The Pudu River.
A river not considered large by cultivators' standards, yet now it was impassable.
Yuan Gui True Buddha's expression was solemn and stern. Looking across, he could see Huang Miao sitting on the opposite bank, roasting food with a handsome young man.
This handsome young man was now quite famous within the Buddhist sects, so of course he recognized him—Chu Xingchen.
These two really had interesting hobbies, not anxious in the slightest.
A Luohan behind him presented a jade slip.
Yuan Gui True Buddha reached out and took it, his eyes scanning the contents. In mere moments, a smile appeared on his face.
The Venerable Buddha Ru Nan was currently leading a host of Buddhas from the Great Thunderclap Monastery, rushing here.
The Great Vehicle Dharma?
Indeed, not being of the Buddhist faith, one wouldn't understand what this meant.
The struggle over the teachings' foundation is a struggle to the death of the heart.
For Buddhist cultivators, it is no different from destroying their very roots.
Even destroying the Great Thunderclap Monastery might not have provoked such fury from the Buddhist sects.
Yuan Gui crushed the jade slip in his hand, his gaze lifting once more to look at Huang Miao and Chu Xingchen, who were leisurely roasting food. The frustration that had built up in his heart over the past days dissipated considerably.
Roast, then.
They should be allowed this final bit of good mood.
On the other side of the Pudu River.
Chu Xingchen gently turned the meat skewers in his hands. He hadn't done this himself since teaching Ning Qianqian.
Doing it now again, he felt somewhat unpracticed without realizing it.
A slight smile played on Huang Miao's face.
This kid was more interesting than he had imagined.
He couldn't even remember how long it had been since he last ate something like this, utterly useless for cultivation, purely for leisurely enjoyment.
The fragrant aroma of sizzling meat oil stirred up some memories within him.
Huang Miao looked at Chu Xingchen's calm and composed expression opposite him and asked:
"Is it ready?"
Chu Xingchen took out seasonings from his spatial ring and sprinkled them on, replying offhandedly:
"Although with Senior's cultivation, eating it raw would just be a change of taste, it's more delicious when fully cooked through."
"Your temperament is quite good. But if you don't finish roasting it soon, we might not get to eat it later." Huang Miao's gaze crossed the river. "You have skill, kid. The Great Vehicle controversy that once shook the Buddhist sects has emerged again."
"I don't know how you persuaded that so-called Bright Buddha, but don't underestimate the Buddhist sects' stance on this."
"The struggle of ideologies is the foundation of the Buddhist faith."
Chu Xingchen smiled and nodded: "Naturally, I understand. Otherwise, why would I personally make a trip here? After all, things are still busy over there."
"Oh? I thought you came specifically to thank me," Huang Miao said with a laugh.
Picking up the roasted skewers, Chu Xingchen handed them to Huang Miao, saying:
"Senior should savor this properly. Ordinary people don't get to taste my cooking."
Huang Miao reached out and took them:
"Ordinary people also don't get the chance to offer me food."
"In that case, it's my honor."
"Perhaps it's my honor," Huang Miao replied with a smile, then took a bite of the skewer.
No astonishing, unforgettable flavor.
Huang Miao had lived too long; there was little of quality he hadn't tasted.
The somewhat simple roasted skewer tasted fairly good, but what he savored more was perhaps the atmosphere.
Huang Miao, at this moment, carried no airs. After finishing the skewer, he lightly pursed his lips.
"Does Senior feel something is missing?" Chu Xingchen asked with a smile.
Huang Miao nodded gently: "It does feel like something is missing."
Chu Xingchen didn't keep him in suspense. He took out from his spatial ring one of his few remaining bottles of Chun Nuan—the small version.
Only enough for two or three big gulps.
He really didn't have much of this wine left. Senior was a senior, but one still had to be frugal.
Seeing the small bottle Chu Xingchen took out, Huang Miao instantly understood.
Chu Xingchen gently shook the small bottle: "Genuine Chun Nuan from the Tianyan Sect. A fine thing that even Sect Leader Lü might not necessarily get to drink."
"My own stock is pitifully small; I can't bear to drink it myself."
Huang Miao's reaction was more pronounced this time. He reached out, took it, undid the seal on the bottle cap, and an extremely clear, fragrant, and wonderfully subtle aroma wafted from the wine.
The smile on his face deepened. He raised the bottle and took a large sip:
"It's been a long time since I've had this either."
Chu Xingchen smiled and nodded, then turned his gaze to the opposite bank of the Pudu River.
There was no need to probe with spiritual sense.
Just seeing the rosy clouds stretching for miles and the golden light spilling everywhere made clear the grand scale of the approaching party.
Huang Miao's expression showed a hint of regret. He had thought he could savor it more slowly, but it seemed the timing wasn't right.
Yet, he didn't show too much reluctance. After two more swigs, Huang Miao finished the Chun Nuan.
"Young man, the sentiment is enough. Go and do what you need to do," Huang Miao said, standing up. "Perhaps you don't know my former title."
Chu Xingchen became curious upon hearing this: "What title?"
A brilliant light swirled around Huang Miao's waist. He raised his hand slightly, and a spirit treasure longsword, radiating sharp, cold light, fell into his grasp.
A fierce, ruthless smile appeared on his face as his voice boomed across the river:
"Huang Butui!"
"Even faced with ten thousand enemies, even when outmatched, I have never retreated."
"The creed of the Mysterious Purity Heavenly Sect is thus, and so am I!"
Chu Xingchen also stood up:
"Does Senior think I came here so you would fight to the death without retreating, while I run for my life alone? That would be underestimating me too much."
Huang Miao's smiling eyes narrowed slightly. Suddenly, he changed the subject with a somewhat unrelated reply:
"You're an interesting kid, and very much to my liking. It's been a long time since I've met someone as interesting as you. There are too few people like you in this world; otherwise, it would be much livelier."
Chu Xingchen's gaze fixed on the increasingly approaching brilliant light:
"That's good. But too much liveliness isn't necessarily a good thing. Peace has its own happiness too."
Huang Miao nodded in deep agreement upon hearing this, then soared into the air, positioning himself at the center of the Pudu River, unleashing his peak Soul Transformation stage aura to its limit.
Even though the aura wasn't directed at him, Chu Xingchen still felt his breathing grow somewhat heavier.
"Huang Miao! Clear the way!"
Ru Nan's majestic voice arrived even before his resplendent canopy was visible.
Huang Miao's expression remained calm:
"Is that how you address me? You didn't seem so disrespectful when you called me 'Senior' in the past."
"Now that you've become a Venerable Buddha, you've forgotten propriety? Should this senior teach you today..."
"What it means to be a senior?!"
The spirit sword in Huang Miao's hand shot out.
The spirit sword transformed into a massive stream of light, cleaving the river and splitting mountains, its pressure coiling like wind blades.
The stream of light charged straight towards the resplendent canopy, mercilessly crushing a corner of Yuan Gui True Buddha's vast procession along the way. The Buddhist cultivators unfortunate enough to be in its path were silently annihilated, without even causing the slightest pause in the sword light's speed.
It just crushes straight through.
A giant golden Buddha's hand stretched out, meeting that terrifying spirit sword.
Boom!
Golden light erupted brilliantly.
The clash of ultimate Dao principles unleashed terrifying shockwaves.
Yuan Gui True Buddha also had to act to block the aftershocks, protecting the Buddhist cultivators under his command at this moment.
"Huang Miao, I respected you in the past because you upheld righteous principles. Now you slaughter the innocent and further obstruct the spread of the True Buddha's teachings here in the Western Continent."
Ru Nan's voice was firm and resonant. The giant golden Buddha's hand slowly shrank until it reached normal size. From behind the golden light, Ru Nan's face and figure were revealed.
His gaze fixed on Huang Miao:
"If the heart is not righteous, even with ten thousand abilities, one only invites scorn. The title of 'Senior'—can you still bear it?"
Ru Nan raised his hand, transforming his palm into a fist, and directly blasted the spirit treasure longsword away.
The smile on Huang Miao's face did not diminish. He raised his hand and recalled the spirit sword to his grasp:
"The sword in my hand will answer that question for you."
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
e, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
