Chapter 78

Chapter 77>

When Yeon Sangrok awoke from his long meditation, what came into his field of vision were his comrades, all sitting cross-legged and sorting out their enlightenment.

Some were in a deep state of meditation, and especially Namgung Jangho and Jin Gahui were trembling with ecstasy, deeply immersed in the realm of enlightenment.

Watching his comrades ascend to the supreme realm, a hollow laugh escaped Yeon Sangrok’s lips.

“Haha...!”

At this point, it almost seemed as if the Demon God was truly a deity.

Unable to contain his curiosity any longer, Yeon Sangrok asked the Demon God, who was calmly watching over his comrades, a question.

“O Demon God, what exactly did you do to these guys?”

“Me.”

“Hm?”

Indeed, the vast and boundless demonic aura that had been emanating from his entire body was nowhere to be found. Moreover, the fact that he was grinning mischievously made it clear that he had returned to his original self, Jo Hui.

“Even with my own eyes, I can hardly believe it. Are they really all ascending to a new realm right now?”

“The difference in enlightenment might vary, but more or less, that’s the case.”

“W-What? Is that even possible?”

Jo Hui chuckled.

The Three Deities were not just great because of their martial arts, which had reached the realm of naturalness. Their broad insights and discernment, based on immense experience, were the true reasons they were called deities.

Having felt countless thrills from his master, the Sword Deity, Jo Hui found nothing strange about the current scene.

“Let’s abandon the Zhaoda Competition and open the Three Deities Sect. If we can churn out such masters at this rate, wouldn’t dominating the martial world be as easy as eating cold porridge?”

Jo Hui chuckled at Yeon Sangrok’s words.

The impetuous one before him was a disciple of the formidable Black Heaven Eight Kings.

Moreover, Namgung Jangho was the young sword master of the Namgung family, who had competed with the Huashan Dragon, a prodigy of the younger generation.

Jiang Biwu was also the most cherished successor of the Sichuan Guild, and Jin Gahui possessed formidable martial talent.

The young people gathered here were all prodigies with outstanding talent, recognized throughout the martial world.

Such exceptional insight, where one learns ten things from one lesson, was not something that could be applied to ordinary martial artists.

“Do you really think anyone can digest the teachings of the Three Deities?”

“Hm?”

Though his tone was displeased, his words were actually a compliment to his comrades.

Yeon Sangrok was amazed that even the notoriously ruthless young sword deity would lavish such praise.

“Anyway, the Zhaoda Competition’s strength has skyrocketed.”

After looking at his comrades with satisfaction, Jo Hui soon floated his iron sword into the air.

“Where are you going?”

“Yena Manryak Hwajip.”

“Hm?”

Only then did he realize that Hong Ye was missing.

The events at the Black King Manor had been so chaotic that he had completely forgotten about her existence.

“When we all went to the underground chamber, she stayed behind. Given what she saw and heard, it wouldn’t be strange if she caused some trouble. Do you want to come along?”

“No, go well.”

Yeon Sangrok slumped back down and tightly closed his eyes, and Jo Hui chuckled, then mounted the iron sword.

* * *

Kongkong.

The Living Buddha of Shaolin.

Although Shaolin had a head monk, the actual leader of the contemporary Zen school was undoubtedly Great Master Kongkong.

In the guest hall of Shaolin Temple, Chief Military Advisor Zhuge Chanhui could not hide his tension and anxiety, his eyes darting around.

The thought of having to meet Great Master Kongkong again made his head spin and his back shiver, making it difficult to maintain his composure.

Great Master Kongkong was a venerable old master with the highest attainments of his time, and before the appearance of the Three Heroes of the Inner World, he was a giant of the era, surpassing even the leader of the Martial Arts Alliance.

Zhuge Chanhui, who had learned about such a great master from history books, could not help but be nervous.

“Amitabha...”

“G-Great Master!”

The old monk, undoubtedly Great Master Kongkong, entered the guest hall, softly chanting a Buddhist phrase.

The imprint on his forehead was so faint that one could hardly guess the depth of his years.

His long, white eyebrows hung down, but his youthful, bright red eyes belied his age.

Such youth was the privilege and symbol of a Shaolin Zen master who had maintained the Child’s Skill for many years.

“Haha... Sit down.”

“Yes!”

How could he, the Chief Military Advisor representing the Martial Arts Alliance’s military department, assert his authority before the Living Buddha of the Zen school?

“Though it must have been a difficult and painful decision... Have you cast off all your afflictions?”

A difficult and painful decision.

He must be referring to the impeachment of the previous Martial Emperor and his faction, and the enthronement of his elder brother as the new Martial Emperor.

Zhuge Chanhui bit his lip.

“If I had considered righteousness or conscience, I could never have carried out such a grand plan. There is no affliction or regret.”

“Amitabha... Well done. Well done.”

At this, Zhuge Chanhui’s brows furrowed.

Well done?

How could betraying the previous Martial Emperor and enthroning his elder brother as the new leader be something that pleased Great Master Kongkong?

He still couldn’t understand the reason.

“Your face is filled with troubled worries, hiding your suffering. Amitabha... When you have forgotten all your afflictions, come again.”

After finishing his words, Great Master Kongkong stood up with an indifferent expression.

Instantly, Zhuge Chanhui’s fists clenched.

His grand plan had all stemmed from Great Master Kongkong’s intentions.

It was a perilous decision that could never have been made easily without the will of the great elder of the orthodox martial world, the Living Buddha of the Zen school.

At this moment, the Zhuge family was shouldering countless criticisms and harsh responsibilities.

Yet, Great Master Kongkong treated it as if it were someone else’s business, which made Zhuge Chanhui’s anger boil, no matter how senior he was in the martial world.

However, he couldn’t openly show his displeasure.

“The situation is far from easy for our family to handle. Great Master.”

Zhuge Chanhui’s deep voice stirred emotions on Great Master Kongkong’s indifferent face.

“You are a humble junior.”

Though his tone was gentle, it was a rebuke, and Zhuge Chanhui could no longer hold back and stood up abruptly.

“Do you want to be a secret master, manipulating everything from behind the curtain?”

Instantly, a deep light appeared in Great Master Kongkong’s eyes.

“Amitabha... Haha...”

The sound of Great Master Kongkong’s laughter, while chanting a Buddhist phrase, was not just a simple laugh.

It was a powerful resonance, infused with immense will, a manifestation of the Lion’s Roar, which Shaolin was proud of.

“Guh!”

Zhuge Chanhui, unable to withstand the immense pressure that felt like his insides were being flipped, collapsed on the spot.

Despite the unimaginable pain that forced its way through his teeth, he clenched his jaw and swallowed the bitter blood.

“Do you think you can bear everything alone?”

“Guh! Is that not the case!”

Thud!

Great Master Kongkong slammed his palm on the floor, continuing his powerful voice.

“A person’s heart becomes cunning from narrow-mindedness, not reflecting on oneself! Have you already forgotten how I helped to easily quell the opposition of the elders?”

“All the events stemmed from Great Master’s intentions! How can you be so indifferent!”

A look of contempt flashed across Great Master Kongkong’s face.

“You are the Chief Military Advisor of the Martial Arts Alliance.”

“...”

When power shifts, all opposition inevitably brings subsequent troubles and chaos.

Great Master Kongkong was reprimanding the Chief Military Advisor for not properly handling such chaos.

But Zhuge Chanhui felt wronged and wronged.

“The Little Sword Deity is beyond our reach!”

“Beyond our reach?”

Ordinarily, when people refer to something beyond human reach, they call it “beyond the heavens” and keep their distance.

However, Zhuge Chanhui was not an ordinary person but the Chief Military Advisor of the Martial Arts Alliance, who could project immense power and martial prowess across the vast martial world.

For him to so casually refer to something as “beyond the heavens” was not something to be taken lightly.

“Tell me everything that has happened.”

Thus, the Little Sword Deity’s misdeeds began to flow from Zhuge Chanhui’s mouth.

Out of the blue, he welcomed the Three Heroes of the Inner World, the great heroes of the New Year’s Battle, as distinguished guests at the Zhaoda Competition.

He gathered countless orthodox martial artists in Wuzhangping and hosted a grand banquet on a scale never seen before, summoning a martial deity to certify the event before the world.

The orthodox martial artists of Northern Jiang, who were captivated by the cultural artifacts of the Zhaoda Competition, began to indulge in them greedily, and it was now clear that Northern Jiang’s upper class would be consumed by the Zhaoda Competition.

The most perplexing thing for Zhuge Chanhui recently was a strange leather outfit.

One by one, the martial artists of the Martial Arts Alliance began to wear it, and soon the trend spread like wildfire, with almost all the martial artists in the alliance donning the dark and bizarre leather outfits.

The leather outfits were also popular in all the large and small counties and cities on the way to Shaolin, making it a truly astonishing phenomenon.

“A strong person can be subdued by force, and a person with great strategy can be lured by intrigue. But...”

A malicious light appeared in Zhuge Chanhui’s eyes.

“I have never encountered a mad merchant who can transform the culture of the Central Plains martial world like this.”

“Amitabha. A mad merchant... Haha!”

Great Master Kongkong laughed with interest at the Chief Military Advisor’s description.

Zhuge Chanhui’s eyes became even more intense as he continued.

“I cannot predict anything with any of the divine strategies and ghostly tactics I have learned. When I prepare for force, he uses intrigue, and when I prepare for intrigue, he uses wealth. That’s fine, but how can I deal with someone who has stolen the hearts of the Northern Jiang orthodox martial artists?”

“Haha...!”

“In this situation, if we declare the Little Sword Deity and the Zhaoda Competition as enemies of the alliance, the consequences are obvious. More than half, perhaps even more, of the orthodox martial artists will turn their backs on the alliance.”

Great Master Kongkong’s expression became a bit more serious.

“Amitabha, to that extent?”

Zhuge Chanhui clenched his teeth.

“He has become an unparalleled hero through the grand banquet in Wuzhangping. He carries the reputation of the Sword Deity, the ancestor of the orthodox sword school, and the martial deity who ended the New Year’s Battle. Most frighteningly, he has dominated the lives and culture of the orthodox martial artists with the cultural artifacts of the Zhaoda Competition.”

“Hmm...”

“What’s regrettable now is the martial world. They cannot forget his cultural artifacts. If the alliance punishes them, all the resentment and criticism will be directed at us. The alliance might collapse, and its very existence would be in doubt.”

“Amitabha... Haha...!”

“Don’t just laugh. Please show your wisdom, Great Master.”

As Zhuge Chanhui repeatedly expressed his frustration, Great Master Kongkong only smiled faintly and remained silent for a while.

It was a long time before he finally spoke.

“What is the martial world?”

“Yes...?”

Great Master Kongkong smiled and searched through his robe, pulling out a book.

“Haha... I didn’t expect it to happen so soon...”

Zhuge Chanhui’s face showed shock as he read the ancient inscription on the book.

“Great Master! This is...!”

Great Master Kongkong smiled warmly.

“Do not forget the essence of the martial world. It is martial arts.”

The title of the book was the Dharma True Sutra.

The inscription on the cover of the book.

The Dharma True Sutra.

It was the source of the seventy-two supreme techniques of Shaolin and the parent of countless martial arts in the Central Plains that derived from it.

However, while the mysterious legend of the Dharma True Sutra, supposedly left by Bodhidharma, was passed down, no scholar of the martial world, not even the renowned high monks of Shaolin, knew its true nature.

“Is this a real secret manual?”

With a tense expression, Zhuge Chanhui swallowed hard and asked.

“It is the true version left by Bodhidharma himself.”

“Huh!”

Not a fake version, but the true version left by Bodhidharma himself?

While the ancient calligraphy and the mysterious aura emanating from it were indeed extraordinary, he had never imagined it to be the true version.

If Great Master Kongkong’s words were true, the great secret manual had been around for over a thousand years.

Moreover, considering the status of Bodhidharma in the history of the martial world, it could be said to be a treasure worth the entire wealth of a nation.

No treasure in the martial world could compare to the great Dharma True Sutra!

“What is the reason for showing me such an invaluable treasure?”

Great Master Kongkong only smiled enigmatically and handed the Dharma True Sutra to Zhuge Chanhui.

“Now, it belongs to the Martial Arts Alliance.”

“Yes...?”

“How you use the Dharma True Sutra is entirely up to the Chief Military Advisor.”

Zhuge Chanhui’s expression was one of utter bewilderment.

Then, his mind began to work rapidly, trying to understand the hidden meaning in Great Master Kongkong’s words.

“Could it be, Great Master...!”

“Haha, you’ve already thought that far. Indeed, you are the Chief Military Advisor.”

The greatest treasure in the martial world.

Of course, such a Dharma True Sutra possessed the power to completely overturn the chaotic situation in the martial world caused by the Zhaoda Competition.

But could the Thousand-Year Shaolin really overlook this?

Seeing the obvious tension in Zhuge Chanhui, Great Master Kongkong’s calm voice continued.

“Who do you think I am?”

Great Master Kongkong softly chanted a Buddhist phrase and smiled meaningfully.

“Amitabha... I am Kongkong.”

In the contemporary martial world, there was no heavier presence than these words.

Zhuge Chanhui was utterly speechless, his face filled with confusion.

These words meant that he would single-handedly face the opposition of the Thousand-Year Shaolin and the chaos in the martial world.

Moved by such a solemn declaration, Zhuge Chanhui immediately performed a grand bow.

“I will never forget the resolve and consideration shown by Great Master.”

“Haha... Amitabha.”

Great Master Kongkong’s face was filled with a benevolent smile.

However, Zhuge Chanhui did not see the dark aura in his deep, calm eyes.

* * *

Boom!

As the sound of the ceiling collapsing again echoed, Hong Ye, who was organizing documents, was startled.

However, she quickly erased her startled expression and looked at Jo Hui with a “whatever happens, happens” attitude.

“Huh...”

Jo Hui approached Hong Ye with a frightening expression and began to examine the documents she was organizing.

“Hmm? You’ve stripped all the valuable information again?”

When had he infiltrated the Black King Manor’s underground chamber? The documents she was writing were filled with detailed diagrams of the underground chamber, along with numerous annotations.

Hong Ye, amidst the chaos, had thoroughly exercised her professional instincts to gather all the information from the most secret place in the world, the underground chamber.

“Wow! This isn’t something you could do alone. Did you have informants waiting nearby?”

“Of course. Isn’t it obvious? I, Hong Ye, am not someone to be underestimated. What do you think of the owner of the Night Reception?”

“But we didn’t discuss that beforehand, did we?”

“Ha! Is it normal to think that