Settling down
Xun Daozi left the place where he had transformed and wandered in the vast mountains for thousands of miles, just wandering. Xun Daozi couldn't ride on clouds or drive fog, nor could he shrink the earth to inches with his divine powers. To understand the environment he was in, he had no choice but to explore slowly on foot.
Xun Daozi had been wandering in this vast mountain for several days, but he still couldn't find a way out. He was stuck in the mountain, and his journey was filled with frustration. The mountain seemed too big for him, and during this time, he repeatedly released his divine sense to explore, but somehow, his divine sense, which could originally detect things over a hundred miles away, now only had a range of ten miles or so, and it couldn't last much longer, making him even more depressed. In the vast mountain, he couldn't even tell directions clearly, turning east and west, getting himself dizzy and disoriented. Because he didn't know his own strength, he often had to hide from fierce beasts and monsters, and since he couldn't maintain his divine sense exploration at all times, several times he narrowly escaped danger, making him feel embarrassed and humiliated. However, those few close calls made him realize that compared to his past life, he was incredibly agile and had quick reflexes, which gave him some confidence in surviving this perilous world of the Primordial Era.
For several days, he had never felt hungry and therefore had never worried about food. During this time, he was tempted by the mountain fruits and carefully ate a few of them, but his stomach was not satisfied with the small amount. The most frustrating thing was that it was hard to find a place to rest at night. For these days, he either hid in the branches of tall trees like a monkey or hid in the cracks of rocks, which left him speechless.
Benefiting from this robust body, although there was no speed-enhancing divine technique, as long as he quickened his pace a bit, he could run several hundred miles every day. This allowed him to gain a deeper understanding of the great mountain over these few days. During these few days, he had entered forests with ancient trees that pierced the sky, climbed cliffs that even apes found difficult to climb, ascended majestic peaks that reached into the clouds, and explored deep gorges. He had approached deer, stealthily observed giant pythons, secretly examined lions and tigers, watched rhinoceroses from a distance, and caught glimpses of legendary ancient beasts.
At this time, Xun Daozi was walking through the mountains and forests, holding a dark red wooden stick in his hand, as thick as an arm. This was something he had picked up by a mountain stream, smooth and shiny, taller than a person, and heavy when held in his hand. He didn't know what kind of wood it was. Xun Daozi had once used this stick to strike a boulder the height of a person, shattering it into pieces, but the wooden stick showed no signs of damage. From then on, he carried it with him as a defensive object.
Xun Daozi traversed the mountains, occasionally stopping to scan with his divine consciousness before continuing on. Xun Daozi hurried through the mountains, on one hand wanting to understand this environment better, and on the other hand seeking a suitable place to settle down. Having a worry-free abode would allow him to continue his cultivation, and he yearned for a stable dwelling in his heart.
That day, Xun Daozi was looking around east and west, when he wasn't paying attention, his head plunged into a patch of fog, like a headless fly buzzing around, several times he released his spiritual sense to explore, but it seemed to lose its effect.
Xun Daozi was disoriented in the fog, unable to distinguish east from west. His divine sense was also ineffective, so he could only rely on his senses to grope around blindly. As day and night alternated, Xun Daozi had been wandering in the fog for six days, exhausting himself to the point where he couldn't move anymore. Just as he sat down on the ground with a thud, panting vaguely, he didn't know when he could find his way out. Thanks to the endless years of loneliness and solitude before his transformation, Xun Daozi was not anxious or flustered at this time. He believed that he would be able to walk out.
Ten days, twenty days, thirty days, Xuanzong is still wandering in the mist.
It's been two months and Xun Daozi still hasn't come out.
Before he knew it, Xun Daozi had been trapped in the mist for over 90 days.
On this day, the suddenly stopped and stood still, as if he had a feeling. After a while, Xun Daozi suddenly turned around and walked in another direction, only to see him walking forward and backward, left and right into the depths of the fog, disappearing into the fog in no time.
Xun Daozi was trapped in the fog for over 90 days, and if he didn't have a sense of direction like a fly buzzing around blindly, he would have made mental preparations to be unable to escape for a short time. However, just now, while walking, he suddenly felt something attracting him, so he stopped his footsteps, sensed the direction of that attractive thing, and followed it. Anyway, he didn't know how to walk, so he might as well follow his feelings and see what happens.
Xun Daozi followed the feeling that attracted him, walking in a zigzag pattern, sometimes forward, sometimes backward, sometimes left, and sometimes right. After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he suddenly felt a bright light before his eyes. He looked up and saw that he was no longer in the misty fog. Before him lay a mountain valley. Xun Daozi couldn't describe the scene he saw before him; all he could say was that he had arrived at a paradise, a real-life paradise, not some imaginary description from a book.
Xun Daozi had a stupid expression, motionless for a long time. Although he knew this was a mythical world, seeing this beautiful fairyland still left him inexplicably shocked.
It took a long time for Xuanzong to come back to his senses, and he looked around at the mysterious valley. A glance revealed auspicious clouds rising, shimmering lights dotting the air, ancient trees with vines entwined, looking like they had just been washed, strange rocks lying in the wild, as if a ghost had swung an axe. Taking a long breath, his internal organs felt refreshed and cleansed, feeling extremely invigorated.
Xun Daozi walked excitedly towards the valley, and in front of him, all kinds of fruits appeared from time to time. Some were recognizable, some were not; some could be named, while others couldn't. They hung on trees, emitting a fragrance that tantalized his taste buds and teased his appetite.
Xun Daozi didn't care if there was an owner or not, nor did he care if the owner was willing or not. He casually plucked off one after another of the tempting fruits and devoured them with big mouthfuls, first satisfying his craving before doing anything else.
A few fruits down the belly, seeking the way that's so beautiful, these fruits are too delicious, thick flesh and juicy, not entering the mouth just melts, or crisp and tender, top-notch mouthfeel, fruit meat down the belly, a warm air straight to the four limbs, a refreshing one. Whether it's mountain peaches, wild apricots, yellow pears, emerald dates, or crystal-clear unknown fruits, they all make Seeking Daozi sigh with a sense of not living in vain.
Xun Daozi quickened his pace as he walked towards the valley, wanting to see what was inside and what had attracted him. Now, Xun Daozi felt that the attraction was getting stronger and stronger, and his footsteps were getting faster and faster. As he turned around a rock, he heard the sound of water gurgling.
Xun Daozi felt that the thing attracting him was just ahead, not far away. He spread his legs and ran forward, nearing the bottom of the valley. A rock stretched out horizontally, about a hundred feet high. At the base of the rock was a stone gate, about three feet wide and three feet high. The stone gate was tightly closed. Next to the stone gate was a stone tablet, about one foot wide and two feet high. Below the tablet was a large stone shaped like a strange beast that could not be named. On the surface of the tablet were two lines of large characters in a script that Xun Daozi had never seen before. The characters were ancient, yet full of vitality, and seemed to convey a mysterious and unspeakable aura. For some reason, Xun Daozi was able to read the two lines of characters: "Xun Dao Mountain, Wu Dao Cave".
Xun Daozi clearly felt that what was attracting him was the stone tablet, and at this time he had a very strong idea: to touch the stone tablet.
Xun Daozi approached the stone tablet, stretched out his hand and touched it. As soon as his hand made contact with the tablet, the large characters on it emitted a seven-colored beam of light that shot towards his Ying Tang hole. In an instant, Xun Daozi was like a statue, one hand touching the tablet, motionless, with a strange expression.
About the time of burning an incense stick, the colorful light disappeared. Xun Daozi suddenly came to himself, withdrew his hand and stood still, with a joyful expression on his face. Then he burst out laughing wildly, dancing with joy, unable to control himself.
The joy in Xun Daozi's heart was hard to contain, and the light transmitted to him a piece of information he desperately needed at this moment. This is one of the rare blessed lands in the vast wilderness world, named Xun Dao Mountain, and he called himself Xun Daozi. This mountain was also his birthplace, and he had an affinity with it from the depths of the universe. Unintentionally entering the misty fog, which was also a coincidence, the fog was a pre-heavenly maze used to cover up this blessed land. Without knowing the array method, one would never think of walking into this place. If Xun Daozi didn't have an affinity, he wouldn't feel the call from the depths of the universe, walk out of the maze, enter this blessed land, and become its master. The seven-colored light also transmitted the method to open the cave mansion and the technique to control the pre-heavenly maze.
In the legend of Xun Daozi's past life, there was no mention of this cave heaven blessed land, nor did he know if it existed because of himself.
Xun Daozi was overjoyed and immediately used the method he had just obtained to clumsily press a seal, which he threw at the Stone Gate. Suddenly, a loud rumbling sound was heard, and the Stone Gate slowly opened.
When the stone gate was fully opened, a mass of white mist surged out from inside the door, accompanied by flashes of shimmering light.
Before long, the fog dispersed, revealing the scene inside the cave. Behind the door was a long passageway, with smooth stone walls on both sides that shone brightly, and the path was covered with white mist like silk, hiding and revealing the dark green stone surface.
Xun Daozi couldn't help but feel joyful in his heart, and he lifted his legs to step through the stone gate. As Xun Daozi stepped forward, the thin white mist scattered to both sides, revealing a dark blue and clean ground surface.
Passing through the corridor, a large hall appeared before my eyes, with an area of hundreds of square meters. There were several white jade stone pillars standing in the middle, with carvings of dragons and phoenixes that seemed to come alive. The pillars were surrounded by a halo of light.
At the back of the hall was a stone platform, with thin mist swirling around it. On top of the platform was a cloud bed, surrounded by colorful lights. Above it hung a string of bright pearls like a cluster of stars, and on all sides, green vines hung down, sparkling and translucent, reflecting the light.
On the ground were scattered several stone stumps. Behind the cloud bed, misty air swirled around, and I couldn't tell what other objects were hidden there.
The seeker steps inside, with unutterable joy.
With hands stroking the white jade pillars, there seems to be an unparalleled intimacy. Deeply inhaling the fragrance of the green wisteria, it's like being intoxicated by a draught of fine wine.
Turning past the stone pillar, ascending onto the stone platform, and gently sitting down on the cloud bed, instantly my heart feels infinitely calm, and my spirit also has infinite refreshment.
Xun Daozi unconsciously activated the Grand Circulation Technique he had cultivated, and his body was full of vitality. The circulation of Qi was faster than before by countless times.
Unknowingly, thirty-six great cycles had passed. Xun Daozi withdrew from his meditation and woke up, feeling refreshed all over. In his opinion, even if he had eaten the legendary Ginseng Fruit, it wouldn't have been this wonderful.
Xun Daozi raised his head, looked around in all directions, and thought to himself: This is my home now, it's my home in the vast wilderness of the world, and it's also the base for my search for the Way. Ha! I have a home now...
