The Abacus

Inside the Bone Buddha Temple, Li Huowang inhaled and exhaled deeply, fighting to suppress the overwhelming urge to kill the monk Xinchi. He had never loathed a person's existence so much.

Following the monk Xinchi's instructions, he had killed a Zuowandao. And then this monk had lightly tossed him a "mistaken identification"?

He knew that the Supervisory Heavenly Office, in order to get a job done, could be indifferent to taking a life.

But Li Huowang had never imagined this kind of thing would happen to him. Because of him, he had personally killed an innocent living person!

Compared to Li Huowang's struggle for control, the monk beside him was visibly more agitated. He sobbed and hopped around.

"How could he do this! What right does he have to call himself a monk!! That was a human life!"

The monk, unable to contain his rage, rushed at the man in the cangue and started flailing his fists and feet, but every blow passed straight through the man's body.

"What right do you have to shave your head!! You do no good deeds, only evil. You don't deserve to be a monk!"

Li Huowang stood up and moved closer to the others. The look he directed at the monk Xinchi had shifted from the small trace of goodwill he'd held before to utter disgust.

Earlier, he had wondered why Xinchi, a man of the Buddhist faith, was locked up in the Yinlin Grand Prison. Now it seemed that putting him in jail was far too light a punishment.

Li Huowang understood that in this situation, they couldn't have internal conflict. Otherwise, the Zuowandao could easily swoop in from behind. Compared to the Zuowandao, a monk who disregarded human life could be dealt with later. But he still couldn't swallow this bitterness.

"Chan Master Xinchi, how was it? Was that person a Zuowandao?" The Knife-Promise Man, Hong Da, was the first to ask.

"No. This humble monk was mistaken." Xinchi's voice appeared in everyone's mind.

Hearing this, Tuoba Danqing's face showed a hint of disdain. "Great Master Xinchi, aren't you supposed to be a lofty monk who has mastered the Six Supernatural Powers of Buddhism? Yet you can make a mistake like this? Our Chief Recorder is a man busy with a thousand affairs a day; don't waste his time."

No matter what anyone else said, the Chief Recorder was unusually unresponsive. His features were scrunched together as he surveyed the main hall, one bejeweled, plump finger tapping incessantly on his golden abacus.

Li Huowang keenly sensed the anomaly. He quickly calmed his emotions and watched the white-faced eunuch.

"His abacus can find the Zuowandao? Then why go to the trouble of asking Xinchi?"

After searching for a while, the Chief Recorder's tapping hand suddenly stopped. "Let's go. On to the next hall."

His words silenced everyone, and they quickly followed.

When they reached the next Buddha hall, which enshrined a relic, the Chief Recorder immediately started clicking his abacus again.

After a moment, he spoke again. "Let's go. Not here either. On to the next one!"

The Chief Recorder's words set everyone in motion again, ready to move to the next location.

This time, the changes were so rapid that Li Huowang wondered if the Chief Recorder's method would leave any Zuowandao slipping through the cracks.

But before they could leave this hall, a group of monks, led by an old monk in a kasaya and wielding ceremonial staffs, slowly surrounded them with menacing glares.

"Ha! Which thieves are you! How dare you commit murder within our temple!" The monk with the joined eyebrows standing beside the old monk in the kasaya was the first to challenge them.

Li Huowang, his hand on his sword hilt, immediately shot back, "Who are you?"

"Are you blind, you thief! We are, of course, the monks of this Bone Buddha Temple!"

Hearing this, everyone's eyes turned to the tall monk Xinchi. He was the only one who could identify a Zuowandao.

Only when the monk Xinchi nodded did the others breathe a slight sigh of relief.

The smooth-talking Tuoba Danqing immediately stepped forward, pulling a token from his bosom. "The Supervisory Heavenly Office is conducting business. Return to your rooms immediately. No one is to come out!"

The monks' expressions soured instantly upon hearing this. They all looked at the old monk in the kasaya.

The old monk pressed his palms together and intoned a chant of "Amituofo" before speaking. "Honored officers, may I be so bold as to ask what business you have with our temple? These past few days, the Bone Buddha Temple has been peaceful and quiet, with no strange incidents occurring."

"Of course you think it's peaceful and quiet. But under that peace and quiet, this entire temple has been riddled like a sieve! Go back to your rooms. If you come out again, don't blame us for being merciless!"

Hearing Tuoba Danqing's stern threat, the monks scattered.

Just as the Chief Recorder was about to lead them to the next location, Li Huowang stopped in his tracks.

"Everyone, don't you think something is off? We've been in this Bone Buddha Temple for a while now. Isn't it a bit too… normal?"

"The Zuowandao are a bunch who thrive on chaos. They'd sacrifice their own lives just for a good trick. Any place they've been absolutely cannot be this peaceful."

"Don't jump to conclusions. The Supervisory Heavenly Office's agents are smarter than you think. If they say there are signs of the Zuowandao here, then there are."

Hearing Hong Da's words, Li Huowang shook his head. "No, I'm not saying there aren't any Zuowandao here. I'm saying that the Zuowandao here aren't here just for fun. They've infiltrated this place for some other purpose."

Li Huowang thought the Chief Recorder would ponder this carefully, but instead, the man frowned. "Just do your job." With that, he turned and walked towards another hall.

"What's going on?" Seeing this reaction, Li Huowang was bewildered. It seemed like the Chief Recorder already knew what the Zuowandao were up to.

A flash of insight struck him. Li Huowang lifted his foot and quickly caught up. "On this job, that old eunuch is definitely hiding something from me."

The Zuowandao hadn't even shown themselves yet, but Li Huowang could already feel a strange undercurrent to this entire mission.

Clack. Li Huowang's waxed boot landed on the clean, smooth marble floor. This time, he stopped focusing on the worshippers and monks around him and began directing most of his attention onto the Chief Recorder.

After watching for a while, Li Huowang indeed noticed something.

If the Chief Recorder's goal this time was to deal with the Zuowandao, then no matter what, the eunuch should be concentrating on the people.

But he was constantly staring at the hall's beams and pillars. His abacus never stopped, as if he was perpetually calculating something.

Is the Chief Recorder looking for something? It's impossible to guess without knowing his ability. Li Huowang's mind churned with wild thoughts.

"Hey, Benefactor! Five steps to your left, a hand!" A sudden clap of thunder rang out beside Li Huowang's ear.

The moment he heard it, with a shing, Li Huowang's Purple-Tasseled Sword was half-drawn from its sheath.

But looking at the woman kneeling earnestly on the prayer mat, he slowly slid the sword back into its scabbard.

Sorry. Too late.