Vajra Zen Fist

As the figures of the two women receded into the distance, Tu Rong's teasing voice drifted over with the wind.

"Yo, our junior sister has fallen for someone?"

Xue Xi didn't refute, merely playfully chided her.

Shen Che didn't linger. After changing to a swift horse in the county town, he set off on the road back to Cangyun City.

Several days later, at the Demon Suppression Division in Cangyun City.

Shen Che went straight to the room where Yan Xiu handled official business.

He placed three Demon Suppressing Tokens, slightly stained with blood, on Yan Xiu's desk.

"Lord Yan, the mission in Huafeng County is complete."

Yan Xiu put down the scroll in his hand and picked up the three tokens.

His fingers brushed over the cold surface of the tokens as he sighed.

"What a pity. All three were skilled members of the division."

He looked up at Shen Che.

"Tell me what happened."

Shen Che was concise, recounting the events in Black Mountain Village, including the fact that Mo Feng, a disciple of Heavenly Snow Mountain, was a demonic beast spy, in full detail.

When Yan Xiu heard that Shen Che, with his cultivation at the second level of the True Meridian Realm, had directly killed Mo Feng, a Commander-level Demonic Beast whose true form was comparable to the Primordial Qi Realm, his fingers suddenly paused.

He stared at Shen Che as if looking at a monster.

"True Meridian Realm killing Primordial Qi Realm..."

Yan Xiu muttered to himself.

"Such a feat, across the entire Great Jing Dynasty, only those few little monsters ranked in the top ten of the Hidden Dragon Ranking can achieve."

"You, kid, have been hiding quite well."

A look of astonishment appeared on Yan Xiu's face.

"Alright, let me settle your Contribution Points."

He picked up an abacus and moved the beads.

"Four True Meridian Realm demonic beasts, one hundred points each, totaling four hundred points."

"One Primordial Qi Realm Commander-level demonic beast, one thousand points."

"Base mission reward, one thousand points."

"A total of two thousand four hundred Contribution Points!"

Yan Xiu himself was somewhat astonished by the figure he announced.

A newly promoted official Demon Queller Envoy earning twenty-four hundred points from a single mission was unprecedented in the history of the Cangyun City Demon Suppression Division.

"Additionally," Yan Xiu took out a wooden plaque from a drawer and pushed it towards Shen Che, "your completion of this mission was exceptionally outstanding. Not only did you ascertain the cause of death for three of your colleagues, but you also uncovered a demonic beast spy who had been lurking for many years."

"The division has decided to grant you an additional permission to enter the second floor of the Scripture Pavilion, where you may choose one martial arts manual."

The second floor of the Scripture Pavilion.

Shen Che's breathing changed slightly.

He knew that what was there was on a completely different level from the first floor.

"Thank you, Lord."

Shen Che took the wooden plaque and bowed.

He didn't delay, taking his identity token and contribution point record, and headed straight for the Treasure Pavilion.

"I'll exchange for twenty-four Meridian Opening Pills."

The deacon in charge of exchanges saw the massive two thousand four hundred Contribution Points on Shen Che's token, and his hands trembled.

"All, all of it?"

"All of it."

The deacon asked no further questions, nimbly retrieved twenty-four jade bottles, and handed them to Shen Che.

Clutching the pills that would make countless True Meridian Realm martial artists envious, Shen Che turned and walked towards the Scripture Pavilion deep within the Demon Suppression Division.

With Yan Xiu's wooden plaque and his identity token, he smoothly passed the first-floor checkpoint and ascended the stairs leading to the second floor.

Unlike the first floor, with its rows of bookshelves and widely available cultivation methods.

The second floor was much smaller, containing only a dozen or so independent bookshelves, each holding just a few precious manuals and secret texts.

The texts here were clearly much more valuable than those on the first floor.

Shen Che walked slowly between the rows of bookshelves.

Seven Injuries Fist, Heartbreak Palm, Cloud Ascending Steps...

These supreme skills, which could cause bloody storms in the martial world, were merely placed quietly here.

Shen Che's goal was very clear.

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He already possessed the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill, a top-tier internal art, so he didn't need to switch for now.

What he lacked was a hand technique that could perfectly unleash his formidable physique and profound True Qi.

His footsteps finally stopped before a bookshelf.

On the shelf, there was only a thin booklet.

Vajra Zen Fist.

The booklet's introduction was simple: Said to have been created by a Vajra Arhat in ancient times, the fist technique was domineering and fierce, possessing the might to subdue demons and tigers.

It was divided into six layers and contained three killing moves: Zen Arrow, Zen Spear, and Zen Thunder.

Cultivating this fist technique required extremely profound internal energy as a foundation; otherwise, it would harm oneself before harming others.

This was it.

This fist technique was practically tailor-made for his Dragon Elephant True Qi and robust physique.

Shen Che memorized the content of the fist technique, returned the booklet to its place, and left the Scripture Pavilion.

He returned to his own courtyard.

He closed the door, sat cross-legged, and reviewed the methods of the Vajra Zen Fist in his mind.

[Detected modifiable martial art Vajra Zen Fist, do you wish to consume Time Value for cultivation?]

"Cultivate."

"Sixth layer."

[Upgrading Vajra Zen Fist to the sixth layer is estimated to consume 150 Time Value. Confirm?]

"Confirm."

The instant the Time Value was deducted.

A massive stream of information surged into Shen Che's mind.

Countless golden figures practiced the Vajra Zen Fist repeatedly in his consciousness.

From the introductory first layer, to the proficient second layer, and then to the mastery of the subsequent layers...

The penetration of Zen Arrow, the ferocity of Zen Spear, the explosiveness of Zen Thunder.

All the moves, all the essentials, all the power application techniques, were completely mastered by him within a single breath.

Shen Che slowly opened his eyes. He raised his right hand and clenched his fist.

A sense of power, unprecedented, filled his fist.

He could feel that his understanding of the fist technique had surpassed mere moves.

A "will" – domineering, fierce, and capable of shattering all falsehood – condensed on his fist.

The nascent form of Fist Intent.

Both this fist technique and the already perfected Black Tiger Saber Technique had condensed a trace of the nascent form of "Intent."

The saber possessed the intent of a Tiger Fiend, and the fist possessed the might of a Vajra.

But he always felt that above this trace of "Intent," there was like a layer of paper that couldn't be pierced.

He couldn't advance further and transform into true "Fist Intent" or "Saber Intent."

He tried to activate his mind and impact that invisible barrier.

The result was: it didn't budge at all.

"Insufficient comprehension..."

Shen Che opened his eyes and smiled self-deprecatingly.

It seemed he wasn't the kind of peerless martial arts prodigy who could comprehend a divine skill just by watching a broadcast gymnastics routine.

The System could save him the time of arduous practice, but it couldn't directly improve his comprehension talent.

Having figured this out, he didn't dwell on it anymore.

One must eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time.

He walked to a corner of the yard where there was a jujube tree about the thickness of a bowl.

Standing five steps away, he took a deep breath.

He slowly punched out with his right fist.

There was no fist wind, no sound.

An invisible force was compressed into a single point and erupted from his fist.

Vajra Zen Fist, Zen Arrow!

With a soft sound.

Five steps away, on the trunk of the jujube tree, there was a finger-sized hole that went straight through from front to back. The opening was as smooth as a mirror.