Human Ranking: The Three Treasures—Buddha, Lotus, Gold

Feeling Zhang Chu's gaze, the skinny man sprang down from the tall tree like a startled civet cat.

He landed lightly in front of him.

The movement was so fast that Zhang Chu paused in slight surprise.

Yet what astonished Zhang Chu even more was that the moment the man's feet touched the ground, he repeatedly waved his hands and began explaining himself.

The skinny man immediately said, "No, no, no! I would never dare fight Little True Martial, Daoist Priest Zhang!"

"Please don't circulate your inner strength. I can't beat you, but I run fast. You might not be able to catch me..."

By the last few words, his voice had grown weaker and weaker.

His bright, sharp eyes were fixed on Zhang Chu's hands, terrified that the man before him would suddenly strike him with a palm.

The sight made Zhang Chu shake his head with a bitter smile.

When had he ever said he wanted to fight? And what did he mean, he ran rather fast and Zhang Chu might not be able to catch him?

"Little True Martial? You mean me?"

Zhang Chu caught the unfamiliar title.

"Of course! Who in Linjiang hasn't heard of Little True Martial from True Martial Temple? Don't tell me you don't know yourself?"

"...Should I know?"

"All right. You really are just as the rumors say—burying your head in cultivation deep in the mountains all day, never asking about Jianghu affairs."

"Ever since you first killed Jin Kui of the Boat Gang, then wiped out the Water and Land Elders of Linjiang with your palm, your great name has spread far and wide."

"You cultivate the Yellow Court Inner Strength of the Daoist Sect and have trained the True Martial Palm to its utmost limit. If you aren't Little True Martial returned to this world, then who is?"

"And the Heaven, Earth, and Human Rankings of Jianghu clearly state it: Little True Martial Zhang Chu may be ranked tenth on the Human Ranking!"

The skinny man spoke excitedly.

Zhang Chu found it somewhat unbelievable after hearing this.

It had only been a day since he killed Lu Chengfeng and the others, yet word had already reached Lingnan.

Did these people usually have nothing better to do?

And tenth on the Human Ranking—what an absurdly high evaluation!

Zhang Chu had heard of the Heaven, Earth, and Human Rankings. Those who made the lists were all renowned veterans of Jianghu.

The Human Ranking in particular recorded the young prodigies of the Martial World, all under thirty years of age.

He had not expected to rank tenth.

And he even had the nickname Little True Martial.

"So, who are you?"

The skinny man had talked in circles for so long without ever revealing his identity or purpose.

As though he had been waiting for that very question, the skinny man's eyes lit up, and his entire bearing perked up.

He straightened his clothes a few times, then puffed out his thin chest and declared, "I am Ma Wuji. The 'Flying Immortal on Land' that has long been spoken of throughout Jianghu is none other than myself!"

"I am currently ranked ninety-eighth on the Human Ranking!"

He enunciated every word clearly, looking rather pleased with himself.

Zhang Chu gave the chin-lifted Ma Wuji a strange look.

So he was ranked ninety-eighth already—two more places down and he would fall off the list. What exactly was he so proud of?

"...My respects, my respects..."

Zhang Chu cupped his hands politely.

"You!" Seeing Zhang Chu's politely perfunctory manner, Ma Wuji was so angry that he nearly jumped up and down.

"Forget it. I can't compare to freaks like you top-ten people. Who told me to be born with insufficient innate qi and blood..."

Ma Wuji looked at his frame, far smaller than that of others his age. The fire he had just worked up immediately went out.

He had been born with insufficient qi and blood, making him unable to practice most martial arts. Though his Lightness Skill was decent, he could only linger at the very bottom of the Human Ranking, liable to fall off at any moment.

Much less compare with someone like Zhang Chu, who ranked among the top ten.

Moreover, for some reason, Ma Wuji had a distinct intuition that even with his superb Lightness Skill, if they truly fought, he probably would not be able to escape Zhang Chu's palm.

This man gave him the feeling of a vicious beast that had emerged from the depths of the untamed wilderness—still as a mountain when quiet, but once roused, carrying the force of thunderbolts weighing ten thousand jun!

"By the way, Daoist Priest Zhang, you came here this time for the three treasures of Red Lotus Temple as well, didn't you?"

Ma Wuji suddenly asked.

"Red Lotus Temple? Isn't this Jinguang Temple?" Zhang Chu revealed a puzzled expression. Had he come to the wrong place?

"I nearly forgot. You are from out of town, Daoist Priest."

"Actually, Red Lotus Temple is Jinguang Temple. A great fire ten years ago reduced Red Lotus Temple to ashes, killing and injuring countless people. Even the old abbot, who had reached the Dark Strength Realm, perished in the sea of flames. It is said that only three disciples escaped by sheer luck, and all of them have since become eminent monks of the temple."

"Perhaps they could not bear to look upon things and think of those gone. After the temple was rebuilt, they simply changed its name to Jinguang Temple."

Ma Wuji recounted the history.

Then he looked at Zhang Chu suspiciously. "And... don't tell me you don't even know about the 'Three Treasures of Red Lotus'?"

Zhang Chu's reaction confused Ma Wuji. So the man knew nothing at all—then what had he come here for?

"I truly do not," Zhang Chu said.

Ma Wuji sighed helplessly. "All right. Actually, what you are holding is one of the three treasures."

Pointing at the marble in Zhang Chu's palm, he said, "Red Lotus Temple has three treasures: Buddha Incense, Lotus Root, and Golden Cicada!"

"This Golden Cicada was originally one of the most poisonous things in the world, but the eggs it had just laid were poisonless. After undergoing special refinement, they could even help someone shed their mortal frame and remake their bones, strengthening their foundation. That was how Golden Cicada became one of the Three Treasures of Red Lotus."

Zhang Chu lowered his head and looked at the object in his hand.

When he first heard "Golden Cicada," he had thought he was holding Tang Sanzang. He had not expected it to truly be a precious medicine!

But on second thought, it was not strange.

In this world, precious medicines came in every bizarre variety.

There were even rumors that in a certain part of the Sea Regions of the East Sea, there had once been the cast-off remains of a Sea God. Eating it could allow one to break through an entire major realm and establish the foundation of the Upper Three Realms!

Compared to that,

this Golden Cicada was not all that outlandish.

"Oh, right. The woman you killed just now was the only daughter of the second chief of the local Twin Dragon Society. She had always been spoiled and overbearing. Today, under the pretense of paying a visit, no one knew how she actually stole this Golden Cicada, which was why she was hunted down."

As Ma Wuji spoke, he stroked his chin, confusion flashing through his eyes. "By all rights, that should have been impossible. Everyone knows that the three disciples who escaped by luck back then have all become enlightened eminent monks. Two of them stepped into the Dark Strength Realm long ago. Even the weakest, Master Yuan Hui, is at the great completion of first-rate strength and may break through at any time."

"With such strength, they are in no way inferior to the Twin Dragon Society. How could one mere woman steal one of the three treasures?"

Ma Wuji was puzzled, unable to make heads or tails of it.

The moment he discovered the matter, he had sensed that something was amiss. That was why he had followed them in secret.

Zhang Chu did not care in the slightest after hearing this. He did not care about the Twin Dragon Society or Jianghu grudges. He had killed her, so he had killed her.

What concerned him more was another piece of information Ma Wuji had revealed—the three survivors!

"You mean that in that great fire, even the abbot died in the flames. But what kind of fire could burn someone in the Dark Strength Realm to death? And how did those three escape back then?"

Once a martial artist stepped into Dark Strength, Gang Qi had already formed. Their flesh, blood, sinews, and bones surpassed those of ordinary people. Flames could not harm them in the slightest.

How could they possibly be burned alive?

Ma Wuji spread his hands. "I don't know. That fire came suddenly, and many of the details have already been swallowed by time. I only heard that it was the Demonic Cult's work, and that its purpose was the Three Treasures of Red Lotus."

"As for the three who survived, they have all become masters now. They remain in seclusion year-round and are unwilling to mention the past."

Zhang Chu's brow furrowed even tighter.

He had thought this trip to Jinguang Temple would be a simple matter: find Yuan Hui, ask about cause and effect, then end it with one palm strike.

Now, it seemed that this secluded temple hid so many unknown events of the past!

Red Lotus Temple, the three treasures, the great fire of that year—and among the three survivors, Yuan Hui happened to be one of them.

This was becoming more and more interesting!

Somewhere in the dark, Zhang Chu had a premonition that this trip to Jinguang Temple would bring him far more Merit Points than expected!

"Then let's go take a look at this former Red Lotus Temple!" Zhang Chu stepped toward the mountain gate of Jinguang Temple.

By now, night had fallen and dusk had gathered on all sides.

It was the perfect time to lodge in the temple and investigate conveniently.

"Wait, Daoist Priest Zhang!"

Ma Wuji hurriedly stepped forward to stop him.

"You may not know this, Daoist Priest, but Jinguang Temple has a rule: after nightfall, it never receives overnight guests. At this hour, you probably cannot even get through the gate. Better wait until dawn."

"The three people who were chasing that woman just now are lay disciples who have kept watch outside the temple year-round. Even they cannot enter the temple gates, much less us."

Yet Zhang Chu did not stop walking. There had never been a gate he wanted to enter that he could not enter.

"No matter. They will open it."