Chapter 368: Fox

Unbeknownst to him, the few strands of hair pulled from the middle-aged Swordsman were already in Li Qi’s hand.

Li Qi held the hair, muttering something under his breath.

The middle-aged Swordsman’s pupils constricted, then he raised his sword with both hands and lunged forward!

The Martial Dao Inner Qi instantly shredded Li Qi’s body, his physique directly cut into dozens of pieces!

But the shattered body quickly turned into flowing water, seeping into the ground.

It was still a body god, but this time it was the Water God.

The Divine Qi on the Water God’s body suffered severe damage.

Martial Dao Inner Qi is the result of tempering countless types of Qi into one; Martial Artists, regardless of what Qi they absorb, ultimately condense Martial Dao Inner Qi.

Therefore, Martial Dao Inner Qi also possesses the nature of devouring and eroding other Qi, much like a Martial Artist’s appetite.

Thus, Martial Dao Inner Qi can destroy all spellcraft, has a special attack effect against all defenses, and when used defensively, can dissolve the opponent’s attacks.

Aside from lacking those peculiar aspects, purely in terms of offense and defense, Martial Dao Inner Qi has no flaws.

Unlike Martial Dao, Shaman Dao is entirely the opposite.

The Qi absorbed by Shaman Dao is diverse and numerous, completely different from Martial Dao’s emphasis on tempering and purity, so Shaman Dao has many tricks, but it appears much weaker in formal offense and defense.

Due to this, in just two strikes, Li Qi’s two inner body spirits were already severely wounded.

A seventh-rank Martial Artist, and this close, it was very dangerous.

However, Li Qi was no ordinary seventh-rank Shaman.

When the Swordsman realized Li Qi had escaped, he became even more anxious.

But anxiety was useless; Li Qi’s inner body spirits had all appeared, blocking his path.

The Mountain God and Water God joined forces, the Sun and Moon Heavenly Gods hung in the sky, and anomalies frequently arose all around, with countless Divine Qi surging, and mountain Qi and water Qi being frequently mobilized.

The Swordsman took a deep breath and twirled his longsword into a Sword Flower.

He didn't speak, nor did he shout out the Move’s name.

Not everyone shouts out the name of their ultimate Move when fighting; that would be too foolish.

But not shouting didn't mean he wasn't using his full strength.

He had already realized the danger!

Because Li Qi’s main body was hiding two miles behind his inner body spirits, performing a ritual!

Li Qi held the hair he had secretly stolen from the Swordsman when he wasn't paying attention, using it as a wick, and continuously repeated words in front of an illusory lamp.

This was a Shaman’s curse!

The wick of that lamp was the Swordsman’s hair, burning fiercely!

The Swordsman knew he had to stop the Shaman’s ritual!

The longsword was drawn again, sword light like a Dragon, Martial Dao Inner Qi surging like a wild torrent, intending to crush all obstacles in its path!

But then, on Li Qi’s side—

The curse intensified, the lamp dimmed, and shadows lingered beneath the lamp.

The last shadow, dark and profound, was uniquely real on the ground, still and unmoving, then the lamp’s flame suddenly brightened, the shadow imprinted on the ground, indelible like faint ink, then Li Qi raised his hand and burned it with fire.

At this instant, the Swordsman’s sword arrived as expected.

All of Li Qi’s inner body spirits shattered!

In front of Martial Dao Inner Qi, the inner body spirits’ Divine Qi had almost no defensive capability!

However, his Sword Qi only charged out fifty steps.

As the candlelight burned out, the next instant, the middle-aged man, who had been attacking with full force, became rigid all over, losing his combat ability and halting all his actions.

His entire body was bulging with veins, his whites of his eyes were filled with bloodshot, his lips were purplish-black, he wanted to breathe but it was as if something was choking his throat.

Even his heart had stopped beating; an invisible pair of hands had pierced his chest, pressed his heart, squeezed every single blood vessel, causing all his physiological functions to cease.

That attack, which seemed capable of severing a mountain, stopped because of this.

This was a curse.

Li Qi’s frontal combat strength was very poor.

However, give a Shaman a strand of hair, and the Shaman can take your life.

The lamp in his hand was the Swordsman’s life lamp; if it were completely consumed by the shadow, which was Li Qi’s spell, the Swordsman would instantly die without a cause of death.

If one had to say, it would probably be sudden death caused by cardiac arrest.

It was just that Li Qi didn't intend to take his life.

The next second, Li Qi dissipated the illusory lamp in his hand.

The Swordsman suddenly knelt on the ground, gasping for air, large beads of sweat dripping onto the ground.

He stopped because his hands were shaking uncontrollably, and his eyes began to wander.

But then, the Swordsman looked up in disbelief, staring at Li Qi.

How could this be! A Shaman actually reacted within a hundred steps?! And defeated him?!

He was a seventh-rank Martial Artist; facing a Shaman within a hundred steps, he should have been guaranteed a victory!

However, what he didn't know was the kind of enemies Li Qi usually faced.

At the Imperial Academy, those proud sons of Heaven who practiced Martial Dao were faster than him, stronger than him, their Martial Skills were more exquisite than his, and their Martial Dao Inner Qi was ten times more refined than these ‘Jianghu heroes’.

Although Li Qi didn't go often, he would occasionally interact.

In most cases, Li Qi, who was not skilled in combat, would be beaten to the ground by Martial Artists or practitioners of other Dao paths.

After all, Shamanes are truly not good at arena fighting, nor do they participate in it; they all hide thousands of miles away, draw a circle to curse you, and then you are truly dead.

But such battles were also good for Li Qi; at least, he had learned how to buy himself enough time in combat.

So Li Qi wasn't complacent; he waved his hand, and an invisible force directly threw the Swordsman out, sending him flying three miles away, tumbling on the ground with thuds.

As for the others, they had already fled.

One can curse, but one must also run; the people of Baiyue are most skilled at this.

Only Kaiwen Chan Master, who arrived late, seemed somewhat displeased by Li Qi’s overbearing actions but said nothing.

But Li Qi didn't mind; he simply extended his hand and drew a simple flat map of the nearby area in the air, only depicting the terrain within two or three miles.

But it was already enough.

After confirming the direction on this suspended flat map, Li Qi then extended his hand and drew a circle of approximately five hundred meters in diameter at the location of the Buddha statue on this map.

This circle was quite regular, as Li Qi’s control over his Physical Body was quite excellent now, being a seventh-rank after all.

Just as he finished drawing this circle, the surrounding scenery suddenly changed; an invisible barrier enveloped the area, a transparent barrier blocking everything appeared before everyone, this barrier stipulated that one could only exit, not enter.

A circle drawn on the map was projected into reality and directly altered reality.

This was the Shaman’s mystique; if one were to speak of cunning methods, Shamanes are among the top in the entire world.

However, to outsiders, it seemed miraculous, but in Li Qi’s view, it was actually the same principle as sticking pins into a straw doll.

Stick a straw doll, write a name and birthdate, then prick it with needles, and that person will also suffer injuries and pain, and may even die.

It was the same now; draw a map, then draw a circle on the map, separating this area on the map, and it truly becomes separated.

Thus, this place was cut off from the outside world, with only Li Qi and Kaiwen Chan Master, two living people, in this area.

However, it sounds very complex, but in reality, from the moment Li Qi arrived here and drove everyone away, it took less than a minute, and that battle only lasted a dozen seconds.

Kaiwen Chan Master, facing all this, frowned and said, “Benefactor, you seem a bit too anxious. What have you discovered?”

“Danger, the danger of this Buddha statue,” Li Qi said.

“What do you mean? Dakini Heaven is inherently compassionate; although she once enjoyed eating human hearts, she has long since become a Dharma Protector God and would never spread anything particularly dangerous,” Kaiwen Chan Master said.

He was correcting Li Qi, because it was very impolite to call something personally arranged by Dakini Heaven dangerous.

“It’s not about that danger; Dakini Heaven herself may have no ill intentions, but that doesn't mean this thing is safe, which is why I had to drive everyone away, otherwise they might die,” Li Qi said.

He didn't continue to explain, because further explanation was useless; seeing was believing.

This time, Li Qi sat down and, as before, observed the Buddha statue with the thirty-two marks.

Undoubtedly, a new contemplation image appeared before his eyes again.

But Li Qi did not use this contemplation image; he simply ignored the thirty-two marks.

First contemplate the thirty-two marks, then combine them with the Buddha statue to form that kind of contemplation image.

Afterward, Li Qi smiled.

Indeed, it was exactly as he had guessed.

The characteristic of a Buddha is the thirty-two marks.

So the question is, is everything with thirty-two marks a Buddha?

Li Qi slowly rose, reciting a gatha: “Clay figures and wooden carvings, silk and painted images, piled with green, smeared with green, and adorned with gold; if one says this is the Tathagata’s form, it would make Namo Guanyin laugh to death.”

If one observes the Tathagata with the thirty-two marks, then how many Tathagatas would there be?

This Buddha statue was not the ‘Buddha statue’ he saw before him at all!

Li Qi suddenly understood a sentence from the Buddhist scriptures he had read, called ‘attachment to forms’.

Previously, Li Qi had even joked about others being “attached to forms.”

But only now did he understand what true attachment to forms meant.

Clinging to the thirty-two marks themselves would forever prevent one from reaching the true Buddha statue.

The Buddha statue’s ordinary appearance, which leads to the illness of attachment to forms, is one layer of bewilderment; then the saying of ‘thus, thus’ is the second layer of bewilderment; and further saying to observe the Buddha with the thirty-two marks is yet another layer of bewilderment.

Thus, one drifts further from the True Knowledge, and the purpose of the Buddha statue is achieved.

When Kaiwen Chan Master heard Li Qi say this, his surprise almost overflowed.

He looked at Li Qi in astonishment, examining him carefully.

Then, Kaiwen Chan Master recited a Buddhist invocation, and then solemnly said to Li Qi, “If one observes the Tathagata with the thirty-two marks, then a Wheel-Turning Holy King is the Tathagata. Although a Wheel-Turning Holy King has the thirty-two marks, how can he be the same as the Tathagata? The World Honored One used words to dispel subtle delusions, so that future sentient beings would not err in their perceptions. Today, I shall tell Young Master the words of the World Honored One.”

“Thus have I heard: Sounds and forms are originally born from the mind; the mind of discrimination falls into the Evil Path.”

“The Buddha is non-form, yet you mistakenly take him as form. The Buddha is non-mark, yet you mistakenly take him as mark. If you observe the Buddha with nine colors and seventy-two marks, that is to depart from non-attachment and cling to existence. You cannot hear the supreme meaning.”

“The World Honored One said: A Wheel-Turning Holy King has a dignified appearance and possesses the thirty-two marks, yet he does not understand the Buddha-nature, but only enjoys a superficial blessing, which will eventually end. He has the ‘mark’ of self, and cannot attain Great Freedom.”

Upon hearing this, Li Qi, even before he finished listening, jolted and immediately stood up straight, listening attentively.

This statement began with ‘Thus have I heard,’ and also mentioned the World Honored One.

These were the words personally spoken by the Buddha, that Great Sun Tathagata, the legendary Vairocana Buddha!

Similar to the teachings of the Shaman God Mountain’s Shaman Dao!

So Li Qi didn't dare miss a single word, listening carefully to every phrase and firmly committing it to memory.

However, like all languages written and spoken by Great Powers, these languages were clear and easy to understand, easily memorized, written, recorded, and spread.

But, they also contained a certain deep-seated Dao, which could provide profound guidance to people.

Li Qi pondered these words, while also wondering why Kaiwen Chan Master would suddenly tell him what the Buddha had once said.

Such words should be absolute secrets, only a very few people were qualified to hear them.

The meaning of this statement was very simple.

All forms and appearances are born from the mind; the act of trying to distinguish them has already fallen into the Evil Path, making it difficult to hear the supreme meaning.

Just like the Wheel-Turning Holy King, whose appearance is dignified and possesses the thirty-two marks like the Buddha, but he doesn't understand their true meaning, so he will eventually reach an end. Although he has the ‘mark’ of self, he ultimately cannot attain Great Freedom.

The World Honored One Tathagata said this, so… why did Kaiwen Chan Master say this to Li Qi?

There must be a reason.

What effect did his words have?

This was easy to understand; his words affirmed Li Qi’s statement, indicating that Li Qi’s thoughts had touched upon the truth.

Thus, he used the words of the World Honored One Tathagata to acknowledge Li Qi, and incidentally gave Li Qi a hint.

Li Qi did not answer him.

Instead, he looked at the Buddha statue again.

If the above thoughts were all valid, then…

Li Qi closed his eyes again; this time, he even retracted his True Knowledge Dao Resonance, no longer perceiving the outside world in any form.

Then, he employed the method he had just comprehended.

Li Qi formed hand seals, and the miniature heaven and earth unfolded.

Suddenly, Buddhist phenomena abruptly appeared around him.

There was heart-light, emitting five-colored light, forming a canopy above, covering the sun and reflecting upon the multitude.

Li Qi sealed all his senses.

He found that even so, he could still clearly ‘see’ the Buddha statue.

He couldn't quite describe whether this sensation was ‘sight,’ but in a complete darkness, the Buddha statue indeed existed there.

However, it was not the Buddha statue.

The Buddha statue was merely an appearance; clinging to the appearance of the Buddha statue, and clinging to the appearance of the thirty-two marks of the Buddha statue, were essentially the same, both being bewilderment of the mind.

Everything seen by the senses is an appearance; clinging to the world seen by the senses is “attachment to forms.”

If one were to break free from this…

Li Qi closed his eyes and began to try.

After only a few minutes, Li Qi opened his eyes.

And the Buddha statue had disappeared.

In its place was a drop of blood suspended in Li Qi’s hand.

The blood of a Demon of the Five Aggregates, mixed with some Demon of Affliction, Death Demon, and Heavenly Demon blood, but predominantly Demon of the Five Aggregates blood.

Kaiwen Chan Master finally couldn't maintain his composure; his elegance vanished, and in his inner shock, he chose to prostrate himself devoutly on the ground. After bowing, his face also began to turn into a fox face, and four fox tails extended from his back.

“Under the seat of Dakini Heaven, Kaiwen, greets the Buddha Son!”

He was a fox!