Deserves Punishment!

"Junior Disciple Ben Guan, is this a disciple of your Arhat Hall?"

Seeing that Jingyuan had been rescued, the hall masters all breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately noticed the robe on Gu Han's chest bearing the words "Arhat Hall." They couldn't help but ask Ben Guan in disbelief.

"Yes, yes, Jingming is indeed a disciple of my Arhat Hall."

Hearing the hall masters' questions, Ben Guan could only nod instinctively and reply.

Even now, he hadn't yet recovered from the shock of why Jingming was so powerful; his mind was still reeling in a daze.

Hadn't Jingming only broken through to Muscle Tendon Strengthening seven or eight months ago? How could he be this strong? Even Wang Lang, who rivaled a Great Completion Muscle Tendon Strengthening cultivator, was far from his match. What was going on?

Countless doubts churned in Ben Guan's mind, feeling like a mess of paste, and he wished he could go straight to Jingming and ask him the reason in detail.

But compared to his shock, the other hall masters were pleasantly surprised.

"Good! Excellent! Junior Disciple Ben Guan, you've rendered great merit this time, teaching such a fine disciple! I never thought your Arhat Hall would keep such a low profile, only to strike like a thunderbolt when you finally act!

This Jingming should only be fifteen this year, right? At such an age, he can easily stop Wang Lang, who rivals a Great Completion Muscle Tendon Strengthening cultivator. I'd say he's not far off from a martial artist who's just entered Blood Tempering. Truly remarkable. The Dharma Institute admits defeat this time."

Looking at Gu Han, who stood in the distance with an utterly calm expression, the master of the Dharma Institute, Ben De, praised him.

"Indeed! Jingming is truly formidable! To have such cultivation at this age, his talent must rank among the top three in the thousand-year history of our Treasure Pearl Temple, on par with Patriarchs Jue Ming and Liao Kong, second only to Patriarch Bodhidharma himself!"

Hearing Ben Zhen's words, the masters of the Medicine Master Institute, the Discipline Institute, and the Dao Proving Institute all nodded in agreement.

As for the patriarchs Jue Ming and Liao Kong they mentioned, those were illustrious figures in the thousand-year history of Treasure Pearl Temple. Although they hadn't transcended the mundane like Patriarch Bodhidharma and stepped into another legendary realm beyond Great Completion Internal Qi, their strength at their peak far surpassed ordinary Great Completion Internal Qi cultivators. In their era, they represented invincibility; even Great Completion Internal Qi martial artists couldn't withstand three or two of their moves. They could be called half-step legends!

"You all flatter him too much. Although Jingming seems impressive now, reaching the level of Patriarchs Jue Ming and Liao Kong is still fraught with difficulty. We must not let him become too proud; we still need to train him well."

After the hall masters finished speaking, the Abbot, Ben Zhen, spoke up.

As a martial artist who had broken through to Great Completion Internal Qi on his own, Ben Zhen knew better than anyone how hard it was to reach the level of Patriarchs Jue Ming and Liao Kong. Though Jingming had that potential now, he must not grow arrogant and needed to be tempered slowly.

"Haha! Senior Disciple Abbot, you're wrong there. I think Jingming has a very good chance of breaking through to the realm of Patriarchs Jue Ming and Liao Kong. If our Treasure Pearl Temple wants to shine again in the future, it may well rely on this child Jingming. Besides, Jingming played a crucial role in saving Jingyuan this time. After this matter is settled, I must thank him properly."

As soon as Abbot Ben Zhen finished speaking, the master of the Prajna Hall, Ben Yin, smiled and retorted. Looking at Gu Han, who had rescued Jingyuan in the distance, an endless gratitude rose in his heart.

Jingyuan was a top-tier Internal Qi seedling that the Prajna Hall produced only once every few decades or even centuries. Barring accidents, breaking through to the Internal Qi realm was almost a certainty, and even reaching the Great Completion Internal Qi realm was highly likely.

Thus, Ben Yin had long regarded Jingyuan as his successor, planning to pass on the position of Prajna Hall master to him after he entered Nirvana, so that Jingyuan could continue to propagate the martial arts of the Prajna Hall.

If Jingyuan had truly been killed by Wang Lang this time, Ben Yin truly didn't know what he would have done.

After all, he was already old, and hoping to see another disciple with Jingyuan's talent emerge from the Prajna Hall was nearly impossible.

What utter despair!

Even if he killed Wang Lang afterward, he would still be consumed by regret. Moreover, with General Wang protecting Wang Lang, even if he acted himself, he might not be able to kill him and avenge Jingyuan.

"But at least now, Jingyuan has been saved by Jingming, and I don't have to fall out with General Wang."

Thinking this, Ben Yin felt even more grateful toward Gu Han.

"Awoo!"

"Let... let... go! Kill... kill... kill you!"

Over here, Wang Lang, his eyes filled with bloodlust, saw his long blade firmly clamped between Gu Han's palms and grew even more frenzied. His body, stronger than a tiger or lion, suddenly exerted force, desperately trying to pull his blade free from Gu Han's grip.

But no matter how wildly Wang Lang struggled, his terrifying strength—enough to uproot willows and shatter green stone with a punch—vanished like a mud ox sinking into the sea the moment it met Gu Han's palms, disappearing without a trace.

"Alas, benefactor, you are far too ruthless. This was merely an ordinary sparring match. Since you already had the upper hand, why did you have to press the attack and show no mercy to Jingyuan? Such savagery

deserves punishment!"

"Clang!"

Gu Han sighed softly. Suddenly, an immense force erupted from his palms, instantly snapping Wang Lang's fine steel blade—capable of cutting metal and breaking iron—in two. Then, he threw a punch!

"Boom!"

A sound of air bursting rang out across the field. Gu Han's jade-like fist shot forward. Under this punch, the endless air ahead seemed to explode in an instant, forming terrifying waves of force that blew back Wang Lang's countless strands of hair.

Blood Tempering martial artists wielded two thousand jin per arm. With the amplification of a powerful martial technique, the force of a single punch exceeded five thousand jin. Combined with the small contact area of the fist and its terrifying speed, a single punch could deform even an iron man, punch straight through a large tree—let alone mere flesh and blood?

It would likely explode on impact!

"Awoo!"

A wolf howl rang out. Under Gu Han's terrifying punch, Wang Lang's potential was unleashed. He was, after all, a Muscle Tendon Strengthening martial artist, and having grown up among wolves, he possessed an unparalleled instinct for danger. At that critical moment, Wang Lang managed to raise his broken blade horizontally, blocking it before Gu Han's fist.

"Clang!"

Another metallic ring sounded. The broken blade before Wang Lang finally gave way under Gu Han's punch, shattering into pieces that flew in all directions.

Then, with the residual force of Gu Han's strike, Wang Lang's entire body was blasted backward like an arrow, crashing through a dozen guards before slamming heavily to the ground. Blood gushed from his mouth, his head lolled, and he fell unconscious.