Chapter 317: Old Monk, What Do You Say Now?

Upon seeing this, the people of the Shaolin Temple also retreated. Those who had come to watch the commotion hid even further away, leaving a large empty space in front of the Shaolin Temple’s mountain gate.

There, Yu Xian remained seated on his horse, while the Sweeping Monk still held his broom. Neither seemed to have moved, yet everyone could clearly sense that the aura between them had changed.

They must have already engaged in an intense battle.

Indeed, Yu Xian and the Sweeping Monk had already begun a contest within their consciousness.

This confrontation on the level of consciousness was far more dangerous than any physical Martial Arts visible to the naked eye. Every collision of mental power seemed capable of tearing through the Void Realm, causing disturbances in the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

Within Yu Xian’s Sea of Consciousness, he held a brilliant longsword with a sharp Sword Intent. He unleashed the full form of the Nine Revolutions Profound Sky Sword Technique, pointing directly at the simple Buddhist Bell formed by the Sweeping Monk’s Divine Soul.

The Buddhist Bell tolled slowly, its sound containing endless Buddhist principles and compassion. With every vibration, it attempted to neutralize Yu Xian’s Sword Intent into nothingness.

However, Yu Xian’s Sword Intent was far too overbearing. It was a Sword Intent that the System had achieved through the Fusion of many peerless Martial Arts essences; it was not something that could be easily dissipated. The clash between the sword and the bell set off waves of turbulence within the space of consciousness, and the spreading aftershocks caused the surrounding space to slightly distort.

The Sweeping Monk’s expression was grave. He felt the majesty and tenacity of Yu Xian’s Sword Intent, which far exceeded his imagination. He had originally thought that with his deep Buddhist cultivation and Divine Soul Realm, he could easily suppress Yu Xian, but he never expected to fall into such a stalemate.

Yu Xian was also fully focused. He knew how formidable the Sweeping Monk was; this old monk’s attainments in Buddhist Dharma had already reached the Transcendent level, and his Divine Soul power contained the ultimate truths of the Buddhist Sect. If he were not careful, he too might suffer a loss in this mental confrontation.

But his conviction was firm. He unleashed all his fused Martial Arts, including the Nine Revolutions Profound Sky Sword Technique, the Nine Revolutions Celestial Skill, and the Xiaoyao Divine Palm.

As time passed, the confrontation between their consciousnesses became increasingly fierce.

Yu Xian’s Sword Intent suddenly infused with a decisive killing intent, instantly increasing the power of that brilliant longsword by several degrees.

Under the impact of this sharp killing intent, fine cracks began to appear on the body of the Sweeping Monk’s Buddhist Bell, and the tolling of the bell became somewhat chaotic.

The Sweeping Monk was startled; he hadn’t expected Yu Xian to have such a hidden card.

This killing intent was so strong that it could actually shake the defense of his Buddhist Bell. However, he was a high monk of Shaolin after all, with a steady Heart-Nature. He quickly stabilized his mind and began to chant an obscure Buddhist scripture.

The sound of the scripture echoed within the space of consciousness, transforming into golden runes that attached themselves to the Buddhist Bell, repairing the fine cracks while simultaneously strengthening the bell’s defensive power.

Seeing this, a cold sneer played at the corners of Yu Xian’s mouth. The longsword in his hand suddenly vibrated and transformed into a streak of light, piercing straight toward the newly repaired Buddhist Bell.

“Bang!” Following a loud explosion, the Sweeping Monk’s Buddhist Bell shattered into pieces within the space of consciousness. The Sweeping Monk was also injured by Yu Xian’s Sword Qi; not only was he shaken back several steps, but he also looked at Yu Xian in terror.

How is this possible? How could Yu Xian have such high cultivation? How could such a level of cultivation be allowed to exist?

“Pfft!”

In reality, the Sweeping Monk suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. The broom in his hand fell dejectedly to the ground, and his entire body began to sway as if he might collapse!

“What powerful Martial Arts!” The Sweeping Monk struggled to support his body, looking at Yu Xian in disbelief.

At this moment, although Yu Xian had also gone through a great battle, he still maintained his original posture, a faint smile hanging on his face.

After this clash with the Sweeping Monk, he felt he was one step closer to that Celestial Realm.

“Old monk, what do you say now?” With a playful curl of his lip, Yu Xian looked at the Sweeping Monk with a smile.

The Sweeping Monk’s face was a dark purple, filled with resentment, but he was now powerless. Yu Xian had exceeded his imagination; he was far too terrifying.

“From this day forward, the Shaolin Temple will close its gates for thirty years and no longer concern itself with the affairs of the Jianghu. Xuan Ci, you… come out.” The Sweeping Monk finished speaking with difficulty and then called Xuan Ci out.

The Jianghu people who had come to watch were in an uproar upon hearing this. No one expected this disturbance to end in such a dramatic fashion.

The Shaolin Temple, a pillar of the Martial Forest that had stood in the Jianghu for centuries, was actually going to close its gates for thirty years. This would undoubtedly set off a massive storm within the Jianghu.

Abbot Xuan Ci slowly walked out, his expression calm as if he had already anticipated all of this. He looked at Yu Xian with a complex gaze, containing both amazement at Yu Xian’s Martial Arts and helplessness regarding Shaolin’s fate.

“Benefactor Yu, this old monk is willing to take full responsibility. I only hope you can keep your promise and stop making things difficult for Shaolin,” Xuan Ci said, giving Yu Xian a bow.

Yu Xian smiled slightly, his gaze sweeping over everyone present before finally landing on Xuan Ci.

“Abbot Xuan Ci, although your actions back then were understandable, they ultimately led to a great catastrophe. Today’s result is the fruit of the seeds you sowed. I hope that by closing for thirty years, Shaolin can truly reflect on its mistakes and return peace to the Jianghu.”

Abbot Xuan Ci nodded silently, then turned to face the Shaolin monks and said in a heavy voice, “Disciples, hear my command. From this day forth, Shaolin will close its gates for thirty years to focus on Buddhist cultivation and will no longer involve itself in Jianghu matters, in order to atone for our sins.”

Hearing this, although the Shaolin monks were unwilling, they knew the situation was beyond their control and lowered their heads in agreement one after another.

Xuan Ci bowed to Yu Xian, then turned toward Xiao Feng and gave another deep bow. Then, he sat cross-legged on the spot. After chanting a Buddhist invocation, his head slumped to the side, and a trail of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. He had passed away, having severed his own heart meridians.

For a moment, silence fell before the Shaolin Temple’s mountain gate. Only the whistling wind remained, as if recounting the end of this storm.

Seeing this, Yu Xian nodded with satisfaction, then looked at The Women beside him and smiled, “Let’s go.”

With a wave of his sleeve, he led everyone away, leaving behind only their silhouettes as they gradually vanished into the sunset.

From then on, Beyond the Heavens became a terrifying and legendary existence in the Jianghu.

Those forces that once harbored ill intentions toward Beyond the Heavens or dared to provoke it were now silent like cicadas in winter, not daring to make the slightest move.

And the fame of Beyond the Heavens, following this world-shaking duel with Shaolin, swept through the entire Jianghu like a gale.

Every sect in the Jianghu re-evaluated Beyond the Heavens, regarding it as a colossus that must not be easily provoked.

Yu Xian paid no mind to any of this, leaving Xiao Feng to handle things as he saw fit. Having dealt with Shaolin, his next goal was the Celestial Realm.

However, even Zhang Sanfeng had never touched upon the Celestial Realm, so he could not offer any help; Yu Xian could only grope his way forward on his own.

Through his once-a-month Cultivation Technique Fusion, he picked out techniques worth fusing and merged them bit by bit. However, he was in no hurry and took things slowly.

He was already invincible in this world, yet he had no clue about the Celestial Realm. Therefore, Yu Xian decided to continue traveling; perhaps he might gain some insight.