Half a Century Until the Story Begins

Swish, swish, swish!

He was sweeping the courtyard.

He had been in this world for three days.

The sheer volume of Li Su's inner turmoil over these past three days could well be imagined.

First, he was a disciple of the "Xuan" generation—yes, the very same rank as the highest seniority in the Shaolin Temple of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.

And the future Abbot of Shaolin, that master of both passion and heartlessness, Master Xuanci, was his senior brother—no, he was actually the little monk who had brought him a steamed bun shortly after he had woken up.

Joining the Shaolin Temple directly was, without a doubt, tremendous good news for Li Su.

Yet, becoming a disciple of the "Xuan" generation gave Li Su a bit of a toothache.

Master Xuanci must have been in his thirties when he became the "leader of the pack," and it was during that same period that he met Ye Erniang, while Xuzhu did not appear on the scene until he was about twenty.

That meant, all told, a span of nearly sixty years.

Subtracting Xuanci's current age, there were at least fifty years left.

Half a century until the events of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils began? This was not a good sign.

It was simply too long.

When time drags on, accidents are prone to happen.

According to the records in the real world, very few people who entered a World Fragment survived for more than thirty years.

The only silver lining was that he was in the Shaolin Temple; as long as he was careful not to court disaster, it shouldn't be a major problem.

After all, in Jin Da's novels, the only time the Shaolin Temple was nearly wiped out was during the Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre era; at all other times, it appeared as the undisputed titan of the martial arts world.

As long as he kept his head down, he would be fine.

Compared to the timeline of the story, what truly depressed Li Su was not this, but the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

He had been planning to go find the Nine Yang Divine Skill after a while, but he suddenly remembered something.

Jin Da had revised his novels.

The first and second editions were fine.

In the former, the Nine Yang Divine Skill originated from Bodhidharma; in the latter, because the text of the manual was in Chinese, it was suspected that a high-ranking Shaolin monk had created it under a pseudonym, with no specific time mentioned.

If it were the first edition, the Nine Yang Divine Skill could undoubtedly be found within Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.

The second edition was harder to say.

But if this World Fragment was the latest version—the so-called third edition—then he was in deep trouble. In that version, the Nine Yang Divine Skill was created after the Nine Yin Manual; a brilliant eccentric had won a drinking bout against Wang Chongyang, and after borrowing the manual to read it, he deemed the Nine Yin Manual too sinister and evil, leading him to create the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

This was undoubtedly a pitfall.

It meant that the time of its creation was almost certainly during the Legend of the Condor Heroes or even the Return of the Condor Heroes era.

In other words, it was highly likely that it did not exist within Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.

Facing this realization, the depth of Li Su's depression could be imagined. Especially since someone in the real world was already eyeing it; if he came back next time, the flowers might have already withered.

For a moment, even his desire to practice martial arts waned; after all, the Nine Yang Divine Skill was the dream of so many people's childhoods.

"Xuankong, Xuankong!"

Xuanci's voice rang out.

The little monk came bounding over, skipping as he went.

Li Su stopped what he was doing and looked at the spirited little monk, unable to help but sigh inwardly.

Time was truly a butcher's knife.

Such a cute child, yet he would grow up to be that kind of man.

He abandoned the child he fathered with Ye Erniang, ignored her when she became one of the Four Great Evils, remained silent when Xiao Yuanshan struck, and once exposed, he severed his own heart meridians without a second word.

Anything a human should do, this young man did none of it.

Li Su blinked and patted the boy on the shoulder with a smile.

Xuanci said, sounding impatient, "Senior brother, let's go quickly."

A flicker of confusion appeared in Li Su's eyes. Go where?

"?"

"We've been in the monastery for a year now, and we can start formal martial arts training. Master is calling for us."

Martial arts?

Li Su's gaze shifted. He and Xuanci were Shaolin monks, not the kind of lay disciples who kept their hair, so there was a vast difference between them and the lay disciples after entering the sect.

Lay disciples focused primarily on martial arts, with Buddhist studies as a supplement.

For monks, it was the other way around: Buddhist studies were the priority, and martial arts training was the supplement.

Therefore, in the year since he had entered, Li Su hadn't learned any martial arts; he had only studied the scriptures.

Like Xuanci, he had been reciting the Diamond Sutra.

Fortunately, I had pretended to be mute after waking up; otherwise, if I had started reciting those scriptures, I would have surely blown my cover.

For this reason, Li Su had spent the past few days secretly studying and silently reciting the Diamond Sutra, just to ensure he wouldn't expose himself when he eventually opened his mouth.

Although it is said that monks do not prioritize martial arts, they still have to learn them.

After all, regardless of Shaolin Temple's status in the martial arts world, there is the matter of the martial arts it possesses. As the saying goes, "A man is innocent, but his treasure makes him a criminal." Without sufficient strength, the Seventy-Two Ultimate Arts would have been snatched away by others long ago.

Li Su nodded, a look of anticipation appearing in his eyes.

The Nine Yang Divine Skill was likely out of reach, but Shaolin Temple's other techniques were still worth learning. What if he had the chance to study the Muscle Tendon Change in the future? That was, after all, the supreme treasure among all martial arts.

Passing through the corridor, they headed toward the Arhat Hall.

Neither he nor Xuankong were disciples of the Arhat Hall. To be precise, monks like them currently had no specific affiliation. Only after ten years of studying the Dharma and establishing a foundation in Buddhism would the Bodhidharma Institute assign them to a specific department based on their individual circumstances.

Most disciples of the Arhat Hall were secular disciples of Shaolin Temple.

As soon as they arrived, the main hall was bustling with activity, the sounds of martial arts practice ringing in their ears.

It was truly worthy of being the world's most formidable sect; even the simplest and most basic martial arts appeared filled with unyielding vigor.

The practice of Shaolin Temple's techniques generally required coordination with corresponding Buddhist studies; the higher the technique, the deeper the required understanding of Buddhism.

While it was said to be extremely rigid and fierce, one could conversely say it was overly rigid and overly fierce.

Instead of going to the main hall, he followed Xuankong as he turned a corner and headed to a side hall.

At this moment, there were already dozens of young monks there, along with an old monk with a kind expression.

The old monk's Dharma name was Tianming. A disciple of the "Tian" generation, he was a generation senior to Li Su and the others, and also their instructor.

Hm? You ask how Li Su, who had only been here for three days and couldn't even speak, knew so much?

Xuankong had told him.

And the reason Li Su felt Xuankong had grown up a bit "crooked" lay right here.

This little fellow suffered from a very typical case of ADHD; he never stopped for a moment from dawn till dusk. Even if his hands and feet couldn't move, his mouth wouldn't stop.

During the few days Li Su was recovering, this little guy had chattered incessantly in his ear.

He spilled everything he knew; Li Su didn't even have to fish for information, as the boy had poured it all out in one go.

Though, it was admittedly a bit annoying at times.

However, there was no doubt that his presence had helped Li Su quickly grasp a great deal of information.

The old monk glanced at Xuankong and Xuankong as they ran in, then looked at all the young monks present and said, "You have been initiated for a year now and have learned many scriptures. It is time to begin martial arts training. Today, I will teach you our sect's introductory martial art: the Arhat Fist. Remember, our sect's martial arts are primarily for strengthening the body. Practice with humility and patience; do not be overly ambitious, and do not be combative. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master."

Everyone nodded in unison.

"This Arhat Fist consists of eighteen moves in total. Each move has a corresponding stance, and each stance is paired with a breathing technique. It involves breathing and exhaling, circulating qi through the Six Meridians, guarding the heart and dwelling on the affinity, stopping the mind from wandering. It is both internal and external, both spirit and form, both static and dynamic..."

Standing up, the old monk began to demonstrate it directly. Accompanied by his movements, the incredibly simple Arhat Fist whistled with the wind as he performed it. Unlike the external rigidity and invincible ferocity seen in the main Arhat Hall, his movements were instead unified and seamless. The transitions between the fist stances were wide and open, giving off a sense of being able to crush anything.

Faced with this scene, the many young monks were inexplicably shocked, and Li Su couldn't help but widen his eyes, feeling as if he had been struck by lightning.

How the hell could this be called an introductory fist technique?!