Scanning the others in the Daoist hall, Wu Tao, disregarding his own fatigue from the journey, sternly ordered, "The only way to resolve this now is for me to lead all of you out. All of us must leave…"
"Only then is there a chance for this matter to be diffused. Otherwise, if this conflict between Daoism and Buddhism escalates, the Great Ming Empire will be in quite a stir."
After receiving Wu Tao's permission, Xingyun stood up and replied with a bow.
"Yes, there's no time to delay. I will immediately instruct them to prepare. In half an hour, not a single soul will remain at Qingyun Temple; we will all depart."
After several more days and nights of travel, the group of several hundred people finally arrived at the foot of Mount Song's Shaolin Temple.
At the foot of the mountain, a crowd of nearly ten thousand people had gathered. It was truly a sea of faces and a cacophony of voices.
Amidst the din, the clash of swords and weapons could be heard.
Wu Tao, leading his dusty group of a few hundred, vaguely guessed what was happening. He grabbed a passerby, placed his left hand on his shoulder, and urgently asked, "Young man, what has happened here?"
The man, about to lash out when grabbed by Wu Tao, immediately lost his nerve upon seeing the group of hundreds who were clearly together.
"Heh heh, the Daoists from Qingyun Temple received news that their Grand Ancestor was besieged and killed by the monks of Shaolin Temple…"
"They came to avenge their ancestor, but now they are trapped by the eminent monks of Shaolin Temple. It looks like they're about to be annihilated!"
"Hey, your clothing style… it looks just like the Qingyun Temple Daoists who are currently surrounded."
Pushing away the still rambling passerby after he had finished speaking, Wu Tao's heart sank.
He turned back to Xingyun and said, "Disciple, time waits for no one. I will go in first. You bring them along later."
With that, Wu Tao leaped up, planting himself on someone's shoulder. Before the man could even react, Wu Tao was already stepping on other people's heads and shoulders, soaring forward like a swift bird, using the momentum to bound his way through.
In an instant, Wu Tao crossed the dense crowd and burst into the edge of the battlefield.
As he steadied himself and looked closely, he saw it was indeed his disciple, Xingjun, leading hundreds of Daoists, fighting a bloody battle.
Over a thousand bald monks, leveraging their numerical superiority, were gradually gaining the upper hand. They steadily tightened their circle, and though individuals were injured, they were immediately replaced.
The trapped Daoists of Qingyun Temple had blood flowing down their robes, it was unclear if it was their own wounds or the blood of others splattered on them.
And at this moment, Xingjun, on the battlefield, had no idea that his master, his senior brother, and hundreds of his fellow disciples from Qingyun Temple were rushing towards him day and night.
This battle with Shaolin Temple was the most difficult he had faced in his fifty-odd years as a Daoist.
These bald monks of Shaolin Temple were truly formidable. He couldn't fight them, nor could he escape.
"Today, it seems I will truly fall? If it were just me dying, that would be one thing…"
"But there are so many disciples from the same temple! I am truly unwilling!" Xingjun thought with a bitter smile.
The abbot of Shaolin Temple, Master Liao Yi, was determined to capture these troublesome Qingyun Temple disciples alive and present them to the world, showcasing what was truly the foremost sect in the land.
Especially in the last few decades, because the Emperor of the Great Ming Empire did not favor Buddhism, the development of Buddhism could be described as dismal.
Furthermore, after the great Buddhist-Daoist debate decades ago, in which Qingyun Temple emerged victorious, Buddhism and other forces, including Shaolin Temple, Yuntai Temple, Wutai Temple, and Baima Temple, were all suppressed.
He intended to go all out, capture Xingjun, the direct disciple of Qingyunzi, and humiliate Qingyunzi. Only then could Shaolin Temple regain its chance to reach its peak!
"Bang!"
With this sound, Liao Yi shattered Xingjun's renowned sword, "Yuan Yu," with his Dragon Subduing Fist, and seized him.
This scene was precisely what Wu Tao witnessed, and his heart burned with fury.
He couldn't help but think, "Jun'er has gone this far for me. I must get this insult back."
"Stop."
This shout was powerful, like the ringing of bells and cauldrons, a voice that boomed with thunder, like a lightning strike on a clear day.
The combatants were so startled by this sudden event that birds for miles around took flight, and the very ground trembled slightly.
The ten thousand or so martial artists of various descriptions at the foot of the mountain felt a tremor in their hearts, their faces turned pale, and their ears rang for several seconds before subsiding.
Seeing the ten thousand martial artists from different factions all looking at him, Wu Tao slowly stepped forward a few paces and gently helped Xingjun to his feet.
In the process, Wu Tao discovered that his disciple Xingjun's limbs were hanging limp.
It was clear that the abbot of Shaolin Temple had used his Bone-Separating Technique, rendering him crippled.
Discovering this, Wu Tao's eyes flashed with fierce rage, and a killing intent emanated from him.
Xingjun, upon seeing Wu Tao, rejoiced in his heart, thinking, "Master has finally arrived!"
But this joy was fleeting. The thought of his current crippled state made his face dim.
Wu Tao, while channeling internal energy to Xingjun, observed this clearly. His pupils contracted slightly, and he made a silent vow.
"Since these old bald donkeys of Shaolin Temple are so heartless and resolute in their actions, then do not blame me for being ruthless. Today, only one of the two forces, Qingyun Temple or Shaolin Temple, will survive."
Just then, the clamor at the foot of the mountain gradually subsided.
Following that, figures flashed, and more and more Daoists appeared behind Wu Tao. In a moment, there were dozens of them in the Innate realm, and hundreds more in the Houtian realm!
"Heavens! Where did so many masters suddenly appear from? Has Qingyun Temple mobilized its entire force?"
Other factions, uninvolved in this battle, gasped in disbelief, thinking, "Dozens of Daoists in the Innate realm, and hundreds more in the Houtian realm, plus the hundreds of Daoists from Qingyun Temple already present…"
"What kind of power is this? Even the foremost sect in the land, Shaolin Temple, with its thousand years of accumulation, would tremble before such a terrifying enemy."
If these uninvolved spectators were inwardly shocked, how much more so would be the abbot of Shaolin Temple, Master Liao Yi?
At this moment, Liao Yi was extremely anxious. He had not expected Qingyunzi to play such a high-stakes game, mobilizing his entire sect and gambling the efforts of countless ancestors on this battle.
But while Wu Tao dared to gamble, Liao Yi did not dare.
The monastery beneath his feet was the Shaolin Temple, built by countless ancestors and sages over a thousand years, with countless bloodshed and tears.
Just as Liao Yi was about to say something, he heard Wu Tao's hoarse voice suddenly ring out: "Disciples of Qingyun Temple, heed my command! Today, Qingyun Temple and these bald donkeys of Shaolin Temple are enemies until death! Kill them all for me!"
Before Xingyun, leading the disciples of Qingyun Temple, could even draw their swords, they saw Wu Tao draw his Zhenwu Sword and charge towards Liao Yi.
What was Wu Tao's status? His movement instantly drew everyone's attention to him.
Moreover, the person he intended to kill was none other than the abbot of Shaolin Temple.
The ten thousand or so people in the field were stunned by this sight.
The esteemed figures of the Tianshan Sect, Xie Feng, the Emei Sect's Hui Xin, Tang Men's Tang Dai, and the Cangshan Daoist's True Master Yi Xin, not only showed no intention of intervening to mediate but were inwardly cheering.
Indeed, if these two leading powers of Daoism and Buddhism were not to fight to the death, leaving both sides severely weakened, how would these perennial second, third, and fourth-ranked sects ascend?
In this martial world, the various sects were already crowded. While things appeared orderly on the surface, friction was constant, and hidden malice never ceased.
If not for their similar strength and the fear of a third party benefiting, these individuals, who stood together with feigned harmony, would have long ago engaged in bloody combat.
Precisely because of this, despite the presence of numerous onlookers, none genuinely came to mediate.
They were likely all thinking, "Fight, fight, it would be best if you both perished, leaving vast territories and resources for us."
Liao Yi looked at the situation and uttered a groan: "Bad!"
At this moment, Wu Tao, sword in hand, was already before Liao Yi. Liao Yi had only just begun to gather his energy, and due to the haste, his fist naturally lacked internal power.
As Liao Yi was about to be cleaved in two by Wu Tao, a deafening "boom" was heard!
Du Kong flew in, unleashing his Great Compassion Palm towards Wu Tao.
The collision of sword and palm sent wind howling and sandstorming at the foot of Shaolin Temple.
The power of the overflowing spiritual energy was evident. Those nearby quickly retreated; any with insufficient internal energy and a moment's delay would have faced death!
However, although Du Kong managed to block Wu Tao's strike, he was pushed back two steps.
Even though Du Kong was caught somewhat unprepared, it still demonstrated the gap in internal energy between him and Wu Tao.
Du Kong, having just parried Wu Tao's sword, felt a numbness in half of his body.
He was inwardly astonished at Wu Tao's physical condition, wondering how it could be so good, knowing that he himself was several years younger.
Just then, Wu Tao's stern roar was heard: "Crippling my disciple is no different from killing me! I don't care if you are a thousand-year-old temple, the foremost sect in the land, come and test the sharpness of my Zhenwu Sword!"
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