Beneath the Glazed Pagoda, Xin Ji wore a serene and tranquil smile as he gazed at Dor Chad, who resembled a celestial demon, and spoke peacefully: “Lay devotee, your injuries are quite severe.”
“So what? Killing you is more than enough!” Dor Chad coldly replied before rushing forward with his entire body, his fists swirling with hurricanes and lightning illuminating the sky, his ferocity unmatched!
Xin Ji’s smile deepened, his voice ethereal and peaceful:
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows; like dew and like lightning—thus should one perceive them.”
Though not loud, his voice echoed around. Xin Ji raised his right hand, making a gesture as if holding a flower.
Behind him, the glazed Buddha Pagoda began to radiate a brilliant glow, beams of sacred Buddhist light streaming forth as faint murmurs of chanting reverberated in the air.
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows; like dew and like lightning—thus should one perceive them.”
The glowing lights seemed like Arhats, Vajrapani, Bodhisattvas, and Buddhas, all producing solemn and ethereal chants in unison.
Dor Chad’s eyes narrowed, and for the first time, astonishment appeared on his face: “You actually managed to ‘renounce your body’?”
“This old monk merely gained some understanding in recent years,” Xin Ji’s figure gradually faded, dissolving into the Buddhist light, dispersing into the universe.
“Cursed!” Dor Chad’s black robe swelled, gusts of wind swirling around him, making him appear like a human storm, with streaks of lightning circling him.
Xin Ji’s physical body completely disintegrated, leaving only a faint silhouette. His right hand, still in the gesture of holding a flower, gently brushed forward, his smile pure and serene, untouched by any dust.
The countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the sky vanished, and all the Buddhist light merged into this single finger. The surroundings became peaceful and serene, with only the chanting still echoing:
“All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows; like dew and like lightning—thus should one perceive them.”
…
Crackling sounds filled the air as Meng Qi and Qi Zhengyan entered a secret passage, feeling along its walls for a while before finally locating the concealed mechanism.
“Now Dor Chad won’t be able to find us…” Meng Qi used small talk to mask the turmoil within.
Qi Zhengyan pulled out flint and a paper torch from his robe, dispelling the darkness and illuminating the surroundings.
It was a passage wide enough for two people. The stone ceiling was uneven, and the stone walls on both sides were rough and uneven, covered with moss.
“This doesn’t seem purely man-made; it must be a naturally formed passage that was later modified,” Qi Zhengyan observed carefully, then walked a few steps ahead to a wider and flatter area where he gently placed Zhang Yuanshan down.
Meng Qi suppressed his emotions, imitating Qi Zhengyan’s actions as he chose a gentle patch of ground to place Jiang Zhiwei down. Then he said solemnly: “Senior Brother Qi, I’ll scout ahead to ensure there are no enemies hiding inside.”
Since even an ordinary little novice could enter the back mountains, Meng Qi believed there were only the Stupa and no demons or monsters here. He thus steeled his courage and decided to explore this secret passage. Given the similarity in the Shaolin Temple’s terrain between the two worlds, he speculated the end of this passage might reveal secrets about his own Shaolin Temple’s hidden routes, possibly offering him significant benefits.
Moreover, having learned about the “infinite stream” concept and the “task evaluation” system after the last cycle ended, Meng Qi suspected that exploring hidden places might be a crucial factor in task evaluations.
Qi Zhengyan gave Meng Qi a blank stare, then pulled out another paper torch from his robe, lit it, and handed it to Meng Qi: “Junior Brother Zhending, please go ahead. I need to stay here to guard Senior Brother Zhang and the others in case poisonous insects or snakes approach.”
Huh? Meng Qi had prepared a whole speech to persuade Qi Zhengyan not to follow him into the passage, since the contents ahead were still unknown. If Qi happened to become greedy, things could get complicated. Unexpectedly, Qi Zhengyan was considerate enough to volunteer to stay behind even before Meng Qi could speak.
“Then I’ll leave you to it, Senior Brother Qi.” Meng Qi didn’t dwell on the matter, lit his torch, and ventured deeper into the passage. He remained alert for any enemies lurking in the darkness ahead while also watching cautiously for possible ambushes from behind.
After Meng Qi’s figure disappeared around a corner and his footsteps grew distant, Zhang Yuanshan suddenly opened his eyes. Though weak, his voice was steady: “Junior Brother Qi, I didn’t expect you to choose to stay behind directly.”
“I suffered backlash and my strength has greatly diminished; I’m no match for Junior Brother Zhending.” Qi Zhengyan leaned against the wall, sat cross-legged, and replied calmly, “If I rashly followed him, when encountering secrets or treasures that can only be known by one person, what would you have Junior Brother Zhending do—kill me or spare me? Everyone has greed; I won’t risk testing Junior Brother Zhending’s Buddhist heart, so I’d rather stay here.”
Zhang Yuanshan nodded slightly, then suddenly smiled: “After your injury, you’ve indeed become more talkative.”
Qi Zhengyan’s face darkened instantly, turning his head away.
Zhang Yuanshan smiled again, closed his eyes once more, and continued healing. Jiang Zhiwei remained completely focused, seemingly oblivious to the outside world.
Following the passage, Meng Qi walked for a while, feeling he had already deeply entered the back mountains.
The flickering flame cast a yellowish glow, making the path feel oppressive and dim, creating an indescribable pressure on Meng Qi. It felt as if the torch might extinguish at any moment, plunging the world back into darkness, from which demons and monsters might emerge to devour him whole.
After walking further, Meng Qi stopped in confusion, as it seemed he had reached the end of the passage. The wall curved into a semicircle, suggesting a hidden chamber.
There was a decayed meditation mat, and stone beds and tables.
“Could this be the dwelling place of some great cultivator?” Meng Qi speculated inwardly. He carefully scanned the surroundings once more before stepping forward.
As the torchlight illuminated the wall, Meng Qi faintly saw several lines of text.
“Oh, it’s Sanskrit.” After all, Meng Qi was an outstanding student from the Sutra Lecture Hall and was no stranger to Sanskrit. He squinted, trying hard to recognize the characters.
“If one does not enter the mundane world, does not endure the sea of suffering, and does not violate precepts, how can one understand the true meaning of the rules, how can one penetrate the illusion of worldly affairs, perceive one’s own Buddha-nature, and realize the wondrous emptiness?”
Meng Qi’s knowledge of Sanskrit wasn’t profound. He struggled to piece the sentences together, unsure if there were any errors or omissions, but he had grasped the general meaning.
“This saying is indeed quite profound…” Meng Qi murmured to himself. Lowering the torchlight, he looked toward the signature.
“A… Nan… A Nan?” Meng Qi was so shocked his jaw dropped. Wasn’t this the Venerable One who sat before the Buddha?
Wait a moment, wasn’t there a Buddhist story about him breaking his vows and leaving?
The Sanskrit name “A Nan” was written in flowing calligraphy, carved with a knife, subtly exuding sharpness while also containing a faint serenity. Meng Qi was drawn to it and extended his right hand, attempting to touch it.
As soon as his palm made contact, Meng Qi suddenly felt an icy chill. Before his eyes, a blade of light erupted, like a true dragon entering the sea or a fierce tiger returning to the mountains. All obstacles were cut through in a single stroke.
The blade’s light was terrifying. Meng Qi couldn’t react at all, only watching helplessly as the blade light approached him, transforming into countless variations, manifesting as the myriad aspects of the mundane world.
Birth brings suffering, aging brings suffering, illness brings suffering, death brings suffering. The blade light displayed infinite profundity, finally culminating in a single strike that severed all shackles!
Within the light, Meng Qi vaguely saw a monk—his age and appearance indistinct—only sensing the monk’s deeply sorrowful and resolute expression.
The torchlight dimmed, and the Sanskrit inscriptions on the wall returned to dust, drifting down silently.
Meng Qi finally came to his senses, somewhat bewildered by the scene before him. What had just happened? The blade’s transformations and the sense of worldly suffering still lingered deeply in his mind.
The dust settled, forming words:
“Acquired the true essence inheritance of ‘Ananda’s Break Vow Blade Technique,’ comprehended the incomplete form of the first move ‘Severing Purity.'”
Meng Qi’s mouth hung open for a long moment before he finally closed it. At last, he understood what had transpired. As Jiang Zhiwei had previously explained, the divine techniques and moves of the Dharmakaya level, along with some peak-level External Scenery skills, are not transmitted through written texts but rather through their true essence. However, the objects that bear this essence can sometimes only be used once, while others may endure for generations. The extent of one’s comprehension—or whether one comprehends anything at all—depends entirely on the individual. Once one fully masters these techniques, they can leave behind their own true essence inheritance.
This was how Jiang Zhiwei managed to grasp the fundamentals of the “Sword of Selflessness.” The insights she comprehended, if compiled into a manual, would be worth at most eight or nine hundred good deeds—less than a tenth of the original’s value.
“I recall that the ‘Ananda’s Vow-Breaking Saber Technique’ in our temple isn’t considered a true core inheritance…” Meng Qi pondered in confusion. Since the Vajra Temple specialized in saber techniques, Xuan Xin had specifically mentioned that Shaolin possessed a saber technique comparable to theirs—the ‘Ananda’s Vow-Breaking Saber Technique,’ which stood at the pinnacle of the External Scene level. When fully mastered, it could even touch upon the laws of heaven and earth. He also mentioned that a former eminent monk had borrowed the manual and mastered this saber technique, ultimately becoming a grandmaster of the saber path.
Therefore, Meng Qi knew this blade technique was passed down through manuals within the Shaolin Temple.
Due to his limited knowledge of temple anecdotes, Meng Qi couldn’t guess its origin. But he had no time to speculate further. He quickly closed his eyes, focused intently on recalling what he had just obtained, and repeatedly pondered the variations of the incomplete ‘Severing Purity.’
After all, the ‘Ananda’s Break Vow Blade Technique’ cost nine thousand good deeds to exchange—three thousand for the core principles, and one thousand two hundred for each move. Forgetting it would be a huge loss!
Receiving the true essence inheritance was equivalent to obtaining the core principles, albeit one that required gradual contemplation and understanding. Moreover, compared to the core principles, the true essence inheritance could directly allow one to comprehend five moves of the blade technique.
Of course, this demanded an exceptionally high level of enlightenment. For instance, even though Meng Qi had directly received the inheritance, he had only grasped an incomplete version of the first move.
“Why is it an incomplete form…” Meng Qi opened his eyes slightly disappointed. An incomplete form meant he couldn’t practice it yet.
Although fully unleashing the power of the “Ananda’s Break Vow Blade Technique” required reaching the External Scenery realm and triggering changes in the external world, mastering even its rudiments now would grant him a hidden trump card. Even if it couldn’t rival Jiang Zhiwei’s “Sword of Selflessness” in might, it would undoubtedly be both exquisite and formidable.
Taking a light breath, Meng Qi temporarily set this aside and continued searching the stone chamber for anything else.
Walking halfway around the chamber, under the torchlight, Meng Qi noticed something resembling a stone door.
It had only faint traces remaining on the wall, with familiar words carved around it.
“Those who value emotions, righteousness, and benevolence should not enter this door.”
As Meng Qi recited the words, he instinctively placed his right hand gently on the stone door, intending only to feel it, not to push it open.
As soon as his hand touched it, an indescribable chill and terror invaded Meng Qi’s mind. Mangled corpses and limbs, evil ghosts and celestial demons, all appeared before his eyes.
Then, a flame ignited amidst the pitch-black sky, burning everything to ashes, directly targeting Meng Qi.
Meng Qi’s face turned pale as he hastily retreated, breaking free from the stone door. The visions before him gradually faded.
After catching his breath for a moment, Meng Qi discovered that his back was drenched in cold sweat, his entire body weak, as if he had suffered severe injuries.
“This is truly bizarre…” Meng Qi thought, regulating his breath to recover, and dared not touch the stone door again.
At this moment, he noticed a tiny, unfathomably deep hole beneath the stone door. It seemed as if indescribable flames were burning inside, with a few small characters written beside it.
“Those with a fickle and ungrateful heart shall be killed!”
What did all this even mean… Meng Qi thought helplessly.
…
At the edge of the forest, Dor Chad stood silently, gazing at the lingering traces.
His left shoulder and arm were completely gone, his whole body trembling uncontrollably, yet he still stood straight.
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