Chapter 41: Welcome to the Buddha Land

Chapter 41 Welcome to the Buddha Realm

[Gained 80 Mastery Points]

[Consumed 42 Mastery Points, Eight Trigrams Swimming Body Step upgraded to Ninth Grade Perfection]

[Consumed 38 Mastery Points, Azure Emperor Art upgraded to Eighth Grade Mid-Stage (96/100)]

..................

As the final Ninth Grade martial art was pushed to the Perfection realm, that familiar sound of a copper lock rattling rang out once more in Li Jun's mind.

At this moment, Li Jun truly stood at the pinnacle of Martial Nine, simultaneously perceiving clearly the vast, surging internal energy within his body, churning like an endless tide.

This furious wave ceaselessly scoured his meridians, bones, and flesh, finally converging in his dantian, colliding back and forth without pause.

With every crash of the tide, the rattling of the copper lock grew louder, the humming tremor of his genes more urgent.

Breaking the lock to advance the sequence and gene collapse proceeded simultaneously.

Using an Eighth Grade internal art to break the lock and advance was indeed a deviant, perilous path, yet it was equally a shortcut.

If he could break through, a broad, smooth highway lay ahead.

Li Jun even felt he didn't need to complete the ascension ritual for Martial Sequence Eight.

He only needed to push the Azure Emperor Art to Perfection; the second gene lock, already battered and worn, would snap under the tide's assault, and he would instantly ascend to become a Martial Eight Red Blood!

"Huu..."

Li Jun exhaled a long breath of turbid air, forcibly driving away the chaotic thoughts in his mind and the excited restlessness in his heart.

There wasn't much time left until dawn; since he already knew the location of the imperial edict, there was no need to delay further.

Li Jun walked to a wooden window, vaulted out, and hooked his fingers into the wall bricks, scaling upward like a gecko.

He intended to climb directly to the fifth floor via the exterior wall.

According to that yellow-robed monk, everyone in the Bodhi Corporation was currently gathered on the fourth floor; taking the stairs would make it impossible to bypass them and reach the fifth floor.

Unless he forced his way through.

Though in Li Jun's view, the combat capability of the Buddhist Sequence people wasn't strong, even arguably feeble. Even fighting Mu Cuo, a Buddhist Eight, he might not lose.

But this was the enemy's lair, outnumbered and alone; Li Jun decided it was better to keep a low profile.

The red-brick wooden building housing the Bodhi Corporation was a perfect square overall.

The uneven wall bricks provided countless excellent footholds; for Li Jun, the climb was effortless.

Passing the fourth floor, Li Jun distinctly sensed many slow, peaceful breaths inside, even hearing the hum of the Yellow Millet Dream mainframe operating.

Everyone in the Bodhi Corporation was indeed concentrated on the fourth floor, idling to cultivate Buddhism.

That yellow-robed monk had played the mystic to the death, but every word he spoke was true; he could be considered to have observed the Buddhist precept against false speech.

The entire climbing process went smoothly, even simply enough to surprise Li Jun, yet he successfully entered the fifth floor of the Bodhi Corporation.

The scene here once again verified Li Jun's guess; this building probably wasn't a corporation at all, but a temple.

A delicate, small-scale temple was currently embedded within the fifth floor.

Golden roof, white walls, black windows, green eaves, adorned everywhere with patterns of treasure wheels, golden plates, inverted lotuses, golden banners, and sutra streamers.

Before the temple stood two symmetrical rows of offering celestial maidens, vivid in expression, graceful in posture. Exquisite down to the visible texture of their skin, they seemed like living people.

The celestial maidens faced the temple, hands holding exquisite treasures, among which was a scroll of bright yellow silk.

The moment he laid eyes on that silk scroll, Li Jun knew this was the Chongzhen Edict he sought.

The whole process felt natural, as if he had always recognized this object.

Li Jun held his saber in his right hand, the open Wei Wu Type IV warhammer in his left, advancing cautiously toward the celestial maiden statue holding the Chongzhen Edict.

When his fingers touched the Chongzhen Edict, the anticipated accident still did not occur.

The entire Bodhi Corporation remained deathly silent, as if no one had discovered the yellow-robed monk's death, nor anticipated anyone infiltrating to steal the edict.

Li Jun took out a set of explosion-proof, waterproof sealing equipment, packed the Chongzhen Edict, and placed it into the hidden pouch inside his martial uniform's lining.

"Just like that?"

The sudden ease made Li Jun feel uncomfortable all over. After a moment of silence, he couldn't help but laugh bitterly, mocking himself for being so used to being schemed against that meeting honest people now made him uneasy instead.

Li Jun shook his head, dispelling his paranoia, and prepared to leave the Bodhi Corporation the way he came.

But just as he stood before the stairs, ready to descend, Li Jun suddenly caught a faint fragrance.

The scent was sweet, mixed with a greasy aroma; he had smelled it on the yellow-robed monk.

"Ghee fragrance?"

Li Jun's foot paused on the step, his confusion deepening.

"Did I climb the stairs to get up here?"

"And why did the lock-breaking sound in my mind stop?"

The instant these thoughts arose, the scene before Li Jun's eyes began to shake violently. A sudden sense of imbalance made him instinctively sink his waist and exert force, his ten toes gripping his soles.

But the next second, Li Jun realized it wasn't him losing balance—the entire Bodhi Corporation building was shaking!

Dust flew, beams and pillars snapped.

The ceiling, painted with murals, split open with a massive crack, emitting a chilling screech, torn away by a gigantic hand!

The star-studded night sky filled his vision. Li Jun saw clearly: beneath that full, round moon stood a figure more colossal than the red-brick building itself.

A benevolent, serene face, a vermilion cinnabar mark at the brow, red as blood.

It was a gargantuan Buddha!

On the other side, the two rows of celestial maiden statues before the temple had come to life at some unknown time, dancing gracefully in place. Cherry lips parted, emitting ethereal, drifting Buddhist chants.

Only now did Li Jun realize with a shock that one celestial maiden's face was identical to the yellow-robed monk he had just killed!

The temple gates swung wide, and a handsome monk in a crimson robe walked out slowly.

He pressed his palms together at his chest, bowed deeply to Li Jun, and wore a smile of boundless joy.

"Welcome to my Buddha Realm, destined one from afar."

Giant Buddha, celestial maidens, temple, red monk.

Everything before him was incomparably bizarre, yet equally creepy.

"Beware of conversion, beware of Dharmapalas, beware of the Yellow Millet Buddha Realm."

Li Jun lowered his head and smiled bitterly. Three warnings, and he had fallen for every single one.

This damn Buddhism is truly sinister!

"The world is full of schemers everywhere."

Li Jun sighed with emotion, raised his right hand, scratched his eyebrow with his index finger, and grinned, revealing a ferocious smile brimming with killing intent.

"This body of mine, boiling with hot blood—you think you're worthy of converting me?"

Clang!