The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

Immortal Yunhe was floating on the surface of the vast lake that was formerly Fish Sea. He had an ever-present smile on his delicate, baby-like ruddy face.

How could he be unhappy when he was able to realize the Primary Instruction of Buddha’s Palm, listen to the words of Buddha, learn new things through analogies, and increase his confidence in grasping the Yang Spirit?

When he had heard what Meng Qi said, he triggered the mnemonic chant of his skill and sprinkled bright green lights all over the sky like a gleaming drizzle that enveloped several dozens of miles of the vicinity.

Oddly, the ripples on the surface of the lake began to shimmer once they came into contact with the green light. Hues of red, yellow, green, white, and black colored the water.

Once Meng Qi had identified the location, he swam rapidly towards one of the light spots. The item came flying to him with a trigger with undulating water ripples.

He stared at the item intently, only to find that it was a piece of a peacock’s feather radiating a translucent cyan color. The veined pattern on the feather was like the etchings of seal scripts or charms, triggering the vital energy of plants to burst into prosperity.

However, nearly half of the feather was damaged; evidence of the terrifying destruction that had occurred.

“Is this the feather of Peacock Demon King?” Meng Qi was rather surprised.

“What a lucky break this would be if this feather is truly one of the tail feathers of the legendary Five Elements Peacock!”

“I wonder if ‘Peacock Demon King’ Tai Li has such similar five feathers…”

Meng Qi rapidly gathered the feathers drifting in the waters nearby amid the chaos. He also managed to find some Merit Qi. Though they were not his and would disappear cleanly in a flash, it was still better than nothing. He could use them to enhance the defense capability of Precious Weapons.

Very soon, he managed to search the entire place and collected all the valuable items that were left behind. Immortal Yunhe was incredibly supportive. He flew some distance away and once again sprinkled green lights over new waters.

Meng Qi first took flight before leaping into the water and swimming to the very bottom of the lake. Unfortunately, there was a considerable distance between the surface and the bottom. The undercurrents of the lake water were posing obstacles as well, preventing him from grabbing the items as he wished. He could not ask Immortal Yunhe to help when he had to maintain the sprinkle of green lights.

Considering Immortal Yunhe’s ability, it would be no trouble for his powers to extend within two or three hundred miles. However, his green lights only enveloped dozen of miles at most. That fact alone was enough to tip him off on just how difficult it was to maintain these lights.

The constant flickering of purple rays of light finally fell into his hands. It was a drop of blood that seemed to be a convergence of many small electric waves.

“The blood of One-legged Ox Monster King!” This elicited an even greater joy in Meng Qi than the peacock feather. This drop of blood could be used to enhance his saber, Heaven Inflicted Pain!

Zodiac Ox was a demonic monster that even had the nickname of the Thunder God of Demon Clan in the era of the Myths. It also had the nickname “Patriarch of Lightning”. Even though the current Monster King was a not as powerful as those of the former generations, the Zodiac Ox’s drop of blood was still, most certainly, a precious treasure of the thunder nature.

Meng Qi put away the blood of the One-legged Ox without delay. Apart from the blood that had already dissipated, he managed to gather 11 drops in all.

This nearly prompted him to dissolve into fits of laughter. He took to searching a new place, once again illuminated by Immortal Yunhe.

Inside the lake waters was a gleaming pure ray of white light. The light was so sharp that Meng Qi could sense it despite their great distance.

“Is it an item that belongs to White-tiger Monster King?”

Meng Qi suppressed his feelings and flew over to the light. He once again dived into the water, swimming to the bottom of the lake. He saw a pale, withered tiger paw weighing heavily on the ground.

White hair had grown all over the surface of the paw, every strand reflecting a metallic luster. Meng Qi felt goose bumps despite not even being anywhere close to it.

When Meng Qi stretched his right hand to grab it, the white tiger paw began to float and fly by itself into his hand.

It was at that very moment that another hand, with its slender and pale fingers, materialized out of thin air and reached for the tiger paw.

Unfortunately, she was one step too late. Just as the tiger paw had begun to float, Meng Qi had it firmly grasped in his hand.

Her clear eyes were brimming with heartache and unwillingness. When their eyes met, both of them were startled.

“Why are you here?”

Both of them blurted the question at the same time. The newcomer was none other than Qu Jiuniang.

Qu Jiuniang was already hatching a plan to ‘clean up’ the battlefield when the battle with the Dharmakayas was just beginning. She had waited for a short while after the battle had subsided, sneakily making her way here. She never expected to come across Meng Qi.

“I’d be more surprised if Jiuniang hadn’t come…” Meng Qi thought. He smiled at her and said, “Jiuniang, how’s your harvest?”

Qu Jiuniang’s expression clearly demonstrated the cutting pain she had experienced when she heard his question. “I found the bodies of several Exterior experts who died due to the battle aftermath nearby but most of the items that I managed to find are incomplete…”

She was well aware that the value of the residual items left behind in the core of the battlefield would be far higher. However the items she had found were all incomplete and she could not simply let them be, for it was against her principles in life. She spent some time to gather them completely to the point of obsession, forgetting that she had to move quickly. Thus, she was much slower than Meng Qi in obtaining some of the more precious items.

When she thought about this as she saw the tiger paw in Meng Qi’s hand, she felt that her life had lost all meaning.

She knew that those who died in the battle would likely be torn and crushed, leaving nothing intact behind. She had gained nothing out of the whole ordeal.

Meng Qi gave a dry laugh and put away the tiger paw. He turned around at the same time as Qu Jiuniang did, searching separately with tacit agreement.

There was no time to engage in idle talk at this moment!

Later on, Meng Qi and Qu Jiuniang each found several drops of blood brimming with murderous intent. That was basically the end to their harvest of the entire place.

Qu Jiuniang glanced at Meng Qi with a heated gaze, as if she wanted nothing more than to rob him blind. Even so, she was still a rational person at the end of the day. She left reluctantly, planning to return to the lair of the Immortals to carefully sort out her spoils.

That would be the most delightful moment for every money-hungry person!

Meng Qi took flight in a cheerful mood, carrying with him all his spoils. It was fortunate that he had Immortal Yunhe’s help, or Juniang, who had eschewed the chance to comprehend Buddha’s Palm, would have taken away most of the ‘Monster King’s materials’!

Immortal Yunhe grinned at the approaching Meng Qi and said, “I’ve expended a great deal of energy to maintain the spell for such a long time. But considering such a rich harvest, my efforts are not in vain.”

“Damn! This dirty grandpa is once again asking for money!” Meng Qi had a sudden understanding of Jiuniang’s expression earlier and what it meant to have one’s heart full of pain.

However, Meng Qi had always been one to keep his promises. He looked at the sky with a deadpan face, looking as if he was bravely confronting death. “Immortal, take your pick. Just leave some drops of the blood of the One-legged Ox for me.”

“70:30 split, that wretched 70:30 split…”

Immortal Yunhe ignored Meng Qi’s words entirely and remained still. With a smiling face, he picked the Paw of the White Tiger, Merit Qi, and a portion of the peacock feather as well as the drops of Evil Blood. He left Zodiac Ox’s blood all to Meng Qi and even completed the set of five peacock feathers that represented the elements of metal, wood, water, fire and earth.

“You’ve made good on our 70:30 split promise. What a trustworthy person you are, my young friend Su,” Immortal Yunhe said, complimenting Meng Qi as he put away the treasures.

“I’d rather not have such a compliment!” Meng Qi secretly raged.

Immortal Yunhe had gained a great deal despite the treacherous journey, especially his comprehension of Buddha’s Palm and learning through analogies. Moreover, he even made the acquaintance of the Dharmakayas, introducing himself as a charm practitioner from a certain secret place, and laid the foundation for the Plenitude Sect to set foot in the main world. His return was thus a happy one. He even moved the Plenitude Gate somewhere under the protection of Darkness Palace and several other major sects.

Meng Qi heaved a quiet sight when he watched the Plenitude Gate come to a close. He knew he could not let Immortal Yunhe out again.

Immortal Yunhe was the leader of his sect and had to make preparations to break into the realm of the Yang Spirit. There was no way that he could remain by the door and wait to back up Meng Qi unless they had made prior arrangements.

Meng Qi was clear about this, and thus felt no reluctance. Being a martial artist, this was a chance that he could occasionally take advantage of. However, he would have to depend on his own strength to defeat his enemies if he wanted to temper his martial arts will – and that will would be a crucial point when it came to his Dharma Form and the condensation of his body to become a Dharmakaya!

Even so, he still felt some degree of heartache as he would not be able to cheerfully rob the monks of Merriment Temple. Without Immortal Yunhe tagging along with him, he would be no match for the numerous masters of Merriment Temple and might end up becoming a ‘delivery boy of treasures’ instead…

Meng Qi put away the Plenitude Gate and carefully moved forward, wary that he had caused some offense to great masters of the likes of Prime Asuras. He made his way to the entrance to the lair of the Immortals in Immensity Sea.

Meng Qi made a beeline for Azure Palace, having no time to worry about enhancing his saber. Unsurprisingly, he saw that Primogenitor Lingbao was waiting for him.

“Kong Wen had once secretly told Master Lu of his intention to bring you back to Shaolin Temple and isolate you for three years. He intends for you to comprehend the third style of Buddha’s Palm, A Smile on Pinching a Flower, as well as to impart to you the entire collection of Muscle-bone Strengthening Scripture. He wants to do so partially to make up for the lack of mercy shown to you in the past and partially to repay your favor. I wonder if you’ve agreed,” Primogenitor Lingbao said, smiling.

He appeared to be in an exceptionally good mood to have obtained what he wished for.

“Returning to Shaolin Temple and becoming a monk? To make it worse, I’ll be in isolation?” Even though the great rewards mentioned in the latter half of Primogenitor Lingbao’s words tempted him, the condition to obtain them caused his eyelids to twitch.

Fortunately, he had given up his opportunity for his Master! Such a thought greatly eased the heartache that Meng Qi felt.

“He seems to have great hopes for you and thinks that you’ll be able to take over Shaolin Temple in the future,” Primogenitor Lingbao added. He then sighed. “Evil Master had magnified the demons in Kong Jian and Wu Jing’s hearts. I suppose they’ll be put into isolation for at least 10 years. There’s still hope for Kong Jian since he has only recently gone down the demonic path. There’s no telling whether Wu Jing will be able to return.”

“The divine monk of Shaolin Temple, Abbot Zhen Ding? The monk who wore a yellow frock and had a red cassock draped over his shoulders? Who carried a large string of prayer beads and holding a cane with nine tin rings?” Such an image abruptly surfaced in Meng Qi’s mind.

The corners of his mouth yanked. Such a scenario was so glorious that he dared not to look at it!

“Primogenitor, can I now choose the Dharmakaya movement of Eighty Nine Mysteries?” Meng Qi asked, instantly steering their conversation in another direction.

Primogenitor Lingbao smiled, “Of course.”

He slowly rose to his feet and led Meng Qi to the place where he could select his titles.

On their way there, Meng Qi casually asked about the situation of the battle between the Dharmakayas. When he heard the Primogenitor describing how Conjuration of the Taoist Trinity had laid down the Immortal-slaying Sword Formation, his mind was overrun with curses.

“Such style, such force, such strength…” Meng Qi felt a heavy burden, yet he was far from his path.

“Our Eighty-Nine Mysteries collection isn’t a complete one and we only have two Dharmakaya styles,” Primogenitor Lingbao said, making a brief introduction. “One of them has evolved from the skill to turn one’s physical body into a saintly one; it’s called the Living Propagation. The style merges your martial arts with your Vital Spirit and connects them with every Aperture acupoint, flesh and blood. They’re all equipped with their own spirituality. Once it’s practiced to its extreme, it’s said that your blood will be born anew. It’s said that you’ll be able to regrow your Dharmakaya as long as a piece of your flesh remains, never to die.”

“Since the practitioner’s body will be infused with spirituality, simply pulling out a strand of hair would be enough to conjure up his Dharmakaya. Of course, the strength of the Dharmakaya would not be impressive. It’s meant purely for auxiliary purposes.”

“But this is all a matter to be considered after you claim your Dharmakaya. Now you’ll have to focus on enhancing your ability to withstand damage even if you end up breaking all your limbs. There’s always decent spiritual medicine to help your limbs regrow.”

Meng Qi recalled the Great Sage’s doppelgangers conjured out of monkey hair and asked, “Can an Exterior expert conjure doppelgangers?”

“Yes, but nine doppelgangers at most,” Primogenitor Lingbao replied.

Meng Qi was particularly interested in this skill. To think that several strands of hair would be enough to conjure helpers after claiming Dharmakaya in the future; that was akin to having 100,000 soldiers with him!

“Wait a second… Won’t my head be bald if I keep plucking my hair and turning them into helpers?”

“Wouldn’t I look even more like a monk than an actual monk does?”

Meng Qi gritted his teeth. “Primogenitor, what about the second style?”