Chapter 178: The Buddhist Monk’s Curse
On Beiluo Lake.
The Spirit Qi storm had begun to subside. Lu Fan sat in his wheelchair, quietly floating above the surface of the lake.
With a thought, he opened up the system page.
[Host: Lu Fan]
[t.i.tle: Qi Refiner (Permanent)]
[Refined Qi Level: 3 (Progress to Level 4: 1,156/10,000 wisps)]
[Soul Strength: 100 (Redeemable: 13)]
[Physique Strength: 10 (Redeemable: 10)]
]Spirit Qi: 86 wisps]
]Available Points: 1,083 points]
As Lu Fan looked at the system page, he noticed that in the Refined Qi Level section, the total Spirit Qi in his progress to Level 4 was continually changing.
In the blink of an eye, the number of wisps would increase by 4 or 5.
Obviously, this Spirit Qi storm had provided him with a lot of Spirit Qi. It could be said that it was extremely fruitful for him.
The only way to describe how he felt, gaining so much Spirit Qi that fast, was extremely good.
It was akin to watching the savings in his bank account jump up by hundreds of dollars every time he blinked.
The refres.h.i.+ng feeling was like indulging on a rich, creamy, frozen ice cream on a hot summer’s day!
As Lu Fan had deployed his Spirit Qi, he had almost used up all of his Spirit Qi, and now he was rapidly regenerating it.
Although he had condensed the Earth’s Origin, turning it into a Spirit Qi storm that swept across the world.
However…
There was still a broad spectrum of talents among the people of the world.
Not everyone could gather Spirit Qi into their Qi Core and become a cultivator.
As such, the rate at which Lu Fan’s Spirit Qi was increasing was not out of this world.
Even so, it was at a significant speed.
In a short span of time, it had increased by 2,000 to 3,000. In other words, in the Great Zhou Dynasty, during this Spirit Qi storm, at the very least thousands of new cultivators had been born. In addition to the discounted commission he received from people like the Overlord and Nie Changqing condensing Spirit Qi, it was still a considerably good rate of Spirit Qi growth.
Lu Fan did not continue observing this.
There was no point to keep blinking and watching the number rise.
With a thought, he closed the system page.
Thin moving threads appeared in his vision, crossing long distances and allowing him to observe the ongoing battles at the frontier garrisons.
He did not kill these wanderers and instead left them alive because he wanted to provide a chance for Nie Changqing, the Overlord, and others to train.
Without any pressure, there would be no room for actual growth.
Since the Wuhuang Continent was still a Low Level Martial World, they still needed an existence above the Internal Organs Realm to be born for them to become a Mid Level Martial World.
And these wanderers would provide the push for Nie Changqing and the others to grow.
Lu Fan was not worried.
It was because, at his current level of strength, these wanderers would not be able to pull off an upset.
******
South County.
The burly man that was made of mud slowly averted its gaze from the sky.
He was different from the Buddhist monk and the blonde man.
He was able to sense the energies in the world more keenly and had perceived that more elemental energy had appeared in this world.
It was a sign that this world was on the brink of advancing to the next level.
Still, the burly man did not choose to flee. He did not need to flee… After all, this was just a terracotta duplicate of him.
He laced his fingers together, placing his hands in front of his chest. He was a refined and prudent person.
As someone who had failed before, the burly man would not allow himself to fail again.
As proof of his extreme caution, this body was just a duplicate he had brought together with his spell.
Somewhere far away…
Bathed in the Spirit Qi storm, the crowd of people opened their eyes.
Sima Qingshan was standing on top of the city walls of Nanjin City. His lips were curled up slightly in a smile.
The Spirit Qi in his Qi Core emerged.
Following this…
The blank picture scroll behind him began to unfurl slowly.
Sima Qingshan gripped a brush in his hand, and using the falling rain from the sky as ink, he began to paint on the blank scroll.
Sima Qingshan had entered the Internal Organs Realm, and his Spirit Qi became more intense as he painted.
The burly terracotta man sensed that he was being pulled into another world yet again.
It was a world of beautiful mountains and flowing rivers.
But though the scenery was beautiful, it left him with a sense of discomfort.
“Gentlemen, kill the enemy.”
Meanwhile, on the city walls…
Sima Qingshan’s clothes flapped loudly in the wind, as he slowly opened his mouth to speak.
Tang Yimo stretched his neck as the bones cracked together. Due to the Spirit Qi that bathed him, the injuries he sustained from using the Eight Meridians Escaping Demonic Technique had long healed.
“Very nicely done.”
Tang Yimo smirked as he complimented Sima Qingshan’s methods.
Once again, he opened his second meridian. His hair stood up on end, and green veins surfaced on his skin, as his entire body shot forward explosively.
His Spirit Qi was enveloped by his manic Qi and blood, as he collided violently into the burly man—who transformed into a terracotta figure—with force like a huge boulder cras.h.i.+ng down from atop a high mountain.
The burly man awoke from his entrapment in the painting scroll.
He opened his eyes slightly.
And the attacks smashed into his body like a raging storm; the continuous series of blows left his body in distorted shapes.
He slowly raised his hand, attempting to counterattack.
The soil and stones on the ground also began to gather together with the raising of his hand.
However…
A ray of Qi sword shot toward him from a distance, tearing him apart like an awl being drilled into a cloth pouch.
The raised arm of the terracotta man was severed by the Qi sword…
A smooth cut.
Wielding the Jing Heaven Sword, Jing Yue wore a smile on his face.
His sword was becoming stronger and stronger!
Boom!
The earth quaked violently, and the body of the terracotta man was broken into pieces, muddy sludge scattering across the ground.
Tang Yimo landed on the ground. His entire body was like burning coal, as the rain that fell from the sky evaporated into white steam upon contact with his body.
He stood up straight, waving his fist. Green veins densely covered his arm like small dragons.
“Kill!”
He shouted with a sonorous voice that resonated powerfully.
The great armies of South County and the many soldiers of the South Manor Army looked up at Tang Yimo with expressions full of zeal.
They raised their swords, their shouts tearing through the veil of rain.
“Kill!”
The deafening roar coincided with the sound of beating drums and war horns from atop the Nanjin City walls.
The South County Army began its charge.
Having lost the burly man, the Nanman army was completely unable to repel the great momentum of the South County Army.
The rain seemed to be stained red with blood.
This was a terrible defeat that would shock the heavens.
The Nanman army left behind a dense field of corpses, as they scrambled to retreat into the Nanman regions. The Nanman had gathered many of their tribes for this battle, but it ended so tragically for them.
They had taken a huge blow to their strength and would probably not be able to bother the South County for some time.
Xie Yunling and the many disciples of the Daoist Pavilion stopped their Daoist techniques.
Walking through the rain, they made their way to where Tang Yimo and the others were.
Sima Qingshan also descended from the city walls.
The Sword Saint Hua Dongliu found Jing Yue, and patting Jing Yue on the shoulder, the pair made their way over together.
The rain poured heavily on Tang Yimo, drenching him completely. However, Tang Yimo maintained a solemn demeanor, taking a step back, cupping his hands, and bowing down respectfully toward the others.
“On behalf of South County, I, Tang Yimo, would like to thank everyone for your a.s.sistance.”
With a laugh, Xie Yunling exchanged glances with the Sword Saint Hua Dongliu.
“General Tang, you don’t need to be so courteous. The Daoist Pavilion and Sword Pavilion are situated in South County. When South County is in trouble, how can we hide away and refuse to help?”
Xie Yunling laughed.
Looking toward Jing Yue, Tang Yimo cupped his hands and said, “Thank you very much, for the a.s.sistance of White Jade City.”
Jing Yue only smiled.
He was a disciple of White Jade City, but he was also a citizen of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
If the Five Barbarians were attacking Zhou, that was a national crisis.
How could he, Jing Yue, run away from this fight?
Sima Qingshan carried the picture scroll on his back and a brush in his hand. Looking at Tang Yimo, he frowned and said, “General Tang, the Nanman army has retreated, but… I have a feeling that the burly man is not yet dead.”
“The danger has not yet been neutralized,” Sima Qingshan said.
As he practiced the Dao of painting, Sima Qingshan had a very powerful Soul Strength. The Dao of painting had some similarities with Lu Fan’s Go strategy.
Tang Yimo nodded with a serious look in his eyes, but he was not too worried. Scanning the dense field of barbarian corpses littering the battlefield, he took a deep breath and replied, “It doesn’t matter. The Nanman army has suffered a complete defeat. Even if that person were to make a comeback, it would not be something we need to fear. If possible, I would have liked to enter the Nanman hinterlands and kill this person to prevent any future problems.”
“However, being wary of some kind of deception, I decided not to pursue him. At the very least, the Nanman of the Five Barbarians will not pose a threat in the future.”
“Still… What was that change that just occurred?”
Tang Yimo thought back to the instant the world transformed, as he grew serious and filled with doubts.
Xie Yunling only put his hands behind his back, the rainwater dripping off his hair onto his hands. Turning his head, he looked in the direction of Beiluo City and took a deep breath.
“The Young Master stopped the fighting for three months, and now… This transformation of the world and storm of Spirit Qi, could it be the work of the Young Master?”
Xie Yunling’s words left everyone who heard it speechless.
The only sound they made was of their heavy breathing.
Tang Yimo looked toward Beiluo City. He recalled how he had once stood on the sh.o.r.e of Beiluo Lake and the terrifying aura he had sensed.
The skin on his face twitched involuntarily.
Maybe… what Xie Yunling said was true.
That man in White Jade City…
He might have really stopped the fighting for three months for this moment when the world would transform!
******
The Chili tribe village.
On top of an altar…
A burly figure wrapped in a black robe slowly pulled back his hood, revealing a face bearing a slightly pained expression.
The destruction of his duplicate was a huge blow to him.
“The Lord of the Plane of this Low Level Martial World is way too mysterious. What kind of powers does he have to actually induce condensation of the Earth’s Origin?”
The burly man stood upon the altar, wiping the rain off his face.
Below the altar, sacrificial barbarians with blank looks in their eyes stood around like slaves, standing up straight while holding bamboo staves.
The burly man was now hesitating.
It was because at the moment, he was faced with two choices.
The first would be to hide and live a disgraceful life in this world while he waited for another opportunity from the shadows.
The other option would be to take the initiative and attack.
However…
He did not know the limits of this world’s Lord of the Plane, so he was not feeling too confident.
“No, I need to spy on the strength of this Lord of the Plane. I need to enter the Great Zhou Dynasty!”
The burly man’s eyes shone as he then turned his head to look to the east.
If they could not invade from the south, then…
He would have to create an opening from the east. He just happened to have a Dongyi tribe serving him that he could make use of.
******
West County, outside Hurao Gate.
The killing intent was pervasive.
The snow that continuously fell from the sky covered the corpses on the battleground with a dazzling white blanket.
Coated in an armor of Spirit Qi, Nie Changqing’s white s.h.i.+rt flapped in the wind. The snowflakes that fell in front of him were ripped into pieces by the invisible airflow around him. Gripping the handle of the butcher knife in his hand, he walked toward the blonde man.
“Alien Evil Spirits… will be put to death,” Nie Changqing said calmly.
He did not partake in any communication with the blonde man, and there was nothing that needed to be said between the two of them.
In a life and death battle, they just needed to fight.
Surprisingly, the blonde man felt some kind of fear from Nie Changqing.
After all, Nie Changqing’s strength was close to that of a cultivator at the peak of the Foundation Building Realm.
Nie Changqing’s strength was close to his own, aside from the fact that Nie Changqing had yet to derive elemental energy.
The blonde man started to let out some kind of light from his entire body, transforming into a man of light.
In his hands, he wielded a sword of light that overflowed with a brilliant radiance.
His eyes darted around as he scanned his surroundings.
He was looking for the Lord of the Plane. He was terrified that the Lord of the Plane—hiding in the shadows—might suddenly attack without warning.
Nie Changqing made his first move.
The butcher knife soared through the air, the blade’s shadows blending, and the Knife Qi sweeping outward.
The razor-sharp Knife Qi sliced the rocks on the ground into tiny pieces.
The blonde man drew his sword of light, as it collided with Nie Changqing’s knife.
The area in front of the two of them seemed to become a special zone.
It was filled with the endless collisions of fearsome cutting power.
The butcher knife and the sword of light seemed to be cras.h.i.+ng explosively into each other!
The snow falling from the sky had no way of entering this zone.
The dirt and rocks on the ground were chopped into tiny pieces.
Nie Changqing’s butcher knife did not stop ringing, as he launched a long series of attacks, countless slash marks scarring the ground.
The blonde man was extremely irritated.
He and the Buddhist monk could tell that this Lord of the Plane was using the two of them as stepping stones for Nie Changqing and the others. This fight was a training ground for Nie Changqing to hone his skills and new powers.
How could they bear such an insult?
They were already shamed when they became wanderers, and now after invading this world, they were being humiliated and oppressed again!
As an invader, had they lost all of their dignity?
Nie Changqing’s white s.h.i.+rt flapped loudly.
He continued to wield his butcher knife, as several cuts appeared on the Spirit Qi armor that covered his body. It was caused by the sword Qi emitted by the sword of light, which had hit him but was stopped by the Spirit Qi armor formed when he tempered his five organs.
The butcher knife and the sword of light continued to clash with each other.
It was a collision of flas.h.i.+ng cold steel.
Around them, the soldiers’ cries on the battlefield grew increasingly intense. The Xiliang armored hors.e.m.e.n charged in fearlessly, and even the heavens seemed to be on the side of Xiang Family’s Army, as they completely pushed back the armies of the Guifang and Maurya Empire.
On the other side…
The Overlord moved, and a ma.s.s of Demonic Qi was called forth from his body. The black axe in his hands seemed to carry overwhelming force, as he swung it viciously toward the bald Buddhist monk.
Clang!
The bald Buddhist monk put his palms together, and the golden buddha statue that cried tears of blood blocked the attack.
A crisp sound rang out, and the bald Buddhist monk rubbed his palms together. In the next moment, the golden buddha statue turned a blood-red color as though it had been stained with fresh blood after being drenched in it.
“Actually using me as a stepping stone! You’re courting death!”
The bald Buddhist monk had a brutal and ruthless look in his eyes.
He wrapped his palms around the string of prayer beads hanging on his neck and pulled it fiercely. With a snap, the prayer bead neckless was pulled apart.
However, the prayer beads that were sent flying did not scatter across the ground.
Instead, the bald Buddhist monk swung his sleeves to hit them, sending each prayer bead shooting toward the Overlord at extreme speeds.
The Overlord raised his b.l.o.o.d.y s.h.i.+eld.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each prayer bead smashed into the b.l.o.o.d.y s.h.i.+eld with ma.s.sive amounts of force, as the color of blood exploded out from the surface of the b.l.o.o.d.y s.h.i.+eld.
The Overlord was brought to the ground, falling back two steps. The bald Buddhist monk also made his move, closing in on the Overlord in an instant.
“This humble monk is at the Peak Foundation Building level, while you, demon, have just entered the Foundation Building level. Why are you so full of yourself?” The Buddhist monk yelled.
This shout was like a deafening roar, and the sound alone made the Overlord dizzy.
Still, the Buddhist monk continued to throw punches, each blow landing squarely on the b.l.o.o.d.y s.h.i.+eld.
Each punch seemed to have the force of a gale.
The Overlord was being continuously pushed back, as troughs were beginning to form where his feet dug into the ground.
“You’re an evil demon, and I’m a buddha. It’s only natural for a buddha to triumph over a demon!”
The Buddhist monk continued to shout, chants coming out from his mouth like blood-red lotus flowers.
Even so…
The Buddhist monk was fierce, but the Overlord was fiercer.
The Spirit Qi swirl that had been spinning clockwise on the Overlord’s body suddenly came to a stop.
Then, it slowly started to spin in the opposite direction.
He tossed aside his b.l.o.o.d.y s.h.i.+eld.
The Buddhist monk’s fist smashed into the Overlord’s stout chest, causing a slight indentation to appear on the front, while shockwaves flew out through the air behind the Overlord.
However, the Overlord did not seem affected and even flashed a cold smile.
The Buddhist monk’s eyes grew serious.
The Overlord let out a roar.
An eye for an eye.
His elbow crashed into the Buddhist monk’s head, sending him hurtling back dozens of meters.
The fighting had triggered the Overlord’s bloodl.u.s.t, and his Demonic Qi had grown thick and viscous.
Encased in mighty power, as wisps of Demonic Qi encircled his body, he charged straight at the Buddhist monk.
The Buddhist monk bounced up off the ground, and the b.l.o.o.d.y buddha behind him struck out with its palm.
The Overlord did not attempt to avoid it.
He took the full brunt of the palm strike.
Fresh blood spurted out from his mouth, but at the same time, he swept the black axe in his hand toward the Buddhist monk, slas.h.i.+ng a huge gash in the Buddhist monk’s chest!
The Buddhist monk was stupefied. This man… really defied all logic. How could anyone fight in such a barbaric and unreasonable way?
The Overlord did not bother dodging the Buddhist monk’s attacks at all, and the moment the Buddhist monk attacked, the Overlord would withstand the hit while striking back at the Buddhist monk…
This gave the Buddhist monk an inexplicable bad feeling in the pits of his stomach.
The Overlord’s mouth was stained red with blood, yet he still howled with laughter.
“A buddha triumphs over demons?”
“Triumph over me then! Come on!”
The Overlord was completely fearless, willing to trade hits blow for blow.
The Buddhist monk was reeling from the damage he took. Although he was a cultivator at the peak of Foundation Building Realm, he was actually completely helpless against the Overlord.
The fierce would lose to the barbaric, the barbaric would lose to the ruthless, and the ruthless would lose to the reckless.
The Overlord was one such reckless individual.
The Buddhist monk did not have the muscular physique of the Overlord, and his physical state began to deteriorate rapidly after taking a few hits from the axe.
After all, he was not heavily armored, unlike the Overlord.
With every palm strike the Buddhist monk landed on the Overlord, the latter would counter with a heavy punch.
The Buddhist monk was beaten up badly; his mouth was swollen, and his face was bruised black and blue, blood flowing freely from his wounds…
He could not even continue his chants of Amitabha.
The palms he had put together in prayer were trembling.
The Buddhist monk felt forlorn.
Was a wanderer like him, without even meeting the Lord of the Plane… going to meet his end here?
“Oh, Buddha, what should I do?”
The Buddhist monk turned his beaten and bruised face up toward the snowy sky, feeling hopeless.
Poof!
The Overlord blasted forward, sweeping out with the long axe in his hands.
In that instant…
The Buddhist monk’s blood stained the white snow.
A disembodied head soared into the sky.
The Overlord’s eyes blazed like torches.
In order to prevent the Buddhist monk from reviving himself from his head, the Overlord leaped off from the ground, his burly body flying up into the sky full of snow.
With a single punch, he burst the head apart!
The white snow was stained with crimson.
It drifted down slowly from the heavens onto the earth.
The headless body of the Buddhist monk stood where it was, as the cold blood-red snow covered his body.
The Buddhist monk’s corpse stood stock-still, hands still put together in prayer.
The Overlord landed on the ground, panting heavily.
Suddenly…
The Overlord’s pupils shrank.
He saw…
A hideous and restless spirit floating out from the corpse.
The twisted soul of the Buddhist monk stared at the Overlord with resentment…
“Demon who had slighted a buddha, a day will come… Today, a Buddha. On another day, a demon. One day, you, too, will become a headless corpse like this humble monk! You will wander the earth aimlessly!”
The Buddhist monk’s spirit laid a resentful curse on the Overlord, and unconsciously, his eyes grew serious.
******
On Beiluo Lake.
Resting his chin on his hand, with the other hand tapping lightly on his wheelchair, Lu Fan raised his eyebrow slightly.
He raised up a hand in the shape of a claw and grasped at the empty s.p.a.ce in front of him.
This grasp…
It seemed to cross an incredible distance.
In front of Hurao Gate.
The twisted spirit of the Buddhist monk’s resentful curses came to an abrupt end.
The reason for this was that above his head, a hand—made up of condensed Spirit Qi—was descending from the sky.