Chapter 6: Dharma Name Wu Chen, the Dao is in the Axe

The mountain wind blew, moving Patriarch Puti's Daoist robe and gradually calming Su Chen's excited heart.

He stood up, patted the mud off his body, picked up the heavy old axe, and followed silently behind the Patriarch.

The path he came by was difficult, every step treading in unknown confusion.

The path he returned by was as steady as a rock, every step treading on the solid immortal path.

The two, one in front and one behind, passed through the forest where Su Chen had chopped down the ancient pine and walked up along the winding mountain road.

Patriarch Puti was in front, his pace seemingly slow, but each step spanned several zhang, and Su Chen had to exert all his essence and Qi to barely keep up.

He was horrified in his heart; this was the immortal method of shrinking the ground into an inch.

Soon, the familiar stone cliff and cave dwelling appeared before his eyes again.

"The Mountain of Spirit Terrace and Square Inch, the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars."

Su Chen looked at the ten large characters on the stone tablet, his state of mind completely different from three months ago.

Last time, he saw the door but couldn't enter, full of unwillingness and resentment; this time, he had already entered the immortal gate, his heart full of stability.

Patriarch Puti didn't stop at the door, waved his sleeve, and the tightly shut door opened inward.

Inside the cave, the sun was bright; it was not a dark mountain cave, but seemingly another world.

Su Chen knew this was because the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars was not a mountain cave but an immortal cave heaven.

A Daoist boy with hair tied in knots walked up quickly, the very same one who had rejected Su Chen from the door earlier.

He saw Patriarch Puti and hurriedly bowed: "Greetings, Patriarch."

When his gaze swept to Su Chen behind the Patriarch, he was stunned, his face full of astonishment.

Isn't this the mortal who was declared to have "no affinity" by the Patriarch?

How could he be back with the Patriarch?

Patriarch Puti didn't even look at him, just ordered indifferently: "Go, call Wu Ming and the others to the lecture hall."

"Yes, Patriarch." The Daoist boy didn't dare to ask more, suppressed the suspicion in his heart, and hurried away.

Patriarch Puti led Su Chen through a long corridor to a spacious hall.

In the front center of the hall was a meditation cushion, where the Patriarch preached, and below were rows of meditation cushions, clearly for the disciples to listen.

"You wait here." Patriarch Puti said, then walked to the cushion in front, closed his eyes to rest, and said no more.

Su Chen respectfully responded and stood honestly to the side, curiously looking at this immortal cave heaven.

Before long, footsteps came.

More than a dozen disciples wearing soap-colored Daoist robes walked into the lecture hall one after another, led by the Daoist boy he had seen before.

They saw the Patriarch sitting peacefully, so they didn't dare to make a sound, each found a cushion to sit on, and then used the corners of their eyes to curiously and confusedly size up Su Chen standing to the side.

Who is this person?

Why would the Patriarch bring a mortal here?

Just as everyone was whispering in their hearts, a figure "swooshed" in from outside the door.

"Patriarch! My work is done!"

The visitor was Sun Wukong.

He had spent these three months in the back mountain, sweeping the floor, hoeing the garden, tending flowers, pruning trees, carrying water, and transporting pulp every day; although they were miscellaneous tasks, they had made his jumpy temperament a bit more stable.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw Su Chen standing there, his monkey eyes instantly wide open.

"Little Brother?!"

Sun Wukong rushed over in one stride, jumping around Su Chen, scratching his ears and cheeks, excited beyond measure.

He had a belly full of grievances and longing to express.

"How did you get in? I thought you had left long ago! I was preparing to go down the mountain to find you after I learned the skills!"

Su Chen looked at the monkey's true feelings and felt a warmth in his heart, patting its shoulder: "It's a long story."

"Ahem."

A light cough came from the cushion in front.

The entire lecture hall instantly quieted down, and Sun Wukong immediately put away his playful expression, standing obediently to the side, though his eyes kept glancing at Su Chen.

Patriarch Puti opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the disciples one by one, finally landing on Su Chen.

"This person is named Su Chen, a seeker of the Dao from the mortal world."

The disciples were energized, all pricking up their ears.

"Three months ago, I said he had no affinity with me. Yet his Dao heart was firm, and he did not leave, instead, in the mountain wilderness, he self-realized the door to cultivation with mortal methods."

As soon as this was said, the whole hall was shocked.

All the disciples' gazes focused on Su Chen, their eyes full of disbelief.

Self-realized the door to cultivation? Are you kidding!

The path of cultivation is full of dangers at every step; without guidance, the light would lead to deviation, and the heavy would lead to death.

This mortal was actually able to grope out a path himself?

Patriarch Puti didn't care about the disciples' shock and continued: "The word 'affinity' is both fixed by heaven and can be taken by oneself. He was able to knock open the immortal gate with a sincere thought, which can be considered as having affinity with me."

"From today on, Su Chen is a registered disciple of my Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars, dharma name, Wu Chen."

Su Chen, Wu Chen.

Su Chen felt a shock in his heart and hurriedly stepped forward, bowing respectfully to Patriarch Puti: "Disciple Wu Chen, pays respects to Master!"

This time, he called him "Master", not "Patriarch".

Patriarch Puti accepted this bow calmly and said leisurely: "Although you have entered the sect, your foundation was groped out by yourself, crude and rough. That method of yours, seemingly condensing essence and Qi, is actually disordered in circulation, lacking method; if this continues, it will surely damage your foundation. Today, I will sort it out for you."

After saying this, he flicked his finger, and a gentle golden light shot into Su Chen's brow.

Su Chen only felt a "boom" in his brain, as if countless information torrents were pouring in.

That crude method he had groped out himself, which he named "Qi Refining Technique", under the illumination of the golden light, all its stagnation and errors were analyzed, corrected, and supplemented one by one.

The "Qi" that could only barely circulate now seemed to have found a river channel, and began to surge through his meridians according to an incomparably profound route.

Wherever it passed, meridians were widened, impurities were washed away, and an unprecedented feeling of comfort spread throughout his body.

In just a moment, the golden light dissipated. Su Chen opened his eyes and bowed deeply to Patriarch Puti again: "Thank you, Master, for passing on the Dharma!"

He could feel that after the Patriarch's correction, this "Qi Refining Technique" had been reborn; although it was still just a basic method, it had become upright and pointed directly to the Great Dao, and there would be no obstacles in practicing to the realm of Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness.

Patriarch Puti nodded slightly and looked at Sun Wukong again: "You monkey, born with spiritual roots, yet unruly. Wu Chen has entered the sect; you should take him as a warning. Do not think that just because you have entered the immortal gate, you can be slack."

Sun Wukong scratched his head, not quite understanding, but seeing that Su Chen had really become his junior brother, he was happier than anything and hurriedly nodded in agreement.

Finally, Patriarch Puti's gaze turned to the leading disciple: "Wu Ming."

"Disciple is here." Wu Ming hurriedly stood up.

"Wu Chen has just entered the sect, and he is not yet clear about many rules; you take him to familiarize himself. As for his residence, arrange it with Wukong. The two of them came together, so they can look after each other."

"Disciple obeys." Wu Ming bowed and responded.

"As for Wu Chen's cultivation..." Patriarch Puti paused, "He realized the Dao because of the axe, so this 'axe' is his Dao. From today on, the firewood in the cave shall be his responsibility alone."

After saying this, Patriarch Puti's figure flickered and disappeared from the cushion, as if he had never appeared.

The atmosphere in the lecture hall instantly relaxed.

The disciples immediately surrounded him, some curious, some polite, and some distant, greeting Su Chen one after another.

"Greetings, Junior Brother Wu Chen."

Su Chen returned the greetings one by one, his attitude humble and neither servile nor overbearing.

Sun Wukong squeezed to his side and asked in a low voice: "Master asked you to chop wood? I want to go too! Let's go together!"

"No need." Su Chen shook his head and said softly, "Master has other arrangements for you; you just need to listen to the lectures and practice writing with peace of mind, and sharpen your temperament. Chopping wood is my cultivation."

Wu Ming walked over with a smile on his face: "Junior Brother Wu Chen, follow me; I'll take you to your residence."

He led Su Chen and Sun Wukong through several corridors to a remote courtyard in the back mountain.

Two simple houses in the courtyard were Sun Wukong's residence.

Wu Ming pointed to one of the empty rooms and said: "This is your residence. According to the rules of the cave, listen to lectures at the Mao hour, practice writing at the Wu hour, and have evening lessons at the You hour. For the rest of the time, practice on your own. Your task is to chop wood; you must prepare enough firewood for the three main halls and the kitchen every day, without error. The woodshed is over there; take the axe yourself."

After he finished explaining, he added: "Junior Brother Wu Chen, in the path of cultivation, the most important thing is orderly inheritance and gradual progress."

"Although Master praised your comprehension, groping on your own is ultimately a side path, and the foundation is unstable. In the future, you still need to diligently learn the correct Dharma, and don't indulge in strange skills and tricks, which will ruin your future."

These words sounded like kind advice, but they carried a condescending tone of instruction, implying that Su Chen's "Dao" was a wild path that couldn't be brought to the table.

Su Chen's expression didn't change, just bowed: "Thank you, Senior Brother Wu Ming, for your guidance; Wu Chen has noted it."

Seeing him like this, Wu Ming didn't say anything more and turned to leave.

After he left, Sun Wukong leaned over, indignantly saying: "This Wu Ming is so rude! What do you mean by side path?"

Su Chen smiled and didn't care.

He looked toward the woodshed, light flickering in his eyes.

Others saw chopping wood as hard labor, but he saw it as a path to heaven. ===== CHAPTER 7 =====