Chapter 12 - 11: The Frog in the Well Looks Up at the Moon
Chapter 12: Chapter 11: The Frog in the Well Looks Up at the Moon
Time flowed on.
In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.
During this time, the deed of Lin Yuan silencing the Imperial Palace with a roar had spread like a hurricane to all corners of the world.
After all, the incident was not minor, and even if the Imperial Guards and palace maids inside the palace dared not spread rumors,
those martial powerhouses outside the palace walls could not possibly pretend it never happened.
They were neither blind nor deaf.
Even a middle-aged monk could sense the changes in the aura inside the palace.
Other martial powerhouses naturally could as well.
Moreover, the scene of the Emperor of Dali stepping out of the palace and bowing towards Lin Yuan had been witnessed by many.
Connecting the dots before and after, it was easy for people to speculate about the approximate truth—
The palace of the Dali Dynasty had been breached by a mysterious monk from the Buddha Gate.
Even the reigning Emperor had to step out and bow his head in acknowledgment of error.
The Dali Dynasty certainly wanted to suppress the incident, but they simply couldn’t contain it.
And this explanation was the truth; it even flattered the Dali Dynasty.
After all, the use of the word ‘breached’ at least suggests that Lin Yuan had made a few moves.
The Dali Dynasty still had the power to resist, but just ended up failing in the end.
But the truth was, it was just one vocal technique that had caused many strong individuals within the Imperial Palace to fall to the ground, unable to rise.
For a time, the world was in an uproar.
Commoners and martial experts from all over.
They all discussed this matter.
The Dali Dynasty had ruled the world for nearly two hundred years, and all the martial powerhouses had been stifled because of that founding ancestor.
Seeing the Dali Dynasty being humiliated, and completely brought to its knees, was naturally welcomed by everyone.
After discussing the Dali Dynasty, everyone’s attention quickly focused on that mysterious Buddhist monk.
Was the Dali Dynasty weak?
Certainly not.
Not only was it not weak.
It was terrifyingly strong.
Even though the founder, the Great Grandmaster, had passed away,
the strength of the Dali Dynasty could still suppress the world.
Yet even so, the Imperial Palace, the place that gathered the most elite forces and the greatest number of powerful people of the Dali Dynasty,
had been breached by a mysterious monk.
What this implied, once thought over carefully, made everyone’s skin crawl.
Without a doubt, the strength of that mysterious monk must have already entered the Realm of Great Grandmaster.
…
In the Martial Hall of the Dali Imperial Palace,
Lin Yuan sat cross-legged, his expression calm.
Since entering this place half a year ago, Lin Yuan had not left.
The Emperor of Dali certainly showed foresight, directly declaring the Martial Hall a forbidden zone, not allowing anyone to disturb Lin Yuan.
In addition, every meal was meticulously prepared.
They were not only able to replenish Yuan energy but were also expertly cooked by the imperial chefs.
There was no fault to be found in their flavor.
“Not enough, these martial arts are still far from enough,” Lin Yuan silently sighed in his heart.
In just half a year, Lin Yuan had thoroughly comprehended all the martial arts contained within the Imperial Palace’s Martial Hall.
It wasn’t that the martial arts in the Martial Hall were inferior to those in the Great Zen Temple’s Sutra Pavilion.
To be fair, the martial arts collected in the Martial Hall far exceeded those of the Sutra Pavilion.
It was just a matter of time.
Lin Yuan was now at an unprecedented height—the Mythical Realm.
Whereas at the Great Zen Temple, Lin Yuan was an Innate Grandmaster, a Grandmaster.
From such a lofty perspective, comprehending the Tao was naturally far more efficient than before.
However, even after having completely grasped all the martial arts within the Martial Hall,
and utilizing his Against-Heaven’s Understanding to its fullest, Lin Yuan still had not broken through to the Mythical Realm.
“The martial arts that can be recorded and passed down in the world are, after all, only a minority. Many more martial arts are scattered across every martial practitioner in the world,” Lin Yuan silently thought.
These martial arts might not be high-level and far from being top-notch martial arts, but they were unique in their perspective.
They might even be entirely different from the current Martial Tao Cultivation System.
If Lin Yuan could comprehend Martial Tao from other perspectives, it would likely help him break through to the Mythical Realm.
“Come in,” Lin Yuan slightly raised his head and looked towards the door of the Martial Hall.
“Yes,”
the gaunt elder immediately walked over with great respect.
As the highest-ranking and strongest ancestor of the Dali Royal Family,
it was beneath him to stand outside the Martial Hall, waiting for Lin Yuan’s orders.
But ever since Lin Yuan had causally given him a pointer not long after entering the Martial Hall, leading to a moment of enlightenment,
the gaunt elder had stayed outside the Martial Hall, unwilling to leave.
That one pointer made the gaunt elder realize that even if he practiced bitterly for ten years, twenty years, or fifty years,
it would not compare to a single casual remark from Lin Yuan.
“I plan to hold a Great Martial Sects gathering, right here in the capital. Any martial practitioner in the Acquired Realm or Innate Realm can participate,”
“And the top ten winners will be allowed to choose any three high-grade martial techniques,” Lin Yuan declared.
With his Against-Heaven’s Understanding, Lin Yuan did not need to learn martial arts; merely by watching others perform, he could gain insight.
More than a decade ago, when Lin Yuan watched the Martial Monks of the Great Zen Temple demonstrate the Arhat Fist, he derived the superior martial art Great Arhat Buddha Fist from it, which was an example.
Asking martial practitioners to write down their unique skills for others was unrealistic.
Many unaffiliated martial practitioners, with no sect to tie them down, if pressured too much, could just retreat deep into the mountains and forests, beyond even Lin Yuan’s reach.
However, by attracting them with a martial gathering, Lin Yuan’s Against-Heaven’s Understanding would allow him to quietly grasp all their secrets.
As for whether it could attract those unaffiliated martial practitioners… What the people of the world chased after was nothing more than two things:
Fame or profit.
For martial practitioners, there was an additional pursuit.
That was their own martial realm.
With high-grade martial arts as bait, Lin Yuan wasn’t worried that those unaffiliated martial practitioners wouldn’t take the bait.
High-grade martial arts were not cabbages; one technique alone could serve as the foundation for a legacy.
Even for a sacred Buddhist place like the Great Zen Temple and Great Martial Sects, there were only seventy-two high-grade martial arts.