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Dali Capital.
Linglong Pavilion.
As the largest tavern in the capital, Linglong Pavilion was packed with people every day.
Visitors from out of town, local patrons.
Given the chance, who wouldn't want to try the culinary delights of Linglong Pavilion?
Clap!
In the center of the tavern, on a raised platform.
A storyteller was animatedly spinning a 'tale'.
"They say that ten years ago, within the Great Zen Temple—sanctum of the Buddha Gate—a Buddha Child was born, possessing innate knowledge and the likeness of the Buddhas."
"It is said that at that time, the golden body of the Buddha appeared above the Great Zen Temple, its golden light spread over dozens of miles. Many commoners whose bodies bathed in this light found their hidden ailments dissipating..."
"Now, ten years have passed, and that Buddha Child...."
Just as the storyteller reached this point, he suddenly stopped and addressed the audience with a bow, "Ladies and gentlemen, that will be all for today. If you wish to know the current state of this young Buddha Child, please come again tomorrow."
As soon as these words were spoken.
The many patrons on the scene immediately began to sigh in disappointment.
They had been listening intently and wanted to find out what had become of the Buddha Child, only to have the storyteller cut off the tale at this crucial moment.
Who could stand such suspense?
"This is for you, keep going," one brawny man said as he took out a silver ingot and threw it onto the platform.
The rest of the audience also threw up some copper coins and other valuables.
"Heh heh, I am flattered by the audience's appreciation, and I shall continue," the storyteller chuckled upon seeing this and promptly sat down again.
To tell a good story, one must know the perfect moment to pause—piquing the audience's curiosity. How else to make money?
This storyteller clearly understood this well, and after collecting the money on the platform, he continued the story.
"Judging by his age, that Buddha Child should be over ten years old now, naturally reading Buddhist scriptures and studying the Buddha's law in the Great Zen Temple..."
The storyteller fanned himself with a paper fan and continued in a shaking voice.
"Murmur..."
The audience couldn't help but let out a 'murmur.'
They were expecting to hear about any remarkable feats of the Buddha Child, but it turned out to be this?
However, upon further thought, they found it reasonable. A child in his teens, despite possessing high Buddha-nature, what could he truly achieve?
As for the earlier anomalies described by the storyteller, they're probably fabricated to attract the audience's attention anyway.
What no one in the tavern noticed was this.
In a corner, a young monk dressed in a gray robe wore an expression of bemusement.
"Have I been written into a storybook?"
Lin Yuan shook his head slightly.
In his view, there was nothing particularly strange about this.
The Great Zen Temple was not only a holy land of Buddha Gate but also among the great martial sects of the world.
Every move was naturally the subject of outsider attention, especially for someone like himself, who was taken in by Elder Long Eyebrow, a Grandmaster.
Certainly, many eyes were fixed upon him.
Moreover, the abbots of the temple had no intention of blocking the news.
Over time, with one tale leading to another, it was natural for various versions of rumors to emerge.
...
After sampling the cuisines of this world at Linglong Pavilion, Lin Yuan stood up, left some silver behind, and walked out.
On the bluestone-paved streets where people were coming and going, cries of hawkers could be heard everywhere.
Lin Yuan walked among them, not very conspicuous.
However, as Lin Yuan continued deeper into the Capital.
The pedestrians on the road became fewer, while the patrolling soldiers seemed to increase.
Until he arrived at a tall city gate, where dozens of soldiers with formidable auras stood guard with sharp eyes.
Behind that city gate was Dali Imperial Palace, the absolute core of a dynasty.
Even standing outside the palace, one could vaguely see the magnificent buildings within.
At that moment.
A slowly-moving imperial carriage was driving out from within the palace.
The gatekeepers saw it and immediately retreated to make way.
Inside the carriage, a middle-aged monk in a red kasaya was rubbing his temple.
The current Empress Dowager of Dali was a devout Buddhist, often inviting eminent monks to the palace.
This middle-aged monk in the red kasaya was a well-known monk in recent years, highly regarded and favored by the Empress Dowager.
Every ten days or half a month, he would be invited to the palace.
"The Empress Dowager's questions are becoming more and more challenging..." the middle-aged monk frowned with some annoyance.
"I should be leaving the palace now," the middle-aged monk said as he reached out to lift the carriage curtain.
He cast a casual glance.
But this glance made the middle-aged monk's pupils constrict.
"Is that..."
The middle-aged monk focused on the young monk who was standing not far away, looking somewhat uncertain.
"Buddha Child?"
The middle-aged monk was from the Great Zen Temple, although in recent years he had stayed in Dali Capital.
He often kept in touch with the Great Zen Temple. A few years back, the temple sent him a portrait of the Buddha Child and instructed him to remember it well—if he ever saw him, he would have to act as ordered.
And the portrait was almost identical to the young monk not far from him.
With this realization, the middle-aged monk hurriedly got out of the carriage and approached Lin Yuan.
"Buddha Child?" he ventured.
"You recognize me?" Lin Yuan's eyebrows lifted.
"Twenty years ago, I too was a monk of the Great Zen Temple," the middle-aged monk said with a single sentence, indicating his identity.
"I see," Lin Yuan nodded slightly.
The Great Zen Temple was a holy land of the Buddha Gate, its influence not limited to atop Mount Shaoshi.
The Pudu Temple that Lin Yuan had passed earlier and the middle-aged monk before him were evidence of this.
"May I inquire, Buddha Child, is there a particular reason for your visit to the Capital?" the middle-aged monk asked curiously.
Prior to seeing Lin Yuan, he had not received any news from the Great Zen Temple.
It was clear that Lin Yuan's visit was not known even to the abbots of the temple.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible not to inform him.
"I wish to visit the Martial Hall within the Imperial Palace," Lin Yuan stated.
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Lin Yuan began to speak.
"The Martial Hall of the Dali Imperial Palace... is where countless martial arts manuals from all over the world are stored."
In past years, the founding Emperor of the Dali Dynasty set the order of the realm and placed the copied martial arts techniques of various sects into the Martial Hall.
It can be said that the Martial Hall of the Dali Imperial Palace, with its extensive collection of martial arts, is ten or even a hundred times greater than that of the Great Zen Temple's Sutra Pavilion.
"Wanting to enter the Martial Hall, that is somewhat troublesome."
The middle-aged monk furrowed his brow upon hearing this.
Generally speaking, only the offspring of the Imperial Clan are qualified to enter the Martial Hall.
This was a rule established by the first Emperor of Dali from the beginning.
In addition, high-ranking officials who have made significant contributions to Dali are also qualified to enter the Martial Hall.
But neither of these applied to Lin Yuan.
Thus, he almost had no chance of coming into contact with the Martial Hall.
Founded on martial prowess, the Dali Dynasty placed extreme importance on its many secret martial arts techniques.
It would definitely not casually allow an outsider to enter such a sacred martial arts place as the Martial Hall.
"It's not that there's no way."
The middle-aged monk slowly spoke:
"Inside the palace, the security is extremely tight; sneaking in is definitely out of the question."
A trace of apprehension appeared on the middle-aged monk's face.
As a distinguished guest of the Empress Dowager, he had some understanding of the Dali Imperial Palace.
The eight thousand Imperial Guards within the palace are all Acquired Peak Martial Artists trained with the secret techniques of the Imperial Clan.
The two hundred deputy commanders are Innate Realm Martial Taoists,
while the eighteen chief commanders are Innate Peak Martial Taoists.
It can be said that, with just this force alone, they could easily sweep away an army of several hundred thousand,
Even if a Grandmaster came in person, he would be trapped.
Moreover,
the middle-aged monk occasionally learned from the Empress Dowager that,
at various key points within the palace, there were Grandmaster level Martial Taoists stationed.
Having frequently visited the palace over the years,
he roughly estimated that there were no fewer than four Grandmasters inside the palace.
Four Grandmasters.
Eighteen Innate Peaks.
Two hundred Innates.
Eight thousand Acquired Peaks.
This was the Dali Dynasty's strongest hand.
Even now, with the world in decay, the Dali Dynasty could be rebuilt from the ground up.
Not to mention that this was just a part of the Dali Dynasty's foundation, as outside the palace, the great armies stationed on the borders,
along with the Grandmasters, were always ready to move at the behest of the Dali Dynasty.
"Buddha Child."
"Listen to me."
"You will accompany me to the palace later to meet the Empress Dowager."
"With my recommendation, the Empress Dowager will definitely take a liking to the Buddha Child."
"In the coming three months, Buddha Child must visit the Empress Dowager frequently to become a familiar face."
"After half a year, when the Emperor celebrates his sixtieth birthday, with the Empress Dowager's support, you can accompany her to offer birthday greetings."
"At that time, I will present a treasure from the Buddha Gate."
"Under the great joy of the Emperor of Dali, the chances of the Buddha Child's request to visit the Martial Hall will be very high."
The middle-aged monk, after much contemplation, laid out the only feasible method currently available.
Theoretically, outsiders cannot enter the Martial Hall.
But if the current Emperor of Dali permits it, there is no question of whether one can enter or not.
As long as Lin Yuan can gain the Emperor's favor, entering the Martial Hall would not be an impossible matter.
After all, Lin Yuan was just going to look at the Martial Hall, which wouldn't cause any loss to the numerous martial arts texts within it.
"I wonder what Buddha Child thinks about this..."
The middle-aged monk, having said his piece, saw that Lin Yuan was silent and asked with some uncertainty.
"It's indeed not bad."
Lin Yuan nodded.
The middle-aged monk had put a lot of thought into it.
According to his method, there was a high probability that entry to the Martial Hall could be smoothly gained.
"It's just..."
Lin Yuan then shook his head.
"Just what..."
The middle-aged monk asked anxiously.
"It's too much trouble."
Lin Yuan's gaze was calm as he looked towards the palace not far away.
"Trouble?"
The middle-aged monk didn't understand for a long moment.
The plan he had just devised was as straightforward as possible.
He would take Lin Yuan directly to see the Empress Dowager, then use her influence on the Emperor.
This was the fastest method the middle-aged monk could think of to enter the Martial Hall.
It wasn't possible to just go see the Emperor, was it? Without someone of significant standing to make the introduction, even the middle-aged monk wouldn't be able to meet the Emperor, let alone Lin Yuan.
"Just say it outright."
After Lin Yuan spoke, he took a step forward, took a deep breath, and called out towards the direction of the palace.
"I, Hui Zhen, wish to have an audience with the Martial Hall of the imperial palace."
His voice was normal at the first syllable 'I',
but it began to rise in pitch with the second syllable,
by the fifth syllable, the terrifying sound waves were wildly spreading in all directions.
And with the last syllable 'hall', it was as if the sky had shattered and thunder exploded.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!!!
At this moment, the entire imperial palace was engulfed by the horrific sound waves.
The eight thousand Acquired Peak Imperial Guards felt a roaring in their ears and their consciousness began to dissipate.
The eighteen Innate Peak chief commanders were bleeding from every orifice and couldn't get to their feet.
Within the depths of the palace, five Grandmaster-level auras flickered and tried to resist the invading Buddhistic sound, but they only lasted a few breaths before their auras quickly weakened and collapsed, utterly powerless to resist.
For a time, the once tightly guarded Dali Imperial Palace collapsed like a house of cards, reduced to a state of chaos on the brink of falling.
"This..."
The middle-aged monk's mouth hung open.