A Buddhist ray fell and took away the monk floating on the sea. The water remained calm and undisturbed. It seemed as though the Western Paradise Buddha had lowered the Buddhist ray to relay the believers who were suffering. Everyone knew that this was a move of Baoyue the Venerable from Jinguang Temple. Some wanted to know what the great Buddhist enlightened monk who took no concern about the secular mortal world and had committed himself to Buddhism was felling.
After Monk Baoguang was rescued, the spectators left too.
It was hard to say who won and who lost in this battle, but Shen Lian knew that Chen Jianmei had no regrets.
At the same time, Shen Lian realized that at a higher cultivation level, there was no way one could hold back even if one initially had planned to. As the tide of the battle changed, the battle might have turned out to be deadly. Just as the saying goes, as the experts fought, their life and death hung on a thin line; there was no holding back.
Chen Jianmei's bloody sword gleam had superseded the Shapeless Sword Formula; the killing aura that decorated the void was different from the peacefulness of Xuanmen, and yet it was so much closer to the great Way and was not a simple Killing Sword.
Just as the flood that was bestowed unto the world, it had injured countless living creatures. Could this be evil Dao?
The moonlight and the starlight were speechless.
Shen Lian did not know about Chen Jianmei's whereabouts, or if he was dead or alive after he turned into the bloody gleam.
Besides Shen Lian, there were still some people who stayed behind, which included the monk and the Daoist.
The Daoist spoke to the Xingzou of Ming Wang Temple, "Master, do you recognize Chen Jianmei's last move?"
The monk finally spoke as he stared at the spot where Chen Jianmei's bloody sword gleam had disappeared. "There are not many martial exercises that have that kind of murderous sword aura in this world, to begin with. Most of them would not be able to overcome the Moonlight Treasure Wheel. Perhaps he had seen the traces left behind by the Six Congenital Killing Sword," he spoke with complicated emotions on his face.
"Luckily he did not have the opportunity to meet one of it, otherwise no one would be able to rival him in this world," Huanzhen snickered. The Six Top Congenital Killing Sword in this world, each of them could slay the celestials and kill the deities. Amongst them, four of it could form a Supreme Killing Formation - something that even a Daoist Master would not dare to face directly.
These six frightening Congenital Killing Sword had disappeared from the world, and their whereabouts were not known. They might be at the depths of the galaxy or was left in some space or time, or might not even exist anymore.
Chen Jianmei managed to master some of the meaning of its Dharma, and elevated the Shapeless Sword Formula. He had turned shapeless into shapes and managed to touch the Changsheng door.
If he was still alive, he could try to create his own Acquired Killing Sword through the Dharma he mastered the moment his cultivation had transcended beyond the mortal world. He might even be able to shake Lu Jiuyuan's position as the first in Xuanman.
Though, it was hard to say if Chen Jianmei was dead or alive. He had disappeared after turning into sword gleam. That was probably a move to leave some room for imagination.
This person had a determined heart sword, and even though Huanzhen had not fought him before, he treated Chen Jianmei as a rare opponent. After all, Huanzhen was not searching for longevity for his own purpose but was doing so for the solid foundation of Guang Qing Celestial Sect. Under the laws of heaven, some lived and some perished. Guang Qing Celestial Sect was at its pinnacle now, and the unavoidable downhill was soon to follow. If they did not manage to secure the fate of Xuanmen and made their way into the four main Daoist sects, they would be following the footsteps of Tianhe Daozong.
Amongst the four main Daoist sects, Qing Xuan was the weakest. Even though both of them had never crossed each other's path in the past, they were enemies now. If anything was to be blamed, it would be Qing Xuan's weak position. On top of that, Guang Qing was at its pinnacle.
As Shen Lian was walking towards them, Huanzhen took his leave as he realized that it had nothing to do with him. He had nothing to say to Shen Lian and it was not the right time to pick a fight with Qing Xuan officially.
He turned away and walked to someplace far away with just one step. With another step, he disappeared into the horizon.
Shen Lian recognized the supernatural power used by him was the supernatural power of shrinking the ground into inches. At its pinnacle, its user could travel to anywhere in the world with just one step. Of course, it would take a Daoist Master to reach this state.
His level of attainment was a rarity and was considered as impressive. At least if Shen Lian were to learn this supernatural power, he would not be able to do it as well and as effortlessly as him.
The monk from Ming Wang Temple was more curious about Shen Lian than Chen Jianmei, but he did not let his curiosity show earlier. It was only until when Shen Lian came over and Huanzhen had left that he took a good look at Shen Lian.
As their gaze met, there were sounds of sparks in the air. It was just as the electrical sparks that came from the meeting of gaze and a spiritual clash between Baoguang and Chen Jianmei.
However, Shen Lian knew that he was not the monk's equal. He felt like a fish swimming under a giant waterfall; it seemed possible to swim against the current, but it was hopeless after all.
This was the first time he met a cultivator whose spiritual cultivation was completely overpowering that of his. He was both shocked and upset, and the emotions he felt even masked over the sadness he felt for Chen Jianmei's predicament.
Right when the monk was about to completely overpower him and pierced into his eyes and his bier with his gaze, the monk retracted his exterior spirit like the rolling of the tides. Shen Lian wanted to make use of this chance to make his entry, but all of his spiritual consciousness was blocked away by the monk's gentle gaze.
There seemed to be a thin film of light that blocked away any form of prying.
Shen Lian did not feel upset anymore, as he was busy wondering if the monk was a friend or an enemy. It was obvious that the Daoist who left earlier was unfriendly towards him.
As for why Shen Lian came over, due to the unpredictable and unimaginable capabilities of the monk and the Daoist, he would not be able to escape even if he wanted to.
Cultivators cherished their lives and would escape whenever they sensed danger. The monk knew about this. This was why he was especially impressed by Shen Lian's calmness and his initiative to respond even when he faced with such strong opponents.
To him, from life to death, everything was fated. This was exactly what the cultivators were resisting. It would take more than impressive techniques, and it was imperative that one had an unusually brave heart.
Chen Jianmei was one of those. Even though he lived only for sword and had put immortality as second, but he was equipped with both of the qualities.
Despite that Shen Lian did not leave as strong an impression as Chen Jianmei, and he did not seem as determined either, but deep down these two were alike. The monk traveled around the world to see different sort of spells, to observe the masses, and to seek for what he wanted in the secular mortal world.
The moon hanging in the sky was perfectly round, and it was unaffected by the great battle that took place earlier. After all, regardless of how powerful Chen Jianmei and Baoguang were, neither of them was able to affect the eternal moon.
The starlight was dimmed in comparison to the bright moonlight. Even the Sky River could be seen.
Shen Lian's delicate features were striking under the moonlight. "Master, where are you from?" he queried.
"I came from the Ming Wang Temple, my religious name was Hui Ke. The "Hui" from "Zhi Hui", which meant wisdom; the "Ke" from "Ke You Ke Wu", which meant dispensable," the monk replied with a smile.
Shen Lian did not expect the monk to be that forthcoming.
Shen Lian found his religious name intriguing, and most importantly, he mentioned Ming Wang Temple.
The fundamental martial exercise of Ming Wang Temple was the Acalanatha Scripture. Shen Lian read about this in one of the elder's notes back at the Taiwei Pavillion. She had traveled with the Xingzou of Ming Wang Temple at that time. She harbored romantic feelings for him, and of course, he did not reciprocate her feelings, as monks were emotionless.
It was only when she died that she saw past all these, and left behind some words for the juniors to talk about.
The Acalanatha Scripture was the supreme Dharma that cultivated the state of meditation. As one remained unmoved, one could be at peace with oneself.
If she was more skilled, she might have been able to break through the monk's state of meditation.
However, there was no "if" in this world. If the Acalanatha Scripture could be broken through so easily, then the Ming Wang Temple would have been taken over by its attackers.
"With dispensable supreme wisdom, that will suffice for one to transcend beyond the mortal world. Master, you have great ambition," Shen Lian replied casually.
Hui Ke stared at the waves and did not answer Shen Lian. "Do you think it was the wind that moved the waves or the waves that moved the wind?" he queried.
"Everything in this world was dynamic, and only Master could choose between remaining static or dynamic. Everything that was static was dynamic, and everything that was dynamic was moving, and the world never stops. I can never tell if the wind came first or the waves, and there is no reason to find out about it. It is just the way it is," Shen Lian replied with a smile.
"Fellow Daoist, you are quite intelligent. What do you say about joining Buddhism?" Hui Ke laughed.
"I like how I look with hair. I am not ready to forego these troubles yet," Shen Lian said and shook his head.
Shen Lian walked on the small path on the deserted mountain. Hui Ke had a small chat with him earlier and had told him that the Daoist earlier was the likeliest among all the Huanzhen Daoists in Guang Qing Celestial Sect to attain immortality
Hui Ke was not an enemy, but he was not about to offer help just like that. The fact that he gave hints as such was a huge sign of friendliness.
Moreover, his attainment in cultivating the Acalanatha Scripture was advance, and Shen Lian could not get more out of him.
Xi Huang was a dangerous place, yet Shen Lian decided to remain. The Temple of Killings was a branch of Qing Xuan that was recognized by the chief himself, and it could be seen as the public image of Qing Xuan.
The fact that Chen Jianmei had established the Temple of Killings in Xi Huang and kept the demons at bay was an impressive feat. Shen Lian decided to protect the Daoist temple in order to show the world what Qing Xuan was made of.
Moreover, he remembered something. Chen Jianmei's last move might be related to his code of Dao and the meaning of Dharma passed on by the Grandmaster Yuan Qing during the ceremony. If so, Chen Jiamei probably came to Xi Huang and founded the Temple of Killings in order to nurture the meaning of Dharma he received and to make it his own.
In that vein, everything would make sense. Did Chen Jiamei start a forum to discuss Dao and to teach cultivation of Qi in order to lure Baoguang out? He probably intended to use Baoguang's demonic thoughts to help him to master his Killing Sword.
If Baoguang did not know something in his heart, Chen Jianmei probably would not have achieved his goal. Though, it could be seen as a mutually-beneficial cooperation.