Urban Martial Saint

Understanding his body’s condition, Ye Qing attempted to circulate his Inner Strength once more. Despite his meridians being completely severed, he was still somewhat unwilling to give up, wanting to see if his meridians could be repaired.

During the day, Ye Qing had tried several times, but he never received any response. His meridians were severed, his dantian destroyed, and he could not store Inner Strength in his body. This time, he tried again, and everything was exactly the same as before, with no change at all. His meridians and dantian felt completely numb, as if they had been utterly ruined.

This left Ye Qing feeling somewhat dejected, and he sighed, ready to give up. Just then, his right hand suddenly trembled slightly, and an unusual warmth emerged from the spot where a sphere resided within his palm.

The sensation surprised Ye Qing, and he quickly raised his right hand to scrutinize it, only to see that the sphere’s position in his palm was faintly flickering with a Golden Light, reminiscent of the Buddha’s Relic’s golden radiance.

Ye Qing’s eyes widened; he had long suspected that this sphere might be the Buddha’s Relic. But now, he could fully confirm it—the sphere was indeed the Buddha’s Relic. However, what was going on with this Buddha’s Relic? Why had it entered the center of his palm?

Ye Qing didn’t have time to ponder this question because, as the golden radiance rose, a surge of power abruptly filled his right arm. This powerful energy surged like a flood through his body, rushing directly into his organs, recklessly attacking them, as if it intended to shatter his internal organs completely.

This was indeed the power of the Buddha’s Relic!

Ye Qing had felt it before; he was familiar with this force!

But Ye Qing couldn’t understand why the Buddha’s Relic had entered his hand’s center. Moreover, hadn’t Patriarch Bodhidharma mentioned that the power of the Buddha’s Relic could only be activated by gathering the six Secret Techniques left by him, and usually this power would never be revealed? Yet in his palm, the Buddha’s Relic’s power suddenly exploded? This force was wildly assaulting his body, striking at his organs, as if intending to tear him apart. Why had the Buddha’s Relic’s power become so violent? Ye Qing hadn’t activated it nor used any attacking Technique, but it seemed to be autonomously attacking his body? Why was this happening?

No sooner had Ye Qing tried to unravel these mysteries than his organs screamed in torment. As the Buddhist Relic’s power battered him, he felt as if his whole body was on the brink of rupture. It was as though there was a bomb inside him—no, more like multiple bombs—constantly detonating, trying to obliterate his body.

Strangely, despite the overwhelming power of the Buddha’s Relic, which continually assaulted Ye Qing’s organs, Ye Qing merely felt pain but wasn’t injured or killed. The force couldn’t shatter his organs, and couldn’t kill him?

Ye Qing was astonished; he knew the Buddha’s Relic’s power was capable of annihilating Corpse Ghost Dragon effortlessly. Killing him would pose no problem at all. But why couldn’t the Buddha’s Relic’s power shatter his organs? Ye Qing could sense that the Buddha’s Relic’s power was fully exhibited; this mighty force was enough to thrash Corpse Ghost Dragon into pieces, yet why couldn’t it even fracture his organs?

Ye Qing realized there must be a reason behind this. Since it couldn’t kill him, he decided not to concern himself with the searing pain in his organs and instead began to carefully feel the Buddha’s Relic’s force colliding with his organs; he wanted to understand why his organs had suddenly become so robust.

Without careful sensing, Ye Qing remained ignorant of his body’s conditions. But upon meticulous examination, he discovered the reason for it all. Within his organs, hidden inside his body, there lingered another force. It seemed to oppose the Buddha’s Relic’s power, sheltering Ye Qing’s body, protecting his organs. Though Ye Qing couldn’t gauge the strength of this force, it was powerful enough to prevent the Buddha’s Relic’s power from penetrating; it was this force that safeguarded Ye Qing, saving him from being killed by the Buddha’s Relic’s strength!

Ye Qing was even more stunned. The Buddha’s Relic’s power was astonishing enough, but what was this force inside him? And furthermore, the supreme power of the Buddha’s Relic—what force could withstand it and shield his body?

Ye Qing grew increasingly bewildered, yet instinct told him that while the Buddha’s Relic’s power sought to annihilate him, the unknown force within him protected him. In other words, the Buddha’s Relic’s power desired his death, but the mysterious inner force preserved his life.

Despite not understanding why the Buddha’s Relic’s power wanted him dead, Ye Qing still regarded the Buddha’s Relic as a great threat for survival. Watching the Buddha’s Relic flicker in his right palm, Ye Qing knitted his brows tightly. If the Buddha’s Relic wasn’t extracted, it would continue disrupting his body, remaining a perpetual menace. The Buddha’s Relic absolutely couldn’t stay inside him any longer!

Ye Qing looked around, discovering the chopping knife the big boy used for cutting vegetables. It was a broken dagger, with a wooden handle bound to the end, making a makeshift dagger, barely sufficient for vegetable cutting.

Ye Qing grabbed the knife, thrusting it firmly into the soil, so it stood vertically on the ground. Then he glanced at his right palm, deeply inhaled, and suddenly forced the center of his palm onto the knife’s tip. His decision was resolute—he wanted to carve this Buddha’s Relic from his palm, preventing this threatening object from residing in his body any longer.

Gritting his teeth, Ye Qing prepared himself psychologically, not wanting to utter a sound despite the anticipated pain. Yet in truth, when he pressed his hand onto the knife, he felt no pain; the knife instead toppled under his pressure.

”What’s going on?” Ye Qing murmured in amazement as he raised his right hand to examine the spot punctured by the knife. Not a trace of injury, no sign indicating penetration; the skin appeared untouched.

”This...” Ye Qing scratched his head, utterly baffled by the occurrence. After a brief silence, he picked up the knife again. This time, he held it with his mouth, stretching the right palm toward the knife’s tip. When on the ground, it was unstable; in his mouth, he could exert more pressure, hopefully making a difference.

Yet once more, the situation mirrored before. Upon pressing his palm, he felt no pain. Ye Qing applied considerable force, but his palm remained unmarred. The knife seemed incapable of inflicting any wound on his right palm.

”What’s with this?” Ye Qing mused, puzzled. He wondered if his strength wasn’t sufficient, so he placed the knife against the nearby wall for stability. Leaning against the wall, he exerted force with his right palm on the knife’s edge. But, again, nothing; no pain, no injury, the knife couldn’t cut through his palm.

After numerous attempts at cutting his palm, Ye Qing ultimately abandoned the effort. Lifting and examining the knife, he noticed its blade was nicked—his force evidently substantial. But the knife failed to pierce his palm.

Looking at his right palm, Ye Qing muttered softly, ”Could it be that this hand is now impenetrable to blades or bullets?”

A common knife couldn’t breach his skin, leaving him wondering if a Famed Instrument might accomplish it. But he had no such instrument, only dwelling on the thought. Clearly, extracting the Buddha’s Relic from his palm wouldn’t be as easy as he had hoped.

Thankfully, the Buddhist Relic’s power didn’t rage for long; after about an hour, it receded back into dormancy. As it calmed, the protecting force inside Ye Qing’s body also dissipated; both forces vanished as if they had never appeared. Regarding Ye Qing’s body now, he felt devoid of any strength; his own energy seemed to have disappeared entirely too.

Looking at the Buddha’s Relic in his palm, Ye Qing frowned slightly, mumbled under his breath, ”What exactly do you intend? Why seek to end my life and lead me into the Land of Death?”

Of course, there was no reply. The Buddha’s Relic seemed to have sunken into silence. After all the struggles, Ye Qing was exhausted and soon fell asleep.

Upon waking, daylight already gleamed. Ye Qing caught a whiff of a pleasant aroma, glanced around, and noticed a little girl beside him, with a small stool nearby bearing a bowl of food.

The bowl contained cooked potatoes. Despite lacking any seasoning, the fragrance was appealing.

Seeing Ye Qing awake, the little girl exclaimed with joy. She handed him a wet towel, prompting Ye Qing to wipe his face, then passed him the bowl of food.

Ye Qing looked around; the older boy and girl were long gone, probably having eaten and left earlier. This leftover bowl was presumably meant for him. And the little girl remained because she was too young to accompany them.

Warmth seeped into Ye Qing’s heart, and he smiled kindly at the girl, raising the bowl to eat heartily. After sleeping for so long, he truly felt hunger. Though simple, the potatoes were nutritious, sufficient in energy, enough to replenish the body’s needs.