Chapter 452 - 222: Kasaya Demon Suppression Skill 2

"Esteemed Sect Leaders, there is no need for us to take the front path up the mountain. We can fly directly up from the rear..."

"Oh? Excellent. Shaolin is truly one of the great Sects. Such bearing is indeed extraordinary."

Tang Zhengfei, the Sect Leader of the Tang Sect, stroked his beard in admiration. Ordinarily, a Sect would never allow guests to fly directly over their mountain gate.

Nor would guests be so impolite, unless they came seeking revenge or looking for trouble.

Shaolin’s conduct today was truly admirable.

After a few words of praise, the leaders glanced at the disciples they had brought with them. Then, they leaped into the air, unleashing the Peak Void Crossing Light Skill. Enveloping their disciples, they flew toward Shaoshi Mountain.

The crowd of onlookers at the foot of the mountain saw the group emerge and expected them to walk their way. In the blink of an eye, however, the members of the various Sects leaped into the air and flew directly toward the peak.

Gasps of astonishment immediately rippled through the crowd.

Leaping hundreds of feet in a single bound was not difficult for experts of the Martial Dao. Some with exceptional Lightweight Skill could even race along by stepping on blades of grass, using the most minuscule of footholds to travel at speed.

But that was worlds apart from true flight.

Even masters in the Divine Void Realm couldn’t truly fly. They could only rely on their Divine Soul Power to command powerful True Qi and temporarily glide through the air.

True flight was something only a master of the Dharma Realm could achieve.

This was true flight. Their bodies were as light as swallows, True Qi coursing through them as they stepped on the very air, appearing as graceful as Immortals.

A powerful master could use their Dharma Power to effortlessly lift more than a dozen people into the air simultaneously.

"Amazing! They’re like Immortals."

This scene completely stunned the members of the martial arts world who had gathered to watch the spectacle.

Most of them had only practiced martial arts for a decade or so. It had been just over a year since Spiritual Qi had fully returned to the world, and their strength was at the Grandmaster Realm at best.

Seeing this sudden display, they were all left dumbfounded. They had finally witnessed the true power of the great Sect masters with their own eyes.

Before, they had only ever seen blurry footage on the internet. Witnessing it in person was more than ten times as shocking.

They then recalled the images of a True Dharma Master manifesting their True Dharma Body, a titanic form as large as a mountain.

A single thought couldn’t help but surface in the minds of everyone present.

’So this is the pinnacle of the Martial Dao... it’s just like becoming an Immortal.’

The gasps of astonishment soon turned to sighs.

The experts had flown straight away, disappearing from view.

Over the next hour, the crowd heard only the whistle of air being torn asunder, but they didn’t see a single disciple from any other Sect ascend the mountain.

"Don’t bother waiting. They’ve obviously all flown up the mountain," a Martial Artist at the foot of the mountain complained.

"Then let’s go up and have a look."

"Look at what? We might as well go home to our kids. Even though we know a bit of Martial Arts, in their eyes, we’re no different from random people on the street. Forget about that sweet dream of some expert taking you as a disciple."

"I’m out, I’m out!"

They had waited all morning and seen nothing but a glimpse of the Kongtong Sect.

It was a total waste of time.

Losing interest, some people started to head back down the mountain.

Some left in disappointment, but others persisted, remaining on Shaoshi Mountain and sitting on the ground, waiting for the powerful Sect leaders to reappear.

Inside Shaolin Temple’s Thousand Buddha Hall, a host of dignitaries had gathered, and experts were as numerous as clouds.

Most of the renowned Sects in the Jianghu had sent representatives.

Each of these Sects was presided over by at least one Dharma Realm master. Any Sect lacking a master of this caliber was no longer qualified to attend such a high-level assembly.

Sects such as the Eight Trigrams Sect and the Five Tigers Sect had long since lost their standing due to a lack of disciples and a shortage of experts.

Every single person here represented a great and illustrious Sect of the Jianghu.

Zen Master Huikong, the abbot of Shaolin Temple, was presiding over the Martial Arts assembly.

Seated in places of honor were Elder Zen Master Puhua of the Emei Sect, Sect Leader Zhuge of the Huashan Sect, and other masters from the various great Sects.

Not everyone who came was a Sect Leader. The leaders of many Sects had remained in Gui Xu and not yet returned to the Central Plains. At present, Elders were managing the Sects in their stead.

The Kongtong Sect, for instance, had temporarily appointed a local disciple with a knack for business as their Sect Leader, granting him provisional authority.

Other Sects, like Emei and Kunlun, had sent Elders as their representatives.

Regardless, everyone present represented their respective Sect, so their significance was the same.

"The world is on the brink of chaos, and our Huaxia Martial Arts world is in grave danger. I have taken the liberty of gathering you all here today to discuss our future. Given that the Song Realm cannot hold out for much longer, I propose we pressure the government to open a path between the Song Realm and the Central Plains, so that we may bring our people back."

"Zen Master, I fear such a move would provoke resentment and misunderstanding from the current government..."

"Alas... I previously dispatched three Martial Monks from the Dharma Hall, equipped with communication devices, in an attempt to return to the Song Realm. Unfortunately, we have yet to hear anything from them."

"This..."

Hearing Zen Master Huikong’s words, the faces of everyone present changed. The Martial Monks of the Dharma Hall were, at minimum, masters of the Dharma Realm, and the Eighteen Arhats were powerful enough to rival the top Elders of any Sect.

For masters of such caliber to vanish without a trace after entering the Song Realm... it was impossible that something hadn’t gone terribly wrong.

"The Zen Master is right. Although we have already relocated to the Central Plains, the Song Realm is our homeland. I’m sure we all understand the principle that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold."

"I propose that while we apply pressure to the higher-ups, we also dispatch our Sects’ elite members to form an advance party and investigate the true situation in the Song Realm!" Mr. Zhuge of the Huashan Sect spoke, his expression grave and his brow furrowed.

"Mr. Zhuge has a point..."

Everyone nodded in agreement. After all, each of their Sects had left behind considerable top-tier fighting strength in the Gui Xu Song Realm. If those members could return, their Sects’ power would increase dramatically.

Martial Arts assemblies came in two types: civil and martial.

In other words, talking and fighting.

Discussing important matters of the Martial Arts world was, naturally, a civil affair.

But choosing an alliance leader or deciding the fate of a Sect naturally required a martial approach.

This time, it was clearly a civil assembly.

After discussing the Gui Xu Song Realm, the assembly moved on to the matter of the invasions by the Great Shang and Great Zhou.

This also included the recent incidents where masters from the Evil Dao had attacked the various Sects.

With communications from Gui Xu cut off and the Evil Dao launching a full-scale invasion, it was hard not to connect the two.

The pressure weighing on the hearts of the Sect Leaders and Elders grew heavier still.

If the Song Realm fell, the Great Shang would march straight in and occupy Southeast Asia.

At that point, with enemy forces on the borders of Liangguang and Yunnan, the entire Central Plains would truly be caught between two fronts.

And that wasn’t even counting the Wilderness Beasts gradually reawakening and returning along the Southeast Coast.

"Amitabha Buddha. The world is in chaos, and demons run rampant. Now is the time for us, the Righteous Dao, to uphold justice and maintain order in the Martial Arts world. Everyone, after a century of resistance, we have finally come to this. If we retreat any further, there will be nowhere left for us to go."

"Who’s there?"

Just as a heavy mood fell over the assembly, Zen Master Huikong suddenly removed the Buddha Beads from his wrist. They instantly transformed into streaks of light that shot through the roof of the Thousand Buddha Hall, seeking a target outside.

"The nerve!"

The Martial Monks guarding the hall shouted in unison and leaped onto the roof.

"Haha, is this how Shaolin treats its guests?"

A resonant voice boomed from the rooftop, followed by the sound of clashing fists and feet.

A moment later, with a series of THUDS, several figures fell from the roof, crashing onto the floor of the great hall and letting out muffled groans.

It was the same Martial Monks who had just leaped onto the roof.

"If you have come to Shaolin as a guest, Your Excellency, my humble temple, though poor, can still offer some fine tea..."

"Poor? Heh, that’s the biggest joke I’ve ever heard."

The man on the roof was clad in black and wore a mask made from the skull of a Demon Beast. His gaze was as sharp as a sword as he fearlessly swept his eyes over the numerous Martial Arts masters below.

"A bunch of worthless rabble. Once the Great Zhou Royal Master arrives, you’ll be nothing but mantises trying to stop a chariot—utterly crushed!" the man in black shouted arrogantly.

"Amitabha Buddha. In that case, Patron, you should stay here in Shaolin."

Huikong’s Kasaya flew out in an instant. It grew with the wind, immediately enveloping the man in black.

"The Kasaya Demon Suppression Skill... Huikong, you’ve actually mastered several of the Seventy-Two Profound Skills. It seems I underestimated you."

The man in black, now trapped within the Kasaya, continuously unleashed his Martial Arts, fighting against the robe’s constricting power.