https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-696-The-True-Martial-Sacred-Body/13465119/
Chapter 697: The Black Tortoise True Art
Chapter 697: The Black Tortoise True Art
The North.
Barbarian Province.
The Great Black Temple.
The Great Black Temple was carved into the mountain, its walls painted jet black, and the temple was perpetually enveloped in the fragrance of incense.
As the foremost sect in the land, the Great Black Temple’s monks felt a sense of superiority.
After all, the world’s greatest martial artist, the top-ranked expert on the Dragon Tiger List, the Venerable Lotus, was from their temple.
In the rear mountains.
Several newly ordained monks were sweeping the ground with brooms.
"Today, the Golden Body Hall taught us the Arhat Palm!"
One monk put down his broom and demonstrated a few moves: "Once I master the Arhat Palm, I can learn the Bodhi Hand, Thousand Hands Buddha Palm, and the Ten Thousand Buddhas Converging Hand... One day, I will also learn the Great Brightness Fist and become a legend."
"But the senior monks said that we martial monks must not be attached to such things; it’s a cognitive obstacle..."
Another young novice spoke up.
"Shut up... I became a monk to learn martial arts. What nonsense about monastic rules, greed, anger, and delusion? If the Venerable Lotus didn’t have such passion, how could he have become the greatest martial artist in the world?"
"Shh... Qing Xu, are you insane? That’s the place where the Great One is in seclusion right behind us."
The young novice was alarmed.
"It’s fine... He’s been in seclusion for decades, not even eating... How could he care about such trivial matters?"
Qing Xu waved his hand dismissively.
Suddenly, both of them felt something was wrong.
A shadow loomed over them.
In the forbidden area of the rear mountains, a black sun seemed to rise slowly.
This sun wasn’t hot or warm; instead, it was like a black hole, devouring all the heat around it.
Clack! Clack!
Qing Xu, who had been boasting just moments ago, was now only shivering.
He and the young novice could only kneel, trembling in fear as if awaiting divine judgment.
After what felt like an eternity, cold sweat poured down his face. All he could see was a black monk’s shoe walking away.
...
The Venerable Lotus was emaciated, draped in a dark golden robe, as he arrived at a shrine.
"Amitabha, greetings, Brother Lotus."
The abbot of the Great Black Temple, Master Lotus Heart, clasped his hands in prayer: "Brother, you have been in seclusion for many years. Have you achieved a realm beyond the First Rank?"
"No..."
The Venerable Lotus’s voice was hoarse and dry, like a traveler on the verge of dying of thirst in the desert.
"Oh?"
Master Lotus Heart was surprised. This Brother Lotus had dedicated himself to martial arts and had once vowed not to emerge from seclusion until he surpassed the First Rank. What had changed?
"I have been enlightened by the World-Honored One. I now understand that martial arts are but a minor path. As monks, we should focus on the Dharma."
The Venerable Lotus clasped his hands in prayer, his withered face like a skull, but his eyes were warm and innocent, like those of a child.
"Hmm? I didn’t expect Brother to have advanced so much in the Dharma?"
Master Lotus Heart drew a sharp breath: "What insights have you gained?"
"The Time Wheel Black Sun Sutra is nothing extraordinary. After years of contemplation, I finally had a sudden enlightenment—Buddha is not in the past, not in the present, but in the future! The Buddha Maitreya will be born in the future, attain limitless Dharma, and become the Supreme True Lord of Panwu, authoring the Panwu Black Sun Star Catastrophe Sutra... It contains great power and great joy. Once recited, it can connect one to the Heavenly Path..."
The Venerable Lotus spoke with great joy.
"What ‘Supreme True Lord of Panwu’? The ‘Black Sun Star Catastrophe Sutra’?" Master Lotus Heart was alarmed: "Brother, have you gone mad? In our Great Black Temple, we only worship the Great Black Heaven Buddha..."
"It’s no problem, Brother. You are merely deluded by false scriptures. Let me recite the true scripture to enlighten you!"
The Venerable Lotus clasped his hands, and the small shrine suddenly seemed to house a Thousand-Armed Guanyin, pinning Master Lotus Heart’s limbs.
In terms of martial arts, although Lotus Heart was also a Third Rank master, compared to the world’s greatest martial artist, the Venerable Lotus, he was nothing.
In the Venerable Lotus’s eyes, a black sun seemed to rise, a great sun to be born and perish.
Then, Master Lotus Heart was immobilized, forced to listen as the Venerable Lotus preached:
"Infinite time and space give rise to wondrous forms, the stars flow and manifest the true constant. The might of Panwu pervades the Dharma realm, one pure thought spreads throughout the ten directions..."
"Om to the Diamond Might Buddha of Panwu, Om to the Buddha of Infinite Wisdom, Om to the Buddha Maitreya of the Future..."
"Those who practice this Dharma must generate the Bodhi mind and a pure heart... Vow to liberate all beings from the cycle of rebirth, thus realizing the true meaning of Panwu, visualize the starlight shining on the crown of the head, dissolving the five turbidities and afflictions... If this scripture is written and disseminated, the ground becomes a diamond mandala, guarded by celestial dragons... When the ultimate achievement is attained, one will receive the empowerment of all Buddhas, attain supreme enlightenment, and manifest countless bodies, appearing as Buddhas in the star cataclysm... At the end of life, a thousand Buddhas will extend their hands, leading one directly to the Eastern Pure Land, born from a lotus, endowed with all spiritual powers..."
"May this supreme merit and virtue be dedicated to all beings in the Dharma realm. Quickly realize the diamond nature of Panwu, and pay homage to the Buddha in the starlight."
"Hey! Lotus Heart! Are you not enlightened yet?"
The Venerable Lotus roared like a lion, a terrifying black sun directly descending into Master Lotus Heart’s mind.
A First Rank master, with a spirit that reaches heaven and earth, can lock souls from afar, create illusions, and do what others cannot.
And at that moment, Master Lotus Heart suddenly became enlightened.
His consciousness soared infinitely high, his body trembling, as if he had ascended to an immeasurable height, bathed in the light of countless stars, and seen an existence beyond imagination...
That ancient being who split the heavens and earth, merging with all things...
He is One, He is Many, and He is All!
He is... Panwu!!!
“Aaaaah!”
In an instant, Lianxin's eyes burst, his face twisted in agony, with only two bloody sockets continuously weeping blood.
He struck a double peak through the ears, pressing his palms on the sides of his bald head, destroying his own ear canals.
Even so, he rolled on the ground, wailing: “Future... Constellation... Panwu, Panwu!”
Actually, both Lotus Venerable and Abbot Lianxin should be grateful.
The true Panwu had not fully awakened, so they could still maintain a thread of sanity.
Otherwise, their physical bodies would have begun to mutate into monsters...
The Great Black Temple was in chaos.
When the Discipline Hall Abbot and the Elders of the Bodhi Hall arrived, they only saw Abbot Lianxin, now blind and deaf, while Lotus Venerable had vanished without a trace.
“Abbot Lianxin?”
The old monks were shocked.
They saw Abbot Lianxin, his eyes streaming with blood, suddenly spitting out a piece of his tongue, biting it to pieces.
But then, he rolled on the ground, using his tongue to write:
“Ninth Rank, Ghost of the Netherworld...”
“Eighth Rank, Bone-Eroding Master...”
“Seventh Rank, Delusional Monk...”
...
In the 1137th year of the Nine Provinces Calendar, Lotus Venerable of the Great Black Temple fell into madness, harming Abbot Lianxin and killing seven elder protectors and countless martial monks in pursuit... In an instant, he became the public enemy of the martial world, the number one demon!
The entire northern martial world was in turmoil, with the forces of darkness on the rise!
...
Lingzhou.
Hundred Herbs Hall.
Xun Heihu was practicing his boxing techniques in the backyard, with Jiang Yuyan by his side.
"Our Five Beasts Sect's techniques are based on the forms of the tiger, deer, bear, ape, and crane... I mainly focus on the crane form, practicing the 'Flying Crane Stance' and the 'Pine Crane Technique' to cultivate internal strength..."
Jiang Yuyan demonstrated the boxing stance while explaining everything she knew.
These were the secret techniques of the Five Beasts Sect, not to be taught to outsiders.
Teaching these to others would mean certain death and even endanger her entire family if discovered.
Therefore, she could only commit herself wholeheartedly to Xun Heihu.
Xun Heihu observed for a moment and then demonstrated another set of boxing techniques. His right hand moved like a dancing crane, while his left hand carried the aura of a coiled venomous snake: "This is the 'Snake and Crane Dual Form' I improved based on your boxing and stance techniques... If you practice this diligently, you might advance to the innate realm of fetal breathing years ahead of schedule!"
He felt somewhat embarrassed for making her hand over her fundamental techniques as per his senior's request.
So, he asked his senior to refine and improve them, as a gesture of goodwill.
'Senior... how does this look?'
Xun Heihu thought, looking at Jiang Yuyan's reverent expression.
"The techniques of the Five Beasts Sect are quite good, with a hint of Xingyi flavor. Unfortunately, they focus too much on the 'form' and not enough on the 'intent,' which makes them a bit lacking..."
Fang Xing's voice echoed: "I have extracted the essence and created a new 'Snake Stance' that complements your 'Turtle Breath Technique'... The turtle and snake coiled together form the 'Black Tortoise,' so this technique can be called the 'Black Tortoise True Art'!"
"Boss!"
At that moment, a shop assistant from the Hundred Herbs Hall rushed over: "There's trouble in the northern martial world!"
"Hmm? Tell me more..."
Xun Heihu exuded a commanding presence.
Back in the day, after being educated by Fang Xing, he had focused on building his own businesses to earn a steady income.
He opened the 'Hundred Herbs Hall' in Lingzhou, entering the pharmaceutical industry.
With a few formulas provided by Fang Xing, he made a fortune, though not an overwhelming one.
The shop assistants and doctors were all veterans from his battles with the medical and pharmaceutical experts, and a few of them were even internal strength masters.
In this era, any profitable industry, whether medical, textile, or tavern, needed martial artists to guard it. Otherwise, there was no way to make money!
Even if there were no martial artists, one could hire 'martial guilds' or 'fighting guilds'...
Without martial prowess, one would be reduced to the lowest rung, eating the toughest meals.
"Yes, Boss."
The shop assistant said: "We received a message from the Dingzhou martial world, stating that the world's greatest martial artist, Lotus Venerable, has fallen into madness. He not only betrayed the Great Black Temple but also killed many righteous sects' experts. Even the Four Holy Monks who tried to persuade him to return were beaten to death..."
"What?"
Jiang Yuyan was stunned.
That was Lotus Venerable!
The number one on the Dragon Tiger List, the world's greatest martial artist!
And he was a Buddhist master!
For such a great master to fall into madness was like a joke!
"The higher the virtue, the more ferocious the madness when it strikes..."
Xun Heihu sighed, feeling a sense of relief.
He had known something was going to happen in the north, but he hadn't expected it to be this big.
'Senior... is that Lotus Venerable my arch-nemesis?'
He communicated with the True Martial Talisman.
"Most likely, it's the lingering poison of Panwu..."
Fang Xing's voice echoed: "Not bad, not bad... I think you can take on the world's greatest martial artist!"
(End of Chapter)
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