Huo Yuanzhen had checked on Huang Feihong and Su Can. The two boys were not seriously injured, though they grimaced and swore to teach Chen Ding a lesson one day.
Before leaving, the boys jumped off their beds and knelt, begging Huo Yuanzhen to teach them internal energy cultivation techniques.
They now realized that external martial arts—fists, kicks, blades, and spears—could never compare to internal energy. However, after practicing at Shaolin for some time, they had yet to hear of Shaolin teaching internal energy.
In their eyes, Huo Yuanzhen, the abbot, was omnipotent. If he hadn't taught them yet, it must be their own fault—perhaps they hadn't worked hard enough or hadn't earned his trust. After their defeat, their first thought was to seek guidance from Huo Yuanzhen, not even considering Guan Shanyue. Although Guan Shanyue had high martial skills, his methods didn't align with Shaolin's teachings, and relying only on verbal instruction for so many disciples wouldn't be as effective as using written manuals.
Huo Yuanzhen agreed.
Although he currently only practiced the Child Skill internal energy, Huo Yuanzhen agreed to help. Without internal energy techniques, Shaolin's foundation was fragile. With the upcoming Dengfeng Martial Arts Arena competition just twenty days away, Huo Yuanzhen needed to secure an internal energy manual. While the disciples wouldn't immediately see results, his own internal energy would grow significantly.
As Shaolin's abbot, Huo Yuanzhen needed to have absolute power to command respect. Since he swore to lead Shaolin, he vowed that this reputation would never falter. But reputation alone wouldn't be enough—it would require strategy.
Determined to compete, Huo Yuanzhen went back into seclusion to cultivate the Child Skill. He had begun to feel the internal energy circulating through his body—a breakthrough after long, hard practice. If all went well, he would likely reach the mid-stage of the Postnatal Realm before the competition.
The days passed, and by the night of July 27th, Huo Yuanzhen had eagerly awaited this day. His last lottery draw was a month ago, and the Qixi Festival draw, which he missed, had granted him a Bell Tower Construction Token. Although the Bell Tower Construction Token was useful, he still felt unsatisfied.
So, as night fell, Huo Yuanzhen headed to the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda.
This was something he had planned long ago. After several lottery draws, Huo Yuanzhen had noticed that the quality of the prizes varied—sometimes mediocre, sometimes extraordinary. For example, the "Sutra of Muscle and Marrow" he won in his first draw was a big prize. However, since then, such high-tier rewards had not appeared again.
After much thought and not finding a solution, Huo Yuanzhen started to rely on faith and decided to pray at the Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda, hoping for the Buddha's blessing.
He arrived at the pagoda's entrance, looked around like a thief, and noticed the night was deep with no one in sight.
Opening the pagoda door, Huo Yuanzhen ascended to the top.
The ninth floor of the pagoda was dedicated to Amitabha Buddha. After reaching the top, Huo Yuanzhen sat down on the cushion before the Buddha's statue and waited for the lottery time to arrive.
At midnight, the long-awaited system voice rang again.
"The July lottery is available. Do you wish to begin?"
"Begin."
The system wheel lit up again, and thirty-six options appeared before Huo Yuanzhen.
The categories were the same, but the items differed.
Six Scriptures:
Great Peacock Sutra, Earth Store Sutra, Buddha's Deeds Sutra, Sutra of Immeasurable Life, Great Sun Sutra, Wisdom King Sutra.
Huo Yuanzhen was quite interested in these scriptures. With Shaolin's lack of knowledge, he had given a "Lotus Sutra" to a monk, but he struggled to understand it. The Lotus Sutra was one of the most important scriptures, but the monk struggled to comprehend it, much like a first-year student attempting to learn advanced mathematics. Huo Yuanzhen also found it difficult but had gained insight through the system, although he didn't want to spend his days lecturing others. His goal was not to become a renowned monk but to return to lay life.
Thus, more basic scriptures would be his priority in future draws.
Before focusing on scriptures, Huo Yuanzhen needed some self-defense.
Wealth:
The least was 50 taels of silver, and the most was 100 taels of gold!
Huo Yuanzhen was immediately drawn to the pile of gold. 100 taels of gold would be almost 10,000 taels of silver, a considerable fortune for him at the moment. However, aside from paying off debts, he didn't urgently need wealth. If it had been 1,000 taels of gold, he would have pursued it, but for now, he decided to pass on it.
Dharma Implements:
Lotus throne, Incense burner, War drum, Golden oil lamp, Kasaya, Crazy Demon Staff!
The Crazy Demon Staff caught Huo Yuanzhen's attention. This was a weapon tied to the character Lu Zhishen from Water Margin. It was incredibly heavy, and using it would cause the wielder to enter a state of frenzy, greatly enhancing their combat abilities.
Huo Yuanzhen immediately thought of Tie Niu.
Tie Niu, a person left at Shaolin by Ning Wan Jun as an undercover, didn't realize his true purpose. He liked Shaolin and had no issues staying there, living comfortably as a lay disciple. Occasionally, he would leave to eat meat.
If Huo Yuanzhen could equip Tie Niu with the Crazy Demon Staff, with his towering two-meter height, he would be a force in battle, more practical than any innate-level expert.
Huo Yuanzhen resisted the temptation but continued scrolling through the options.
Construction Tokens:
Heavenly King Hall, Drum Tower, Earth Store Hall, Discipline Hall, Wooden Men Alley, Scripture Depository (this one was of particular interest—he imagined a hall full of scriptures and martial arts manuals, a dream come true for Shaolin's legacy).
Miscellaneous:
A golden-eyed white eagle, A large bed, A wooden box, Chains, Armor, A "three-star" grand prize.
The golden-eyed white eagle immediately caught his attention.
This divine bird was not only powerful but also had exceptional eyesight, capable of seeing up to a hundred miles away. It could detect evil spirits, making it a natural enemy to evil forces. After acquiring the white horse, Huo Yuanzhen had been longing for a mystical creature, and this eagle was an ideal companion.
Though tempted by the eagle, Huo Yuanzhen leaned more toward the Crazy Demon Staff.
Now, the most anticipated part: Martial Arts.
Left-Right Flower Hands Great Compassion Palm Wall-Crawling Technique Precept-Breaking Saber Method First Half of Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill (a 13-layer technique with incredible strength). Volume 1 of Nine Yang Divine Scripture.
Huo Yuanzhen's eyes widened. The Nine Yang Divine Scripture was a supreme internal energy technique, far surpassing the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill.