I Can Traverse Multiple Worlds-Chapter 34: Nine Bell Tolls, the Flesh and Blood Monk

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Nine Bell Tolls, the Flesh and Blood Monk

Wuxiang Temple.

The back mountain.

Early morning.

Inside a small courtyard.

Zen Master Zhi Kong sat cross-legged on a prayer mat.

Across from him sat a little monk, a tiny thing who looked to be only three or four years old, his large eyes blinking.

He wore a slightly oversized monk’s robe, one hand propping up his smooth-shaven head, a look of utter boredom on his face.

"Amitabha. Wu Chen, today’s morning lesson is on the Six-Word Great Bright Mantra. Do you know which six words they are?" Zen Master Zhi Kong asked the little monk across from him.

This little monk was, of course, Wang Xiao, who had been living at Wuxiang Temple for three years.

Wu Chen was the dharma name Zhi Kong had given him.

Wuxiang Temple assigned generational names in the order of Zhi, Wu, Pu, Hui, Qing, Jing, Zhen, Ru, and Hai.

Since Wang Xiao had been accepted as Zhi Kong’s direct disciple, he belonged to the "Wu" generation.

His seniority was, one could say, quite high!

Wang Xiao rubbed his gleaming bald head and said, "The Six-Word Great Bright Mantra is Om, Ma, Ni, Pa, Mi, Hum. Can’t you ask me something a little more challenging?"

For the past three years, Zen Master Zhi Kong had made Wang Xiao recite scriptures for morning lessons every day.

He had even started teaching Wang Xiao to read when he was two, having him study various Buddhist classics.

These included the Heart Scripture of Prajna Paramita, the Diamond Scripture, the Lengyan Scripture, the Lotus Scripture, and so on.

Relying on his Talent, Analyze All Things, Wang Xiao had what could be described as a photographic memory.

He knew the various classics by heart, even better than Zhi Kong himself.

Zhi Kong said, "As your master, I know your Talent is peerless and you possess wisdom from a past life. However, these are the fundamentals of Buddhism. Reciting them often will keep your mind pure and untainted, allowing you to maintain your true self, free from external interference. This will benefit you when you break through to the Celestial Human Realm in the future."

He felt a bit helpless when it came to this disciple of his.

It wasn’t because his disciple’s cultivation was too slow, but because it was simply too fast!

So fast he could hardly describe it, almost clearing two major stages a year.

In just two short years, he had completed all four steps: Refining Flesh, Refining Tendons, Bone Refining, and Bone Marrow Refining.

One had to understand that an ordinary person might not complete these four steps in their entire lifetime.

Even he himself had taken nearly twenty years to finish them.

However, when he thought of his disciple’s Celestial Being-like aptitude, Zhi Kong felt at ease.

With such qualifications, it was only normal for his cultivation to be a bit faster.

He just wondered if this disciple of his could break the five-hundred-year-long stalemate.

And become another cultivator in the Celestial Human Realm, following the Demon Lord of the Demon Realm and the Sword Holder of Celestial Sword Mountain!

"Fine, Master, go on and ask." Wang Xiao spread his hands.

’This master of mine is great in every way, he’s just too stubborn.’

’If chanting scriptures was actually useful, the Jianghu wouldn’t have only had two people in the Celestial Human Realm for so many years.’

’Fortunately, aside from being a bit long-winded, his master treated him extremely well.’

Not only did he frequently use his Inner Qi to help nourish Wang Xiao’s meridians, he also used all sorts of precious medicinal baths on him without the slightest hesitation.

Otherwise, even with his Analyze All Things Talent, it would have been impossible for him to finish Bone Marrow Refining and produce Inner Qi by the age of three.

After all, tempering the body still relied heavily on external forces.

Analyze All Things only helped him absorb the various medicinal ingredients to the greatest possible extent.

Although his body was still growing, completing the first four steps of Body Refining ahead of time was extremely beneficial for him.

This would raise his upper limits to an extreme degree. As his body slowly developed, his physical constitution would also grow exponentially!

That was why a saying circulated in the Jianghu: ’Cultivation must start early.’

Once one’s foundational bone structure was set, even with the greatest comprehension, future achievements would likely be limited.

However, as far as the current Jianghu was concerned, no one had ever heard of anyone completing Bone Marrow Refining by the age of three.

Even the next Sword Holder of Celestial Sword Mountain probably couldn’t achieve that!

Zhi Kong nodded slightly and said, "Then tell me, what are the respective effects of these six words?"

Wang Xiao thought for a moment and was just about to speak.

"CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG!"

A series of resonant bell chimes suddenly echoed from the front courtyard.

Zhi Kong shot to his feet, his expression changing drastically.

"The bell rang nine times! That’s a Demon Cultivator invasion! I must go and see."

In the three years Wang Xiao had lived with Zen Master Zhi Kong, the latter had always been the very picture of composure, unflappable even if a mountain collapsed before him, and unmoved by honor or disgrace.

This was the first time Wang Xiao had ever seen Zen Master Zhi Kong so distressed.

Wang Xiao couldn’t help but ask, "Master, is it very serious?"

Speaking of which, in his three years at Wuxiang Temple, he had spent most of his time in the courtyard and rarely wandered around the temple grounds.

He had only ever heard of Demon Cultivators; he had never seen one.

Zen Master Zhi Kong said, "Nine rings of the bell means a Demon Cultivator at the Refining Acupoints Human Immortal Realm has broken in. If we let them run rampant, the temple will suffer devastating casualties. I must hurry over. You stay here and don’t move."

The back mountain was far from the front courtyard, so the fighting probably wouldn’t spread here so quickly.

Wang Xiao couldn’t help but say, "Master, why don’t I go with you?"

He also wanted to see what was so different about these Demon Cultivators.

Why did everyone in the Jianghu pale at the mere mention of them?

"Absolutely not. Among the invading Demon Cultivators, there’s a Refining Acupoints Human Immortal, and there might even be some Demi-Immortals at the Refining the Five Viscera stage. Although you’ve completed Bone Marrow Refining, you lack combat experience. If a real fight breaks out, I might not be able to look out for you. Stay here in the courtyard and wait for my return."

The situation was urgent. Zen Master Zhi Kong said no more, and with a flash, he was gone from the courtyard.

Wang Xiao sighed.

He couldn’t exactly tell Zhi Kong that he was, in fact, quite strong.

An ordinary Refining Acupoints Human Immortal might not even be a threat to him.

For the past three years, aside from tempering his body, he had also been silently circulating his vital energy and blood to restore his Inner Qi.

He had also discovered something about the cultivation techniques of his previous world and this one.

Although they were different, they shared common ground and could be considered mutually beneficial.

Tempering the body in this world could make one’s Inner Qi more vigorous.

Conversely, the more vigorous one’s Inner Qi, the faster one could temper their body.

Although Wang Xiao had only just completed Bone Marrow Refining, his combat power was already on par with some ordinary Refining Acupoints Human Immortals.

Based on Wang Xiao’s understanding, a Demi-Immortal who had completed Refining the Five Viscera was equivalent to a Martial Saint, which was a Tier Two Life form.

A Refining Acupoints Human Immortal was equivalent to a Martial God, somewhere between a Tier Three Life form and a Tier Five Life form.

As for the Celestial Human Realm, that should be equivalent to a Tier Five Life form.

Just as Wang Xiao began to circulate his Inner Qi, preparing to practice this world’s Martial Arts,

TAP TAP TAP!

The sound of light footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the courtyard.

Wang Xiao turned to see a monk, also dressed in a monk’s robe, walking slowly up the steps.

However, when Wang Xiao saw what the monk was holding, his pupils contracted slightly.

Human heads!

Two bloody human heads, held casually in the monk’s hands.

Furthermore, judging by their appearance, the heads belonged to children who were, like him, only three or four years old.

The two heads were mangled beyond recognition, with bite marks left on them.

The monk tossed the two heads aside, revealing bloody teeth dripping with bits of flesh as he grinned.

"Pah! Are these the Buddha’s Sons your Wuxiang Temple selected? This meat is disgusting. I wonder what you taste like, little one?"

"I can already smell a rich, meaty aroma. It seems Monk Zhi Kong has raised you well over the years."