Three days later, at Hidden Dragon Temple.

After handling his Master’s funeral and respectfully placing the urn on the altar, Yi Chen went to the backyard to start his daily training.

Qing Yunzi was leading Qingfeng and Mingyue in reciting the “Supreme Lingfei Scripture” in the front hall.

This scripture was something Master insisted they recite every morning, claiming it would greatly benefit their awakening of ‘Spiritual Awareness.’

However, Yi Chen didn’t believe even a punctuation mark of it; the scripture was obscure and difficult to understand. He had recited it for ten years without any benefit, though it did make his speech incredibly smooth.

Later on, whenever there was a need for someone to preside over any funerals or weddings within ten miles, Bai Yunzi would usually send Yi Chen, because he did the job so professionally that even he felt inadequate.

Once Yi Chen started speaking, his eloquence and efficiency would ensure generous compensation from the hosts.

This was professionalism!

Now that Master had passed away, with no one to oversee him, Yi Chen decided to add a rule to Hidden Dragon Temple: the head of the temple didn’t need to recite the “Supreme Lingfei Scripture.”

Spiritual Awareness was an elusive concept for him; after ten years of no progress, he had basically gave up on it.

But the golden finger that awakened three days ago was truly effective.

Although he couldn’t find more deep red points in the short term, origin points could be obtained through physical training.

This was a stable path to becoming stronger.

“Chanting scriptures, what’s the use of chanting scriptures, the wicked don’t buy this, evil spirits don’t buy this either, for me, it’s better to lift weights and gain some real strength.”

Yi Chen, listening to his junior brothers reciting the scripture in the backyard, couldn’t help but criticize internally.

He had once shared his sentiment with Bai Yunzi, which infuriated him to the point of calling Yi Chen a stubborn stone.

In the backyard, Yi Chen had assembled a makeshift barbell using an iron rod and two large stone mills.

The stone mills, larger than cartwheels and weighing over three hundred pounds each, were a testament to Yi Chen’s increased physical strength after his breakthrough to the fifth level of the Minor Pure Yang Technique three days ago.

Bench presses.

Squats with the barbell.

Deadlifts.

Standing barbell curls.

Rear delt rows.

After completing this combination of exercises, even Yi Chen, with his superior physique, felt muscle soreness.

But pain was good.

The acquisition of origin points came from enduring pain.

With Master gone, Yi Chen turned his sorrow into motivation. Over the past three days, he found time to train, pushing himself harder and managing to accumulate 0.1 origin points.

“This is my way of cultivation, not reciting scriptures. That’s pointless!”

“This is my path.” Yi Chen, gasping for breath, chugged salt water from a bamboo tube.

Just as Yi Chen was considering whether to do another set of exercises, a flurry of panicked voices reached his ears.

“Big brother, big brother, we’re in trouble! The Evil Tiger Gang is here!”

It was the voice of Qingfeng and Mingyue.

“The Evil Tiger Gang? How dare they?”

Yi Chen’s eyes narrowed, seemingly realizing something, and he immediately rushed towards the front courtyard.

The Evil Tiger Gang was a notorious group from Qingniu Town involved in gambling dens, brothels, and forcing women into prostitution. When Bai Yunzi was alive, he couldn’t stand their actions and had severely dealt with the gang a few times, quelling their arrogance.

It seemed they had heard of Bai Yunzi’s passing and had come to seek revenge.

“Big brother is here, big brother is here!” Qingfeng and Mingyue excitedly ran to Qing Yunzi’s side.

At that moment, more than a dozen burly men stood in the front courtyard, shirtless, one of them even holding two fierce dogs, a Tibetan Mastiff and a Wolfdog, both growling softly.

Qing Yunzi was confronting the members of the Evil Tiger Gang. Seeing Qingfeng and Mingyue approach, he shielded them behind him and whispered:

“Qingfeng, Mingyue, when outsiders are present, you must use titles, not ‘big brother’. You should call me ‘head of the temple’, understand?”

Yi Chen: “……”

Yi Chen ignored Qing Yunzi’s nagging and stood in front of the Evil Tiger Gang members.

Because he had been training, he wasn’t wearing his Taoist robe, just a tight-fitting shirt that highlighted his muscular chest and broad shoulders.

Previously, although Yi Chen had a fit physique, it wasn’t as robust as it now appeared, all these changes happening within the last three days.

He had also grown from just over 1.8 meters to 1.9 meters, stabilizing only recently.

Stepping forward, the previously arrogant gang members suddenly became much more subdued, even the Tibetan Mastiff and the Wolfdog tucked their tails between their legs.

“Black Tiger, what are you doing here at Hidden Dragon Temple? Have you forgotten the lessons that Master taught you?” Yi Chen frowned and spoke sternly to the burly man with a wide mouth and flat nose leading the group.

Seeing his followers shrinking back, Black Tiger couldn’t hold back any longer. He stepped forward to stand opposite Yi Chen, his arms and legs beginning to emit black energy.

“Yi Chengzi, hearing of Old Taoist Bai Yun’s death, I didn’t even bother with my usual schedule and rushed over from afar to pay my respects.”

“You think a bit of muscle training can intimidate your Tiger Lord? I know your level of internal cultivation.”

“How about it? 10 taels of silver for this broken temple of yours. My Evil Tiger Gang wants to open a brothel on this feng shui treasure land. I’ll have a group of women dressed as nuns; it’s bound to make a fortune.”

At Black Tiger’s words, his followers all burst into laughter.

The memory of being humiliated and suppressed by Bai Yunzi resurfaced. Black Tiger’s domineering speech was like eating ice cream in the dog days of summer for them, boosting the morale of the Evil Tiger Gang members. Even the dogs began to howl and dig at the ground again.

With Bai Yunzi gone, the younglings were not to be feared!

Fear what?

One of the men with a Fu Manchu mustache laughed the loudest, cackling incessantly. They all felt ashamed for their earlier retreat and glared fiercely at the four inside the temple.

Before they came, their boss Black Tiger had planned it all out: if they did not show understanding, the two bigger “stinking Taoist noses” would be killed, while the two beautifully crafted young Taoist boys could be sold to the beggars’ gang in the county. After being maimed, they could beg for money.

Such adorable kids would surely arouse the sympathy of the good-hearted people in the city and fetch a good price.

But then, suddenly, things took an unexpected turn.

With a muffled sound.

The laughter of the followers, who had been laughing loudly moments ago, stopped abruptly, as if someone had grabbed their throats.

The previously boastful Black Tiger now had his head missing, squashed directly into his chest by Yi Chen with a slap, obviously rendering him speechless for the rest of his life.

This move not only stunned the members of the Evil Tiger Gang but also Qing Yunzi.

Qing Yunzi finally understood why his Master repeatedly admonished the eldest disciple to lead with virtue and follow the path of righteousness before his death.

The eldest brother truly had a heavy hand and a dark heart if he didn’t hold back…

“Don’t move, anyone who moves gets killed!”

Yi Chen, with a smile, threw Black Tiger’s still-bleeding body to the ground, displaying his white teeth that gleamed in the sunlight.

His calm tone terrified the members of the Evil Tiger Gang, who immediately turned into scared kittens, huddling together.

However, Yi Chen felt no pity for them at this moment.

Had he not activated the golden finger and greatly improved his powers, the fate of him and his brothers would have been dire.

He had once advised Master to eradicate evil completely, but Master had spared Black Tiger despite his pleas, leading to today’s retribution.

Righteousness, righteousness.

Master Bai Yun had always hoped he would be a man of righteousness, even naming him Yi Chengzi (Child of Righteousness).

However, Yi Chen had always had a different understanding of righteousness compared to Bai Yun.

For the evildoers of the world, the path of righteousness should not apply.

To those scoundrels, who fear might but not virtue, practicing righteousness gives them leeway, but who practices righteousness towards those they harm?

When they are violated by the Evil Tiger Gang, where is righteousness?

Such righteousness infringes on the rights of the victims; it’s unfair, and Yi Chen does not approve.

Master Bai Yun’s righteousness was about universal love, a level of enlightenment and sentiment Yi Chen could not reach.

Regarding the path of righteousness, Yi Chen had his own comprehension.

In ancient times, the wise created the word “righteousness” (义), with a stroke and a dot in the middle.

This was clearly the wise hinting at him that for evildoers, the best form of righteousness was to smash their heads into their chests, turning their heads into the dot of the character for “righteousness” (义), achieving true righteousness.

Glancing at Black Tiger’s headless body, Yi Chen had a moment of enlightenment.

“Reward the good and punish the evil.”

“This is righteousness, the true essence!”

“The scholars were right!”

“Master, I have understood!”

“I will surely lead with virtue and implement the path of righteousness!”

At Hidden Dragon Temple, the sky was clear and the breeze gentle.

A robust Taoist looked at his palm and couldn’t help but smile knowingly, the sunlight casting a golden edge on his tall figure. Behind him, a shadow resembling the character for “righteousness” quietly formed.

(End of the chapter)