Quinn, Grandpa Mark, and Grandpa Blind all nodded. Granny Sue was beautiful, but she never used her looks as a weapon. On the contrary, knowing how dangerous her beauty could be, she deliberately disguised herself, meeting people only in ugly makeup.
But Cult Master Li was different.
The former master of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon was deeply twisted. He loved Granny Sue too much, envied her too much, to the point that he wanted to become her. His understanding of the Grand Fostering Heavenly Demon Sutra was utterly different from Quinn’s—Quinn also inherited the Sutra and received the Woodcutter Sage’s teachings, grasping the Grand Unification Art. But growing up under the guidance of the village elders, though his actions could be eccentric, he always walked an upright path.
Quinn’s Grand Unification Art was rooted in the Overlord Three‑Core Art—orthodox and proper. It included techniques others might call demonic, but when Quinn used them, they were always aboveboard and righteous.
But Cult Master Li’s Grand Unification Art was sinister through and through—pure demonic path.
Cult Master Li would never let "herself" suffer indignity by disguising as ugly. On the contrary, "she" flaunted her beauty, sowing chaos wherever she went.
As the saying goes, one smile topples a city, another topples a nation—Cult Master Li simply didn’t care.
Quinn went to Granny Sue’s room, packed up her stash of beast hides, and stuffed them into his Glutton Dragon Pouch—just in case.
Grandpa Mark and Grandpa Blind got ready too. Grandpa Blind’s gear was simple—a bamboo staff and a fortune-telling banner with a copper trigram. Grandpa Mark carefully packed away the memorial tablets of his wife and children, kissed them, and stowed them in his bundle.
He wore plain blue monastic robes, looking every bit the wandering monk who’d endured great hardship.
Granny Sue’s Dao-heart is still somewhat unstable and often fluctuates. Grandpa Mark can help her keep Cult Master Li suppressed, while Grandpa Blind stands ready in case Grandpa Mark can’t hold him—if that happens, he’ll strike to injure Cult Master Li, and Quinn will be able to treat her.
As they walked out of the village, Granny Sue joked to herself, "Now I actually need you all to protect me—even Quinn has to watch over me. But I was once the Saintess of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon, and Elder Buddha is the Buddha himself. Will he really lend a hand?"
Grandpa Mark’s face was expressionless as he said, "Elder Buddha will help you. Cult Master Li was the previous Cult Master of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon, a figure of the same generation as Elder Buddha. For Elder Buddha, subduing a demon is a great merit—bringing Cult Master Li, this great demon, to heel is good for his cultivation. Besides, it’s not uncommon for a Buddha to offer himself to demons."
Quinn said anxiously, "I’m worried that after they suppress Cult Master Li, they might suppress Granny Sue as well."
"Elder Buddha wouldn’t do that," Grandpa Mark replied.
Grandpa Mark shook his head. "He has his own principles. His principles are his dao, his rules. At his level of cultivation, he doesn’t have to think about rules—his every word and action already conforms to them. That’s the rule itself."
Quinn couldn’t help being curious. Grandpa Mark and Elder Buddha had deep-seated grudges, yet from Grandpa Mark’s words, he seemed to genuinely admire and respect Elder Buddha.
It wasn’t just that Elder Buddha had once been Grandpa Mark’s master; Elder Buddha truly had qualities worthy of respect.
"What I’m wondering now is Elder Buddha’s true power," Quinn said.
Grandpa Blind tilted his head and said, "Does Elder Buddha really have the strength to suppress Cult Master Li? Cult Master Li was once his equal."