Chapter 5

This set of the Magic Ox Great Strength Fist is the pinnacle technique of the Body Tempering stage from the Western Zen Sect's Heavenly Zen Temple. It is not easily taught to anyone outside the direct lineage of the Heavenly Zen Temple.

Chen Liao was also fortunate to catch the eye of Zen Master Jiu Ru, and thus received this technique.

Chen Liao, moved by Xu Yi's act of saving him, passed on this technique to Xu Yi.

However, Chen Liao never imagined that Xu Yi, with this Magic Ox Great Strength Fist, would reach the peak of Body Tempering in just two years.

Chen Liao took ten years!

Chen Liao's junior brother, Bei Chen, took three years, and even so, he was already hailed as a genius that the Heavenly Zen Sect produced once every fifty years.

Chen Liao knew that Bei Chen's breakthrough within three years was not just due to the Magic Ox Great Strength Fist; the Heavenly Zen Temple had also invested a vast amount of precious medicinal herbs.

What did this young peasant have? He merely earned some copper coins by telling stories, and at most, used his monthly savings to buy some low-grade medicinal herbs!

To reach this point in just two years was nothing short of a miracle!

"Your talent surpasses all I have ever heard. Without my master's command, I privately taught you the Magic Ox Great Strength Fist, which made me uneasy. But seeing your talent today, even my master, Zen Master Jiu Ru, would not blame me."

Chen Liao's face was full of satisfaction as he clasped his hands and chanted the Buddha's name.

Xu Yi said, "I am naturally dull, but I can only make up for it with diligence. If others practice once, I can practice ten or a hundred times. I believe that diligence can make up for lack of talent!"

"Diligence can make up for lack of talent! What a wonderful saying! Your words show your character! Well, I don't have much time left. Please focus and listen carefully."

Then, Chen Liao began to recount an old story.

It turned out that when Chen Liao was thirty, he broke through to the Qi Sea realm from the peak of Body Tempering, and was thus appointed as the custodian of the Heavenly Zen Temple's Sutra Pavilion.

In the years that followed, Chen Liao's life didn't change much. He continued to pursue the path of martial arts, sweeping the Sutra Pavilion and organizing the scriptures. Fifteen years passed in a flash.

One day, news spread that Chen Liao had stolen a treasure scripture and fled from the Sutra Pavilion!

The high-ranking officials of the Heavenly Zen Temple were enraged, and a massive manhunt began.

Chen Liao fled from the Western Regions to the Central Plains, eventually reaching Guang'an, where he died in a battle! This led to his encounter with Xu Yi as a ghost.

Chen Liao originally did not intend to reveal this secret to Xu Yi, but because his ghostly form was about to dissipate and he had a significant request for Xu Yi, he told him everything.

"Without breaking through to the Qi Sea realm within sixty years, there is no hope for the rest of one's life! Chen Liao ultimately could not escape the great fear of life and death, and out of fear, he coveted the treasure scripture and stole it! Perhaps heaven intended to punish me, for this treasure scripture was beyond the grasp of an ordinary person. In the end, I was like a bamboo basket drawing water, a mirage, all in vain. Today, as I am about to dissipate, with no regrets, my only regret is that the treasure scripture cannot be returned to the Heavenly Zen Temple. I humbly request that you, on my behalf, return the treasure scripture to the Heavenly Zen Temple!"

As he spoke, Chen Liao was about to kneel.

Xu Yi, who regarded Chen Liao as a master, would not accept such a great gesture, and quickly stepped aside, saying, "I will do as you command, without hesitation!"

At that moment, another fierce gust of wind blew, and with a whoosh, it tore away Chen Liao's remaining arm.

Xu Yi was at a loss, but he heard Chen Liao, with a pained expression, speak a few words. As soon as he finished, a sudden strong wind rose in the forest, and Chen Liao's broken ghostly form was blown away.

Xu Yi stood there for a long time, overwhelmed with sorrow, staring at the desolate forest. The forest was silent, and a thin mist hung in the air, but there was no sign of Chen Liao.

He shouted and howled, his mournful cries startling the cranes and tigers in the vast mountains, the echoes lingering for a long time. As the sky in the east gradually turned white, the dense mountains were filled with the sounds of birds and young tigers, but there was no more sign of Chen Liao's spirit.

Suddenly, Xu Yi knelt down, tears streaming down his face, his mind filled with memories of Chen Liao's appearance and laughter.

At some point, a ray of morning light pierced through the forest. Xu Yi finally composed himself, split wood into a tombstone, and dug a grave, placing three incense sticks in it, and barely managed to create a grave for Chen Liao.

Half an hour later, Xu Yi appeared at the foot of Huayin Mountain, a wild boar the size of a calf on his shoulder.

Having reached the peak of Body Tempering, Xu Yi felt a much greater sense of physical strength and pleasure than before. It was a feeling of everything being under his control.

In the past, he could also hunt in the mountains, but he could never do so with such ease, breaking branches for arrows and molding earth into cannons, acting with abandon.

Looking up at the sky, it was just past the third hour of the morning, and the sun was gradually rising. In the distance, on the lush terraced fields, countless farmers were working, some with hoes, some with plows, and some leading oxen, moving through the greenery.

The poetic and picturesque scene calmed Xu Yi's agitated heart. As he focused, a thick column of smoke rose from the northwest.

Shifting his gaze, Xu Yi threw the wild boar off his shoulder and shot toward the smoke like a bolt of lightning.

It turned out that the thick smoke was coming from Xu Yi's small wooden house, which had been passed down for two generations and was his only shelter.

After running a few steps, a sharp dog bark echoed!

"Bad, it's Da Huang!"

Xu Yi's eyes widened in rage, his blood boiling, and his legs moved like a windmill. He covered the ten-mile distance in an instant, but it was too late!

The wooden house was reduced to ashes, not even a frame remained.

In the open space in front of the house, a cross-shaped stake was driven into the ground, and Da Huang's four limbs were pierced through by sharp wooden wedges, nailed to the stake.

The skin on Da Huang's head was torn open, revealing the gruesome red and white flesh beneath.

Despite such severe injuries, Da Huang was still alive, his cloudy eyes, bloodshot from the pain, looking at Xu Yi, tears streaming down his face.

Xu Yi held Da Huang, his wails silent, his face contorted with veins bulging, his eyes almost bursting with blood.

Placing his large hand on Da Huang's head, Da Huang's cries ceased.

Memories flooded Xu Yi's mind. Childhood memories of riding on Da Huang's back, playing; during summer nights, Da Huang staying awake all night, wagging his tail to drive away mosquitoes; after his parents' death, the family's decline, and living on thin porridge, Da Huang running into Huayin Mountain, covered in blood, dragging back wild chickens and rabbits...

Though Da Huang was an animal, he was like a brother, like a father!

Xu Yi's heart was torn apart. He took Da Huang's body, holding it in his arms, tears and blood streaming down his face, the immense grief driving him to run madly.

In the lush forest, it was as if a prehistoric beast had burst forth, crushing all the grass and trees in its path, like a giant plow.

He ran up the mountain, then down into the valley, not knowing where he was, his mind a blank.

After an unknown amount of time, Xu Yi was exhausted from running and howling. His thoughts gradually cleared, and he dug a grave, burying Da Huang, wiping away his tears, and heading down the mountain.

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