The Power of Vajra and Asura (Continued)

Besides the two people, there was a circle of monks in the hall, all of whom were senior monks of the Fa generation. When they heard Fajian's words, they couldn't help but look at each other in surprise. If they hadn't been highly skilled in meditation, they would probably have exclaimed in amazement.

Even with the facts right in front of them, they couldn't believe that someone could actually master the "Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability" in just five days. Such martial arts talent was something even a reincarnation of Buddha would find hard to match, let alone a living Buddha.

Abbot Fahong asked, "What is the record for the fastest attainment of the Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability in the history of this temple?"

Abbot Faming of the Prajna Hall Faming, "It was Master Chengkong from three generations ago. All the eminent monks of our predecessors regarded him as the number one martial artist in our temple in the past three hundred years. He mastered five supreme skills: the Golden Bell Cover, the Vajra Indestructible Divine Art, the Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability, the Great Wheel Heavenly Finger, and the Nine Manifestations of the Lotus Platform. Therefore, he was also known as the Divine Monk of Five Ultimate Arts. He was an unparalleled genius with the greatest hope of breaking through the Grandmaster level. Unfortunately, in that year, the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King colluded with an inside agent and led an evil force to break through the temple's gate, putting our temple in danger of destruction. At the critical moment, Master Chengkong stepped forward and, together with nine eminent monks of the Spirit generation, used the Ten Buddhas Nirvana Formation together with the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King, thus resolving this crisis."

The monks looked on with admiration and all chanted a Buddhist prayer. Among them, the oldest monk Fadeng of the Arhat Hall, had personally experienced this battle. Recalling the past, he couldn't help but close his eyes and shed tears.

Fahong asked, "I wonder how many years it took the Venerable Chengkong to complete this?"

"Six years and three months. The Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability is not like the Brahma Sea Asura Art. Although the latter carries the risk of demonic possession, as long as one can withstand the test of inner demons, one can make rapid progress. The former, however, requires one to take it one step at a time, accumulating strength and power. Although whether one can cultivate the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power still depends on one's comprehension and wisdom, even if one fails to achieve it in one's lifetime, there will be no harm."

Fajian sighed, "When I entered the temple, I first learned the Arhat Fist, then the Skanda Palm, and then the Vajra Fist. Only after mastering these three martial arts did I come across the Mighty Vajra Palm. If we start counting from the Mighty Vajra Palm, it took me more than thirteen years to master the Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability."

Fajian was also a genius with outstanding martial arts talent among the Fa generation. Otherwise, with nearly 30,000 monks of the Fa generation, it would not have been his turn to be the abbot of the Discipline Hall. Even so, he took twice as long as Chengkong, which shows that the name of the Divine Monk of Five Ultimate Arts was well-deserved.

However, compared to the leader of the Heavenly Martial Alliance, the Divine Monk of Five Ultimate Arts' records are like fireflies compared to the bright moon. In other words, Chengkong's achievements are at least within the realm of common sense, while Si Ming's achievements give people a sense of unreality, making one wonder if a person can really achieve such a level.

Whether the monks acknowledge it or not, the reality is staring them in the face, and it's a very frustrating situation. Unless they choose to "close their eyes and it's dark," they have no choice but to accept it.

Fajian said, "However, once we master the Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability, our bodies will contain the complete Vajra Demon-Subduing Power. Judging from Benefactor Sima's condition, the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power is less than 20%. It is estimated that it will take another three months of tempering before it can be fully contained. Only then can it be considered a great success of the divine skill."

Upon hearing this, the monks all breathed a sigh of relief. In the past, if someone had said that they could master the Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability in three months, they would have dismissed it as absurd and considered it a delusion beyond the realm of theory. However, compared to five days, three months seemed much more credible, as if it had returned to a theoretically acceptable range.

Actually, Fajian made a mistake in one aspect. The Vajra Demon-Subduing Power in Si Ming's body was not less than 20%, but less than 10%. This was probably because his body cells had undergone radiation mutation, giving him greater potential than ordinary people. It's like the same martial art; different people will unleash different powers when they master it, which is also influenced by their individual aptitude. However, under normal circumstances, the difference between them would not be as great as Si Ming's.

Fahong looked around and asked, "Fellow disciples, do you have any objections to inviting Benefactor Sima to join the Pupil Extermination Plan?"

Although Si Ming entered the Glazed Temple with ease and could freely enter and leave the Scripture Repository to learn their unique skills, Fahong and Xilai were actually under tremendous pressure.

Si Ming comes from the Sea Continent, where martial arts are openly taught. He can learn any martial arts manual without any problem. However, for the people of the Barbarian Continent, the traditional concept of cherishing one's own skills is still very strong. Various rules such as passing on skills to sons but not daughters, and passing on skills to legitimate sons but not illegitimate sons are everywhere. The Western Martial World is slightly better because of the emergence of the Heavenly Martial Alliance, but the Southern Martial World and Eastern Martial World still value all kinds of martial arts manuals more than their own lives.

The reason he was able to obtain consent was twofold. First, Si Ming's reputation was great enough. The scale of the Heavenly Martial Alliance had surpassed that of the Evil-Slaying Sword Sect and the Glazed Temple. The only thing lacking was its foundation. Imagine if an unknown person asked the Origin Return Sect to borrow the Origin Return Manual. Zhao Donglai would naturally not agree. But if it were the abbot of the Glazed Temple, Zhao Donglai would not be so resistant. If the other party's conditions were reasonable, he would agree. Because with the Glazed Temple's status, there was no need for him to steal someone else's manual and keep it for himself. Doing so would be a loss.

Secondly, the enmity between Glazed Temple and the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King runs deep. If someone could completely eliminate the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King, what harm would there be in giving him all the martial arts manuals in the entire temple?

The monks were worried that Si Ming would not be able to help with the Pupil Extermination Plan, and that he would only benefit from the Glazed Temple. With less than half a year left until the final step of the plan, it seemed impossible for him to learn the sect's ultimate technique in half a year and thus cover up the identity of the Buddha-Slaying Monk.

But now that Si Ming has proven he is fully capable of playing a vital role in the plan, the monks have no further objections. They even thank Si Ming for his help, since dealing with the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King is a life-threatening endeavor, and most Buddhists understand human relationships and social customs.

"Since no one has any objections, I will formally make a request to Alliance Leader Sima, hoping that you can lend us a hand," Fahong said in a formal tone.

Si Ming also responded, "Acting on behalf of Heaven is my inescapable duty."

"As agreed, this old monk will now take the Alliance Leader to see the Buddha's treasures of this temple..." Fahong had already intended to get up, but he sat back down as soon as he lifted his buttocks. "Before that, I would like to ask the benefactor to grant this old monk a wish."

"Please speak, Master."

What will happen when the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power is combined with the Asura Divine Power?

The moment this question was raised, all the monks present were intrigued, and their eyes were all focused on Si Ming. Clearly, they also wanted to know the answer. This was the first time in history that someone had simultaneously mastered the "Vajra Demon-Subduing Divine Ability" and the "Brahma Sea Asura Art," which were somewhat conflicting in principle. This was something that Divine Monk of Five Ultimate Arts had not accomplished.

Si Ming did not refuse. He scanned the entire hall, finally fixing his gaze on a huge Qingtong incense burner, and said, "I will use this incense burner for the demonstration."

Most people had already guessed the fate of the incense burner, but Glazed Temple was wealthy and didn't care much. Fajian nodded in agreement.

The incense burner was about half a person's height, requiring two people to hug it; it looked extremely heavy. Si Ming approached the incense burner, separately channeling a trace of Vajra Demon-Subduing Power and Asura Divine Power within his body, gathering them in his left palm, and then carefully controlling the two forces to come into contact.

The two forces clashed, like the repulsion of like poles of a magnet, but Si Ming suppressed this repulsive force with his powerful physical strength, forcing the two forces to merge.

In an instant, a violent new force was born, like a powder keg that had been ignited, completely out of control, rampaging and wantonly destroying everything. Si Ming quickly pushed out a palm, hitting the incense burner squarely, releasing all the new force.

With a loud crash, the Qingtong burner was blasted in two and launched out at an astonishing speed. One half crashed into Fajian, who smashed it into the ground with his Mighty Vajra Palm, while the other half crashed into Faming, whose force was neutralized by his Prajna Zen Palm and caught lightly.

"The explosive power seems completely out of control."

"Judging from the cracks, its properties are not 'vibration,' 'pressure,' or 'slash,' but rather 'piercing' and 'explosion.' It should be that the power was concentrated into a single point, pierced into the target's body, and then exploded. You can see that there are explosion marks on the inner wall of the incense burner."

Every monk present was a highly skilled martial artist with keen insight. They immediately discerned the secret behind Si Ming's palm strike. Buddhist School martial arts generally progress slowly, with few types that advance rapidly, but they often have lasting power and few bottlenecks. One can become a master through arduous practice.

Mastering even one of Glazed Temple's unique martial arts techniques can make one a top master in the martial arts world. Among the ten monks present, two are Grandmaster, and the rest are all top masters in the martial arts world, demonstrating Glazed Temple's extraordinary foundation as a sacred place of martial arts.

The ten monks were Abbot Fahong, Abbot Faji of the Sarira Hall, Abbot Fayun of the Path to Enlightenment Hall, Abbot Fajian of the Discipline Hall, Abbot Fashan of the Medicine King Hall, Faming Fazhao the Scripture Repository, Abbot Faming of the Prajna Hall, Fadeng of the Arhat Hall, Abbot Fahai of the Bodhi Hall, and Abbot Fanan of the Repentance Hall. Among them Fazhao and Faming were Grandmaster- level masters.

Generally speaking, the position of abbot is held by the most respected person among the disciples, while the person with the strongest martial arts skills is appointed as the head of the Scripture Repository and the Prajna Hall. Those who are good at teaching go to the Prajna Hall, and those who are not good at teaching go to the Scripture Repository.

The Fajian examiner asked a key question, "How much force did you use just now?"

If it were just about smashing the incense burner, anyone present could do it; the key is the difficulty of actually doing it.

Si Ming: "It's hard to say exactly how much force it will generate, but I can say for sure that when the two forces merge, the new power will be ten times stronger than the original."

"Ten times!"

The monks were amazed. Having mastered the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power, they were virtually unmatched in strength, capable of dominating the martial world and holding their own against Grandmaster. With ten times the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power, a single strike from it would likely send even Grandmaster fleeing in terror, too afraid to take the blow head-on.

While the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King was indeed powerful, his strength wasn't solely based on raw power. A strike with ten times the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power technique would have been enough to severely injure him. In an instant, everyone's enthusiasm soared, feeling that the chances of the Pupil Extermination Plan had greatly increased, and their gazes toward Si Ming were filled with anticipation and hope.

But Si Ming immediately poured cold water on their enthusiasm. He raised his hand, pointed to his palm, and said, "I only used a tiny bit of my power just now. Non-Self couldn't control it, but I was worried that my body couldn't withstand it."

His palm was a bloody mess, the wound showing signs of an explosion, and the damage had spread from the inside out.

"By the way, I've practiced external martial arts, and I believe my skills are no less than those of Arhat Tribulation-Delivering Body overcome many difficulties."

The monks were taken aback, and soon began to argue.

"Since we can't control it, let's not control it at all. Let's release the Vajra Demon-Subduing Power and the Asura Divine Power to their fullest extent, and fuse them outside our bodies. Let it explode as it pleases!"