Remould the Glory of Sword Art

The old monk shook his head and, without speaking, continued walking forward, clutching the Buddha Mallet.

These past few days,

their journey had been very peaceful.

They encountered several Evil Sects, all of which had been subdued by others...

They captured a survivor, but before they could interrogate him much, he breathed his last.

From the mouth of that Evil Cultivator, the two learned that recently, a murderous Sword Cultivator had appeared in the territory of Liu Chong Mountain. He blatantly disregarded the rules of the Southern Border and took the lives of any Evil Cultivators he encountered.

Especially the disciples of the "Yin Mountain" who practiced the Spirit Control Technique!

As soon as their names were mentioned, he ensured not even their intact bodies remained!

The rain poured down heavily.

The two arrived at an ancient, dilapidated temple.

Years ago, while still under the jurisdiction of Li Kingdom, the Da Li Dynasty greatly revered Buddhism, and many peaks in the Southern Border had temples constructed on them... Later, the Evil Cultivators exiled from the Li Kingdom formed the notoriously infamous "Hehuan Sect," among which included the Joyful Buddha's Zen teachings.

Thus, these ancient temples enveloped in miasma were fortunate to survive and avoid demolition.

The old monk's brows furrowed deeply, and he stopped in front of the temple.

A century had passed.

The Buddhist energy inside the temple had long been eroded by the miasma, and the impure aura of the Hehuan Sect's Joyful Zen was overwhelming.

Even several dozen yards away, one could see the scattered remnants of women's torn clothes and the bleached bones that had weathered many years.

"Master, there are people."

The young novice's ears trembled slightly; he frowned and whispered, "By the sounds of it, it's the filthy beings from the Hehuan Sect."

Sounds of intense disturbances came from inside the temple.

The cries of anguish from women were especially piercing, cutting through the heavy rain, clearly audible, and implicitly pleading for mercy.

Such a scene was profoundly embarrassing.

The old monk slowly gripped the Vajra Pestle, bowing his head and said, "This poor monk hails from the Da Li Dynasty, Fan Yin Temple, known as Fa Zhao..."

"Scram!!"

A cold and furious shout came through the curtain of rain.

With a boom, the voice spread, directly shattering the rain curtain!

"Splash!!"

The young novice's face turned pale as he fell to the ground, his hands hurriedly covering his ears, yet blood still seeped through his fingers.

Fa Zhao stepped forward, shielding the novice in front of him!

"Boom!!!"

The sound waves surged, and the Vajra Pestle emitted a tremor. The old monk's eyebrows and long hair fluttered wildly, slowly steadying himself.

The next moment, the temple exploded, sending countless shards flying.

A rickety wooden bed, hidden behind layers of curtains, became visible—

The slender woman, draped with a curtain, shrieked, "Monks from Nanli, why come at such a time?"

The leader of the Hehuan Sect primarily practiced the Divine Soul Skill.

Whereas the Nanli Buddhist Sect focused mainly on Body Refinement.

Fa Zhao took a deep breath. This time, he brought his disciples into the Southern Border to subdue the mind's ape and address the crucial flaw in the Body Refinement technique.

He threw the Buddha Mallet.

Buddha's light illuminated all, evaporating the heavy rain, and the Mallet instantly shone with brilliant golden light—

But the next moment, Fa Zhao realized something was amiss.

Inside the curtain, on the bed, lay a man with his clothes loosely opened.

From beginning to end, the man's reaction had been very calm, even enjoying it to some extent...

In contrast, that "impure Bodhisattva" from the Hehuan Sect was wailing across the mountains, seemingly not acting but genuinely pleading for mercy!

Wait a minute.

There was not just one Evil Cultivator here!

There were two!

"Master, something seems off?!"

The young novice also sensed the peculiarity.

Previously silent and dead, the mountaintop suddenly burst with many gleaming eyes, and the night resonated with harsh crow cries.

"Bald monk, strike now!"

The Hehuan Sect woman shrieked, "I can't hold off this guy's 'Spirit Control' technique much longer, kill him now or we all die!"

Fa Zhao's murky eyes suddenly flashed with a strange light.

It turned out this encounter was not the Hehuan Sect exploiting a furnace...

It was Yin Mountain's true man who was controlling the Divine Soul of a Hehuan Sect cultivator with his Spirit Control Technique!

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The Vajra Pestle shot across the sky, aiming at the curtain and emitting dozens of Buddha lights.

But alas, it was already too late.

After a piercing scream, the Hehuan Sect woman crouched low, lying upon the bare chest of the man. When she raised her head again, her eyes held only a dull gray hue. Layers of curtains shot out like swords, in the sound of tearing silk, the Buddha light from the Vajra Pestle was entangled by the curtains and instantly dimmed.

Fa Zhao's expression turned ugly as he took a step forward, throwing a punch!

"Boom," the heaven and earth resonated.

But the next moment, countless crows swept in, forming a dark, oppressive wave. His punch created an airwave that cut through the crow tide, the splashing hot blood mixed with raindrops fell upon the old monk's cheeks.

Fa Zhao paused for a moment.

The next moment.

A pale and beautiful face suddenly broke through the crow tide, the Hehuan Sect woman controlled by the Spirit Control Technique, leapt onto the old monk like a blood-sucking locust.

She bit down as soon as she opened her mouth.

Fa Zhao quickly raised his palm; his golden Buddha body emitted wind and thunder, blasting her away.

But the next moment, his whole body shook violently!

A heavenly tone descended, landing upon the Heart Lake!

"Command——"

This word came from within the collapsing temple, slowly rising from the disciple of Spirit Control Technique.

Fa Zhao instantly stiffened.

He stared in disbelief at the figure standing in the pouring rain, as the lightning flashed on a rainy night, his face looked increasingly familiar.

"You are..."

Fa Zhao's voice was hoarse, opening his mouth with great difficulty.

He uttered the other's name.

"Jin... Yuan?"

Under the seat of Yin Mountain Three Saints were twelve proud disciples.

Jin Yuan was ranked seventh.

"Good eyesight."

Jin Yuan slightly smiled and said, "Bald donkey... are you the one who's been particularly targeting 'Yin Mountain cultivators' lately? You don't look it, only at the sixth realm of Grotto Heaven, much weaker than I expected."

His resonant voice spread through the heavy rain.

The man slowly closed his robe, with countless black crows swirling around him.

Fa Zhao wanted to say something.

But...

The moment the Spirit Control Technique hit the Heart Lake, his entire Divine Soul could only be used to defend.

"Or is it you?"

Jin Yuan looked disdainfully at the young novice on the ground and mockingly said, "Artifact Control level, even weaker."

The novice's face turned pale.

Boom!

The thunder sounded again.

Jin Yuan paused, frowning as he looked beside the novice...

There was an additional figure here.

A figure in black clothes and wearing a hat, appearing to be only sixteen or seventeen years old.

He was certain that just a moment ago, this place was empty.

"Or perhaps, that person is me?"

The voice of the young man in the hat echoed over the mountaintop, overpowering the thunder and the caws of the temple crows.

"..."

Jin Yuan's expression soured.

He looked at the youth.

The youth's body did not contain much primordial energy, seeming even less than the novice's!

But this, precisely, was what frightened him.

"Jin Yuan, I have long respected your great name."

Xie Zhen took off his hat, threw it on the ground, and said softly, "I've been waiting for you in the Southern Border for a month, finally, you're here."

...

...

(PS: Thank you for your patience. This volume is named 'Atop Lotus Peak,' the story outline is basically set; it just took a long time to comb through at the beginning, selecting and choosing, and finally, this opening was chosen to cut in. Don't worry, it will soon get into the main storyline. Ah ha... Hope you all like it.)