Chapter 53: Vision

Shaking his head, Meng Qi decided to ignore them and continued cultivating the Golden Bell Cover, since it had nothing to do with him anyway.

He didn’t know how much time had passed when he once again heard footsteps approaching from afar, realizing it must be Zhen Chang and others returning. Out of curiosity about what the demonic creature who had betrayed the Cui family looked like, he opened his eyes and glanced over.

Behind the four men followed a tall figure with unsteady steps, long hair hanging loose and covering his face, with no trace of demonic presence on his body.

“After transforming, the demon appears flawless. How will I distinguish them in the future?” Meng Qi thought with slight concern. Yet he quickly dismissed the worry, knowing that demon clans had a long history and formidable strength. However, humans now dominated the martial world, meaning ancestors must have left behind abundant experience in dealing with them.

When they passed Meng Qi again, Xuan Ku, Zhen Chang, and the middle-aged man from the Cui family paid no attention to him, since he was merely practicing an ordinary martial art, nothing strange at all.

However, the young man, still carrying a hint of youthful innocence, deliberately slowed his pace, moving closer to the outside of the Cold Turtle’s prison, wanting to observe the untransformed demon closely.

He was very curious and had been seeking opportunities all the way. Yet he knew that most of the demons imprisoned here were terrifyingly powerful, and approaching recklessly could easily result in injury from their malevolent aura. Thus, he finally chose the Fire Crane and the Cold Turtle.

If a young, weak little monk could cultivate outside their cells, they surely weren’t particularly formidable or dangerous demons.

The young man’s skin radiated a faint purple glow, warding off the chill as he approached the Cold Turtle.

Roar!

Suddenly provoked by the approach of a human and an inexplicable disturbance, the Cold Turtle erupted, rushing to the iron bars, mouth wide open, roaring furiously while spewing freezing coldness.

Around the cage, countless mantras lit up one after another, and Buddhist chants echoed from nowhere, blocking the cold and demonic aura, though some still seeped through.

Triggered by this, the Fire Crane on the other side also flapped its wings, flying out from the corner, surrounded by rolling flames and surging demonic energy.

Though separated by the cage, the escaped demonic energy, icy chill, and scorching heat intensified significantly, causing Meng Qi to suffer again. The fourth gate of the Golden Bell Cover activated instinctively, his body radiating a dim golden glow.

The young man, not yet accustomed to the demonic aura, was directly overwhelmed, his legs weakening, the purple glow on his skin freezing inch by inch.

Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang, unaccustomed to such a situation, were momentarily affected by the demonic aura and the intense cold and heat, slightly stunned.

The long-haired demon still kept his head lowered, as if nothing had happened, while the middle-aged Cui family member gazed at him with an ambiguous smile, his right hand wrapped in purple energy reaching toward his son.

Enduring the pain, Meng Qi raised his head, slowly scanning the Cold Turtle and Fire Crane—the two culprits!

When Meng Qi coldly stared at them, the Cold Turtle suddenly froze, as if recalling something, then immediately retreated to the corner, tucking limbs and head into its shell.

The flapping Fire Crane also calmed down, silently returning to its corner, turning its back to Meng Qi.

“Eh…” Meng Qi himself felt astonished at their reaction.

“Hao’er, let’s go,” the middle-aged Cui family member said gravely. Since the danger had passed, his right hand resumed its position behind his back.

Still shaken, the young man didn’t speak much, tightly following behind.

Still shocked and puzzled, Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang opened their mouths but didn’t know what to say, so they silently continued forward.

After exiting the prison, while Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang were canceling the “extraction token” with the tower guardian monks, the young man finally regained his senses, angrily saying, “Father, that little monk must have commanded the demons to scare me! Look how obedient they became afterward; they must have been tamed by him!”

“It wasn’t him who commanded the demons,” the middle-aged man sighed. “Hao’er, you couldn’t tell that their retreat wasn’t obedience, but fear?”

“Fear?” The young man disbelievingly echoed. Would such powerful demons fear a weak novice monk?

The middle-aged man looked at him carefully. “Hao’er, weren’t you originally planning to travel during this outing?”

“Yes,” the young man didn’t understand why his father suddenly brought this up.

The middle-aged man, hands behind his back, watched the approaching Zhen Chang and Xuan Ku, solemnly saying, “With your current insight, traveling would only mean seeking death. You should stay home for another couple of years.”

“Father!” The young man was struck like by thunder, receiving this sudden blow.

“Your Uncle Qingyu and I will discuss it,” the middle-aged man said firmly, allowing no objection.

…

“They were actually afraid of me?” Meng Qi recalled the previous details, reaching this baffling conclusion. Two powerful demons, far stronger than his current self, were actually afraid of him!

“Could it be that while I was immersed in that profound state of comprehension earlier, their minds were affected by the lingering intent of the ‘Ananda Breaking Precepts Blade Technique’ I had unleashed, and they haven’t yet overcome their fear?”

Meng Qi pondered the reasons. If other experts at the same level as these two demons had been affected by his blade intent, it would only last momentarily and wouldn’t leave a lasting shadow or fear. But these demons, sealed and imprisoned here, couldn’t fully utilize their strength, constantly suffering mental torment, and were constantly influenced by the “Buddha’s Light” and “Sutras” emanating from the relics above the Stupa, leaving their minds full of vulnerabilities.

Since the Fire Crane, Cold Turtle, and Chuiyizi had all moved far away from him, the tempering effect was greatly diminished. As he hadn’t brought any “Ginseng Qi Nourishing Pills” with him, Meng Qi simply stood up, stretched his limbs, donned his monk’s robe, and left the stupa directly.

The sun shone brightly, the spring air rushing to greet him.

“It’s almost three months since I last truly saw the sun. Never thought it could be so pleasant,” Meng Qi chuckled, squinting his eyes and taking a few deep breaths, suddenly feeling life was wonderful.

During this period, Meng Qi had been coming early and leaving late, often entering the Stupa before the sun fully rose after breakfast, and only leaving when the sun had set.

Of course, this was also due to the short daylight hours at the end of winter and beginning of spring.

Walking with a light step, Meng Qi headed beyond the back mountains. Along the way, the patrolling monks gave him puzzled glances—why was he leaving so early today? Had he finally become lax?

—Although they worked in shifts, Meng Qi had been there for nearly three months, so they were familiar with him, knowing there was a little novice monk who practiced inside the Stupa daily and usually only came out when it was dark.

Meng Qi paid no attention to their glances, happily enjoying the bright spring day, the red soil underfoot no longer affecting him at all.

Passing through the narrow path between two peaks, Meng Qi returned to the most familiar place, slightly stunned as he gazed at the forest.

Although he still didn’t grasp the deeper connection, it was during his time guarding this place and discovering the True View that his strength had made a significant leap forward.

Thus, he wandered into the forest, planning to check the hidden passage and see if anyone was guarding it.

Sure enough, near the red boulder, two yellow-robed monks were vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

Fearing discovery, Meng Qi dared not approach and turned to leave, heading out of the forest.

He could temporarily move freely in and out of the back mountains, but he had no right to spy on the guards.

As he walked, Meng Qi suddenly saw a familiar figure approaching.

“Senior Brother Zhen Yong?” Meng Qi greeted slightly surprised.

Zhen Yong was startled, taking several steps back before recognizing Meng Qi, then patted his chest and said, “Junior Brother Zhen Ding, you scared me to death. What are you doing here?”

“I was passing by, curious about the hidden passage, so I sneaked in to take a look,” Meng Qi, not wanting to think up other excuses, said bluntly, since it wasn’t a big deal, and he hadn’t been caught on the spot by the guards. “Senior Brother Zhen Yong, what about you?”

Zhen Yong, holding his stomach, grinned, “A man’s got his needs. I’m guarding the area ahead today.”

“Oh,” Meng Qi recalled how he had used this excuse before to sneak in for blade practice, feeling slightly awkward but saying nothing more and taking his leave.

Returning to the courtyard, as expected, Meng Qi saw his master Xuan Bei practicing sword techniques again.

“Why are you back so early? Could it be you temporarily can’t withstand the simultaneous cold and heat?” Xuan Bei stopped his blade practice, asking without any sign of blame on his face.

After returning to the temple, Meng Qi had been pondering whether and how to tell his master. But now that he remembered Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang had seen his golden glow resisting the cold and heat, he finally made up his mind—it was the external manifestation of successfully completing the fourth gate of the Golden Bell Cover!

Seeing Meng Qi hesitate, Xuan Bei gave a reassuring smile: “Haste makes waste. Perhaps I’ve been too demanding. Don’t lose heart.”

Meng Qi lowered his head, honestly answering, “Master, I’ve completed the fourth gate of the Golden Bell Cover.”