Chapter 11: From Never Swearing to Can't Help It

After all sounds completely faded, a while passed. Ji Yuan suddenly slumped against the mountain god statue, completely drained of strength, and sweat poured off him.

The energy he had just expended felt like running several 5-kilometer cross-country races in a row during college. Ji Yuan was so exhausted now he couldn't even move a finger, simply leaning against the mountain god statue, panting like a dead dog.

Zhang Shilin and the others were at a loss seeing this. They had just been celebrating their survival, but now they were flustered.

"Master, Master, are you alright?"

"Water..."

"Water, water, water! Quickly, get the Master some water!"

Zhang Shilin and the peddlers scrambled, some fetching towels, others bamboo cups, while one person fanned Ji Yuan with their clothes.

"The water's here, the water's here! Master, please drink!"

Zhang Shilin initially tried to hand the bamboo cup to Ji Yuan, but seeing him only panting without lifting a hand, he carefully tilted the cup to Ji Yuan's lips.

"Gulp... gulp... gul..."

Ji Yuan had drunk his fill after a frantic gulping session, but Zhang Shilin, still nervous, hadn't let go of the cup. With his mouth blocked by the bamboo cup and his limbs weak, Ji Yuan couldn't do anything.

*'Damn it, read the room!'*

Ji Yuan had no choice but to hold his breath and close his mouth. Only when water started spilling out did Zhang Shilin realize the Master had had enough and quickly pulled the bamboo cup away.

"Sigh... hah..."

Ji Yuan let out a long breath, recovering somewhat.

Seeing this, Zhang Shilin and the other peddlers also breathed a sigh of relief. Then, as if remembering something, Zhang Shilin suddenly knelt before Ji Yuan.

The other peddlers followed suit.

"Thank you, Master, for saving our lives! Thank you, Master, for saving our lives! We bow to you, we bow to you!"

"Thank you, Master, for saving us!" "Thank you, Master..."

The remaining eight peddlers bowed, their heads thudding audibly against the ground, not merely going through the motions.

Ji Yuan felt very embarrassed by their kowtows. He was always shy, even when someone bowed to him, let alone when so many people were kowtowing.

"Please get up, no need to kowtow. It's good enough that you don't blame me for not being able to save Wang Dong and the others..."

This was Ji Yuan's honest thought. In his previous life, he had seen too many instances where a small kindness led to resentment later. Rather than let the peddlers harbor potentially troublesome thoughts, he decided to address it directly.

As expected, his words stunned the peddlers. They exchanged glances, and the atmosphere grew somewhat awkward.

They didn't have the courage to admit it, but that didn't mean they hadn't thought it. In fact, even Zhang Shilin had considered that if the Master had intervened earlier, Wang Dong and Jin Shunfu wouldn't have died.

The peddlers' silence confirmed Ji Yuan's guess. He wasn't like Huang Yaoshi, who enjoyed doing things his own way and harming himself. While doing good deeds didn't necessarily require constant appreciation, he also didn't want to leave any misunderstandings in people's minds.

Ji Yuan was overthinking it a bit. What if some of these people grew more resentful the more they thought about it? What if the victims' families held grudges? He even worried the fierce tiger might resent him.

"It's not that I didn't want to save those four earlier; it's just that I was completely preoccupied. You all heard what the tiger spirit said – turning death into life is no simple matter. When the *chang* ghosts came, I was at a critical juncture and couldn't move a muscle!"

Since he was already fabricating a story, doing it a second time didn't matter. So, Ji Yuan spun a tale, intending to make it sound even more serious.

"To save you, I didn't hesitate to expend my own cultivation to break free, but tragically, those four had already departed. In my current state, being able to protect you all is already a stroke of immense luck."

Given Ji Yuan's current appearance, his words were quite convincing, making Zhang Shilin and the others feel deeply ashamed.

"Heh, in the future, be more careful. In deep mountains and old forests, encountering a handsome scholar or a beautiful woman at night is never normal."

Ji Yuan's heartfelt advice was for the peddlers, but also a reminder to himself.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master! Thank you for your guidance!" "Thank you, Master!"

"Master, are you hungry? We still have some food."

"Please, no more 'Master' this, 'Master' that. 'Mister' would be better..."

Ji Yuan felt that the term "Master" made him sound like a charlatan; Lu Shan Jun, the tiger spirit, had used a more appropriate address.

As for food, although he knew his body was very weak, he simply had no appetite.

That night, even though they knew the danger had passed, few dared to sleep, except for Ji Yuan, who was utterly exhausted. He swore he only intended to lie down and rest for a moment, but he fell asleep in seconds.

...

The next day, at dawn, the peddlers who had endured a night of fear and anxiety couldn't sit still any longer. They all got up, preparing to leave.

Zhang Shilin and the others took out all the belongings of the four deceased men and placed them in their own baskets, with the empty baskets nested beneath their filled ones.

"Sigh... Xiao Dong is gone. How will we explain this to Uncle Wang...?"

"Indeed. Old Jin has two children at home... this... sigh..."

"Liu Quan and Li Gui hadn't even married yet, so young..."

"We'll have to help their families more from now on!"

"Yes, that's all we can do..."

The peddlers sighed. With daylight, their fear had eased considerably, and the atmosphere was tinged with sadness.

Zhang Shilin walked behind the mountain god statue. The esteemed person was still in deep sleep, covered by a shirt and a straw raincoat, which Zhang Shilin and the others had placed on him after he fell asleep.

Truly, he was an extraordinary individual. Last night, no one else dared to sleep, even holding their bladder. Only someone of his skill and courage could sleep so soundly.

"Master, M-Mister, Mister Ji, we're leaving. What are your plans? Mister?"

Ji Yuan was extremely tired and vaguely heard someone calling him.

"Mister, we're leaving. Do you have any instructions for us? Mister..."

"Ugh... stop bothering me... so annoying..."

In his sleep, Ji Yuan scratched an itch on his face with one hand and waved the other as if shooing away a fly.

"Shilin, don't disturb Mister's sleep!"

"That's right, Captain Zhang, Mister has been living here for a month! Let's hurry down the mountain while it's light!"

"Brother Shilin, Mister is chasing us away, let's go quickly!"

Zhang Shilin had originally wanted to say goodbye in person and perhaps ask for an amulet, but now he didn't dare disturb him further.

After a moment's hesitation, he took out a bag of dried biscuits and a bamboo cup filled with water from his basket, carefully placing them beside the mountain god statue.

"Let's kowtow to Mister before we leave!"

"Yes." "Good idea!" "Alright!"

Together, the peddlers and Zhang Shilin gathered on one side of the mountain statue, knelt down, and bowed twice with loud thuds towards the sleeping Ji Yuan.

"Thump, thump, thump, thump..."

"Ugh, what the hell is that noise..."

Ji Yuan rolled over and mumbled a curse.

"Oh no, Mister is angry! Let's go, let's go!" "Go, go, go!"

"Hey, wait for me." "Shhh, quiet down!"

The peddlers quickly shouldered their baskets and departed from the terrifying mountain god temple, secretly vowing never to take the path through Niu Kui Mountain again.

...

By late morning, Ji Yuan awoke in the temple, stretching.

"Hahh... that was... such a good sleep!"

The surroundings seemed a little too quiet. Ji Yuan rubbed his eyes and looked around. Although his vision was blurry, he could tell it was daytime, but something felt off.

Wait! Where are they? Where did everyone go!

Holy moly! Damn you, Zhang Shilin, you bastards left me behind!