Nine Chimes of the Bell

After several days of heavy rain, it had finally stopped at the foot of Treasure Pearl Mountain.

That night, in a brightly lit mansion, hundreds of Barbarian soldiers stood rigidly at attention, sealing off the mansion's surroundings so tightly that not even water could trickle through.

In the main hall of the mansion, a man with a dark, ugly face, a flat nose, and a square mouth sat like a wild beast on the grand master's chair at the center. This man was none other than the ruler of the Great Barbarian Kingdom—A Yanda.

At his side stood the Yan traitor Wang Zhongyi and the "Mad Wolf Butcher" Wang Lang, while below sat Barbarian chieftains whose faces were equally hideous.

At this moment, their eyes gleamed with ferocity as they eagerly watched a middle-aged man dressed in a brown-black short jacket with a cloth wrapped around his head, looking every bit a farmer.

"I ask you—are you certain that Zhu Hong truly fled up Treasure Pearl Mountain?"

In the silent hall, Wang Zhongyi, having received a glance from A Yanda, put on a stern expression and asked in a low, deep voice.

"Certain, certain! This humble one is certain!"

The middle-aged man below trembled at the words and nodded repeatedly.

"This humble one was born and raised at the foot of Treasure Pearl Mountain, a vegetable farmer from the countryside. Ever since I took over my father's trade, I've been delivering vegetables to Treasure Pearl Temple on the mountain for over ten years.

A few days ago, while I was braving the rain to deliver vegetables up the mountain, I happened to see a middle-aged man in golden armor, with an imposing and extraordinary bearing, enter the temple.

I had seen his face three years ago when Zhu Wu visited the mountain, so I immediately recognized that man in golden armor as that scoundrel Zhu Wu! My lord! Every word I speak is true. If there's even half a lie, may heaven strike me down and earth swallow me. I beg my lord to investigate!"

"Haha! Excellent!"

Hearing that the farmer's words didn't seem false, Wang Zhongyi laughed heartily. Then he chattered away in the Barbarian tongue, explaining to the hall, which made all the Barbarians present burst into laughter.

"Great King, since we've confirmed that Zhu Wu has entered Treasure Pearl Temple, I, Guduo, am willing to lead troops up the mountain, annihilate Treasure Pearl Temple, capture Zhu Wu, and deliver him to Your Majesty's camp."

As soon as Wang Zhongyi finished speaking, the Barbarian closest to A Yanda—a man nearly ten feet tall with long arms and legs and a wild mane of hair and beard—laughed and volunteered.

"Good! Guduo, you are truly a warrior worthy of my Great Barbarian Tribe, brave and commendable.

Since you're eager to earn merit, I, the King, shall grant your wish. I hereby order you to lead two thousand of my Barbarian warriors tomorrow, trample Treasure Pearl Temple flat, and capture that brat Zhu Hong alive!"

A Yanda laughed in response.

"Great King, you must not! Treasure Pearl Temple is no ordinary Buddhist monastery. It is a sacred ground in the martial world of the Great Yan Kingdom, with formidable strength. Do not underestimate it!"

Seeing the Barbarians so contemptuous of their enemy, Wang Zhongyi's face changed drastically as he tried to dissuade them.

"Oh? Formidable strength? What kind of strength? Aren't you Yan people all like you—cowards who cling to life, as fragile as sheep? Even if this little Treasure Pearl Temple is impressive, can it possibly match the lion-like warriors of my Great Barbarian Kingdom?"

Guduo sneered at the words, rubbing his hands together eagerly.

"Chief Guduo, do not underestimate the enemy!"

Wang Zhongyi's eyes first flashed with a hint of killing intent and shame, then he explained:

"My Lord Guduo, the Yan people are naturally no match for my Great Barbarian warriors. But though sheep are weak, occasionally some strong ones appear. Treasure Pearl Temple is such a place.

Inside this temple, aside from support staff like the labor hall and the Medicine Master Institute, there is also a warrior monk squad of five hundred men. Every single one of them is at least at the Muscle Tendon Strengthening level.

Beyond that, the temple has eighteen warrior monks at Blood Tempering Minor Achievement or above, known as the Eighteen Arhats. Add to that several Internal Qi Realm abbots and seat masters, along with a few retired old monks of the Benzi generation, and the entire temple now has no fewer than ten Internal Qi Realm experts. They are truly not easy to deal with!"

"Oh? Among you fragile Yan people, besides Zhu Hong, there are actually such fierce tigers? That's hard to imagine!"

Guduo's eyes showed shock, and he immediately dropped the idea of attacking the mountain on his own.

"Hmm. If what Wang Zhongyi says is true, then Treasure Pearl Temple's strength is indeed considerable. In that case, I, the King, shall personally lead ten thousand of my Barbarian warriors up the mountain tomorrow to wipe them out!"

A Yanda suddenly rose to his feet, his burly frame standing like a bear, his eyes brimming with killing intent.

The next day, just as dawn broke.

In Treasure Pearl Temple, Gu Han and Jingyuan finished their morning meal and agreed to find a quiet spot in the temple to practice martial arts together.

Of course, most of this involved Gu Han instructing Jingyuan, who listened earnestly.

After all, though Gu Han had only just entered Blood Tempering, his overall strength was already enough to rival an Internal Qi Grand Achievement expert. Although Jingyuan was at a higher realm than Gu Han, under the absolute suppression of power and speed—whether attacking or defending—his movements seemed slowed down before Gu Han, who could easily spot countless flaws.

"Amitabha. Senior Brother is truly a prodigy. It's only been a month since you broke through to Blood Tempering, yet I feel your strength has surged by another level. It's truly incredible."

After a round of sparring, Jingyuan pulled back, stood straight, recited a Buddhist chant, and praised.

"Oh? You can tell that? It seems you're not far from the Internal Qi Realm, Junior Brother."

Gu Han nodded slightly in response.

Ever since breaking through to Blood Tempering and truly fusing the martial arts of both worlds, his body seemed to have automatically formed a perfect cycle. Even without any medicinal pills during this period, his physique grew stronger day by day.

Now, a month had passed. Though he felt he was still far from Blood Tempering Minor Achievement, his strength seemed to have increased by more than twenty percent.

If, when he first broke through to Blood Tempering, he could barely match an Internal Qi Grand Achievement expert, then now, he felt that even among Internal Qi Grand Achievement masters, he ranked among the top, enough to overpower ninety-nine percent of them.

"Haha! All thanks to your guidance, Senior Brother. After a month of your instruction, I truly feel my strength has greatly improved. I've discovered many shortcomings in my past training. Within half a year, I should be able to step into the Internal Qi Realm."

Hearing Gu Han's words, Jingyuan laughed happily and was about to resume practice when...

Suddenly, the sound of bells rang in their ears.

"Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang..."

In Treasure Pearl Temple, the booming sound of great bells shook heaven and earth, spreading through the air in an instant across the entire mountain temple, clearly audible to every monk within.

Naturally, it also reached Gu Han's ears.

"Nine bell tolls—heaven and earth overturned!

The temple faces...

the calamity of annihilation!"

As the last bell faded, those words surfaced in Gu Han's mind. The next moment, he couldn't help but turn and exchange a glance with Jingyuan, seeing the same shock and horror in each other's eyes.