The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 418 Kumārajīva: Benefactor, please wait!

Under the blazing sun, the ruins of the palace are scattered and broken.

Master Kurong held the thick manuscript in his hands, his eyes fixed intently on the contents, completely absorbed and deeply moved.

He cultivated his life to an extremely profound level through meditation, and even if his Buddha-heart did not reach the state of perfect stillness, it was still beyond the reach of ordinary people.

However, looking at the Nine Yang Divine Skill internal energy cultivation manual in his hand, he still couldn't help but be captivated and unable to control himself.

Benyin, Benguan, Benxiang, and Bencan watched as their senior uncle's expression shifted from frowning to joy, then to astonishment, and finally to horror.
The old face, half-round and half-withered, managed to squeeze out a variety of expressions, which showed that the secret manual of divine skills left behind by the young man surnamed Xu was absolutely extremely valuable.

For a moment, I couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.

In the forest behind the mountain.

Xu Xingchen's figure leaped and bounded among the trees, rocks, and cliffs like a bird, and soon he had covered several miles.

"Benefactor Xu, please wait!"

A mighty sound pierced through the endless forest, echoing and reverberating between the valleys, reaching Xu Xingchen's ears directly.

A smile appeared on Xu Xingchen's lips, but she didn't stop and continued to move forward quickly.

Even though he couldn't use any special techniques, his movements were still as swift as the wind and as graceful as clouds. Occasionally, he would take a few steps, his figure flashing like a fairy on water.

Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!
In a very short time, he ran several miles and arrived near a waterfall.

"Benefactor Xu, why are you in such a hurry? Why didn't you say you'd wait for this humble monk!"

Another sound pierced through the gap between the trees and the valley, like an invisible dragon catching up with Xu Xingchen's figure.

Xu Xingchen, who was running at full speed, suddenly stopped in her tracks, sensing something.

Turn around, look up, and gaze at the sky!
The rolling mountains, like irregular saw teeth, cut a winding river out of the vast blue sky.

The towering trees at the bottom of the valley and on both sides are the green water plants beneath the river, swaying incessantly with the gentle breeze that resembles ripples on water.

In that winding blue river, a bright red carp darted swiftly across the calm water.

Xu Xingchen looked closely and realized that it wasn't a red carp swimming upstream in the river at all. Instead, it was a figure enveloped in fiery red flames flying through the air.

It traversed a distance of several dozen feet, flashed over Xu Xingchen's head, and landed in an arc on a large rock next to the waterfall in front of him.

The white waterfall roared down from the mountainside, creating a misty spray that splashed onto the figure burning with raging flames.

Wow.
It immediately evaporated into large swaths of white mist.

"Benefactor Xu, we meet again!"

Accompanied by Kumārajīva's familiar voice, the raging flames in the white mist suddenly subsided and disappeared without a trace.

Xu Xingchen turned around and looked at the yellow figure in the gradually dissipating mist. He smiled happily and said, "Is this the legendary Qi-based flight? Master, you have indeed cultivated to the highest realm of martial arts, the Heavenly Realm. No wonder you were able to fight five against one and be evenly matched with the five eminent monks of Tianlong Temple!"

The white mist, which was about to dissipate, suddenly accelerated and rolled out to both sides. Kumārajīva stepped out and landed on the grass three zhang in front of Xu Xingchen.

With a solemn and dignified appearance, Kumārajīva clasped his hands together in a gesture of respect and said with a smile, "This humble monk has only recently broken through to the next level, and I have made a fool of myself in front of Benefactor Xu!"

Xu Xingchen waved his hand and said, "Master, how can you say I'm making a fool of myself? My martial arts are mediocre. I haven't mastered a single extraordinary technique yet, and I haven't been able to advance to the Earth Realm. Compared to you, Master, I am the one who is truly useless!"

Kumārajīva's face showed surprise: "Benefactor Xu, you are too modest! In the world, there are very few martial artists who can withstand the attack of the Six Meridians Divine Sword of Tianlong Temple with their bare hands, let alone those at the Earth Realm. Even the top masters at the Heaven Realm might not be able to do it."

"May I ask, Benefactor Xu, what kind of divine skill do you cultivate? Could you please tell me?"

Xu Xingchen said slowly, "I don't deny that the martial arts I practice are unparalleled, but I really haven't reached the Earth Realm."

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore. You wouldn't believe me anyway."

"As for the martial art I practice, it's called Yin-Yang Qi Gong; you must not have heard of it, Master!"

Kumārajīva's face showed a look of doubt. After thinking for a while, he finally smiled wryly and said, "The world is indeed full of wonders; I have never heard of the Yin-Yang Qi Gong that you practice; however, a martial art that can be named after Yin and Yang must be extraordinary."

"This humble monk wishes to learn a few moves from you. I wonder if Benefactor Xu would be willing to teach me?"

Xu Xingchen laughed: "What a coincidence! I would also like to learn a few moves from you, Master!"

In an instant, the smiles on both of their faces vanished.

His expression turned extremely serious, his eyes gleamed, and his aura surged.

next moment.
Two figures shot out rapidly, colliding like lightning.

Bang!
With a deafening roar, the two figures separated rapidly, only to collide again in a flash. *Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!*
Amidst a series of powerful booming sounds, two figures moved like dragons, leaping and bounding near the waterfall.

They moved as fast as two blurry shadows.

Wherever they went.
Trees snapped and broke with a crash, and spiderweb-like cracks appeared on rocks.

In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged thirty moves.

Amidst the fierce battle, Kumārajīva's voice rang out: "Benefactor Xu, your physical strength shouldn't be limited to this; please unleash your true power and let this humble monk witness it!"

Xu Xingchen's voice rang out: "Since it is the master's wish, then I shall respectfully comply. Be careful!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Xingchen threw a punch.

The air was instantly blasted apart, creating a three-foot-wide white ring of air.

Under this violent and domineering power, even though Kumārajīva was prepared, he was still sent flying backward.

His back slammed hard against the trunk of a large tree three zhang away, breaking the tree, which was so big that it would take one person to hug it, in two.

Amidst the deafening crash of the collapsing tree canopy, Kumārajīva landed on the ground, feeling the surging blood and qi within his body, his expression grave.

Xu Xingchen strode over and stopped three zhang in front of him, smiling as he said, "Master, how did you feel the power of my punch?"

Kumārajīva stared intently at the young man before him, who was much younger than himself, scrutinizing him carefully for a long while. Only after his internal energy had calmed down did he slowly say, "Benefactor Xu's physical strength is beyond my imagination; in terms of physical strength alone, I'm afraid no one in the world can compare to Benefactor Xu."

To everyone's surprise, Xu Xingchen shook his head and said, "That's not entirely true."

"I have heard that in a secret temple among your Western Regions kingdoms, there is a peerless divine skill called the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill."

"Legend has it that it has thirteen levels; with each level achieved, the physical body gains the power of a dragon and an elephant; when one cultivates to the thirteenth level of mastery, one will possess the divine power of thirteen dragons and thirteen elephants; it is incredibly powerful, but unfortunately, I have never had the chance to see it."

Upon hearing this, Kumārajīva's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Oh? Such divine skill exists in the world? I've been in the Western Regions for so many years, how come I've never heard of it before?"

Xu Xingchen said, "It's normal that I haven't heard of Hades, because it's extremely difficult to cultivate the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique."

"It takes an ordinary person seven years to cultivate to the first level; fourteen years to cultivate to the second level; and the cultivation time doubles again to reach the third level."

"The subsequent realms are all the same; with each advancement, the cultivation time inevitably doubles; to truly cultivate to the thirteenth level of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique, it will take more than a thousand years in total."

Therefore, even the temples that possess this divine skill probably have no one who can master it.

"Since no one has been able to master it, it is impossible for it to become famous in the Western Regions. How could the master have possibly heard of it?"

Kumārajīva's eyes flashed with a sharp light. After pondering for a long time, he finally spoke, "Benefactor Xu, who in this world can master the cultivation method you just mentioned? And who can possess a lifespan of over a thousand years?"

"It seems that if a cultivator is intelligent and insightful, and possesses exceptional martial arts talent, it shouldn't take that long."

Xu Xingchen nodded and said, "Master, you must be a wise and insightful person to understand this so quickly."

"Indeed, there was someone who actually cultivated the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique to the tenth level in the past. Their power was unparalleled throughout history, and there were very few people in the world who could rival them."

"However, even that person never imagined he could cultivate the Dragon Elephant Prajna Technique to the eleventh level; because that was a realm that no one before him had reached, let alone the twelfth or thirteenth levels."

Kumārajīva exclaimed in admiration, "Such miraculous martial arts exist in the world?! When I return to the Western Regions, I must pay a proper visit to all the major temples!"

Then, his expression turned solemn, and his fighting spirit surged once more: "This humble monk has just experienced the physical strength of Benefactor Xu and admits defeat; now, let this humble monk experience the extraordinary skills of Benefactor Xu!"

Clearly, he did not believe the claim that Xu Xingchen possessed such unfathomable internal strength yet had not condensed the talisman of extraordinary techniques, and wanted to test him further.

As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his sleeves and chopped forward with his palm.

A red light emanated from the edge of his palm, expanding in the wind and instantly forming a flaming longsword about ten feet long and three feet wide.

A flash of red light appeared in the air, and the flaming longsword had already slashed six feet away from Xu Xingchen, its momentum domineering and unparalleled.

Xu Xingchen threw another punch.

The air exploded like transparent ripples, colliding with the flaming longsword.

Bang!
With a loud crackling sound, the flaming longsword paused for a moment before breaking through the ripples and continuing its downward strike.

But Xu Xingchen's figure had already appeared under a large tree about ten feet away.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh.
One after another, incredibly sharp and fierce finger strikes shot out, as dense and swift as a storm.

However, it turned out that the five fingers of Kumārajīva's other hand bloomed like lotus flowers, and shot out a series of Dora-leaf finger strikes.

(End of this chapter)