Chapter 3: The Great Method of Yin and Yang Harmony

  It's August now, with crisp autumn air and clear skies. In this northwestern border area, the midday sun is the most poisonous, yet I'm going to bask in the sun - isn't that asking for trouble?!

  "Don't go!" cried Little Stone.

  "Don't go if you don't want to, but don't regret it later"

  "This trick doesn't work anymore"

  "Is that so? I won't recover if I don't sunbathe, and if I don't recover, I won't be able to teach you. Don't blame me if you can't learn," Zhao Wuji said leisurely.

  The little stone lost its temper and said "Alright, go bask in the sun"

  I've had a useless life of over 300 years if I couldn't handle you. Zhao Wuji secretly felt pleased with himself.

  Xiao Shi Tuo first went to the kitchen to get some food, wrapped it up and put it in his bosom. Then he said "Let's go outside to sunbathe, just right to bring the food over"

  "This is good, best find a place where there's no one,"

  "There aren't many people there"

  Xiao Shi Tuo walked out the door and headed west. Before he had taken a few steps, he heard someone behind him calling "Shi Tuo, Shi Tuo". Xiao Shi Tuo's head seemed to swell up at the sound. He saw a fat man rushing towards him from behind, "Why is Liu Pangzi yelling so loudly? I'm not deaf!" Xiao Shi Tuo shouted.

  Liu Pangzi was tall and sturdy, at least two small stones heavy. Panting, he ran over, "Stones, you're not being loyal, yesterday you didn't even call me back home."

  "Yesterday? Didn't you get scared by thunder and go home?" Xiaoshi asked in surprise.

  "Thunder, I didn't hear it. I was sleeping," said Liu Pangzi with a wronged tone.

  "You slept through all that noise."

  "You also know that once I fall asleep, I don't know anything. You didn't call me either." He became even more wronged.

  "I'm really impressed by you, no one called you, how did you know to go home?"

  "My stomach was hungry and I woke up."

  Xiao Shi Tuo was speechless, Zhao Wu Jin secretly breathed a sigh of relief, fortunately it didn't attach itself to him.

  "Fine, I'm not being righteous. You go home quickly, I still have things to do."

  "Where are you going?"

  "Go out of town and get some sunshine"

  "Basking in the sun, what's so fun about it?" Liu Pangzi looked up at the sky above his head, the sunlight was dazzling. He shook his head and watched as Xiao Shitou walked further away.

  The town of Chi Jin is not very big, and it only takes half a stick of incense to walk from one end to the other. Once you leave the town, you'll see the endless Gobi Desert, with only one main road stretching from west to east into the distance. I've heard adults say that this road leads to the Western Regions in the west and to the Central Plains in the east. It's a must-pass route for travelers going between east and west, so there are quite a few passersby, and business is pretty good.

  The little stone didn't take the main road, but instead picked a small path heading south. After walking for another two or three miles on the winding path, a small courtyard appeared before his eyes.

  It's called a courtyard, but it's actually just a circle of earth walls about half the height of a person, with only two rooms inside, standing alone there.

  The little stone pushed open the courtyard gate and walked straight towards the house. At the same time, he shouted: "Master, look what I've brought for you!"

  "Another old man, how did another old man come out?" Zhao Wuji thought to himself in dismay. Along the way, Xiaoshi also didn't speak, and he didn't know where they had arrived either. Although his primordial spirit was already on Xiaoshi's body, he could only hear Xiaoshi speaking but couldn't see the things in front of him.

  The door opened and an old man came out. He was over 70 years old, with a face full of wrinkles and a severely hunched back. No wonder Xiao Shi Tou called him "Da Ye". However, he looked quite spirited and walked steadily. Seeing Xiao Shi Tou arrive, he was very happy, calling out "Ah, ah" twice, surprisingly, he was mute.

  "This is for you, Grandpa, look, it's all your favorite food." Little Stone took something out of his pocket and handed it to Grandpa.

  The old man seemed to be familiar with him and took it over without hesitation. He gestured a few times with his hand, meaning for him to go in and sit down. Xiaoshi said: "Grandpa, I still have things to do and won't chat with you now, come see you again in two days." The old man looked like he could hear the voice and nodded slightly.

  "Grandpa, I'm leaving, you go back inside quickly." Only after the old man left did she walk out of the courtyard.

  At this time, Zhao Wuji asked, "Who is this old man?"

  "A poor old man, all alone without any relatives. I bring him some food when I have time. Although I'm an orphan, at least I still have my dad, but he doesn't even have a single relative," said Xiaoshi.

  But Zhao Wuji heard the sympathetic tone and a kind heart willing to help.

  "Alright, let's go sunbathe. There's a great spot just nearby."

  The small stone went around the yard and found an abandoned beacon tower not far away.

  This beacon tower has a history, but I don't know which dynasty it was built in. Although it's damaged, it's not too severe. More than three zhang high, standing there, vaguely still able to feel the momentum of the beacon fire burning and transmitting signals thousands of miles away back then.

  Climbing to the top of the beacon tower, he gazed out at the scenery of the border town unfolding before his eyes. In the distance, the Qilian Mountains stretched across the sky and earth, with endless dunes extending as far as the eye could see. A gentle breeze caressed him, and all around was only the soft sound of the wind accompanying him.

  "Don't you feel like you're the only one left in this world?" Zhao Wuji said.

  "Really? How did you know? Can't you see?"

  "This doesn't need me to say it! Small stone! To be a man, one must have a broad and open mind, like this vast wall. Only then can one be considered a real man, a true hero! Alright, let's begin!"

  "Are you sunbathing?"

  "This sun isn't so easy to bask in, this one is crucial and success or failure depends on you!" Zhao Wujin's tone became very serious.

  Xiao Shi Tou heard him say it so seriously, and couldn't help but worry, saying "Isn't it just you wanting to sunbathe? Why is there success or failure involved with me? Besides, isn't it just sunbathing? Is it that serious?"

  "Now I'm telling you, it's better this way. Just remember, no matter what happens, you absolutely cannot move, can you do that?" Zhao Wuji didn't want to put too much pressure on him.

  "It's just not moving, is it?! Fine, I absolutely won't move! You can rest assured, hurry up and dry already! Geez!" Xiaoshi said impatiently.

  Zhao Wu Jin gritted his teeth, although he didn't have any teeth now. He couldn't care about much else anymore, success or failure hung in the balance of this one move!

  "Now sit on the ground and don't think of anything in your mind. Remember not to move!"

  The little stone sat on the ground, eyes closed, not daring to move. He only felt a thread of heat slowly seeping into his head, gradually growing from a thread to a stream, getting thicker and thicker. In the end, it was as if the entire sun was shining directly on his head, and yet it was still so close. Hot, extremely hot. The heat gathered more and more, filling his brain, but still pouring in relentlessly. Slowly, his brain turned bright red, like a glowing iron, gradually burning through and becoming translucent, emitting a faint light. The little stone felt his own brain was about to melt. I couldn't move, but my brain melted. Empty, knowing nothing, finally even the heat could no longer be felt, yet he still didn't move.

  Zhao Wujin's primordial spirit and the聚灵珠 were forcibly merged by the heavenly thunder, so they are not truly fused together. Now he uses the聚灵珠 to absorb the true fire of the sun to strengthen his primordial spirit. The goal is to truly merge the primordial spirit and the聚灵珠 into one. He has cultivated for over 300 years, relying on his own skills to use the true fire of the sun with ease. What he worries about most is that the small stone cannot withstand the torture of the true fire, and if it cannot bear it and moves randomly, it will make his mind unstable, and the consequences are unimaginable. He is gambling, betting on the small stone's innate talent and perseverance, just as he said, success or failure depends on this one move.

  Fortunately, the small stone held on and Zhao Wuji succeeded. The yuan god and the gathering spirit pearl finally perfectly combined together after being refined by the true fire of the sun.

  "Little stone, little stone, you can move now!" Zhao Wuji shouted.

  The little stone opened its eyes, stretched its body and stood up.

  "Huh? My head is still here, didn't it just get vaporized earlier?" I touched my own head, and it's fine! Intact and complete.

  "Brother Zhao, what just happened? My head is spinning."

  "It's all right now, thank you, Xiao Shi Tou!" Zhao Wuji said.

  "No need to thank me! Big brother, how are you? Just now, why did my head feel like it was going to be burned to ashes?" Little Stone asked again.

  "I'm fine! You probably don't know how dangerous it was just now, if you couldn't bear the pain and started moving around. It's my fault for being distracted, I couldn't control the True Sun Fire, or else...it wouldn't have been just your head that got burned to ashes..." Even Zhao Wuji felt a bit frightened as he said this, realizing how reckless their actions had been. If Xiao Shi Tou hadn't endured it, the two of them would have turned into flying ash in an instant.

  "What is this 'true fire of the sun' that's so formidable?"

  "That's the energy emitted by the sun, which I condensed together using the Spirit Gathering Pearl. That's the true fire, and just now your head was like a furnace while I was a piece of iron. After being smelted by the true fire of the sun, I finally merged with the Spirit Gathering Pearl. Alas!" Zhao Wuji sighed, and from then on, he became one with the Spirit Gathering Pearl, and the pearl became him. Unless he could reform his physical body in the future, he would be trapped inside this small pearl forever.

  The little stone didn't think its own head could be used as a stove, no wonder it was so hot just now.

  "Oh no! Won't it burn out my brain?"

  "How could I? I was just making an analogy, you'll understand later!" Zhao Wuji explained hastily.

  "That's good, you scared me." Xiaoshi said with relief.

  The sun had been shining for three hours and it was already dusk. The sun set in the west, and the smoke from cooking rose gently over the town, where people were starting to prepare dinner.

  "What a wonderful scene of a rural landscape beyond the Great Wall! The long river flows with the round sun setting, and the solitary smoke rises straight from the vast desert." Zhao Wuji praised.

  "I didn't realize it before, but this place is really beautiful!" Xiaoshi said, then thought for a moment and asked, "Big brother, can you see things now?"

  "Of course, you think the sun is shining brightly now! With your eyes, I can see things again. And that's not all, my powers have already recovered by 30%." Zhao Wuji laughed and said.

  The little stone also rejoiced for him and exclaimed "Great! Is it done after a few more times of sun drying?"

  Zhao Wuji smiled and said, "Childish words, it's not that easy. Today is just borrowing the power of the Gathering Spirit Pearl to cultivate the Yin Yang Harmony Great Method to the first layer, after that, it won't be so fast!"

  "Yin and Yang combined great method, what is this thing?" Today there are too many strange things happening, Xiao Shi Tou's brain is a bit muddled.

  "This is a Taoist practice, to put it simply, it's using the power of the sun and moon to cultivate one's yuan Shen and body. Although the Lingzhu is extraordinary, the cultivation of Taoist methods must not be too aggressive, going too fast doesn't necessarily mean it's good!" Zhao Wuji explained.

  "Haste makes waste! Isn't that right?" Little Stone nodded in agreement.

  "Not bad! You have some insight." Zhao Wuji said calmly.

  "Then take a look, when will you also teach me this yin-yang and harmony great method!" Little Stone said with an expectant face.

  "There's no need to rush," Zhao Wuji said deliberately.

  As expected, Xiaoshi hurriedly said "But there's no need to rush, big brother, why aren't you in a hurry when you're with me?"

  Zhao Wuji burst out laughing and said, "I won't tease you anymore, you've already started cultivating the Dao!"

  "Really?" Little Stone was skeptical.

  "Basking in the sun is the first step and also the foundation. Let's cultivate slowly." Zhao Wuji smiled.

  "Ah! Is this really cultivation? You're not cheating me?" Little Stone was skeptical.

  "It's simple! Cultivating the truth is just using the power of heaven and earth to fight against heaven and earth!" Zhao Wuji said lightly.

  "With the power of heaven and earth, against heaven and earth." The small stone repeated silently. Seemingly simple words, in his heart stirred up waves that could not calm down for a long time.

  Fate is so wonderful, the little stone that was thinking about playing and eating yesterday didn't know what sorrow was. Not to mention practicing Taoism or defying heaven and earth, it's unthinkable, even in dreams. In just one day, the things that happened were enough to change his life's trajectory.

  "Alright, stop thinking about it. Are you hungry?" Zhao Wuji asked with a smile.

  "You know all this!" Little Stone exclaimed in surprise.

  "Your stomach is growling loudly, aren't you hungry?" Zhao Wuji teased.

  Xiao Shitou's face turned red and he said "Let's go home for dinner!"

  "Eat first, something else later tonight"

  "What's the use? The sun is gone at night anyway!" Little Stone asked.

  "There is no sun and there is a moon. I forgot that the Yin Yang Harmony Great Method borrows the power of the sun and moon to cultivate!" Zhao Wuji replied.

  "Can we still sunbathe in the moonlight?" Xiaoshi Tuo looked up at the sky, but the moon had not come out yet.

  The sun shone for half a day, and the little stone's spirit was very full. All the way, he hummed a tune, bouncing and jumping. As they walked, he said: "Brother Zhao, I feel like my whole body is full of energy, is it the effect of practicing that great method?"

  "Nonsense! Stop your wild speculations!" Zhao Wuji shouted.

  The little stone laughed and ran home.

  Back home, Old Zheng had already prepared dinner. Xiaoshi entered the door and exclaimed "Smells so good! Dad, are you sober?" He looked at Old Zheng's face and sniffed again.

  "Hey! What's going on? You're like a little dog. Where have you been? I haven't seen you for half a day!" Old Zheng scolded with a smile.

  Xiao Shi Tou naturally didn't dare tell the truth, what yuan shen fu ti, in his opinion was just being possessed by a ghost, that would cause a huge commotion.

  "I went out of town to see Grandpa and just played there for a while! Sir has gone home!"

  "Let's go back, if we don't go back now your teacher's wife will get angry."

  Bai Fuzi's wife is a formidable figure, and everyone in town knows it. Even Bai Fuzi himself says "The lion on the east bank roars, but I have no face", and Old Man Zheng often teases him about being afraid of his wife.

  "Shitou, Xiao Pang came looking for you this afternoon. He asked if you had returned from sunbathing. What's going on?" Zheng Laojie asked.

  "Ah! What a sunny day! This sky is not suitable for sunbathing at all! Liu Pangzi was wrong, wasn't he? Dad, let's eat quickly!" Xiaoshi hurriedly changed the subject, thinking to himself "Liu Pangzi, always causing trouble"

  "I told you! Who goes out in this weather isn't an idiot!" Old Man Zheng said with a chuckle.

  The little stone lowered its head and ate, humming a couple of times. It thought to itself, "I'm just an idiot!"

  Zheng Lao Die's cooking skills are not ordinary, with a perfect combination of color, fragrance, and flavor. Xiao Shi Tou eats quickly and savorily, and Zheng Lao Die says: "Shi Tou, eat slowly, don't rush. There's plenty of food." Usually when eating, it's always like this, generally Xiao Shi Tou finishes first, then Zheng Lao Die starts eating.

  Patted his belly, a small stone belched. Said to Old Man Zheng: "Dad, I'll just clean up after dinner!"

  "Alright, our little stone has grown up and will help Daddy with work now!" Zheng Lao Die was very pleased.

  After finishing dinner and cleaning up, Xiaoshi handed over the wine jug and cups to Zheng Lao and said: "Drink a little less today, I'm going to review my lessons." It turned out that Zheng Lao had a habit of drinking at night.

  "Alright, you can go!" Zheng Laojie started drinking by himself.

  Xiao Shi Tou returned to the room and lit the oil lamp. He said: "Zhao Da Ge, what are you doing now?"

  "He's been very good to you! What if one day you want to leave him, what will you do?"

  Xiao Shi Tou didn't expect him to ask this question, and said: "I don't know either, look at his age is also big. Later still have to someone take care of, if I am not by his side, he will be very lonely."

  Zhao Wuji secretly sighed, this is the truth. "Yes, let's talk about it later! You go up first."

  "Up! Aren't you supposed to be practicing?" Xiaoshi asked in surprise.

  "You sleep while you practice? Are you planning on sleeping on the ground?" Zhao Wuji said.

  "Sleeping qigong! Is that all? I thought it was the same as daytime!" Xiaoshi took off his clothes and got into bed, lying in the quilt.

  "Sleep well, you've had a long day." Zhao Wuji's voice was very soft, as if he was afraid of disturbing Xiaoshi's sleep.

  The little stone yawned and as soon as he got into bed, his eyes couldn't open. "I won't practice my skills, then I'll just... sleep." He fell asleep in a moment.

  A gentle breeze blew by and the oil lamp went out. In the quiet night, the moonlight was soft and blurred. It came in through the window and spilled into the room.

  The little stone slept soundly, unaware of the gentle and cool breeze that quietly entered his body and flowed through him. He was really too tired!