It was but two hits, one per fist, yet almost all the bones in Master Jiankong’s arms and fingers popped out of their sockets. The bones in the forearms sent a long-missed tingling sensation to the three-armed master - they were cracked.
This was only for a moment, at most a couple of seconds. Master Jiankong flailed their arms again, and all the bones popped back into their places. The cracks on the bones were worrisome, but they were not fatal.
“It seemed your trick’s still as old as back in the days.” Master Jiankong scoffed, their arms thrusted outwards, each hand making a different hand seal. In a moment’s time, three symbols made of dark smoke appeared on the three palms.
“Namo Amitabha.” Master Liaoran frowned at the symbols, sighed and bowed gently with his hands in a prayer pose: “You have truly gone over the line, Master. In but a notion, one could be Buddha, one could also fall as a demon. Why did you choose so?”
“Simple. Because there’s no way for this dreadful city.” Master Jiankong closed their eyes for a moment, dark marks began crawling through their skin, forming another layer of flesh, hide, scales and shells. A black-skinned Yaksha with three arms, blood red marks all over the muscular body and spiraling horns coming out of both sides of the forehead. “Its mind, its will and its presence is all consuming and all devouring. The only way out, is for the cycle to run its course.”
“That may be. But this monk will not stand idly by as ruin comes for everyone.” Master Liaoran huffed, Qi exploded from every meridian point of his body. He pulled his robe off his body, threw it on the ground behind him before raising his two hands in a fighting pose: “There are things one can do; there are things one cannot do; there are things one should do. You have studied the scriptures just as this monk, for longer and in greater depth. It is indeed a cruel turn of fate that our understandings and paths diverged so.”
“Yes. And your path will end.” The three-armed Yaksha lunged at Master Liaoran. The claws on all three arms sliced through the concrete walls on both sides with the same ease as a hot knife through butter. The residual dark energy from the claws and nails chewed through the concrete and rebar, and only stopped until seconds after initial contacts.
The Yaksha’s charge was met with a golden palm strike. Then another. Then another. Then at least ten in a blinding flurry. Each golden palm strike was unleashed from a distance, at the center of each palm strike was a red symbol, after which a golden and red palm print was left on the Yaksha’s body.
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Master Jiankong grunted, the palm strikes were too fast to effectively dodge or guard. They landed on each of the meridian points on the Yaksha’s body and in turn their body. The integrity of the Yaksha form began to collapse the moment the first palm landed, and with each subsequent strike it was further weakened and slowed. It was really a shame and a shock, for this form of theirs had withstood many powerful attacks from different sources. Yet right now it was these tame looking palm strikes that were breaking this form.
More would definitely become something the Yaksha could not stand. So after a short grunt, the Yaksha pushed the energy into their chest, directing it to the lower right arm. At the next moment, the shorter and slightly deformed lower right arm was pushed out of its place and shot at Master Liaoran like a crossbow bolt.
Clashing head to head with this destructive bullet of a severed arm was a finger strike. The severed arm stuck out the index and middle fingers forward like a spear, and their fingernails clashed against the simple fingertips of flesh and blood from the human master.
The sound of metal blades swinging and cutting into each other exploded from the impact. Master Liaoran was pushed back and had to take three steps to stabilize himself, while the severed arm was rendered into a broken bag of shredded foul flesh and shattered bone fragments.
The Yaksha did not hesitate for even one moment before they lunged at Master Liaoran again after activating the healing power to suppress the effects of the palm prints. If they could help it they would definitely strike at the old monk the moment he was pushed back. But using any sort of power while the energy from the palm prints was burning through the very fabric of their being would be tremendously hazardous.
Master Liaoran huffed again, this time unleashing a fist strike at the Yaksha from a distance. A giant golden fist made of golden light and Qi blasted through the ruined hallway. The Yaksha had no choice but to cross the arms to guard against this incoming hit.
Golden energy demolished and incinerated almost half the Yaksha shell on Master Jiankong’s entire body. An explosive scream burst from the air behind Master Jiankong the moment the Yaksha form was broken. Traces of smoke arose and dissipated the next moment. Their two remaining arms were broken, and their entire chest caved in. Their already ragged clothes were burned and blasted off, leaving only a bony body on the ground.
Master Jiankong chuckled as they sensed Master Liaoran coming close: “Looks like you’ve out-cultivated me, Liaoran. Maybe - maybe you understand more than I - ” They swallowed, took a hoarse breath before continuing: “ - and my seeing the void for what it is seems no match for you.”
“Namo Amitabha.” Master Liaoran uttered a prayer then sighed: “Your form and your tether are broken. If the quest this monk is set out to do is achieved. You won’t have long after that.”
“Maybe - maybe it’s for the best.” Master Jiankong coughed, unable to even breathe faster without struggling: “There’s no joy or enlightenment anymore. There is only - only to be and watch the rot grow.”
“The biggest core, the central pillar, they’re below us aren’t they?” Master Liaoran asked.
“Yes, and no.” Master Jiankong chuckled, coughing once again: “There are changes made to the original design. I know that one is below and one above, I don’t know about the others.”
“Then this monk will find them.” Master Liaoran sighed.
“And they added a bunch of smaller pillars to the array. Maybe you can do something with them.” Master Jiankong let out a long exhale: “There’s a lot of changes made because they had to. They’re not - they’re not as smart, or wise though.”
“Nobody was and nobody has been.”
“Do whatever you have to do then. ” Master Jiankong laughed, blood spilling out from their mouth and nostrils: “They will try to stop you. And they will play dirty.”