Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 114 The Great Vajra Pestle

The monk reacted quickly, swinging his left arm down, sweeping his right arm horizontally, and kicking with a flick of his foot—a brilliant move that combined offense and defense.

With Jiang Mingzhe's current skill level, if he wanted to use brute force to overcome all techniques, one claw strike would be enough to overwhelm even the monk's ten arms.

But Jiang Mingzhe was determined to see just how powerful the world-renowned Shaolin Kung Fu really was. Instead of using internal force or poison to deceive people, he changed his moves and switched to "Tendon-Severing Hand," the third move of the Centipede Claw. His three fingers were stiff, stabbing upwards at the arm and downwards at the leg, with the landing points being the knotted muscles in the arm and leg.

The monk, recognizing the danger, simultaneously pulled back his arms and legs, while his other leg shot out, sweeping towards Jiang Mingzhe's waist. Jiang Mingzhe twisted his body, slid away, and laughed, "You happen to know how to use your legs?"

Upon hearing this, the monk assumed that Jiang Mingzhe was also going to use his leg, but unexpectedly, Jiang Mingzhe used both claws to grab the monk's collarbone. The monk angrily said, "Are you cheating?" He quickly used the move "Arhat Embracing the Bell," lifting his arms upward as if embracing a heavy object.

His original intention was to use his own forearm to knock Jiang Mingzhe's forearm open, but unexpectedly, Jiang Mingzhe retracted his claws, and with his six fingers, he grabbed the monk's arms and laughed, "Who's cheating?" As he spoke, his legs suddenly rose up, using the monk's arms as support, and he kicked wildly with both legs at the same time, like a storm.

This move is the sixteenth move of the Seventeen Moves of the Three Yin Centipede Claw, and also the only leg technique move, called "Hundred Legs Linked".

The Three Yin Centipede Claws are known for their ruthlessness, but this particular move, the Hundred Legs Chain, is extremely violent and fierce.

This move is inspired by a centipede when it goes berserk, springing up to pounce on its opponent. However, while a centipede has many claws, they are useless. But with human legs, it's a different story.

Jiang Mingzhe gripped his opponent's arm tightly with both claws, his fingertips breaking through the skin and digging into the flesh. He hung his entire weight on it, not only preventing his opponent from blocking with his arms, but also ensuring that his own legs did not have to touch the ground, making his kicking speed even more astonishing.

The monk could only bend his knees to defend himself, but he could only block three or four kicks before he was hit repeatedly in the thighs, hips, and ribs, which made a loud thud like drums.

"Senior Brother/Junior Brother Huiyin!"

Seeing that their fellow disciple had suffered a loss, the other three middle-aged monks rushed to help.

Jiang Mingzhe immediately changed his move, pulling his legs back and stomping on Monk Huiyin's lower abdomen. He then raised his claws and kicked, sending Monk Huiyin flying backward with a scream. Jiang Mingzhe also used the force to propel himself forward, somersaulting backward and landing steadily. Meanwhile, Monk Xuanbei caught Huiyin.

Xuanbei looked down and saw Huiyin's mouth full of blood, screaming, "Master, the demon has destroyed my dantian..."

Jiang Mingzhe shook his head and sighed, "Why do you, a bald monk, take gains and losses so seriously? If you lose your martial arts, you lose them. You should think about how to cure the poison first."

Xuan Bei was startled. His eyes swept over and saw six finger-sized holes on Huiyin's arms. The wounds were bluish-black, indicating that she was severely poisoned. It was Jiang Mingzhe who used the Beiming Transformation Technique to transform a trace of centipede poison.

Xuan Bei said angrily, "The Xingxiu Sect's poisonous arts are truly shameless! Huizhen, Huiguan, Huizhi, when dealing with such evil heretics, there's no need to follow any rules of the martial world. All of you, attack together, capture him, and search for the antidote!"

The three middle-aged monks responded in unison, one throwing a punch, one a palm strike, and one a claw strike, all lunging at Jiang Mingzhe.

Mu Wanqing retorted angrily, "Are you bullying the few because there are many of you?!"

With a flick of his left hand, a crossbow bolt shot out. The bolt was unexpected, fast, and powerful. Just as Monk Huizhi was about to dodge, it struck his shoulder, and he fell to the ground with a scream.

The remaining two, Huizhen and Huiguan, worked together seamlessly. Huizhen shouted and turned to attack Mu Wanqing, while Huiguan continued to attack Jiang Mingzhe. Unexpectedly, Jiang Mingzhe disappeared in a flash. Huizhen turned around in horror and saw Jiang Mingzhe pounce on her from behind, punching her in the bald head. Huizhen immediately fainted.

Jiang Mingzhe used the Lingbo Weibu technique, and Xuan Bei immediately recognized its power. He put down Huiyin and shouted, "Huiguan, get out of the way!"

He leaped forward, lunging straight at Jiang Mingzhe, and in mid-air, he swung his fist, back of his hand down, palm facing up, smashing it down on Jiang Mingzhe's head.

The Shaolin monks of the Xuan generation were renowned for their prestige, and Jiang Mingzhe dared not underestimate them. He unleashed a torrent of internal energy and threw a punch.

With a loud "pop" as their fists collided, Jiang Mingzhe felt an immense force strike him, causing his knuckles to ache as if they were about to break. He groaned and stumbled back seven or eight steps, knocking over several tables and chairs in the process, which startled Mu Wanqing into screaming.

Xuan Bei didn't gain the upper hand either. He tumbled back and staggered back two steps, staring in shock at Jiang Mingzhe. He wondered how this young man could have such strong internal energy. The old monk seemed to have the upper hand, but he knew perfectly well that while the opponent's punch wasn't entirely without technique, it was certainly not a high-level martial art. If the opponent had also mastered a top-level fist technique, he would have been the one who suffered the loss.

Jiang Mingzhe was overjoyed. While stopping Mu Wanqing from protecting him, he waved his hands repeatedly and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I'm fine."

A few days ago, he inhaled the poisonous gas of the Manggu Toad and transformed it into internal energy. He knew that his internal energy had increased greatly, but he did not have an accurate understanding of what level it was.

Xuanbei was one of the top masters in Shaolin Temple. Jiang Mingzhe deliberately clashed with him head-on. Although he suffered a small loss, he realized that in terms of internal strength alone, he was superior to his opponent. He immediately realized that there were probably not many people in the world who could bully him.

His eyes lit up as he looked at Xuanbei: "Old monk, what kind of martial arts is this?"

Xuanbei said, "This is one of the seventy-two unique skills of our sect, the Great Vajra Pestle!"

Jiang Mingzhe nodded, thinking to himself, "I know Wei Tuo. He's a guardian bodhisattva in Buddhism. He's usually found in major temples. He's wearing armor and standing with a vajra (a magical pestle) on his back."

Since this martial art is called the Great Vajra Pestle, it must follow a hard and powerful style. When the fist strikes a person, it is like an iron pestle.

Thinking about the martial arts he had practiced, he realized that the insidious techniques of the Three Yin Centipede Claw were precisely what countered it, and his familiarity with the Netherworld Ghost Claw was insufficient, and it was also somewhat countered by it. He had only mastered seven of the eighteen moves of the Hanging Cloud Sword Technique.

This skill relies entirely on generating power in mid-air, and the combination of internal energy and sword techniques is extremely subtle, making it very difficult to master.

Even if they possessed the Duan family sword technique, they would only know five moves.

After much thought, I realized that my foundation was still too shallow and I lacked a skill that could fully unleash the advantages of my internal strength. In fact, this Great Vajra Pestle was quite good!

He tentatively asked, "Old monk, your boxing technique is very powerful. If you're willing to teach it to me, I'll give you the antidote so you can save your disciple. Is this a worthwhile deal?"

Xuanbei roared angrily, "These heretics and demons dare to covet my Shaolin's secret techniques? Dream on!"

Jiang Mingzhe laughed and said, "It seems you're quite hard-hearted. Since that's the case..."

His voice deepened, and Xuan Bei, thinking he was about to attack, quickly assumed a defensive stance. Unexpectedly, Jiang Mingzhe suddenly turned around, picked up Mu Wanqing, and leaped out of the window, leaving only a voice fading into the distance: "You can slowly figure out how to save those long-tongued donkeys, hahahaha!"

Xuan Bei was furious, but his opponent's lightness skill was unparalleled, far surpassing even his own. He could only curse angrily, "Zhai Xingzi, if anything happens to my disciple, this old monk will surely go to the Starry Sea to seek revenge!"

He then looked at the trembling monk beside him and ordered him, "Quickly tell your Abbot Wuye about this and have him send a physician to save the person!"

By this time, Jiang Mingzhe had already carried Mu Wanqing out of the temple gate. He gently put her down, untied the reins, and they mounted their horses. Only then did Mu Wanqing ask, "Jiang Lang, was that old monk very powerful?"

Jiang Mingzhe nodded and said, "He is a true first-class master, but I may not be unable to deal with him. It was just a verbal dispute, and this is enough to teach him a lesson. If we really want to see who is better than the old monk, then we can only fight to the death."

He doesn't have martial arts skills high enough to match the Great Vajra Pestle, but if it comes down to fighting, Jiang Mingzhe is not afraid.

Whether it's the poison of the Manggu Toad or the use of the Seven Child Swords, neither should be something Xuan Bei can withstand.

However, once these two methods are used, it is difficult to hold back. Although the old monk was clearly protecting his own, his crime did not warrant death.

Besides, even if we disregard the monks' feelings, we should still consider the Buddha's. Five monks came to help the Duan family. As the Duan family's prospective son-in-law, it would be fine for Jiang Mingzhe to teach them a lesson after a disagreement, but to kill them outright would be going too far.

When Jiang Mingzhe explained his idea, Mu Wanqing praised it repeatedly. She then asked him why he was called Zhaixingzi (Star Picker). Jiang Mingzhe smiled and was about to tell her everything when he suddenly heard someone above him chuckle softly, "Hehe, this young hero of the Xingxiu Sect, do you want to learn the Great Vajra Pestle? You don't necessarily have to learn from the Shaolin monks!"

(End of this chapter)