Li Yundong saw the little girl smiling innocently, but since he didn't understand Japanese, he missed the extremely insulting remark she had just made. What he missed even more was the subsequent string of even more insulting words delivered by the stern-faced Master Cinen.

The Master Cinen smiled slightly toward Tachibana Chiko and spoke in the Kyoto dialect, his Japanese crisp and refined: "Tachibana Chiko, look back three or four hundred years. There were true masters on this continent back then. In those days, whether Buddhist or Daoist, China produced an unending stream of brilliant figures, far beyond comparison with us today. But since the Qing Dynasty, the Han people on that continent allowed a minority group, the Manchus, to ride roughshod over them. Ever since then, their cultivation world has been in continuous decline. By modern times, the Chinese cultivation world has utterly hit rock bottom, its power far inferior to ours. In fact, the entire Chinese cultivation community combined doesn't equal the strength of just our Koyasan Shingon sect."

"Furthermore, Tachibana Chiko, consider this: how formidable can a sect be that cannot even protect its ancestral grounds and sutras? How powerful is a sect that receives no state support and whose common people are unwilling to believe in or maintain it? And how skilled can the disciples trained by such a sect truly be? Our Koyasan was officially recognized and granted to Master Kukai by the Emperor in the seventh year of Kōnin. Since then, Founding Master Kukai established Shingon Buddhism, and it has never changed from 816 AD until now. No matter what fires of war we faced, no matter how dynasties shifted, Koyasan has remained unshaken! Only a sect like ours can produce genuine masters. Those sects in China, battered by two centuries of hardship… Heh heh. If you say there is a master at Saien-ji, I might be willing to believe it. Other schools? Heh heh. If they produce a master, they are merely false masters, utterly fragile before our true experts!"

Tachibana Chiko nodded vaguely, yet she quickly glanced back at Li Yundong: "Then why did Shinshu-kun say this person is a master?"

Master Cinen also looked at Li Yundong, nodding slightly. "Yes, this person’s eyesight is exceptionally sharp, his jingqi is complete, and while his aura can be deeply internalized, it also possesses tremendous explosive force. What’s rarer still is his youth; he is at the prime age for a budding hero. However, the aura within him feels strange, unlike the cultivation energies I recognize from the various schools of the Chinese mainland. Therefore, I suspect he is not a cultivator from any of the major sects on the Chinese continent—hey, the Chinese cultivation continent simply cannot produce such a master!"

Tachibana Chiko couldn't help but scrutinize Li Yundong again, asking, "Then which school or lineage does this person belong to? Is he Chinese?" She then quietly turned to Shinshu beside her, whispering, "Shinshu-kun, can you discern his background?"

Hearing her words, Shinshu’s expression shifted. He raised his lowered eyelids, and a sharp, aggressive glint immediately shot from his eyes toward Li Yundong.

His posture instantly transformed from that of a demure, obedient servant into that of a master radiating extraordinary presence.

Shinshu’s gaze locked onto Li Yundong. As if sensing it, Li Yundong’s gaze met his. The moment their eyes clashed in the air, it was like sparks igniting from flint striking steel, seemingly capable of creating a shower of white-hot flares in the surrounding atmosphere.

"Shinshu!" Master Cinen commanded with stern authority, "Stand down!"

Shinshu immediately bowed his head, executing a deep, respectful curve of his body. "Forgive me, Master Cinen, I was impulsive."

Master Cinen gently patted Tachibana Chiko’s head and said softly, "Tachibana Chiko, have you forgotten our agreement? We came here to gather intelligence on the Chinese cultivation world, not to start trouble. This man’s cultivation style resembles that of the Daoist lineage. If that is the case, he should be attending the Lotus Gathering Assembly of Chinese Daoism next month. If he attends, you will then discover his true background."

Tachibana Chiko smiled with her remaining childish charm and said brightly, "Alright then!" She then took the initiative, speaking to Li Yundong in Japanese: "Hey, you absolutely must attend the Lotus Gathering Assembly!"

Li Yundong, meanwhile, had remained utterly bewildered, watching them chatter rapidly in Japanese. Finally, the little girl smiled and said something directly to him, yet he hadn't the faintest idea what she meant.

Just as he was about to turn and ask Liu Xia for interpretation, he saw the leading Japanese elder sharply reprimand a Japanese man who had been incessantly filming. The man immediately tucked away his camera respectfully, and the group turned to depart with graceful steps.

As they left, Tachibana Chiko looked back at Li Yundong one last time and called out, "You must go!"

Shinshu glanced at Li Yundong, then turned back to Tachibana Chiko. "Miss Tachibana Chiko, you don't really need to concern yourself with this man."

Tachibana Chiko looked at Shinshu, puzzled. "Why not?"

Shinshu smiled faintly. "Although this man's cultivation power is formidable, there is still a noticeable gap between him and me. Compared to you, Miss, the difference is far greater."

Tachibana Chiko exclaimed, "Oh? He’s not as strong as you? What are your odds of victory if you fought him?"

Shinshu considered this, then stated proudly, "Seventy percent!"

Tachibana Chiko’s face fell into disappointment. "Is that so? Then this is quite boring! He’s the first master I’ve seen since coming to the Chinese mainland."

Shinshu chuckled. "Miss Tachibana Chiko, Master Cinen just said that there are no masters on the Chinese mainland!"

Tachibana Chiko nodded. "I understand now!" She then quickly turned her head back toward Li Yundong and shouted, "Hey! If you can't beat Shinshu, then you don't need to go to the Lotus Gathering Assembly. I don't want to see you then!"

After shouting this, Tachibana Chiko left, hurrying after Master Cinen and Shinshu.

Li Yundong watched them go, utterly confused. He turned to Liu Xia, his face full of bewilderment. "What did they say? I thought you were going to translate for me? Why didn't you translate?"

Liu Xia was already completely stunned. To her ears, everything these Japanese people had said sounded like something out of a myth—Koyasan, cultivation sects, masters and false masters? What was all this nonsensical jargon? Were they filming a xianxia drama?

Liu Xia stared blankly until Li Yundong nudged her. She snapped back to attention, her large, dark eyes scrutinizing Li Yundong as if he were an extraterrestrial visitor. She thought to herself: Could this young man truly be one of those legendary strange hermits?

The moment this thought entered her mind, she recalled the various bizarre sights she had previously witnessed emanating from him, and she instantly became eighty percent convinced, her shock and awe deepening profoundly.

Seeing the woman staring at him dumbly, her expression akin to having seen a ghost, Li Yundong frowned. "Hey, I’m talking to you. What did those little Japs just say, babbling away?"

Liu Xia composed herself. Recalling everything the Japanese people had said, she began translating it for Li Yundong, phrase by phrase.

Li Yundong listened intently. At first, he nodded repeatedly in understanding. But when Liu Xia translated Tachibana Chiko’s question, "Are there masters on the Chinese mainland too?" Li Yundong immediately erupted in fury!

"A mere slip of a girl dares to speak such arrogant nonsense!! Do they truly believe the warriors of Hua Xia are gone!" Li Yundong raged, unable to contain his fury.

However, after Liu Xia finished translating Master Cinen’s discourse, while Li Yundong’s rage intensified, he paradoxically became instantly calm.

The young cultivator tightly pressed his lips together, his handsome, masculine face etched with deep contemplation. His brows were tightly knitted, projecting an imposing, inherent solemnity and pressure. The very air around him seemed to freeze. Liu Xia, standing nearby, felt as if a massive stone was pressing against her chest, making it difficult to draw breath.

After a long pause, Li Yundong turned back to Liu Xia and asked in a cold voice, "Is that all? Did they not say anything else?"

Liu Xia noticed that as soon as he spoke, the air around them seemed to begin flowing again, and the weight on her chest lifted.

She took a deep breath and said, "There’s more! That little girl also said a few things to you before they left."

Li Yundong asked grimly, "What did she say?"

Liu Xia glanced timidly at Li Yundong and carefully translated the conversation between Tachibana Chiko and Shinshu just before they departed.

Before she could even finish, and before Li Yundong could react angrily, Lanlan, standing nearby, bristled with indignation. "Those little devils truly don't know heaven from earth!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yundong, unexpectedly, did not unleash the furious outburst Liu Xia had anticipated. Instead, he threw his head back and laughed, a laugh born of extreme anger.

As he laughed, his entire aura surged outward like a tide, reminiscent of crashing tidal waves and a vast, surging river.

The moment Li Yundong’s laughter erupted, all the bronze bells within Saien-ji chimed simultaneously, issuing a deep, resonant hum. This sound, interwoven with Li Yundong’s loud and astonishing laughter, soared straight toward the heavens.

Liu Xia, Lanlan, and the other tourists nearby clapped their hands over their ears in pain. Some weaker individuals, whose vital energy was depleted, even sank to the ground, their faces contorted with strain.

Master Cinen, Shinshu, and Tachibana Chiko, who had already left Saien-ji, froze upon hearing the sound. They stopped abruptly and turned to look back simultaneously.

They saw a column of dense, unwavering energy rising straight up from Saien-ji, piercing the clouds, its momentum so fierce it seemed to challenge the stars. This aura, accompanied by booming laughter, ascended into the highest heavens, stirring the skies into a swirling vortex of wind and cloud, causing the firmament’s color to shift!

Tachibana Chiko curiously watched the churning sky. She lightly tugged on Shinshu’s sleeve and asked, "Shinshu-kun, is this person challenging you?"

Shinshu’s eyes narrowed, and his expression became unusually grave.

Master Cinen looked at the dramatic shift in the sky and listened to the arrogant, soaring laughter. Initially, he felt a touch of disdain: youngsters are just youngsters, unable to control their impatience.

But when he realized the laughter hadn't stopped after five full minutes, and that it continued in wave after wave, each crest building higher than the last, layered like mountain peaks, Master Cinen was finally moved. He slowly widened his eyes, remaining silent for a long moment. After another five minutes passed and the laughter finally subsided, he let out a long, slow breath.

Master Cinen turned to Shinshu and stated, "Shinshu, this man is your formidable opponent!"

Shinshu offered no rebuttal, a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth revealing a flicker of a smile. "We won't know until we fight!"

Tachibana Chiko clapped her hands, her face innocently delighted. "Wonderful! I misjudged him then. The Lotus Gathering Assembly is going to be spectacular!"

She giggled, then turned back to Master Cinen. "Master Cinen, I think there are masters on the Chinese mainland after all!"

Master Cinen didn't turn his head back, merely letting out a dry chuckle. "Are there? We shall see when the time comes!"

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