Go Back. You're No Match for Me!

After sizing each other up, the Buddha Son spoke first.

"The Cao Gang truly lives up to its reputation as the Number One Gang in Qingzhou. Though it has no peerless martial arts, it has produced a Martial Arts Genius like you. Truly astonishing."

Anyone could tell those words were just polite flattery.

The Cao Gang was known as the Number One Gang in Qingzhou because of its vast numbers, not because of its top fighters.

If one set the current Li Xian aside, the Cao Gang still couldn't compare with the Five Great Sects of Qingzhou in true strength.

And yet...

Li Xian paid none of that any mind. He took the words as sincere praise.

He waved a hand and smiled modestly. "Oh, Buddha Son, don't say that. You're no slouch either. Of all the opponents I've faced in my life, you're the strongest!"

Both men's words showed how highly they regarded each other.

Just moments ago, when the Buddha Son had arrived, Li Xian had exchanged a palm strike with him.

Though neither had used their full strength, both could sense the other's unfathomable power.

Li Xian asked, "What about the two masters, Guan Jing and Guan Yi?"

The Buddha Son pressed his palms together and answered calmly, "They have already gone to the Western Pure Land."

"Alas..."

Li Xian couldn't help sighing. "Why go so far? Why not let them live?"

"Taking lives to attain Buddhahood is a road with no return. This humble monk had no choice."

"Hmm..."

After thinking it over, Li Xian could understand and even agree with the Buddha Son's actions.

"That's true. Only by doing this, by leaving yourself no way back, can you find the resolve to press forward without hesitation. If you know there's even the slightest retreat left, you'll become indecisive. And hesitation is a sure path to failure!"

"Amitabha!"

The Buddha Son didn't answer, only calmly reciting the Buddha's name.

Li Xian continued, "But before you met me, you were full of confidence. Now that you have, your confidence has begun to waver. You're afraid. You're afraid you're no match for me!"

"Benefactor Li, are you always this confident?"

Li Xian clasped his hands behind his back and gazed at the sky with a smile. "The aura around you tells me you've already started doubting yourself."

The Buddha Son didn't deny it. "Benefactor Li's instincts are keen. This humble monk is impressed."

Li Xian told him, "You're no match for me right now. Go back. Come find me again once you've made up your mind."

There was something rather insidious about those words.

If the Buddha Son turned and left today, then for the rest of his life, whenever he encountered Li Xian, he wouldn't be able to muster the courage to fight him.

The Buddha Son had accomplished so much at such a young age. He was hardly the sort of fool whose convictions could be toppled by a few words.

"Benefactor Li, you have a truly vicious heart!"

Li Xian smiled. "I just don't want White Dragon Temple's line of worship to end here. You're its last hope."

"That's all the more reason I can't leave. I can't turn back. This humble monk made a great vow: I will make every household in all of Qingzhou worship at White Dragon Temple."

Good heavens. He intended to turn Qingzhou Prefecture into his own Buddhist kingdom on earth.

Li Xian felt there was more to it than that.

He probed, "Does this have something to do with the Buddhist teachings you cultivate? If you accomplish such a great undertaking, will you be able to break through to a higher realm?"

The Buddha Son kept silent.

Li Xian figured he'd guessed right and continued on his own. "If you really accomplish it, what realm would you reach? Upper One Rank? The Innate Realm? Or the legendary Mortal Transformation Realm, where you shed your mortal flesh and ascend beyond the ordinary to sainthood?"

The Buddha Son still said nothing.

After a long while, he finally spoke in a distant, unhurried tone. "If Benefactor Li and I weren't standing on such opposing sides today, perhaps we could have become close friends who had no secrets from each other."

Li Xian didn't agree. He shook his head. "We were never destined to be friends."

The Buddha Son paused, puzzled. "Why?"

"Even if we don't face off here today, we'll meet again someday. Because you and I are pursuing the same thing."

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The Buddha Son understood.

They were both pursuing the pinnacle of the Martial Dao. On the road to the summit, rival after rival would appear, and they would have to defeat them all to claim the highest place.

As things stood, the Buddha Son and Li Xian had merely encountered their first rivals along the way.

Across all of Dagan, there were countless more such rivals. Before long, they were bound to meet again.

Once the Buddha Son understood this, he let out a sigh.

"What a pity. It seems I must kill you, Benefactor Li. In all this time, you're the first person this humble monk has been reluctant to kill."

"Why?"

Now it was Li Xian's turn to be curious.

"A talent like you is a rare gem. It would be a shame for you to die here. Why not follow me and witness the glory of this humble monk reaching the pinnacle one day? Wouldn't that be better?"

"Hahaha..."

Li Xian burst out laughing. "So that's your plan. You really have a fine imagination, monk."

"Why not give it serious thought, Benefactor Li?"

Li Xian waved him off. "Little monk, you have no right to say that."

Then he said, his expression turning serious, "You're no match for me!"

His tone was utterly sincere, as if he were stating an indisputable fact.

"Amitabha!"

The Buddha Son calmly rolled up his sleeves. "It seems this humble monk will have to open Benefactor Li's eyes."

"You think you can?"

Li Xian began loosening up his muscles and bones, his face expressionless.

Seeing trouble brewing, Liang Haisheng promptly and wisely darted far away.

A muffled, thunderlike sound came from the distant horizon.

"Thunder. Looks like it's going to rain."

After murmuring to himself, Yuan Benyu set the invitation on the tea table.

His trusted aide immediately brought him a freshly brewed cup of tea.

"My lord, what do you think Governor Zheng is up to? Why invite us to a banquet at a time like this?"

"What else? He's about to get what he wants."

"What he wants?" His aide asked, confused.

Yuan Benyu glanced at him but offered no explanation. He lowered his head and sipped his tea.

The aide ventured, "Could it be... something to do with the Cao Gang?"

Yuan Benyu smiled. "A Lun, you've been getting sharper lately. You're starting to figure these things out."

A Lun rubbed the back of his head and smiled sheepishly. "I've been following your advice and reading a lot lately, my lord. I do feel like I've gotten a lot sharper."

"Good. You're teachable." Yuan Benyu nodded with satisfaction. "Then let me test you again. Who do you think will win?"

"The Buddha Son of White Dragon Temple!" A Lun answered without even thinking.

"Oh? Why?" Yuan Benyu asked.

"It's obvious. The Buddha Son is clearly stronger than Li Xian of the Cao Gang. Li Xian may have extraordinary talent, but without high-level cultivation methods, he can't break through to the Upper Three Ranks. He's bound to lose to the Buddha Son."

Clearly, the Demon Suppressing Division knew everything that had happened in Yangzhou City.

"Mm." Yuan Benyu nodded faintly.

Seeing his lord's unusual expression, A Lun asked curiously, "My lord, what's wrong? Did I say something incorrect?"

"No, you didn't. You're absolutely right. The Buddha Son of White Dragon Temple was born with a Buddha's body. Any Buddhist cultivation method in his hands can unleash a hundred and twenty percent of its power. Li Xian of the Cao Gang really is no match for him." Yuan Benyu shook his head.

"Then you..."

"I just think it's a bit of a shame."