Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

Chapter 6 Upgrade Skill Book

The sudden prompt left Jiang Liu stunned.

In online games, team modes are common, and Jiang Liu was well aware of this; however, he hadn't expected that the game system he acquired after crossing over would also have a team mode.

Though he was flabbergasted, Jiang Liu's reaction was swift, and he immediately agreed.

Afterward, Jiang Liu noticed that the world in front of him had suddenly undergone a complete change.

For instance, in front of him, a small icon perpetually floated in the corner, depicting a person's face, specifically Senior Brother Xuankong—this must be the sign of a successful team formation.

At the same time, he could see a health bar hovering above both Senior Brother Xuankong's and the giant snow rabbit's heads, giving off the impression of being in a 3D game.

If he hadn't been in this world for over half a month now, Jiang Liu would doubt whether he was dreaming of playing a game.

Setting aside Jiang Liu contemplating this end-of-the-world team mode and the imagery that suddenly emerged, at that point, Senior Brother Xuankong had already charged at the giant snow rabbit.

As Senior Brother Xuankong moved, the snow rabbit naturally noticed him.

Man and rabbit clashed, becoming embroiled in a tussle.

The snow rabbit was huge and incredibly strong, unlike any rabbit, and more akin to a fierce tiger.

And Senior Brother Xuankong? His body was robust, his hands radiating a faint golden glow, his palms seemingly turning to cast iron, formidable and weighty.

With a kick of its legs, the snow rabbit immediately created a small pit in the ground, flinging soil around.

Senior Brother Xuankong's palm strikes left cracks even in stones.

Jiang Liu was keenly aware that if such power hit him, he would break at least a couple of bones. He was utterly unable to intervene in their struggle.

Although unable to help, at least his observational skills were sharp. It was apparent that as a herbivore that had attained sentience, the rabbit lacked both claws and sharp fangs, resulting in rather weak combat prowess.

From what he could see, Senior Brother Xuankong did seem to have the upper hand.

After fighting for a spell, it became clear to the snow rabbit that it was no match for the human and started to think of fleeing.

"Hmph, thinking of escaping?" Belting out a voice as deep as a temple bell, Senior Brother Xuankong grunted in anger as the snow rabbit turned to flee.

He stepped rapidly, dirt flying, charging like a wild bull in pursuit.

"Senior Brother Xuankong, wait, don't kill it."

Seeing that the snow rabbit's health bar was left with only about twenty percent, Jiang Liu yelled out high and loud, aware that the cause of it all was him killing a snow rabbit for its meat and feeling guilty within.

However, Senior Brother Xuankong paid no heed to Jiang Liu's shouting, rushing forward and landing a palm directly on the rabbit's head.

The snow rabbit fell to the ground, its legs twitching unconsciously a few times before it lay still.

In Jiang Liu's eyes, the snow rabbit's health bar had been emptied.

Seeing this, Jiang Liu rushed over, looked down at the snow rabbit with a complicated expression, "Senior brother, did you kill it?"

"No, it has only fainted," said Senior Brother Xuankong as he shook his head, looking at the snow rabbit that had been knocked unconscious.

In the midst of speaking, he raised his palm again and struck another blow, showing none of the merciful spirit expected of a monk.

With a smack, the snow rabbit's head caved in slightly; its skull was crushed, and it was truly dead beyond all doubt.

Notification: Gained 102 Experience Points, 15 copper coins.

Notification: Level increased, currently level 1.

With the death of the snow rabbit, the accompanying notifications arrived as expected. The level increase made Jiang Liu feel a refreshing stream flow through his body, as if his flesh and bones had been thoroughly cleansed from the inside out, leaving him with a sense of total relaxation.

Faintly, he felt that his strength had increased somewhat, and his consciousness had become a lot clearer.

"Liu'er, why did you stop me just now?", without time for Jiang Liu to experience the sensations that came with leveling up, Senior Brother Xuankong, having just killed the snow rabbit, spoke up and asked.

"Senior Brother, didn't the abbot previously say that monks should be compassionate and that you must not harm any living creature?"

Although he hadn't done anything in the team and had just gained experience and leveled up, Jiang Liu didn't feel too joyful; instead, he felt a sense of guilt in his heart.

"What the abbot said referred to wild beasts, not to demon creatures," shaking his head, Senior Brother Xuankong didn't take it to heart.

"But are demons necessarily bad?" Jiang Liu muttered quietly in response to Senior Brother Xuankong's answer.

Having come from the modern world, with various TV shows and novels spawning endless tales of romances between humans and demons, or humans and ghosts—such as the Legend of the White Snake or A Chinese Ghost Story.

Not all humans are good people, and likewise, not all demons and ghosts are purely evil, right?

"Liu'er, humans and demons are incompatible; you must never harbor such thoughts! Remember this!"

Although Jiang Liu's words were just quiet mutterings, Senior Brother Xuankong clearly heard them and rebuked him sternly, with a somber expression.

"Alright, Senior Brother, I realize my mistake," seeing Senior Brother Xuankong's stern demeanor, Jiang Liu had no intention of arguing and quickly admitted his fault.

After all, he would have to descend the mountain and return to secular life in less than half a month.

"Alright, I'm going to rest now. I'll take care of the vegetable garden tomorrow; bury this demon," after seeing Jiang Liu admit his mistake, Senior Brother Xuankong's expression slightly eased, and he turned to head back to his Zen Room.

As Senior Brother Xuankong left, Jiang Liu fell silent for a moment, looking at the snow rabbit at his feet that was as big as a wolfhound and lifted its body.

Indeed, underneath the body of the snow rabbit, there was a copper coin. But beyond that, there was also a thin booklet.

...

Night had fallen deep.

In Jiang Liu's room, the oil lamp was lit, a bean-sized flame casting a faint light, barely dispelling the darkness within.

An old table was laid out with a row of copper coins—these had just burst out and there were precisely fifteen.

Beyond that, there was also the thin booklet.

Holding the booklet closer to the oil lamp for a better look, three big characters were written on it: Silencing Zen.

"Is this a Skill Book that just dropped?", seeing the characters written on this booklet, Jiang Liu understood.

Prompt: Do you want to consume 1 Skill Point to learn the Skill "Silencing Zen"?

As Jiang Liu flipped through the booklet, the prompt appeared.

Of course, there was no hesitation, and he chose to learn.

The Skill Book in his hand instantly turned into twinkling starlight and then slowly merged into Jiang Liu's body. Simultaneously, a sense of sudden enlightenment emerged from the depths of his heart.

It was like remembering something that had been forgotten, and Jiang Liu gained understanding of the Silencing Zen Skill.

Silencing Zen: Requires Level 1, long-distance cast, can silence the target for 2 seconds, during which the target cannot use any skills, cooldown time 30 seconds.

"Indeed, just like the online game I played before transmigration, the first Primary Level Skill of the Monk Profession is a silencing type of skill."

Feeling the characteristics of the Silencing Zen Skill, memories of nights spent playing online games in internet cafes before his transmigration couldn't help but flash through Jiang Liu's mind.

However, playing a monk in a game was stress-free, but after transmigrating and becoming a monk himself, Jiang Liu felt somewhat troubled; in the game, monks were primarily a support occupation. Even though there were combat-related professions to choose from later, the Monk Occupation generally leaned towards support and control.

Compared to that, the Swordsman Profession, which is just after quick revenge, or the Taoist Profession that commands wind, fire, thunder, and lightning, seemed much cooler.