UGB Chapter 39 Fusion of New Martial Arts
Chapter 39 Fusion of New Martial Arts
Without any sense of direction, the two wandered aimlessly through the underground palace. As they walked, they came upon a rather large stone chamber filled with scrolls and bamboo slips. They exchanged a glance and, without thinking, went inside and began searching.
Yue Feng searched for a long time but couldn't find a map or anything like that of the underground palace. Just as he was about to give up in disappointment, Wu Shuangxue handed him a scroll. Yue Feng unfolded it and saw the words "Mahayana Finger Technique" written in tiny characters at the beginning. He was greatly surprised and asked Wu Shuangxue:
"Aren't these the Seventy-Two Arts of Shaolin? How come they're here?"
Wu Shuangxue said, "Shaolin disciples are all over the world. Among the eminent monks of Taiping Temple in the past, several were from Shaolin Temple."
"It's a pity that, as far as I know, you've already mastered the Shaolin Temple's Demon-Subduing Palm. The Demon-Subduing Palm and the Maha Finger are both among the Seventy-Two Arts, one soft and one hard, making them extremely difficult to practice together. The Maha Finger is destined to be out of your reach."
As Wu Shuangxue was about to put the Maha Finger manual back, Yue Feng panicked and snatched it away, using a bit too much force. Wu Shuangxue, already frail, was pulled towards him and involuntarily stumbled. Afraid she would fall, Yue Feng wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. Wu Shuangxue's body went limp, as if boneless.
Although neither of them moved, their breathing gradually became heavy. Yue Feng secretly used the "Exorcising Evil and Revealing Righteousness Technique" to forcefully suppress the evil fire in his abdomen. He coughed twice, helped Wu Shuangxue stand up, and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I was just curious and wanted to see this finger technique."
Wu Shuangxue glared at Yue Feng, but her expression was more resentful than reproachful. She then sat down on a stone platform inside the room.
"See? I'll take a break now."
Yue Feng hummed in agreement, focused his mind, opened the manual, and read it through from beginning to end. A new entry appeared on the panel:
【摩诃指: Not yet having entered the gate】
Yue Feng was secretly delighted to see the plus sign next to the entry lit up, thinking that the system was indeed not bound by these ridiculous rules.
Ever since his encounter with Cao Yi and witnessing his unparalleled and domineering finger strength, he had been constantly thinking about learning a finger technique himself, ideally breaking Cao Yi's finger strength through finger-to-finger combat. He had originally planned to cultivate a good relationship with Wu Qingcang and then ask him for guidance on finger techniques, but he never expected the opportunity to come so suddenly.
[Remaining Access Points: 70]
【Mahayana: Entry Level】
Yue Feng spent 25 points to upgrade the Maha Finger to the beginner level. Just as he was about to add more points, Wu Shuangxue impatiently urged him, "Have you finished reading it? Why don't I memorize it for you, and we can read it slowly after we go out?"
Yue Feng replied that it wasn't necessary, put the manual of the Maha Finger back in its place, and left the stone chamber with Wu Shuangxue. They hadn't gone far when they saw another stone chamber, and this time they found the manual of the "Vajra Finger" technique inside.
Yue Feng laughed and said, "If we keep going like this, we might be able to collect all seventy-two Shaolin skills. This is not the underground palace of Taiping Temple Pagoda, it is clearly the Shaolin Sutra Repository."
Wu Shuangxue asked, "Would you like to see this too?"
Yue Feng nodded, read through the manual, and spent 30 points to upgrade his Vajra Finger to the beginner level. He then spent another 10 points to fuse the Maha Finger and Vajra Finger into one.
[Fusion complete. Congratulations on obtaining the new martial art: Fusion - Maha Vajra Finger.]
[Remaining Access Points: 30]
【Yi Rong·Maha Vajra Finger: Introduction】
Based on Yue Feng's experience, 30 points were not enough to upgrade a martial art, so he stopped adding points and turned off the panel.
There was no map of the underground palace in this stone chamber either. Just as Yue Feng was about to leave, he noticed a small hole on the side of a stone table, just big enough to fit a finger. He stopped Wu Shuangxue and asked, "What's that?"
Wu Shuangxue glanced at the small hole and said, "It's probably a flaw that was accidentally left when the stone table was being made."
Yue Feng said, "Since we've been searching all this time, have you ever seen such a flaw on any other stone artifact? It might just be a mechanism; opening it might reveal something valuable."
Wu Shuangxue sneered: "Wishful thinking, fanciful ideas, that's exactly what you are. This hole is so narrow, you can only stick your finger in. If you get pinched by some trap inside, I can't help you."
Yue Feng said calmly, "What if my finger hadn't been pinched off? What if this really was a trap?"
Wu Shuangxue said, "Want to make a bet? Sure! I've never lost a bet. Tell me, what do you want to bet on?"
Yue Feng licked his lips: "My lips are so dry, I want to moisten them."
Wu Shuangxue didn't immediately understand Yue Feng's meaning. It wasn't until she recalled the absurd events in the cellar that her face flushed slightly, a rare occurrence for her. She quickly regained her composure and said in a harsh voice:
"If you lose, you'll become my servant from now on. If I tell you to go east, you can't go west; if I tell you to chase the dog, you can't catch the chicken!"
"make a deal!"
Yue Feng was getting carried away and agreed without thinking, then stuck his finger into the hole. He went in very slowly, afraid that Wu Shuangxue's words would come true. Fortunately, luck was on his side. He had only inserted half a finger when he felt a cool sensation on his fingertip and touched something hard.
He applied slight pressure, but the hard object didn't budge. He channeled all his inner strength into his fingertips, but still couldn't press down on the object. Wu Shuangxue said from the side, "Forget it, since it's neither a trap nor a mechanism, let's call it a draw, neither of us owes the other anything."
Yue Feng snorted coldly, recalling the Maha Vajra Finger technique he had just mastered. Following the mental method of the Maha Vajra Finger, he mobilized his true energy, and an extremely powerful and fierce finger force erupted from his fingertip. Suddenly, a "crack" was heard, and the hard object was pressed to the bottom by Yue Feng and shattered into several pieces. A rectangular drawer popped out from the other side of the stone table.
Several scrolls were neatly arranged in the drawer; they were the complete blueprints for this underground palace. Yue Feng called Wu Shuangxue over, and the two of them searched together, quickly finding the hidden exit of the underground palace.
Wu Shuangxue breathed a sigh of relief: "Finally, I know how to get out. Let's go!" But Yue Feng pulled her back.
"You've offended the abbot and you think you can just leave? Not so easy!"
After a long while, Yue Feng finally emerged from the stone chamber, satisfied. Wu Shuangxue followed behind him, glaring at him fiercely, as if she wanted to devour him whole. Guided by the map, the two found the hidden exit of the underground palace, located inside a small mountain outside Hengyang City.
Yue Feng and Wu Shuangxue emerged from the mountains at dusk. Wu Shuangxue was barely clothed and could only wrap Yue Feng's blue robe around herself. Yue Feng looked at her and suggested, "Why don't we find a place to stay nearby, and return to the city tomorrow after we've settled in?"
Wu Shuangxue nodded silently. Yue Feng asked an old woman passing by and learned that the nearest village was Wangjiazhai Village. The old woman was a villager from Wangjiazhai Village, and her surname was Wang.