Chapter 1029: Backing of the Tofu Heavenly Venerable

Lu Yang decided to call upon his cheat code. "Fairy, help me take a look. What is the deal with those three guys opposite us?"

He did not dare use his divine sense to scan the three errand monks, worried that there was someone backing them up and he might startle the snake by beating the grass.

"Let this immortal have a look, let this immortal have a look... Ah, so that's how it is."

"What is the situation?"

"One of them has a cultivator hidden in his jade pendant, one has a cultivator hidden in his compass, and one has a cultivator hidden inside his very body. Is this a custom of the Western Heaven Temple? Do you think we count as following the local customs?"

"...I don't think the Western Heaven Temple itself knows it has such a custom."

Lu Yang thought to himself, *You Western Heaven Temple people, can you please manage your Errand Court? Every single one of your errand monks is extraordinary.*

The three errand monks from the South, West, and North all firmly believed they were the strongest, and by sheer coincidence, all chose to fight alone.

Xin Ding had the lowest cultivation, so none of the three paid him any mind. Even if he possessed Buddhist beads, so what? How much power could he actually unleash, and how could it possibly compare to their hidden trump cards?

"Free and Unfettered Steps!"

"Bodhi Town-Sealing Fist!"

"Formless Divine Art!"

Each of the three had encountered their own unique fortunes, and the fist techniques they used were by no means the ordinary Bodhi Fist. Their power varied, making it difficult to discern a victor in the clash.

The Bodhi Town-Sealing Fist and the Formless Divine Art were fierce and powerful, while the Free and Unfettered Steps was a movement technique capable of dodging most attacks.

Xin Ding's opponent was Xin Chen from the Southern Errand Court. Faced with the Bodhi Town-Sealing Fist, Xin Ding dared not hold back any longer; he wrapped the Buddhist beads around his right hand and directly unleashed the Arhat Fist.

*Buzz—*

Their fists collided, and both men retreated several paces before stabilizing their bodies. Xin Chen actually retreated three steps more than Xin Ding!

The crowd went into an uproar. Having the advantage in cultivation and bearing high expectations, Xin Chen had actually fallen into a disadvantage in the fight!

"That's the Arhat Fist!" The monk from the Martial Monk Court hosting the competition was shocked. He sprang to his feet, his face filled with utter disbelief. He had been fortunate enough to see grand figures like the Chief of the Martial Monk Court and Elders of the Western Heaven Temple perform it; this was the highly renowned Arhat Fist of their Buddhist sect, a technique that ordinary monks like him in the Martial Monk Court were not even qualified to learn!

"Senior Brother Zhi Yuan, did you teach him?" If one were to ask who was most likely to have taught Xin Ding the Arhat Fist here, it could only be the former prodigy, Zhi Yuan.

But as far as he knew, Zhi Yuan did not possess the qualification to pass on the Arhat Fist.

If the higher-ups found out about this, the lighter punishment would be expulsion from the Western Heaven Temple, while the heavier punishment would be the complete crippling of one's cultivation!

Zhi Yuan shook his head calmly. He had long since questioned Xin Ding thoroughly about the origin of his Arhat Fist.

"He found the Arhat Fist in the Scripture Library. Even I only possess the first volume of the Arhat Fist, whereas what he found in the Scripture Library is the complete text."

Based on this point alone, it could not possibly have been passed down by Zhi Yuan.

"The Scripture Library, eh? This kid's luck is truly incredible." The monk from the Martial Monk Court envied Xin Ding. This was the Arhat Fist, a technique that could still be used even after cultivating to the Tribulation Transmutation Stage. Countless outsiders coveted the Buddhist sect's Arhat Fist.

Lu Yang knew the Arhat Fist, and everyone he knew also knew the Arhat Fist, so he did not feel it was particularly rare. That was merely because his standing was too high; to ordinary Deity Transformation Stage cultivators, the Arhat Fist was a fist technique far beyond their reach.

"I heard the Scripture Library also hides the Powerful Vajra Palm, the Dragon-Subduing Tiger-Taming Scripture, and Sarira beads, but unfortunately no one has ever found them," the monk from the Martial Monk Court said regretfully.

Xin Ding and Xin Chen were locked in an inseparable battle. Even after utilizing a Dharma treasure, Xin Chen was still no match for Xin Ding. He could not help but grow anxious, and cold sweat gradually broke out on his forehead.

He was still thinking of claiming the crown in one fell swoop. How could he not even defeat someone whose cultivation was inferior to his own?

"Useless trash, let me take over." A domineering voice echoed in Xin Chen's mind, and he instantly lost control of his body.

Xin Chen's fighting style shifted abruptly. The Bodhi Town-Sealing Fist, which he had previously executed clumsily, now became fiercely powerful, each punch heavy enough to blow a head apart.

The hidden soul within Xin Chen rejoiced upon seeing the Arhat Fist. Had he not sneaked into the Western Heaven Temple by relying on an errand monk just to find an opportunity to obtain the Arhat Fist? He had thought it would require a lengthy period of latency, but to his surprise, the Arhat Fist was right before his eyes!

As soon as Lu Yang saw this, he knew what had happened to Xin Chen.

"Oh, so you're the only one who knows how to tag in, right?"

"The juniors of later generations do not follow the rules. Little monk, let this seat fight for you!"

As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. The Tofu Heavenly Venerable, who possessed rich experience in being possessed, was extremely familiar with the methods of body possession and immediately possessed Xin Ding.

"Arhat Fist!"

With Lu Yang fighting as a proxy, the Arhat Fist he unleashed was even more extraordinary. Buddhist chants echoed within his body, surging like a rising tide.

He was not afraid of exposing his identity through the Arhat Fist either; the Western Heaven Temple was filled with monks, so there was absolutely no issue of losing hair.

Lu Yang landed a punch squarely on "Xin Chen's" lower abdomen, striking so hard that "Xin Chen's" eyeballs nearly bulged out.

How was there also someone hidden inside his opponent?

And the combat prowess was utterly terrifying!

Once Lu Yang took over the fight, the situation instantly turned into a one-sided beatdown, leaving "Xin Chen" with absolutely no power to fight back!

Seeing this, the hidden souls within Xin An and Xin Ping both guessed what was happening on Lu Yang's side.

Since things had come to this, there was no longer any need to hide. Just tag in and fight!

Two powerful souls took over the bodies of Xin An and Xin Ping, rushing towards Lu Yang and "Xin Chen."

The original pair-off duels evolved into a true free-for-all. Although the four were all powerful entities, they were currently using bodies at the Qi Condensation Stage; no matter how grand their methods were, they could not display them.

Furthermore, people from the Martial Monk Court were watching, so they could not fight too excessively lest anyone notice something amiss.

"This won't do," Lu Yang muttered through gritted teeth in his mind. He did not fear the three of them, and his probability of winning if they kept fighting was quite high, but the problem lay in the fact that Xin Ding was only at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation and could not withstand continuous proxy fighting.

"All of you, get in here!"

Lu Yang no longer occupied Xin Ding's body but returned to the Green Peak Sword Small World. Opening the small world, he sucked the other three powerful souls inside altogether.

The three souls each believed they were the strongest and did not fear Lu Yang unleashing any tricks, allowing themselves to be sucked into the small world. This was the perfect chance to resolve the trouble all at once!

Upon entering the small world, Lu Yang finally saw the true forms of the three.

An old man, a middle-aged man, and a young man.

"Who would have thought? I believed I was the only one sneaking into the Western Heaven Temple this way, yet there are three more of you." The speaker was the soul hidden in Xin Chen's jade pendant, an old man.

"My name is Mo Xiaochou, mid-Deity Transformation Stage. You all should have heard of my name."

Mo Xiaochou had figured it out; Xin Ding's Arhat Fist was not found in the Scripture Library at all, but was taught by the person backing him.

He looked toward Lu Yang: "I wonder if Fellow Daoist would be willing to pass me a volume of the Arhat Fist? The price is negotiable... You are Lu Yang!"

Previously, Mo Xiaochou had not paid much attention to Lu Yang's appearance, but this glance gave him quite a fright.

The opponent was actually that highly renowned, evil-punishing and virtue-promoting Prodigy Lu?

Why would he be here?!

"It seems Fellow Daoist Mo sneaked into the Western Heaven Temple just to steal the Arhat Fist." With a half-smile, Lu Yang drew the Chengying Sword, treating it as helping the Western Heaven Temple catch a thief.

Mo Xiaochou secretly cried out in dismay. As a fellow mid-Deity Transformation Stage cultivator, he could not possibly be Lu Yang's match.

"Hey, why don't the three of us strike together and eliminate him?" Mo Xiaochou shouted. This was the only way left now.

The young man hidden inside Xin Ping's body turned a deaf ear to Mo Xiaochou's suggestion.

"Prodigy Lu? Merely a junior who craves greatness and fishes for fame," the middle-aged man hidden in Xin Chen's compass said coldly. "Since you are a prodigy nurtured by the Dao Seeking Sect, you ought to have quite a few good things. Leave both your life and your things here."

As the final word fell, the aura of the early Integration Stage instantly erupted, directly pressing Mo Xiaochou to his knees on the ground.

"An early Integration Stage with only a soul left dares to be so arrogant?" Lu Yang sneered. These three were all in soul form with their cultivation halved, while his physical body and soul were both intact; he did not fear the middle-aged man in the slightest.

Not to mention, the strength of his soul was comparable to the mid-Integration Stage.

The middle-aged man was moved to a cold, mocking laughter by Lu Yang's sheer arrogance. "Arrogant? Today, I shall teach you the true gulf that separates the Body Integration stage from the Soul Formation stage!"

"By my word, I decree the rule—"

"Exterminating Immortal Sword Formation!" In an instant, Lu Yang unleashed the Changying sword along with the Seven Stars sword set. Eight immortal-grade blades coalesced into a lethal formation, materializing directly above the middle-aged man's head.

Before the man could finish his decree, a weight akin to a hundred thousand mountains crashed down upon him, forcing him to his knees with a heavy thud.

Boundless as a Kunpeng, Lu Yang summoned the Changying sword, wreathing it in the flames of Samadhi and the true fire of the Golden Crow—a flame of pure, unadulterated Yang, the ultimate bane of all spiritual souls!

To make matters worse for his foe, Lu Yang's soul was exceptionally formidable; even in a sheer duel of strength, he could utterly suppress the man.

Transforming into a veritable sword immortal, Lu Yang unleashed a chilling brilliance of blade-light. Every single stroke bore a terrifying surge of sword qi that struck pure terror into the middle-aged man's heart, leaving him absolutely no time to establish his rules.

Splat!

The Changying sword pierced clean through the middle-aged man's skull, pinning him ruthlessly to a massive boulder.

"Defying the cultivation gap to fight above your realm, are you? What an intriguing junior."

The young man, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke. He clapped his hands softly, looking at Lu Yang with an air of appreciation. "A mysterious sword formation, the legendary Changying sword, and even this minor world... even an old man like myself does not possess a fortune as deep as yours."

A glint of naked greed flashed in the depths of the youth's eyes; Lu Yang's wealth far exceeded the value of whatever he had hoped to obtain by coming to the West Heaven Temple. "Treasures belong to those destined to hold them. Clearly, all of this is destined for me, so hand it over!"

With those words, the young man ceased to suppress his aura. The terrifying might of the early Tribulation Transmutation stage erupted from him, an invisible, crushing pressure radiating rapidly outward with him at the absolute center!

Mo Xiaochou felt as though his very soul were about to be shattered by the pressure, on the verge of fading into nothingness at any second!

"The early Tribulation Transmutation stage? Well, I certainly cannot match that." Sensing the young man's cultivation realm, Lu Yang lowered his head with a helpless smile, unhurriedly retrieving both the Changying sword and the Seven Stars sword set.

"Fairy, I am counting on you."