Chapter 82: The Monk with the Cloth Bag

Unknowingly, time slipped by bit by bit; outside, the bright moon must now hang in the sky. Zhao Ti still kept his eyes closed, his expression seeming both joyful and sorrowful, as if bearing a solemn Buddha-like countenance, making Li Qingluo unable to help but stare in a daze.

She had never seen what one looked like upon mastering the Minor Formless Art; even Ding Chunqiu had not perfected it completely. Yet now, watching the other's strange demeanor, she could not help but feel suspicious.

Ding Chunqiu had wasted years practicing the Minor Formless Art, and she herself had gained nothing at all. Could this Prince of Yan really master it within a mere few hours? Impossible, absolutely impossible...

At this moment, true qi surged within Zhao Ti's body. He felt the Minor Formless Art was not difficult; this Cultivation Technique was mainly complex, extremely complex, complex to the extreme. As one practiced, it would make one forget the previous energy circulation paths. With several hundred or even a thousand paths, it was hard not to forget them; the mind became a blur, then all prior effort was wasted, and one had to start over from the beginning.

"The myriad forms of Absolute Truth are named Formless. The name manifests the principle; the principle transcends all forms. There is no such form, thus it is named Formless. Small and formless, a mustard seed holds Mount Sumeru; no trace can be found, thus it is called Minor Formless."

The power of this Cultivation Technique lies in imitating Other Martial Arts. As long as one learns the Minor Formless Art and understands the moves of a certain martial art, one can use the inner force of the Minor Formless Art to drive and imitate the moves, even producing effects surpassing the original. To those unfamiliar with this martial art, it would be impossible to tell the difference.

For those martial arts without specific moves, such as the One Yang Finger or the Splitting Air Palm, which harm others purely through inner force, the Minor Formless Art can also imitate them and produce similar effects.

However, this is almost useless. If imitating moves, one can simply observe and memorize them during a duel with the opponent. But to imitate the projection of inner force, one must know the inner force circulation path, then guide the Minor Formless true qi along that path to execute it.

Yet, if one already knows this inner force circulation path, it means one already possesses this inner force; in that case, there is no need to use the Minor Formless Art to imitate it—one can simply use this inner force directly.

Zhao Ti had already cultivated Minor Formless true qi. This true qi now seemed like a giant net, extending from the dantian in all directions. The twelve regular meridians, the eight extraordinary meridians, and the three hundred and sixty visible and hidden acupoints in the human body intersected to form countless circulation paths. The Minor Formless true qi constantly roamed within these intricate paths.

However, remembering these paths was no problem for Zhao Ti, for he never forgot anything seen and never missed anything heard. As long as something had left a trace or he had experienced it, he could recall it all simply by thinking.

As he manipulated the Minor Formless Art within his body, he was somewhat surprised. This Cultivation Technique could not be mastered merely by having profound martial arts talent. Memory was one aspect; not necessarily possessing his own photographic memory, but one must at least be able to memorize by rote, with astonishing memory. Additionally, one must have understanding and realization of the two characters "Formless."

As the inner force circulation paths within his body increased, he did not know why, but suddenly thought of the Buddha and Bodhisattva statues enshrined within the temple's sacred halls, and also of the Heavenly Lords and deities in famous temples and great shrines—pure and natural, with solemn Buddha-like countenances, appearing dignified yet hypocritical, without stain or purity, without increase or decrease.

Next, for some reason, he thought of Ji Mo Zhi's image of a Buddha with his face smeared with oil, and also of the portrait on the silk scroll of the Beiming Divine Art, which resembled Li Qiushui in appearance but exuded seductive charm, like a painting of a heavenly demoness dancing.

Formed, Formless. Formless, Formless...

The Minor Formless true qi within Zhao Ti's body surged rapidly, moving like lightning and wind. Every circulation path further branched into countless paths, heading toward the middle dantian, the Crimson Palace. Yet it did not enter the Tanzhong acupoint; instead, it circled around this acupoint once, then scattered to both sides...

Just at this moment, a faint "splash" sound suddenly came from the other side of the Langhuan Jade Cave.

Li Qingluo turned her head in confusion. This Langhuan Jade Cave was very spacious; the distance between the two sides was not short, with over a dozen bookshelves arranged in the middle, making it impossible to see the entire area. She felt the sound did not seem to come from inside the cave, but rather from within the mountain wall opposite.

She quickly turned to look at Tong Guan, only to see Tong Guan make a "shh" gesture.

Li Qingluo quickly lightened her breathing, her gaze passing over the tops of the bookshelves to fixate on the opposite cave wall.

This Mantuo Manor was built on a small island deep within Taihu Lake. The island had a small mountain, and the Langhuan Jade Cave was actually constructed relying on this small mountain on the island.

Li Qingluo's expression suddenly changed. Could it be that someone had entered the small mountain from that end? Were they carving a passage here toward the Langhuan Jade Cave?

The small mountain on the island was not as hard as the stone and soil on the shore, and there were already many naturally formed small caves within it. The mountain body was relatively small, and the positions on both sides were actually quite close, making it easy to break through. If one did not know the location of the Langhuan Jade Cave, it would be one thing; but if one knew, it would indeed be possible to come over from that side.

She was suddenly greatly alarmed, thinking secretly: How could this thief know of the existence of the Langhuan Jade Cave? Could he be the one who stole the seven secret volumes of the Minor Formless Art?

But if he had already obtained the Minor Formless Art, why return? Moreover, since he was able to steal the secret manuals before, he clearly had discovered the mechanism; he could enter through the cave gate. Why dig through the cave wall from one side to here, wanting to break through the mountain wall to enter?

As she thought and thought, Li Qingluo's expression changed drastically. Her face instantly turned cold as frost. "Good thief! Does he intend to open a secret passage and empty the Langhuan Jade Cave?"

"Yes, yes! He must want to steal all the secret manuals inside the cave. Finding the main gate of the Langhuan Jade Cave inconvenient for coming and going, and unable to carry everything away at once, fearing discovery and wasting all effort, so he came up with this trick?"

She could not help but grind her teeth, her hand unconsciously resting on the sword at her waist.

Tong Guan, standing nearby, held up two fingers and shook them. Li Qingluo stopped her movement, but her face looked terribly ugly. She hated this thief to death; he was simply insatiable, intending to cut off the foundation of her Mantuo Manor.

At this moment, the sound from within the opposite stone wall grew louder, seeming to draw near. However, the digging position was clearly not well controlled; the sound coming through was somewhat high, as if from the upper part of the cave wall.

Tong Guan gave Li Qingluo a glance. The two of them lowered their bodies slightly, revealing only their eyes above the bookshelves, motionless as they stared at the distant mountain wall.

After a short while, a loosening sound came from the mountain wall, followed by a piece of gravel falling to the ground with a "pa."

The noise inside immediately ceased, a silence as dead as death. Clearly, the person inside the wall had not expected the sound of the falling stone to be so loud.

After another long pause, a rustling sound finally rang out again. On the wall, about five or six feet off the ground, stone and soil kept sliding down. A black hole, initially the size of a chicken egg, gradually expanded, finally becoming about three feet wide.

Li Qingluo held her breath, staring at the stone wall. Inside, it was pitch black with no light, but just a few breaths later, an arm suddenly extended out.

Moments later, a monk's head poked out from within, and then a Monk leaped swiftly from the hole, landing without a sound.

This Monk wore plain monk robes, his spirit soaring. Faint treasure-like light seemed to flow on his face, shining naturally like a bright pearl or beautiful jade.

Seeing this, Li Qingluo was stunned for a moment, then anger rose uncontrollably in her heart. So he was actually a thief-monk!

The Monk leaned against the mountain wall, looking around in all directions. Finding nothing unusual, he took a cloth bag from his robes. Immediately, starting from the bookshelf on that side, he began stuffing the secret manuals on top into the bag.

His movements were fast and smooth. In no time, he finished filling several rows. Then he came before the last row, but seemed to feel something was amiss. He walked to the head of the bookshelf and looked toward that side, immediately locking eyes with Li Qingluo...