Chapter Three: The Way of the Daoist

  Chapter Three: The Way of the Tao

  Xī Xuán Shān is also known as Sān Yuán Jí Zhēn. Legend has it that the mountain encircles three thousand miles, connecting with the heavenly clouds, and is a gathering place for immortals. Therefore, its traces are faint, and people in the world find it difficult to track them down. Some say that this place is where the heavens dispatch groups of immortals to govern, and can be called a paradise on earth, a divine forest among humans. There are also rumors that someone once accidentally entered this place due to a coincidence, encountered an immortal, and learned the art of longevity.

  All these are legends, none of which can be verified, and they are only used as topics for discussion among vendors and travelers in the streets. Many of them are far-fetched and not entirely true, so there is no need to investigate further. As for whether the Xihuan Mountain where the Palace of the Supreme Ultimate is located is the same as the Xihuan Mountain in the legendary Ten Great Grotto Heavens, there is no way to verify it. However, it cannot be denied that the Xihuan Mountain where the Palace of the Supreme Ultimate is located is still a blessed place for practitioners to yearn for.

  The Xuanwu Mountains stretch far and wide, covering an area of nearly ten thousand miles, connecting countless famous mountains and rivers. It is a place where the earth's veins converge and spiritual things gather. The Xuanwu Mountain is located in the middle, as the heart of the convergence of the earth's veins.

  The Xixuan Mountain has a unique and majestic landscape, steep but not dry. Even on the precipitous peaks that pierce the sky, there are trickling clear springs. On the mountain ridges, trees are lush and dense, with exotic flowers and rare grasses everywhere. There are also flying waterfalls, clear streams and creeks winding through the valleys. The mountains have been shrouded in mist for years, and there are countless caves and underground springs on the mountain slopes, interconnected and mysterious.

  The surrounding area of Xī Xuán Mountain is fraught with countless natural dangers, and many spiritual beasts and exotic birds inhabit this place. According to legend, some ancient, mysterious creatures are also hidden here. These creatures roam unpredictably, and even the most skilled cultivators must retreat in their presence. After all, human strength has its limits, and these ancient creatures have lived for thousands of years, accumulating immense power - how could ordinary alchemists possibly withstand them?

  The main peak of Xishan Mountain is called Moganshan Peak, which is 3,500 feet high and covers an area of dozens of miles. It stands upright in the sky, with a steep and precipitous terrain. The Taishang Dao De Palace was built here.

  Around Moganshan stand twelve peaks like a multitude of stars surrounding the moon, blending with the sky and earth. The nine disciples of Xuanmiao Mountain live in nine of these peaks. Only when they have reached a certain level of cultivation can they move to the Taishang Daode Palace to study the Daoist scriptures.

  At this time, the young man from Longmen Inn was taken turns by the disciples of Daode Sect to travel day and night, heading west to Xuan Mountain. The three true men may have considered that he was only a mortal body and could not bear too much hardship, so they not only used their magical instruments to protect him but also gave him spiritual pills to nourish his energy and ward off the cold. They even slowed down the speed of their flight. Every day at sunset, they had to set up camp and rest. As a result, what was originally a journey that would have taken Daode Sect's true men only one more day ended up taking five days.

  Even so, the young man was already exhausted and his muscles were sore. But he had been through a lot since childhood, so this hardship was nothing to him. Moreover, he knew that this opportunity was hard to come by, and he was afraid of missing it, so no matter what hardships he faced, he endured them silently without showing any sign of fear or weakness. The Taoist priests told him to do whatever they wanted, and he answered their questions honestly, but when no one asked him anything, he didn't speak either.

  Three people saw him handling things cleverly and responding appropriately, and they were all very satisfied. Putting aside the youth's background and origin, and considering only his own excellent character, he was enough to be counted among the virtuous.

  As he journeyed on, the young man saw Daoist priests driving magical vehicles, casting spells with talismans, and commanding the services of low-ranking ghosts. He was amazed and suspected that he might be dreaming. So, whenever no one was paying attention, he would often pinch himself hard. This foolish behavior made him feel pain as if he were dying, yet it also filled him with joy. After several days, his thighs naturally became covered with countless purple bruises. The young man's actions seemed silly but actually made sense. Think of ordinary people in the world; if they could meet someone so divine and powerful in their lifetime, wouldn't that be a blessing accumulated over many lifetimes? And yet this young man had met eighteen such individuals! Suspecting he was dreaming wasn't unreasonable at all.

  On the sixth day, the three true men finally arrived at Xixuan Mountain and slowly descended onto Mogan Peak.

  A young man on the road followed the crowd, riding the clouds and fog, sailing with the wind, had already seen many magnificent mountains and rivers, although it was only a few days, his vision and knowledge were greatly different from before. But at this moment, standing still on Mount Moganshan.

  The place where he stood was a huge square, paved with bluestone, smooth as a mirror. The entire square was narrow in front and wide in back, shaped like a bird's beak, surrounded by white jade carvings, and at the tip of the square stood nine giant pillars, with raging flames burning on top, never extinguished. At the wider end of the square was Moganshan, connected to countless white jade long stairs, climbing up all the way. While outside the tip of the square and on both sides, only a vast expanse of fog could be seen, occasionally when the mountain wind blew open the clouds, one could see the bottomless deep cliffs.

  This vast square actually hung above the cliff, and it was unknown what it relied on to support it. However, the young man had seen too many strange things and divine signs along the way, so this did not make him overly flustered.

  In front of the white jade long stairs, fifteen zhang wide and one foot high, stretching far into the distance. Each step is spotless, with a faint glow emanating from it, filled with auspicious energy. Upon closer inspection, each step has subtle cloud patterns and beast designs, all different from one another. The white jade long stairs lead straight up to the peak, disappearing into the vast clouds and mist. Looking up, the stairs seem to stretch on endlessly, perhaps tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of steps! In the midst of the clouds and mist, a majestic mountain gate tower emerges, with a purple gold roof and green jade pillars, standing thirty zhang high. On each corner of the eaves stand eight golden beasts, each with unique shapes. Above the mountain gate hangs a giant signboard, with a purple background and golden inlays, inscribed with five ancient seal characters: "Taishang Daode Palace".

  As the young man glanced over, he suddenly felt that those evil beasts seemed to come alive, turning their heads towards him in unison. The countless gazes of different natures were like sharp arrows, piercing through his body in an instant. For a moment, he only felt empty and hollow in his chest, unable to express the unbearable feeling, as if he wanted to spit out blood.

  Ziyang Zhenren said, "I had forgotten that you are still a mortal with a physical body, and your past karma of killing is too heavy. These scattered clouds and evil beasts will naturally not let you enter the mountain gate."

  After finishing speaking, Ziyang True Person slowly pinched his fingers, then with a big wave of his sleeve, a white jade carved talisman floated out from his sleeve and stuck to the young man's forehead. The jade talisman emitted a soft glow before disappearing into the young man's forehead. The young man suddenly felt a warm current spreading from his forehead throughout his body, feeling incredibly comfortable and relieved, no longer bothered by the piercing gaze of the Cloud-Dispelling Evil Beast.

  At this time, the Taishang Dao Palace was ringing twelve times, with drumbeats in several rounds, followed by the sound of elegant silk and bamboo music, with fragrance wafting through the air. Two rows of 72 yellow-clad Taoist children held various ritual instruments, descending along the white jade staircase like a fish scale, respectfully welcoming the three True Men and other Taoist masters back to the mountain. This grand scene stunned the young man, leaving him wide-eyed and speechless, until one of the Taoist masters gently pushed him from behind, awakening him, and he followed the crowd as they proceeded upwards.

  When describing the heavenly paradise, Taoist classics have always praised "golden houses, green jade beds, mysterious smoke and mist, and crimson light entwined". But on this journey, the Taishang Dao De Palace in front of the young man is indeed a real fairyland. Here, glazed tiles are used as roof tiles, purple gold is used as eaves, white jade supports the ground, and water pavilions produce smoke. There are all kinds of unknown strange trees and exotic flowers, as well as various rare and exotic beasts roaming freely. Among them, Taoist practitioners occasionally stroll by with slow steps. Their feet carry clear smoke, looking like a leisurely walk in the garden, but in fact, one step can span several dozen feet.

  A group of people entered the mountain gate in an instant, and the rest of the disciples dispersed. The three true men personally took this young man with them, rose into the air, and flew towards the highest place of the Morality Temple on the Mogang Peak. The Taishang Dao De Palace has strict rules, except for the leaders of various sects and a small number of respected elderly seniors, no one can fly inside the palace. In fact, even without such rules, if there is not enough merit, it is impossible to fly inside the palace. This is because the palace is large, but also borrows the original energy of heaven and earth to lay down a large array, with heavy restrictions, all the effects of Taoist methods are reduced to the extreme, so even for some elderly people who have slightly worse cultivation, if they want to fly against the ban, it would be impossible.

  Along the way, many Taoists saw the three True Ones flying by and hurriedly paid their respects. However, they stole glances at the young man who was being escorted by the three True Ones of the Dao De Sect, and they were all secretly amazed in their hearts.

  The entire Taishang Dao De Palace is as magnificent as the heavenly city, but only this Dao De Hall appears somewhat humble, like the main hall of an ordinary Taoist temple.

  At this moment, in the moral temple, a middle-aged Taoist was sitting in the middle, with a pair of Danfeng eyes, looking like a smooth face, wearing a plain blue Taoist robe, without any patterns or decorations, not even a piece of jade pendant around his waist. On both sides of the Taoist sat four true men, and in the center of the hall knelt that young man.

  "Don't be afraid, lift up your head."

  The young man heard this voice extremely melodious and pleasant, and his heart was immediately relieved of all fear. He lifted his head and quietly looked around. Apart from the middle-aged Taoist priest sitting in the center, among the eight people on both sides, there were five male true immortals, two men dressed as ordinary householders, and one female Taoist priest. Among them, the three true immortals Ziyang, Yuxu, and Taiwei he all recognized. It was strange to say that the eight true immortals on both sides all had a subtle aura of precious light emanating from their bodies, but the Taoist priest sitting in the center looked like he didn't have any spiritual energy at all.

  The Taoist who was sitting upright and straight was the current leader of the Dao De Zong, the Purple Microcosm True Man. He carefully examined the young man for a moment before opening his mouth to ask: "What is your name?"

  The young man was taken aback for a moment, and after a long while, he replied: "I've been an orphan since I was a child, and all I knew was that my original surname was Ji. I didn't have a name to begin with. Later, the shopkeeper took me in, but he never gave me a name either."

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren pondered for a moment, then said: "In that case, I'll give you a name. Although your previous life was as profound as the sea, you are now in the mundane cycle of reincarnation. The Great Way is vast and boundless, with all living beings like dust. So let's call you Ru Chen (Like Dust). May you remember this mortal life when you attain enlightenment in the future."

  After finishing speaking, Zǐ Wēi True Person waved his hand and a small Taoist servant took Ji Ruò Chén away to order an engraved plaque and receive daily necessities.

  After Ji Ruochen left, the grand hall fell into a temporary silence. The eight leaders did not utter a word, waiting for Ziweiyin to make his move. The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became somewhat subtle.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren stroked his beard and said, "Zi Yang, Yu Xū, and Tai Wei, the three fellow daoists, have brought back Ji Ruò Chén this time, achieving a great merit. At this moment, I won't hide it from you all; during my closed-door meditation, I cracked the heavenly mechanism and knew that an immortal had fallen to the mortal world. Just as this life's calamity was about to be fulfilled, he would return to the immortal realm once more. That's why I troubled the three fellow daoists to send their divine chariots, not hesitating to offend the various sects of the Daoist path to bring back Ji Ruò Chén. However, there is still a major matter at hand: which sect's gate should Ji Ruò Chén return to? You all don't need to be polite; speak your minds freely."

  As soon as Zǐ Wēi Zhēn Rén spoke, all the other true immortals had a reaction. Yù Xū Zhēn Rén immediately asked: "Zǐ Wēi, you're not going to personally teach Jì Ruò Chén, are you?"

  The Zǐ Wēi True Man's lineage has few disciples, and their cultivation is not outstanding. The main reason is that he has never had a personal disciple, and once he closes up, it's for thirty years. Originally, this time the Demoted Immortal descended into the world, it should have been natural for him to enter the Zǐ Wēi True Man's sect. Although his lineage is sparse, they have produced two Flying Ascension True Immortals in a row, not only suppressing the other eight sects of the Dao De宗, but also an unprecedented prosperity in the various schools of cultivation. However, the Zǐ Wēi True Man actually let this great opportunity slip away, which is truly unexpected by the True Men present.

  At this time, a middle-aged scholar in the room coughed and said respectfully: "Zi Wei Zhu Jiao, I have something that I don't know whether it should be mentioned or not. Just now, I saw that young man's foundation is quite good, and he also has some cleverness, with a hint of immortal energy on his body. However, as a disciple of the Dao De Zong, he is only of medium to high quality. This doesn't seem to match the reality of being a banished immortal. Moreover, he is not young in years either, and I find it hard to believe that with such qualifications, he could achieve enlightenment and ascend to immortality."

  As soon as he spoke, those who had never seen Ji Ruocheng's true face before all nodded slightly, apparently having the same doubts.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren sank into thought for a moment, then said: "Jing Xiao Shidi's words also make sense. However, the heavenly mechanism is difficult to measure, and we mortals cannot recognize true immortals, which is not surprising. Perhaps this way, you can allay some of your doubts." As soon as he finished speaking, without seeing any movement from Zi Wei Zhen Ren, two little Taoist servants brought Ji Ruochen in through the open temple door.

  At this time, Ji Ruochen had already dressed up and looked handsome and elegant, very likable.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren smiled and said: "Ru Chen, can you show me the green stone on your neck?"

  Ji Ruocheng hastily picked off the bluestone and presented it to Ziwu True Man. Ziwu True Man asked again, "Where did you get this bluestone from?"

  Ji Ruocheng's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "I don't know where it came from either, I just know that it has been hanging there since I was old enough to understand things."

  Ziwei Zhenren smiled and nodded, waving his hand, and the two little Taoist boys took Ji Ruochen away again. After Ji Ruochen left the temple gate, Ziwei Zhenren handed the blue stone to Ziyang Zhenren sitting on his right side and said: "Everyone, take a closer look at this blue stone and see if there's anything unusual about it."

  Ziyang, Yuxu and Taiwei had already studied the cyan stone that Jiruchen wore. They just took a glance at it and handed it over to the real person beside them. The other five real people all looked carefully, wanting to take a peek at the mysteries contained in the cyan stone. According to their sharp eyesight, if this piece of cyan stone really hid secrets, they would definitely not escape their law enforcement. But after looking at the five real people, they felt that it was just an ordinary stone that could be picked up anywhere.

  At this time, the green stone had been passed into the hands of that female immortal. She turned the green stone over and examined it carefully for a long time, then suddenly used three fingers to exert force on it, but the green stone didn't budge at all. All the immortals saw this and their expressions changed. The female immortal's name was Yu Xuan, her cultivation was deep and profound, her pinching force was as heavy as a thousand jun, enough to cut through gold and shatter rocks. Under such great force, this green stone actually remained completely unharmed, naturally it wasn't an ordinary object.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren smiled slightly and nodded: "Yu Xuan, you might as well cut it with two swords to try."

  Yu Xuan heard the words, stretched out his right hand, and a three-foot-long ancient sword with a pale color suddenly appeared in his fingers. He let out a clear shout, swung his sword at the bluestone, and struck it down. The sword body collided with the bluestone, producing a clear and pleasant sound of metal hitting stone. However, the bluestone remained intact, without any damage or blemish. All the true immortals present changed color in shock, unable to believe their eyes. Yu Xuan had just used his true power for that one sword strike, and the clear shout also contained a curse, doubling the striking power of the sword. The force was enough to cut through mountains and rivers, yet it still couldn't affect this small bluestone! From this point alone, this bluestone was not an ordinary object from the mortal world.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren smiled and said, "All of you should know that these immortal objects have spiritual nature and will recognize their masters. Therefore, Ji Ruocheng is indeed a banished immortal, there's no need to doubt this point. Now it's time to decide which sect he belongs to."

  Now that Ji Ruocheng has been verified to be a fallen immortal, all the true men are seekers of the Tao. Such a rare treasure in a thousand years, where would they be willing to let go easily? Moreover, once Ji Ruocheng enters any sect, this sect is destined to produce a flying ascended immortal, which is not a good thing that can be sought after.

  However, all the true men are people with elegant demeanor. Although they really want to take Ji Ruochen into their own family, they don't want to be like ordinary people, boasting and losing their identity. So all the true men remain silent, just looking at each other.

  The atmosphere in the great hall grew increasingly tense.

  Yu Xū Dào Rén was still the most impatient and loudly said: "I, Yu Xū, have the deepest understanding of our sect's kung fu, I should be the one to guide Ji Ruò Chén."

  Before he finished speaking, a true person next to him immediately said: "Yu Xū True Person's moral swordsmanship is naturally formidable, but the Golden Elixir Great Way and the Three Pure Orthodox Method are the path to ascension. In this regard, my Purple Cloud lineage is still the first."

  Originally, all the immortals were humble people, but this matter was indeed related to too many things. Once it started, all the immortals immediately became noisy and even the ordinary Zhang Jingxiao and Gu Shouzhen were drawn in. For a time, everyone was talking at once, making quite a commotion.

  Yu Xuan Zhen Ren finally managed to grab the opportunity to speak among the true people, and immediately said: "I have a deep understanding of the 'Tai Xuan San Fu Jing', which is suitable for young disciples to lay their foundation. Therefore, Ji Ru Chen entering my Yu Xuan sect is most appropriate..."

  Yu Xuan Zhenren's words had barely fallen when Zhang Jingxiao interrupted, "Yu Xuan Zhenren, this statement is not suitable. There are many female disciples in your lineage, and I see that Ji Ruochen has a peach blossom in his eyes. When he grows up, it may be somewhat unsuitable..."

  Yu Xuan Zhenren heard this and became furious, coldly saying: "May I ask Mr. Jing Xiao, if that's the case, then among your twenty-six female disciples, isn't it already quite improper?"

  The original true people were just desperately self-aggrandizing, but Jing Xiao and Yu Xuan, the two true people, asked and answered each other, opening the way for mutual attacks. Suddenly, in the Daode Hall, there was a burst of thunder and lightning, and the true people's mouths spoke of Taoism, their hands displaying it, using all their strength to prove that other sects' methods were biased, only their own sect being suitable for teaching the banished immortals. The situation suddenly turned urgent, and just as the true people were about to engage in a mountain gate battle to determine the high and low, Zhiwei True Person finally couldn't bear it anymore, heavily pounding the purple sandalwood table, and only then did the hall gradually quiet down.

  Among the eight true men, seven of them had angry faces and glared at each other. Only Ziyang True Man had a smile on his face and did not intervene in the dispute between the various true men. However, this smile seemed somewhat awkward.

  Zi Wei Zhen Ren looked around and suddenly sighed, saying: "Everyone's words are reasonable, but putting Ji Ruocheng in any sect is both suitable and unsuitable. However, assisting the immortal in ascending to the heavenly realm is the most important matter of our Dao De Zong. It's really not something that can be taken lightly. Alright, let's have Ji Ruocheng temporarily join the Zi Yang Zhen Ren sect for now, and each of the other sects will take turns teaching him for two days every month. We'll wait until the grand examination in five years to let him decide which sect he wants to enter."

  Unexpectedly, the seven true men looked at me, I looked at you, and although there were often dark thunderbolts and fires when their eyes met, they did not object to Ji Ruocheng entering the Ziyang True Man's door.