Chapter 370 - 276: Abbot Cilian, Forced Redemption

Chapter 370: Chapter 276: Abbot Cilian, Forced Redemption

He was a graceful middle-aged man dressed in wide, flowing robes. The sleeves fluttered endlessly in the mountain wind, making him look like a True Immortal who had descended to the mortal realm, ready to ride the winds away at any moment.

Wu Liangchen’s eyes gradually narrowed, his expression turning serious.

He could sense an extremely powerful aura from this man, one that was no weaker than his own, even after he had broken through to the Vein Opening Realm.

It could be said that this man was the strongest person Wu Liangchen had encountered since he began practicing Martial Arts.

Seemingly noticing Wu Liangchen’s wariness, the man smiled faintly. "I am Cilian, the humble Head of the Vajra Institute. It is a pleasure to meet Benefactor Wu."

Cilian, Head of the Vajra Institute!

Wu Liangchen’s heart trembled at the name. He immediately thought of the letter he had found inside the Demon Suppression Stone on the mad monk, Kongjing.

The writer, Konghui, had mentioned that he wanted to eliminate his mad junior brother, but their master couldn’t bear to do it and spared him.

’Could this be the one?’

"What was Kongjing to you?" Wu Liangchen asked.

"He was my worthless disciple." As he said this, a look of lament appeared on Cilian’s face.

"I presume he died by your hand."

"Yes!" Wu Liangchen didn’t hide it, nodding in confirmation.

"I knew it." Cilian sighed.

"Back then, Konghui urged me not to be soft-hearted and to just kill him. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it. After all, he was a disciple I had raised for many years. So I gave him one last chance, but clearly... he didn’t take it."

Wu Liangchen remained silent, just listening quietly.

After Cilian finished his lament, Wu Liangchen looked up at the statue of the wrathful Vajra and said coolly, "So, did you invite me here to hold me accountable? After all... I killed your disciple and secretly learned your sect’s ultimate skill."

Every sect takes its ultimate skills very seriously. For an outsider to learn one without permission is a direct provocation, an extremely grave offense.

"Of course not. In fact, compared to a discarded disciple, I am far more interested in you," Cilian said with a smile.

"More interested in me?"

"That’s right. It has only been two years since my discarded disciple, Kongjing, was expelled from the sect. Even if we don’t count the time wasted in between, you could have been practicing this Golden Body Cross Training Skill for no more than two years. Yet, in such a short period, you’ve cultivated it to such a profound level. It’s truly astonishing." Cilian’s eyes burned as he stared at Wu Liangchen.

Wu Liangchen smiled as well, then shook his head slightly. "You’re mistaken. I have been practicing the Golden Body Cross Training Skill for exactly one year."

At these words, even the long-browed old monk, who had been standing by with his head bowed, seemed unsettled and lifted his gaze to look at Wu Liangchen.

Not only him, but the few people behind him also began to stir restlessly.

A strange light gleamed in Cilian’s eyes as he looked at Wu Liangchen, clicking his tongue in admiration. "Excellent. You truly live up to your reputation as a peerless prodigy. To have cultivated the Golden Body Skill to this level in just one year... even if our institute’s founding ancestor were resurrected, he probably couldn’t hope to hold a candle to you."

Wu Liangchen, however, was completely unmoved. He just watched Cilian and said, "So you invited me here just to praise me?"

His words were blunt, but Cilian just laughed heartily. "You certainly get straight to the point. In that case, I won’t waste any more words. The fact that you could master our sect’s ultimate skill in such a short time proves you have a deep karmic connection with the Buddhist Dharma, and an even greater one with my Vajra Institute. Therefore, I would like to invite you to join us. What do you say?"

"I say no." Wu Liangchen rejected him directly, without a moment’s hesitation.

Cilian didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he continued with a grin, "Don’t be so quick to refuse. How about you let me finish stating my terms before you decide?"

Without waiting for Wu Liangchen’s reply, he went on, "With your current strength, you could immediately become the Vice Head of the Vajra Institute, second only to me, and enjoy nearly unlimited power."

"This includes wealth beyond the imagination of ordinary people. More importantly, you would gain access to the Vajra Institute’s secret repository. Inside, we have collected nearly every Martial Arts technique from the last millennium. This doesn’t just include those from the East Sea, but also from Great Yan and even the Folangji."

After saying this, his expression turned serious as he looked at Wu Liangchen. "Furthermore, all the heavenly materials, earthly treasures, and medicinal pills the Vajra Institute has accumulated over a thousand years will also be available to you, free of charge."

These two conditions were a killer blow for any Martial Artist.

At least, Cilian couldn’t think of any reason why Wu Liangchen would refuse.

This was the greatest sincerity he could offer.

But the anticipated excitement never came. Wu Liangchen remained perfectly calm, without even a ripple of emotion, as if those tempting offers were nothing but passing clouds.

"I don’t understand. Why would you offer such a high price to recruit me? You know I’m not from the East Sea country..."

"The reason is simple: you’re worth it. As for whether you’re from the East Sea country..."

Cilian smiled. "That is the least important detail. If you wished, you could become a citizen of the East Sea country at any time."

But Wu Liangchen still didn’t agree. He said slowly, "I also killed your Monarch..."

Cilian waved a hand dismissively. "You are mistaken. He was the Monarch of the East Sea country, not *our* Monarch."

For a thousand years, the Vajra Institute’s status in the East Sea country had always been aloof. Its relationship with the royal family and officials was distant and fluctuated between good and bad.

So in Cilian’s eyes, Wu Liangchen killing Otsuka Kazuji was no big deal at all.

After explaining this, Cilian said with a smile, "What I didn’t expect was that you even managed to kill that fellow, Tatsuya Takaguchi. The man was as cunning as a ghost. I sent people after him several times, but he always managed to slip away."

Then, with a sincere expression, he asked, "So, what do you think?"

He had thought it was a sure thing, but unexpectedly, Wu Liangchen shook his head and refused again.

"No."

This time, even Cilian couldn’t hold back his impatience. His expression shifted slightly as he asked, "Why?"

"Because I don’t want to be trapped here, living the pure and desireless life of a Buddhist disciple," Wu Liangchen said coolly.

At these words, Cilian fell silent.

After a moment, he couldn’t help but ask, "You saw through it all?"

"Of course!" Wu Liangchen paused, then continued.

"In fact, from the moment you invited me to join the Vajra Institute, I already guessed what you were planning to do."

At this point, a mocking expression appeared on Wu Liangchen’s face. "Do you think I’m wild and unrestrained, so you plan to use the Buddhist Dharma to ’enlighten’ me and guide me from evil to good?"

Cilian smiled.

"Impressive, indeed. But you’re wrong about one thing. We have no malicious intent. And you truly do have a karmic connection with the Buddha, so..."

"Say no more. For the sake of the one Cultivation Technique of yours that I’ve learned, I’ll pretend this never happened."

Wu Liangchen was all too familiar with this kind of routine: a self-proclaimed righteous Buddhist sect trying to ’enlighten’ someone they deemed wild and violent.

He didn’t bother being polite, turning to leave.

Unexpectedly, at that very moment, the long-browed old monk stepped forward and blocked his path.

Wu Liangchen raised an eyebrow slightly. "What, persuasion failed, so now you’re resorting to force?"

"I wouldn’t dare. It is just that this old monk feels Benefactor Wu has too much malevolent energy about him. It would be best for you to stay on this mountain for a few days to cleanse yourself of your sins."