CHAPTER 580: CHAPTER 577: NIGHT RAID ON SHAOLIN TEMPLE!

Night, the cold moon hovers high!

During the day, the bustling Shaolin Temple is exceptionally quiet at night.

Li Chen, looking at the stele which reads "The First Ancient Temple in the World" in grand forceful characters, paused briefly before striding forward into the temple.

Halfway, a slight movement caught his ear, the noise of voices drifted in.

It was Cheng Hai and a few others trying to climb over the wall into Shaolin Temple to steal the Arhat Fruit, but they were discovered by the night-duty monks and chased out.

Li Chen chuckled and shook his head, continuing on his way.

Just as he entered the main gate of the temple, a loud shout came.

"Halt, leave immediately. Shaolin Temple is a restricted area, do not trespass!"

Immediately, five or six martial monks wielding wooden sticks surrounded him.

And these monks were all Inner Strength Martial Artists. In small and medium-sized families, they would be considered high-level Venerated Elders, yet here in Shaolin Temple, they were relegated to night patrols.

The formidable underlying strength of Shaolin Temple was evident.

However, these minor characters were nothing in Li Chen’s eyes.

"Fetch your abbot to see me!"

Hearing Li Chen’s words, the monks’ expressions involuntarily showed surprise.

"Esteemed guest, night has fallen, our abbot has already retired and does not receive visitors. You should leave the mountain quickly!"

Li Chen smiled faintly, retorting casually: "What if I insist on meeting?"

Shaolin Temple, being the leader of the Twelve Martial Arts Sects and the pillar of the martial world, is naturally revered like a master and has developed an air of arrogance.

"Young man, if you force your way into Shaolin again, do not blame us for being discourteous!"

As they spoke, the monks assumed an offensive posture, attempting to intimidate Li Chen and force him to retreat.

Li Chen glanced at them disdainfully saying, "Since I’ve come here, I wasn’t expecting any courtesy from you!"

"Hmph, such arrogant talk. You are the first one who dares to cause trouble in Shaolin Temple!"

After saying that, the leading monk waved his hand at his companions.

"Brothers, teach this rascal a little lesson!"

However, before they could approach him, Li Chen merely casually flicked his sleeve, sending them all reeling back.

At this point, the monks realized that this young man before them was a Martial Arts Expert, far superior to any of them.

Li Chen glanced at them again and strode towards the inside of the temple.

"Jiangnan Immortal Master Li here to visit, seeking an audience with Master Xuan Kong!"

Upon hearing Li Chen announce himself as Jiangnan Immortal Master Li, all the monks on the scene were utterly dumbfounded.

Other monks were also greatly startled, and monks from the Dharma Institute, Bodhi Hall, Arhat Hall, Guest Hall, and Precepts Hall all came flooding out.

Even the Shaolin Abbot, Master Xuan Kong, who seldom meets guests, emerged surrounded by his disciples.

"Amitabha Buddha, I am Shaolin Abbot Xuan Kong. May I ask why Master Li intrudes into Shaolin Temple at this late hour, and for what purpose?"

Li Chen clasped his hands together in return: "I’ve heard that the ancestral treasure of the Xiangxi Chen Family, the ’Demon Puppet Secret Technique’, is stored within your esteemed temple. On behalf of a friend, I’ve specifically come to retrieve it, hoping the abbot can facilitate this and allow me to return it to its rightful owner!"

Hearing Li Chen’s words, all the monks of Shaolin Temple were stunned.

They had been in the temple for ten, twenty, or even fifty years, and it was the first time they had ever seen someone come to Shaolin Temple to demand a secret manual.

Master Xuan Kong clasped his hands together and said, "Amitabha Buddha, Master Li is unaware. The ’Demon Puppet Secret Technique’ is an evil practice; out of compassion, Huineng Master took it upon himself to secure this object, suppressing it inside Shaolin’s Scripture Pavilion. If this item were to reappear in the martial world, it would undoubtedly reignite turmoil and bloodshed—I’m afraid I cannot comply!"

Li Chen gave a cold smile: "Ah, so you won’t give it?"

Precepts Hall Master Xuan Yong, known for his fiery temper, seeing Li Chen’s arrogant attitude, couldn’t help but become furious.

"Immortal Master Li, what do you mean by this? Are you thinking of forcing us to hand it over?"

Li Chen smiled indifferently and said, "Indeed, that’s exactly my intention!"

Xuan Yong, looking furious like an enraged Jin Gang, roared vehemently, "How arrogant! Immortal Master Li, you should know that this is the Shaolin Temple, not your Jiangnan where you can behave recklessly!"

Li Chen slightly raised his eyebrows, dismissively saying, "Then let’s give it a try!"

After speaking, he scanned the group of Shaolin monks and coldly asked, "Will you take turns, or all together?"

Enraged, Xuan Yong shouted, "How arrogant! I, a humble monk, have come to learn from your great skills, Immortal Master Li!"

As soon as his words fell, he strode forward, his fists swinging like a tiger, aiming straight for Li Chen’s face.

This was the Shaolin Arhat Fist, firm yet flexible, simple and rough without any fancy moves.

As soon as his fist was thrown, it roared like a tiger in the mountains, shaking the surrounding air with thunderous sounds.

The fierce fist wind formed an arc of light, tightly locking onto Li Chen.

In contrast, Li Chen stood still as a pine tree, his eyes smiling calmly as he watched the opponent’s fist shadow.

"Clang!"

The Arhat Fist slammed onto Li Chen’s protective Gang Qi, emitting a loud sound like the clash of massive bells.

Xuan Yong’s tendons and bones shattered from his swinging fist, and he winced in severe pain.

Looking back at Li Chen, he appeared completely unharmed, even giving him a grin.

"Grandmaster, your punch is powerful but still lacks finesse."

After commenting, Li Chen waved his sleeve, striking him back with a punch.

"Spurt!"

Xuan Yong felt as though his chest had been struck by a high-speed train, instantly spewing blood.

Seeing their Precepts Hall Master, Xuan Yong, fall to just one move from Immortal Master Li, all the Shaolin monks stood stunned, like petrified statues.

This was simply unbelievable!

The abbot Xuan Kong was the first to recover, placing his palms together towards Li Chen, "Long have I heard of Immortal Master Li, with Taoist techniques that reach the heavens, indeed a rare Martial Arts genius of the century. Seeing you today truly lives up to your reputation. I have come to learn!"

After speaking, he took large strides forward, the marble floor cracking with spiderweb-like fissures spreading toward Li Chen.

Seeing this scene, Li Chen slightly narrowed his eyes.

"Not bad, a Divine-level Master. Shaolin has finally brought forth someone worthy!"

Although Master Xuan Kong is known as Xuan Kong, he doesn’t engage in mere formalities.

He instantly used the Shaolin Dragon Claw Hand, like an eagle seizing a rabbit, tearing through the void and striking at Li Chen.

The Shaolin Dragon Claw Hand, one of the Shaolin 72 Skills, is a secret manual of finger techniques from the temple. Its power is extraordinary; when mastered fully, one’s hand can tear bark off trees and crumble stones to dust, even capable of splitting mountains and steles. If someone is caught solidly by it, they could either be paralyzed or killed instantly.

This time, Li Chen did not dare to be careless and struck with the "Great Brahma Wisdom Palm," meeting the attack head-on.

"Boom!"

The two deadly moves collided midair, the violent True Yuan rippling outwards like a heavy stone hitting water, rapidly spreading in all directions.

Some monks with weaker powers were dizzied by the shock, vomiting blood on the spot.

After this exchange, even the Shaolin Abbot Xuan Kong couldn’t help but furrow his brows.

From the engagement, it was clear that Li Chen’s power was not inferior to his.

"Flower Pinching Finger!"

Buddha picks a flower, and Kasyapa smiles. Like the Shaolin Dragon Claw Hand, the Flower Pinching Finger is also one of the 72 Shaolin ultimate techniques. If ranked by proficiency, it would be among the top three, and naturally, its power is likewise.

Master Xuan Kong shouted explosively, his hand as delicate as a young maid pinching an orchid. Seeming gentler than water, yet exceptionally firm, capable of piercing through half a meter of steel plate in an instant. Its penetrating power is comparable to a fighter jet’s cannon.

It’s said that Zhang Sanfeng, the founding grandmaster of Wudang, derived the Tai Chi technique of leveraging a minuscule force to move a great weight from this integrated firmness and gentleness of the Flower Pinching Finger.

Using the utmost softness of water to roam the world’s ultimate hardness!