Book 14: Chapter 124
God of Battle’s Orphaned Son. Flying General’s Successor.
The lotus withered along with its scars as the Buddha faded away.
Tianhu flowered away his broken black spear and remarked with three fingers up, “That’s three steps.” He then smirked, extended a fourth finger and said, “If the remaining four steps are equally boring, just take all four steps at once to save me the trouble.”
Tianhu wasn’t bored at all. To the contrary, he had more fun than he expected. He never expected an opponent of Venerable Monk Jiyi’s calibre, much less this format of combat. He was so entertained that he tried to goad his opponent into showing the last four steps. It wasn’t about winning something or losing something, surviving or dying. The majority of people couldn’t fathom how hard it was for him to find a worthy opponent.
The Buddha’s might was genuinely freaky. For a moment, Tianhu saw himself losing in the future when the Buddha uncorked a palm strike, except he didn’t consider being split in half any fun. Hence, he chose to swing his spear. Even though he overcame the future, he wasn’t sure how to feel about it. He wanted to see himself fail. At the same time, though, he wanted to do everything in his power to overcome the challenge. If the difficulty was far beyond his capabilities, then he would’ve been happy regardless of the outcome. The disappearance of the Buddha ushered in disappointment. The only comforting explanation he could provide himself was that his opponent truly was capable of fulfilling the prophecy. He couldn’t help cracking a smile that was replete with hope.
In contrast to Tianhu’s laid-back state, Venerable Monk Jiyi, who didn’t expect to encounter such a dangerous opponent, wasn’t keen on chasing thrill. He needed to complete his task fast without letting anyone connect the deed back to Cold Mountain Temple – at the very least, not right away. That would result in the yet-to-mature monarch they supported in the future resisting them, effectively limiting the White Princes’ movements. To that end, Gongsun Chu and Valley of Yearning were designated scapegoat roles. Hence, Venerable Monk Jiyi should’ve been the more anxious person between him and Tianhu, yet that didn’t appear to be the case at all.
Tianhu was glad to see his opponent wasn’t anxious in the slightest. Or rather, he liked that the moonlight on his opponent now looked ominous rather than tranquil.
“Are you the orphaned son of God of Battle, or the successor of Flying General?” Without seeing Venerable Monk Jiyi’s appearance, you would’ve thought you were listening to a scholar reciting a poem.
It was the first time Tianhu felt he heard the Venerable Monk Jiyi’s real voice. After a think, he smiled and asked, “Which one do you fear more?”
“Amitabha, this one was not yet the leader of Cold Mountain Temple when that spearplay swept its way across the Central Plain; however, this one had the honour of personally witnessing the beauty of ‘God of Battle’s Nine Diagrams’.”
Venerable Monk Jiyi recalled the scenes that nobody could view and say they weren’t shocked. It was the worst feeling for someone who could create illusions. When Youtu’s forces descended south, the Central Plain’s imperial court did a lousy job of stopping their advance. Virtually no city was spared from bloodshed. Under a scarlet sun, one man rode alone into the enemy ranks and unleashed hell on them. One man, his stallion and spear showed Youtu’s forces what a nightmare truly was. Anyone who dared to consider themselves outstanding paled miserably in comparison to him.
“This one has never seen such splendid spearplay since then… or such a marvellous warrior.”
Even though Venerable Monk Jiyi sounded devoid of emotion, his last few words carried hints of genuine respect despite never being a fan. Mayhap not even he was aware of his rise in emotions.
“Are you giving up?” questioned Tianhu, stopping Venerable Monk Jiyi before his fun was reduced as a result of the unexpected inquisition. “Are you going to take the last four steps? If not, I’m making my move.”
“You have not answered this one’s question, no?”
“You haven’t answered me, either, no?”
“If you are the successor to Flying General and was fated to learn the superb discipline, then it was your fate. This one has a gift for you.”
“You even have a gift?”
Tianhu: So he’s really done fighting. This sucks.
“It is Flying General’s spear called ‘Unstoppable Blade’. This one has looked forward to seeing it since he last witnessed it.”
Venerable Monk Jiyi was unaware that the spear had changed hands long ago. If anything, Tianhu was closer to it than him since Tianhu had been into the underground palace it was stashed.
“And if I am Battle of God’s orphaned son?”
“The orphaned son of Battle of God would be an imperial family member of the last imperial family. It is inevitable he would be eyed, not to mention General Ran’s descendant deserves to be taken care of well.”
Tianhu laughed as he clapped. “Great to hear. Great to hear that you’re reminded of your old hobbies. You want to give a present after seeing God of Battle’s Nine Diagrams, but you never mentioned his descendant.”
The mention of Ran Feikong’s descendant erased Venerable Monk Jiyi’s intention to speak.
“Those who inherit his bloodline can learn any martial arts discipline without limitations. In other words… they are the best candidate for learning the four supreme disciplines of all eras, correct?”
Hearing his own thoughts read out to him, Venerable Monk Jiyi smiled.
“It looks like you’ve gotten your hands on something amazing, Cold Mountain Temple’s Liaoliao.”
“You have yet to answer this one’s question.”
Tianhu just smiled. “If you don’t kill me, you won’t be screwed just once.”
Irrespective of what Venerable Monk Jiyi wanted, Tianhu still only wanted just one thing – a fun fight.
“’God of Battle’s Nine Diagrams’ is a discipline without equal. If this one has truly met a student of the discipline, he must ask… do you still want to fight?”
Accompanying his smile, Tianhu’s aura intensified. “You sound scared.”
“General Ran slew the Preceptor of State and Budda, causing a worldwide panic. Although his contributions in the war were unmatchable, he planted seeds of disaster, which eventually sprouted and came back to bite him.”
“He slew villains deserving of death using ‘Unstoppable Blade’ and killed corrupt monks, like you.”
“There is no doubt that Flying General is a hero, a hero possibly never to be seen in ages. Sadly, he chose the wrong people to associate with. Choosing to be with Tianfeng Yu was a mistake. We all know even the greatest men struggle to overcome the beauty of women, but Ran Feikong’s decision to give in to his lust cost him his family. At the time, not a soul had any pity for the witch. Is your mother being asked the same questions as she bathes in seas of boiling oil in hell? Is she, too, being asked why she chose to be a witch who ruined a hero?”
For once, Tianhu was dead silent. Not even Liaoliao, who thought he now had a grasp on Tianhu’s personality, expected those words to trigger Tianhu.
For the first time in the clash, Tianhu didn’t attack for the sake of entertaining himself. Just as whenever he meant to do harm, there was a strong stench of blood.
“Your death wish is granted.”