Unparalleled Evildoer

Chapter 298: Internal Strength Contest
Nothing happened that night. On the second day, Fei Jian sat in the center of the Taoist temple and taught his disciples the "Water Virtue Sutra", which mainly explained how luck can be like water, which is soft and does not contend, but can penetrate metal and stone, and how to go with the flow, accumulate strength and be able to change shape and form.

Fei Jian explained and demonstrated at the same time, and all the disciples were fascinated. This was the essence of Lushan swordsmanship. The understanding of swordsmanship had surpassed that of ordinary people, and there were many subtleties that made people applaud.

An hour passed and Feijian finished his teaching. The disciples were still not satisfied and had gained a lot.

The next one was Jingxu from Huangshan. Jingxu was Yunmeng's junior fellow apprentice. He taught Huangshan's "The Four Qi Method to Regulate the Spirit". This method is an excellent internal practice method that harmonizes yin and yang, regulates the qi of the four seasons, responds to the twelve hours, circulates the twelve meridians, and follows the principle of the eight winds.

After mastering this technique, one can strengthen the body, keep the body and mind in one, be full of energy, and have endless true energy.

The disciples benefited greatly from listening and learning, and combined with the "Water Virtue Sutra" taught by Feijian, they cultivated both inside and outside, which brought out the best in each other.

In fact, Yunmeng, Feijian, Bixia and Xuelian have already discussed it and combined the strengths of each sect. Bixia will teach the method of state of mind, Jingxu will teach the method of internal cultivation, Feijian will teach the method of changing sword techniques, and Xuelian will teach the method of sharp sword techniques. If these four Taoist methods are mastered, the strength of cultivation will be greatly improved. From this, it can be seen that these leaders really want to revitalize Taoism.

Their move was unprecedented and should have shined, but it was dimmed by Qin Moyao's "The Secret of Immortality" because immortality is what every cultivator yearns for and is extremely attractive.

Amid the cheers, Jingxu stood up and was about to leave, but he heard a loud voice shouting, "Daoyou, don't be in a hurry to leave!" The voice was very penetrating and everyone present could hear it. They all fell silent in an instant and turned their heads to see that the person who spoke was Kunlun Ye Yi.

Ye Yi has been silent since he went up the mountain, just staring at Wuzhan. Ye Yi seldom sets foot in the Central Plains, let alone participate in any Taoist conferences. This time he participated, he must have some purpose.

Jingxu stroked his white beard and asked, "Brother Daoist, why do you want to keep me here?"

Ye Yi smiled and said, "It's not that I want to keep you, fellow Taoist, but this master has something to ask you." He then gestured to the monk Shilifang beside him.

Sri Fang was a little surprised, but since Ye Yi had said so, he had no choice but to walk to the center of the temple, came to Jingxu, clasped his hands together and bowed, saying: "I am Sri Fang, a Buddhist disciple from Magadha, and I am honored to meet Master Jingxu!"

Jingxu returned the greeting, "I don't deserve it. I wonder what advice you have for me, Master?"

Shi Lifang said: "The inner law you just talked about really opened my eyes. I have never heard of your discussion on the meridians. I just told Ye Yi that my Buddhist sect also has an inner law of cultivation similar to the Diamond Sutra. After hearing this, Ye Yi wanted to compare the differences between the two inner laws."

Ye Xiaoxiang giggled, "Interesting!"

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at him curiously, wanting to see what kind of skills this Western monk had.

Jingxu looked at the red-robed monk in front of him. Although he looked different from the monk in Zhongyuan, he smiled kindly and did not seem like a competitive person. However, a contest of inner skills at this time was clearly a provocation. However, Jingxu could not refuse at this time, which would make the world laugh at him. He asked, "Master, how do you want to compete?"

Shi Lifang pointed at a grayish-blue boulder not far away and said, "There are sword marks on that boulder. I think it was the sword-testing stone used by your disciples to practice swordsmanship. I would like to practice my internal energy with you and strike your palms on that boulder. We will just compare our internal energy, regardless of winning or losing. I wonder if you can teach me?"

Although it was just a comparison of palm power, it was related to Huangshan's reputation, and even the contest between the Central Plains Taoism and Western Buddhism. As the most famous family in the Central Plains, Huangshan would never lose to the Western monk in terms of momentum. Jingxu said: "Since the master has this intention, I will give it a try."

Jingxu and Shilifang came to the huge rock, and all the masters and disciples also gathered around to look. The huge rock was about 20 to 30 feet high, cylindrical, and about 30 feet in diameter. It was a rock exposed on the mountain. The surface was bare and the weight was inestimable. There were very shallow sword marks on it, as well as traces of chips left when sharpening the sword. It was obvious at a glance that the huge rock was unusually hard.

Jingxu said to Sri Fang: "Since it was the master who proposed it, please let the master come first."

Sri Fang stepped forward and said, "Then let me show you my poor performance!" He stood with his feet astride, and gathered his energy with his palms. His movements were very slow, but it was obvious that his whole body seemed to have swelled up, and was more than ten times heavier, because the ground beneath his feet had a large crack and dent.

This kind of practice is completely different from Taoist Qigong. Qigong is mainly based on true Qi, and only by exerting force can one see the current situation. However, Shilifang did not exert any force, but just relied on luck, and this situation occurred. The crowd of onlookers looked at Shilifang in surprise and confusion, unable to guess how this practice worked.

Shilifang raised his left hand and shook his right hand. Golden light appeared on his right palm, which seemed to contain infinite power. Then, Shilifang shouted softly and hit the golden light on the boulder. There was a loud bang and not much air flow leaked out. The golden light disappeared and his palm sank into the rock to a depth of a finger.

Many people booed. It was obvious that the result was too ordinary and anyone with a slightly higher level of cultivation could do it. But with such limited skills, he dared to compare his internal strength with Huangshan's Jingxu. He was really overestimating himself.

Shilifang retracted his palm, put his hands together and said to Jingxu: "I am done!"

Someone shouted, "You dare to come out and make a fool of yourself with such little ability? It seems that your Western Buddhism is just so-so. Go back as soon as possible and don't embarrass yourself here!" Everyone also laughed.

But people with a broad vision did not think so. How could such a powerful palm strike not leak out? And there was no backlash, which meant that all the force went in. Fei Jian went forward to take a closer look at the palm print, and saw cracks around it. He frowned and reached out to press the palm print. "Thump, thump", the palm print actually sank a lot deeper. Fei Jian added a little force with his fingers, "thump..." A stone pillar more than three meters long and as wide as a palm flew out from the other end of the boulder, and "bang" hit the ground. The laughter of the crowd suddenly stopped, and no one could laugh anymore. Instead, they were stunned.

Anyone could see clearly that the monk's palm penetrated a three-meter-thick boulder. What a terrifying power it was. Even a sword couldn't do it, let alone just a palm. If it hit a person, even if ten people were piled together, their internal organs would be easily shattered.

Fei Jian exclaimed: "What a great technique, it can hit a bull from behind a mountain, and it is progressive, and the palm power has not leaked out at all. May I ask the name of this technique, Master?"

Sri Fang said: "This skill is called 'Vajra Palm', and it is the skill practiced by my Buddhist outer disciples."

Everyone exclaimed: "Vajra Palm! This technique is really as powerful as its name suggests!"

"Outer disciples? If they were inner disciples, what kind of skills would they practice?"...

Jingxu was terrified and his face turned pale. He absolutely could not achieve such an effect, but he could not admit defeat. This was related to the reputation of Huangshan. As the largest Taoist sect, if he lost, it would prove that the Taoism of the Central Plains was not as good as Western Buddhism.

Many people began to worry about Jingxu. It was not just a matter of thinking about it to use his true energy to break through the boulder. It was impossible as no one had ever been heard of being able to do it.

Jingxu felt a lot of pressure in his heart, but he was, after all, a master of Huangshan's Dharma. Although his internal strength could not be said to be the best in the world, there were few who were stronger than him.

Jingxu said: "Master, this unique skill has opened my eyes. However, I, Huangshan, will not give up easily. It's my turn next."

Shi Lifang said: "I have no such intention. Yesterday I saw several masters take action and knew that the Taoism of the East is broad and profound. I just want to see it for myself. I hope the master will not hold back."

This was said very frankly, but it sounded different to everyone's ears. It was obvious that they thought Jingxu would lose, so it would be better not to praise him.

Jingxu didn't say anything. He took a step forward, adjusted the meridians in his body, and his palms flew. His steps were erratic. The air around him gathered towards Jingxu to form a vortex. The true energy continued to flow to his right palm. His right palm was like a ball of fire, gradually expanding and whistling.

When everyone saw this scene, they were secretly amazed. Huangshan is indeed the most famous sect with a profound foundation. Just by looking at Jingxu's method of refining qi, they could know the clue. This ball of fire was made of true qi, which could only burn when it was extremely pure. It could be seen how much true qi Jingxu had accumulated.

Jingxu shouted loudly, jumped up, flew into the air, suddenly dropped his body downwards, swung out his right palm, and a beam of fire fell like a thunderbolt, "boom..." It instantly hit the boulder, the flames scattered, and the earth shook.

Jingxu's entire arm was pushed in, and although it shocked the entire audience and was beyond the reach of everyone, it still could not penetrate the boulder. If it could not penetrate it, it would mean loss. Moreover, if such a huge force hit it and the backlash could not be resolved, the entire arm would be disabled.

At that instant, Jingxu shouted loudly, his eyebrows stood up, and his hair fluttered. There was a sound of "crack, crack..." Cracks first appeared on the surface of the boulder, and then split to both sides. The boulder broke into four pieces and fell to the sides, revealing a bloody arm.

Everyone was shocked at first, and then burst into thunderous applause. Obviously, in everyone's eyes, Jingxu had won by smashing the boulder.

Shilifang clasped his hands together and said to Jingxu, "I am impressed by your skills, thank you very much!" He did not even admit that he had lost.

Someone shouted, "You lost, so you don't even dare to admit it. You are too hypocritical as a Western monk. Go back to your Western land to continue your cultivation and come back in twenty years..."

Some people are like this, always taking other people's glory as their own prestige, as if they have won. In fact, they have done nothing, they are just a spectator waiting to see the joke.

Qin Moyao only watched from a distance, because Wuzhan didn't go forward to see, and naturally she wouldn't go forward to see, but she saw it all clearly. She turned her beautiful eyes to Wuzhan and asked in a low voice: "Based on your vision, who do you think should be better?"

Wuzhan pondered for a moment and said, "It's hard to say. In terms of strength, Jingxu's use of true qi to shatter the boulder is naturally slightly better. But in terms of purity, this monk exerted force in an instant and penetrated the boulder with one palm without breaking it. He is stronger than Jingxu Zhenren. The two skills are different and cannot be compared."

Qin Moyao said, "Sir, you are really amazing. You were able to injure ..." In the middle of his words, Qiu Shui turned around, glanced at Bixia who was sitting next to him, and smiled, "What did you say to Yuanjun last night? You see, she has been absent-minded all day. Did you confess something to her?"

Wuzhan did not answer, he just respected Bixia and never thought too much about it. It would have been fine if Qin Moyao had provoked him, but she implicated Bixia Yuanjun, which made it difficult for him to calm down. However, he could not be angry, which was exactly what Qin Moyao wanted. Qin Moyao just wanted to irritate him and constantly challenge his endurance. Wuzhan was helpless against Qin Moyao. It could be said that it was torture, a torture that could not be avoided or thrown away.

(End of this chapter)