Danyangzi and Daoist Lin Xuan left the capital one after the other at a leisurely pace, traveling over a hundred li beyond the city's outskirts. There, they saw the Tu River flowing in torrents, and an old monk and a young monk were treading the waves downstream.
Danyangzi and Daoist Lin Xuan stopped and bowed to the two monks from the riverbank: "Senior brothers."
The two monks promptly halted on the water's surface and returned the gesture with palms pressed together: "Senior brothers."
The old monk's white brows hung low as he spoke: "Are you returning from the Grand Academy? Has the three-day period elapsed?"
Danyangzi shook his head: "Not yet three days."
The old monk's brow twitched slightly, clearly quite unsettled within: "The Grand Academy actually possesses such capability that it can rival a Daoist Daoist Master? I intend to visit with the Buddha's Son to see for ourselves what lies within."
Danyangzi bowed and took his leave. The old monk also bowed, and the two parties departed separately.
After Danyangzi and Daoist Lin Xuan departed, everyone at the Grand Academy—from the Director down to the scholars—let out a long sigh of relief. Yet no one could say with certainty who had defeated Daoist Lin Xuan.
Strangely enough, defeating Daoist Lin Xuan should have been a wonderful thing, yet the expert who accomplished it never stepped forward to declare that it was they who had subdued Lin Xuan. It was quite peculiar.
Everyone speculated in circles. Some claimed it was one of the princes from the Prince's Garden who struck secretly, causing Daoist Lin Xuan to retreat of his own accord—but because the princes were locked in fierce rivalries with one another, that particular prince feared drawing too much attention to himself and concealed the matter to avoid being schemed against by the other princes.
Others said it was Xiao Yin, the Sword Fanatic from the Arcane Powers Hall, who acted. Xiao Yin was a Sword Fanatic, entirely devoted to the way of the sword, his mind free of distractions, and he placed no importance on fame or fortune.
Still others claimed that former graduates of the Grand Academy had heard the news and rushed back to defeat Daoist Lin Xuan before hurrying to the front lines once more. Many of those who had graduated from the Grand Academy were already generals on the front lines, commanding troops in battle.
There was even speculation that it was the State Preceptor's disciple who, under orders, infiltrated the Grand Academy and became a Grand Scholar before defeating Lin Xuan—and then dropped out.
All manner of theories abounded.
Among the Scholars' Quarters, the scholars buzzed with excitement, crowding into Shen Wanyun's courtyard and firing questions at him: "Senior Brother, everyone up on the mountain is guessing who exactly defeated the Daoist Master of the Daoist path—surely it wasn't you?"
Shen Wanyun yawned and fought back his drowsiness: "It wasn't me. Although I wanted to contribute to the Grand Academy's honor, I trained too hard and fell asleep in my courtyard without realizing it. If it hadn't been for the commotion you all made, I never would have woken up. I have no idea who defeated Daoist Lin Xuan."
The group half-believed and half-doubted. Qu Ting grinned: "Could it be that Senior Brother simply intends to hide his identity and remain unknown?"
Shen Wanyun was caught between laughter and tears: "I stayed awake for two days without rest, contemplating the three sword techniques the State Preceptor taught me. I overworked my mind and damaged my spirit—I can barely muster even eighty percent of my strength. How could it possibly be me? If I had truly defeated Daoist Lin Xuan, would I have kept it from you?"
Suddenly, the monk Yun Que's expression shifted slightly: "Don't tell me it was that outcast?"
Yue Qinghong also felt a stirring of thought. Despite the humiliation of being knocked into a bronze pillar by Qin Mu, she still greatly admired his abilities: "That outcast possesses extraordinary skills—his combat techniques, his magical arts, and his swordsmanship are all far from weak. Could it have been him?"
Shen Wanyun hesitated for a moment, then shook his head: "To be honest, it was precisely because I saw him training diligently without sleeping that I was so inspired to train with all my might in order to defeat Daoist Lin Xuan. He trained for just as long as I did, and right now he's probably still snoring away—he certainly must have missed the clash with Daoist Lin Xuan as well."
A scholar fumed: "That fellow even dragged the Senior Brother off track! During the State Preceptor's instruction, he was shouting and carrying on, claiming he'd mastered qi threads. He'd just barely mastered qi threads—how could he possibly defeat the Daoist Master of the Daoist path?"
The scholars all nodded in agreement, laughing: "When he made a fool of himself in front of the Grand Academy Hall, right before all the scholars in the academy, it felt pretty satisfying for us too—the places where he'd beaten us suddenly felt better!"
At that very moment, a great clamor erupted from the foot of the mountain. Someone was calling out: "An old monk has arrived at the base of the mountain! He's brought a young monk with him, and they've sat down right in front of the mountain gate!"
The scholars exchanged bewildered glances. Shen Wanyun's eyes flashed, and he spoke in a grave voice: "The experts of the Daoist path have barely left, and now the monks of the Great Thunderclap Monastery have arrived! Between those two monks, I'd wager the young one is the Buddha's Son of the Great Thunderclap Monastery! I never got the chance to face Daoist Lin Xuan—then I absolutely must meet this Buddha's Son! Junior brothers and sisters, I need half a day to rest and gather my strength."
The scholars all took their leave.
Shen Wanyun lay down without removing his clothes and soon fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, Shen Wanyun woke feeling revitalized, freshened up, filled his stomach, and immediately descended the mountain. Only upon reaching the base did he learn that this Buddha's Son of the Great Thunderclap Monastery had already defeated many of the Grand Academy's top experts.
This Buddha's Son commanded the Tathagata Mahayana, possessed a Vajra protective body, and had mastered the Buddhist way of battle. When he activated his techniques, his body swelled to several times its size, granting him boundless strength. Buddhist light flowed through his form—sometimes manifesting as a great bell, sometimes as a Buddhist pagoda that crushed down upon his opponent. A casual wave of his hand produced a golden alms bowl that could suck a person in, and a backhanded gesture brought down a replica of Mount Sumeru.
Shen Wanyun stepped forward to face him, battling for more than ten rounds before using the Drill Sword technique to break through the Buddha's Son's Vajra protection and wound the enlightened one. However, the Buddha's Son's formidable strength ultimately prevailed, and Shen Wanyun was forced to concede defeat.
Many scholars from both the Arcane Powers Hall and the Prince's Garden looked upon him with newfound respect. The scholars in the Scholars' Quarters were mostly at the Five Planets realm, with relatively modest cultivation levels. The fact that Shen Wanyun could exchange over a dozen moves with the Buddha's Son of the Great Thunderclap Monastery before losing—such a feat would rank him among the very top experts in the Arcane Powers Hall or the Prince's Garden, placing him within the top ten.
Immediately, princes and princesses from the Prince's Garden approached him, signaling their desire to recruit him. Shen Wanyun neither accepted nor refused, wishing to avoid offending too many people. He thought to himself: "It seems my performance was decent after all—if it weren't, no one would be trying to recruit me. I wonder how Junior Brother Qin fared against this monk? How many moves did he hold out under the Buddha's Son's hand?"
"That blue ox the young master spoke of—I've seen it a few times."
Within the Grand Academy, Hu Ling'er led Qin Mu toward the rear mountain: "There's a vegetable garden on the back slope. A few days ago I was wandering through the hills, looking for spirit mushrooms and immortal flowers or similar treasures. When I passed by, I saw several patches of spirit grass in that garden and ran into this ox—it bellowed at me several times. I saw it guarding those spirit plants and felt quite annoyed. I've been wanting to get my hands on them and eat them for a while now."
Qin Mu was surprised: "In a vegetable garden? It must be a wild ox—why else would someone keep it in a vegetable garden, eating the crops?"
"That does make sense. Young master, why would the Dragon Qilin at the mountain gate want to eat this ox?"
"I don't know. I'd guess this ox might have offended the Dragon Qilin somehow—perhaps it's annoyed by the ox sneaking vegetables from the garden every day." Qin Mu speculated.
Hu Ling'er led him to the rear mountain, where few scholars ventured—aside from those who came for secret rendezvous.
On the back slope, there were several clusters of courtyard compounds. It was said that certain national instructors who preferred the shade lived here, and besides their residences, there was also the dwelling of the old mountain guardian.
Several vegetable plots had been carved out of the rear mountain. Qin Mu and Hu Ling'er followed a winding path downhill, and after a while they spotted a tile-roofed courtyard painted in reddish brown. To its left front, a flat stretch of land roughly five or six acres in size had been cleared, enclosed by a fence, and planted with a great many vegetables.
Right there, a blue ox stood in the vegetable patch, munching on the crops and lazily swishing its tail to drive away mosquitoes.
Qin Mu took one look and shuddered.
This was indeed a blue ox, and Qin Mu was certain that even on the Jade Mountain, there was only one such ox—but he wasn't at all sure he could defeat it.
The blue ox was all sinew and muscle, incredibly imposing, and it stood upright on its two hind legs just like a human, leaning against a post. Its front hooves had transformed into hard, horn-like hands, and it was casually clutching a bunch of green vegetables, eating with leisurely contentment.
Qin Mu estimated that the blue ox stood two or three times his own height. It had virtually no fat—only bulging muscle. Moreover, its blue hide had taken on a jade-like luster, actually reflecting light, shining with a polished gleam, as if it were a piece of fine jade that had been handled for over a decade.
Most terrifying of all, when the blue ox breathed, its nostrils expelled and inhaled twin beams of white light, and the dragon scales growing on its neck left Qin Mu absolutely certain that this blue ox had been cultivating on the mountain for many years, breathing the qi of the Nine Dragons and undergoing a draconic transformation that had produced dragon scales.
"Who dares spy on me?"
Suddenly, the blue ox spoke in a human voice, stuffing a handful of peonies into its mouth. The white light from its nostrils was drawn back into its body, and its gaze, sharp as lightning, fixed on Qin Mu. It then strode forward, its bulging muscles bouncing with each step.
Qin Mu exhaled a turbid breath and said to Hu Ling'er: "It's just an ox, isn't it? I grew up herding cattle since childhood—can't I handle one? Ling'er, fall back for now. If I tell you to run, you run. Got it?"
Hu Ling'er nodded and retreated.
Qin Mu took a long, deep breath and walked toward the blue ox with a smile: "Brother Ox..."
The blue ox had a fiery temper and, without a word of explanation, charged forward to fight, sneering: "You little brat with that wicked grin—you're no good, that's certain. Who's your brother?"
Hu Ling'er retreated up the mountain when suddenly a thunderous crash erupted from the direction of the vegetable garden, followed by a relentless series of booms. A moment later, Qin Mu came sprinting at full speed: "Ling'er, run!"
Hu Ling'er immediately took to her heels, casting a glance behind her. She saw that Qin Mu's eye sockets were swollen and his nose had turned black and blue—it was clear that in the brief moments that had passed, the former cowherd of the Village of Broken Elders had received a thorough beating from the blue ox.
Hu Ling'er clicked her tongue in astonishment, thinking: "The young master has always been formidable—fighting this one and that one ever since arriving at the Grand Academy—how did he end up getting thrashed by an ox?"
Behind them came the rumbling thunder of hooves. The blue ox was clearly charging after them in a rage, refusing to let them go.
Qin Mu snatched Hu Ling'er up, perched her on his shoulder, and sprinted desperately up the mountain.
After a while, when the blue ox could no longer catch up, it cursed and grumbled its way back.
No sooner had the blue ox returned to the vegetable garden than a voice drifted from the reddish-brown courtyard beside it—it was the Director of Bashan, his voice muddled and drowsy: "Why is it so noisy out there?"
"Master, someone's been bullying your little oxie!"
The blue ox hastily bowed toward the courtyard, smiling obsequiously: "He was trying to steal the vegetables from Master's garden, but Oxie drove him away."
"Is that so?"