Chapter 308
Chapter 308
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 84
>Chapter Title: Ruling Step (5)
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The Reverse Sinew Scripture Hall Leader, Grandmaster Mu-seong, approached Mok Kyung-un with a face that seemed greatly relieved.
"Amitabha. I am truly astounded that you have accomplished something even more difficult than the task we assigned, and done so with such ease, Patron."
The original task had been to endure the 108 Arhat Formation alongside his companions for a full incense stick's time.
Yet Mok Kyung-un had single-handedly shattered it in a single strike.
Grandmaster Mu-seong's admiration was thus sincere.
"I was fortunate."
"To achieve such feats at a young age could easily breed arrogance, yet you possess humility as well. Truly, you are a virtuous one."
At those words, Mok Kyung-un smiled faintly.
In truth, Mok Kyung-un was unfamiliar with emotions like arrogance or hubris.
He simply acted in whatever manner suited the situation he desired to create.
And,
-There's no need to needlessly create enemies, child. The weak are not necessarily non-threats, nor are they incapable of becoming nuisances.
-Is that so?
-A speck of snow at the peak can trigger an avalanche. Shaolin stands as the spiritual pillar of the righteous martial world. I trust you grasp the intent behind my words.
There was also Cheong-ryeong's advice.
Judging it reasonable, Mok Kyung-un was gradually learning not to provoke others unless necessary.
Of course, true to their Buddhist cultivation, most of Shaolin's monks no longer raised objections or harbored grudges over what was already done.
They cleanly accepted the outcome.
"A promise is a promise. Take the demon beast you brought..."
"Ah! Might I also take Alyu with me?"
"Alyu?"
"The demonic beast imprisoned in Shaolin's Anti-Demon Cave."
"Amitabha. So you've learned its name from the creature."
"Yes. You instructed me to control it, and against my intentions, it became my familiar."
"Familiar... So it's a summoning art."
"Yes."
To the monks who cultivated the Buddha's way, summoning arts that defied heaven's will were deemed contrary to reason, so Grandmaster Mu-seong was none too pleased.
Yet unwilling to entangle further in a negative manner,
"Amitabha. Very well, do as you wish. But please ensure this creature does not harm people recklessly, Patron."
"I shall."
"Then take it and go."
Even after granting permission, Mok Kyung-un stared fixedly at Grandmaster Mu-seong.
Puzzled, the grandmaster asked,
"Why do you hesitate, Patron?"
"You're not giving me the summoning pills?"
"Ah!"
Grandmaster Mu-seong slapped his forehead as if he'd forgotten.
"To make a promise and nearly commit such a discourtesy... This old monk grows forgetful with age, so I beg your understanding, Patron."
"Not at all."
With that, Mok Kyung-un glanced at the surrounding monks.
As he produced the summoning pills, they wore expressions of deep regret.
Cheong-ryeong chuckled as if finding it amusing.
-It seems they hoped you'd forget, child.
-Indeed.
-Truly remarkable, you are. Even then, to think of demanding the summoning pills.
-Shall we call it a lesson learned?
-A lesson?
At Cheong-ryeong's questioning, Mok Kyung-un smiled faintly.
In any case, it was only natural for Shaolin's monks to feel regret.
While not quite as rare as the Great Return Pills, summoning pills were still difficult to produce.
Even Shaolin monks might partake of such treasured elixirs only once in a lifetime, so they couldn't help but lament their export to an outsider.
Even desireless monks would view receiving summoning pills as an honor.
"Go to the Bodhi Garden and fetch five summoning pills."
At his command, one monk asked in confusion,
"Yes? Grandmaster, wouldn't four suffice? Clearly, the defrocked virtuous one was refused..."
"One is for that bodhisattva."
Grandmaster Mu-seong's gaze turned to someone.
That someone was none other than Seonghwa, the Spirit Lord.
Mok Kyung-un's eyes gleamed with interest.
In truth, since Seonghwa was not a martial artist, he hadn't included her among those to receive summoning pills.
Yet Grandmaster Mu-seong had counted her among the group.
Truly fair and profound.
-The hypocrites of the righteous faction would have caused far less turmoil in the martial world if they'd learned even half—no, a third—of what this old monk embodies.
-The demonic or wherever, it's much the same.
To Mok Kyung-un, righteous, demonic, or any humans were alike.
In the end, all schemed cunningly to achieve their desires.
Then, a sharp, irritable voice rang out from somewhere.
"Hah. Such insolence!"
Turning his head, he saw Precepts Hall Leader Grandmaster Dae-deok, face twisted in displeasure, venting his anger.
His target was none other than the defrocked monk Ja Geum-jeong.
The man who, more than anyone, had cheered at the moment Reverse Sinew Scripture Hall Leader Grandmaster Mu-seong—Shaolin's highest elder present—acknowledged the 108 Arhat Formation's defeat.
[Kahahahahahaha!]
Though grateful to the one who had taken him in, he harbored no great resentment even after expulsion.
Save for one person.
That was Precepts Hall Leader Grandmaster Dae-deok.
From his selection among the Ten Commandment Monks onward, this man had obstructed and blocked him at every turn.
Even before defrocking, he had repeatedly proposed expelling him from Shaolin.
Had it not been for his master, Scripture Pavilion Leader Grandmaster Gong-jeon, it might have happened far sooner.
The defrocked monk Ja Geum-jeong snorted at Grandmaster Dae-deok and said,
"What's insolent about it?"
"Even after leaving Shaolin, how dare you act so rudely toward an elder who once imparted teachings?"
"Who's an elder or elder now that I've left? And what's rude about upholding a promise?"
"Hah. Still the same, eh? You've become a wastrel since leaving Shaolin."
"Yes. Say what you will—this monk will strike once as promised and leave, so stand ready as per the promise."
"You truly crave a beating."
With that, Grandmaster Dae-deok assumed the stance of Dragon Flower Fist.
He seemed ready to strike Ja Geum-jeong at any moment.
Then, Scripture Pavilion Leader Grandmaster Gong-jeon approached, clicking his tongue.
"Amitabha. Precepts Hall Leader, we've made a promise—why be so stubborn?"
"This old monk never agreed to any wager."
"Hohoho. What an unseemly sight. Wasn't it you who demanded all adhere to precepts without exception? Yet now you seek an exception for yourself?"
-Murmurs!
At Grandmaster Gong-jeon's words, even the Precepts Hall monks whispered among themselves.
Grandmaster Dae-deok bit his lower lip, face flushed with fury.
Self-inflicted bind, as they say.
Though he yearned to flatten the insolent defrocked monk, refusing now would only shatter his dignity further.
"Tch."
In the end, Grandmaster Dae-deok released his stance and stepped forward before Ja Geum-jeong.
He glared murderously and said,
"Fine. Since you insist, strike this old monk once."
-'Don't think this ends here.'
Grandmaster Dae-deok vowed inwardly for a future reckoning.
He would release him now, but he had cause to reclaim the imparted Supreme Great Ability.
Using that pretext, he planned to visit and settle the score properly.
-'But he's far too pleased.'
Grandmaster Dae-deok inwardly clicked his tongue.
Seeing this naive fool grin so delightedly over a single strike was utterly ridiculous.
If he harbored such resentment, he should at least offer an arm—such a simpleton.
Clicking his tongue, Grandmaster Dae-deok soon said,
"Enough grinning. Strike."
With that, he circulated his qi to shield his body.
Grandmaster Gong-jeon furrowed his brow.
"Precepts Hall Leader, for a mere single strike, you shield with qi?"
"We agreed to one strike, not to forgo qi shielding."
Even his fellow Precepts Hall monks shook their heads at his sarcastic tone.
For an old matter, just take the strike cleanly and be done—why drag it out?
Yet Ja Geum-jeong's lips curled up to his ears.
"My, so using qi is fine, then."
"What?"
"Didn't you say so, Grandmaster?"
"No, that's..."
"Surely you're not saying you can shield with qi while this monk strikes bare-fisted?"
At Ja Geum-jeong's words, Grandmaster Dae-deok cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Ahem. Who said otherwise? Do as you will."
-'As if that changes anything. Fool.'
Grandmaster Dae-deok sneered inwardly at Ja Geum-jeong.
After all, having cultivated the Marrow Cleansing True Scripture and Great Vehicle Mortal Heaven Divine Art, he prided himself on inner strength surpassing all righteous martial artists.
Comparing it to the Supreme Great Ability this fool had learned was absurd.
-Thud! Thud!
-'I'll show you now.'
Grandmaster Dae-deok stomped the ground firmly, assuming a horse stance.
Scripture Pavilion Leader Grandmaster Gong-jeon sighed upon seeing it.
It was the stance of the Vajra Indestructible Body Divine Art.
A method to harden the skin across the body to near-vajra resilience with qi.
He clearly had no intention of letting Ja Geum-jeong vent freely.
But Ja Geum-jeong paid it no mind.
Instead,
-Grip!
He clenched his fist, drew it back, and assumed a bizarre fist technique stance.
The surrounding monks murmured softly.
"Hundred Paces Divine Fist."
Hundred Paces Divine Fist.
One of Shaolin's 72 Supreme Arts, capable of shattering a rock a hundred paces away with fist qi.
While famed externally for conquering distance, its true strength shone at closer ranges.
The Hundred Paces Divine Fist's power intensified the nearer the distance.
'Hundred Paces Divine Fist... I thought he'd only taught Vajra Subduing Demon Ring, but he imparted another ultimate art.'
Grandmaster Dae-deok glanced sidelong at Ja Geum-jeong's master, Scripture Pavilion Leader Grandmaster Gong-jeon, and clicked his tongue.
But it mattered not.
Even if the Hundred Paces Divine Fist's might ranked among Shaolin's 72 Supreme Arts' top five in raw power, his inner strength had long surpassed it.
-'Do your worst. It won't even scratch this old monk...'
-Whoooooom!
It was then.
-Flinch!
Grandmaster Dae-deok's pupils trembled.
The reason for his shock was the energy gathering in Ja Geum-jeong's fist.
He had deemed it impossible for the fool to harm him even drawing upon his Ten Stars Power.
Yet,
-Whoooooom!
Energy ceaselessly gathered in Ja Geum-jeong's fist, exceeding his expectations—and still accumulating.
What in the world?
This was beyond the fool's realm.
'Amitabha.'
Scripture Pavilion Leader Grandmaster Gong-jeon, watching Ja Geum-jeong, inwardly recited the chant.
Back when virtuous one Deok-mun faced defrocking, he had told him to feign learning the discarded Supreme Great Ability to preserve his martial arts.
But it seemed unnecessary.
-'If not that, then what is the Supreme Great Ability?'
Ambient energies surged toward him.
The enlightenment Deok-mun had attained was truly the supreme power left by Patriarch Bodhidharma during his wall-gazing meditation.
Ja Geum-jeong's right fist now brimmed with energy approaching that of a wall-transcending master.
In clashes between experts, there was no time to gather qi, but with no time limit here, naturally,
-Kraaaack!
"W-Wait..."
The panicked Grandmaster Dae-deok tried to halt Ja Geum-jeong.
But having amassed his peak energy, Ja Geum-jeong unleashed the Hundred Paces Divine Fist straight at Grandmaster Dae-deok's abdomen.
-Baaaam!
"Gah!!!!!"
In that instant, time seemed to slow in Ja Geum-jeong's eyes.
As the fist met abdomen, Grandmaster Dae-deok's eyes bulged grotesquely, his face contorting hideously.
-Drip...
Sweat beaded on his forehead, streaming down his flushed face.
Though shielded by Vajra Indestructible Body Divine Art, the transcending strike pierced through, ravaging his five viscera, six bowels, and even dantian.
-Pfsh! Pfsh! Crack!
With the impact sounds penetrating his abdomen,
-Crash! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Grandmaster Dae-deok's body shot backward, rolling and bouncing across the floor over ten paces before halting.
"Ughhhhh."
Staggering to his feet, he glared at Ja Geum-jeong with bloodshot eyes.
He raised a hand,
"Y-You bastard... Blegh."
Spewing a mouthful of blood, he collapsed face-down.
-Thud!
'!!!!!!'
Shaolin's monks gaped at the sight.
Who could have imagined the Precepts Hall Leader—one of Shaolin's Three Elders—reduced to this by a single punch from a defrocked monk?
Regardless, Ja Geum-jeong burst into broad laughter, utterly relieved.
"Kahahahahahaha."
The pent-up frustration of a decade dissolved like indigestion cured.
* * *
Half a shichen later,
The demonic beast Heumwon, barely airborne despite its wounded right wing, flew eastward from Shaolin.
Silently watching from Shaolin's descent was Guard Commandant Gang-hak.
"Do you think I'll let you escape just because Shaolin upheld a promise? Deputy, report their path at once. I'll pursue that massive freakish bird."
"Yes, sir!"
"Guards and officers, follow me!"
"Yes, sir!!!!"
Led by Guard Commandant Gang-hak, the guards and officers gave chase.
Heumwon's injury slowed it enough to catch up.
Watching them from higher on the mountainside were Mok Kyung-un and his group.
Mok Kyung-un smirked at the officials frantically pursuing Heumwon's tail.
"Right on script, as expected."