https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-642-Before-Kneeling-to-the-Buddha-Kneel-Before-Me/12951937/
Chapter 643: The Venerable's Sermon
Chapter 643: The Venerable's Sermon
In the instant when the two Bodhimanda Sect disciples perished, the once-splendid hall, now littered with debris, began to take on a surreal quality.
Even the dazzling golden divine statue seemed to fade like a fleeting cloud, disintegrating in an instant.
On the crowded street, a sudden wave of bloodstained air spread, causing passersby to halt in astonishment. On the cobblestone path, only two pools of blood remained, testifying to what had just transpired.
Far away from this place, on another street.
A white-robed man holding a wine pot, his face flushed with intoxication, suddenly sniffed and his eyes cleared.
He furrowed his brows, sensing the rich fragrance hidden within the faint blood aura.
Meng Xiuwen executed a spell, taking a step forward, and his figure appeared before the pools of blood. He pushed through the onlookers, bent down, and touched the bloodstain with his fingertip.
Upon seeing the golden light gradually dimming in the blood, his last trace of intoxication vanished, and he shuddered.
"Something terrible is about to happen..."
For some reason, Meng Xiuwen hadn't fully processed his thoughts, but his legs instinctively took him towards the inn.
He hadn't paid much attention to Ye Lan's departure from Jianyang Prefecture, as he was already preoccupied with other matters. After all, the Demon Slayer Official typically possessed the strength to guard an entire prefecture, and rarely encountered significant issues.
But now, he felt a chill throughout his body.
A Bodhimanda Sect wanderer had fallen in Jianyang Prefecture, and the wanderer Meng Xiuwen was most familiar with was none other than his newly appointed Demon Slayer Official! Could it be that Qingmei Elder Hen had come to kill?
"Are you alright?"
Meng Xiuwen stood on the second floor of the inn and shouted, kicking the door open with a loud thud. As he took in the scene inside the room, his initial anxiety turned into bewilderment.
Ye Jing leaned against the corner, adjusting her breath with her eyes closed.
On the other side, a monk had a bloody gaping hole in his face, barely recognizable as Zhikong Xingzhe. He hadn't treated his wounds but sat on the ground in a daze, staring blankly at Shen Yi on the bed.
The situation seemed different from what he had imagined.
However, when Meng Xiuwen saw what Shen Yi was doing, he couldn't bring himself to smile. Instead, he felt the chill in his body intensify, and he quickly stepped into the room, slamming the door shut!
On the bed lay two corpses, both dressed as wanderers. One had their skull brutally smashed by a hard object, while the other was even more straightforward, missing their head entirely.
Shen Yi, that man, was meticulously searching their bodies, not missing a single detail.
His posture resembled a bandit who had just finished robbing someone.
"Huff."
Shen Yi slowly retrieved two golden pages, and a smile finally appeared on his face.
Indeed, his prediction was accurate.
Ordinary cultivators rarely carry their cultivation techniques on their person, but the Bodhimanda Sect was different.
Shen Yi had personally experienced the terror of facing true tribulations without the protection of the Sacred Scripture, so this item was more like a protective talisman for the soul than a cultivation technique.
Even though he had memorized its contents, having it on hand to review provided a sense of reassurance.
"..."
Meng Xiuwen's eyelids twitched, and with that smile, he understood even more. He asked with a dry mouth, "What are you doing? What's going on here?"
He now had a rough idea of why Shen Yi, this wandering cultivator, was so 'fresh' and unique.
Apparently, all these skills were acquired through this method?
"The Bodhimanda Sect wanderer intended to ambush me and Shen Yi in Jianyang Prefecture."
Ye Jing usually appeared absent-minded, but at this moment, with a slight opening of her eyes, she turned Shen Yi's theft of the Sacred Scripture into a personal vendetta into a public matter of banditry.
Not to mention, those two monks had killed a Purple Cloud Sect cultivator, which certainly didn't make them good people.
Shen Yi was merely eliminating a threat for the Divine Kingdom!
Ye Jing glanced at Shen Yi, who had just taken the Sacred Scripture from the corpses, and nervously bit her lip.
"Tsk."
Meng Xiuwen wasn't a fool; he wouldn't be fooled by such an incomplete statement. But since the deed was done... His gaze shifted to Zhikong Xingzhe beside him, "So, is this one still alive?"
"Huh?"
Zhikong Xingzhe finally snapped out of his daze. For some reason, being stared at by this white-robed man made him feel a chill down his neck.
Shen Yi was truly peculiar, and his friend didn't seem like an ordinary person either.
The monk remembered that it was he who had given Shen Yi the Three-Tier Lotus Platform Technique. In a short time, Shen Yi had already perfected it, of course, not because he believed a court official would lack Imperial Aura to overcome the heart tribulation.
The Imperial Aura, controlled by the court, was the most crucial means to govern the Divine Kingdom. Every bit used reduced the supply, and even court officials rarely had personal access to it.
But no matter what, it’s still much easier for them to obtain compared to us cultivators.
However, the prerequisite for crossing the Heart Tribulation is to be able to understand the spell and attain a basic level of practice.
For Shen Xianyou to have so effortlessly cultivated the Three-Tribulation Lotus Platform Technique, even within the sect, the elders would commend him for his excellent Buddhist nature.
What a pity...
Master Zhikong glanced back at the bodies of his two elder brothers. Ever since Shen Xianyou made his move, the chances of him joining the sect were already slim.
But at the same time, he thought of something even more terrifying.
If Shen Xianyou is an imperial official and has access to sufficient imperial aura, coupled with his astonishing Buddhist nature and possession of the Dragon Tiger Scripture, if things continue to develop this way, wouldn’t it mean... that in the future, a Dragon Tiger Bodhisattva will appear, who is not a disciple of the Bodhimanda Sect and might even have a grudge against it?!
Master Zhikong couldn’t even imagine what kind of punishment the elders would impose when they learned of this matter.
Fortunately, neither he nor his two elder brothers had ever mastered the Golden Lotus Technique.
That thing isn’t something one can casually obtain.
Even after achieving the Sixth Rank Lotus Platform perfection, one still needs to be favored by a Venerable, essentially becoming a half-disciple, and pass their test to acquire this technique and advance to the Golden Lotus Ascetic realm.
Then, one can attain a Fruit Position and become a guardian Bodhisattva under the Venerable’s lotus platform.
Shen Xianyou was walking down a dead-end road, fortunately, there was a missing section in the middle.
“It’s not related to Master Zhikong.”
Shen Yi carefully put away the golden register and turned to shake his head.
[Sixth Rank. Six Tribulations Lotus Platform Technique: Not Initiated]
“So it’s Lord Shen’s doing again, right?” Meng Xiuwen gritted his teeth and smiled. He had already sensed that Shen Yi was not an easy person to deal with, and when Ye Lan appointed him as a temporary Demon Slayer, he found it quite amusing.
But he truly hadn’t expected that the other party would be so ruthless.
Collaborating with the Bodhimanda Sect disciples, he directly killed the other two wanderers, slaying them to obtain the technique. Listen to this, could this be something an imperial official would do?
Most absurdly, Shen Yi won.
A Sixth Rank Ascetic almost represents the upper limit of Seventh Rank strength. Even Master Zhikong would be slightly weaker, and Ye Jing had no chance of playing any significant role in such a battle.
The other party, a wandering immortal, not only won but also killed two at once.
No one would dare to believe this if it were told.
“Sigh.”
Meng Xiuwen sighed, summoned a sword light to obliterate the evidence, and at the same time, he noticed an invisible flame falling on the other body.
He remained silent for a moment, then looked at Shen Yi. Their actions were so familiar that a brief exchange of glances was enough for them to understand each other without words.
“Can we talk?”
After finishing the obliteration, Meng Xiuwen put away his usual carefree demeanor and became unusually serious.
Even if the killing of the Bodhimanda Sect disciples could be known to Master Zhikong, matters involving the Demon Slaying Bureau could not be disclosed to him.
“Sure.”
Shen Yi lightly nodded and followed the other man out of the room.
After doing all this, he could still stay in Jianyang Prefecture without fleeing, all because of his identity as a Demon Slayer.
But this identity clearly has its limits.
No matter how large the tree, it cannot continuously indulge its subordinates in doing whatever they want.
“You need to find a master eventually; you can’t keep going like this.”
Meng Xiuwen stopped walking and handed over his wine gourd: “Learning a bit from the East and a bit from the West may seem like you have many skills and are powerful, but without reaching the Fifth Stage, you’re just walking a small path. Whether it’s Dao Fruit or Fruit Position, you’ll eventually have to choose one.”
“These things, you find it hard to obtain on your own and need others to teach you.”
“However, once you enter this line of work, it’s as if you’re rejected by the Three Teachings, including other Immortal Sects, which are unlikely to accept us. You will most likely only learn skills from senior members within the profession.”
Meng Xiuwen’s face showed a self-deprecating smile: “Don’t end up like me. Talking about doing as I please and being a righteous hero, in the eyes of the seniors, I’m just an unruly troublemaker, always causing problems, no one dares to pick me up.”
“Talking about being the strongest Demon Slayer... no matter how strong, in the end, you can’t get a title, find a master, and remain stuck at the Sixth Rank, unable to advance.”
“...”
Shen Yi listened quietly and took a sip of the cloudy wine.
Sometimes, it’s not that he deliberately wants to cause trouble; it’s just that he can’t stand to see injustice and ends up getting involved.
From the beginning to today, having experienced countless big and small matters, he still hasn’t been able to shake off this bad habit.
"Fine."
Seeing Shen Yi's expression, Meng Xiuwen sighed and shook his head, recognizing the stubbornness he once possessed. Reasoning would be futile.
He patted the young man's shoulder, changing the subject: "Do you know that whether it's a Celestial Immortal or a Golden Lotus Ascetic, these Sixth Rank Realms are merely transitions. Of course, these transitions are crucial, determining the type of Dao Fruit one can attain in the future."
"The True Immortal's Six Tribulations, the Celestial Immortal's Six Tribulations, a total of twelve when combined. However, for most Dao Fruits, nine tribulations are sufficient. It's like giving up a watermelon for sesame seeds!"
Hearing this, Shen Yi slightly raised his eyes.
The Void Dao Fruit, ranked among the top ten in the Sacred Scriptures, and the Divine Soul, Golden Lotus Technique, and the Dragon Tiger Scripture, and the Bodhimanda Sect, all while ensuring their safety.
"So, what kind of gathering is this?" Shen Yi glanced sideways, wanting to understand in advance.
Unexpectedly, Meng Xiuwen also frowned: "To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. The Bodhimanda Sect and the Triad Immortal Sect, they don't share their teachings, even the Mahasiddha Sermon, and the Divine Kingdom, and the Three Teachings, all while maintaining a sense of unease.
"That's understood."
Shen Yi nodded, confirming that General Yan Lan brought him along solely to listen to the sermon, a simple act of offering an opportunity.
Involving a Third Rank Mahasiddha, a mere Seventh Rank cultivator could hardly make a difference.
Regardless, enhancing his strength would increase his chances of survival if danger arose.
With this in mind, Shen Yi bid farewell to Meng Xiuwen and returned to the inn.
Selecting an empty room, he summoned the Spirit Light Rat to guard the door.
Sitting cross-legged on the bed, he slowly closed his eyes.
Ever since his last tribulation, Shen Yi couldn't help but reminisce about the feeling of unity with heaven and earth. Now, with a new sacred scripture protecting his divine soul, he could finally continue his journey forward.
【Remaining Demonic Lifespan: One Hundred Sixty-Seven Tribulations】
In an instant, the demonic lifespan was channeled into the Three-Tier Lotus Platform Technique.
Shen Yi's internal lotus platform once again blossomed with new petals.
(End of Chapter)
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