Free Web NovelChapter 1007: Chapter 367: Descent to the World_2
Martial arts and firearms, which is stronger and which has a higher upper limit, has always been one of the biggest controversies between the two races.
Kung Fu Beasts continue to accumulate the experience of their predecessors, improving or creating new techniques.
Gun Beasts keep developing mechanical devices, producing stronger firearms.
The rate of development between the two sides never experienced an imbalance throughout history.
But in the past decade, this situation seems to be changing.
It’s as if something has disturbed the delicate balance between the two races.
For General Zebra, it wasn’t the first time he had seen an army of two hundred thousand Gun Beasts.
He had even served as the supreme commander, repelling enemies of this magnitude twice.
But now, there was a key point that needed to be clarified.
"Have you discovered any trace of Apostles within the enemy ranks?"
The Apostles of the firearms, that’s the key point.
In recent years, an absolutely elite presence has emerged among the ranks of the Gun Beasts.
They possess tremendously strong individual combat power, capable of seizing the head of a commander from an army of thousands, then retreating gracefully.
Sometimes they can even act without leaving a trace, causing much fear and detestation among the martial artists.
Every mention of this word arouses expressions of both hatred and fear.
Several commanders have already fallen at the hands of the Apostles of firearms.
"..., Yes."
Deputy General Leopard paused for a moment before speaking gravely, "Our mobile cavalry scouts encountered the Gun Beasts, and several suddenly perished. According to the message brought back by the survivors, it must have been the Apostles of firearms who struck."
"Is that so."
General Zebra nodded slightly and raised his hand lightly, "Send out the order, the entire army is to prepare for battle.
"Yes!"
Deputy General Leopard straightened his body and placed his hand clasped with five fingers on the right side of his chest.
The salute of the heart, a ritual in the Kung Fu Beasts’ army.
The biggest difference between them and the Gun Beasts was that the heart of Kung Fu Beasts was on the right side while that of the Gun Beasts was on the left.
Waiting for his subordinate to leave, General Zebra sighed softly, "It seems that this time, I’m likely to perish here."
"Report!"
Yet within half a tick of the clock, Deputy General Leopard returned posthaste.
And judging from his expression and tone, he was quite agitated.
Differing from his usual temperament when reporting the incoming of a great army, he now showed an expression of great joy.
"What is the matter this time."
Seeing this, General Zebra’s brow slightly furrowed.
He knew his subordinate well, a person not given to outward displays of emotion.
Even if he had received news of the withdrawal of the enemy army, he would not likely show this level of joy.
"General! Great joy! An Animal Zodiac Head has emerged!"
The words of Deputy General Leopard caused General Zebra to shake visibly, a look of disbelief appearing on his face.
...
The Imperial City of Kung Fu Kingdom, ten miles outside.
Here lies Mount Zodia, upon which sits a temple with incense burning brightly.
The temple venerates twelve zodiac images.
Legend has it that in ancient times, a great prophet foretold that whenever the Kung Fu Beasts faced peril, an Animal Zodiac Head would descend from the heavens, offering them sanctuary amidst water and fire.
Looking at several major historical events, that indeed seemed to have been the case.
Thus, regardless of how the Kung Fu Kingdom transitioned from one dynasty to another, the status of Mount Zodia Temple never waned.
Rulers of every era treated it with the utmost respect.
It is said that to some extent, Mount Zodia Temple could influence the making and unmaking of kings.
However, the temple never involved itself in these affairs, so whether this is true is unknown.
Although revered as a holy place, Mount Zodia Temple is never sealed shut.
On the contrary, its policy on incense worship is to treat everyone equally, from kings to commoners.
All are allowed to enter and pay homage with incense.
Some say that even if a criminal sentenced to death enters the temple to offer incense, the Government Office would not arrest them there.
Of Course, once the incense is offered, they are removed from the premises as if they were carrying chickens.
After all, the temple is full of individuals with high martial proficiency.
Today, after sending off the last group of worshippers, it was time for Zodiac Temple to close its doors.
At this time, the temple servants would clean up all areas where worshippers had been active.
The twelve halls each venerating a zodiac image were naturally of paramount importance.
The dedicated temple servants for each hall were selected through multiple layers of criteria.
Two aspects were especially important.
The first, naturally, was sincerity.
The second was lineage.
Meaning the temple servants serving each hall must match the corresponding animal zodiac sign.
So, for example, the Pig Zodiac Hall was served by those with a pig head and the Tiger Zodiac Hall by those with a tiger head, following that standard.
The third point is a requirement for martial arts.
To fight a hundred with one, that is merely the threshold.
Frankly speaking, there are fewer than a hundred exclusive temple servants in all twelve halls.
But if assembled into a team, even an army of tens of thousands would be no match for them.
Today, the Sheep Zodiac Hall is slightly different from the other halls, for they have welcomed a new exclusive temple servant.
In front of the hall’s entrance, an old goat-head person with a beard is twirling his whiskers.
Behind him stands a young-looking goat-head person who is actually well over fifty.
At this time, the expression on the young goat-head person’s face is somewhat dazed.
You must know that he is a grandmaster-level Kung Fu master, revered and pursued by thousands, with a booming reputation in recent years.
Some time ago, provoked by his peers, they claimed that his mastery of The Path was not profound enough to qualify as a temple servant at the Zodiac Temple.
So, he held his breath and came to participate in the selection for temple servants.
What he hadn’t expected... was to actually pass!
It’s not that he wasn’t sincere, as a member of the Sheep Zodiac clan, he naturally possessed abundant reverence for the Sheep head.
But the key point was that he hadn’t thought about renouncing the secular world!
At home were so many mistresses with goat, bull, horse, donkey, deer, and hippo heads, all waiting for him to return!
Moreover, after arriving here, his self-confidence took a severe hit.
He had thought his Kung Fu was unparalleled in the world, but then he saw these temple servants diligently cleaning the hall...
Which damn one of them isn’t stronger than him!
Why did he leave his position as a king outside to become a Little Brother in the mountains?!
The newcomer’s mental struggles naturally went unnoticed by the old goat-head person who was currently explaining the rules of cleaning.
"Firstly, during your chores, there’s one thing you must achieve.
That is, during the cleaning period, your feet must be off the ground, and must not touch the main hall to avoid soiling it with dust."
Upon hearing this, the young goat-head person noticed that these seniors inside the hall were indeed floating barely three inches above Ground Level.
"Gurgle..."
This single requirement alone made him swallow hard.
What kind of profound Kung Fu is this? ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
You see, floating is not difficult for master-level strong individuals.
It’s simply a matter of channeling Qi from the soles of your feet to create a pushback force; it’s that simple.
But getting him to fly high into the sky, that’s not a big deal.
Because the higher and faster you float, the easier it is.
The most difficult part is to glide smoothly as if on flat ground!
Just like these seniors, merely three inches off the ground while maintaining steady work, that’s something he can’t do!
What level of intricate control is this!
At most, he could manage to stay half a meter off the ground in relative stability and not for very long!
"It seems you’re not from a genre that specializes in controlling Qi."
The old goat-head person glanced at the other party’s distressed face, and from the perspective of someone with experience, added, "No matter, just temporarily treat it as cultivation then.
Only after you’ve trained it to be stable can you enter the hall."
"Big Boss, how long does it take for someone with my proficiency to achieve this level?"
The young goat-head person could only ask.
"Such worldly titles are unnecessary here, in the temple, you can call me Brother."
The old goat-head person continued twirling his beard, casually saying, "At shortest ten years, at longest..."
However, before he could finish his sentence, his gaze suddenly froze.
Thump!
Immediately following, the old goat-head person’s body shook and he knelt on the ground.
"Brother, what’s wrong? Brother?"
The young goat-head person was startled by the situation.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The problem was, every single one of the temple servants in the hall also knelt down in unison.
Completely defying the rule mentioned just now not to touch the ground.
And following their gaze, the young goat-head person also found himself nearly holding his breath in shock.
The gold statue of the Sheep Zodiac that was worshipped in the grand hall had, without anyone noticing when or how, silently developed a crack dividing it in half!
Thump!
He too knelt on the ground, just the same.
The first to recover, the old goat-head person’s voice was trembling.
"The Zodiac icon is destroyed, the Zodiac Head is coming!"
"The Sheep Zodiac Head has come into the world!"
...
...
