novelraw Chapter 37 : The Four Astral Qi Realm Masters
Chapter 37 : The Four Astral Qi Realm Masters
The Four Astral Qi Realm Masters
Just as the DJ Tathagata manifested his Vidyārāja Dharma Body and went on a killing spree, three more figures had somehow appeared on the cruise ship's deck.
The other students were so lost on the DJ Tathagata's mythical display of power as he pumelled the giant fish monster that not a single person noticed the arrival of these three new figures.
After gasping in amazement and instinctively pulling out his phone to record the DJ Tathagata and his massive manifestation, Chu Tianxing seemed to sense something. He glanced back over his shoulder.
Seeing him look their way, the three figures who had appeared out of thin air also looked at him, their gazes carrying both scrutiny and approval.
Among them was a tall, slender woman in a beige trench coat with her hands tucked in her pockets. She had an elegant, refined air about her, almost scholarly, and she gave Chu Tianxing a mysterious little smile.
Chu Tianxing smiled back, thinking to himself.
"Who are these three big shots? Are they all on the same level as the DJ Tathagata?"
He was absolutely certain these three hadn't been on the ship before.
Besides the refined woman, there was also a burly man with a full beard wearing a Hawaiian shirt, beach shorts, and flip-flops, complete with sunglasses and a cigar dangling from his mouth. He looked like some beach bum ready to hit the waves.
The third was a middle-aged man in a sharp business suit and tie, looking every bit the corporate executive if not for the traditional Daoist topknot on his head.
These three definitely hadn't been on the ship earlier.
Yet now they had all appeared here silently. Just from their ghostly arrival alone, you could tell they were seriously powerful players.
Chu Tianxing nudged Qin Ling, who was as entranced by the battle as everyone else.
"Who are those three behind us?"
Qin Ling snapped back to reality and looked over before immediately jumping in shock.
"Thunder God Yu Jiang! Daoist Master Xichen! And Sword Sovereign Xingyun! It’s actually them!”
Thunder God Yu Jiang.
Daoist Master Xichen.
Sword Sovereign Xingyun.
These were Astral Qi Realm masters on the same level as the DJ Tathagata himself.
Chu Tianxing had actually looked up info on the nine great Astral Qi masters online and seen their promotional photos. But the Astral Qi masters in those photos were nothing like what he was seeing now.
In Thunder God Yu Jiang's promo shot, he wore gleaming battle armor with a blood-red cape, holding a great banner as he stood atop a mountain peak.
Dark clouds pressed down from above, crackling with lightning, while fierce winds whipped around him, sending dead leaves spiraling through the air.
The Thunder God raised his banner high, his hair and beard bristling with fury as he glared defiantly at the heavens. The whole image radiated an awe-inspiring, invincible presence.
Nothing like he was now, looking like a beach bum ready to hit on beautiful women at a moment’s notice.
Daoist Master Xichen's promotional photo showed him in yin-yang robes, seated beneath cloud-wreathed pines with rolling seas of clouds before him and the rising sun behind him. He looked like a carefree immortal, floating beyond worldly concerns.
Now, he looked like some business executive ready to chair a board meeting.
And in her promo shot, the Sword Sovereign Xingyun wore flowing white robes as she hovered in mid-air. Nine gleaming swords floated behind her, following the gesture of her sword-pointing hand as they prepared to strike through the void.
From just that single promotional photo, Chu Tianxing could sense an unstoppable force, as if everything in the world would be split in two beneath those nine swords. The Sword Sovereign Xingyun's aura was so sharp and intimidating that it was hard to look directly at her.
But the current Sword Sovereign Xingyun had none of that supreme sword master's deadly edge.
She looked like nothing more than a quiet woman sitting alone under a parasol tree in the evening light, surrounded by falling leaves as she read a book.
It was precisely because the current appearances of these three were so vastly different from their images in the promotional photos that Chu Tianxing, who had only ever seen their information online, had not recognized them at all.
Only Qin Ling, who had grown up hearing about the Astral Qi masters and had seen them on TV programs more than once, could identify them at a glance.
"Holy crap, three more Astral Qi masters!"
Hearing Qin Ling speak their names, Chu Tianxing couldn’t help but be inwardly astonished.
"Four of the living gods and buddhas of the Great Ming all showing up together for one big performance... The incident we've gotten mixed up in is way bigger than I imagined!"
Even with four Astral Qi masters present, there was simply no need for the other three to lift a finger. The DJ Tathagata crushed the giant fish monster with overwhelming superiority, taking it down with a single palm strike.
Watching that giant fish monster helplessly crumble back into seawater under the heaven-covering palm of the DJ Tathagata's Astral Qi-formed Vidyārāja manifestation, all the students and crew members looked at the DJ Tathagata with pure reverence.
Chu Tianxing also felt a surge of adrenaline and became even more fascinated with martial arts.
With the giant fish monster destroyed, the remaining smaller creatures that hadn't been caught in the DJ Tathagata's palm technique and had miraculously survived scattered in panic and dived back into the sea.
Though the DJ Tathagata could be ruthless, he was still a Buddhist master at heart and didn't continue his attack to wipe them all out.
He then flew back down to the cruise ship deck, first nodding with a smile at the students and crew who were looking at him with admiration.
"No autographs or photos today, sorry everyone."
He then turned to the other three at the back of the crowd and pressed his palms together in greeting.
"This humble monk has fulfilled his duty. Not a single citizen of our Great Ming has been harmed."
Earlier, when that strange fog had appeared over those waters, the four great Astral Qi masters had worked together to open the gate.
After forcing the portal open, DJ Tathagata had been the first to pass through the Gate of Revelation since he possessed Divine Foot Power and was the fastest among them, thus arriving in time before that fish monster could fully manifest and prevented a tragedy.
If he had been even slightly late even by just half a minute, the outcome might have been vastly different.
"Thank you for your hard work, Tathagata."
The one who responded was the Sword Sovereign Xingyun.
According to online info, she was an advisor to the Eastern Depot.
This operation was led by the Eastern Depot; the other three Astral Qi Realm experts had all been contacted through the Sword Sovereign Xingyun.
If not for that, it’s impossible for them to gather here. The Astral Qi Realms master could even ignore the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, much less the Eastern Depot.
This exchange between the two snapped the onlookers back to reality.
Only then did the students and crew realize that three more household-name Astral Qi masters had also arrived on the scene.
The deck erupted in excitement, everyone's faces flushed red as they stared at the four Astral Qi masters with pure enthusiasm.
The quick-handed ones already had their phones out, secretly taking pictures. Chu Tianxing, who'd already had his camera running, was naturally the fastest.
DJ Tathagata said no autographs or photos today, but taking candid shots should be fine, right?
Sure enough, the four Astral Qi masters didn't stop the students from taking photos.
One student was rapidly snapping pictures while saying in a trembling voice.
"This trip was totally worth it! Getting to see four Astral Qi masters in person at the same time! Plus hearing the DJ Tathagata perform live, and even watching him fight... Holy shit!"
"Yeah, before this we could only see Astral Qi masters fighting in promotional videos and it just looks like CGI... But today, seeing the DJ Tathagata's Vidyārāja manifestation with our own eyes, watching him crush countless fish monsters with one palm strike... Even if this trip ended right now, it would be totally worth it!"
Even Chu Tianxing felt this journey had been worthwhile.
If he'd stayed home instead of joining this trip, where else could he have witnessed the might of Astral Qi masters?
Most importantly, today's several bloody battles had genuinely boosted his martial arts by a huge margin.
It wasn't an increase in raw power.
Power doesn't improve that much in such a short time.
Rather, he'd gained much deeper understanding of how to combine various martial techniques and apply them in real combat.
This kind of life-and-death combat insight was something you could never gain no matter how many years you spent practicing at home.
It was the most valuable reward of this entire trip.
After he had fully absorbed the rewards of this experience, Chu Tianxing was absolutely confident that if he were to encounter an opponent like the three-meter-tall giant fish-man again, he could take its life within three moves. He would never again give it the opportunity to cast a spell to repel him or to trade a direct blow with him.
Just then, the four Astral Qi masters exchanged a few words among themselves. The Sword Sovereign Xingyun clapped her hands lightly, quieting everyone's chatter, and said in a pleasant voice.
“I know you all must have many questions, but this is not the place to talk. We will answer your questions after we have returned to a safe location. For now, please return to your cabins. We are about to take you all back.”
After the crowd followed her instructions and returned to the cabins, leaving the deck empty, the four experts of the Astral Qi Realm rose into the air. Each took a position on one side of the cruise ship, and all four simultaneously projected a stream of Astral Qi that enveloped the ship from above. They then proceeded to push the cruise ship directly, causing it to float toward the vortex from which they had come.