Domestic Zone: You already have a system, why join a chat group?

Chapter 16 Striving for the Development of the Martial Arts World

Seeing that the battle had stopped, Mu Wanqing immediately pushed through the crowd and rushed to Luo Su's side: "How are you? Are you alright?"

Russell rubbed his right hand, which was throbbing with a slight tearing pain. He had just overexerted himself by unleashing the Northern Darkness True Qi to withstand Kumārajīva's palm strike, and some muscles and tendons in his arm had already ruptured. "It's nothing serious, I'll be fine in a few days."

Seeing that Russell was indeed unharmed, Mu Wanqing's heart was slightly relieved. However, as soon as her worry subsided, anger surged up.

She straightened up, turned and glared at Kumārajīva, who was calming his breathing beside her, her eyebrows furrowed: "You monk, this was clearly a friendly spar, why did you have to use such force!"

At this moment, Xiao Ayan also broke free from her mother's hand and ran to Luo Su's side with her short legs. Seeing Luo Su's miserable appearance, she pouted and imitated Mu Wanqing, putting her hands on her hips, puffing out her chest, and puffing out her cheeks angrily at Kumārajīva.

When Kumārajīva was rebuked by Mu Wanqing to his face and glared at by a little child, he was embarrassed and his face turned red and white.

The problem is that, upon closer examination, he was indeed in the wrong. He had bullied the weak and oppressed the strong, and he was unreasonable from any perspective. So he had no choice but to remain silent and let the two women, one big and one small, continue to torture him with their gazes.

"Alright." Russell patted Mu Wanqing's shoulder first, then ruffled Xiao Ayan's hair, and picked up the sulking little girl. He said gently with a smile, "In martial arts sparring, there are no eyes in the fists and feet; both sides win and lose, and both suffer injuries. This is perfectly normal. My skills are not good enough, and I took a blow from Ming Wang head-on. These minor injuries are my own fault. Why are you blaming Ming Wang?"

Hearing him say this and seeing that he didn't care at all, Mu Wanqing's anger gradually subsided, but she still felt sorry for him. She gave a soft "humph" and didn't say anything more, silently retreating to Russell's side.

The group of monks watching also understood that Russell had lost the sparring match, but they didn't think there was anything wrong with it. On the contrary, they felt that Russell was already very impressive to be able to fight the Great Wheel King to this extent at his age, and that he would definitely become a well-known figure in the martial arts world in the future.

"Your Majesty, would you like to come in for a chat?" Russell asked Mu Wanqing to take Ayan to her mother first, while he himself extended an invitation to Kumārajīva.

"Okay," Kumārajīva readily agreed.

The two returned to the quiet bamboo grove courtyard one after the other and sat facing each other at the stone table. Occasionally, monks would peek curiously from outside the courtyard, but they wisely refrained from approaching and disturbing them.

On the stone table, the pot of Cangshan Snow Bud tea from before had gone cold. Russell didn't mind, poured himself and Kumārajīva each a cup of cold tea, and got straight to the point: "When the King of Light waited for me this morning, was there something he wanted to tell me?"

"..." Kumārajīva turned the prayer beads in his hand, his fingertips exerting a little force. After much hesitation, he finally told the truth: "To be honest, this humble monk wishes to borrow Benefactor Luo's cultivation method to take a look. I hope Benefactor will grant my request."

"Oh?"

Seeing Russell raise an eyebrow and remain silent, fearing that he might think he was trying to force him, Kumārajīva immediately added, "Don't worry, benefactor, this humble monk does not intend to seize or plunder, but rather to exchange. Whatever this humble monk has learned, benefactor, you may ask for it, and this humble monk will not hold back."

"Your Majesty misunderstands. I was merely remarking that Your Majesty is truly different from others, possessing such profound insights," Russell exclaimed.

"Oh?" This time it was Kumārajīva's turn to be dumbfounded. In the past, whenever he tried to exchange cultivation techniques, others would either treat him like a thief, making all sorts of excuses, or glaring at him angrily, or even attacking him. But Russell's reaction was something he had never encountered before, leaving him somewhat puzzled and wondering what he meant.

He looked at Russell with a puzzled expression, waiting for him to continue.

"What does the wise king consider to be martial arts?" Russell asked.

Is this a test for me?

Kumārajīva's heart stirred, but before he could answer, Russell continued, "So-called martial arts are actually the same as culture, except that the latter is a method to enlighten people's minds, while the former is a technique to strengthen the body. If that's the case, then martial arts manuals are just like the classics of sages, nothing more than knowledge in the martial arts world."

He picked up the cool tea, took a small sip, and continued:

"I ask Your Majesty, throughout history, has there ever been true learning that progressed by working in isolation and cutting off communication? Confucianism has the saying 'like cutting and polishing jade, like carving and grinding,' and Buddhism has the saying 'the cause of Dharma assemblies, debating scriptures and discussing the Way.' The way of learning lies in mutual inspiration and verification, in sparking new ideas through exchange and collision, correcting errors, and filling in gaps."

"Looking at the martial arts world today, all the major sects regard their own martial arts as their own private property, cherishing them and keeping them secret. They are heavily guarded and suspicious of each other, rarely communicating openly. The entire martial arts world seems lively, but in reality, it is like a stagnant pool with gentle ripples on the surface but stagnant inside."

"If the person who possesses the secret manual dies, it means that a unique skill will be lost. The loss of a unique skill will lead to the decline of a school and the extinction of a lineage. This vicious cycle will continue, and in the long run, the path of martial arts will become less and less, and the path will become narrower and narrower. If this continues, the martial arts world will inevitably decline day by day and eventually perish."

"In my opinion, if we want to reverse this decline and even promote the martial arts of the world and make them constantly improve, all the major sects must abandon their sectarian prejudices, pass on their techniques to each other, exchange ideas, and gather the strengths of all schools and the wisdom of all people. Only in this way can the way of martial arts truly flourish."

"Absolutely! Absolutely!" Upon hearing Russell's words, Kumārajīva was so excited that he could hardly contain himself. It was as if he had heard the most beautiful chant in the world. He suddenly stood up from the stone bench, his hands trembling slightly, his eyes shining brightly, and there were even faint tears glistening in them!

A kindred spirit!

He, Kumārajīva, finally met a kindred spirit who understood him!

Yes! That's right! That's exactly it!

His pursuit of martial arts was so upright and compassionate!

He explained that his obsession with martial arts was not due to the shameful greed, anger, and delusion he had fallen into, but rather a mission bestowed upon him by heaven. He was dedicated to breaking down barriers between different schools of martial arts, promoting exchanges in martial arts, rescuing martial arts from decline, and pushing the path of martial arts to a higher peak!

He may act in a somewhat extreme way, and his methods may not be very dignified, but that is only a matter of means, not attitude.

He had been trapped in a demonic obsession and was ashamed of it, but now that he had met Russell, he had witnessed his true self!

Amitabha! May the Buddha bless me! I, Kumārajīva, have done good deeds all my life, and now I am finally reaping the rewards!

Upon realizing this, Kumārajīva suddenly grabbed Russell's shoulder. He had so much to say, but he could only pat Russell's shoulder hard.