Leaving Shaolin

Hearing Meng Qi's question, Qi Zhengyan replied frankly, "I want to change my core cultivation method as soon as possible."

"Senior Brother Qi, are you dissatisfied with both the Long River Sword Technique and the Sunset and Autumn Water Sword?" Jiang Zhiwei's question was just like her swordsmanship: straight to the heart of the matter.

Qi Zhengyan pondered for a moment, then avoided answering directly. "Given my aptitude and the impression the elders of my sect have of me, unless I can keep breaking through all the way to the Exterior Scenery Realm and become a powerful figure able to stand on my own, I'll never have a chance to study the True Intent Inheritance of the Immortal Bestowed Longevity Sword. And if that day really comes, it'll already be too late to switch to the Immortal Bestowed Longevity Sword. My foundation will have long since taken shape, and it won't be as deep-rooted as someone else's. So I need to change to a divine skill that points straight to the Dharmakaya as soon as possible."

What he meant was that the Long River Sword Technique and the Sunset and Autumn Water Sword, both of which were meant for the Orifice Opening Realm, were of too low a level. The Flower Washing Sword Sect taught the Long River Sword Technique to ordinary disciples from the Qi Accumulation Realm through the Orifice Opening Realm, while the Sunset and Autumn Water Sword was considered a decent sword art even among those of the Orifice Opening Realm, and could pave the way to the Exterior Scenery Realm.

Among the major sects, probably only the prodigies who showed promise at an early age and were held in high regard could hope to study the True Intent Inheritance of their core scripture before reaching the Orifice Opening Realm. The rest had to wait until they caught up and demonstrated their worth before they could earn the right to switch to the core scripture. But by then, their foundations had already taken shape. After switching, their foundations were often unstable, making progress difficult. Only a very small number could overcome this and break through again.

"If you're thinking long-term, changing now is the best choice." Zhang Yuanshan thought it over carefully and agreed with Qi Zhengyan's decision. "What do you want to exchange for?"

Qi Zhengyan pressed his lips together, his features sharpening. He seemed a little nervous and excited. "I've set my sights on a divine skill. It has ten levels in all: two in Qi Accumulation, three in Orifice Opening, three in Exterior Scenery, and two in Dharmakaya. They can be exchanged for separately. And unlike other divine skills, it goes against convention by emphasizing the resonance between heaven and man and the connection between oneself and the Outer World even in the Qi Accumulation Realm. That should make it much easier to break through to the Exterior Scenery Realm later on."

If he was going to change his core cultivation method, of course he wanted one with a brilliant future and boundless power!

"I've seen this divine skill in the exchange list. It can evolve into an incredibly powerful sword art." Jiang Zhiwei lightly patted the sword at her waist, thinking it over with a mix of surprise and delight. "It's called the Cosmic Mirror!"

Pfft! Meng Qi almost spat out his saliva. After coughing a couple of times, he said, "Senior Brother Qi, is it really the Cosmic Mirror?"

Damn it! If I hadn't gone astray and had to keep practicing body-hardening for now, I'd want to exchange for it too! Compared with other Dharmakaya-level peerless arts, its levels are divided more finely, making it easier to exchange for them one by one.

The Cosmic Mirror was a peerless martial art from The Legend of the Son of Heaven, created by the great goddess Nuwa. At its utmost, it could devour all things and destroy the heavens and earth.

"You've looked into the Cosmic Mirror too?" Qi Zhengyan asked casually. "Its first level, White Cloud Smoke, and second level, Rose Haze Ripple, are both considered part of the Qi Accumulation Realm. They cost forty and eighty Merit Points, respectively, which isn't expensive. The third level, Earth Kunlun, belongs to the Orifice Opening Realm and costs only two hundred Merit Points."

"First, I need to exchange for a Heavenly Wisdom Pill and a bottle of Lingzhi Qi Replenishing Pills. So for now, I can only exchange for White Cloud Smoke and Rose Haze Ripple. Once I've learned the Sunset and Autumn Water Sword, I can trade it to the Lord of Six Paths Samsara the next time I enter. Along with my remaining Merit Points, that'll be enough to exchange for Earth Kunlun."

Since the Sunset and Autumn Water Sword included both a heart method and sword techniques, it was worth three hundred and eighty Merit Points. Trading it to the Lord of Six Paths Samsara would get him only half that amount: one hundred and ninety Merit Points. If Qi Zhengyan taught it to Meng Qi and they each traded it for Merit Points, they would receive only ninety-five each.

"That way, you'll still have thirty Merit Points left over to guard against anything unexpected," Zhang Yuanshan said, without adding anything else.

Qi Zhengyan nodded slightly. "Yes. When you're weak, you're supposed to exchange for a weapon or hidden weapon for self-defense. But since Junior Brother Zhending has a Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle, I can safely exchange for the third level of the Cosmic Mirror."

"Senior Brother Qi, aren't you afraid of being discovered when you practice another sect's divine skill?" Seeing that Qi Zhengyan had made up his mind, Meng Qi asked about the same concern he had himself.

Qi Zhengyan's expression dimmed a little. "If there were another way, why would I choose to take the risk? But I'm just an ordinary disciple, so it should be easy enough to fool them. Once I reach the Orifice Opening Realm, I can apply to travel or oversee the sect's businesses outside the sect. Then the sea will be wide enough for fish to leap, and the sky high enough for birds to fly. I won't have to worry about practicing the Cosmic Mirror. And if I run into fellow disciples, they won't be able to tell what my inner cultivation method is, as long as I don't spar with them too often."

He would already be learning the sword techniques and qi-circulation routes of the Autumn Water Sword Technique and Sunset Art, and he had the foundation of the Setting Sun Heart Method. His swordplay wouldn't give anything away.

"You can leave the mountain and travel, but I don't know when I'll get to do that. Sigh, I really wish I could leave Shaolin right now. Then I wouldn't have to live on tenterhooks." After he finished speaking, Meng Qi silently added, preferably after learning the Golden Bell Shield or the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill.

But if he did that, Meng Qi felt it would become even harder for him to leave Shaolin.

Jiang Zhiwei looked at Meng Qi with an amused smile. "Leave Shaolin? Haven't you studied the Shaolin Precepts?"

"The precepts don't explain how to leave Shaolin. They only list the punishments for breaking different rules. The worst is having your martial arts abolished and being expelled from Shaolin." Meng Qi didn't dare use that method.

Jiang Zhiwei chuckled. "They don't explain how to leave Shaolin because leaving is simply impossible."

"What?" Meng Qi was shocked.

Jiang Zhiwei's smile faded. "Joining a sect is a very serious matter. With Heaven and Earth as witness, there's only one way to leave: seriously violate the precepts, have your martial arts abolished, and be expelled from the sect. I don't think you'd be willing to pay that price, would you?"

Before Meng Qi could ask, she continued, "Of course, I mean formally leaving Shaolin. If you just want to go down the mountain and find an excuse to stay away, there are other ways. First, you could go out on a mission under the leadership of a senior monk. You could look for a chance to escape along the way, but generally only disciples with Major Qi Accumulation would be chosen, and with a senior monk watching, escaping would certainly be difficult."

"Second, after reaching the Orifice Opening Realm, you could pass through Bronze Man Alley and earn the right to travel and work alone outside the mountain. Then you could simply disappear or fake your death, and that would be enough to sever your ties with Shaolin. But Shaolin's Bronze Man Alley is famous far and wide. Even I'm not more than sixty percent confident I could get through it now. You'll probably have to wait several more years. After all, with everyone watching, you can't rely on the Lord of Six Paths Samsara's empowerment exchange to jump straight from the beginning of the Orifice Opening Realm, or an even lower level, to the strength needed to pass through Bronze Man Alley."

"Third, make a contribution and find a chance to become a lay disciple. Once you've completed your studies, you can 'return home.'"

Listening to the three options Jiang Zhiwei had listed, Meng Qi frowned. He probably couldn't manage any of them in the short term. Becoming a lay disciple seemed the most feasible, but there was one problem: he'd been forced into Shaolin, and Xuanzang was keeping an eye on him. Would Xuanzang agree to let him become a lay disciple and "return home"?

Zhang Yuanshan listened quietly for a while, then suddenly sighed. "If Junior Brother Zhending were still a monastery servant, he could leave the temple as soon as his term ended. We made the wrong choice."

"It's fine. Others can leave, but I can't." Meng Qi knew that perfectly well. Xuanzang wouldn't let him leave once his term was up.

So for now, all he could do was stay hidden and take things one step at a time. He would never pass up a chance to learn the Seventy-two Unique Skills!

Everyone fell silent for a while. Qi Zhengyan went to the pillar of light and exchanged for a Heavenly Wisdom Pill, a bottle of Lingzhi Qi Replenishing Pills, and two Heavenly Crystals containing the first two levels of the Cosmic Mirror. In one, white clouds drifted like smoke; in the other, rosy light glowed like blood, so dazzling that no one could look away.

Could they really be the original Heavenly Crystals...? Meng Qi was quite suspicious. The Heavenly Crystals that carried the Cosmic Mirror were all unique. The Lord of Six Paths Samsara couldn't possibly be so generous as to give Qi Zhengyan such a pair.

"Crystals carrying a True Intent Inheritance? It really is a peerless divine skill that points straight to the Dharmakaya." Zhang Yuanshan praised it.

Hearing this, a funny thought suddenly occurred to Meng Qi: perhaps these two crystals were counterfeit copies made by the Lord of Six Paths Samsara.

Staring at the Heavenly Crystals in his palm, Qi Zhengyan took several deep breaths. His body trembled slightly. Starting today, he would welcome a new future!

After everyone finished exchanging, Meng Qi remembered what they had discussed earlier and asked, "Miss Jiang, have you made it onto the Human Ranking yet?"

Jiang Zhiwei smiled brightly. "I haven't officially gone down the mountain to travel the martial world yet, but because of that earlier martial arts discussion and my later progress in opening Four Apertures, I've just made it onto the list."

At the mention of the Human Ranking, her delicate brows knitted together. "If I'm not mistaken, Xiao Zi and Gu Xiaosang are the same person. But why did she initially have no martial arts at all? I couldn't have been mistaken about that."

"Huh? Dissociative identity disorder? No, One Body Two Souls?" Meng Qi exclaimed in astonishment.

Jiang Zhiwei pursed her lips. "I don't know. Even with One Body Two Souls, the body's foundation wouldn't disappear. I couldn't possibly fail to notice that she knew martial arts."

She was quite annoyed with herself for missing it.

"The Luo Sect's Scripture of Wusheng Laomu Descending to the World is known for its eerie secrets. Perhaps it's the effect of some divine skill from the scripture," Zhang Yuanshan guessed.

Jiang Zhiwei puffed out her cheeks. "Maybe. It could also be related to the mishap she mentioned earlier."

"In any case, Gu Xiaosang is deeply calculating, ruthless in her methods, and already this powerful. She'll inevitably end up on the Black Ranking someday," Zhang Yuanshan said with a sigh.

"The Black Ranking?" Meng Qi felt like a country bumpkin.

Jiang Zhiwei smiled. "It's a ranking the major sects drew up together for the Demonic and Left Path. It lists only the top one hundred. Heh, really, it's there to tell disciples that if they don't have Exterior Scenery-level strength, they should immediately turn around and go the other way if they meet anyone on the list."

Suddenly, the Lord of Six Paths Samsara's grand, icy voice rang out:

"Exchange complete. Store your items and return to your own world."

Meng Qi thought it over, then left the Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle in his own "room."

After a brief spell of darkness and light, Meng Qi opened his eyes and saw Zhenhui sitting in meditation, completely absorbed in regulating his breathing. Wisps of white vapor seemed to rise above his head.

He smiled and began recalling and pondering the first stance of the Ananda Breaking Precepts Saber Art.

Just then, someone pounded on the door and shouted, "Junior Brother Zhending, Junior Brother Zhen Hui, Chief Monk Wu Si wants you to come to Bodhi Courtyard."