Wu Xing politely replied, "Not at all, it is Benefactor Li who is truly astonishing. Despite being in the imperial court, he possesses a profound and unfathomable understanding of Zen."
Li Boyang replied politely, "Master Wuxing is too kind. I only know some principles of life and how to conduct myself. I don't know anything about Zen."
The two of them went on and on, praising each other for several rounds, leaving the onlookers stunned, as if their worries were completely unnecessary.
However, everyone's expressions were a bit strange. Although the two seemed to be getting along well, like old friends discussing philosophy for decades.
But the abbot's robe was brand new before he entered the main hall, so why did it have more than a dozen big holes when he came out?
Also, why did the sleeves of Li Boyang's scholar robe disappear? If I remember correctly, it had sleeves before entering the main hall.
What happened to the several bruises that suddenly appeared on the abbot's forehead? Can discussing Zen really cause bruises on one's forehead?
If that's the case, why was Li Boyang wearing a hair ornament when he went in, but came out with disheveled hair?
All these signs indicate that the two clearly fought inside the main hall, yet they came out completely unharmed. What on earth are they up to?
Ignoring the bewildered Jueyuan, Wuxing looked up at the sky and said:
“Benefactor Li, it is almost noon. Why don’t you have your meal at Shaolin Temple?”
"I won't disturb the abbot any longer. I've gained a lot from my visit to Shaolin today, and I need to go back and digest it properly."
"Not at all, Wuxing also found it very beneficial, so I won't see you off any further. May you have a safe journey, Benefactor Li."
"Of course, then it's settled then. Abbot Wuxing, don't forget."
"Don't worry, Mr. Li, I won't see you off any further."
Only after Li Boyang left Shaolin Temple did Wuxing's smile gradually disappear. He let out a soft sigh and his face became solemn.
Jueyuan had long suspected that the Zen discussion in the Mahavira Hall was not so simple, and immediately asked:
"Abbot, have you fought with that Benefactor Li?"
Wu Xing nodded silently and slowly said:
"Have someone check the number of registered disciples at Shaolin Temple and send the roster to the government for record-keeping."
"What?"
Jueyuan was taken aback and looked at Wuxing with disbelief. Wuxing's sudden remark was a bit hard for him to accept.
Given Shaolin Temple's standing in the martial arts world, Abbot Wuxing was well aware of the implications of reporting to the authorities. Thinking of the three-hour Zen discussion in the Great Buddha Hall, Jueyuan asked with some surprise:
"Could it be that you, Abbot?"
Jueyuan's meaning was clear: he was asking Wuxing if he had been defeated by Li Boyang.
Wu Xing naturally understood what the other person meant, and silently nodded, saying:
"The Bloodthirsty Butcher lives up to his name."
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Chapter 163 Visiting Various Factions
After leaving Shaolin Temple, Li Boyang headed straight for Zhongnan Mountain.
The scene in the Great Hall of Shaolin Temple shows that he and Abbot Wuxing were certainly not actually discussing Zen.
After entering the main hall with Wuxing, Li Boyang first used his fists to explain his principles.
Wu Xing was unconvinced, so he also used his fists to illustrate his Zen principles.
Of course, the two were just sparring and didn't actually fight. If they had, the main hall would have been demolished long ago.
Ultimately, Li Boyang's reasoning proved to be more convincing, and only then did they sit down to discuss Zen.
Li Boyang told Wuxing a very simple truth: now that the Ming Dynasty has just been established, Zhu Yuanzhang, as a great ruler, will not allow an uncontrollable behemoth to exist in his empire.
In Zhu Yuanzhang's view, the martial arts heroes who broke the law and the martial arts sects with their own armed forces were clearly uncontrollable and dangerous factors.
Given the current state of affairs, even without Li Boyang, someone else would inevitably take his place and take action against the martial arts world.
The existence of the Six Doors is not actually to oppose the martial arts world, but to find a balance between the martial arts world and the secular world, so that the two sides can coexist amicably.
Wu Xing readily accepted this explanation, feeling that Li Boyang was absolutely right and truly insightful.
Then Li Boyang casually mentioned the matter of filing with the government, and Wu Xing naturally agreed.
When he finally left, Li Boyang still couldn't figure out whether Wuxing was persuaded by his fists or by his reasoning. But whatever, as long as Shaolin agreed to his conditions, it was a good start.
Clearly, Shaolin alone was not enough to guide the trend of the entire martial arts world, so after leaving Shaolin, Li Boyang went directly to Quanzhen Sect.
His thinking was very clear: if he wanted the martial arts sects to bow down, he had to make the top sects in the martial arts world bow down. There were only about ten top sects in the martial arts world, so he could just visit them one by one.
Shaolin and Quanzhen, one Buddhist and one Taoist sect, are the two largest and top-tier sects. Although after Qiu Chuji's death, the Quanzhen sect did not have a single Qi Refining Realm expert.
However, even a fallen camel is bigger than a horse; after all, its foundation is still there. As long as someone in the Quanzhen Sect breaks through to the Qi Refining Realm within the next five years, the Quanzhen Sect can still dominate the martial arts world.
If the Quanzhen School continues to face a talent shortage within five years, things will be hard to predict.
However, one thing is certain: the Quanzhen Sect's influence will not be extinguished. As long as Li Boyang remains in the Wudang world, no one can run wild over the Quanzhen Sect.
This is a debt he owes to Qiu Chuji.