Chapter 5 Is this still a human? Is this still a human?!

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The Great Zen Temple, where ancient Buddha lamps flickered.

Five years had passed without leaving a trace here.

Sutra Pavilion.

"Five years have passed...."

Lin Yuan sat cross-legged, his gaze deep and contemplative.

*Unknowingly, five years had already elapsed since he arrived in this world.*

*A quarter of the twenty-year limit had already passed.*

*During these five years, aside from immersing himself in meditation and cultivation,*

*Lin Yuan had also gained a certain level of understanding of this world.*

As for the source of his knowledge, it naturally came from the Great Zen Temple.

As a holy land of the Buddha Gate and a great martial sect under heaven,

the Great Zen Temple could not truly live in seclusion from the world.

On the contrary, the Great Zen Temple's intelligence network,

almost permeated all aspects of the world.

Using Buddhism as a pretext to lay down intelligence, it was as pervasive as air.

According to Lin Yuan's knowledge,

the current Dali Dynasty ruled over the Central Plains, in its period of prosperity.

All under heaven bowed in submission.

Even the millennium-old sect like the Great Zen Temple,

when faced with the Dali Dynasty, had to lower its head.

According to the intelligence gathered by the Great Zen Temple,

at least six martial arts grandmasters were in the service of the Dali Dynasty.

To know that in the world today, the number of martial arts grandmasters altogether was only around a dozen or so.

The Great Zen Temple with one grandmaster could already suppress the martial world.

The power of the Dali Dynasty mobilizing six martial arts grandmasters was self-evident.

The reason the Dali Dynasty had such a foundation was because of its founding ancestor,

who was a Great Grandmaster.

Grandmaster.

Great Grandmaster.

A difference of a word.

Worlds apart.

Throughout history, each era saw the birth of some grandmasters,

as few as several to a dozen, as many as several dozens.

But a Great Grandmaster... was rare, emerging only once every few centuries.

The Dali Dynasty swept across the world, forcing even such grand martial sects like the Great Zen Temple to bow down.

This relied on that invincible founding ancestor, the Great Grandmaster.

So much so that today, even after the passing of the founding ancestor of the Dali Dynasty for many years,

there remained methods to command so many martial arts grandmasters.

If one said, the stages of Houtian, Xiantian, and even Grandmaster,

were merely enhancements and transformations of the physical body,

then becoming a Great Grandmaster... was a transcendence of the spirit and soul.

A living Great Grandmaster, with just a glance, was enough to make an ordinary grandmaster's heart tremble.

"Spiritual Power...."

Lin Yuan touched the center of his brow.

The founder of the Great Zen Temple a millennium ago, 'Bodhidharma,' was also a Great Grandmaster.

Therefore, the Great Zen Temple was not lacking descriptions about Great Grandmasters.

Compared to Grandmasters,

the most significant feature of Great Grandmasters was the beginning of exploring the power of the spirit and soul.

To break through to a Great Grandmaster, one must gather and master spiritual power.

However, how elusive were the spirit and soul?

An ordinary grandmaster might not be able to perceive such power even after decades.

Even if a grandmaster sensed it,

during the process of gathering spiritual power, a slight misstep,

could lead to a catastrophe beyond redemption.

After all, injuries to the physical body could be slowly nursed back to health.

But when it comes to the spirit and soul... there is no room for the slightest carelessness.

Normally speaking,

out of a hundred grandmasters,

eighty would never touch the realm of the spirit and soul in their lifetime.

Nineteen, having sensed the realm of the spirit and soul after a breakthrough, would fail and die during the process of gathering spiritual power.

Ultimately, only one grandmaster could ascend to the Realm of Great Grandmaster.

...

"The 163rd secret technique to break through to Great Grandmaster seems to have almost no risk...."

Lin Yuan contemplated silently.

Since he nurtured his physical body with 'Yi Jin Washing Marrow Tempering Body Exchanging Blood Refining Divine Skill' four years ago, making it smoothly into the realm of Grandmaster,

Lin Yuan had been fervently pondering the method to ascend to Great Grandmaster in addition to his cultivation.

With Lin Yuan's Against-Heaven's Understanding, perceiving and even exploring the spirit and soul was no challenge.

The difficulty lay in how to condense spiritual power without any risk.

This type of essential power concerning the soul, even for Lin Yuan, required utmost caution.

The 'Bodhidharma' founder of the Great Zen Temple did indeed leave a method for breaking through to Great Grandmaster,

which was stored on the third floor of the Sutra Pavilion.

However, this method had a high fatality rate, as much as ninety-six percent.

A ninety-six percent fatality rate... was already quite an improvement compared to the ninety-nine percent outside.

But for Lin Yuan, it was still far from acceptable.

Due to this,

Lin Yuan intended to use his Against-Heaven's Understanding to create a completely risk-free secret technique to step into Great Grandmaster.

After creating one hundred and sixty-two secret techniques,

the 163rd breakthrough technique devised a few days ago left Lin Yuan quite satisfied.

It not only reduced the risk of advancing to Great Grandmaster to almost zero,

but even in extreme situations, such as being interrupted by external forces during a breakthrough,

or if Lin Yuan himself suddenly decided against the breakthrough,

there were ways to reverse it,

requiring at most a few years of recovery.

Unlike other breakthrough secret techniques with no turning back.

"To step into Great Grandmaster, today is the day."

Lin Yuan reflected repeatedly for a while before deciding to begin the breakthrough immediately.

...

Meanwhile.

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple, alongside Huiwen, the Martial Monk Institute's Abbot, and several other abbots, conversed leisurely.

"Counting the time, it's been three or four years since Junior Brother Hui Zhen last stepped out of the Sutra Pavilion, hasn't it?"

The Head of the Disciplinary Institute pondered for a while and then spoke.

Junior Brother Hui Zhen.... was none other than Lin Yuan.

Having become a disciple of Elder Long Eyebrow,

Lin Yuan's status in the Great Zen Temple was the same as the Abbot and the other heads,

belonging to the 'Hui' generation.

Typically, when the abbot and the other heads mentioned Lin Yuan, they referred to him as Junior Brother.

"Indeed."

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple nodded in agreement.

Since moving into the Sutra Pavilion five years ago, aside from occasionally going out during the first year,

Lin Yuan hadn't stepped out of the Sutra Pavilion for the subsequent four years.

"It's said that Junior Brother Hui Zhen mastered Innate Qi at the age of three, a martial arts prodigy not seen for a millennium, but the effort he put into martial arts was not something ordinary people could rival."

The Head of the Miscellaneous Tasks Institute commented.

The others nodded silently.

Not stepping out of the Sutra Pavilion for four years, spending every day with martial arts tomes,

such perseverance and patience, many esteemed monks did not possess.

"I wonder how Junior Brother Hui Zhen's cultivation is progressing?"

A hint of curiosity appeared on the face of the third head.

Having only watched a martial monk practice Arhat Fist, he seamlessly advanced into the Innate Realm.

Nowadays, after five years in the Sutra Pavilion, everyone wanted to know what level Lin Yuan had reached.

"With Junior Brother Hui Zhen's talents, he might have already reached the Innate Realm Peak."

The Head of the Disciplinary Institute speculated.

"Innate Realm Peak?"

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple hesitated for a moment.

In this world, martial stages were classified into Houtian, Xiantian, Grandmaster, and Great Grandmaster.

Although Lin Yuan, at three years old, entered the Innate Realm,

a three-year-old child's vital energy was inherently insufficient,

such a foundation entering the Innate Realm must have required a great deal of time to compensate for.

Five years' time.... Lin Yuan might have just compensated for it, reaching the level of an ordinary Innate Martial Tao Expert.

"Perhaps."

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple pondered for a while, nodding slightly.

He did not believe Junior Brother Hui Zhen could cultivate to the extent of the Innate Realm Peak after supplementing his foundation.

But since Lin Yuan was the disciple of Elder Long Eyebrow, in the same generation as them, they couldn't dismiss him too much in conversation.

"You two old fellows have so little faith in Junior Brother Hui Zhen?"

"Who knows, maybe Junior Brother Hui Zhen is already a Grandmaster by now."

The head of the Martial Monk Institute glanced in the direction of the Sutra Pavilion, a smile appearing on his face.

He was the first to recognize Lin Yuan's martial arts talent.

"Grandmaster...."

The Head of the Disciplinary Institute and the Head of the Miscellaneous Tasks Institute exchanged glances, shaking their heads slightly.

Even though they noted the teasing tone when the head of the Martial Monk Institute spoke, they couldn't bring themselves to agree.

After all, that was... a Grandmaster.

A towering pillar under heaven countable on two hands.

"All right, let's not discuss Junior Brother Hui Zhen anymore..."

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple felt that the topic of their casual chat was becoming increasingly absurd and immediately interjected to stop it.

However.

At that moment.

BOOM!!!

A formless wave surged into the sky, transforming into ripples that spread in all directions.

"Is this spiritual power?"

"A Great Grandmaster, the spiritual power of a Great Grandmaster?"

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple and several heads' pupils contracted sharply.

Immediately, their scalps tingled, their faces filled with terror.

When had the world produced a Great Grandmaster?

And this Great Grandmaster had arrived at their Great Zen Temple?

"No, this spiritual power is emanating from the Sutra Pavilion!"

"It's the aura of Junior Brother Hui Zhen!"

The Head of the Disciplinary Institute seemed to realize something, his eyes wide open.

"Junior Brother Hui Zhen's aura?"

"Spiritual power? Great Grandmaster?"

The abbot of the Great Zen Temple and the head of the Martial Monk Institute opened their mouths as if they had seen a ghost.

Based on the source and aura of this spiritual power,

they couldn't help but entertain a possibility in their hearts.

Could it be that the Junior Brother Hui Zhen, who had been in the Sutra Pavilion for five years, had stepped into the Great Grandmaster realm?

Realizing this, a sense of absurdity filled their hearts.

A three-year-old Innate Realm wasn't all that surprising.

But now, an eight-year-old Great Grandmaster?

*Is this still human?*

*Is this still human?!!*

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