“Clang!”
A human head fell to the ground with a crisp sound. As it rolled, the veil hat came off, revealing a head forged from black iron, inlaid with ebony.
The turret in the sky hung motionless. A clear light flashed, and a white-robed man appeared. His looks were ordinary, his height was ordinary, and his temperament was also ordinary, he was the most unremarkable Second Senior Brother of the Sitianjian.
Sun Xuanji stood with his hands behind his back, gazing down at al-Asura atop the tower.
Al-Asura, in turn, casually waved his hand, turning the expensive artifact puppet into fine powder.
As an arcanist who was not adept at close combat, Sun Xuanji, like third ranks of other paths, was extremely vigilant when facing martial artists.
However, unlike experts of other paths, arcanists who were skilled in refining artefacts and formations were well-versed in the art of pay-to-win. They had more room to manoeuvre, and their methods were all the more flashy.
This artifact puppet was one of Sun Xuanji’s proudest creations. Its body was more durable than that of a fourth-rank martial artist, and it was inscribed with ninety-nine small formations on its body, granting it the abilities of teleportation, defence, and the five elements.
Its arms were equipped with small-calibre cannons, and even a fourth-rank expert would suffer grave injuries if struck directly.
Moreover, its core function was a spirit-gathering array carved into its head, allowing Sun Xuanji to divide a wisp of his primordial spirit to inhabit it.
For a short time, the puppet could unleash the power of a third rank arcanist.
However, while his primordial spirit was attached to the puppet, Sun Xuanji’s main body was unable to act, and the puppet’s power was slightly inferior to his true self.
Thus, the puppet was not highly effective in real combat, but as a decoy, it was simply perfect.
Had al-Asura no back-up plan, Sun Xuanji would have then broken open the sealing tower and released the severed limb of Shenshu.
Otherwise, he could at least probe al-Asura’s trump card.
Evidently, this son of the Asura King was not simple, he too had made preparations in advance.
“An arcanist of the Great Feng,” al-Asura said slowly. He had perished in the Sixty-Year extermination of the Yao, and at that time, the arcanist system had already existed for a hundred years.
“Worthy One!” Sun Xuanji spat out these two words.
As he finished speaking, the al-Asura who was fighting Xu Qi’an dissolved into golden light and vanished.
One of the three Arhat Phalas, the Worthy One Phala. 1
Worthy One, as the name implied, was worthy of both heavenly and worldly offerings, and was the most mysterious Phala of the Buddhist Sect. Those Arhats who attained the Worthy One Phala were among the world’s very few who possessed immense compassion.
The Worthy One Phala had two main powers: Wish-granting and Receiving Offerings.
Wish-granting: Worshippers present offerings and make a wish, the Arhat who possessed the Worthy One Phala could fulfil that wish.
Of course, there were limits, it was not possible to fulfil every wish.
Receiving Offerings: The Arhat could actively demand offerings from others.
Within the sealing tower, there was a Sharira of the Worthy One Phala.
Before the battle, the ever-cautious al-Asura had made an offering to the Sharira, making a wish that he could gain a helper identical to himself.
The Sharira responded, and with the power of the Worthy One Phala, summoned a helper identical to al-Asura.
Afterward, al-Asura himself hid nearby.
From start to finish, the one fighting Xu Qi’an was always this helper “summoned” by the Sharira, not al-Asura’s true body.
This helper, limited by the status of the Sharira, perfectly copied al-Asura’s abilities, but at best possessed early third rank cultivation.
Moreover, it could only be maintained for a very short time, suitable for a single occasion, not for prolonged use.
While luring out Xu Qi’an’s accomplices, al-Asura could have chosen to attack together with his duplicate, but that would only have startled Xu Qi’an into fleeing.
Before the real battle began, both sides had already planned and laid traps.
In the end, it was an even match.
“Did my earlier scrying make you suspicious?” Xu Qi’an gripped the Taiping Sabre in his right hand and walked slowly towards the sealing tower.
“Samantabhadra Bodhisattva long since foresaw that the southern Yao would seize the opportunity, while the Buddhist Sect intervened in the Central Plains’ struggle for legitimacy, to make an attempt on the Hundred Thousand Mountains,” al-Asura’s voice was young and mellow. “So, he entrusted me to guard the Southern Marches.”
I hate enemies who can scheme… Xu Qi’an suddenly dropped into a crouch, shooting towards al-Asura like a flying arrow, the Taiping Sabre in his hand unleashing a blinding blade light that twisted the air.
Ding!
The Taiping Sabre was caught between two fingers, and despite the blade energy surging, it could not harm al-Asura’s vajra body.
Xu Qi’an spun like a top, driving the sabre in a whirl, allowing it to tear free from the enemy’s fingers.
Withdrawing his hand, al-Asura said coolly, “Thou shall not kill!”
The precept’s power descended, causing him to lose all desire to fight or resist.
His fighting spirit was utterly drained.
Immediately after, the flame ring behind al-Asura’s head extinguished, replaced by a majestic golden aura.
His demeanour changed entirely, overbearing, fierce, murderous, like a peerless divine weapon unsheathed.
The stupa tower whirled in response, likewise radiating an awe-inspiring, domineering suppressive force, trying to affect al-Asura and weaken his power.
Bang!
Al-Asura formed a fist, ignoring the power of the stupa tower, and struck Xu Qi’an in the chest, causing his dark-gold-coloured skin to crack inch by inch, and his chest to cave in on the spot.
The Executioner Phala, famed for its overwhelming offence, ripped right through the Vajra Divine Art.
If he could not break the Vajra Divine Art, how could al-Asura qualify as the unrivalled champion beneath the Bodhisattvas?
Xu Qi’an shot away like a cannonball, crashing through building after building, gouging a path of dust and debris through Nanfa Temple.
Without its master to empower it, the stupa tower struggled to suppress an Arhat who had attained the Executioner Phala.
At this moment, al-Asura suddenly turned aside, a dark-golden sabre light swept past, disappearing into the temple complex.
A few seconds later, pavilions and halls split apart, as if sliced open like tofu.
Xu Qi’an had leapt through shadows and attacked silently from behind. With the Heaven Gu’s shifting constellations ability concealing his aura, al-Asura’s martial artist danger sense had failed to warn him.
That earlier dodge was pure battlefield instinct.
But this made al-Asura lose the initiative. As he turned to evade the blade, Xu Qi’an closed in, left hand forming a fist and right hand gripping the sabre, launching a coordinated assault.
Clang clang clang!
His fists were like cannonballs, pounding al-Asura in a rain of blows.
The halo behind al-Asura’s head faded, while the fierce flame ring flared up, lighting up the dark night.
He switched between Arhat and Vajra Forms seamlessly.
His already towering figure swelled even larger, muscles bulging explosively.
Clang!
The Asura Vajra brought his head crashing against Xu Qi’an’s forehead, using even greater, more domineering force to abruptly break Xu Qi’an’s combo.
As darkness swept his vision, in the fleeting moment of unconsciousness, Xu Qi’an remembered Fuxiang’s words, al-Asura had failed at cultivating the Vajra Dharma Aspect and switched to the Zen Master path.
Anyone qualified to practise the Vajra Dharma Aspect, with such power and qi, must be at least a perfect third rank.
To break a martial artist’s combo, only a stronger martial artist could do it.
In the next instant, offence and defence reversed, al-Asura’s flame ring faded, the golden aura shone, and his fists, wreathed in the power of the Executioner Phala, pummelled deep dents into Xu Qi’an’s body.
Now, Xu Qi’an was at the mercy of a martial artist’s unstoppable combo.
With al-Asura’s strength, and the Executioner Phala’s “undying, unceasing” damage, even if an immortal martial artist could not be killed outright, it would still leave him waning and his strength plummeting.
The scales of victory thus tipped.
Seeing this, the monks of Nanfa Temple burst into cheers, truly relieved at last.
The Venerable al-Asura was invincible. Unless a first-rank appeared, no one could defeat him.
‘Venerable’ was an honorific for the disciples of the Buddha.
The Buddha had achieved enlightenment thousands of years ago, and most of his disciples had already vanished into the river of time.
In today’s the Buddhist Sect, the only ones worthy of being called Venerable were the Bodhisattvas Agaruka and Samantabhadra, and before their eyes, this very youngest son of the Asura King.
As for figures like Vaidurya Bodhisattva and Arhat Duqing, they were considered rising stars among the higher echelons of the Buddhist Sect.
“All of you, form up quickly, seal off the western courtyard, and do not let the intruders and their accomplices escape. Warrior Monks, leave the temple to assist the City Guard in putting out the fire and capturing the arsonists.”
An elderly monk with white beard and brows called out loudly.
“Yes, Elder Panfa!”
The monks were brimming with fighting spirit, their earlier fear and panic completely swept away.
While Xu Qi’an “held back” al-Asura, Sun Xuanji wasn’t idle. He stood at the edge of the platform and slowly stretched out both arms.
A circular formation appeared above his head, its pattern resembling twisted flames.
Twelve cannons floated up into the air and plunged themselves into the formation. As soon as they entered, the iron cannons rapidly melted, impurities burned away, and transformed into blazing molten iron.
This molten iron hovered above Sun Xuanji’s head, casting an orange glow over his white-robed figure.
A second formation took shape, covering the tons of molten iron. With a hissing sound, the iron rapidly cooled.
During the cooling process, the barrel of an enormous cannon was forged, soon followed by the formation of the cannon’s body.
The prototype of a super-heavy cannon was born.
Arcanists who commanded such formations had basically said goodbye to the furnace and to mundane fire in their forging.
Next, Sun Xuanji’s fingers danced through the air, sketching formations into the void. Dozens of formation patterns of various shapes, each symbolising a different domain of power, were created one after another, and were methodically branded onto the super-large cannon.
Some strengthened the barrel, some gathered spiritual power… Within barely a dozen breaths, scores of formations were etched.
A super-large magical cannon was forged.
“Snap!”
Sun Xuanji snapped his fingers. The patterns on the barrel lit up one by one, triggering a chain reaction until the entire cannon was aglow.
Vast spiritual power began to gather. A fist-sized orb of light appeared at the muzzle, as the power accumulated, the orb kept growing.
This process lasted around ten seconds. Suddenly, Sun Xuanji shouted:
“Now!”
As soon as his words fell, al-Asura, who was relentlessly attacking and unleashing violence upon Xu Qi’an, suddenly caved in at the chest. Then his abdomen, ribs, back, shoulders… all over his body, areas began to collapse to various extents.
His dark-gold skin cracked like porcelain.
In that instant, his Vajra body was shattered, his internal organs suffered severe trauma, and his breath rapidly weakened.
Broken Jade!
Xu Qi’an had activated Broken Jade, reflecting sixty percent of all the damage he’d received back at his foe.
This was the limit of what Broken Jade could do.
Taking advantage of al-Asura’s grievous injuries, Xu Qi’an melted into the shadows and reappeared at a distance.
“Snap!”
Sun Xuanji snapped his fingers again.
Boom!
The cannon barrel spewed a blazing beam of light, a one-metre-wide pillar engulfing al-Asura.
The entire Nanfa Temple was illuminated as bright as day.
The monks stared at the beam blankly, as if gazing into the sun, their eyes streaming with hot tears from the intense light.
They could not comprehend the sudden reversal before them.
So powerful… Xu Qi’an narrowed his eyes and stared intently at the beam, not daring to blink.
Atop the Stupa tower, the Dharma Aspect of the Medicine Buddha appeared, its jade flask pouring down soft golden radiance onto Xu Qi’an, healing his wounds. In conjunction with the formidable self-healing of a third rank martial artist, it slowly suppressed the power of the Executioner Phala.
Truly worthy of being the Executioner Phala, famed among second rank Buddhist cultivators for combat prowess. Though it can’t compare to the Sovereign Sword, with enough accumulation, it could indeed suppress the healing of beyond-mortal martial artists…
If it were one-on-one, I won’t have been able to defeat al-Asura. Broken Jade can only reflect sixty percent of the damage, hurting myself more than the enemy. Luckily I have the Medicine Buddha Dharma Aspect…
Xu Qi’an thought, still shaken.
A combination two-plus-three Buddhist expert really was terrifyingly powerful.
Senior Brother Sun’s full-force strike, combined with the damage from my Broken Jade, means that even if al-Asura doesn’t die, he can’t threaten us any longer.
The outcome was decided!
The beam lasted about twenty breaths before its power was spent and it slowly faded.
Al-Asura’s cross-legged figure came into view, sitting at the bottom of a deep crater blasted out by the energy. He sat there, hands pressed together.
His kasaya had been burned away. The skin of this young prince of the Asura King was almost completely incinerated, exposing the reddish, half-melted flesh beneath.
Most shocking was his head: the flesh burned away, revealing a charred skull.
His features were distorted like melted wax, his face contorted. Only two scorched sockets remained where his eyes had once been.
Xu Qi’an’s Broken Jade had directly shattered al-Asura’s Vajra body and dealt critical damage to his organs.
Even though al-Asura had managed to defend against the “cannon blast” with zen techniques in time, in his weakened state, he could not withstand the full-force attack of a third rank arcanist.
Finish him off while he’s down… Xu Qi’an once more merged with the shadow, re-emerging behind al-Asura.
The Taiping Sabre descended!
Without the protection of Vajra divine art, in al-Asura’s current state, his body could not withstand the blade’s edge.
As long as Xu Qi’an severed his head and let Sun Xuanji seal it, al-Asura’s only fate would be the complete loss of vitality and death.
Boom, boom, boom…
At that moment, Xu Qi’an heard drumming, dense and muffled.
He felt astonished, but it did not stop the Taiping Sabre from coming down.
Clang!
A sharp metallic clang rang out, and sparks erupted from the impact. The sabre failed to sever al-Asura’s head, blocked by an outstretched palm.
A palm as black as ink.
The burned skin of al-Asura rapidly regenerated. first the skull was covered by tender red flesh, then by a layer of pitch-black skin.
Within just a few breaths, all of al-Asura’s wounds had healed. His appearance had changed drastically, his entire body now pitch-black, like a demon from the abyss.
“It’s been so long since I unleashed my bloodline’s power, so long that I almost forgot I am the Asura clan’s mightiest warrior.”
With a sigh, al-Asura flicked his finger, and the Taiping Sabre almost flew from Xu Qi’an’s hand.
Only then did Xu Qi’an realise that the dense drumming sound was al-Asura’s heartbeat.
This… Looking at al-Asura’s new form, Xu Qi’an’s pupils dilated in shock and disbelief.
His loss of composure was not due to fear of al-Asura’s strength.
It was because he had seen another being with this same jet-black skin.
Shenshu’s pitch-black Dharma Aspect!
Bloodline power, this was the bloodline power of the Asura clan?!
Then Shenshu is…
“Yinggong”, worthy of offerings, one of the ten titles of the Buddha, sanskrit Arhat, so could also be called the Arhat Phala ↩
Comments for this chapter. You will need a GitHub account. Please follow all terms and conditions of GitHub issues and maintain etiquette in the comments. Cookies are required for this functionality.
If you want to talk with other readers about Nightwatchers (or other cultivation type books) you can join our cultivation groupreading discord server!
I also have a Kofi, which for legal reasons is definitely for supporting my digital art only (promise!): ko-fi.com/yanxin ... plus I guess server space isn't free, and I don't want to put ads/trackers... ever, so thank you if you do!