What do you mean by my awakened profession being Monster Hunter?

"wrong······"

Qi Shi'an suddenly stopped and stared at the side of the pot.

Those runes, which he had previously thought were decorative patterns, were now glowing, like an invisible finger tracing some ancient path.

"This is······"

Qi Shi'an's pupils contracted sharply, and before he could think further, everything suddenly went black.

The next moment, he felt himself being dragged by an irresistible force, like a pebble thrown into a large lake.

The world spun around me, and when I opened my eyes again, the scenery around me had changed. This was no longer that metal palace!

"A world within a pot?!" Qi Shi'an looked around, his heart filled with surprise and doubt.

At this moment, he stood in a golden desert, the golden sand beneath his feet fine and silent as he stepped on it.

Here, the sky and earth were dark, devoid of sun, moon, and stars. Several void rifts stretched across the sky, and a sacred and majestic aura permeated the surroundings.

Qi Shi'an grabbed a handful of golden sand. As the grains of sand slipped through his fingers, they emitted a grand chanting sound. Each grain of sand was like a tiny world, from which the sound of chanting emanated.

The scene was incredibly bizarre, and even with his vast experience, he felt a chill run down his spine.

"What kind of hell is this place?" Qi Shi'an muttered to himself, his brows furrowed.

What's even stranger is that his voice traveled for countless miles through this desert, yet there was no echo at all, as if it had been swallowed up by the golden sand.

Qi Shi'an dared not be careless. With a flash of his palm, an ancient gray celestial palace floated above his head, guarding his body. The Myriad Dao Tree within his body emitted wisps of Dao aura, protecting his mind.

This place is so eerie. Every grain of sand seems to be alive. Who knows if what you're stepping on is sand or some other strange thing?

He stepped forward, and the golden sand beneath his feet emitted a continuous chanting sound. The further he walked, the clearer the sound became.

Later, it was as if countless monks were chanting sutras in all directions at the same time, and the magnificent divine sound seemed to overturn the sky.

Boom!

Suddenly, a golden light shot up from the ends of the earth and exploded in the depths of the void, as if opening an invisible door.

Qi Shi'an squinted, runes swirling in his eyes, piercing through illusions. In the dim light, he vaguely saw a colossal creature emerging.

At first it was blurry, just a vague outline, but as he got closer, the outline became clearer and clearer.

It was a tower, or more precisely, a Buddhist tower made of piled-up gold sand, towering like a great mountain, soaring straight into the dark sky, its body covered with runes, flowing with brilliant Buddhist light.

"Could it be... a stupa?!" Qi Shi'an's heart skipped a beat.

If that's the case, this tower likely contains relics, which are the highest inheritance of the ancient monks, carrying unparalleled Buddhist supernatural powers, no less than a perfect immortal seed!

At this thought, his heart raced. If he could really obtain a relic, even without merging with it, as long as he could comprehend some Buddhist supernatural powers, it would be an immense blessing.

He had long coveted the Western Religion's world, but due to his limited strength, he was unable to infiltrate the Western Religion and seize it.

But if one can use the relics to comprehend the Buddha-land within one's palm, the result will be the same.

Qi Shi'an took a deep breath, suppressed his shock, and began to walk towards the stupa.

Strangely enough, he had no obstacles when he was traveling in the desert, but after this stupa appeared, the world seemed to have changed.

He combined the three techniques of Ruyi Tong, Kunpeng Fa, and Zhenhuang Fa to empower himself, and each step covered thousands of miles, but after walking for a full hour, he still could not get even a fraction closer to the stupa.

The stupa stood on the horizon, but he could never reach it.

"Space folding? Or...?" Qi Shi'an frowned, somewhat puzzled.

He crouched down, dipped his hand into the golden sand, and carefully sensed it for a moment before his expression changed drastically.

The sand around the stupa is completely different from the outside, as if it has formed an independent domain. The sand grains here are constantly flowing, carrying the space on which they stand with them.

On the surface, it appears to be moving forward, but in reality, it's just going around in circles.

This method is too cruel; it's not about trapping people, it's about torturing them.

No matter how strong one's cultivation is, if one cannot break through the flowing spatial laws, one can only exhaust oneself in this desert until one's life is cut off and one's bones are turned to dust.

“However, this is not unsolvable for me.” Qi Shi’an smiled calmly.

With a flash in his palm, a phantom image of a small tree appeared, containing myriad principles that merged with heaven and earth. When he shook it, the runic leaves shone with various colors.

The Tree of Ten Thousand Paths contains ten thousand laws and is most adept at deduction and analysis.

Qi Shi'an formed a hand seal, and countless chains of divine order spread out, spreading outwards like a spider web.

He discovered that countless fine, silken golden patterns were hidden within this golden desert, densely interwoven to form a magic array.

Each grain of sand is part of the magic array, carrying a faint divine power. Countless grains of sand come together to form a nearly unsolvable trap.

"What a grand gesture!" Qi Shi'an thought to himself, clicking his tongue in amazement.

Centered on the stupa, every grain of sand within a radius of ten thousand miles was engraved with array patterns. How much effort must have been put into this?

However, although this magic circle is frighteningly large, the flow of these sands is not random, but follows a certain pattern.

"With my current cultivation level, breaking the formation is impossible; I can only try to find the pattern."

This time, Qi Shi'an no longer relied solely on brute force to travel, but carefully observed the flow trajectory of the magic array.

One day, two days, three days...

He seemed to be petrified, completely absorbed in the deduction.

The Tree of Myriad Paths roared within his body, and countless Dao Principles cascaded down like waterfalls, intertwining, colliding, and recombining in the void, evolving into endless mysteries and transformations.

After an unknown amount of time, Qi Shi'an suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils shooting out two dazzling beams of light.

"So that's how it is. The Ruyi Tong is the key to breaking this formation?" Qi Shi'an murmured to himself.

This magic array appears to be a trapping formation, but it is actually a testing ground.

The movement of those sand grains was not without a trace; on the contrary, each step they took was methodical, like a unique movement technique.

When this movement technique is evolved to its ultimate form, it is the wish-fulfilling power, one of the six supernatural powers in Buddhism!

The Ruyi Tong he obtained in the Donghua Secret Realm years ago, though complete and intact, could never be improved further.

Legend has it that an ancient monk could traverse the universe in a single step, ignoring spatial barriers—what a carefree state that must have been!

“On the path of cultivation, sometimes slowness is another kind of speed,” Qi Shi’an sighed, then calmed his mind and began to move according to the deduced trajectory.

As the first step landed, the golden sand beneath his feet trembled slightly, accompanied by the sound of chanting.

The second step involved a slight sway of his body, giving him a feeling of merging into the void.

······

Gradually, Qi Shi'an's pace quickened, and he seemed to become one with the desert.

The quicksand was no longer an obstacle; instead, it seemed to be pushing him forward, each step perfectly placed, precisely hitting the nodes of the magic array's rotation.

The feeling was so wonderful, it was as if he wasn't walking on his own, but rather the whole world was actively sending him towards the stupa.

Qi Shi'an was so immersed in this profound understanding that he completely forgot himself.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, Qi Shi'an suddenly had a flash of inspiration and took a step forward. The golden sand beneath his feet burst forth with boundless Buddhist light, illuminating the ten directions of heaven and earth.

The next moment, it was as if he had passed through an invisible barrier.

When I opened my eyes again, I was already standing in front of the stupa!

Chapter 254 Ancient Seal Found Inside the Stupa

"We really made it!"

Qi Shi'an was overjoyed. He looked back and saw that the desert behind him was still the same. The flowing golden sand formed ripples, as if bidding him farewell.

He turned around and his gaze fell on the stupa in front of him.

This tower was far more magnificent than the ones we had seen before, towering many times its original height. There were signs of cracks at the base of the tower, indicating that it was no longer intact and only four stories remained.

The exterior of the tower is engraved with dense golden patterns, and four stone statues stand around it, each holding a vajra, a purifying bamboo, and a blue precious flag.

Their faces are ferocious, their eyes wide open in anger. Although they are stone statues, they exude a real sense of oppression, as if they might pounce on the stone pedestal at any moment.

Qi Shi'an did not approach rashly, but silently circled the stupa to observe it.

The four guardian stone statues are positioned with great care, subtly embodying the meaning of the Four Symbols, and forming a hidden killing formation. Entering rashly would likely result in being blasted into ashes on the spot.

boom!

Just then, the stone statue holding the vajra suddenly opened its eyes and shot out two beams of solidified golden light, which slashed down like celestial swords.

Qi Shi'an was prepared. He dodged to the side, and the golden light grazed his clothes before landing in the desert behind him, creating a deep crater and sending scalding golden sand flying several feet high.

"Roar!"

At this moment, the stone statue holding the Vajra Sword revived, its eyes cold and sharp. With a sudden tremor of its arm, a monstrous sword aura soared into the sky, cleaving through the yellow sand and slashing down at Qi Shi'an.

Qi Shi'an frowned, his figure swayed, and he moved dozens of feet to the side. His sword energy slashed at the golden sand, cutting a bottomless ravine, and golden sand poured into it.

"Too slow!" Qi Shi'an's eyes sharpened, and his aura suddenly deepened.

At this moment, the other two stone statues trembled and simultaneously came back to life.

The stone statue holding the bamboo of purity slowly opened its eyes, its gaze gentle. With a sweep of its arm, the yellow sand that filled the sky suddenly froze, pressed down by an unfathomable force.

"Roar!"

The stone statue holding the blue banner roared, its voice shaking the surrounding area. The banner fluttered in the wind, and the moment it was unfurled, a terrifying pressure surged forth like a tide, causing Qi Shi'an's bones to creak.

The four stone statues simultaneously awakened, activating the killing formation. The power of the four elements intertwined, and sword energy, golden light, cyan light, and purple lightning rose from the four directions. The four forces transformed into divine chains of order, strangling towards Qi Shi'an.

Qi Shi'an's expression was solemn. He activated his Ruyi Tong to its limit, dodging and weaving amidst the strangulation of the four divine chains.

He formed hand seals, his body surging, and with a single palm strike, a black sun burst forth from between his fingers, its demonic light illuminating all directions.

boom!

The black sun collided with the four divine chains, exploding into a shower of light. Qi Shi'an's body trembled violently, and he was sent flying, a trace of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, but he quickly regained his footing.

“These rocks are really hard.” Qi Shi’an’s eyes sharpened as he spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva.

Rumble!

The four stone statues stepped forward in unison, occupying the four corners of the formation. Their bodies erupted with even more dazzling light, runes filled the sky, and the power of the killing array rose steadily.

Instantly, the ground cracked open, and countless golden rays shot out from it, transforming into golden divine chains that intertwined into a vast net, aiming to trap and kill Qi Shi'an here.

"I can also possess Buddhist supernatural powers!"

Qi Shi'an neither dodged nor evaded, his palms and fingers flew, forming a magic seal. Behind him, a black and gold demonic Buddha image appeared, radiating boundless light. Countless runes intertwined and condensed into a huge "卍" seal, which crashed down, shattering the golden divine chains that filled the sky.

The four stone statues were shaken back dozens of feet, and the sand beneath their feet cracked, with the fissures spreading for thousands of miles.

But in an instant, they regained their footing, and the Vajra Pestle, Vajra Sword, Purifying Bamboo, and Azure Banner were all waved together, and the killing formation was activated again, with its power even greater.

"kill!"

Qi Shi'an let out a soft shout, his whole body glowing. The demonic Buddha image behind him sat cross-legged in the void, its solemn appearance revealing a hint of demonic nature. It clasped its hands together and chanted a mantra.

In an instant, the sounds of chanting and demonic chanting resounded throughout the world, their intertwining causing the void to hum.

Upon hearing this demonic voice, the four stone statues momentarily froze in their movements.

Qi Shi'an seized this brief opening, formed hand seals, and intricate patterns appeared on the surface of his Dharma body, half demonic and half Buddhist, resembling an invincible demonic Buddha, dominating the world.

He took a step forward, transforming into a streak of black light, and charged fiercely into the killing formation, carrying the image of a demonic Buddha.

Boom!

The next moment, the four stone statues simultaneously erupted with blinding light, wielding magical weapons, and attacked from four directions, leaving no way to avoid them.

Qi Shi'an clasped his hands together, his body erupting with black and gold divine light. A pair of arms grew from under the armpits of the Demon Buddha's image, his four hands forming a mudra to withstand the four attacks.

boom!

The four attacks landed on the Dharma form as if they had struck a bottomless abyss, but were firmly held in place by the four arms, without causing the slightest ripple.

At the same time, dozens of willow branches burst forth from the palm of the Demon Buddha's image, like chains of divine order, wrapping around the four stone statues.

Dark light flowed through dozens of willow branches, frantically absorbing the divine power of the stone statue.

In an instant, the light on the four stone statues flickered, their movements became sluggish, and the power within them was being devoured, causing the originally brilliant runes to dim rapidly.

"Roar!"

The stone statue holding the blue banner let out a muffled growl, seemingly unable to comprehend what was happening before its eyes.

Qi Shi'an snorted coldly, his arms suddenly swung, and the willow branches suddenly expanded, piercing into the bodies of the four stone statues like tentacles, twisting them fiercely with annihilating power.