The name Tianlong Temple doesn't actually have a specific connection to Dali; it's probably taken from the Eight Heavenly Dragons in Buddhist scriptures.
The eight classes are: 1. Devas (gods), 2. Nagas (dragons), 3. Yakshas (yakshas), 4. Gandharvas (gandharvas), 5. Asuras (asuras), 6. Garudas (garudas), 7. Kinnaras (kinnaras), and 8. Mahoragas (magoravas).
Therefore, the probability of it being named Tianlong Temple is really not high; the probability of it being called Dali Temple is much higher than that of Tianlong Temple.
Of course, these are all minor matters; next, we'll witness the profound heritage of Tenryu-ji Temple.
Xiaoyaozi had a deep impression of Duan Siping back then, and there was even a bit of a master-disciple relationship between them. It was just a pity that Duan Siping died too young. Therefore, Xiaoyaozi sincerely hoped that the Duan family could produce another genius.
“In that case, please come with me to Chong Sheng Temple, seniors.” Duan Sulong gestured.
"What should we do with this black tiger?" Xiaoyaozi pointed to the motionless black tiger.
"Easy. Big Black, wake up quickly and come with me." Duan Sulong pointed a finger from a distance. This time, the One-Finger Divine Skill was not for killing, but for healing.
The One-Finger Divine Skill can be used to heal injuries. In The Legend of the Condor Heroes, Huang Rong's internal injuries were healed by Master Yideng using the One-Finger Divine Skill.
The grade of One Finger is linked to the number of rays it simultaneously emits and its range. One finger can generate six attacks, and if it is effective at a distance of five feet, it is considered to be of the fourth grade.
Duan Sulong and Black Tiger were definitely within five feet of each other, and Black Tiger was only a little frightened and did not suffer any internal injuries, so Black Tiger should have woken up by now.
But he didn't wake up.
Duan Sulong frowned slightly and kicked out, "Playing dead? Get up!"
Black Tiger didn't move. Even if it was just pretending to be dead, it was going to keep up the act. With such a large body, it would be inconvenient for the other party to move it. Besides, the other party had urgent business and might just let it go.
"Big Black, if you don't get up, this old monk is going to poke you with my One-Finger Divine Skill." Duan Sulong raised a finger and poked it at the unmoving Black Tiger.
puff.
Black Tiger's face twisted slightly, but he remained motionless.
"In that case, this humble monk will have no choice but to beat you until you wake up! Please wait a moment, seniors. This black tiger has injured many people; we should kill it rather than let it return to the mountains." Duan Sulong gritted his teeth and prepared to unleash his One-Finger Divine Skill with all his might.
"No need for that trouble. I'll keep it for you and give it to you when I leave." Xiang Yu said, gathering his domineering aura around the black tiger and pushing it towards him, leaving a trail of dragging on the ground.
Black Tiger suppressed his urge to scream and resist, desperately closing his eyes and playing dead to the very end. At worst, he would just die!
Of course, what's the point of resisting in the face of such terrifying power?
Just as the black tiger was about to crash into Xiang Yu, the green doorway flashed by, and the black tiger disappeared as well.
Duan Sulong's pupils contracted, but he ultimately didn't dare to utter a word of refusal. He thought to himself, surely the senior expert wouldn't covet his mount? Although this mount was extremely rare, far surpassing even flying oxen and horses.
"Thank you for your help, Overlord. Please follow me." Duan Sulong knew how powerful these two were, so he simply used his lightness skill to the extreme to travel as fast as he could, even though he might still be criticized for being too slow.
In the alternate dimension, the black horse gave the crane a look, and the crane opened its mouth and chuckled twice, then shook its neck and walked towards the black tiger.
After Black Tiger stopped, he cautiously opened his eyes a crack and found himself surrounded by greenery, a horse, and a strange bird he had never seen before. The two terrifying humans were nowhere to be seen.
This strange bird is so big, it should be enough to fill me up halfway. After I finish the bird, I'll eat the horse!
Thinking of this, Black Tiger flipped himself up, opened his mouth wide, licked his drool, and planned to paralyze his prey with a roar, just like he always did when hunting.
"Aww!"
However, instead of being paralyzed with fear, the strange bird walked towards it with a sly grin. Was it scared out of its wits?
Black Tiger didn't care about anything else. If he got caught by that monk again, he would have to eat vegetarian food from now on. Now that meat was right in front of him, how could he resist? He would just eat it!
Then, the bird began to dance.
Peck, peck, peck, flash, peck, peck, flash...
Wow... What a formidable bird!
"Awoooooo... Waaaaa... Awoooo~ Awoooo~ Awoooooo..."
A moment later, Black Tiger screamed and ran away in tears, frantically circling around the black horse, thinking that he would give that horse a bite if he had the chance. In this strange space, he had to be second best. Although the horse was very beautiful, it looked like just an ordinary horse.
The black horse felt dizzy from the tiger's spinning, so it raised its hind hoof and gently kicked.
Swoosh...
Black Tiger flew away, "..."
Bang bang bang...
The extradimensional space was not large, and the six walls of the space were somewhat elastic. Therefore, the kick from the black horse caused the black tiger to bounce up in the space, ricocheting several times before landing.
Finally, we arrived at Chong Sheng Temple.
Through Duan Sulong's introduction, Xiang Yu, Hao Jiu, and Xiaoyaozi met the elite of the Dali Duan family.
According to seniority, Master Siming, whom Duan Sulong mentioned, was Duan Sulong's cousin, but he was actually three years younger than him. After all, many generations had passed from their ancestors Duan Siping and Duan Siliang to the present day.
Duan Sixing, who is of the same generation as Duan Sulong, is about twenty years younger than him. He has not yet officially become a monk, but he is also cultivating at Chongsheng Temple. He is considered to be the most skilled martial artist in the Dali Duan family after Duan Sulong, and his One-Finger Divine Skill has reached the fourth level.
With a master like Xiaoyaozi present, Duan Sulong and Duan Siming from Chongsheng Temple discussed it and decided to set the founding ceremony of Tianlong Temple for tomorrow. They also planned to gather all the martial arts disciples of the Dali Duan family. If any young man was chosen by the two seniors, it would be a great blessing.
Meanwhile, Duan Sixing will officially become a monk tomorrow and begin cultivating the Six Meridians Divine Sword.
So Xiang Yu and Xiaoyaozi stayed at Chongsheng Temple for one night.
"Why is the God of Wine so concerned about the Duan family of Dali?" Xiang Yu was puzzled. He didn't really want to challenge the experts from Dali right now, a fact that Hao Jiu knew.
"Sixty years from now, a protagonist will emerge from the Duan family of Dali. He will be Xiao Feng's sworn brother, Duan Yu. He will be the second master to master the Six Meridians Divine Sword after Duan Siping."
However, before that, around this time, there is another master from the Dali Duan family who deserves our attention. He hasn't yet revealed his abilities, and I can't be sure who he is, but I have a general idea.
"Oh, I see." Xiang Yu thought to himself, "There's an even more powerful expert than Duan Sulong? Duan Siming doesn't seem that strong either. Could it be Duan Sixing?"
"Haha, we'll know tomorrow if he's the one I'm thinking of."
Chapter 385 Six Meridian Divine Sword
Hao Jiu continued, "Of course, I have other purposes, such as obtaining the martial arts secrets of the Dali Duan family, namely the One-Finger Divine Skill and the Six-Meridian Divine Sword. Xiang Yu will definitely need the acupoint striking skill in the future, especially when fighting against human opponents."
"Then why don't I just learn the acupoint striking technique of the Xiaoyao Sect?" Xiang Yu had heard Xiaoyaozi say that the One-Finger Divine Skill was a profound acupoint striking technique, and Xiaoyaozi had also shown off his acupoint striking skills when recording the cards. However, he struck air, and Xiaoyaozi had not had the opportunity to use it when he sparred with Xiang Yu before. Therefore, Xiang Yu had never actually seen how effective the acupoint striking was.
In the world of martial arts, many martial arts masters know how to use acupoint striking, but most martial arts masters only need to learn the most basic acupoint striking and releasing techniques. After all, the purpose of acupoint striking is mainly to immobilize the opponent without harming their life, making it easier to do certain things.
The most common method is to press the Shentang, Yanggang, and Ya acupoints in succession, which can make the other person's whole body stiff. They can only breathe, blink, and make simple expressions, but they can't move anything else. If you want the other person to speak, release the Ya acupoint separately.
In reality, knocking someone unconscious, tying them up with rope, or stuffing their mouth with a sock have similar effects; it's just that acupressure is more convenient.
The acupoint striking technique of the Xiaoyao Sect is certainly not bad, but it is a bit less sophisticated than the One-Finger Divine Skill. After all, the One-Finger Divine Skill can strike acupoints from a distance, and the Dali Duan family can be said to have studied the art of acupoint striking to its extreme.
Acupressure isn't only effective when targeting the commonly used acupoints mentioned above. Theoretically, sealing any acupoint can have some effect. However, making someone's whole body stiff and unable to move is too incredible; it can be considered a black technology in the martial arts world.
However, in a battle between experts, it's not easy to defeat an opponent with a single acupoint strike. Everyone will be on guard, so the only way is to launch a surprise attack. For this reason, acupoint striking skills are not actually that practical.
However, the Duan family of Dali specializes in acupressure. There are 720 acupoints on the human body, many of which can be used as targets. The effects of acupressure are also varied and strange. For example, it can block or interfere with the internal energy flow of some of the opponent's meridians, causing the enemy to be paralyzed on one side, suffer from various disorders, impotence, infertility, and so on.
Even someone as arrogant as Xiaoyaozi had to admit that the Xiaoyao Sect's acupoint striking technique was inferior to the Dali Duan family's One-Finger Divine Skill, and even their naming was so casual.
Of course, Xiaoyaozi didn't focus on acupoint striking. It would be better to kill the opponent with a single palm strike or drain their internal energy. Why bother with acupoint striking?
Even if you absolutely have to use acupressure, you can easily find an opportunity with the Lingbo Weibu technique of the Xiaoyao Sect to freeze the opponent completely, and then you can do whatever you want. Studying acupressure so thoroughly is not very useful.
But Hao Jiu doesn't think so. Xiaoyaozi can easily crush everyone in this world, but what if he goes to another world?
"If you're going to learn, of course you should learn the best. I've already asked Xiaoyaozi to borrow the One-Finger Divine Skill manual from the Duan family of Dali. It will be delivered soon, and then Xiang Yu can practice it first," Hao Jiu said with a smile.
"What if they refuse to lend it?" Xiang Yu asked casually.
"How could we not lend it? Whether it's out of respect for Xiaoyaozi or because of his strength, the Dali Duan family can't possibly refuse. To put it bluntly, we've already given the Dali Duan family a lot of face by asking to borrow it, and we've only lent them the One Finger Divine Skill manual."
Although Xiang Yu only showed his skill by making the Black Tiger disappear, it was enough to intimidate the Duan family of Dali. At least his status as the elder of Xiaoyaozi has been confirmed. Moreover, Xiang Yu will be giving the descendants of the Duan family a great treasure tomorrow, and they will definitely want more.
"Besides, whether we cling to Xiaoyaozi or Bawang, it will be endlessly beneficial to the Dali Duan family. If it were me, I would not only offer them the One-Finger Divine Skill manual, but also the Six Meridians Divine Sword," Hao Jiu said confidently.
Sure enough, not long after, Xiaoyaozi sent over the martial arts manuals for One Finger Divine Skill and Six Meridian Divine Sword, and they were both copies, meaning that he could take them without returning them.
With the foundation of the Xiaoyao Sect's Xiaowuxiang Gong, the guidance of Xiaoyaozi, and the characteristics of the domineering energy, Xiang Yu quickly mastered the One-Finger Divine Skill. He then progressed from the ninth rank all the way up, reaching the fourth rank before nightfall.
Xiaoyaozi thought to himself, "With such talent in martial arts, why would the Overlord need the Divine Wood Cauldron to increase his cultivation speed?"
Although Xiang Yu's One-Finger Divine Skill, which was developed using domineering energy instead of internal force, didn't have any healing effect, so what? He could still heal with a healing medicine.
After learning the One-Finger Divine Skill and reaching the fourth rank, Xiang Yu officially began learning the Six Meridians Divine Sword. He first mastered the Shaoshang Sword with his right thumb and the Zhongchong Sword with his middle finger.
Both of these sword techniques emphasize momentum and power, with sweeping and powerful strokes, which perfectly suits Xiang Yu's style. Otherwise, even with Xiaoyaozi's guidance, he wouldn't have been able to learn them so quickly.
The characteristics of the Shangyang Sword on the right index finger, the Shaochong Sword on the little finger, and the Shaoze Sword on the left little finger are ingenuity, flexibility, elusiveness, lightness, speed, precision, unpredictability, and subtle changes. For Xiang Yu, mastering these skills would be relatively difficult.
The last one is the Guanchong sword on the right ring finger, characterized by its clumsy, simple, and unadorned style. Perhaps this sword is the most difficult to master.
In fact, the left and right hands of the Six Meridians Divine Sword can be interchanged. It is fine to focus on the left hand, or even change to the Five Meridians Divine Sword with the left hand having six (thumb and little finger) and the right hand having seven (thumb, index finger, and middle finger).
Hao Jiu's research revealed that the essence of the Six Meridians Divine Sword lies in the combination of different acupoints and meridians, which allows the true qi to undergo a turbocharged operation within the body, resulting in extremely powerful energy.
It can be said that the Six Meridian Divine Sword is an enhanced version of the One Finger Divine Skill. It is very difficult to pierce a person with the One Finger Divine Skill, which is why the Duan family of Dali studied how to use the One Finger Divine Skill to attack acupoints to increase damage. However, the Six Meridian Divine Sword is different; it is comparable to firearms or even lasers.
Coincidentally, this combination of amplified power can only operate at most six at the same time. Perhaps this is the real reason why it is named the Six Meridians Divine Sword instead of the Ten Meridians Divine Sword. Duan Siping also wanted to launch all ten fingers at the same time, but unfortunately, he did not have enough acupoints in his body.
The "divine" in Six Meridian Divine Sword is reflected in its great power and its versatility. When Six Meridian Divine Sword is cultivated to the highest level, the sword energy can turn and even track the target. It is straightforward. How can you talk about being clever, flexible, elusive and subtle?
Xiang Yu had a feeling that if he could master the Six Meridian Divine Sword, his application of domineering aura would reach a new level, at least half a step into the Earth Realm. Perhaps the opportunity to break through to the Earth Realm with domineering aura lay in the Six Meridian Divine Sword and other peerless martial arts.
As dawn broke, Xiang Yu finally mastered the Shaoshang Sword, Zhongchong Sword, Shangyang Sword, Shaochong Sword, Shaoze Sword, and Guanchong Sword, leaving Xiaoyaozi utterly astonished.
However, there is a problem: Xiang Yu can only use any two swords at the same time. It turns out that to launch the Six Meridian Divine Swords simultaneously, one must be able to do six things at once!
Chapter 386 The Heavenly Dragon Ceremony
Clang... clang...
The bells tolled melodiously, creating a solemn and dignified atmosphere.
The grand ceremony at Tianlong Temple was held as scheduled. The entire Duan family of Dali, including the current emperor, attended the ceremony in their finest attire.
From this day forward, Chongsheng Temple and Wuwu Temple will be merged into Tianlong Temple. Duan Siming, the most senior and skilled in martial arts, will serve as the abbot of Tianlong Temple, Duan Sulong, the most skilled in martial arts, will serve as the transmission elder, and Duan Suyan, the biological father of the current Dali emperor, will serve as the law enforcement elder.
The Dali Duan family finally had a formal sect, instead of just a family. The next step was to announce to the martial arts world that from now on, all matters concerning the martial arts world and the Jianghu would be handled by Tianlong Temple.
After all, Dali Kingdom was a country, and it was impossible for the emperor to manage the affairs of the martial arts world, nor did he have the time to do so.
After Tianlong Temple was established, the first person to become a monk was Duan Sixing, who was only thirty-seven years old. He originally had the hope of inheriting the throne, but in the end, Duan Sulong passed the throne to Duan Suzhen, who was also from the same lineage as Duan Siliang.