Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 237 Completely Empty

Yan Longyuan was as hard as iron. With his son in front of him, he showed no intention of revealing his identity and followed Jiang Mingzhe with a smile.

Murong Fu frowned, about to call out to him to ask, when Deng Baichuan suddenly grabbed him, his expression strange, and shook his head slightly.

In the brief moment of distraction, Jiang Mingzhe and Yan Longyuan leaped up and used their lightness skills to rush towards the rear hall of Shaolin Temple.

Xuan Ci saw this and shouted, "Stop them!"

The moment the monk lost focus, Xiao Yuanshan immediately saw an opportunity. He tucked his fist inward and shot out a silent finger strike through his sleeve.

Xuan Ci felt a sharp pain in his ribs and exclaimed in alarm, "The Formless Finger of Calamity!"

Xiao Yuanshan laughed loudly, swung his arm horizontally, and smashed and swept wildly. He used the moves of the Demon Subduing Staff Technique with his fists and feet. This technique was extremely powerful. Xuan Ci was injured in the ribs and his breathing was not smooth. His movements also lost their agility, and he retreated repeatedly.

Upon seeing this, the Shaolin monks all rushed forward to help, but Kumārajīva shouted, "Young Master Duan, use all your strength to cover Elder Xiao's revenge!"

The two men, one on the left and one on the right, wielded their swords and blades indiscriminately, blocking the remaining monks from coming forward to help.

Xiao Yuanshan said happily, "Thank you, Master! Thank you, my dear nephew!"

He then used his powerful and fierce fist technique to rush in, ducked to avoid the kasaya's flick, and then punched Xuanci in the lower abdomen.

Xuan Ci coughed up blood, but he didn't care and unleashed a powerful Vajra Fist.

This punch was Xuan Ci's desperate strike, almost using all his strength. Xiao Yuanshan refused to give up his offensive advantage and also threw a punch, forcibly taking the blow. He groaned and gritted his teeth as he leaped up, kicking out with lightning speed, which was the Shaolin's ultimate technique, "Shadow Following Leg".

This series of attacks, which smoothly and fiercely incorporated several Shaolin martial arts techniques, left Kumārajīva feeling exhilarated, while the Shaolin monks were both astonished and horrified.

In the blink of an eye, Xuan Ci was struck by six kicks in succession, staggering and falling backward. As he spat out mouthfuls of blood, a sudden realization flashed through his mind: My death is near!

Memorable moments from my life flashed through my mind one after another.

He entered Shaolin Temple as a boy to learn martial arts, and his amazing talent surpassed his peers. In his youth, he made a name for himself in the martial arts world, and made countless friends by experiencing the joys and sorrows of life. In middle age, he succeeded as abbot, and was truly full of vigor and ambition. Later, he led Shaolin Temple and shone brightly...

I thought my life's experiences were something to be proud of, but unexpectedly, the temple was destroyed and I was killed in the blink of an eye. All my life's experiences seemed like a dream I was about to wake up from. I was suddenly shocked: indeed, life is like a dream and all things are empty!
But as soon as this thought arose, it was immediately reversed: the regret in his heart after seeing the rubbing of Xiao Yuanshan's book outside Yanmen Pass, the heart-wrenching guilt when the woman with a bloodied face left crying, these emotions that he thought he had forgotten, he realized now that he was about to die, and they were as real and intense as if they had just happened.

In an instant, Xuan Ci had a sudden realization. With a few casual punches, he easily blocked Xiao Yuanshan's subsequent kicks, like a gazelle leaping off a cliff. With a flick of his sleeve, he forced Xiao Yuanshan to somersault backward and be forced away.

Xuan Ci seized the opportunity to stop, revealing a smile that was difficult to decipher, and said to Xiao Yuanshan, "This humble monk is not as good as you. My son was right in front of me just now, yet I dared not acknowledge him."

Xiao Yuanshan shouted, "Did you admit it? You old lecherous monk, this is what you call a guilty conscience!"

Xuan Ci sighed and frankly admitted, "That's right, I really did steal, and I feel quite guilty."

Suddenly, he shouted, "Everyone, stop! Today, Shaolin Temple is inferior in skill and is willing to admit defeat! Let them fight or kill as they please!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Yu stopped fighting first. Kumārajīva laughed loudly, "What kind of great figures are they? They're all cowards who cling to life!" He immediately ceased the fight. The Shaolin monks, filled with hatred and shame, looked at Xuan Ci in disbelief. Several members of the Xuan generation said in unison, "Senior brother, the temple's reputation for hundreds of years..."

Before they could finish speaking, Xuanci loudly proclaimed, "All phenomena have no inherent nature; they arise from causes and conditions. They are neither existent nor nonexistent; they come into being empty and go into being empty."

The monks who were unwilling to submit were all startled and fell silent.

After reciting the verse, Xuan Ci's eyes shone brightly, and he chuckled, "Xiao Yuanshan, take this palm strike from this old monk, 'Empty to the End'!"

Xiao Yuanshan's brow twitched. He had also practiced the Prajna Palm and naturally knew that this move, "Empty to the End," was the final move of the Prajna Palm. However, the incantation and mental techniques were written in a very mysterious way, and he had not understood them even after studying them for many years.

Then Xuan Ci drew circles with both palms and pushed them out simultaneously. Xiao Yuanshan, his arrogance provoked, coldly shouted, "Trying to be mysterious? You think you can fool me?"

Both palms also make circles, pushing forward with all their might.

The four palms struck each other silently.

Xiao Yuanshan was stunned to find that Xuan Ci's two palms were empty, without any internal force. He thought that Xuan Ci had exhausted his internal force and was just putting on an act, so he immediately spat out his own palm force.

He had no idea that the moment his palm force left his palm, it vanished into nothingness, leaving a vast emptiness between their four palms.

Xiao Yuanshan was stunned, not knowing how his palm strike had also turned to nothing. He then saw Xuan Ci's smile grow even brighter. Xuan Ci drew circles with his palms again, swinging Xiao Yuanshan's hands wide open. Then, with a push, he slapped Xiao Yuanshan's chest with two loud thuds.

Xiao Yuanshan's eyes widened suddenly, and he immediately realized that Xuan Ci's palm strike was powerful, held back but not released, like a fully drawn arrow aimed at him.

Xiao Yuanshan suddenly understood and nodded, saying, "Emptiness to the end, emptiness to the end, so that's what it means. It's neither empty nor not empty. So that's what it means to be neither existent nor non-existent."

Xuan Ci smiled and nodded, saying, "That's right. When you have something, fill it up; when you have nothing, use it. The sea is wide enough for fish to leap, and the sky is high enough for birds to fly. When Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva was practicing the profound Prajnaparamita, he saw that the five aggregates were empty and thus transcended all suffering."

Having said that, he slowly withdrew his hands, looked towards the direction of the Sutra Repository behind him, and said in a very low voice, "This humble monk had his heart meridian severed by your six kicks, but was fortunate enough to glimpse the Mahaprajnaparamita. The suffering of this life has been exhausted. Benefactor Xiao, the one who falsely conveyed the message thirty years ago was Murong Fu's father, Murong Bo. This humble monk originally thought that he was also misled by others and had been dead for many years, so he did not want to mention it. However, just now, in order to save his son, he revealed the Divine Skill of Shifting Stars, and this humble monk realized the purpose of the Murong family."

Having said that, he put away his smile, slowly sat down, and said, "The monks of this temple are no match for you esteemed masters. If you wish to exterminate us all, that is our calamity. If you are willing to show mercy, that is your compassion. However, the feud between this temple and the Xiao family began with this old monk and will continue with this old monk to the end. Amitabha."

After reciting the Buddha's name, Xuanci breathed his last.

The monks were filled with great sorrow upon seeing this, and they all chanted Buddhist prayers. Many of the monks couldn't help but cry out.

Xiao Yuanshan touched his chest, recalling that Xuan Ci never said he had spared him with his last blow, and couldn't help but feel a sense of respect. He sighed and said, "Dust to dust, ashes to ashes. Now that I have killed him, the great revenge of that year has been avenged. Shaolin has also been defeated today. Let these monks go."

As he spoke, he strode forward. Kumārajīva said with a smile, "Elder Xiao is truly compassionate. This humble monk will go with you."

Seeing that there was excitement to be had, Azi wanted to go too. Xiao Feng and Murong Fu exchanged a glance and escorted the women along. The other heroes either went to help the injured monks or secretly followed, hoping to find out if there was anything to gain.

Meanwhile, inside the library, a completely different scene unfolded.

(End of this chapter)