Vajra Demon-Subduing Supernatural Art, Ten Forms of No-Thought

The third day in the Scripture Repository.

Morning light streamed through the high windows, casting patches of clear radiance across the dark wooden floor of the second level.

Zhu Yingxiong sat quietly by the window, holding a copy of Dharma Swordplay as he read with complete focus.

Beside him lay several manuals in order: One Reed Crossing the River, Shadow-Following Leg, Ananda Precept-Breaking Saber, and others.

These were all the finest arts he had carefully selected. Once he had recorded the sword formulas and diagrams on the final page of Dharma Swordplay, he gently closed the book.

He then rose, gathered the manuals one by one, and returned them to their original places in the order he had taken them.

Next, he passed through the narrow aisle between two tall bookshelves and came before a shelf at the very back of the Scripture Repository.

The light here was somewhat dimmer. The shelves held Shaolin's secret inner cultivation manuals. Though there were only a dozen or so volumes, every one contained the essence of Shaolin's thousand-year inheritance.

Inner arts such as Arhat Divine Skill, Dragon-Subduing Elephant-Taming Skill, Vajra Indestructible Body Divine Skill, and Vajra Demon-Subduing Supernatural Art made even someone who possessed a supreme method like the Muscle-Tendon Transformation Scripture itch with desire upon seeing them.

After all, each of these represented a pinnacle path of inner cultivation, possessing unique realms that could not be replaced. The Dragon-Subduing Elephant-Taming Skill could grant one peerless dragon-elephant strength, while the Vajra Indestructible Body Divine Skill was hailed as the foremost divine art of protective defense.

He gave several of the inner cultivation manuals he favored a rough read, but ultimately chose the Vajra Demon-Subduing Supernatural Art. This manual was relatively rare and unusual. Most cultivation arts either focused solely on internal energy, cultivated both internally and externally, or progressed from the outer to the inner.

This art, however, used pure internal energy as its foundation to nourish and temper the body in return, producing an overbearing supernatural art that was indestructible and incomparably fierce. It was acclaimed as Shaolin's greatest external art of the past thousand years.

At last, he strolled over to the shelf marked "Miscellaneous."

Most of the books here were unconventional arts that could not be classified as ordinary fist techniques, weapon arts, or inner cultivation methods, or else specialized arts with particular applications.

The As-You-Wish Bone-Shrinking Skill, for instance, taught one how to circulate true qi and soften the tendons and membranes, allowing the joints and bones throughout the body to contract, extend, and shift within a certain range. Though it was not a hard combat technique, it had remarkable effects in infiltration, escaping predicaments, and disguise.

The Robe Demon-Subduing Skill explained how to infuse pure internal energy into an ordinary monk's robe, making it soft as clouds and water when pliant, yet harder than iron and leather when rigid. With a sweep, it could bind enemies, seize weapons, or protect the body. It was a unique martial art that placed extreme demands on one's internal cultivation and skillful application of force.

The Supreme Prayer-Bead Demon-Subduing Divine Skill used one hundred and eight Buddhist prayer beads as weapons, controlling them with internal energy. They could serve as a whip-like flexible weapon, or be imbued with true force and shot forth, combining the speed of hidden weapons with the ferocity of heavy weapons in endlessly complex variations.

Such exceptional arts could broaden his means of dealing with enemies. He intended to record them all first, enriching his foundation.

When he came across a copy of Miscellaneous Agama Skill, he initially paid it no mind, assuming it was another unconventional technique.

Yet after casually flipping through a few pages and skimming the core principles, his gaze suddenly froze. This was not a direct art of attack or defense, but an exceedingly unique auxiliary cultivation method.

Its core characteristic was "drawing inferences from one instance to understand all related cases," allowing practitioners to master other martial arts with twice the result for half the effort.

This martial art was worth spending extra time studying in depth.

After recording it, he turned to a thin booklet whose cover was entirely unadorned, bearing only the inked title Ten Forms of No-Thought.

His movements paused slightly.

He knew this martial art. It had been created by the current foremost figure of Shaolin, the Wuxiang Monk.

Wuxiang Monk's original Dharma name had been Bunian. After creating the "No-Thought Skill," he changed his Dharma name to Wuxiang.

As the direct disciple of Juejie, the former leader of the righteous path, he was now not only a pillar of Shaolin but also one of only two grandmasters in the Council of Twelve Elders of the righteous path's "Eight Schools Alliance."

To avenge his master, he had challenged Pang Ban twice. Though he had been defeated both times, he had lost with honor. The entire realm admired his courage and martial prowess.

With a touch of respect and curiosity, he gently opened the booklet.

The opening passage read:

"Body is the Dharma body; form is prajna; function is liberation. If one practices cessation and contemplation, one attains concentration and wisdom. Concentration and wisdom illuminate the heart, and virtue and form become complete."

As he read further, waves gradually rose in his heart. The Ten Forms of Formlessness were divided into ten realms: Thought-Cessation, Spirit-Stillness, Intent-Discarding, Contemplation... until the final realm, Non-Abiding.

This was actually a pure heart-cultivation method, a mental art devoted entirely to meditative concentration. Every realm cultivated the original thought of the Zen heart.

Without realizing it, he became utterly absorbed. The true qi of the Muscle-Tendon Transformation Scripture within him seemed to be stirred by these subtle and profound Zen principles, circulating of its own accord and clarifying his mind.

Following the method of "Thought-Cessation," he cast aside distracting thoughts and gathered his mind... At first, it still required deliberate effort, but gradually, his mind settled like muddy water coming to rest. He entered a state of "Spirit-Stillness," unaware of all things as every sound faded into silence.

Thus, distracting thoughts scattered like floating clouds. Then came "Intent-Discarding," where even the thought of entering meditation quietly dissolved, leaving only a single point of undying clarity within his spiritual platform.

Unaware of time passing, his mind became like a mirror, reflecting the flow of qi throughout his body and even the shifting light and shadows outside the window with perfect clarity, yet remaining unmoved.

As he wandered within that ineffable, mysterious meditative state, a faint sound suddenly came from the stairs.

A moment later, a figure ascended the steps and stopped at the entrance to the second floor.

It was Yuan Hui.

Zhu Yingxiong had already entered the fourth realm, "Contemplation." Though everything around him was reflected in his heart, he remained immersed in meditation.

Yuan Hui first looked around. Upon spotting Zhu Yingxiong, he hesitated, intending to approach.

But he suddenly noticed that Zhu Yingxiong, standing sideways, seemed like an ancient pine or a weathered boulder. His aura was barely there, as though he had melded into the aged fragrance of books in the Scripture Repository and the daylight beyond the windows, tranquil and harmonious.

Yuan Hui stood there in a daze. Watching this scene, he too became lost in thought.

After about the time it took for an incense stick to burn, a faint ripple passed through Zhu Yingxiong's internal qi. The realm of "Contemplation" was wondrous, but his current meditative attainment could not sustain it for long.

His state of mind wavered slightly, and he could no longer maintain that absolute reflection without contamination. Like dust settling on a mirror, he quietly withdrew from deep meditation.

Four realms in a row? A trace of surprise crossed his heart. Could this heart-cultivation method, the Ten Forms of No-Thought, truly suit me so well? Am I perhaps destined for Buddhism, born with innate wisdom?

The lingering hostility and agitation left behind by killing enemies in succession earlier seemed to have been washed away completely. His eyes were clear and tranquil, still carrying a faint lingering resonance of that mysterious realm before returning to their usual gentle calm.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Yuan Hui." Zhu Yingxiong turned and pressed his palms together in salute, his voice warm and peaceful.

Looking at the turned-around Zhu Yingxiong, Yuan Hui felt that although this junior brother's appearance was unchanged, his bearing had become ever more calm and restrained. It was as though a gentle radiance had settled between his brows, making him seem even more detached from the mundane world than before.

The faint thoughts in his heart, mixed with sympathy and a subtle urge to compare himself with the other man due to Zhu Yingxiong's recent experiences, suddenly seemed utterly insignificant. In their place arose a purer competitive spirit.

Thus, the words of comfort that might originally have left his mouth became, "It seems Junior Brother Yuan Zhen's martial arts have improved again."

After saying that, as though unwilling to discuss it further, he gave Zhu Yingxiong a slight nod, then turned toward the palm-technique shelves and picked up Great Compassion Thousand-Leaf Hand to read.

Though he had left the realm of "Contemplation," a trace of its mysterious perception remained. It allowed Zhu Yingxiong to vaguely sense the complex shift in Yuan Hui's emotions in that instant.

He merely smiled at this and did not take it to heart.

He withdrew his gaze and returned his attention to the vast treasury of martial arts before him. What he would examine next was another rather special category of exceptional arts: combination techniques requiring the cooperation of several people and containing the subtle principles of formations, such as the Shaolin Vajra Demon-Subduing Circle and the Arhat Formation.

Yet after searching through every collection on the second floor, he never found the Marrow-Cleansing Scripture.

Could the Marrow-Cleansing Scripture not be stored here? It seemed he would need to find an opportunity to ask his master, Abbot Worryless, about it.