"Continue," Xiao Feng urged.

Because Hui Yi had been holding his pose of "looking up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle" for a full minute.

Xiao Feng was worried that before Hui Yi could continue speaking, a tear might squeeze out from the corner of his eye, making it a case of "tears falling before words are spoken".

Hui Yi sighed leisurely, "Boss, even if I don't say it, you can tell that my juniors are—at best, naive; at worst, brainless. Rushing out like this, they're bound to suffer big setbacks."

"So you're like a mother hen protecting her chicks, not letting them out of the cage for their own good?" Xiao Feng shook his head and chuckled, "In my opinion, it's not a bad thing to suffer some losses and get deceived. The earlier the better."

Hui Yi smiled wryly, "I understand this principle... Have you ever been a father?"

"Have you?" Xiao Feng retorted.

"I left home at a young age and followed my master. Of course, I haven't."

"Then why bring it up?"

"Just speaking from feeling," Hui Yi said, "I didn't realize it when Master was still here, but after he suddenly left, I began to understand the kind of feelings he had when he looked at us."

Xiao Feng shrugged, "You eighteen might seem like a single unit, but that's only in battle. Most of the time, you're actually eighteen individuals.

Since you're individuals, your ways of thinking, interests, hobbies, and so forth will surely differ. You can restrain them for a while, but not for a lifetime.

Imagine this: when you reach seventy or eighty, leaving behind a group of simple-minded old men who must once again face the harsh realities of the world. Maybe they won't blame you, but is that what you want to see?"

Hui Yi fell into a long silence.

Just as he'd said, he understood the principle, but if merely understanding these things could lead to a happy life, there would be no saying that all beings suffer.

Xiao Feng plucked a dry leaf from a branch, exerted a little force, and crushed it into fine powder.

He opened his palm, letting the breeze blow the fragments away, and said, "Buddha says to let go of attachments, let go of all desires that cannot be obtained, and you will gain great freedom.

But they, including you, haven't even possessed anything yet. What's there to let go of?"

"Boom!"

Hui Yi's body trembled, staring blankly at Xiao Feng.

That's right, to let go, you need to have something in your hands to let go of first.

Having nothing in your hands but talking daily about letting go—what a load of nonsense!

"Think it over yourself. I won't force you to leave with me. Honestly, staying in the monastery without worries for a lifetime is also quite good."

Hui Yi emerged from his daze and realized Xiao Feng had already reached the gate of the backyard, looking to leave.

"Wait!"

Hui Yi hurriedly called out, "We're coming with you."

Xiao Feng's words just now undoubtedly had a significant impact on him.

However, that was only part of why Hui Yi decided on his course.

The most important is that if Master wanted us to stay in the monastery, why put us through training such hardship every day?

Yet, just as he uttered the decision to go with Xiao Feng, shiny bald heads emerged from water tanks, behind pillars, on beams, and even wellheads—any place that could hide a person—shouting in unison, "Long live, Senior Brother!"

"Whoa!"

Xiao Feng was stunned on the spot. When had these people been hiding here?

Even though he hadn't paid special attention to notice if anyone approached, it would not be easy for ordinary people to come close without being noticed, given his instinctual alertness honed over time.

Yet now, seventeen people appeared like magic from various places in the courtyard, coming out and surrounding Hui Yi.

"Senior Brother, sorry for being a bit heavy-handed earlier."

"Senior Brother, does it still hurt?"

"Senior Brother, we actually had a hunch each time you'd trick us, but we trusted you wouldn't go too far. We acted only because we couldn't tolerate it anymore."

The seventeen spoke loudly. Hui Yi tried to block with his sleeves, but soon realized he couldn't, so he let his sleeves down.

"Whatever, let them see if they want; it's not like they haven't before."

After "comforting" Hui Yi, the seventeen ran to Xiao Feng's side, wearing flattering smiles and eyes full of admiration.

"Brother Feng, you're awesome!"

"Brother Feng, to even convince Senior Brother who's stubborn as a mule, my admiration for you just increased exponentially."

"That's Brother Feng for you! When you make a move, problems go running!"

Xiao Feng waved them down, stopping the Martial Monks from flattering him, and said, "Prepare for the next few days, don't forget what you need to bring, say your goodbyes, and I'll let you know when we set off."

The Martial Monks agreed with joy, each feeling an indescribable excitement, as if already seeing luxury houses and sports cars waving at them.

...

Outside the temple, a little girl sat on the steps, resting her chin on her hand, and said listlessly, "Why hasn't Brother Xiao Feng come out yet?"

"Don't worry, he's probably discussing taking the Martial Monks with him," Lin Zhiyan said, ruffling her hair in comfort.

"That twenty-four million, Old Xiao can't take it all by himself, can he? There's a saying, those present share the profit. It's not like we only witnessed it; we also put in effort," Zhao Guo'an said, winking at everyone.

But no one agreed with him.

Zhao Guo'an carefully analyzed the situation but increasingly felt that getting money from Xiao Feng was nearly impossible.

Firstly, the little girl and Lin Zhiyan, along with Lu Yao, don't even need to be mentioned. These three listen to Xiao Feng entirely and certainly wouldn't side with him.

Besides, Ninth Uncle, besides being unreliable, is a coward; he wouldn't have the guts.

As for Sun Shijie, he has an inheritance treasure that's enough for ten lifetimes; he wouldn't care about this little amount.

When it comes to Su Yuzhuo, although they had a pretty good relationship with him, it is based on her liking for Xiao Feng, so she's out of the question.

So that leaves only Lin Jiaxuan and Zhen Jinghan possibly on his side.

Zhao Guo'an shook his head in disappointment. Though it's said that three people make a tiger, even if all three join forces, they're up against a "dragon" here.

Just at this moment, a familiar figure appeared, wearing sunglasses, with a gold chain around his neck, and a crew cut.

Such attire could only mean Bi Junxian.

"Why is it you?" Zhao Guo'an asked grumpily.

Bi Junxian had a big smile on his face, "I know I offended you all this morning. I'm here to invite you to a meal to resolve the misunderstanding."

"A meal?" The little girl snorted, standing up from the steps, "More like Feast at Hongmen, huh?"

"Absolutely not, just a simple family dinner. Since I heard this town has no high-class hotels, better my private chef."

The little girl wasn't pleased, "Just because you have a private chef, you think you're something, like none of us have one."

Saying this, she glanced at Zhao Guo'an.

"...Bi Junxian."

Am I showing off to you?

"...Zhao Guo'an."

Why're you looking at me when mentioning a private chef?

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