Chapter 26: On the Tao of the Three Pure Ones

  When he heard Laozi ask this, Zhuang Xiong was taken aback for a moment, and after thinking for a moment, he understood Laozi's thoughts. He couldn't help but laugh: "Good you, Laozi! You're so suspicious of me, aren't you afraid that I'll deceive your brother? I haven't seen this treasure before, but I know its origin. When Pangu opened the sky, he smashed a chaotic green lotus into powder and destroyed countless magical weapons and treasures of the 3,000 gods and demons. Now, most of the treasures in the vast wilderness come from this source. The top-level spiritual roots also come from the lotus root. I've seen the original body of that green lotus and know its unique aura. It's not strange for me to recognize these many treasures. For example, the apricot-yellow flag of the Primordial Daoist is one of the five leaves of the green lotus transformed into a spiritual treasure. Although the aura has changed after evolving into a spiritual treasure, the original aura is still there. I'm sure I won't mistake it."

  The old man suddenly enlightened, smiled and said: "It's just that I'm too suspicious, I hope you won't blame me." After finishing speaking, he quickly changed the subject and said: "I see that your three flowers have different colors, which is also extraordinary, there must be some magic in them."

  Zhuang Xiong saw Lao Zi change the subject and couldn't help but secretly let out a sigh of relief, thinking to himself: "I knew that knowing all these things would be beneficial yet also troublesome. Fortunately, I had already thought of a countermeasure, otherwise, I would have really been stumped by him. Isn't it said that Lao Zi is taciturn and uncommunicative? Why is he so suspicious of me? Speaking of which, in the legends of later generations, the auspicious cloud should be five-colored, but today's sighting doesn't have a single one that is five-colored. Is it possible that pure colors are the mainstream, and five colors are just pirated versions? Or is it that the greater the divine power, the purer the color? My auspicious cloud seems to have impure colors, huh? Or perhaps the five colors are just an effect of sunlight reflection? Speaking of which, brother, these three flowers' colors are a bit strange, they're not even a single color. Is it a bit inappropriate? Also, should I add some embellishments to my auspicious cloud as well? Lao Zi has a purple lantern, Yuanshi has golden flowers, and even Tongtian has jade beads. What kind of embellishment should I add?"

  Zhuang Xiong was still lost in thought, but suddenly felt Qingyun trembling and quickly came back to his senses. He saw Tongtian winking at him and transmitting a message: "I thought only I would be distracted, but it seems fellow daoist is not much different. Is it because you've been taught by Nüwa Dao friend too many times, yet had no choice but to listen and learn?"

  Zhuang Xiong couldn't help but roll his eyes, too lazy to bother with him, and quickly looked up at the original. But saw the original looking up at the sky, while Laozi was lowering his head and closing his eyes, not raising an eyebrow, saying: "Fellow Daoist has figured it out? Then let's start discussing the Dao."

  Zhuang Xiong secretly cursed in his heart: "You old good-for-nothing, what are you pretending to be? Among us, you're the most cunning and suspicious. But he said aloud: "Brother Dao is right. I just thought of a difficult problem our senior had, but it delayed the three of your time. Now that I've figured it out, let's start discussing the Tao."

  Tongtian asked curiously: "I don't know what problem Bear Daoist is thinking of? With Daoist's great wisdom, he was stumped?"

  The old man rolled his eyes and thought to himself, "Tongtian, you fool, that silly bear is just making an excuse, do you really believe him?" But Zhuang Xiong just chuckled and dryly said, "Tongtian Daoist is being polite, but this is my personal matter, it has nothing to do with fellow daoists or discussing the dao, it's not worth mentioning. Let's focus on discussing the dao." As he spoke, he didn't wait for a response, closed his eyes and sat upright, only to see clouds of celebration rolling in, three flowers blooming brightly on top of his head, as if he had begun to manifest his dao techniques on his own.

  The Three Pure Ones were busy with their respective methods, and for a time the celebratory clouds surged forth, filling the sky. The three flowers burst into bloom, and the entire Kunlun Mountain was enveloped in colorful auspicious light.

  At this time, the primordial chaos was filled with pre-heavenly spiritual energy, and spiritual energy could be seen everywhere like mist or liquid. In some places, it even gathered into lakes. The method of cultivation was also different from that of the later generations when spiritual energy was scarce.

  At this time, all living beings were born with their purple palace open, and they began to condense a golden elixir when they transformed. This golden elixir contained their entire being, including their primordial spirit, true self, innate divine abilities, and various Daoist methods. It wasn't until the Golden Immortal realm that they began to condense auspicious clouds, but at this time, the auspicious clouds were only a few feet in diameter and were still in the process of gestation, without much use.

  When they reached the Taiyi realm, the limit of the auspicious clouds was one thousand feet in diameter. At this time, they began to manifest flower buds and give rise to various Daoist methods and divine abilities. When they reached the Daluo realm, the limit of the auspicious clouds also reached ten thousand feet in diameter. At this time, the three flowers were fully open, and the various Daoist methods and divine abilities began to mature.

  The auspicious clouds were a manifestation of one's own Daoist virtues and methods, just like Laozi. In the Daluo realm, having ten thousand feet in diameter of auspicious clouds was already the limit. If one wanted to advance further, they had two options: break through their Daoist virtues or refine their methods.

  However, there was now a third option: cultivate their physical body and make it contain various methods as well. This would give them an extra trick up their sleeve compared to others.

  The size of the auspicious clouds was not uniform and depended on the depth of one's foundation, the quality of their innate abilities, the magnitude of their opportunities, as well as their enlightenment, willpower, and the time they spent cultivating and accumulating. Of course, Zhuang Rong's auspicious clouds were only six thousand feet in diameter at this time, but that was not because of his own abilities. He was just a mid-stage Daluo Golden Immortal who had not yet reached the peak of his realm.

  The size of the auspicious clouds was related to the depth of one's foundation, the quality of their innate abilities, the magnitude of their opportunities, as well as their enlightenment, willpower, and the time they spent cultivating and accumulating.

  Upon reaching the realm of Dàluó, discussing the Tao no longer requires verbal exchange. The Great Tao sometimes manifests as divine texts, but cannot be described in language. Verbal discussions about the Tao are prone to being unclear and inefficient. However, the three flowers within the realm of Dàluó contain various magical powers, Taoist laws, and radiant lights that burst forth at times, transforming into auspicious clouds that connect with one another. Not only can one see their trajectory clearly, but also gain insight into one's thoughts. This is the non-dual gateway to discussing the Tao in the realm of Dàluó.

  At this time, the four people celebrated Yun's encounter. Zhuang Xiong was a person who didn't understand the way, and he had only entered the Daluo realm for a few months, with no experience at all. The Nuwa realm was even lower than his at that time, and no one taught him that he just needed to cover up his primordial spirit, and he could only manifest the part of the Tao that he wanted to discuss. He thought that as long as he let go of his heart completely and immersed himself in it, he would be fine. As a result, he truly opened up without any cover-up, revealing all his Taoist practices and spiritual powers.

  At this time, the three Nüwa were only in the Taiyi boundary, and even if Zhuang Xiong opened his heart, he could only slightly experience it on the edge. Although they had gained a lot, they couldn't grasp the core of their experience. The Three Purities were different, however. They clearly saw all sorts of Daoist practices and divine abilities that Zhuang Xiong possessed in the Qingyun forest, without any obstruction or concealment, leaving them stunned. They were shocked by Zhuang Xiong's extraordinary Daoist practices and moved by his trust in them. Laozi couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt, thinking that he had been too suspicious of Zhuang Xiong. The three of them thought that since Zhuang Xiong was willing to open up completely to them, they should also put aside their petty thoughts and fully exchange their knowledge with him. As they thought this, the three flowers on top began to shine even brighter, and they fully opened up all their Daoist practices and divine abilities for Zhuang Xiong to observe and select from. The original three were close brothers who had been together for hundreds of millions of years, so they naturally understood Laozi's thoughts and deeply admired Zhuang Xiong's magnanimity, fully opening up the three flowers and exchanging their knowledge with all their might.

  But the four people fully released what they had learned, and the aura was greatly released. However, this made Zhenyuanzi and the other two feel anxious. They were excited about this rare opportunity, but at the same time, they felt regretful that they couldn't join in. This feeling of pain and joy made the three people even more desperately absorb the knowledge contained within, and their Taoist cultivation rapidly improved.

  At this time, Zhuang Xiong did not know that his momentary ignorance had caused a misunderstanding among the Three Pure Ones, but everyone gained great benefits from it. The three brothers of Sanqing had discussed Taoism countless times and basically knew all about their own family's Taoist methods except for what they were not interested in. At this time, they first discussed Pangu's transmission of flesh and spirit, and unexpectedly entered Zhuang Xiong's Taoist practice together. Laozi instantly discovered the target, which was actually the incomplete Daodejing and other Taoist scriptures that Zhuang Xiong had understood from later generations. However, Laozi found that his own thoughts were surprisingly similar to those of Zhuang Xiong, and he became deeply immersed in them. Yuanshi was initially interested in Zhuang Xiong's basic Yuchen Sutra, but later entered Zhuang Xiong's chaotic karma theory, experiencing the cyclical nature of cause and effect and the idea of following heaven and responding to humanity. Tongtian wandered around for a long time, dividing his primordial spirit into several parts to experience different Taoist methods, including many minor techniques that were not part of the mainstream. It seemed as though Tongtian had come to hunt for curiosities, but fortunately, Zhuang Xiong's Taoist practice was already quite messy and he refused to discard anything, so the three brothers each gained something from it.

  Zhuang Xiong, however, was secretly thinking: "You three come to my house in a group, and I'll have to visit each of your houses too." At that moment, Zhuang Xiong excitedly rushed into the midst of the three people's celebration. First, he made copies of all the information related to Pangu's physical body and Lei Fa's inheritance. This was what interested him the most. However, it turned out that the three of them had only discussed Lei Fa, while each family had a different approach to the divine ability of the physical body. Zhuang Xiong couldn't help but visit all three houses, carefully examining everything, but it was all very confusing. He knew that he wouldn't be able to understand it immediately, after all, at this time, Zhuang Xiong had already reached the Daluo realm, and it wasn't good to take everything and cultivate directly. He needed to extract the essence and integrate it into his own body before it would be of use to him.

  Zhuang Xiong succeeded in stealing, but saw that the three old men were still comprehending their own Tao, and for a moment they didn't have any ideas about the Tao. He couldn't help but be speechless, and at this time he also didn't show courtesy, carefully comprehending the Tao of the three people.

  Three people have been practicing Taoism for thousands of years, and all three have gained a lot. The original "Tao Te Ching" was written by Laozi's later generations, and Zhuangzi's ideas, which were taken from who-knows-where, also developed on its basis. This has brought great benefits to Laozi. The Daluo Golden Immortal Realm began to explore his own Tao, and most of Laozi's Taoist practices are condensed in the "Tao Te Ching". However, there is no cultivation method in it, only Taoist practices and enlightenment. At their level, what they need most is this. Laozi carefully pondered and vaguely saw his future path, which made him overjoyed and devoted himself to it even more. The original Taoist practice was all about the word "Shun" (compliance), explaining the Heavenly Way, following the Heaven and acting accordingly. Zhuangzi's ideas related to cause and effect subtly conveyed a sense of compliance with the Heavenly Way. The original also pondered the rules of the Heavenly Way, the criteria for doing things, etc. Tongtian, on the other hand, seemed to be interested in everything, or perhaps nothing at all, and was fascinated by certain aspects of each Taoist practice. He was busy cutting out pieces from here and there, completely carefree. The onlookers were left with a headache.

  On this day, Zhuang Xiong was still carefully comprehending the Tao of Sanqing, and his own Tao was slowly growing with it. Unintentionally, he broke through the middle period of Daluo Jinxian. Suddenly, Qingyun was like a whale sucking water, frantically plundering the spiritual energy of Kunlun Mountain. The momentum that burst into the sky made Zhuang Xiong's heart extremely pleased. For a moment, Laozi's quietness, original pride, and domineering aura flowed through his heart, making him find the feeling of enlightenment on that day again. In an instant, it was as if he had continued from that day's enlightenment. He entered the state of enlightenment once more. Only to see Qingyun suddenly surge and churn, rolling endlessly, Sanhua also released a million-meter-long light, instantly pushing Sanqing out.

  The Three Purities couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh, also secretly lamenting the good opportunity that Zhuang Gong had let slip. Zhen Yuanzi, Nüwa, and Fuxi were also shocked awake by this scene, and they too were left speechless for a long time.

  Zhenyuanzi let out a sigh and said, "Brother Xiong has good fortune and is quite perceptive."

  Fu Xi said with a sour tone: "What insight does he have? He's just lucky."

  Nüwa furrowed her brow and pondered for a long time, hesitantly saying: "I think Ah Meng seems to be continuing from his epiphany that day. Perhaps the Heavenly Way is fair and thinks it's a pity that Ah Meng missed a great opportunity that day, so today it specially continued his previous fate for him?"

  On the other side, San Qing was startled awake and pushed out of the realm of discussion. He walked over and heard Nüwa's words. Tongtian couldn't help but ask in confusion: "Can this enlightenment be reconnected?"

  Laozi fell into deep thought for a moment, and couldn't help but sigh: "It can only be said that it's as Nuwa Daoist friend said, the Heavenly Way has shown favor. This Xiong Daoist friend is indeed worthy of being the darling of the Heavenly Way."

  Fuxi muttered resentfully on one side: "You are the favorite of the Heavenly Way. You are so stupid, foolish, and clumsy, violent, shameless, and dare to attract my sister's attention. A glutton with a bear-like body can also become the favorite of the Heavenly Way, why not me? Has the Heavenly Way now favored such scum?"

  Yuanshi let out a cold hum and said, "There's another possibility, that is, Bear Dao friend bears some kind of responsibility from the Heavenly Way, having received the Heavenly Way's favor, promotion would be easy. But if it's really like this, then the cause and effect between Red Cloud and the Heavenly Way would also be even deeper."

  Zhenyuanzi's face changed instantly upon hearing this, and he lowered his head, lost in thought.

  At this moment, he saw that Zhuang Xiong's Qingyun was still absorbing spiritual energy, and the momentum of growth was like a gust of wind blowing through the border, just for a short period of time. In the blink of an eye, it grew from 6,000 feet to 7,000 feet, and it continued to grow larger. The three flowers were also constantly growing in size, and their colors became even more vibrant. Except for the stable and unmoving Qiankun Rod, the other three magical artifacts were all happily rising and falling, emitting waves of pressure. The Qiankun Cauldron was actually still spewing out strands of chaotic spiritual energy, merging into Zhuang Xiong's Qingyun Three Flowers.

  Zhuangzi this time suddenly realized in Kunlun Mountain, unexpectedly being disturbed by others, so thoroughly immersed his mind and spirit, carefully comprehending the great Tao passed down from heaven, which was as vast as the sea, and amazingly he had been contemplating for three whole days, while everyone else also watched for three whole days.

  On this day, Qingyun had also risen to a height of ten thousand feet in diameter, and the three flowers were about three feet in size. They seemed to have just been washed by rain, fresh and elegant, delicate and beautiful. On top of the three flowers of Qingyun, there would occasionally appear mysterious divine patterns, which was indeed mysterious. Laozi couldn't help but laugh and say: "Xiong Daoyou's comprehension of the Tao should end here. Whether or not it continues from last time's comprehension of the Tao, what reason is behind it, we can directly ask Xiong Daoyou, no need to endlessly guess here."