Chapter 37

"Disperse just like this? What a joke!" Meng Qi muttered to himself, standing up with a righteous air. "Venerable Abbot, do you take us for cowards who fear death?"

"Amitabha, this old monk did not mean that. All of you have been injured..." Xin Ji still tried to persuade them to leave, but he couldn't openly say that Shaolin had already decided to abandon this place. Guarding it further would be futile. If he did, Duercha might find out and launch a full-scale attack, leaving the monks no time to evacuate.

"Venerable Abbot, do you look down on us because we are injured and useless?" Meng Qi's face was filled with righteous indignation, skillfully distorting Xin Ji's words.

At this moment, the chief elders of Shaolin Temple gathered behind Xin Ji, preventing Meng Qi and his companions from suddenly attacking.

Hearing Meng Qi's words, the monks, who claimed to be the righteous path of martial arts, naturally couldn't openly say that they were indeed useless. They mumbled, and no one responded.

"This old monk is severely injured, as are Jiang and Zhang. Duercha, on the other hand, is unscathed. The prospects of this battle are bleak. You are not Shaolin disciples, why should you waste your lives defending Shaolin, only to perish together with it? Even among the Shaolin monks, there are very few with such resolve, for it is truly meaningless. Perhaps only those like this old monk, who are nearing the end of our lives, would be willing to give up this mortal coil."

"Why don't you preserve your lives for a better time?"

Xin Ji was almost saying outright that only he would stay to defend Shaolin, while the others could escape. Why should these unrelated strangers act like heroes and go mad?

Meng Qi took a step forward, clasped his hands together, and solemnly recited a Buddhist chant: "Amitabha, some deaths are lighter than a feather, others heavier than Mount Tai. We are willing to sacrifice our lives for justice, and today is the day!"

All the monks, including Xin Ji, were stunned. They had never seen anyone so determined to sacrifice themselves to save others!

And the most important thing is, we don't even want you to save us!

After Meng Qi finished speaking, he suddenly felt that "Amitabha" didn't quite fit the passionate and generous words that followed, but he quickly consoled himself that it was fashionable to be out of character these days.

Seeing the monks stunned, Meng Qi raised his head, looking like a righteous and chivalrous hero: "This is not about whether Shaolin should be saved, but about showing the world that there are still people willing to sacrifice themselves for a greater cause!"

Jiang Zhewei raised her hand to cover her mouth, trying hard to suppress her laughter. Her pale face turned slightly red, and Qi Zhengyan's lips twitched, secretly glad that he didn't talk much with Meng Qi...

Xin Ji was silent for a long time, then looked at Zhang Yuanshan, who was meditating to stabilize his injuries after hastily taking a pill, and Jiang Zhewei, who stood alone with her clothes fluttering in the wind. He sighed, "Zhang and Jiang are severely injured. It would be difficult for them to break through the iron-armored soldiers' blockade if they leave now. They should stay in the temple and wait for the right moment. De Kong, quickly fetch the Xiao Huan Dan for these benefactors."

"Once in the temple, please guard the back mountain to prevent the barbarian experts from climbing the cliffs."

He arranged for Meng Qi and his companions to guard the back mountain, a place that would likely not be attacked, and also avoided the secret escape tunnel inside the temple.

"Thank you, Venerable Abbot." Meng Qi quietly exhaled, this was the best development!

...

"Abbot, is that little monk's head not right?" Back in the Great Hall, Xin Chan asked with a hint of annoyance, "Why did you let them stay?"

Xin Ji was about to speak when his face turned golden, then white, changing several times before stabilizing, but he looked like he had aged twenty years.

"Master, are you alright?" His disciple asked with concern.

"I won't die yet." Xin Ji said calmly, "Fortunately, we scared off Duercha and gained some breathing room." His injuries seemed to have worsened.

He turned to Xin Chan, "Jiang and Zhang fought Duercha with all their might, they are not spies. This old monk observed their resolve and knew that if we didn't let them into the temple, they would die defending the mountain path. So, I let them guard the back mountain to repay their kindness and resolve the karma."

"The back mountain has only the stupa and is not important. We don't need to worry about Duercha's people sneaking in. Once the disciples have evacuated through the secret tunnel, we will inform them of the truth and let them leave through the tunnel as well. If Duercha attacks early, the situation in the back mountain will allow them to hold out until the end. By then, it will be too late, and they probably won't continue to defend."

Xin Ji didn't sound very confident, as Meng Qi's "passionate and righteous" speech had left a deep impression on him.

Xin Chan's face was stern, "Stubborn as a wooden head, there's no solution. Abbot, the important scriptures and medicines have been packed. Should we arrange for the disciples to evacuate now?"

"Yes." Xin Ji nodded, looking back at the golden Buddha statue, his expression becoming calm and serene.

...

"Finally in the temple." On the path to the back mountain, Meng Qi sighed with relief, glad that his "acting" was good enough.

Jiang Zhewei walked slowly, but her face showed no confusion or sorrow. She smiled lightly, "I wonder how the high monks like Venerable Xin Ji view you, little monk?"

Brain-dead children are always happy... Meng Qi silently criticized himself. If it weren't for the mission, would I do this?

Then, he "seriously" said, "They must have been moved by my chivalrous and righteous spirit, almost bowing to me."

"Anyway, when I saw you, the little monk, speaking those twisted words so seriously and solemnly, I just... I just wanted to laugh, ha ha..." Jiang Zhewei couldn't hold back her laughter, but it soon turned into a pained expression.

"Miss Jiang, how are your injuries?" Meng Qi asked with concern.

Jiang Zhewei took a few deep breaths, "Even with four acupoints opened, using 'Sword Without Self' is still difficult for me. After one strike, I didn't lose all my strength, but I'm down to less than thirty percent. Then, I was injured by Duercha's power, and now I'm down to almost nothing. In the next half day, I can probably only rely on my sword skills to deal with the iron-armored soldiers."

She described it in detail because if her companions misjudged her strength, it could lead to strategic issues when enemies attacked.

"What about Master Zhang?" Qi Zhengyan looked at Zhang Yuanshan, whose chest was slightly sunken.

Zhang Yuanshan smiled bitterly, "Fortunately, I brought some medicine this time, and with the help of Shaolin's Xiao Huan Dan, otherwise, I might not even be able to walk. Now, even dealing with the iron-armored soldiers is difficult."

Wang Jin followed the group but remained silent, his eyes wandering, observing the temple halls and the path they took.

As they walked, Meng Qi suddenly froze because the back mountain in front of him was exactly the same as the one in his own Shaolin! Even the stupa was the same!

No way, it's that similar... Meng Qi felt a chill run down his spine.

"Same?" Jiang Zhewei noticed Meng Qi's abnormality.

Meng Qi nodded, his tone serious, "Although I've only been to the back mountain once, it is indeed exactly the same."

Could there be some kind of demon or monster sealed here too?

Hmm, probably not. In this world's power level, if there were demons or monsters, they would have ruled the world long ago...

They spoke in hushed tones to prevent the little monk leading them from hearing.

After a while, the little monk stopped and solemnly clasped his hands together, "Please guard here, benefactors. Beyond this path is the stupa of the back mountain, which is not suitable for outsiders to enter."

Meng Qi suddenly felt as if he were in a dream, because the place they stopped was exactly where he had guarded a few days ago!

Two cliffs faced each other, forming a narrow path, with dense forests on both sides.

"Is this a coincidence, or is there some hidden connection?" At this point, Meng Qi knew without looking that the forests on both sides, though seemingly endless, would reveal cliffs after a few steps.

He was both surprised and suspicious, while the others listened to the little monk describe the nearby terrain to facilitate their eventual evacuation.

The little monk seemed to have received instructions from above, describing the terrain in great detail.

"Hmm, he didn't mention the secret tunnel in the cliff? No, I'm overthinking it. This world has no demons or monsters, who would have opened that tunnel? The two Shaolins are ultimately different, after all, this is Shaohua Mountain, not Liantai Mountain..." As Meng Qi listened, the secret tunnel where "Zhen Guan" had emerged suddenly came to mind.

"Master Qi, little monk, I leave this to you for the time being." When the little monk left, Jiang Zhewei took out a small thumb-sized white jade bottle, poured out a red pill, and took it with the Xiao Huan Dan, then began to meditate to recover her injuries.

Zhang Yuanshan, more severely injured, sat down without regard for Wang Jin's presence, adjusting his qi and blood.

Wang Jin silently watched them for a while, then looked at Meng Qi, who was on guard, and walked to the side, closing his eyes to meditate, seemingly recovering his spirit.

Meng Qi and Qi Zhengyan took turns on watch. After about half an hour, a faint commotion came from the distance.

"Is Duercha back?" Meng Qi looked toward the temple, seeing dark clouds gathering, lightning flashing, and flames rising, with thick smoke billowing.

He subconsciously gripped his knife, waiting for the final battle to begin.

At this moment, Wang Jin suddenly stood up, not even greeting Meng Qi and the others, and ran directly toward Shaolin.

"What is he doing?" Meng Qi asked in surprise.

Qi Zhengyan said expressionlessly, "Ignore him, he's a thorn in our side if he stays."

Wang Jin ran as fast as a galloping horse, his heart slightly excited. He came from a humble background, and the martial arts he learned were ordinary. It was only with great effort that he reached the stage of opening acupoints, becoming a competent expert. However, to progress further, he lacked the secret manuals for this level. Therefore, for him, the cycle world was an opportunity, and now was also an opportunity!

This Shaolin, though much weaker than the real Shaolin, still had martial arts that directly pointed to the external realm, not lacking in techniques for refining acupoints and opening the nine innate acupoints!

Now was the time of chaos in Shaolin. Capturing a chief elder or elder and interrogating them for the secret manuals would go unnoticed, as they would be assumed to have died at the hands of Duercha.

After all, the mission was only to defend Shaolin, not to avoid harming Shaolin monks!

"He might be trying to take advantage of the chaos..." Meng Qi watched Wang Jin's back, making a casual guess.

Suddenly, silver light shot out from the nearby forest, moving so fast it was hard to see, directly hitting Wang Jin.

The sound of rain on banana leaves came, and Wang Jin's body spurted small streams of blood, like a punctured water bag. Then, with a look of slight joy on his face, he fell backward.

"Wasting my Plum Rain Needle... But what can I do? The Great General ordered me not to let anyone escape, hey, you actually dared to blind the Great General's eye!" A young man with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes walked out of the forest, smiling and politely clasping his hands, "I am Tang Shun, nicknamed 'Palm of the Universe,' here to send you to meet the Buddha in the West, Amitabha."