Chapter 34

At that time, the Ancestor of Phonetics, seated on his jeweled throne in the Jade Pool, within the Nine‑Colored Jade Hall, emitted heavenly music, gathering all spirits and teaching the heavens; the Dao Venerates of the Ten Directions, the Mighty Golden Gods, myriad immortals and myriad beings all came to attend. Then the Mystic Lady raised her fan, the phoenixes sang joyously, and celestial music and fragrance followed the light.

At midnight, the Great Yin hung high; the spirit and soul contemplated within the Jade Pool. The Jade Pool is the gathering place of all immortals. Contemplating the moonlight pouring down from the crown, inch by inch descending, thereafter the spirit and soul appeared. At that moment, the spirit and soul obtained the perception of a hundred colors—red, orange, yellow, blue, green; also obtained hearing—xi, xu, hu, ha, he; also obtained breath—fragrance, stench, sour…

"What is this?" Zhou Shuo halted his gaze, set down the paper in his hand, and stared at Yao Yue Ting, whose face was flushed and whose double pupils darted about.

"This is the opening chapter of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》, a Daoist scripture!" Yao Yue Ru rolled her eyes, just now when reading Buddhist sutras she was quite adept, how come she can't see it now!

"……" Zhou Shuo looked at Yao Yue Ru rolling her eyes, and at Yao Yue Ting with a flushed face and timid gaze, he opened his mouth; he naturally could tell this was a cultivation Daoist scripture, the opening explaining how the spirit enters samadhi through bodily sensation and then exits the orifice, but the problem is the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》 is not supposed to be transmitted externally!

"Zhou brother, our Jade Pool Sect's Daoist methods differ: during contemplation we do not visualize the Dao Lords, but rather visualize the Jade Pool world; legend says the Jade Terrace is the abode of heavenly deities, the Sound‑Rhythm Dao Ancestor nurtures life in a heavenly palace separate…." Yao Yue Ting blushed, closed her eyes, and her spirit transformed into a dark wind flying from between her brows.

Zhou Shuo watched Yao Yue Ting close her eyes; suddenly the scene shifted, revealing a pavilion hidden in mist, its eaves showing—this pavilion was mysterious, pure, majestic, lofty, emanating a feeling of sacred inviolability; within came faint sounds of flowing water beside a winding stream, making one feel as if standing on a cliff, hearing the celestial abode hidden among clouds at the horizon.

"This is the orthodox Daoist method…." Zhou Shuo gazed at the celestial pavilion, unable to help widening his eyes; he saw the mist slowly dissipate, the pavilion fully revealed—tile after tile, layered jade steps, clusters of flowers, bronze bells and flowing water, a solemn aura unfolding layer by layer. The Jade Pool Sect's Daoist method consists of visualizing this palace terrace as the main focus; without this palace terrace as a foundation to suppress the spirit, one is likely to lose oneself in illusions when employing techniques.

Yao Yue Ting visualized the Jade Pool world and directly imprinted it onto Zhou Shuo's spirit, then explained in detail: the Daoist method of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》 consists of nine chapters, all nine techniques taking the Great Yin as symbol; this Great Yin does not merely refer to the moon in the sky, but to the winter season among the four seasons.

Winter begins at the winter solstice as day one; counting nine days thereafter makes the first "nine"; the next nine days are called the second "nine"; the third nine days are the third "nine"; and so on, until after eighty‑one days of nine‑nine the whole winter passes. Although these eighty‑one days are severe winter cold, they are also the extreme of Yin giving birth to Yang, the initial movement of Yang.

For the laboring populace, the most important is spring, because spring sows all things, relating to the year's harvest; but actually winter needs more attention, because in winter one does not labor, one must nurture strength; only a body free of all illnesses can guarantee next year's agricultural work. From the winter solstice when Yang begins, during the eighty‑one days of nine‑nine, all things undergo Yin‑Yang transformation within.

Using the one‑nine to nine‑nine as symbols, the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》's Daoist method comprises nine levels and nine layers; upon completing all cultivation, the spirit breaks the life‑death barrier and can, at the transition from winter to spring when thunder stirs, ascend directly to the heavens to pass the first heavenly tribulation. After Yao Yue Ting demonstrated the Jade Pool world, she then elaborated each of the nine levels in turn.

After explaining the nine levels, Yao Yue Ting taught Zhou Shuo the Yin techniques; unlike cultivating Daoist methods with winter as symbol, the Jade Pool Sect's foundational arts use the bright moon in heaven as source, employing lunar essence to cultivate techniques and treasures—for example, the Great Yin Divine Thunder, the Great Yin Mystic Spirit Shield, the Great Yin Lunar Jewel Wheel, etc. Besides lunar essence arts, the Jade Pool Sect also possesses a divine sound technique and several profound arts, but these were lost in the righteous‑evil war seven hundred years ago.

In the ship's cabin, Zhou Shuo sat cross‑legged on a mat with eyes closed in meditation; while three inches above his head in the void, an invisible palace terrace stood silently. Within this lofty palace city radiating five‑colored immortal light and boundless majesty, layers of illusory space extended—flower clusters swayed, weather clear and bright; on the central five‑colored high terrace, Zhou Shuo's consciousness transformed into a heavenly king seated in solemn repose.

The Jade Pool Sect's visualization differs from other sects: most sects visualize a Dao Lord deity, then merge that deity with their own spirit, using the deity's divinity to suppress the spirit; whereas the Jade Pool Sect's method visualizes a celestial abode, after which the spirit resides therein, like an emperor seated in the golden hall, a single word deciding the world's winds and clouds.

In the first two layers of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》, the main point taught is how to subdue the restless mind‑monkey, then visualize a Jade Terrace, merge it with one's spirit, transform the Jade Terrace into the Jade Pool world, and thereafter evolve flower shadows, wind and moon, flowing water beside a winding stream.

Once the spirit can merge with the Jade Pool world and manifest at ease, the spirit may sit within the Jade Pool world, like a Dao Lord spirit suppressing the spirit, immune to evil arts; furthermore, if willing, one can draw another's spirit into the Jade Pool world to either imprison or protect it. When Yao Yue Ting used the Great Yin Divine Thunder to blast the pirate Gan Lin's spirit, she employed the Jade Pool world to shield Zhou Shuo, preventing him from being affected by the thunder.

Under Yao Yue Ting's guidance, Zhou Shuo visualized the Jade Terrace and derived the Jade Pool world in just two days, completing the first two chapters of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》 in one breath; now he has reached chapter three, which is also the most crucial juncture of the scripture.

Winter, beginning at the winter solstice, emphasizes the practice of "counting nines"; the first and second nines are just the onset of winter, but entering the third nine is serious—old saying: "In the counting of nines, the cold is in the third nine"; the nineteenth to twenty‑seventh days after the solstice are the coldest period of the whole winter; people often say "train in the third nine in winter, train in the three fu in summer"; only by maintaining exercise during the year's coldest and hottest nine‑day periods can one obtain a strong physique—this is a health‑preserving practice.

Just as one must "train in the third nine," the third layer of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》 is likewise extremely important, for at this level Zhou Shuo must summon his own heart‑demon, transform it into a demon god, and subdue it—this is no easier than bare‑bodied training in the third nine; many modern people cannot even rise early in winter, let alone practice the third nine.

Every school and sect has methods to tame the inner self, turning heart‑demons into guardian deities, but those demon gods are born from a person's negative thoughts—like the Yaksha King, Rakshasa King, Asura King, Vajra King, and Ming King of the Great Chan Temple, which arise from a person's evil intent, killing intent, ferocity, combat thoughts, and anger‑filled world‑destroying intent, combined with visual contemplation.

The heart‑demon the Jade Pool Sect must tame is unique; unlike the Great Chan Temple's transformation of the five negatives—evil intent, killing intent, ferocity, combat thoughts, and world‑destroying anger—into guardian deities, the Jade Pool Sect's tamed heart‑demon arises from the six senses: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind; each sense, from its existence to its function, and then to the desire arising after function, yields eighteen great mighty demon gods, manifested in three batches of six each.

Soon, six red‑fanged, tusked demon gods were visualized by Zhou Shuo; these six represent the fundamental existence of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind; upon being visualized, they immediately rushed toward the summoner on the Jade Terrace; Zhou Shuo did not dodge, and the eighteen mighty demon gods are not comparable to the five vicious demon gods visualized by Hong Yi, nor is their subduing method the same—Hong Yi subdued the five demons by directly using the ancient Buddha's suppression, whereas the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》 employs a completely different method.

The six red‑fanged demon gods instantly surged onto his body; Zhou Shuo felt his spirit flutter, his six senses rapidly expanding—vision, hearing, smell, tongue tip, consciousness, and body all reacted; as these reactions occurred, another six demon gods appeared and without hesitation plunged into his body; once these six entered, Zhou Shuo's six senses immediately began to perceive all‑directional illusions.

Before his eyes appeared dozens of lovely, lightly built figures, each distinctive, clad in various gauzy, OL‑style outfits that were extremely tempting; they possessed vocal, tactile, and olfactory sensations, and would even present fragrant delicacies, coaxingly urging Zhou Shuo to enjoy while unconsciously exuding their own charm.

The illusion is all‑encompassing: beautiful food, lovely maidens, rare treasures—whatever Zhou Shuo desires is present; what he must do is face these all‑sided illusions—visible, audible, smellable—and keep his heart unmoved; saying it is difficult is not entirely true, saying it is easy is also not entirely true.

Many modern people know that even occasionally opening a small website and seeing a video makes them restless, prompting them to grab a tissue and act; how much more so with an all‑sided illusion? Zhou Shuo sat within the illusion, soon his face flushed and ears red, saliva filling his mouth; even knowing it is all illusion, he cannot help it—not only him, but eight or nine out of ten cultivators of the 《Great Yin Heavenly Born Divine Chapter》's techniques fail at this gate; the difficulty of the technique lies here, the heart‑thief is hard to overcome.

"Clear the heart, the spirit becomes pure; if the heart is not clear, desires cannot be expelled; to expel desire, one must inwardly observe the heart—if the heart has no heart, outwardly observe the form—if the form has no form, distantly observe the object—if the object has no object." Zhou Shuo, having endured the temptations of the modern internet world and after a period of transmigration‑cultivation settling, after his face flushed and ears red, began to restrain his fluttering spirit, started to recite the Purifying Heart Mantra.

"Ice‑cold through the ages, all things especially still; the heart should be tranquil with qi; I alone am divine; heart and spirit unite…." Zhou Shuo fully experienced the description of the mantra; his fluttering spirit began to calm; these illusions arise from his bodily senses, so he must neither be shy nor fearful, nor reckless and indulgent, but learn to face them correctly; even if he wishes to satisfy, he should not do so within such illusions.

By relying on the Purifying Heart Mantra and his recent transmigration experience, Zhou Shuo subdued twelve of the mighty demon gods and transformed them into Mighty Golden Gods; yet he then visualized the remaining six demon gods; compared to the first twelve, these remaining six represent the six emotions produced by the six senses: joy, anger, love, thought, desire, worry; these six are the embodiment of emotions, they must not be allowed to possess the body, but must be defeated and subdued by the previously subdued twelve Mighty Golden Gods.