Chapter 31: The Old Monk Says This Buddha’s Teaching Can Help You Start Anew

"Shan Jingshou is actually the leader of Bloody Earth!?" Mugang Xian was quite shocked. He couldn’t help but recall that in his memories, Shan Jingshou often took leave. Even when he came to class, he was always quiet and had no friends, rarely interacting with others, almost like a background figure in the class.

He never imagined that he would be the boss of a superpower criminal organization!?

"Hehe, there are many prominent and wealthy students in your Canglan Academy. It’s not surprising to have a classmate with a dark background! Enough talk, just make the call!"

Alright, what he said made some sense. Mugang Xian thought about it and understood; there are indeed many children of high-ranking officials and wealthy families at Canglan Academy, so having a classmate like Shan Jingshou with a dark background was understandable. But then he grew curious, how would making a phone call change him and lead him to the right path!?

"Tsk tsk, you little one really lack understanding. Didn’t the old monk’s words over the past four days make you realize anything? Well then, let me guide you a bit more. When you make the call, be casual. Just say you’re asked by the homeroom teacher to talk to him about attendance, mentioning that you and a few friends will go to his house to find him. He probably won’t refuse. Once the three of you are at Shan Jingshou’s house, with no one around but him and you, and when he’s not on guard, you can show your true colors as the Three Beasts of Canglan. Unleash your fierce skills and overpower him quickly—this is the Buddha’s plan to reform him. Even if this plan fails, I have a Plan B, which is a bag of laughter and a bit of madness. Though it may seem harmless, it works very quickly. Just find a way to mix it into water or food for him to eat, and then everything will be easy!"

Hearing this "teaching" full of deception, schemes, poison, and ambushes, Mugang Xian was shocked and said, "Coach, what does this Plan A and B have to do with Buddha’s teachings!?"

Bai Qige showed a compassionate expression, "Buddha teaches that one shouldn’t negotiate with evil and wicked paths. Only by using decisive methods to completely overpower them and ensure they have no ability to resist, can you slowly guide them with Buddha’s teachings to reform and become anew! And to achieve this, all means are permitted."

"Is that really possible? That’s just nonsense!"

Calmly, Bai Qige said, "When you have more experiences in the future, you will understand that to be a good person, at times, you must be worse than any bad person. Otherwise, how can you ensure that your kindness and goodwill can spread freely in the world without being distorted or destroyed by evil?"

Mugang Xian and the others showed expressions of not understanding what he was saying, but they felt it sounded impressive. However, after Bai Qige’s passionate speech, they showed some signs of being touched. After all, nowadays, misleading arguments can convince people more than the truth.

"Of course, this is a question of the true meaning of Buddhism, but the more practical issue is, Gorilla, if you don’t follow the Buddhist way with the AB plan, then I have no choice but to go with the C plan. We will have to charge into the Bloody Earth headquarters through bullets and swords. But that could be good too; young friends, if you take a few bullets and survive, you can boast about it later!"

"Let’s not talk about the coach; let’s stick with the AB plan!" Compared to the seemingly logical yet strange Buddhist teachings, Mugang Xian thought his own life seemed more important. Getting shot was not something he wanted to deal with.

"Gorilla, is everything really okay?"

"Don’t call me Gorilla! Didn’t you see the men in black suits outside Shan Jingshou’s villa? If we are discovered, we are finished!"

"Hey, hey, you have a lot of sweat on your forehead! Wipe it off before we go in!"

Mugang Xian touched his forehead and found it was indeed covered in cold sweat. He quickly wiped it away and tried his best to look normal. He couldn’t help feeling nervous because what he was about to do was sneak up on the enemy leader and wait for a chance to strike. For an ordinary high school senior, this sounded like an incredibly difficult mission for a spy.

"Amitabha, disciples, do not panic. I am always watching over you. If anything goes wrong, I will come to rescue you immediately. If that doesn’t work, I can help your souls find peace! Hmm, this place has good roast chicken; I will save some for you when you come back."

This is the reason why Mugang Xian and the other two had to change from ordinary people to special agents behind enemy lines. At this moment, Bai Qige was hiding somewhere unknown, watching the three through a wireless earpiece.

Shan Jingshou’s home was in a wealthy villa area, well-guarded, with artificial lakes and dense greenery, making it quite beautiful, similar to some ecological parks. Shan Jingshou’s villa was located on the quieter edge of the community, with quite a bit of distance from the other villas.

At the villa entrance, there were some men in black suits standing guard. Perhaps they had been told by Shan Jingshou ahead of time because when they saw the three in school uniforms, they let them pass, making them all breathe a little easier.

After sitting in the living room for a while, they saw Shan Jingshou come down from the second floor. Behind him were a few familiar faces: Bi Fulin, who was all wrapped up in bandages and in a cast, the Psychic who could summon mental spirits, and others they had defeated in the past four days, along with a couple of people they didn’t recognize. But at this moment, they didn’t need to ask; it was obvious they were part of the Seven Holy Spirits. Then, a large number of gangsters armed with knives, guns, and sticks rushed down, and on the second floor, several thugs appeared aiming submachine guns at the three.

"Mugang Xian, Gongcheng Liang, Mugong Yan, you three have such big guts! You smashed so many of my Bloody Earth’s places, and you still dare to come looking for us. Do you really think we have no one at Bloody Earth?"

The identities and purposes of the three were exposed, and Shan Jingshou actually laid out a trap for them to walk into! The three were instantly shocked, their hair standing on end, speechless and confused about how they had been discovered.

Shan Jingshou had slightly long hair parted in the middle, with sharp features and a somewhat cynical look. He sat in front of the three while the Six Holy Spirits stood behind him. At this moment, his expression was a bit gloomy and fierce, "Did you really think that wearing a mask would make you invisible? Underestimating people has its limits. Gorilla, Dwarf Monkey, four-eyed toad—aren’t those your nicknames in school? Besides, Gorilla, do you think being 1.97 meters tall and built like you is common in the Yanhuang Empire?"

The three felt speechless for not realizing such an obvious flaw. They had been so caught up in their thrilling training, hacking and being hacked under the old monk’s guidance every day that they hadn’t had time to think about anything else, leaving them completely unaware of this issue.

After expressing complete disdain for the three’s intellect, Shan Jingshou coldly said, "In fact, before Gorilla called, I really didn’t expect that my classmates—class leader Mugong Yan, sports leader Mugang Xian, and study committee member Gongcheng Liang—would be the ones constantly smashing and defeating the Seven Holy Spirits as the Three Beasts of Canglan. Hehe, just thinking of that nickname makes me furious. Could you be any more arrogant? Every time you smash a place, you leave a note saying the Three Beasts of Canglan—Gorilla, Dwarf Monkey, four-eyed toad—destroyed the useless Bloody Earth right here!"

After every duel, the three of them would lose control and be completely overwhelmed by their emotions. They wouldn’t think to leave a note. The only person who would leave such a daring message is one. At this thought, the three felt like shouting in anger.

"Now tell me, why did you three decide to attack Bloody Earth? Also, where is your master, that old monk?"

The three of them had changing expressions, not knowing what to say. At that moment, Bai Qige’s voice came through the wireless earpiece, echoing in Mugang Xian’s ear, "As the saying goes, when negotiating with underworld figures, you must not show fear. Gorilla, repeat after me…"

Around them, even the henchmen armed with knives and sticks were not the only danger. Those holding guns, with AKs on the second floor pointing dark barrels at them, truly made Mugang Xian nervous. Just then, the old monk’s voice rang out, and without thinking, he repeated the words:

"As for where my incredibly handsome and invincible master is, you need not ask. Dealing with someone like you, there’s no need for my master to take action. We, the Three Beasts of Canglan, can easily handle it ourselves. Our only goal in attacking Bloody Earth is this: based on our observations, we think you might have grown up in a crime-ridden family and lacked friends, feeling lonely and cold. That’s why you’ve become twisted and lost in life. So, we want to be your friends, to use our friendship to change you, bring you back to school, and let you join the Xiangbei Basketball Club with us, as we sweat and live life to the fullest, paving the way to dominate the country in basketball!"

As soon as he said this, the whole place fell silent, including Shan Jingshou and Mugang Xian, who realized only after he spoke what he had actually said. After a long silence, Shan Jingshou said darkly, "Are you joking with me?"

Then, seemingly completely enraged, Shan Jingshou laughed instead of getting angry, "You think I will accept such a ridiculous reason and foolish idea, after you’ve repeatedly crashed my territory, hurt my brothers, and caused me losses in the millions, just to be friends and invite me to play basketball!?"

Mugang Xian had already said it, and with the current atmosphere, he felt too embarrassed to say it was Bai Qige’s idea; he had simply repeated it. He held back his embarrassment and nodded. Shan Jingshou suddenly slammed the table and shouted angrily, "Are you all crazy? What kind of anime characters do you think you are? Is this how you make friends? Why not just tell me directly when I’m at school or call me to say it plainly?"

Mugang Xian and the others felt Shan Jingshou made a lot of sense. They had no words to respond!

Shan Jingshou was very angry for a while, then he forced himself to calm down and coldly looked at the three people, "Hmph, if you have nothing more to say, you can stay in the basement of my villa for now. There are many things there that can make you speak the truth. At that time, I’ll see if your master will show up!"

Shan Jingshou’s tone was icy, and the Six Holy Spirits and the gangsters showed signs of getting ready to fight, moving closer. Mugang Xian and the others looked more and more worried, and at that moment, Bai Qige’s voice calmly came through the earpiece:

"Don’t panic, if you’re afraid of this little scene, how can you be my disciple? Before you set off, didn’t I give each of you a package? I sealed my lifetime of Buddhist teachings in it, specially to change Shan Jingshou’s ways and help him become a good person again. This treasure is also your protection. Mugang Xian, now is the time to take out that package!"

Hearing this, Mugang Xian quickly took out the sports backpack that Bai Qige had given him before they left. He opened it and was stunned, just like Shan Jingshou.

As the backpack opened, the true nature of the "Buddhist teachings" was revealed. It was filled with long objects tied together with wires, hanging a small electronic clock. At the moment the backpack opened, the clock lit up and showed a 180-second countdown, beeping rhythmically.

"Wait, Gorilla, oh no, Mugang Xian, calm down! Mugang Xian, don’t be so nervous; we’re just making friends! This isn’t something we can’t think about! We are both young; it’s not worth it to end everything over such a small conflict, right? So, please turn off that timed bomb!"