**(Note: 卍 (manji) primarily refers to the left-facing swastika, a symbol with deep historical and religious significance in various cultures, particularly in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. It represents divinity, spirituality, and auspiciousness in these contexts.)**
"This… is the Thousand-Hand Guanyin!!!"
Tang San stared, open-mouthed, at the colossal goddess statue towering before him. Everything he'd ever understood about Blue Silver Grass seemed utterly trivial beside this awe-inspiring creation, making him question whether he understood anything about his own martial soul at all.
He thought of his own soul skills—Bind, Parasite… Then looked at Teacher Tang's near-infinite, shape-shifting Blue Silver Grass.
For the first time, he doubted his own cultivation path. Same Blue Silver Grass, yet why did Teacher Tang's seem so limitless and miraculous? If only he could learn directly from him, perhaps he too could reach such magnificent heights!
If Yun Chuan knew Tang San's thoughts, he'd have told him flatly: You're dreaming.
Yun Chuan's martial soul was the Plant Overlord — Goddess of Life. From the start, he'd had innate control over all plants, able to morph them into endless forms with ease.
Tang San possessed Blue Silver Grass—more precisely, the as-yet-unawakened Blue Silver Emperor.
Even when he one day awakened the Emperor, it was still "just" a plant.
And all plants… belonged to the rule of the Plant Overlord!
Such was the natural hierarchy—a built-in suppression that Tang San could never overcome.
So, even if Yun Chuan wanted to teach Tang San the secrets of his "fancy" soul skills, in truth, without the core ability of the Plant Overlord, Tang San would never be able to replicate them. All those miraculous techniques were simply applications of that unique power.
—
Meanwhile, like a monkey, the Titan Giant Ape hung from tree limbs, watching the fully-formed Thousand-Hand Guanyin below with not a flicker of fear.
With a mighty twist of its arms, the giant, musclebound ape—barely fifteen meters tall compared to the hundred meters of the goddess—launched itself down in a pulse of terrifying soul power.
The goddess responded instantly.
From the halo of a thousand hands behind her back, one massive arm—six or seven meters thick—shot out, stretching with impossible speed toward the falling ape.
By sheer scale, the ape looked like a tiny mischief-maker beside the goddess statue, as if she could simply pluck it from midair with ease.
But sometimes the smallest things are the most potent!
Don't be fooled by its size—the Titan Giant Ape, with a hundred thousand years of cultivation, was no pushover.
As the huge hand reached for it, the ape lashed out.
A violent gust exploded from its swing, and the goddess's giant limb shattered instantly.
"So brittle!"
Tang San and friends gaped from below.
Yun Chuan could only roll his eyes. "Brittle?"
With his current level of soul power, these trees would be nigh unbreakable for even a Soul Saint. The only reason they looked so fragile was because the ape was an absolute monster—if it were any other ten-thousand-year beast, they'd have been squashed in an instant.
He was always up against enemies wildly above his own rank, and these foes could leap ranks themselves. That "weakness" was relative—compared to his true peers, Yun Chuan was already an unmatched freak.
Still, he wasn't worried. A thousand hands meant plenty left!
"Thousand-Hand Guanyin—Thousand-Hand Demon-Subduing!"
With Yun Chuan's command, every hand on the goddess moved together—thousands of fists clenched and, in a blur, hammered the airborne ape like a storm!
Bang bang bang…
Hand after hand, wave after wave, the relentless pummeling landed on the Titan Giant Ape.
Yet… for the ape, it was merely a mild sting, even—once he got used to it—almost pleasurable, like a deep-tissue massage!
Yun Chuan caught a trace of delight from the ape's "spirit wave."
Did his attacks… actually feel good?
Seriously—was this monster really using his thousand-hand combo as a massage chair?!
Enough was enough. Time for something less "gentle."
From the goddess, her long-clasped palms began to separate.
A globe of lightning flickered into being, crackling in her open hands.
This was the power of the supreme Clear Sky Hammer—one of its four attributes: lightning.
While the ape was still enjoying his "massage," Yun Chuan finished shaping the lightning into an "卍" symbol.
"Take this—Universal Salvation Thunder Judgment!"
The Thousand-Hand Guanyin pushed both hands forward.
The "卍" symbol, blazing with electric power, shot forth—
CRACK!
A clap of thunder.
The Titan Giant Ape, just moaning in pleasure, suddenly screamed in agony as the thunder mark crashed into its chest. Electrical arcs shot over its fur, standing every hair on end.
All hundred-thousand-year soul beasts must endure periodically the tribulation of heavenly thunder; thus, while their bodies might be strong, they held a secret fear of lightning. Unless they possessed true lightning abilities, nearly all ten-thousand-year soul beasts had this weakness.
Even if the strike didn't deal serious harm, the terror it triggered was immense.
Now, the Titan Giant Ape was well and truly enraged!
(End of Chapter)