Enlightenment: Beginning as a Disposable Warrior

Chapter 403 - 236: Mountain Lord Ancient Bell, Severing the River! (Part 2)

Su Mu got straight to the point, declaring his purpose; he was here for the secret method of the Secret Realm.

The yellow-robed old monk did not speak upon hearing this, while Zen Ming, the gaunt old monk on the right, slightly raised his eyebrows, speaking with a slightly cold tone, "Benefactor, you are not a disciple of our Vajra Temple. The Dharma is not lightly transmitted; this matter is impossible."

Su Mu furrowed his brows slightly, not looking at the gaunt old monk, but instead directly at Zen Jing, the leading yellow-robed old monk.

"Is this the intention of Vajra Temple?"

"Hmph!"

Zen Ming snorted coldly, the monk’s robe fluttered noisily, with Sanskrit script seemingly circulating around his body, instantly resembling the Furious Eyes Vajra statue outside the courtyard. The powerful aura pressed down like a heavy hammer, causing the cyan bricks around Wuming to buckle under the pressure, cracks spreading rapidly like a spider’s web.

Under such pressure, if one does not practice the Horizontal Training Method, even a Sixth-Grade Martial Artist would need to stir their Qi Blood to resist. Yet Su Mu remained unfazed, sitting calmly in place, while the spreading web seemed to meet an invisible chasm.

Boom!

The cyan bricks immediately shattered, dust flying.

"Junior Brother, calm down."

At this moment, the previously silent Zen Enlightenment spoke up, "I have heard from my little junior brother that Benefactor Li is a remarkable person and has a connection with our Buddhist Sect."

Su Mu naturally knew that the secret method was not easy to obtain; he had already set his expectations. Upon hearing Zen Enlightenment speak, his heart was moved, aware that there might be an opportunity.

"Benefactor saved my little junior brother and has shown kindness to our Vajra Temple. How about this, firstly, our Vajra Temple’s Scripture Pavilion has two volumes of Fifth-Grade Buddhist Scripture, and one volume of a Fourth-Grade Fragment; Benefactor may choose one."

"I choose the latter."

Su Mu immediately shook his head, surprising the three old monks in the hall. The Fifth-Grade Buddhist Scriptures of Vajra Temple were not ordinary scriptures to be compared with, as they are a heritage of Longfu Temple.

Moreover, there is a Fourth-Grade Buddhist Scripture, although a fragment, but it is extremely precious in an ordinary Commandery City. Yet the person in front was unwilling to hesitate and refused, showing a martial dao heart of extraordinary determination.

"Benefactor, such courage, the Vajra Secret Realm is not comparable to ordinary Twelfth Body Tempering Realm..." Zen Enlightenment gently stroked his beard, "Three hundred and forty-six years ago, our temple’s ancestor came south from Ancient Qingzhou to spread the Dharma. Upon entering this mountain, he saw a ruined Mountain Lord Temple amidst the desolation, with a copper tripod in front of the temple, rust-stained yet faintly displaying profound patterns."

"Later the ancestor smelted the tripod and cast a bell, infusing numerous Buddhist Dharma mysteries into it. If Benefactor can topple this bell and set it upright, repeating three times, it shows you have a bond with our sect ancestor, and the Dharma, not lightly transmitted, can make an exception for you."

"But if you fail..."

Before Zen Enlightenment could finish, Zen Master Chanjing, previously silent, suddenly interrupted, "If you fail, today, Benefactor may still choose one volume of Buddhist Scripture. How about this?"

"No need, as Zen Ming Master said, if I fail the challenge, it is because my skills are inferior."

Su Mu calmly agreed, and the four walked out of the secluded Zen temple.

In front of the Mountain Lord Ancient Temple at the northern foot of Vajra Temple, a crowd had already gathered, hearing that someone was about to challenge the Mountain Lord Ancient Bell. Monks from the temple flocked to the scene, filling the stone plaza in front of the temple, numbering no less than a hundred.

At the center of the repaired temple, atop a small three-step platform, a bronze ancient bell stood majestically twelve feet tall, with lines of Sanskrit on the bell’s body shimmering with a dark golden sheen under the sunlight.

"Creak—"

At this moment, three martial monks were trying to push the bell together, with their Sixth-Grade cultivation, their robes flaring, a faint golden aura circulating around them. The blue veins on their foreheads bulged, muscles beneath their bronze skin rising in lumps, yet the ancient bell barely swayed, letting out a heavy hum.

"Hiss... Even the combined efforts of Martial Uncles Jue Pan, Jue Wen, and Jue Ting can’t topple it, this ancient bell is too heavy."

"I’ve been in the temple for over thirty years, never seen anyone able to topple the ancient bell alone; even before Zen Heart Shishu went down the mountain, it couldn’t be done. I doubt even the so-called strongest person in the three counties could manage it."

"He’s here, he’s here, is that the man coming to challenge?"

The crowd parted, many monks and novice monks casting their gaze towards Su Mu. They didn’t know who he was, but they knew anyone who could climb the mountain gate without it being opened and dared to challenge the Mountain Lord Ancient Bell was no ordinary person.

The monks’ words reached his ears, Su Mu’s gaze swept over the three monks trying to push the bell, his eyes catching onto something unusual.

For some reason, the three monks did not use Qi Blood, nor did they use Power; they relied solely on the Horizontal Training Method and the pure power of their physical bodies. For a moment, Su Mu seemed to ponder something.

"In the past, our temple’s ancestor used this bell in a small town downhill to control water, using it to dam the river and block the flow."

Zen Ming entered the Mountain Lord Ancient Temple and spoke slowly, many new novice monks gasping when they heard this bell had once dammed a river, realizing its remarkable use.

"Jue Pan, Jue Wen, Jue Ting, you three, step back."

The three martial monks retreated upon hearing the words, and Zen Ming stepped aside with a wave of his hand, "Benefactor, please!"

"Does he really intend to challenge it alone?"

The monks present saw that even the combined efforts of the previous three Sixth-Grade martial monks couldn’t make it budge. Their eyes were filled with doubt as they all looked at Su Mu, unable to believe that he could achieve this alone.

Su Mu remained unfazed, stepping out calmly and ascending the steps.

Before the ancient bell, Su Mu slightly parted his lips, inhaling gently. He extended his arms, placing his palms on the bell, and suddenly exerted force, accelerating the rotation of the Gangjin Pill in his dantian.

Under the gaze of all, the twelve-foot bell did not move an inch. Su Mu’s pupils narrowed slightly, and he chose to release his grip.

In that brief moment, he keenly perceived that the scriptures on the bell were like living creatures wandering among the rust. Then, a peculiar force flowed into his body, instantly silencing the Gangjin Pill in his dantian, making it impossible to mobilize even a trace of gang force.

His Qi blood was similarly affected as if it had been directly sealed by that force in an instant.

Now, as he released his hands, Su Mu willed his Qi blood and gang force to circulate freely within his body.

"I see. This bell can seal all power except for physical strength."

Su Mu’s mind raced, quickly recalling the cross-training martial arts exhibited by those three martial monks earlier.

"No, could it be that cross-training martial arts are not affected by the seal?"

Su Mu’s first attempt failed, yet the many monks present did not appear excessively surprised. If Su Mu had pushed it, that would’ve been truly astonishing.

Zen Ming and Zen Wu exchanged a glance, and Zen Ming exhaled a discreet sigh of relief.

"The Mountain Lord Ancient Bell, refined by the ancestral master, is inscribed with Sanskrit that holds the profound mystery of sealing Middle Third Grade cultivation methods. Even Buddhist Dharma is greatly suppressed. Though Li Feiyu might be a prodigy in the martial arts, he is merely at the entry level of Middle Third Grade. Once his power and Qi blood are sealed, he is utterly incapable of moving it."

With this thought, Zen Ming, who had been somewhat perturbed after his earlier clash with Su Mu, relaxed entirely, regardless of how highly his junior Zen Heart regarded this person, regardless if he was the so-called number one martial artist of the Three Counties.

No one from the Cyan Cloud Three Counties can take away the Untransmitted Secret Technique from the Vajra Temple.

Without rules, nothing can be achieved. The Dharma cannot be spread!

Feeling the various gazes from the ancient temple, Su Mu’s expression remained as calm as still water. He took a deep breath, and as he exhaled, a green radiance and golden light shimmered at the center of his brows.

"Clang!"

Amidst the sound of Tiger Roar and Bell Sound, golden light flowed over every inch of his skin, and a nine-inch Cyan Flame soared. Su Mu extended his arms again, and at the instant his hands touched the ancient bell, the roar of the tiger ceased abruptly, and the bell sounds fell silent.

The nine-inch Cyan Flame surrounding Su Mu extinguished, and his second attempt also ended in failure.

However, this display of the Molten Fire Golden Body surprised all the monks in the courtyard, especially the old Sixth-Grade monks.

"This martial art seems to have traces of my Vajra Temple’s lineage?"

"Is it the Eighth Grade Vajra Body? No, this cross-training martial art is extraordinary. Even in Sixth-Grade martial arts, it ranks as superior, far beyond the Vajra Body."

An old monk shook his head and murmured.

Only Zen Jing’s elderly eyes were filled with a gleaming light. He recognized that the martial art showcased by Su Mu did possess elements of the Vajra Body.

"Even the Molten Fire Golden Body is challenging to perform, but this time, it wasn’t directly sealed. Instead, it encountered a stutter in its operation... It seems that this golden bell can seal even cross-training martial arts, except for the Vajra Body, which belongs to the Buddhist Sect, that can still exhibit some power."

Carefully feeling everything that had just transpired, shadows flitted across Su Mu’s eyes, and his inference talent quietly activated. He quickly understood the situation in his heart.

Just as Su Mu was about to attempt again, Zen Ming’s voice came from behind him.

"Benefactor, this bell is truly hard to move, let alone topple with the strength of one person. What the abbot said in the hall still stands."

"Though I, Li, am no gentleman, once a word is spoken, even four horses cannot retrieve it..." Facing away from everyone, Su Mu’s chest suddenly caved in and then abruptly expanded, and a refined, substantial white Qi spewed out from his mouth and nose, faintly forming the shape of a flood dragon in mid-air.

"This bell is indeed troublesome... but I, Li, am not entirely without means!"

...