Chapter 8

Meng Qi suddenly sat up, breathing heavily. He had just had a nightmare where his identity was exposed, and he was killed by a palm strike from the abbot who had attained the Golden Body of the Dragon Subduing Arhat.

Although he had never met the abbot, the dream was so vivid that even after waking up, his whole body trembled.

"Where am I..." Suddenly, a clear female voice, tinged with caution, pierced Meng Qi's ears.

Who? How could there be a woman in the meditation room? Meng Qi was shocked. He looked around and was stunned on the spot. This wasn't his meditation room at all!

This was a square paved with stones similar to white marble. The center was empty, and around it were statues of dragons, phoenixes, kui bulls, and pixiu, among other divine beasts. Beside him, the young woman from the Sword Washing Pavilion, Jiang Zhwei, the disciple of the True Wu Sect, Zhang Yuanshan, and the successor of the Xuantian Sect, Qing Jing, were looking around with puzzled expressions.

Meng Qi struggled to stand up, equally puzzled, not understanding what had happened. He had been sleeping peacefully in his meditation room, so how did he end up here, and encounter these talented disciples from various sects? Was he still dreaming?

Suddenly, Qing Jing's angry face appeared before Meng Qi. His eyebrows were raised, and he roared, "What does Shaolin want to do? Do you want to become the enemy of all sects?"

Meng Qi had no idea what he was talking about and looked at him even more confused.

"Qing Jing, don't jump to conclusions. Check behind the statues and see how things develop," Zhang Yuanshan maintained a calm attitude.

Jiang Zhwei frowned slightly and said, "The little monk is just a miscellaneous monk. Even if this is related to Shaolin, he wouldn't know. Why make things difficult for him? Besides, I don't think we have anything worth Shaolin plotting against."

Qing Jing angrily waved his right hand, "Isn't it obvious? Shaolin has the Venerable Kongwen, who has attained the 'Dragon Subduing Arhat Golden Body.' Who could sneak us away from Shaolin Temple and from our elders without his divine eyes and ears? It must be him who did it!"

"I, I wasn't in Shaolin..." At this moment, a timid man, about thirty years old, with a robust build and a rugged beard, emerged from behind a statue.

"Is there anyone else? Friends, please come out. I am Zhang Yuanshan of the True Wu Sect," Zhang Yuanshan said after a moment of surprise.

"Senior Brother Zhang, you're here too." Two more people emerged from behind different statues. One was a tall girl with wheat-colored skin, her hair tied with a white handkerchief, and the other was an ordinary young man with a serious expression.

Zhang Yuanshan fell silent for a moment, his expression becoming even more solemn, "Sister Qi Xia of the Great River Gang, did you also wake up here after falling asleep?"

Jiang Zhwei walked over to Meng Qi and said thoughtfully, "She is the youngest daughter of the deputy leader of the Great River Gang, Senior Qi Yuan. She also came to Shaolin this time."

"I don't know her..." Meng Qi could only answer honestly, his mind racing with thoughts, trying to guess what had happened to them.

"Yes, but we woke up behind the statues and only dared to come out when we heard voices," Qi Xia said, her eyebrows furrowed, pointing at the timid man, "Senior Qing Jing's guess might be wrong. This is the incense master of the Great River Gang, Yan Wujie of the Wu family. He didn't come to Shaolin with us and should still be in Maoling, Jiangdong."

"Right, right! Miss, I, I just won a large sum at the Tianzi No. 1 casino in Maoling and was enjoying some singing girls. But when I woke up, I was in this strange place!" Yan Wujie looked frightened and anxious.

Jiang Zhwei chuckled softly, either introducing him to Meng Qi or muttering to herself, "Of the Wu family, he is a cousin of the 'Zombie Fist' sect leader, Yan Wuwo. Despite his high seniority, he only holds the position of incense master in the Great River Gang. There must be a reason for that..."

Qing Jing frowned and walked a few steps to Yan Wujie, shouting, "You, a gambler and a womanizer, are known for lying. How can we believe you?"

He still insisted on his theory.

Yan Wujie's lips moved, "You, you can ask at the Tianzi No. 1 casino in Maoling. See if I just won 2,100 taels of silver!"

With Miss Qi present, he gradually calmed down.

"Who is this?" Zhang Yuanshan frowned and turned to the ordinary man who had not smiled.

Jiang Zhwei suddenly stepped forward, her beautiful eyebrows slightly furrowed, "Brother, I think I've seen you before. Yes, among the disciples accompanying the Huaxia Sword Sect?"

The man, in his early twenties, wearing a green robe and a small hat, did not have the youthful vigor and enthusiasm typical of his age. His face was like a mask, showing no expression other than seriousness. He nodded lightly, "To be remembered by Miss Jiang is an honor. I am Qi Zhengyan, an ordinary disciple of the Huaxia Sword Sect, accompanying the group to Shaolin."

Zhang Yuanshan patted his left hand with his right, showing obvious confusion for the first time. This situation was too strange, involving the future pillars of four sects, ordinary disciples, a low-ranking incense master, and even a miscellaneous monk. It was hard to see the selection criteria.

Jiang Zhwei pursed her lips, her small, straight nose wrinkled, and she smiled bitterly, "I thought this was targeting the disciples of various sects who came to Shaolin, but now there's Incense Master Yan..."

Qing Jing sneered, "Regardless of whether there's a common thread among us, how many people can silently take us away from Shaolin? Hmph, Venerable Kongwen, third on the Heavenly List, even the Venerable Chonghe, who has attained the 'Pure Yang Dao Body,' couldn't do this!"

He still pointed the finger at Shaolin, but couldn't understand why they would do such a bizarre thing.

Dong!

A melodious bell sound rang, drawing everyone's attention to the center of the white marble square.

"Welcome to the Cycle World!"

"Here, there are endless dangers, but you can also obtain everything you desire!"

A grand and cold voice accompanied the bell, making Meng Qi frown. This situation seemed familiar, as if he had seen or heard it somewhere before.

"Who? Come out!" Qing Jing leaped towards the center, but it was empty.

"You can call me the 'Lord of the Six Realms of the Cycle.'" The voice continued.

Meng Qi instinctively turned his head and saw Jiang Zhwei and Zhang Yuanshan's eyes shining brightly, like purple lightning in the dark, focusing intently on the source of the voice.

They exchanged glances and shook their heads.

Meng Qi's heart sank. They couldn't find the source of the voice either?

Qing Jing pressed his right hand on the hilt of his sword, stopping there, and shouted, "Why have you brought us here?"

The grand and cold voice said, "The world turns, and you will experience one world after another, completing tasks I assign, accumulating good deeds. Good deeds can be exchanged for anything you desire, whether it's supreme martial arts, divine weapons, longevity elixirs, or rare treasures. If you've heard of it, it's here. If you haven't, it's here too!"

"And after each task, you will return to your own world, waiting for the next cycle to begin."

Meng Qi's mouth hung open, like a carp gasping for air. This, isn't this an endless flow? I'm in a world of immortal martial arts, right? This doesn't fit the style!

"Get everything you desire?" Qing Jing sneered, dismissing the "mysterious person's" claims.

He came from the "Xuantian Sect," which claimed the lineage of the Heavenly Emperor, and was well-versed in divine techniques and rare treasures. He didn't believe this mysterious "Lord of the Six Realms of the Cycle" could gather all the legendary items, especially since some were in his own sect!

The "Lord of the Six Realms of the Cycle" didn't respond. A light screen fell from the high white marble dome, with "Supreme Divine Techniques" written at the top. Below it, the first line clearly read:

"The Complete 'Buddha's Palm,' Exchange Price: 1,000,000 Good Deeds."

"Buddha's Palm..." Who in the room hadn't heard of this supreme divine technique? They all drew a sharp breath. After all, two major sects in the martial world were founded on incomplete versions of its techniques, directly pointing to the supreme Buddha's Golden Body!

Meng Qi's heart grew hot, temporarily forgetting the issue of the style not fitting.

Next, Jiang Zhwei, her voice tinged with excitement, read the second line: "The 'Seven Heaven-Cutting Swords,' Missing the Third and Sixth Forms, Exchange Price: 750,000 Good Deeds."

Zhang Yuanshan's fists clenched quietly. The two fundamental divine techniques of the True Wu Sect were derived from the seventh form of the "Seven Heaven-Cutting Swords," "Dao Extinction and Dao Birth."

Qing Jing was first shocked, then laughed, "Missing the Third and Sixth Swords, not everything, huh..."

As he spoke, his laughter gradually faded. This method of specifying what was missing was more convincing, suggesting that the items listed were indeed complete!

"Only missing the Third and Sixth Swords..." Jiang Zhwei's lips moved, her beautiful face glowing with excitement, as if the pursuit of the "Seven Heaven-Cutting Swords" was her greatest dream.

The founder of the Sword Washing Pavilion had obtained the first form of the "Seven Heaven-Cutting Swords," "Cutting Dao to See Me," through a fortuitous encounter, creating the "Great Supreme Sword Canon," a sword technique that could achieve the Dao Body level. Before his death, he lamented not seeing the remaining six forms, saying "great regret" three times.

Meng Qi swallowed hard, his gaze moving down to see another familiar name: "The Complete 'Eight-Nine Mystic Technique,' Exchange Price: 950,000 Good Deeds."

"Eight-Nine Mystic Technique? I've never heard of it," Qing Jing, seemingly forgetting his ridicule of the "Lord of the Six Realms of the Cycle," muttered in confusion.

Jiang Zhwei, Zhang Yuanshan, and Qi Xia all shook their heads, indicating they hadn't heard of it either.

But Meng Qi was screaming in his heart:

"Eight-Nine Mystic Technique? Eight-Nine Mystic Technique!"

Many of the techniques on this page were legendary items that Jiang Zhwei and others had heard of, such as the "Demon Emperor Canon," "Human Emperor Golden Book," and "Phoenix Rebirth Technique," as well as fundamental techniques of various sects, like the "Heavenly Emperor Jade Register," "True Wu Seven-Section Scripture," and "Great Supreme Sword Canon."

Moreover, except for the "Heavenly Emperor Jade Register" missing the middle volume and the "Human Emperor Golden Book" missing the third page, the rest were listed as complete!

"Actually complete..." Zhang Yuanshan's eyes narrowed, and Jiang Zhwei pressed her right hand on her sword hilt.

As outstanding disciples of their sects, seeing their sect's fundamental techniques listed here, available for exchange, naturally stirred their emotions.

Under normal circumstances, major sects would never let anyone who coveted their techniques go, pursuing them to the ends of the earth to eliminate them.

Meng Qi, not yet a qualified Shaolin disciple, was less affected by this but was stunned by the familiar techniques at the bottom, such as the "Heavenly Demon Slaying Strategy," "Complete Heaven Treasure Mirror," and "Holy Demon Primordial Fetus."

The exchange prices for these techniques on the page ranged from 150,000 for the "Sinew Metamorphosis Classic" to 1,000,000 for the "Buddha's Palm" and other supreme techniques, making one's blood boil.