The young Taoist reached out to take the five silver notes, swept his mind over the official seals, and confirmed they were genuine.

Then he looked at Mr. Carter and smiled.

“Remember, do good deeds and accumulate virtue.”

——

Afternoon, outside the city.

The young Taoist untied a cloth bag and gave it a shake.

Immediately, a wisp of black smoke fell to the ground, rolled over, and transformed into a small beast.

This little beast was similar in shape to a bear, but no more than three feet tall, covered in black fur, with crimson eyes radiating a fierce, sinister aura.

Whoosh!

The little beast suddenly lunged forward.

The young Taoist didn’t dodge at all.

The little bear hugged his thigh, looked up, and in its crimson eyes, a watery, glistening light flickered.

“Samuel Brooks, how much silver did we make this time?”

“Fifty taels.”

The young Taoist sighed, “This Mr. Carter is truly generous. As per our usual arrangement, a nine-to-one split—your five taels will be kept with me for now… Once we’ve saved enough, when the temple is built, the woodshed in the backyard will be yours to live in.”

The little bear nodded happily and quickly said, “Alright, alright!”

Not long ago, it had been enlightened, gained intelligence, and become a disciple of this Taoist, though it only got to eat, not to live there.

Later, the Taoist said that as long as it contributed money, it could buy a spot in the temple. Once the temple was built, it would have a place in the backyard and wouldn’t have to sleep out in the open, exposed to the elements.

It had no money, so it could only follow the Taoist to earn some. Fortunately, the Taoist was generous and gave it a full ten percent share.

At this rate, in less than ten years, it could at least buy a thatched hut in the temple.

——

“It’s been half a year since I transmigrated.”

Samuel Brooks looked up at the sky, his expression dazed.

His current identity was the head of Baihong Temple.

In the past six months, Baihong Temple’s fortunes had soared, flourishing under his efforts, and now it was bustling with people.

At present, besides himself as the head, the temple also had this bear clan’s guardian demon!

The previous head of Baihong Temple had also possessed magical powers, but a year ago, he went down the mountain to subdue demons and was killed by one on the spot.

The temple’s only disciple, Samuel, naturally became the new head. After finishing all the food in the temple, he had no choice but to go down the mountain to wander.

Half a month later, Samuel starved to death on the street.

Then, when the dead Taoist opened his eyes again, he had become the transmigrator Samuel Brooks.

The resurrected Samuel Brooks inherited some fragmented memories and reflected on the cause of his death.

He possessed true teachings and exceptional martial skills, yet starved to death on the street—there was simply no sense in it.

He concluded that the main reason was his predecessor’s stubborn character, unwilling to adapt, proud of his orthodox Taoist heritage, and unwilling to lower his status.

He refused to use his martial skills to rob people, nor did he want to use his abilities to find another way to make a living. He only thought about exorcising demons, helping people avert disasters, and getting by with a meal here and there.

But in the Great Xia Dynasty, a time of peace and prosperity, with Buddhism and Taoism coexisting, there was simply no place for demons or monsters.

With no evil to fight, people didn’t need exorcists.

So the orthodox Taoist Samuel Brooks starved to death on the street.

After transmigrating, Samuel Brooks learned his lesson, went into the mountains, and stole a bear cub, enlightening it into a bear demon.

From then on, demons and monsters appeared in the world.

And so, people needed someone like Samuel Brooks to exorcise demons and uphold the Tao.

In just half a year, the bear demon caused trouble everywhere, while Samuel Brooks acted chivalrously, did good deeds, exorcised demons, and has already saved up six thousand taels of silver.

Of course, under the guidance of a model youth from the 21st century, the bear demon only targeted the rich and unscrupulous, the corrupt and lawless.

For example, this particular landowner had once raised funds to build a bridge, but secretly cut corners.

“If we save up another ten or twenty thousand taels, we can rebuild the temple and set up the formation.”

Samuel Brooks thought this, rubbed his brow, and mused, “This Chaos Pearl that came with me when I transmigrated can speed up cultivation and enhance combat power, but most importantly, only by setting up the right formation can its power be fully unleashed!”

Once the temple is built, the formation will be complete!

From then on, he would personally guard the temple, using the Chaos Pearl in his brow as the core of the formation.

Then, the spiritual energy in the temple would rival that of a fairyland, and cultivation would progress by leaps and bounds.

All the spiritual energy within the temple’s domain would be drawn in by the Chaos Pearl, aiding his cultivation, and his training speed would increase a hundredfold.

More importantly, with the power of the Chaos Pearl, not only would the formation be strengthened a thousandfold, but his Taoist arts would also be greatly enhanced.

Within the temple’s grounds, even if the Grand Preceptor of Great Xia came in person, he would have nothing to fear.

Thinking this, he put the bear demon back in the bag and set off for the next city.

But after only a few steps, a clear shout suddenly rang out behind him.

“Where do you think you’re going, demon Taoist!”

Chapter 002: Sword Qi Cuts the Current! Spirit Communicates with Ghosts and Gods!

Where do you think you’re going, demon Taoist!

A young girl’s voice, as crisp as silver bells, yet filled with anger and righteous energy!

Samuel Brooks was startled at the words, feeling a bit guilty. He immediately circulated his true energy, wind rising beneath his feet, and sped forward in an instant.

But just then, he heard the girl’s voice again from behind.