All Things Are Contracts

Chapter 43

“A storm is coming. A family of three ahead will likely be stranded outdoors, possibly in mortal danger. I hope the benefactor can help this poor monk by escorting them safely to Thousand Feather City, resolving this karmic connection,” the old monk said.

“Uh…” Zhanyue understood that the elder probably couldn’t act himself, which is why he asked Zhanyue to save them. “Elder, what’s this benefit you mentioned?”

Zhanyue pointed at the prayer beads on his wrist, confused.

“Someone once owed me a favor. Wearing these prayer beads, you’ll naturally sense it when you meet that person. They will take extra care of you,” the old monk explained.

“Huh?” Zhanyue was speechless. This reward was like opening a mystery box. How would he know when or where he’d meet this person, or what help he’d receive?

“This poor monk doesn’t know where that person is wandering, but I can smell medicinal fragrance on you, caused by long-term pill refining. You must be a pill refiner too. That person is a eight-grade pill refiner, also the most likely in this world to break through to grade 9. I imagine he could help you,” the old monk explained.

Hearing this, Zhanyue grew respectful. This old monk wasn’t deceiving him; it was truly a great gift. The illumination Goddess was good at everything except having limited help in pill refining. If he could receive guidance from a eight-grade pill refiner, his pill dao skills would surely advance rapidly.

“I accept this karmic task,” Zhanyue said happily, then hurried off, afraid of not catching up to the family of three.

Watching Zhanyue’s departing figure, the old monk smiled slightly, finally resolving a concern.

“This youth’s realm is low, but his fate is peculiar. I can’t see it clearly at all, even a Spirit God expert wouldn’t be like this. After all, this poor monk’s contract object is this Future Buddha,” the old monk sighed, then stopped thinking about it and continued on his solitary journey.

Dark clouds covered the sky, thunder roared, and soon after, heavy rain fell. The rain connected heaven and earth like a curtain. The downpour turned the ground muddy and slippery, making it difficult for vehicles and horses to pass.

Lightning tore through the sky, wind howled, and the rain easily soaked through the clothes of the family of three.

“We can’t go on. I can’t see anything,” Adong’s heart sank. Although they wore straw hats and raincoats, they weren’t much help. The three saw an abandoned tent by the roadside and took shelter in it without thinking. This tent seemed to have been left intentionally, probably by some kind-hearted person specifically for those in need. The tent’s quality was quite good, keeping out wind and rain.

This small space sheltered the family of three. They huddled together for warmth, grateful to have found this tent. Otherwise, just the thunderstorm alone could have been disastrous for them.

“The rain is too heavy. How can there be such heavy rain? It probably won’t stop for a while,” Adong said, feeling frustrated.

“It’s getting dark. Take out the illumination Stone,” the woman said.

“Alright.” Adong took out a lamp and placed an illumination Stone in it. The light enveloped the three, dispelling their inner fears. It seemed that with the illumination Stone’s protection, the night was no longer dangerous. But Adong clearly didn’t think so, after all, this wasn’t the village with houses for protection. The tent was shaking in the fierce wind, seeming about to collapse.

“Father, don’t be afraid. The illumination Goddess will surely protect us,” Meng Xiaodie comforted, seemingly noticing her father’s worry. The man named Adong and the woman didn’t dare sleep, just holding Meng Xiaodie tightly in their arms.

“Xiaodie, if you’re tired, go to sleep,” Adong regretted bringing his daughter along. She had insisted on coming, and he couldn’t refuse her. But he had to protect her no matter what.

The faint light in the tent was insignificant in the pitch-black world outside, seeming about to extinguish at any moment. The heavy rain showed no signs of stopping, instead growing stronger. The rain was manageable, but the fierce wind was more terrifying.

A sudden gust of wind uprooted the tent. In the chaos, the illumination Stone lamp was blown far away.

“Not good. You protect Xiaodie, I’ll go get the lamp back,” Adong understood what losing the illumination Stone lamp meant. But the lamp rolled further and further away in the wind, soon disappearing from sight.

The world was pitch black, only occasional lightning tearing through the night sky.

Without the illumination Stone lamp, even the few illumination Stones Adong carried were useless. He was just an ordinary person who couldn’t activate them. But he still clutched these illumination Stones, protecting his wife and daughter, as if ghosts really were surrounding them.

“Don’t come closer, all of you stay away,” Adong shouted in panic, holding the non-glowing illumination Stones. There was a pillar of light in the distance, from Thousand Feather City’s illumination Tower, but it couldn’t protect the three of them.

Several skeletons emerged from the ground. Although they were just low-level Nightmares possessing some animal bones, they were more than these three ordinary people could resist.

“It’s over.” Adong smashed an illumination Stone hard against a skeleton. In the lightning, the skeleton seemed to smile disdainfully, or perhaps it was just Adong’s imagination. In any case, the unactivated illumination Stone had no effect on the skeleton.

“I’m sorry, Amei, Xiaodie. I couldn’t protect you,” Adong’s face was wet, whether from rain or tears. Despair enveloped the three.

Another thunderclap roared across the sky.

A figure appeared before the three. With a wave of his hand, three fireballs like miniature suns lit up the night, directly incinerating the three skeletons and instantly killing the Nightmares inside. The fire attack’s power wasn’t much diminished by the heavy rain, because Zhanyue used his strongest Solar Essence Fire from the start.

“Made it in time,” Zhanyue sighed in relief, seeing the three unharmed.

He re-erected the tent and set up a small formation with several illumination Stones, a formation Cheng Lu had taught him.

The inside of the tent was brightly lit, finally a safe haven.

Adong and his wife Xiaomei looked at Zhanyue with gratitude and awe, while the little girl gazed at him with curiosity.

“Th-thank you, thank you, sir,” Adong knelt down excitedly, kowtowing.

“No need to thank me. If you want to thank someone, thank the old man you helped during the day,” Zhanyue said. If not for the old monk’s request, he wouldn’t have rushed here to save them before they met harm.

“Old man?” Adong recalled the old monk, guessing Zhanyue was his junior or something. He hadn’t expected Xiaodie’s kindness to be rewarded so quickly.

“Big brother, are you the illumination Goddess’s messenger?” Xiaodie asked curiously.

“Messenger?” Zhanyue shook his head, “No, I’m her master.”

“Ma… what?” Meng Xiaodie didn’t understand.

“Uh… okay, I was joking. Anyway, you’re saved. Rest here tonight, and I’ll escort you to Thousand Feather City tomorrow,” Zhanyue said, then sat cross-legged at the tent entrance, no longer paying attention to the three.