Chapter 52

*Pap, pap, pap.* Hearing this sound, Chuiyi, who was holding the iron railing, muttered to himself in surprise, “How could it suddenly fail? Is the human heart really so fragile? Even unable to chat happily...”

Such a sound would occur when the Golden Bell Cover technique broke through or failed. The only difference was that the former’s dark gold color would become brighter, while the latter would gradually fade until it disappeared.

Since Chuiyi knew that Meng Qi had only completed the third level yesterday, he didn’t even consider the possibility of a breakthrough. Subconsciously, he thought Meng Qi couldn’t bear the torment and stubbornly refused to stop, leading to the failure.

Before he could finish speaking, he was startled to see a dark golden figure dart in front of him, grabbing him unprepared.

He struggled desperately, but under the suppression of the cell, he could only exert one-tenth of his strength, and his demonic power was completely sealed. In the end, he couldn’t break free from Meng Qi’s grip. Meng Qi then pulled out his belt and tightly bound Chuiyi to the iron railing.

“Let me go! Do you know how to respect the elderly and the wise?” Chuiyi shouted loudly. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed as he saw a strange white “fabric” in Meng Qi’s hand. “What, what is this?”

Meng Qi, who had unexpectedly achieved the fourth level of the Golden Bell Cover in one day and caught this chatterbox by surprise, felt quite pleased with himself. “My socks! To stuff your mouth!”

“No, no, mmm...” Chuiyi shook his head in agony but was still tightly gagged by Meng Qi.

Sigh, the world is finally peaceful... Meng Qi closed his eyes, savoring the hard-won tranquility. This was truly a delightful experience!

He sat cross-legged again. The alternating cold and heat no longer brought him the same torment as before. The slight pain only reminded him that the mortal world was full of suffering, and the universe was like a furnace.

“Who would have thought that the blade intent of the ‘Arhat Breaking Precepts Saber Technique’ could not only cut others but also be used in a bizarre way on oneself, harmonizing perfectly with the cultivation of the Golden Bell Cover.” Meng Qi pondered his unexpected breakthrough, gaining a deeper understanding of the ‘Arhat Breaking Precepts Saber Technique.’ Breaking the precepts was to temper the heart.

“Hmm, it seems that the divine techniques of the Buddhist sect all emphasize Zen mind and sudden enlightenment. If one can have a clear Zen mind and truly understand the true meaning, cultivation will have an unbelievable effect, advancing rapidly. If one cannot achieve sudden enlightenment and the Zen mind is clouded, then one must steadily polish oneself, step by step.”

Through this incident, Meng Qi gained a new understanding of sudden enlightenment in the Buddhist sect.

“Sudden enlightenment is not just talking about it, but a harmony of body and mind, truly understanding the principle, and being able to practice it solidly in the future. Only then is it true enlightenment.”

“Next, I need to quickly use the ‘Lingzhi Qi Supplement Pill’ to accumulate Qi, then try to condense the relevant acupoints of the eye...” Meng Qi thought about his next steps.

Successfully breaking through to the fourth level of the Golden Bell Cover before the cycle mission was a pleasant surprise, but this didn’t mean he could relax. Completing the fourth level symbolized the accumulation of Qi, but he still lacked the accumulation of true Qi, which he needed to quickly absorb and transform. However, the environment here was harsh, and Meng Qi was concerned that the ‘Lingzhi Qi Supplement Pill’ would lose its efficacy, so he didn’t carry it with him.

Huohu glanced at Meng Qi, slowly turned around, and faced away from him, while the cold breath of the Cold Turtle became even more intense.

Meng Qi didn’t care about this now. While running the fourth-level technique to solidify his foundation, he pondered the deeper understanding of the blade intent and the changes in the techniques demonstrated by his master yesterday.

At this moment, the peaceful environment ensured he could focus on his thoughts and deliberations, without being distracted or becoming restless.

“Indeed, gagging that ugly bird was a wise choice. Tranquility is truly wonderful!” Meng Qi sighed inwardly, replaying the ‘Severing Tranquility’ technique in his mind, gradually becoming engrossed, as if in a trance.

Just as he was slowly grasping the changes in the blade technique, a loud and unpleasant voice suddenly sounded:

“Haha, you think gagging my mouth will stop me from speaking? Naive! Stupid!”

“I am a Kunpeng, what can I not swallow? Sticking things in my mouth is courting death!”

The rare tranquility was shattered, his focused thoughts interrupted, and the state of being lost in thought vanished!

But facing the renewed noise and clamor, Meng Qi didn’t become restless. Instead, he suddenly looked up at Chuiyi, feeling a sudden enlightenment.

Tranquility was broken... Severing Tranquility... This is the feeling...

He narrowed his eyes, his feet didn’t move, his body didn’t sway, and his right hand formed a blade. Following his insights and the changes he had pondered, he slashed in a mysterious and profound manner.

The wind in the corridor suddenly rose, as if the noise of the mortal world was swirling in.

Chuiyi bit through the belt with his mouth, speaking happily, when he suddenly felt inexplicable sorrow, as if he had failed his first attempt at flying and was mocked by a sparrow.

Anger and hatred surged, and he was momentarily dazed. Then he saw a hand stopping in the distance.

He shuddered, retreated to the corner, and covered his head with his wings, seemingly frightened by the ‘Severing Tranquility’ blade intent.

In the cell behind Meng Qi, Huohu flapped a few times and flew to the corner, while the Cold Turtle silently moved many steps away from Meng Qi.

Meng Qi didn’t notice their movements, but was immersed in the state of restlessness after the slash, with thoughts of family, being a stranger in a foreign land, and the pressure of life and death all surging up, unprecedentedly clear.

“Severing Tranquility,” severing others’ tranquility, and severing one’s own tranquility!

After a while, Meng Qi overcame these emotions, calmed his mind, feeling drenched in sweat, no less than after a fierce battle, then half dried and half frozen.

“Each slash is a tempering of the heart. This is the ‘Arhat Breaking Precepts Saber Technique’...” Meng Qi exhaled. If he hadn’t directly received the true meaning, he would have had to endure countless hardships and tribulations to understand the blade intent and the true essence of the saber technique. No wonder the Shaolin Temple, which only had the secret manual, had almost no monks who truly mastered the ‘Arhat Breaking Precepts Saber Technique.’

Of course, Meng Qi was very clear that he had only slightly grasped the true meaning of the ‘Arhat Breaking Precepts Saber Technique,’ still far from mastering it.

“I wonder what the mysteries of the next four techniques are...” Meng Qi’s mind wandered, thinking about the four techniques he hadn’t yet understood: ‘Falling into the Mortal World,’ ‘Accumulating Karma,’ ‘Invoking External Demons,’ and ‘Sticking to Causality.’

After a while, he reined in his thoughts and continued cultivating the Golden Bell Cover, without the slightest slack. However, after achieving the fourth level, he could now open his eyes freely and interrupt his cultivation at any time.

Focusing intently, Meng Qi suddenly heard light footsteps and cautiously stopped his cultivation, looking in the direction of the sound.

He saw Xuan Ku, the precept monk, and another familiar monk leading two men in wide-sleeved robes approaching.

The monk was tall and slender, with a handsome and somewhat delicate appearance, like Tang Sanzang in person, clearly the “Elder Brother” Zhen Chang, who had descended the mountain two months ago after passing through the Bronze Man Alley.

“Back from your travels so soon?” Meng Qi was a bit surprised but also understood. It was his first time descending the mountain, so he likely just wandered around nearby, then returned to the mountain to digest his gains. The second trip would be a true entry into the world.

The two men Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang were leading, one had a long beard and was a refined middle-aged man, with a dignified air. The other was a young man with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, slightly childish, as if he had just come of age, and his features were quite similar to the middle-aged man.

“They seem to be from a noble family...” Meng Qi judged from their clothing, accessories, and demeanor. Although many noble family children were frivolous, they at least paid great attention to their appearance and image, and their external demeanor was rarely poor.

Their target was the gate leading to the second underground level, and they didn’t pay much attention to Meng Qi. Just as they were about to pass him, the refined middle-aged man glanced at him with interest and said to Xuan Ku and Zhen Chang, “Is this young monk cultivating the Golden Bell Cover or the Indestructible Body of the Buddha here?”

Xuan Bei and Zhen Chang, who were only at the启蒙stage, had been distracted by the demonic aura and various scattered energies, and only now noticed Meng Qi in the shadows. They both lightly exclaimed, as few disciples had ever used this environment for cultivation, after all, not everyone had the Iron Shirt as a foundation.

The Iron Shirt, as an external cultivation technique, mainly relied on external striking. To achieve a small success, it required three full years. Of course, there were quick methods, but the Iron Shirt could never progress further afterward. They assumed Meng Qi was using such a method, as he wouldn’t focus on the Iron Shirt in the future.

Seeing Meng Qi half dry and half frozen, Xuan Ku was stunned for a moment, then slowly nodded, seemingly approving, clearly not expecting Meng Qi to endure the harsh conditions here.

Zhen Chang didn’t hesitate. Seeing Meng Qi’s state, he smiled and said to the guest, “Mr. Cui, it is indeed so.”

“To be able to endure such torment at such a young age, not bad, not bad. I wonder which high monk’s disciple he is?” The middle-aged man chuckled. The young man behind him, who had just come of age, also looked at Meng Qi with interest, as the contrast between a little monk and the fire swan and cold turtle was stark.

This isn’t a zoo! Meng Qi simply closed his eyes and ignored them.

Zhen Chang frowned but maintained his smile. “He must be a new disciple. I was away on a journey, so I don’t know which elder’s disciple he is.”

“He is Xuan Bei’s disciple.” Xuan Ku withdrew his gaze.

Although Xuan Bei was highly skilled and an elder, he had become a monk later in life, and Xuan Ku could still call him a junior brother.

“Xuan Bei the divine monk...” The middle-aged man nodded thoughtfully, not asking Meng Qi’s dharma name, and slowly walked past.

The young man, however, continued to look curiously at the fire swan and cold turtle, as if he wanted to touch them.

“Father, I didn’t expect the Shaolin Temple to have so many suppressed demons, and they are even in their true forms.” His family had demon servants, but they were tamed and showed no signs of being demons except in battle.

After they turned the corner, Meng Qi opened his eyes and cursed inwardly. Who likes to be watched while cultivating? Truly impolite!

At this moment, voices echoed in the peaceful cell.

“The abbot’s decree allows the Cui family of Pingjin to take away their escaped demons.” This elegant voice belonged to Zhen Chang.

“Amitabha, the token is correct, please enter.” An elderly voice replied, clearly the elder guarding the entrance to the second level.

The Cui family of Pingjin? Meng Qi repeated it in his mind. So these were the people of the Cui family of Pingjin!

The Cui family of Pingjin, the most powerful noble family in the Great Jin, especially after the family head, “Purple Qi Vast” Cui Qinghe, achieved the “Purple Sun Dharma Body,” they had even suppressed the imperial family.

PS: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, everyone! Please click and recommend~

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends