“I’ve spotted an acquaintance, I’ll go take a look,” Xu Qi An said, then turned to go downstairs. He discreetly circled the crowd from a distance, approaching the old auntie in the cloth skirt with a thorn hairpin.

Chu Yuanzhen’s gaze followed him, and when he saw that Xu Qi An’s target was an older woman of average looks, he laughed:

“Xu Ningyan’s tastes are unique.”

Heng Yuan frowned, about to defend Lord Xu, when he saw Xu Qi An in the distance shamelessly flash a “lecher’s” smile and start chatting with the woman.

The woman ignored him and even rolled her eyes at him, but Lord Xu didn’t seem to mind, continuing to chatter away.

Seeing this, Heng Yuan lost the will to defend him and said dryly, “Youthful passion isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

Chu Yuanzhen laughed heartily, “The courtesans at the Courtesans’ House are beautiful, but they always seem to be missing something. These married women have a certain flavor.”

Heng Yuan could only sigh helplessly, lamenting Lord Xu’s misfortune and lack of self-control.

Lord Xu was good in every other way, but his lecherous tendencies were problematic.

Due to Number One’s propaganda within the Heaven and Earth Society, Xu Qi An’s reputation as a lecher had become deeply ingrained in the minds of the Earth Book fragment holders.

“Auntie, why are you here again? Judging by your attire, you don’t seem to be from a wealthy family. Don’t you have household chores to attend to? Why do you always come out to watch the excitement?”

“Is that man on the stage your husband?”

“How much silver did you bring out today? Be careful not to let anyone steal it. Come, let this official take you to a less crowded place.”

Apart from the initial coquettish eye roll, the old auntie ignored him completely, letting him chatter endlessly by her ear.

She showed extreme disgust towards the handsome Xu “Silver Gong.”

Xu Qi An, finding no response, didn’t get angry. He simply stopped talking and turned his attention to the duel on the stage.

This time, Monk Jin Si no longer held back. He chose to engage in hand-to-hand combat with the sixth-rank martial artist of Bronze Skin and Iron Bones, trading blow for blow.

Dong dong dong…

The thunderous sounds of their fists and feet colliding echoed like continuous bell strikes or a blacksmith’s hammering. Occasionally, dazzling sparks flew between the two.

The watching crowd cheered enthusiastically, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

A child, completely engrossed, excitedly ran towards the arena, shouting with excitement.

“Get lost, brat!”

Xu Qi An swept his leg, kicking the child away. The boy flew lightly for a few meters before landing in a man’s arms. It seemed to be his father, who looked at Xu Qi An with both shock and anger but didn’t dare to make a scene.

“Are you hurt?” the man asked anxiously.

“It doesn’t hurt at all,” the child said with a grin.

The old auntie turned her head to look at Xu Qi An, then turned back without expression, focusing intently on the match on the stage.

The battle in the arena didn’t last long. After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the outcome was decided. The sixth-rank martial artist was struck three times in the chest by Monk Jin Si and finally couldn’t maintain his hard qi technique.

“The Buddhist Diamond Body truly lives up to its reputation.”

The man cupped his hands, seemingly too ashamed to stay any longer. He leaped off the arena and hurriedly left.

The old auntie lightly stamped her foot.

Xu Qi An was somewhat surprised. This old auntie, how to put it… He could always see some gestures and expressions in her that only young girls should have.

The aunties at home occasionally behaved like this too, but not as exaggerated as her.

This is an auntie who has no sense of her age… Xu Qi An concluded inwardly, smiling as he said:

“It’s like two swords clashing. When the brute force is about the same, the sword with better quality wins. The Buddhist Diamond Body is said to have been created by Buddha himself, while the Bronze Skin and Iron Bones of martial artists vary in ‘quality.’ It’s not an unfair loss.”

The old auntie turned her head, sneering, “You talk as if you know everything. Why don’t you go up there? Didn’t you cut down a sixth-rank martial artist with one slash before?”

Xu Qi An narrowed his eyes and asked in return, “Oh? Didn’t you leave at that time? How do you know I cut down a sixth-rank martial artist with one slash?”

The old auntie responded with a cold laugh: “I’m neither deaf nor mute. Unless there was another silver gong officer in the southern city that day.”

“Hey, it was you who called someone to beat me that day, wasn’t it? Auntie, which family’s madam are you? What department does your husband work in?” Xu Qi An dropped the act and asked directly.

That day, the sixth-rank martial artist dressed as a jianghu wanderer had challenged Xu Qi An on stage for no apparent reason, specifically naming him. He could have arrested the man directly, but for the sake of showing off… putting on a show in public, he chose to face the challenge.

Afterward, before he could interrogate the man, the jianghu martial artist was taken away from the night watchmen’s office. Who could do that?

Xu Qi An guessed it was “one of their own,” either someone from the military or a retainer of some big shot.

Just now, when Xu Qi An saw another sixth-rank martial artist take the stage and spotted the old auntie mixed in with the crowd, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration, remembering that he had indeed offended someone.

This old auntie’s identity was certainly not as simple and ordinary as her appearance suggested, and he had indeed offended her that day, though it wasn’t a big deal. But given a woman’s pettiness, it was a different matter altogether.

Xu Qi An had reason to suspect that the sixth-rank martial artist from that day had been acting on this old auntie’s instructions.

Hearing Xu Qi An’s questioning, the old auntie smiled brightly: “You go up there and cut down this little monk, and I’ll tell you.”

Xu Qi An shook his head.

“Scared?” The contempt in her eyes deepened.

Yes, I’m scared. I’ve finally managed to remove myself from the Buddhist delegation’s sight. I don’t want to have too much entanglement with Buddhist monks… But Xu Qi An couldn’t help but put his hand on his sword hilt, pondering:

“I can’t break through his Diamond Body.”

Let me show you there’s always someone better! The old auntie pursed her lips, her eyes filled with complex emotions, both disappointed and smug.

At this moment, a green-robed swordsman flew out from the nearby tavern, landing lightly on the arena.

Seeing that someone else was challenging the little monk, the crowd immediately perked up, ready to enjoy another spectacle and discuss who this green-robed swordsman might be.

“Chu Yuanzhen…”

Xu Qi An heard the old auntie mutter.

Does she know Chu Yuanzhen? Oh, Chu Yuanzhen used to be the top scholar, so he’s not unfamiliar with Great Feng’s upper echelons… With Champion Chu taking action, it’s probably a sure win.

Xu Qi An breathed a sigh of relief.

This little monk Jin Si had been dominating the arena, which didn’t look good for the court’s face.

“Little monk, I’ll only make one sword strike. If you can block it, I’ll count it as my loss,” Chu Yuanzhen said with a smile, calmly looking directly at Jin Si.

The booing started again. The spectators around, seeing the green-robed swordsman’s arrogance, their impression of him plummeted.

The invincibility of this young dharma master from the Western Regions was clear for all to see. The green-robed swordsman’s boastful words easily made people think he was an opportunist, a jianghu wanderer eager for instant fame.

“Please, benefactor!”

Jin Si pressed his palms together, standing firm and unafraid.

“Interesting.” Chu Yuanzhen smiled, his eyes showing no desire for victory, but rather mostly curiosity, just like the surrounding crowd.

Then, Chu Yuanzhen made a gesture that no one understood. He reached out towards the sky, opening his palm.

The sword on his back remained motionless.

Just as people thought he was bluffing and were about to mock him mercilessly, someone saw a pebble fly up from beside their foot.

More and more pebbles rose into the air, swarming like bees towards the green-robed swordsman’s palm.

With a series of clanking sounds, the pebbles fit together tightly, forming a sword hilt. As more pebbles gathered, a four-foot-long stone sword took shape.

Wow…

A commotion erupted around them. Most of the spectators were just here for the excitement, and the more flashy something was, the more impressive it seemed to them.

Chu Yuanzhen’s trick was very flashy indeed. Gathering stones to form a sword seemed like a divine ability, far more interesting to watch than the Western monk who had only been taking hits from the beginning.

“Impressive!”

The old auntie’s eyes sparkled, and she couldn’t help but cheer.

After the stone sword formed, Chu Yuanzhen gripped it and thrust forward. In an instant, wind and thunder erupted, and a fierce gale rose from the ground, causing the surrounding crowd to sway back and forth.

The sword energy came too fast for Monk Jin Si to dodge. He clasped his hands together, neither retreating nor avoiding.

Ding… Boom boom boom…

First came a piercing sound that seemed to pierce the eardrums, followed by the muffled explosions of qi bursting. Waves of energy like wild tides blew away the distant crowd.

Fortunately, over the past three days, they had already experienced so-called qi fluctuations, so the common people no longer dared to get too close to the arena. Therefore, no one was injured, though many people’s ears bled from the shock.

Before the first sharp sound, Xu Qi An had covered the old auntie’s ears, and the subsequent qi explosions pressed her tightly against Xu Qi An’s chest.

Probably never having been in such intimate contact with a strange man before, the old auntie struggled violently, her feet stomping hard on Xu Qi An’s insteps.

When everything calmed down, the green-robed swordsman and the young Western monk were standing in the arena. The young monk’s golden body no longer shone brightly, appearing dull and lackluster.

There was no sword in Chu Yuanzhen’s hand, and between the two of them was only a ground full of gravel.

“He lost.”

Xu Qi An thought regretfully, then saw the old auntie push him away forcefully, swinging her hand to slap him.

Xu Qi An raised his hand to block it, saying irritably, “You old auntie, at your age, your temper is still…”

He didn’t finish speaking. Before his eyes was a snow-white wrist wearing a string of bodhi beads.

“???”

A series of question marks flashed through Xu Qi An’s mind. His gaze at the old auntie slowly froze, slowly becoming strange.

He recognized this bodhi bead bracelet. The day he encountered Daoist Jin Lian in the inner city, he had “won” a fragment of the Earth Book and a string of bodhi beads from him.

That bracelet had been bought by a noble person sitting in a golden nanmu wood carriage.

Was it her?!

“Let go…”

The old auntie’s voice rang out, filled with shame and anger, her teeth clenched.

Xu Qi An obediently let go, and the old auntie followed up with another slap, stomping away in fury.

No way, no way, the woman whom Daoist Jin Lian praised as “having an extremely deep connection with me in the future” is her?!

Someone qualified to ride in a carriage made of golden nanmu wood, so, is this old auntie Emperor Yuanjing’s cousin, or the wife of some prince?!

What kind of deep connection could a woman like this have with me? Could it be… No, no, no, I can’t let my thoughts slide. Maybe she has a daughter who is as beautiful as a flower, destined for me… But with her ordinary looks, how could she have such a beautiful daughter?

Thinking of the old auntie’s appearance, Xu Qi An cut off the train of thought about a young mother-in-law, reasoning that having a deep connection didn’t necessarily mean a romantic fate, it could be other kinds of connections.

“Come to think of it, in just a few days I’ve already met her twice, and her background is unclear, not within the scope of my life or career, so not in my social circle. To encounter her frequently under such circumstances, Daoist Jin Lian was right, I do indeed have a connection with her.”

At this time, the surrounding spectators recovered from the aftermath of the duel. Some people were constantly patting their ears, shouting “Ah ah ah” loudly.

Those lucky enough not to have their eardrums damaged sighed with regret.

“He still didn’t win?”

“Are the people from the Western Buddhist sect so powerful?”

No one criticized Chu Yuanzhen though, after all, that sword strike just now was already a godlike technique.

…

Xu Qi An led his little mare, walking slowly with Heng Yuan and Chu Yuanzhen.

“Champion Chu, how much of your power did you use in that sword strike just now?” Xu Qi An asked curiously.

Chu Yuanzhen shook his head, answering a different question, “That little monk’s path is the same as yours, yet opposite to yours.”

Xu Qi An suddenly understood. Chu Yuanzhen meant that Monk Jin Si only knew the Diamond Body technique, which was similar to Xu Qi An who only had the power of one slash.

The opposite part was that one was offensive and the other defensive.

“Then, does Champion Chu think my spear could break through his shield?” Xu Qi An asked.

“You can!”

Chu Yuanzhen glanced at him, then smiled and said, “But you also can’t.”

Xu Qi An gave him a deadpan face: “Scholars and Buddhists are equally annoying.”

Chu Yuanzhen asked in surprise: “What do you mean?”

Xu Qi An smiled: “Figure it out yourself.”

Chu Yuanzhen immediately looked displeased. A few seconds later, he suddenly understood and shook his head with a laugh: “Playing word games is indeed meaningless. Only self-proclaimed clever people do such things.”

After a pause, he advised: “Your ‘Heaven and Earth One Slash’ is very powerful, and after integrating the essence of the heart sword, it has even fewer flaws. But in my view, it lacks a soul.”

Soul? Xu Qi An rejected this word.

“What you wield is the Heaven and Earth One Slash, and it’s only the Heaven and Earth One Slash. What I wield is not just sword techniques, but my spirit. When I’m lazy, my sword energy is lazy. When I’m gentle, my sword energy is gentle. But once I’m angry, my sword intent can pierce the heavens,” Chu Yuanzhen said solemnly:

“This is spirit! This is soul! This is the essence of a fourth-rank martial artist!”

Xu Qi An recalled the “divine might” of the gold gongs at the magistrate’s office and nodded in realization. “But as you said, that’s the essence of a Fourth-Grade Warrior.”

“I’m just a small silver gong at the Seventh-Grade Spirit Refinement Realm,” he thought to himself.

“I can teach you Yi cultivation. When you reach an advanced level, it’ll be equivalent to having the abilities of a Fourth-Grade Warrior in advance. Of course, the effect won’t be as potent. However, combined with your Heaven and Earth Slash, it should be enough to break through that Buddhist Vajra,” Chu Yuan Zhen explained.

“Mastering a supreme skill isn’t something that happens overnight,” Xu Qi An remarked.

What he wanted to ask was, “Can I freeload your ultimate technique?”

“Getting started is simple!” Chu Yuan Zhen smiled. “I figured out this method a year after I began learning swordsmanship. You can master the basics in two or three days. However, reaching an advanced level is challenging.”

“Please enlighten me, Top Scholar Chu,” Xu Qi An promptly replied.

“Let me first explain the key points. It’s not difficult – it’s essentially about infusing your spirit into it, transforming it into sword qi or blade qi. It’s just simple spirit, nothing more than emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness,” Chu Yuan Zhen explained frankly. “The Human Sect follows this path. What I’ve done is explore a new method based on their foundation.”

…

At Lingbao Temple.

In the tranquil backyard, inside a quiet room, Emperor Yuanjing was playing Go with the National Master. The Emperor, his black hair regrown, held a Go piece and sighed, “Chu Yuan Zhen has lost as well.”

The female National Master had a red cinnabar mark between her brows. Her features were beautiful yet not vulgar, her figure voluptuous, perfectly blending a young girl’s purity with a young woman’s allure. She was both innocent and bewitching.

Her Go-playing style was carefree, without much thought. She placed her pieces with quick taps, responding, “It was just a casual sword strike. How can we talk about winning or losing?”

Emperor Yuanjing nodded, “Regardless, it has established the young monk’s reputation, as well as the prestige of the Western Buddhist sect.”

Although Emperor Yuanjing was in the palace, he knew every detail about the events in the capital, especially information regarding the Western envoy.

“Does Your Majesty feel we’re in the wrong?” Luo Yu Heng frowned slightly. As she played, she realized she was about to lose. So, during their conversation, she secretly switched the positions of two pieces.

“In the wrong?” Emperor Yuanjing sneered, then sighed. “There is some fault, but it’s more about helplessness. The young monk is so young yet so powerful. The capital has no rising stars to match him. What can I do? It wouldn’t be appropriate to send high-ranking officers from the Imperial Guard to fight, would it? Wouldn’t that be even more embarrassing?”

Luo Yu Heng understood. Emperor Yuanjing was blaming Chu Yuan Zhen for holding back, not decisively defeating the young monk, and instead becoming a stepping stone for the monk’s fame.

“That bald monk comes with ill intentions. I fear he won’t return to the Western Regions easily this time,” Emperor Yuanjing added.

“Your Majesty, if you have something to say, please speak directly,” Luo Yu Heng said.

“A few days ago, Master Du’e requested to see the Observatory Master but was refused. The Observatory Master has long resided in the Star-Gazing Tower, uninvolved in worldly affairs. If he doesn’t engage with the high monk from the West… I hope the National Master will step in when the time comes.”

Luo Yu Heng nodded slowly, again switching the positions of two Go pieces.

After losing three games in a row, a dejected Emperor Yuanjing left Lingbao Temple. On his way back to the palace, he instructed his old eunuch, “Go tell Wei Yuan to find someone. I don’t want to see that young monk standing in the arena again.”

Emperor Yuanjing’s face was expressionless, his countenance gloomy.

The old eunuch bowed his head obediently, “Yes, Your Majesty!”

…

In the South City, at the Health Preservation Hall.

In the backyard, Xu Qi An sat cross-legged with Chu Yuan Zhen, listening to him explain the key points of “Yi cultivation.”

Master Heng Yuan, not avoiding suspicion, sat aside to eavesdrop.

“It doesn’t sound difficult, but how do I infuse ‘spirit’ into the blade?” Xu Qi An asked while standing up and swinging his black gold long blade.

During the process, following Chu Yuan Zhen’s instructions, he tried to infuse his spirit into the blade.

But he failed.

“Your emotions are calm, without joy, sorrow, worry, or anger… How can you cultivate Yi?” Chu Yuan Zhen said helplessly.

“It’s my fault. I have a calm heart, unmoved even if a mountain collapses before me,” Xu Qi An said.

The so-called spirited demeanor is essentially a kind of emotion.

Chu Yuan Zhen thought for a moment and said, “Actually, there’s a quick way to achieve this.”

Xu Qi An’s eyes brightened slightly: “Please, Top Scholar Chu, do tell.”

“Come here,” the Top Scholar smiled and beckoned.

Xu Qi An immediately walked over.

“Slap!”

Chu Yuan Zhen gave him a backhanded slap.

You bastard… Xu Qi An got angry, “Brother Chu, you did that on purpose, didn’t you?”

“Can you unleash spirit energy now?”

“Not at all,” Xu Qi An rubbed his stinging cheek.

“Then the technique isn’t refined enough.”

Chu Yuan Zhen suddenly pounced on him, continuously swinging his palm. Xu Qi An tried his best to resist and dodge but still received more than a dozen slaps.

Facing the relentless Chu Yuan Zhen, he became thoroughly enraged. At this moment, as if divinely inspired, he felt an urge to vent.

Swish!

A blade of qi, sharp beyond compare, slashed out, distorting the air.

Chu Yuan Zhen seemed unwilling to confront this edge, tilting his head to avoid it. The blade of qi soared into the clouds, slowly dissipating.

“It works!” Xu Qi An was delighted.

That slash just now exceeded the limit of his usual blade qi. If combined with the Heaven and Earth Slash, its power would be even greater.

“You truly are a genius,” Chu Yuan Zhen sighed.

He had said before that it could be learned in one to three days, but Xu Qi An had mastered it in just an hour.

No, you’re a genius at teaching… Xu Qi An criticized inwardly.

“But if I have to get beaten up every time I want to use this technique, isn’t that too much of a loss?”

Chu Yuan Zhen answered, “That’s why I said it’s easy to enter but hard to master. Your current spirit energy needs external stimulation and can’t be actively used.”

Ah, another secret technique to practice… But I’m still that young man who waits for death after one slash… Xu Qi An felt his path of cultivation had fallen into some irreversible state.

He was learning more and more, but his methods of dealing with enemies remained simple and extreme.

“However, the power I can unleash is getting stronger. I wonder if there will be a day when I can truly achieve a state where no top expert in the world can withstand a single slash from me?”

…

That night, as expected, Xu Qi An heard Second Uncle talking about the battle at the South City arena.

“They say an extremely powerful swordsman took action but still couldn’t defeat that Western monk,” Second Uncle Xu sighed.

“With so many experts in the capital, they can’t even beat a little monk?” Aunt commented casually while eating.

“The capital does have many experts, but it wouldn’t sound good if they used their seniority to bully a junior. There are quite a few young talents, but they say it’s the unique Buddhist Vajra technique. Even those of the same rank, or even a grade higher, might not be able to break it,” Second Uncle Xu explained to his wife, whose knowledge didn’t match her long hair.

After listening, Aunt became furious: “Such a big capital, and they can’t even find one outstanding young person. It’s a pity my Erlang doesn’t practice martial arts, otherwise he’d knock out that little monk with one punch.”

Second Young Master Xu quickly waved his hands: “No, no, no, Mother, I can’t do that.”

After a pause, he continued, “The Western envoy is indeed quite arrogant. Recently, when drinking with classmates, we discussed this matter, and everyone was quite indignant. In the North City, there’s a monk who recites scriptures and preaches every day, with hundreds of commoners listening for an hour or two. But those commoners are poor people, how can they afford to waste time like that? And then there’s that little monk in the South City, relying on his tough skin and thick flesh, speaking arrogantly. Yet the martial artists in the capital can’t do anything about him. My classmates all say the martial artists can only bully the weak.”

This statement offended both Eldest Young Master Xu and Second Uncle Xu.

“You scholars only have big mouths, all talk, and no action,” Xu Qi An sneered.

“That’s right,” Uncle Xu Ping Zhi praised his nephew, while simultaneously suppressing his son’s wife, who had become increasingly arrogant since their son topped the imperial examinations: “Erlang isn’t cut out for martial arts. On the contrary, Ling Yin has stout arms and legs, with abundant strength. She has more talent than him.”

Miss Xu Ling Yue glanced at her sister, who was burying her head in meat, and chuckled behind her hand: “At this rate, she’ll eat us out of house and home.”

After chatting for a while, Second Uncle sighed: “It’s not just the scholars. Which of my colleagues in the Imperial Blade Guard isn’t indignant? The Western monks are too arrogant.”

There’s a reason for the Buddhist sect’s arrogance; they came to demand an explanation in the first place… Xu Qi’an thought to himself.

…

As night fell.

The monk in blue clothes returned to the embassy and went straight to see Master Du’e. With hands clasped, he said, “Grand-Uncle Master, the Observatory Master still refuses to see you.”

In the orange candlelight, Master Du’e’s wrinkled face was half-lit by the candle, half hidden in shadow.

“I see. You may go now.”

The monk retreated.

Master Du’e closed his eyes again. From the crown of his head, a golden light shot skyward.

That golden light rose slowly, piercing through the night sky and disappearing. After a few seconds, rolling dark clouds surged in the night sky, accompanied by thunderous sounds.

Amidst the rolling black clouds, a streak of golden light appeared, and then, like a tidal wave, golden light enveloped the entire capital.

The clouds violently shook, revealing a Buddha’s face with round, wide-open eyes and furrowed brows.

This dharma image was enormous. Just the face alone was as large as half the capital.

Inside the capital, the common people were completely unaffected, but all cultivators simultaneously felt fear and trepidation in their hearts, like small animals cowering during spring thunder.

Xu Qi An woke up startled from his sleep, rushed out of his room with a pale face, and looked up at the sky to see a golden Buddha face condensed above the capital.

This scene was unprecedented in his life as if Buddha had descended, gazing down at the mortal world from the clouds.

“Bang…”

The doors of the east wing room and the neighboring room opened simultaneously. Second Uncle Xu and Second Young Master Xu rushed out. The father and son’s legs were shaking uncontrollably as they looked up at the sky.

“Father, Big Brother… Is the Western Buddhist sect going to make a move in the capital?” Second Young Master Xu asked tremblingly.

Xu Ping Zhi was dumbfounded. He had never seen such a terrifying scene in his life.

“Observatory Master, why do you dare not meet me?” At this moment, the dharma image spoke, sounding like thunder, its voice echoing throughout the capital.

“Damn… The high-level combat power in this world is truly terrifying…” Xu Qi An commented, his legs shaking.