depth."

"Even if the Great Black Secret King really died at his hand, it doesn’t prove much."

"Moreover, ’The Sky Amidst the Clouds’ has special conditions. He was able to kill the Great Black Secret King mostly by taking advantage of various conspiracies and tricks."

As he spoke...

Jialan Gunna picked up a fine brush from the desk nearby.

He then added a delicate stroke to the scroll. With just a simple addition, the face of the enchantress who had lured the Vajra into the demonic path seemed to change completely. It bore some resemblance to the face in Jialan Gunna’s memory, yet he remained oblivious, engrossed in his painting.

A vein throbbed on Bogavant’s forehead, "Plan for the worst in your opponents, demand the most from oneself."

"I will take action personally next, but even so, it may not be entirely safe. We will still need the Buddha Master to lend a hand." Bogavant laid out the details of his plan.

Jialan Gunna nodded slightly, "Good."

Bogavant no longer wanted to stay any longer, but as he took a step to leave, he frowned in thought. He still passed on a piece of information he had recently acquired, "The Li Family, the Fiery Sun Sect, and the Wuji Sword Sect may send experts to assassinate. I hope the Buddha Master remains vigilant."

"Is that so?" Jialan Gunna put down his brush and looked out the window.

Outside the tent on the battlefield, robust monk soldiers, like Vajras, were lined up in formation, sparring against each other in pairs, practicing combat. Their bodies shone with a metallic luster and were engraved with ancient Sanskrit.

As they circulated their inner strength, the Sanskrit ignited, and ripples of translucent halos spread outward, covering the entire camp.

"Never mind, let them come," Jialan Gunna sneered, "With the military formation’s enhancement, I am invincible on this battlefield."

"Let’s hope so..." Bogavant sighed, and without another word, he turned and walked away, disappearing into the golden sunlight.

...

...

...

"Think carefully now, if we step through this door, there’s no turning back," at the Demon Suppression Tower in Baihua County of Jiangzhou, the amiable high-ranking Yan Qian advised the Iron Demon General beside him.

The Iron Demon General was now disguised as a stern-faced officer of the Demon Suppression Bureau using a secret technique.

He clenched his fists, his face full of hesitation and anticipation, "We cultivators, aiming for the pinnacle, hinge on one word—competition!"

"Without competition, how can we earn more resources, more fame?"

"In this era of great conflict, if we don’t strive bravely forward, one step behind means always being behind. Naturally less talented than Blood Demon General, if I’m not willing to work hard, in a decade or two, I might not even see his shadow!"

Iron Demon General Pang Lian clenched his fist and it creaked, "I have already made up my mind; it’s up to you whether you follow or not."

Yan Qian looked at the Iron Demon General’s passionate eyes, ultimately lowering his head.

He remembered the danger he once faced, and how Iron Demon General Pang Lian had risked everything to rescue him. Furthermore, he had used precious resources to help him recover from his injuries.

Therefore, although Iron Demon General Pang Lian acted rashly, Yan Qian always stuck by him, never abandoning him.

"You’ve already said this much, what more can I say," Yan Qian said with a wry smile, shaking his head, then became serious, "I agree to go with you, but if we encounter danger, you must heed my advice at the critical moment."

"Of course!"

Iron Demon General Pang Lian laughed heartily, slapped Yan Qian on the shoulder, "Although I, Pang Lian, am not the smartest, there’s one thing I do well, and that’s taking advice."

"Besides, you and I, as brothers, have come through so many perils, we’re not afraid of the head of a mere regional bureau."

"That’s right..."

Yan Qian helplessly clasped his hands, "We should get moving without delay, if we wait too long and he becomes suspicious. Then it will be harder to succeed and more likely for things to go awry."

"Alright!" Pang Lian nodded vigorously.

He took out a token from his bosom, approached the Demon Suppression Tower’s gate, and activated the array pattern on it.

Then a rumbling sound erupted.

As a cold breeze blew through, the stone doors of the Demon Suppression Tower opened.

Inside was pitch dark, and on either side, torches were successively lit, resembling the gaping maw of a ravenous beast.

For some reason, Yan Qian suddenly felt a chill. He shivered, sensing something was not right, but as he looked up, Iron Demon General Pang Lian had already charged in with a ferocious momentum.

Yan Qian had no choice but to sigh and hurriedly follow closely behind Iron Demon General Pang Lian.