After collecting two strands of Dragon Qi, Xu Qi’an now found that his range of sensing Dragon Qi had increased greatly, allowing him to cover more than a dozen surrounding streets.
Now, he could clearly sense the presence of a Dragon Qi host, not far from the inn.
Convening the Martial Assembly was indeed a wise decision. While the Buddhists haven’t arrived yet, I can take advantage of the time difference and gather all the Dragon Qi I can sense in Yongzhou City…
Without any further hesitation, he turned to Mu Nanzhi and the little white fox and said,
“I’m heading out for a bit. I’ll be back soon.”
Mu Nanzhi, holding the little white fox and standing by the window enjoying the view, simply gave a quiet “Mm.”
Xu Qi’an hurried out of the inn. Guided by his sense of Dragon Qi, he took a winding route through streets and alleys until he finally spotted the target.
It was a middle-aged man dressed as a jianghu wanderer with a calm and gentle expression, carrying a cloth-wrapped weapon on his back, walking alone down the street.
The street bustled with people and many jianghu travellers were mingling among them.
“Pretend I’m an enemy seeking revenge, get close, snatch the Dragon Qi, and leave at once…”
Xu Qi’an closed the distance at a brisk pace, keeping a low profile, without using shadow-jumping.
When there were less than three zhang between them, the mild-looking middle-aged man suddenly turned, fixing an intense gaze on Xu Qi’an:
“Why are you following me?”
Refining Spirit… Xu Qi’an wasted no words, drew out the Earth Book fragment, aligned the mirror side at him, and silently recited an incantation.
With sufficient proximity, the Earth Book fragment, together with the incantation, could forcibly absorb Dragon Qi.
This was his unique ability.
But at that moment, a “crack” sounded synchronously from the Dragon Qi host’s palm.
Hm?
While Xu Qi’an was still puzzled, some magical artefact shattered in the middle-aged swordsman Dragon Qi host’s hand, turning into pure light, which coalesced between them into a portal of light.
Within this portal, a faint figure appeared, nine feet tall, with bulging muscles and a ring of fire behind his head.
The Buddhists, fishing for me?!
Xu Qi’an was not flustered by this sudden development. After a split-second of surprise, he understood immediately, flipped the mirror side of the Earth Book fragment, and pressed the back of the mirror.
A dark gold object fell from the Earth Book, it was the stupa tower!
Now, the stupa tower was his greatest trump card. Though its offensive powers were ordinary, as a Bodhisattva’s treasure, it was durable and its defence formidable.
So long as he entered the tower and escaped in it, not even a Vajra could necessarily catch up; even if one did, he would not be able to break in.
As the stupa tower fell, Xu Qi’an reached out and grabbed it, mentally communicating with the tower spirit…
But the next moment, another huge fan-shaped hand seized the stupa tower as well.
Xu Qi’an looked up to see a giant of a man before him, dressed in a red-and-yellow kasaya, a string of thick prayer beads around his neck, muscles knotted all over, and a ring of fire burning behind his head.
He was bald, beardless, browless, his entire scalp bare and his skin a dark golden hue, like a living bronze statue.
“Amitabha, this humble monk is here to deliver the Buddha Son into Buddhism.”
Vajra Du’nan’s gaze was fiercely intense.
Bang!
Xu Qi’an had no time to react before a kick slammed into his stomach, the force sending him flying uncontrollably as he lost his grip on the stupa tower.
He crashed into a storefront, punching through the wall, shattering beams, sending street-goers fleeing in all directions with screams.
Buzz…
A stabbing pain shot through Vajra Du’nan’s palm as the stupa tower vibrated, rejecting his grasp.
Even if they were both Buddhist, the stupa tower would only recognise its master; he could not control it. No matter how well prepared he was, he had nothing on hand that could seal or suppress the stupa tower.
This tower was already the ultimate artefact.
Vajra Du’nan made the correct judgement, he twisted his waist and arm, and with force, hurled the stupa tower far away.
The stupa tower turned into a black shadow, vanishing into the sky.
In the devastated shop, Xu Qi’an looked around, seeing the owner standing motionless behind the counter as if petrified by fear, and an assistant lying on the ground clutching his head, pinned and injured by a fallen cabinet.
Fortunately, there were no deaths.
Vajra Du’nan was baiting me with the Dragon Qi host? How did he know I was nearby? What was that portal just now? Isn’t teleportation an arcanist ability…?
Many thoughts flashed by, but he wasted no time. His body disappeared suddenly, using the art of the Dark Gu to leap two hundred feet away to the edge of the street.
As soon as his form emerged from the shadow and he got his bearings, he felt a crushing wave of powerful aura descend. The nine-foot-tall Vajra’s figure congealed before him.
Closing his fist, he sent out a devastating punch.
But Xu Qi’an seemed to have anticipated it beforehand, dodging aside, before his body became veiled in a layer of shadow. He immediately tried to merge into the shadow to escape.
Bang! Vajra Du’nan’s fist crashed into his chest, interrupting the shadow jump.
He should have been sent flying, but as his body was just lifting, Vajra Du’nan slapped him down hard, then followed with a tempest of punches.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The dark gold fists hammered him relentlessly, shockwaves rippling out, as if a storm raged on the street.
Xu Qi’an fought valiantly in defence. With his Transforming Force ability he should not have feared close combat, but Vajra Du’nan possessed the same skill, and they were not nearly on equal terms when it came to strength.
Inevitably, Xu Qi’an fell into a ‘one-way beating’ predicament, left with nothing to do but await his own end beneath this ruthless barrage.
What set him apart from other paths was that his body was also third rank, and Vajra Du’nan couldn’t kill him in a short time.
His physical body’s very strong, even stronger than me at my peak… Buddhist third-rank Vajra, their bodies are a tier above third-rank martial artists, but they don’t seem to have ‘Intent.’
Xu Qi’an was not merely taking the beating. He tried striking back with the Sevenfold Gu techniques.
He tried Desire Gu and Poison Gu, but both proved ineffective.
His willpower is too resolute; the scent of Desire Gu does not make him fall for me uncontrollably… Poison Gu doesn’t work either, not a hint of poisoning… I must break free if I want to escape, otherwise the Vajra techniques will be battered right out of me…
Xu Qi’an crossed his arms, blocking another punch with gritted teeth, and then suddenly let out a piercing shriek.
Moments later, barking and meowing sounded as dogs appeared in droves, rats swarmed in packs, and brown snakes slithered from crevices in every household along the street.
He was using the power of the Heart Gu to summon nearby animals.
They rushed wildly at Vajra Du’nan, dogs snapped at him, cats leapt at his face to block his vision, snakes and rats trailing close behind.
Further, several carriages charged in from the end of the street, the horses’ eyes bloodshot as they plunged wildly at Vajra Du’nan.
Vajra Du’nan grabbed Xu Qi’an and smashed him hard into the ground, cracking the street open. At the same time, the fire behind his head flared violently.
A searing wave swept out.
Bang bang bang!
Dogs, cats, rats, and snakes all exploded, splattering blood across the street.
At last, Xu Qi’an used this moment to break the rhythm of Vajra Du’nan’s attacks and seize a brief respite. He did not attempt to shadow jump, it would only be interrupted again.
Rolling along the ground, he sprang to his feet, now with a sabre in his hand.
The Taiping Sabre!
With a flick of his thumb, the sabre rang from its scabbard and a dim golden slash flashed.
Sparks burst spectacularly from Vajra Du’nan’s chest, and the force knocked him a step back.
Xu Qi’an’s chest, in turn, was stained with blood.
The cut failed to break through Vajra Du’nan’s Vajra body, and instead had damaged his own nearly-shattered Vajra Divine Art.
But he had achieved his aim.
In the next instant, he vanished into shadow on the spot.
“Hmph!”
Vajra Du’nan gave a cold snort and likewise vanished; a third-rank Vajra’s soul could cover a vast distance, and Xu Qi’an’s shadow-jump alone could not evade his attention.
In this pursuit, the two gradually left the bustling city sector, the battlefield shifting towards the city outskirts.
Xu Qi’an’s target was clear: the direction in which the stupa tower had disappeared.
After nearly fifteen minutes of pursuit, both had left Yongzhou City. Outside the city, there were few buildings and the view was wide open, so Xu Qi’an could only jump between tree-shadows, which made escape difficult.
In such circumstances, the best way to shake off a pursuing enemy was not to move in a straight line, but to constantly change direction through jumping between shadows. This would disrupt his pursuer’s rhythm and force him to keep turning, thus slowing him down.
But what he faced was a third-rank Vajra who had mastered Transforming Force, able to ignore inertia and smack the face of mechanical principles, there was no difference between changing direction and going straight.
Seeing that Vajra Du’nan was getting closer and closer, Xu Qi’an finally saw the Stupa tower. It had reverted to its original form, turning into an enormous high tower, deeply embedded in the field ridge.
At that moment, a fierce wind howled behind his head, and a violent Qi force shoved at his back, like the breath of a hungry wolf.
Without hesitation, Xu Qi’an urged the Qi in his dantian, channelling what remained after passing through the Demon-Sealing Nails, only about twenty or thirty percent of his original strength, into the Taiping Sabre.
Then, he suddenly flung it backwards!
The Taiping Sabre let out a shrill screech, piercing towards the enemy just twenty feet behind.
Clang!
The Taiping Sabre struck Vajra Du’nan’s chest, sending out sparks.
By now, Xu Qi’an had already connected with the tower spirit. The Stupa tower rose into the air, and the doors to the first level slowly opened.
However, at that moment, a sharp pain shot through Xu Qi’an’s chest, and the tip of the Taiping Sabre emerged from his chest.
His Vajra Divine Technique had been broken, and this peerless weapon became like a spear, piercing through his chest and nailing him to the ground.
At this point, he was just one step from success.
After throwing out the Taiping Sabre and successfully stopping Xu Qi’an, Vajra Du’nan didn’t waste words. He strode forward, trying to seize the Buddha Son first.
“Turn back and see the shore!”
Suddenly, a deep chanting voice sounded in his ears.
Hengyin, the Head Monk of Sanhua Temple, had arrived.
When Xu Qi’an was ambushed by Vajra Du’nan, he had secretly used the Sevenfold Gu to communicate with the puppet Hengyin in the inn, the same puppet left behind as a bodyguard for Mu Nanzhi.
After Vajra Du’nan threw the Stupa tower, Xu Qi’an had acted decisively, steering Hengyin over.
Now, in this crucial moment, this puppet became his life-saving straw.
Under the power of the precepts, Vajra Du’nan’s footsteps paused for a moment, almost imperceptibly, but this could not change the outcome.
“No killing!”
“No violence!”
“…”
The precepts were invoked one after another, layer upon layer, accumulating on each other.
Vajra Du’nan was furious, clenching his fist and swinging his arm, punching sideways at Hengyin.
Bang!
Hengyin, several yards away, exploded into pieces, a fourth-rank Zen Master, utterly destroyed.
Boom… the doors to the first level of the Stupa tower swung fully open, and pale golden light descended, enveloping Xu Qi’an and the Taiping Sabre, drawing them into the tower in an instant.
Immediately afterwards, the doors closed, and the Stupa tower soared into the sky, about to disappear as a stream of light.
“Trying to run!”
Vajra Du’nan bent his knees and leapt up, latching onto the tower.
The Stupa tower, carrying him, turned into a stream of light and sped away.
Vajra Du’nan clung firmly to the tower, growling low, his muscles bulging and his dark golden skin shining brilliantly.
Bang bang bang!
He raised his fists and pounded madly on the tower.
…
Inside the violently trembling Stupa tower, Xu Qi’an gripped the Taiping Sabre and walked through the first floor into the second, where he saw a haggard looking Chai Xing’er.
She was imprisoned between two Vajra statues, just like Nalan Tianlu had been.
The terrifying Qi fluctuations outside made this fifth-rank woman tremble all over.
Xu Qi’an gave her just a glance, then left her, continuing up to the third floor.
The old monk, the tower spirit, was seated cross-legged on his meditation mat, with a peaceful expression, seemingly unaffected by the turmoil outside.
“Master…”
Xu Qi’an also sat cross-legged beside him, palms together, and said devoutly, “I think I need emergency treatment.”
Save this child, please.
He was gravely injured, first by Vajra Du’nan’s hammering like an ironsmith, followed by self-mutilation with Broken Jade, and then skewered by the turncoat Taiping Sabre.
With his third-rank physique sealed by the Demon-Sealing Nails, his cell vitality was weak, and self-healing would take a long time.
The tower spirit monk nodded. “The image of the Medicine Buddha can cure you.”
Without any movement from him, green fragments of light floated out from the jade bottle in the palm of the chubby golden statue representing the Medicine Buddha. These motes of light seemed almost sentient as they entered Xu Qi’an’s body.
Once they entered, his burning wound was instantly soothed, flesh and blood wriggled and healed with astonishing speed, actually no slower than the immortal body of a third rank.
This is impossible… So this really is one of the Nine Great Dharma Aspects of Buddhism, something only a first-rank Bodhisattva could master… Xu Qi’an almost moaned in comfort.
A dozen seconds later, all his injuries had healed.
Bang bang bang!
Enormous booms rang outside, as if two giant iron lumps were colliding.
That was Vajra Du’nan pounding on the Stupa tower.
The inside of the tower trembled violently.
“Master, how do we shake him off?”
Xu Qi’an hoped the tower spirit would take action and knock Vajra Du’nan off.
“I am already resisting him,” the tower spirit replied calmly, “please be patient, benefactor. He will be shaken off within two hours.”
Two hours…
“You are a first-rank Bodhisattva’s Magical Artefact,” Xu Qi’an pressed.
“But he is not inside the tower, and this poor monk is not an offensive artefact. If he entered the tower, I could suppress him,” the tower spirit said.
“Then why not let him in?” Xu Qi’an’s eyes lit up.
“He cannot enter.” The tower spirit shook his head. “No one above the fourth rank can enter this tower. Only a second-rank Arhat could break in by force. Vajras are not of the Zen Master system.”
As they spoke, the tower spirit continued to tremble. Vajra Du’nan was unimaginably strong, making the Stupa tower resound with each blow.
What use are you, then… Xu Qi’an frowned deeply.
He rose and walked to the window. The sky was blue and clear. The earth was at his feet. The Stupa tower was speeding through the sky.
His face showed nothing, but inwardly he felt a mounting sense of crisis.
“No, I don’t know whether Arhat Duqing and Vajra Dufan are in Yongzhou. If they are nearby, they might arrive at any moment.
“With a second-rank Arhat and two third-rank Vajras, even with the Stupa tower at my side, I’m afraid I’d have no choice but to be captured…
“If I really entered Buddhism and became the Buddha Son, what use would this iron club be? Tch, why is this Vajra Du’nan so stubborn?”
Duang! Duang! Duang!
Vajra Du’nan was still pounding on the tower. If he was shaken off, things would only get more dangerous.
At that moment, Shenshu’s severed arm stirred, as if awakened. It seemed to sense for a moment, then let out a weird laugh:
“Boy, you seem to be in trouble.
“So you’ve provoked a Vajra. Tsk tsk, are you interested in making another deal?”
Xu Qi’an countered, “What kind of deal?”
“Lift the seal, and I’ll help you kill him. Vajra blood and Qi are a great tonic, I’m drooling already,” Shenshu’s tone reeked of hunger.
If I dipped him in batter and deep fried him, you’d be slobbering with envy, wouldn’t you? Xu Qi’an sneered inwardly, ignoring him.
Whether Shenshu was released was not his decision; it was up to the tower spirit. Besides, this severed arm was extremely evil, and until Xu Qi’an had recovered his cultivation, he would not consider unsealing it.
After frowning in thought for a moment, he slapped his forehead. “Right, I’ll summon Senior Brother Sun for help.”
Without delay, he took out the magic conch and transmitted:
“Senior Brother Sun, I’m near Yongzhou City, being hounded by Vajra Du’nan. Please come save me. You don’t have to answer, just come.”
There was utter silence from the conch, as expected, no reply.
Does this mean he heard me, or not… Xu Qi’an’s face froze.
In his anxiety, he suddenly felt something, paused, then burst with joy. He hurriedly overturned the Earth Book fragment, and a triangular protective talisman fell out.
Xu Qi’an caught the talisman, and heard Luo Yuheng’s cool voice from within: “I have arrived at the Yongzhou border.”
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