Chapter 37: A Voice That Shakes the Heavens
Uncle Ma's chest heaved up and down, clearly his heart was not calm. He said coldly: "I cut off my own arm and sent it to the Great Thunderclap Temple, returning the divine powers of the Great Thunderclap Temple. Why did you still hunt me down, causing my wife and children to be scattered? Since you insist on my death, why can't I pass on the divine powers of the Great Thunderclap Temple to others?"
The old monk shook his head and said: "Junior brother, one arm does not represent all of the divine powers."
Uncle Ma laughed lowly: "The divine powers on my body did not all come from the Great Thunderclap Temple either. Do you want to cripple my other divine powers as well? I was born from the Great Thunderclap Temple, but back then I fought my way out with my own two hands, and at that time you did not dare to stop me. Only after I had a wife and children did you come knocking on my door again. For the safety of my wife and children, I willingly cut off one arm to return the divine powers of your Great Thunderclap Temple!"
His face darkened: "And then? You hunted me down, scattering my wife and children, destroying my family and ruining my home!"
The old monk's white eyebrows twitched: "Rules are rules. If they are changed, they are no longer rules. The mortal world, the dust of the mundane, interferes with cultivation. Junior brother, we did not actually intend to kill you, but rather to save you from the bitter sea of the mortal world, to bring you back to the Great Thunderclap Temple to cultivate and attain the true fruit. If back then you had not been moved by mortal desires and fought your way out of the Great Thunderclap Temple, then today the seat of the Tathagata of the Great Thunderclap Temple would be yours. If you are willing to return to the temple with me, the Old Tathagata will certainly be very gratified, and the seat of the Tathagata will still be yours." (Author's note: In popular parlance, Tathagata refers to Shakyamuni, but in the professional terminology of Buddhism, Tathagata refers to any Buddha—any Buddha is a Tathagata. The sutras say, "Thus have I come, therefore called Tathagata," referring to the realm of Buddhahood.)
"Return?"
Uncle Ma said woodenly: "Back then I fought my way out. If I am to return, I will naturally have to fight my way back in!"
The old monk's face sank, and he sighed: "The Tathagata will be very disappointed. This youth on the stage—he is your disciple, is he not? You taught him the Eight Forms of Thunderclap, but you did not teach him the core method of our Great Thunderclap Temple, the Tathagata Great Vehicle Sutra."
He looked toward Qin Mu, who was in the middle of a fight with a young man on the arena stage, and said: "The Tathagata Great Vehicle Sutra is the method for subduing demons. Without cultivating this core method, no matter how strong the Eight Forms of Thunderclap are cultivated, they are merely an empty shell. Today I have brought my disciple here. Mingxin, come and pay your respects to your martial uncle!"
Behind him, a tall, thin young monk stepped forward, a string of prayer beads hanging from his hand. He pressed his palms together and bowed: "Martial uncle."
The old monk's white eyebrows rose, and he said: "Mingxin is also a martial artist at the Spirit Embryo realm. My staff is staked here. Will junior brother wager against me?"
Grandma Si's eyebrows shot up, and she was about to speak, when Uncle Ma said expressionlessly: "Monastic precepts and rules are all dogshit. I will wager with you. How does my head compare in weight to your Xiqiluo staff?"
The old monk nodded: "The weight is roughly the same."
Blind, Grandma Si, and the Medicine Master all frowned deeply, about to dissuade him, when Uncle Ma said decisively: "If Mu'er loses, you take my head back to the Great Thunderclap Temple to see the Tathagata. If Mu'er wins, the staff stays, and you get as far away as possible."
"Excellent."
The old monk said to the young monk Mingxin: "Today your master will reclaim the divine powers of the Great Thunderclap Temple from the one who betrayed the temple. If you win, it will be your merit."
Mingxin acknowledged and walked toward the arena stage.
On the stage, the young man contending with Qin Mu was a master of sword techniques, following the path of Senior Brother Qu among the Five Masters of Lijiang. His flying sword never left more than three feet from his body. Unlike Senior Brother Qu, however, his sword was not large—more like a dagger, eight inches in length. Small, but even more dangerous!
This small sword would occasionally thrust out from strange places—from under the armpit, from the crotch—and would even slip into his clothing, emerging from his sleeve when Qin Mu clashed palms with him!
To control a sword with qi to such a degree of mastery was already not much inferior to Qianqiu of the Lijiang disciples, and far surpassing Senior Brother Qu.
Moreover, this man also possessed remarkable skill in combat techniques. His palm techniques were profound, his aura like a towering mountain, and when the force of his palm was released, mountain patterns would flash into view from the center of his palm.
But at this moment, the outcome of the match was already clear. Qin Mu's strength was great and his strikes fierce, his footwork swift. The young man had suffered a great loss when he clashed palms with Qin Mu the first time—Qin Mu's vast primordial qi had directly crushed his own!
Qin Mu was executing the Nine Dragons Riding Wind and Thunder. Although only three of the nine layers of power had erupted, it had already injured his internal organs. Despite his exquisite sword technique, defeat was certain.
Qin Mu's footsteps were erratic as he ran, like a thousand tangled snakes slithering through the grass, now east, now west, now front, now back, leaving the young man unable to discern where his attack would come from. The next moment, pain shot through his back, and he was sent flying by a palm strike from Qin Mu.
The young man landed, stunned for a moment, then bowed to Qin Mu on the stage and said gratefully: "Thank you, young friend, for showing mercy."
That palm strike from Qin Mu had landed on his back with great force, but the power was not savage—it had not injured his heart or lungs. Otherwise, with Qin Mu's strength, he could have shattered all five of his viscera and six bowels!
"Does junior brother need to rest?" Mingyue had been standing quietly waiting all along. Only after Qin Mu defeated the young man did he speak up and ask.
Qin Mu's gaze fell upon him. This monk was young, dressed in white monastic robes, not a speck of dust upon him. Even his shoes were white, and his skin was fair and clean. Although his head was shaved, he still appeared quite handsome, naturally inspiring goodwill in others.
He was about to answer that he didn't need rest, when suddenly Grandma Si's voice came: "Rest! You must rest!"
Qin Mu did not understand the meaning, but he still did as Grandma Si said, sitting down to rest and regulate his breath. His "Overlord Body Three Elixirs Art" was suited for cultivation while moving about. Although he had already faced more than ten martial artists, his primordial qi had not been depleted much—he was still at his peak state, merely somewhat physically tired.
Grandma Si carried a cup of water up to the stage and handed it to Qin Mu, whispering: "Mu'er, no matter what means you use, you must win this time. You absolutely cannot lose! Your Grandpa Ma has wagered with the old bald donkey—he's staked his own life!"
Qin Mu's heart leaped, and he hurriedly looked toward Uncle Ma. Uncle Ma's expression was calm, and his voice carried over: "Mu'er, the Overlord Body is peerless and can never lose! I believe in you."
Even though he said this, Qin Mu was still somewhat panicked. Although everyone in the village was his family, the ones he was closest to besides Grandma Si were Uncle Ma. Back then, it was Uncle Ma who, with one arm, carried the stone statue out of the village with Grandma Si, picked him up from the riverbank, and saved his life!
If he lost, wouldn't that cost Uncle Ma his life?
At this moment, the Medicine Master was also frowning deeply. Uncle Ma believed that Qin Mu was the peerless Overlord Body and had confidence in him, but Qin Mu was not actually the Overlord Body after all.
He now somewhat regretted helping the Village Chief conceal that well-intentioned lie. If he had told them the truth earlier, Uncle Ma would not have staked his life.
It was precisely because of his trust in Qin Mu that Uncle Ma had wagered his life against the old monk!
Suddenly, a murderous glint appeared in the Medicine Master's eyes: "If Mu'er loses, then I'll kill this old bald donkey and the little bald donkey. I won't let Uncle Ma go to his death!"
On the stage, Qin Mu desperately wanted to calm his mind, but when the life of the person closest to him was at stake, how could his heart settle?
The Mute gestured with his hands, making sounds. Blind leaned on his cane and said leisurely: "No need to remind him. This temple fair is a trial. If he passes it, he has grown up. If he doesn't, he's still a child."
After a moment, Qin Mu slowly stood up, looked at the tall, thin young monk across from him, and said slowly: "Monk, is there a Buddha in your heart?"
Mingxin pressed his palms together and said solemnly: "The Buddha is always in my heart."
Whoosh—
Qin Mu expelled a breath of turbid air. The primordial qi within his body became domineering and fierce, and a spirit of lawlessness surged forth from his small body.
"I!"
He took a step forward, and the aura surging from his small body gave people a stirring feeling of heroic spirit standing like a god. His voice shook the heavens and deafened the ears: "In my heart, there is no god, no Buddha, no demon! I am the god, I am the Buddha, I am the demon!"
At these words, the old monk sitting across from Uncle Ma showed a look of shock and turned his head to look at Qin Mu!