Chapter 73: Borrowing the Bodhi Scripture to Contemplate the Way

## Chapter 73: Observing the Dao Scripture with the Aid of Bodhi

It was almost noon, and the small restaurant was deserted, completely empty of customers. The only sound inside was the quiet sobbing of little Tingting.

Ye Fan pushed open the door and entered the small shop, dragging a roe deer and carrying sacks of rice and flour.

Little Tingting's large eyes were red-rimmed. She was carefully wiping the old man's wounds with a warm towel, her heart aching as she wept while cleaning.

The old man's wrinkled face bore bruised finger marks, and blood primarily flowed from his mouth and nose, even staining his disheveled gray hair.

“How could those brutes lay their hands on him…” Ye Fan felt a pang of anguish. His anger surged at the thought of a kind old man, frail with age, suffering such a brutal assault. Little Tingting, so adorable and sensible for a mere five or six-year-old, had also been struck on the forehead, causing her to fall. Her small face was now streaked with sorrowful tears, inspiring deep pity and compassion.

“Big Brother…” Seeing Ye Fan return, tears immediately welled up in Little Tingting’s eyes again, and she burst into loud sobs.

“Be a good girl, Tingting, don’t cry. Grandpa is fine,” the old man quickly reassured her, using his calloused hands to wipe away her tears. Then he looked at Ye Fan in surprise and said, “This roe deer… and all this rice and flour…”

“I hunted the roe deer in the mountains, and the rice and flour were traded for a deer,” Ye Fan explained, setting down the items. He then took a small jade bottle from his pocket, uncorked it, poured out some Hundred Herbs Liquid, and applied it to the old man’s wounds.

“You only had one meal with us; there’s no need for this…” The old man was not eloquent, but his gratitude was immense, though he struggled to express it.

“Uncle, you don’t need to say more. One meal may not be much, but the kindness and friendship behind it mean a great deal,” Ye Fan said. He then knelt down to wipe the tears from Little Tingting’s face. “Tingting, don’t cry. I’ll stay here from now on and won’t let anyone bully you.”

“Big Brother…” Little Tingting’s eyes reddened again, and tears trickled down her long eyelashes with every slight tremor. She looked down at her patched shoes and whispered, “But… those bad people will come again, and they’ll still bully us.”

“Don’t be afraid. Big Brother won’t let those bad people bully Tingting anymore.” Ye Fan tenderly stroked her head. It was truly unsettling to see such a sweet and sensible little girl being tormented in this way.

“Child, don’t act rashly.” The old man, weathered by life, sensed Ye Fan’s anger. He feared the boy might impulsively cause trouble and get himself involved. “We can’t afford to provoke them,” he warned. “The Li family has cultivators among them; they are not people we ordinary mortals can afford to cross.”

The old man sighed deeply. “I’m this old, and I truly don’t want to leave my home. After all, I’ve lived here for decades. The older you get, the more nostalgic you become, and I have an inseparable attachment to this place. But now, I have no choice but to leave. For Tingting’s sake, I’ve decided to give up everything here. Even if it means begging and leaving my home, I won’t stay here any longer.”

“Grandpa…” Two lines of tears immediately streamed down Little Tingting’s face again.

“Be a good girl, Tingting, don’t cry. Uncle, please don’t talk about leaving your home just yet.” After comforting Little Tingting, Ye Fan turned to the old man. “Please don’t worry, I won’t cause any trouble. For now, let’s close this small shop, and then I’ll think of a solution. If all else fails, I’ll leave with you.”

Ye Fan knew deeply that mortals face many misfortunes, with losing a child in old age and being forced from one's home being among the most painful. The old man had already lost his son, and now he was being forced to leave this small town. His anguish was unimaginable. Ye Fan truly did not want to see such misfortune befall this grandfather and granddaughter.

“Please tell me in detail about the Li family’s background.”

“Child, what are you planning to do? We’re packing our things tomorrow and leaving this place forever. Please, don’t provoke them now.”

“I’m not a reckless person, please don’t worry.”

Finally, under Ye Fan’s persistent questioning, the old man revealed some information.

The Li family was the most prominent household in the town. It was said that three or four members of their family practiced cultivation elsewhere. Cultivators were very mysterious to ordinary people, rarely seen in daily life, which was why everyone in town greatly feared the Li family.

Ye Fan sensed that the old man was holding back some details, such as how the Jiang family (the old man's family) was once prosperous and owned a restaurant in town, or why his son had suddenly died. These facts remained untold.

“Tingting, go warm the towel for Grandpa with some hot water.” After sending Tingting away, the old man said, “Young man, I know you’re no ordinary child. To be able to hunt a roe deer at such a young age, you probably understand something about cultivation yourself. But I still advise you not to provoke the Li family…”

The old man continued, revealing that his son and daughter-in-law were also cultivators. A few years ago, they were highly regarded in a certain immortal sect, and even the Li family in town had befriended them, unwilling to easily offend them.

“Yanxia Dongtian…” Ye Fan was very surprised. The sect his son belonged to was one of the Six Blessed Lands of Yan, located only about two hundred li from the town.

Several members of the Li family also cultivated in Yanxia Dongtian. One of them had entered the sect around the same time as the old man’s son but had been far surpassed in achievements.

“That Li family boy had a wicked heart and behaved improperly, committing an evil deed. My son was too righteous to stand by, so he intervened, which resulted in a deep feud…”

Tingting’s father possessed extraordinary talent and was highly esteemed in Yanxia Dongtian, so he did not fear the Li family disciple who had entered the sect with him. However, fate is unpredictable. Two years ago, when Tingting’s parents left the mountains to gather spiritual herbs, they tragically died under the talons of a lightning bird.

After Tingting’s parents died, the Li family no longer had any qualms. They first seized the old man’s restaurant, then took his inn, pushing the poor grandfather and granddaughter to their current dire state, and still refused to let them go.

Just then, Little Tingting returned after warming the towel. She looked exquisitely delicate, like a porcelain doll, yet she uttered words remarkably unsuited for her age: “Why is it always the good people who get bullied in this world, while the bad people live long lives…?”

Hearing her innocent words and seeing her aggrieved expression, Ye Fan and the old man exchanged silent glances, unsure how to comfort her.

“There are still more good people in this world, Tingting. You’ve only seen one side of it; everything will get better in the future…” Ye Fan didn’t want negative emotions to take root in her young mind too early.

“That’s right, your Big Brother is a good person. He’s helping us like this, and both he and Tingting will live long lives,” the old man said, a benevolent smile on his face. “Today, I’ll stew the roe deer meat for Tingting to eat.”

Following Ye Fan’s suggestion, the old man closed the small restaurant. At noon, the three of them enjoyed a rich meal. Little Tingting’s cheeks were flushed, and a smile finally reappeared on her face.

In the afternoon, Ye Fan wandered around the small town, figuring out the Li family’s businesses and the locations of the restaurant and inn that had been taken from the old man. He also indirectly gathered a lot of information from other residents.

He didn't want to act rashly, fearing he might implicate the old man and Little Tingting. Failing to help and instead causing harm would be the most foolish and tragic outcome.

“Several members of the Li family are cultivating in Yanxia Dongtian…” Ye Fan felt very uncertain, as he had only just begun his own cultivation. But that wasn’t even the biggest issue. The most troubling thing was that one member of the Li family was cultivating in a super immortal sect outside the Yan region, and their achievements seemed quite extraordinary.

“The Li family is indeed difficult to deal with. It seems I’ll have to think of other solutions.” This strengthened Ye Fan’s resolve to cultivate. He had to become stronger; otherwise, he would be constantly constrained and unable to freely help Old Man Jiang and poor Little Tingting get justice.

“Those scoundrels who laid hands on him today absolutely cannot be let off.” Ye Fan did not rush into action; impulsiveness would only lead to trouble. He calmly returned to the small restaurant, entered his room, and began to meditate. He hadn't thoroughly examined the golden page and the mysterious green copper since acquiring them, so he decided to start with the golden page.

He circulated the profound techniques of the Dao Scripture and began to introspect. His golden sea of suffering, the size of a soybean, was like a divine moon fixed in the darkness. In the center of this golden sea lay the ancient and imposing green copper block, motionless, as stable as a rock, and utterly silent.

Meanwhile, the golden page was pushed to the edge of the sea of suffering, radiating flowing brilliance and bursts of divine splendor. The dense, tiny characters on it shimmered like stars, emitting golden light, appearing sacred and ethereal. The golden page seemed to want to return to the center of the sea of suffering, but no matter how it shone with myriad divine lights, brilliant as a rainbow, it could not budge the green copper even an inch, thus remaining at the periphery.

Ye Fan’s mind was completely immersed in the golden page within the sea of suffering, but he encountered the same problem as before: every tiny character on the gleaming golden page shot out needle-like beams of light, causing him intense mental pain and making it impossible to discern the words.

“How can this be? Is there no way to cultivate the profound techniques on this golden page?” Ye Fan frowned. It felt like owning a mountain of treasure but being unable to extract any of its riches, not even a single copper coin.

Suddenly, Ye Fan seemed to remember something and reached into his pocket.

A dark, gray Bodhi seed appeared in his hand. It was as large as a walnut, with natural patterns on its surface that, when connected, formed the image of a Buddha.

The Buddha image was naturally formed, completely evolved by nature, appearing dim, ancient, and organic, subtly emanating a sense of Zen.

“Bodhi trees can help people achieve enlightenment. I’ll try using this Bodhi seed!” It was precisely because of this Bodhi seed that Ye Fan had obtained a mysterious ancient scripture in the bronze ancient coffin. Since he couldn’t currently view the profound techniques recorded on the golden page, he decided to try using this miraculous Bodhi seed.

The Bodhi tree also goes by other names: the Tree of Wisdom, the Tree of Enlightenment, and the Tree of Thought. Legend says it can awaken one’s divine nature and self-awareness.

The moment Ye Fan grasped the Bodhi seed, he began to circulate the profound techniques recorded in the Dao Scripture. Immediately, threads of golden light overflowed from his sea of suffering and converged towards the Bodhi seed.

In that moment, whether it was an illusion or the Bodhi seed truly working, he felt his mind become completely ethereal and profoundly serene. He began to introspect his sea of suffering again, focusing on the golden page.

“It really works…” Ye Fan was utterly astonished. The Bodhi seed rendered his mind ethereal and perfectly still. He could easily see through the golden light and discern the ancient characters on the golden page. The blinding, needle-like golden rays seemed to soften instantly, no longer hurting his eyes.

“I’ve unlocked a treasure!” Even while holding the Bodhi seed, Ye Fan found it hard to remain calm. He was incredibly excited; he had opened the complete Dao Scripture, Wheel Sea Volume.

The ancient characters transformed into divine brilliance, continuously imprinting themselves onto his mind, shining like countless stars.