LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 197 Return
"Young Master Tao has quite the temper…"
Upon hearing Tao Yu's subsequent discussion of the 'cooperation' issue, Abbot Tian Ming's expression also stiffened.
Feeling the strand of pure True Qi within him that had just been suppressed but not yet extracted, and seeing the two halves of the Mahavira Hall plaque on the ground, his heart was a mixture of conflicting emotions.
You call this a good temper?
"Your temple has not suffered a single casualty yet, has it? If it were another Pioneer with my strength, I could subdue everyone and then feed them controlling drugs, and you would all have to comply obediently, wouldn't you?"
This time, Tao Yu was not merely bluffing these senior monks.
Pioneers indeed have such a nature!
A group of Inner City Pioneers, bringing along some elite Outsiders, could cooperate to attack Shaolin, clear this copy, killing and capturing, and then use 'happy' drugs to control them—this was not impossible.
How many monks were capable of withstanding bullets? And their Inner Strength would soon be exhausted.
Plus with shoulder-mounted cannons and such, these monks would stand no chance.
Or rather, if they knew the value of Shaolin and the difficulty of practicing The 72 Ultimate Arts, it was almost inevitable!
"Controlling drugs…"
Abbot Tian Ming's expression changed.
Such things did exist, with the Three Corpses Brain God Pill, Leopard Fetus Rejuvenation Pill in the future, and previously the Life-Death Talisman of Lingjiu Palace; these were not beyond Abbot Tian Ming's comprehension.
"Amitabha, did Young Master Tao say you have the ability to reach the heavens with your listening?"
Tian Ming, indeed worthy of his role as an abbot, keenly caught some key information previously revealed by Tao Yu, causing a slight smile to form on Tao Yu's face.
"That's right, for some time now, I've been responsible for pioneering here, and I have contact with the strongest one. I might even have the opportunity to invite her to oversee the skill teaching affairs. Truth be told, even with my strength, I couldn't suppress such profit."
Tao Yu spoke half-seriously, half-jokingly, causing Tian Ming to fall into deep thought.
This was not unfamiliar to Shaolin; they had been through many dynastic changes and had always successfully adapted.
There are no eternal dynasties, but there are eternal families!
And in some ways, how different is Shaolin Temple from these noble families?
Why would they send five thousand stones of grain to Huo Du?
Was it because they had too much grain, or was it really because the Buddha would aid those who were destined?
Isn't it because of their understanding of the times!
"If you truly have the means to invite that individual, then I, the old monk, am not opposed to change within Shaolin."
Abbot Tian Ming was not stubborn.
The world had changed, the Titans to the north had been substantiated, and with verifiable news about the Abyss and the Eastern Sea's Heavenly Abyss, the other party was unlikely to fabricate stories.
No matter how formidable the other side's strength and those terrifying weapons were, they were solid facts.
It shattered Tian Ming's worldview.
Having been preemptively subdued and intimidated by Tao Yu, then reasoning with him afterward, Tao Yu found that these originally obstinate monks were indeed quite reasonable.
Although the cooperation was only tentative and not yet formally settled,
at least the issue of The 72 Ultimate Arts had been resolved!
This was 'equivalent exchange,' not something Tao Yu had taken by force.
With this fig leaf in place, the Shaolin monks were quite forthcoming.
The copy of The 72 Ultimate Arts was directly packed up and taken away by Tao Yu.
Beyond that, he successfully found the Nine Yang Divine Skill in the Lankavatara Sutra and also obtained Shaolin's Muscle-Tendon Change Classic.
This allowed Tao Yu to directly settle the members of the Training Corps to help distribute some of the grain Shaolin provided to the refugees, to practice their language skills, while also immediately starting to conduct preliminary research in the chambers of Shaolin.
"The Muscle-Tendon Change Classic is not quite suitable, what a pity…"
Tao Yu, now no longer a novice in Inner Strength cultivation, with knowledge from Old Man Ao and familiarity with the Nine Yin True Scripture up to now, was able to differentiate between the two top-tier Internal Cultivation Methods.
The Muscle-Tendon Change Classic and the Nine Yin True Scripture overlapped significantly, both emphasizing 'purity.' Without practicing both, it was difficult to determine which was superior, but one Buddhist and one Taoist, their ultimate paths were vastly different.
"However, the Nine Yang Divine Skill should be compatible, though there are still a few minor issues to resolve."
At first glance, the Nine Yin True Scripture and the Nine Yang Divine Skill seem to be contradictory.
But in reality, they were not.
The Fundamental Law of the Nine Yin True Scripture is the Northern Dipper, which is also a pure Taoist Inner Strength that balances yin and yang.
And the Nine Yang Divine Skill, being extremely yang and vigorous, boasts a unique continuous recovery ability, enabling Inner Strength to keep regenerating indefinitely.
"Although they can be practiced concurrently, both types of True Qi are equally dominant, and without a central harmonizing method, it might not necessarily be beneficial."
Tao Yu pondered in his heart.
He was not afraid of damaging his meridians, but if there would be interference when he mobilized them, it wasn't necessarily true that 1+1 was greater than 1.
"This method of harmonization, besides the yet-to-be-created Tai Chi Fist, should be the Great Shift of Qiankun or Dou Zhuan Xing Yi. I can consider them next time I come over," he mused.
Tao Yu carelessly tossed the secret technique into the shadows, then stood up, pushed the door open, and left.
With the two most valuable martial arts having conflicts, one not being suitable to learn at the moment, Tao Yu felt that since he had made the trip, he should still gain something for himself.
In the end, he chose two of the 72 Ultimate Arts from Shaolin.
One was naturally the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill, and the other was the Flicking Flower Finger.
The Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill needs no further explanation; even with Demonization, Tao Yu still felt his defensive power was not enough.
It would be too grievous to be killed in a sneak attack, so he had to increase his margin for error.
The Flicking Flower Finger, on the other hand, was a finger technique Tao Yu had carefully selected, mainly aiming to combine it with the "Finger Flicking Wonder."
Flicking Flower Finger's forte was its stealth and gentleness; it could also release force through the air. It was one of the three finger techniques that Jiumozhi used for trading the Six-Vein Divine Swords, actions that were almost invisible.
And without a doubt, strengthening of the finger force would also enhance the Finger Flicking Wonder.
This would be a machine that could integrate many of his abilities into a unified whole.
Shaolin Temple had very high requirements for imparting the 72 Ultimate Arts, but this also created another rare situation.
That was that most of the monks in the Dharma Hall who practiced asceticism only specialized in one ultimate technique, and only a few practiced more than one.
And the monks qualified to practice ascetically in the Dharma Hall were not lacking in talent.
Years of ascetic practice in one ultimate technique meant that their understanding and insight exceeded that of ordinary people, and Tao Yu also got to experience firsthand the teaching ability of future 'Shaolin Training Halls'!
In three days' time, he had already successfully entered the gateways of both the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill and the Flicking Flower Finger.
"Brother Tao is truly a prodigious genius; he has entered the gateways of the 72 Ultimate Arts so swiftly. However, Brother Tao must take note that because of the tremendous power of the 72 Ultimate Arts, practicing them concurrently may lead to some unforeseeable conflicts," Abbot Tian Ming said with a face full of emotion.
"This is the convenience we Pioneers have; I am well aware of it. As long as the ultimate techniques are sufficient, biting off more than one can chew is unwise," Tao Yu replied confidently.
Indeed, Tao Yu had never considered learning all 72 Ultimate Arts.
The cost of Deification for each one was secondary; he would certainly have enough after returning to complete the task.
The main issue was that the laborious initial learning stage would take a lot of time, and even after acquiring them, he would need time to practice, so he was not going to confuse priorities.
"Amitabha, as long as Brother Tao understands, that is enough. Might I inquire about the Chosen One you mentioned..."
Tian Ming's visit this time, besides offering compliments, was also motivated by the curiosity about the Chosen One Tao Yu spoke of finding for them.
Knowing that Yuan Force could be strengthened, and that a Chosen One was a Child of Destiny with boundless prospects, Shaolin had no resistance to this proposal and agreed readily—it was one of the bargaining chips they had promised.
"He's arrived. His world seems to be some sort of minor world, which is why his martial arts foundation is extremely poor. However, he could gain enhancements by killing beings with Yuan Force, and currently, the Titans in this world seem likely..."
Tao Yu saw Zhang Hao running up the stairs using the Light Body Technique with a smile on his face.
"Brother Zhang, I have reached an agreement with the esteemed monks of Shaolin. From now on, you can cultivate the profound martial arts of Shaolin here and, moreover, they will also try to assist you in hunting Titans for advancement. Would you be willing to become a lay disciple of Shaolin?" Tao Yu asked.
Upon hearing Tao Yu's words, Zhang Hao's expression briefly stiffened as if recalling something, and there was a momentary daze in his eyes.
But then he spoke with certainty,
"As a Chosen One, I have a grave duty to save the people of the world. Without strength, that cannot be achieved. My own power is negligible, and I am fortunate to have Brother Tao's guidance, and I'm grateful to Shaolin for taking me in. I, Zhang Hao, am willing to become a lay disciple of Shaolin..."
It was settled.
Using Zhang Hao as a leverage point and solidifying the relationship with Shaolin, Tao Yu was able to resolve some of the previous conflicts in the Mahavira Hall.
In the future, they had to work together to make money and it wasn't possible to enforce cooperation with pressure alone.
Now, he could finally go back for five days to report his safety and then work on making more money.
After injecting his remaining Yuan Force into the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill and the Flicking Flower Finger, Tao Yu felt quite satisfied with the results.
The Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill could enhance the defense efficiency of True Qi, circulating it throughout the body to withstand attacks and even reflect them back at the enemy.
After its Deification, not only was the True Qi's defense efficiency further strengthened, but it could also leave the body and form an Qi wall.
Beyond that, the Qi wall separate from the body could interact and recirculate with the self, making it convenient to replenish and significantly reducing the Qi wall's consumption!
As long as it wasn't under attack, the normal maintenance time of the Qi wall's defense would be greatly extended. In some dangerous scenarios requiring vigilance and defense, he could set it up in advance, significantly increasing the margin for error.
Paired with Demonization, Tao Yu finally felt that he had robust resistance against firearms.
He was always concerned about blowing others' heads off, but he was also always worried about getting his own head blown off in a sneak attack...
However, compared to the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill, the Flicking Flower Finger was rather standard, reinforcing its stealth significantly, and even allowing finger force to merge with the Shadow Force, silent and traceless...
Return!