Narration System for the Journey of Martial Arts

"How good is Xuan Nan's Kasaya Subduing Demon True Skill? Don't we old folks know?"

Xuanzhu didn't take it to heart and chuckled, "Junior Brother Xuannan's skills are rare even among the Xuan generation."

The old monk Lingxiu shook his head and said:

"In the past, Xuan Nan's cultivation level would have been..."

"Fine! Never mind! What brings you here?"

Xuanzhu respectfully asked, "This disciple is confused and has come here specifically to seek guidance."

At Lingxiu's prompting, Xuanzhu asked, "My cultivation has progressed rapidly, but my virtue is shallow, and I have a fierce tiger in my heart. I have been unable to shake off my doubts, so much so that after attaining Bodhicitta, my Zen mind has not made any further progress, and my understanding of Buddhism is also..."

Lingxiu waved her hand, looked at the dappled sunlight outside the window, and after a long while turned her head and said:

"I understand what you mean, but unfortunately, I can't help you anymore."

"In the past, during several chaotic battles, all the great masters of Shaolin perished. The only ones who survived were a few old folks like us."

“In the past, I would not have been qualified to be the head Zen master of the Bodhidharma Hall. I would have been barely qualified to run errands for the Bodhidharma Hall.”

"Unfortunately, the founder and his fellow disciples either died or went into seclusion, and Shaolin also declined!"

"Over the years, all I've gained is a fearless heart and a few glimpses of the Bodhi Heart. That's how I broke through the Yuan Dan and entered the Nascent Soul stage, but my cultivation has stopped there!"

“Xuanzhu, you are the one with the strongest fortune and the highest comprehension in Shaolin’s history. We old folks are pinning our hopes on you for the future of Shaolin.”

"Although I do not know why you are trapped in a daze and cannot extricate yourself, nor do I know why you linger outside the Yuan Dan and refuse to form a relic, I think it is related to your inability to see clearly and understand the mental obstacles."

"If you are willing, this old monk can discuss with my fellow disciples whether you can enter the Bodhidharma Cave to cultivate and comprehend Buddhist principles. What do you say?"

Xuanzhu thought to himself:

What I can't see through is precisely Buddhism. Because deep down, I don't agree with certain philosophies! What's the point of going to the Bodhidharma Cave? Is it to forcibly brainwash me? But even after being brainwashed, would I still be myself?

What I want is a carefree immortal who lets me do whatever I want, not a puppet who divides people into high and low classes and forces me to accept certain ideas.

If I were willing to be a puppet, I would have already broken through the Relic Core and even entered the Nascent Soul stage. Why would I keep lingering outside the door?

What might be a chance encounter for others, Damo Cave was a brainwashing den for a fraud ring for me.

What is honey to one is poison to another!

………………

"Amitabha!"

"When I went to the South China Sea to exorcise demons last time, I had a strange encounter. I met a senior of the righteous path on the South China Sea. That senior is very likely a great master of our Buddhist sect. During our conversation, he said that I did not have enough merit and therefore had no chance to inherit his teachings."

"Oh?" Lingxiu thought for a moment and suddenly realized, "So all this time you've been eliminating demons and protecting the righteous, accumulating merit, is it for this?"

Xuanzhu clasped his hands in prayer and said:

"exactly!"

"It's just that I haven't been able to figure out that senior's riddle, and I still can't get to the point."

“Amitabha!” Lingxiu said, “Since you are a great being like us, your words should not be outside the Buddhist school. You may speak freely, and your master and fellow disciples will give you some advice.”

“Yes,” Xuanzhu said. “That senior asked me to do a great good deed. But these days, I have been eliminating demons and protecting the righteous path. Although I have accumulated merit, I still feel that I am far from what that senior said.”

Lingxiu pondered for a moment and said:

"The Buddha is compassionate and saves all sentient beings."

“In the past, the Buddha saved all sentient beings without seeking anything in return, only so that they could understand the true Dharma, transcend the sea of ​​suffering, and enjoy ultimate bliss.”

"Great merit and great compassion cannot be forced."

Xuanzhu thought to himself:

I can't force it. Am I supposed to just wait? But that would be a million years! Even if I could wait, would that senior wait for me? Do I have that kind of nerve?

Judging from the information I've received, that senior is clearly a Golden Immortal, or at the very least a Celestial Immortal at the peak of cultivation. Can I possibly control the will of someone like that?

I don't want to give away these benefits so easily!

Seeing his troubled expression, Lingxiu quickly understood. A hint of helplessness flashed in her worldly-wise eyes as she said, "Foolish child, what great merit and compassion the Buddha performed when he cut off his own flesh to feed an eagle!"

Xuanzhu was startled. This was someone waiting for him here, wanting him to sacrifice himself to save the demon!

Although Xuanzhu was surprised, he did not show it at all. He put his palms together and said, "Master's words have enlightened me. I will take my leave now!"

Watching Xuanzhu leave, Lingxiu shook her head and sighed:

"Chier! Chier!"

"Was that person truly a great Buddhist master? And who was he, reincarnated from the celestial realm?"

………………

In the Zen room.

Xuanzhu's originally arrogant gaze turned extremely heavy. How could he not understand Lingxiu's words? But he did not have the Buddha's great power and supernatural abilities.

The Buddha was able to cut off his own flesh to feed an eagle and remain unharmed, his physical body intact; but after reincarnation, I have nothing left. Even if I can retain my magical treasures, I have to start all my Buddhist knowledge from scratch.

"I really can't bear to sacrifice myself to save demons. How about I go to the Southern Barbarian Lands to spread the Dharma and convert a few great demons into Buddhism? That would be a great act of merit and compassion, wouldn't it?"

"But this thing will only benefit Buddhism. That senior looks like he's from Taoism. Won't he approve of it?"

"Could it be that I really have to sacrifice all my cultivation and take a gamble? But what if I guess wrong?"

"Xuanzhu, Xuanzhu, you call yourself a genius strategist and look down on others, but when it comes to your own, you're completely helpless."

"Hehe, hehehe! It's just your cultivation level, Xuanzhu, Xuanzhu. Anyway, you have no other choice. What's wrong with taking a gamble? At worst, just consider it as getting obsessed with playing a game."

"What's so bad about cutting off one's own flesh to feed an eagle? What's so bad about being a murderous maniac? What's so bad about laying down one's butcher's knife? The most wicked and evil person is a bastard who leads people into the abyss and extinguishes all hope."

As he spoke, a look of madness and ruthlessness flashed in Xuanzhu's eyes. He turned and went to the guest quarters, where Shaolin Temple gathered intelligence.

After Xuanzhu left the guest house, several monks of the Ling generation from Shaolin Temple knew what Xuanzhu had taken from the guest house.

………………

"Amitabha!"

At this moment, the monks of the Ling generation were both excited and helpless.

Shaolin Temple, the ancestral home of Zen Buddhism, has declined to this state. They had a premonition that this was not normal, but they were helpless to change it.

Xuanzhu received a Buddhist treasure from a young age, which must be a revelation from heaven and Shaolin's last chance. This is the last gamble they can make, risking all of Shaolin's fortune.

Chapter 638 Projection to 1

Thousands of miles away, Su Yuchen witnessed everything that happened at Shaolin Temple.

Watching Xuanzhu ride the sword light towards the Southern Barbarians, Su Yuchen then dispelled his magic.

As he looked down, a bronze mirror appeared in his right hand. On the shimmering surface of the mirror, a star shone brightly, radiating wisps of light.

"Interesting! What triggers the formation of the brand?"

Muttering to himself, chaotic mist surged around Su Yuchen, causing him to rise infinitely higher and arrive above the River of Time. The Daoist Dharma Image reached out and pushed aside the layers of mist, finding the location of that world.

The next second, a wisp of Su Yuchen's divine sense descended and headed towards that world.

………………

With his divine consciousness and the imprint merging into one, Su Yuchen took over 'himself' in this world, but he was actually a clay statue.

His divine sense drew upon the power of faith that filled the heavens and earth. With a single step, pure faith coalesced into a physical body, while his emotions and desires transformed into a dark black Taoist robe.

From countless beliefs and divine thoughts, Su Yuchen had already learned about the process of the brand's formation.

Thousands of years ago in this world, a monk dreamt of a Daoist deity whose gaze fell upon the mortal realm. From that moment on, he abandoned Buddhism and devoted himself to the Dao. At that time, the mortal world was in turmoil with constant warfare. This monk originally intended to retreat to the mountains to cultivate the Dao, but on his journey, he was caught up in the army and lost his freedom.

However, after joining the army, he was taught basic martial arts by a martial artist. In a dream, he received the help of the Daoist Master's Dharma Image, as if he had seen the source of all martial arts in the world. He learned it in no time and mastered it in no time.

Thus, in just one year since joining the army, this man had transformed from a weak monk into a grandmaster of the human world. He had also integrated the martial arts of the battlefield and created the "Heavenly Martial Secret Scripture," which is divided into ten styles of killing martial arts: fist, foot, finger, palm, leg, knife, spear, sword, halberd, and staff.

Instead of keeping his knowledge to himself, he passed on his skills to his close associates so they could use them to survive on the battlefield. As a result, he quickly rose to prominence in the army, gained the support of his own generals, and his power grew day by day.

After their power expanded, the spontaneously formed interest groups posed a threat to the original rebel leader; but at this point, he was too powerful to control, and if they were to fight each other, they would inevitably end up benefiting others.

So the rebel leader pretended to be generous and allowed him to lead an army alone, separating him and his loyal followers far away.

This person led an army alone, and day and night he contemplated the image of the Daoist Lord in his mind. As the image gradually became clearer from a blurry outline, he seemed to be divinely aided, and from time to time he would see books he had never read before, such as water conservancy and agriculture, military strategy and tactics, and so on.

From then on, he became increasingly convinced that he was a man ordained by Heaven, a divine being who had used him to end the chaos and bring peace to the world.

………………

After solidifying his belief, this man found a painter in the city to paint the image of the Daoist deity he had dreamed of. He then led tens of thousands of his followers in martial arts drills, military parades, and worship of the deity.

What was originally thought to be a mundane worship ceremony unexpectedly activated the 'Yuanwu' authority within Su Yuchen's name by converging countless battlefield warriors' beliefs. From that moment on, the mark was formed, and everyone present received the divine title 'Supreme Myriad Manifestations Yuanwu Great Dao Lord'!

Given this extraordinary phenomenon, everyone believed that he was destined for greatness. Their beliefs converged like a vast ocean, and they united as one to help him achieve his goal of becoming a powerful ruler.

This man employed the military strategy of "building high walls, storing ample grain, and delaying the declaration of kingship," watching other rebel armies annex each other, seizing opportunities to devour nearby prefectures and counties, and quietly cultivating and developing his power.

In each place he conquered, he recruited talents, established new military camps, gathered all kinds of civil and military talents, suppressed powerful families, gave benefits to the common people, and won the hearts of the people.

Just three years later, this man had quietly occupied a province and raised an army of 200,000 men, becoming one of the most powerful feudal lords.

At this point, the man ceased his covert activities, declared himself king in the prefecture, and proclaimed himself the Great Ming Yuanwu King, declaring himself the righteous ruler who would punish the guilty on behalf of Heaven.

Three years later, as if divinely aided, this man swallowed up four states, occupied the most prosperous land in the world, had an army of over a million, and marched straight towards the capital, forcing the last emperor of the previous dynasty to abdicate and formally establishing his own country and declaring himself emperor.

Legend has it that the first Ming emperor, Wudi, was aided by a Taoist deity, and his soldiers were not only skilled in martial arts but also mastered military strategy and tactics without a teacher. As a result, at the beginning of the dynasty, the army was so powerful that it swept across the world.

A year after the founding of the nation, the army under Emperor Wu of Ming swept through the remaining four prefectures with the force of an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves, eliminating any resistance.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Emperor Wu of the Ming Dynasty established Taoism as the state religion and worshipped "Taishang Wanxiang Yuanwu Dadaojun" as the ancestor of Taoism. If anyone disobeyed, the lightest punishment was to destroy mountains and temples and register them as lowly; the heaviest punishment was to burn scriptures, exterminate the sect, destroy the faith, and label them as a heretical sect.

At the beginning of the dynasty, the military flourished, and successive Ming emperors were able to inherit the "Heavenly Martial Secret Scripture" and comprehend the Dharma Image of the Daoist Lord. They were all martial arts grandmasters who suppressed the world.

To this day, the Ming Dynasty has lasted for 76 generations, with a reign of nearly a thousand years.

In the final years of Emperor Ming's reign, a wicked empress took advantage of the emperor's advanced age and coma, while the young emperor was still young, and with the help of her clan, sealed off the capital and seized power.

Within just a few years, public resentment was boiling over, and local armies were divided into different regions, showing signs of division.

With the help of certain individuals, the news spread throughout the land that the young Emperor Mingde had not received the legendary Heavenly Martial Inheritance. This caused widespread chaos, with some claiming that the Ming Dynasty was no longer under the protection of the 'Supreme Myriad Manifestations Primordial Martial Great Dao Lord,' and that its reign was over.

Although ambitious people all understood that this move must have been the work of the wicked empress, who only wanted to usurp power; however, at this time, all the ambitious people in the world had "long suffered from the Ming Dynasty," after all, there are only aristocratic families with a thousand-year history, how can there be a dynasty with a thousand-year history.

If this continues, will these powerful and influential families ever have a chance to rise again?

Thus, in a silent, tacit agreement, they quickly reached a consensus to push the imperial dynasty into the abyss, intending to redefine the world.

………………

"interesting!"

"However, despite thousands of years of accumulation in this world, the mark has not yet fully formed. How then did it come to be?"

Su Yuchen extended his divine sense and saw that outside the dilapidated temple, two sides were locked in a fierce battle. On one side, more than ten guards were protecting a young man dressed in white robes; while on the other side, dozens of people were attacking, all of whom were martial arts masters, and there were even two grandmasters in charge.

With no Grandmasters appearing, Grandmasters are already the pinnacle of human achievement.

As time dragged on, the situation clearly turned against the boy's side, while the attacking side continued to surround him without killing him, obviously with ulterior motives.

In Su Yuchen's eyes, the power of faith on the boy was burning like a torch, filled with a variety of emotions such as resentment, anger, and helplessness.

"It really is him, Emperor Mingde? A fanatic? So he completed the last piece of the branding puzzle," Su Yuchen thought to himself.

At that moment, the dozens of people who had been besieging the boy silently dispersed. Not far away, a tightly sealed carriage quietly arrived. As the curtain was lifted, a mysterious person shrouded in a black robe stepped out, slowly leaped over the crowd, and came to stand opposite the boy.

"Witch!!!" Emperor Mingde exclaimed angrily upon seeing the newcomer.

Faced with Emperor Mingde's reprimand, the dozens of people who had been besieging him trembled, as if a deep-seated fear had returned to their hearts.

The man in black robes lifted his hood, revealing a face that was both sorrowful and joyful, bright and captivating. He said, "Bin'er, do you hate your mother so much?"

Chapter 639 Projection to 2

This woman was none other than the mother of Emperor Mingde, the empress who usurped power after Emperor Mingzhi.

Facing dozens of martial arts masters, including two grandmasters, her aura was in no way inferior. Her robes fluttered in the night wind, and beneath the thin robes, her vital energy was so strong that it was no less than that of a grandmaster.

"Eunuch Gao, why do you still refuse to submit to me? I have never treated you poorly. What Mingzhi can give you, I can give you too."

Upon hearing this, the dozens of people who had been besieging the group trembled. Even the two grandmasters, who had been calm on the surface, narrowed their eyes and unconsciously tensed up, looking wary.