Chapter 227: Luck

"Since you have already controlled the flesh body, why did you take that eye?"

Ye Lianchen asked.

However, after he finished asking, the giant corpse did not respond for a long time.

Ye Lianchen was not surprised, because the corpse had just awakened its wisdom, and its thoughts could not be like ordinary people, and even Ye Lianchen was surprised that the giant corpse could fluently say that sentence just now.

Generally, when a corpse servant is born with wisdom like this, the corpse-raiser will directly intervene and control the corpse body, otherwise it will be a problem to walk and speak normally, let alone fight. Only when the corpse servant's wisdom is like an ordinary person will it gradually let go of control.

But this approach will also subtly affect the corpse servant's mind. Ye Lianchen doesn't like doing this.

And this giant corpse in front of him has an extraordinary origin, and has been refined by ancient Buddhist secret methods for many years. The wisdom born at the beginning swallowed a primordial spirit, and the starting point can be said to be extremely high. As long as it is guided with a little patience, it is easy to improve its wisdom.

After a long while, the giant corpse replied,

"Take the eyeball, achieve the Drought Demon body, and use it for me."

Ye Lian

"How much of my memories from before death remains, how much of my magic power from before death remains, and how much of the mountain demon's memories remain?"

After another long while, the drought demon replied,

"Of the past before death, not even one percent remains. The mountain demon's memories are like a book waiting to be flipped through. As for the magic power from before death, I have regained it all; if we speak of combat strength, this body is even stronger."

Ye Lianchen still nodded, then said,

"The matters from before death are already in the past. I will join you in settling the old grievances, then return to your hometown once more to resolve the karma from your previous life. From then on, devote yourself to the Dao; live out a new world, and do not remain trapped for long in bitter hatred and obsession."

This time, the drought demon remained silent for even longer, before finally cupping his hands to accept the command.

"You are now a new life in the corpse path; it is not appropriate to use your name from before death anymore."

This time, the drought demon responded more quickly, replying,

"I ask my benefactor to bestow a name."

Ye Lianchen thought for a moment, then said,

"According to custom, those who attain the Dao through the corpse path take their place of origin as their surname. I shall give you the surname Wu. You were awakened by my Taiyi Qinghua magic, so I will take the character 'Qing' from it; it just so happens that Qing belongs to Wood, which also suits your Fire Corpse destiny. I will also take the character 'Bo' from your original name. I shall name you Wu Qingbo. What do you think?"

The drought demon thought about it, then nodded in agreement,

"Wu Qingbo has met his benefactor."

Afterward, without waiting for Ye Lianchen to speak again, Wu Qingbo asked on his own initiative,

"May I ask for my benefactor's name?"

Ye Lianchen smiled upon hearing this. In just these few exchanges, the drought demon's spiritual intelligence was growing rapidly; his foundation was truly profound. He replied,

"I am a native of Yu Zhang, a disciple of Mount Sanqing, surnamed Cheng, with the Daoist name Cheng Xinzhan."

Wu Qingbo's expression was solemn as he earnestly committed it to memory.

Cheng Xinzhan continued,

"It is excellent that you can fully inherit the mountain demon's memories. Next, I will use the 'Borrowing a Corpse to Return the Soul' technique to control the mountain demon's physical body. You and I share a connection of heart and mind, so dealing with outsiders will be no problem. Once we have gained control over the Fire Temple lineage, we will eliminate the other temple branches one by one. Sweeping away the demonic atmosphere will also be a way for you to take your revenge."

Wu Qingbo nodded heavily.

Afterward, Cheng Xinzhan looked at the mountain demon's physical body. The body could be said to have been preserved extremely well; there was not a single speck of injury on it, the Golden Core was unharmed, and all magic treasures were present. It was extremely rare to find a situation where the physical body remained completely intact after the primordial spirit was destroyed outside.

Using the Mingzhi Mountain's "Borrowing a Corpse to Return the Soul" technique in this situation allowed the corpse to unleash its full original strength, and outsiders would not be able to detect any flaws.

"Borrowing a Corpse to Return the Soul" was a signature technique of Mingzhi Mountain. Cheng Xinzhan naturally knew it by heart and had mastered it thoroughly; he could perform it with ease using only his Youjing primordial spirit.

He pressed his right hand against the center of his brow, formed the "Returning Yang and Connecting to the Nether Seal" with his left hand, and chanted,

"The Purple Gate opens the barrier, the spirit wanders the Great Abyss;

The Yin locks the life gate, the Yang escapes to the Profound Spring;

The Yellow Spring rolls backward, the Youjing attaches to the coffin;

The primordial spirit leaves the shell, borrowing the corpse to drive the profound!"

A flash of Yin-Yang profound light crossed his brow, and immediately, a golden primordial spirit leaped out from the top of his head and descended into the mountain demon's skull.

After a burst of profound light shone, the mountain demon opened his eyes once again.

At this moment, as Cheng Xinzhan operated his primordial spirit, he relied on the "Profound Dark Innate Knowledge" method to probe his divine sense directly into Wu Qingbo's Purple Gate, flipping through the mountain demon's memories.

After quickly scanning only the most critical memories, Cheng Xinzhan withdrew his divine sense and chanted words under his breath. The flesh-tendrils connecting him to the fire lotus all detached, and the fire lotus shrank to the size of a palm, which he then put away.

This fire lotus had been tainted by demonic arts; once taken back to the sect to be cleansed and refined, it would be a top-tier spiritual object. It was another treasure that could be refined into a dharma body, or used as a treasure for crossing the tribulation.

In his view, this fire lotus was far more precious than the mountain demon's corpse shell.

Now that the Youjing primordial spirit had taken over the mountain demon's corpse shell, the Wuchen Lotus incarnation became an empty aperture once more. Cheng Xinzhan transformed it back into its original white jade lotus form and put it away as well.

With another shift of his thoughts, the ape corpse guarding the temple gate also came over, standing like a wooden stake puppet beside Cheng Xinzhan, awaiting orders.

Seeing this, he thought to himself that he should send another primordial spirit from his true body in the sect to bring these two lotuses, as well as the talismans, mirrors, and other protective magic treasures, away. Here at Mount Tianqiao, he could drive the mountain demon's corpse shell with his Youjing primordial spirit, and with the drought demon and ape corpse acting as guardians, it would be enough.

As soon as he had this thought, his true body a thousand miles away naturally sensed it.

————

On Mount Lixue, the pear blossoms had all fallen, and white pears hung among the green leaves, plump and full.

Guantian Temple, Hall of the Heavenly King.

Inside the hall stood the statue of Yuanshi Tianzun, his expression peaceful and compassionate.

Prayer mats were placed before the statue. Today, only Cheng Xinzhan and his two newly accepted disciples were there, sitting facing each other.

"It has been over three months since you entered the mountain. Are you accustomed to all the affairs?"

Cheng Xinzhan asked.

Both children were now wearing Daoist robes. Lin Fengnian was three years younger than Zhu Shuyu. When they first entered the mountain, Lin Fengnian was shorter than Zhu Shuyu, but in just these short three months, he had already grown taller than her, and he had also grown much fairer.

"Replying to Master, everything is very good."

The two children said.

"Mm, that is good."

Cheng Xinzhan nodded and asked again, "Have you read all the classics that were sent over? Have you memorized them all?"

Both children nodded.

Seeing this, Cheng Xinzhan said, "Then Master will test you. Shuyu is older, so we will test Shuyu first."

Zhu Shuyu said yes. Her face was calm and serene, but her hands were clasped together inside her sleeves; it seemed she was still a bit nervous.

"What is the content of the first precept of the 'Three Hundred Great Precepts of the Central Pole'?"

"Respect Heaven and follow the ancestors, serve the Dao and uphold the scriptures."

"Before practicing Grain Grain Bigu, what rules must a female practitioner follow when traveling at night? From which classic does it originate? What is the reasoning?"

"If one has not yet practiced Grain Grain Bigu, a female practitioner should not travel the water routes on the nights of the new moon. The words come from the 'Dongxuan Lingbao Daoist Rituals,' and the purpose is to prevent Yin cold from invading the meridians and ruining the Grain Grain Bigu practice."

"Which Heavenly Venerable does the Lingbao Sect primarily serve? What is its core classic?"

"The Lingbao Sect primarily serves 'Yuanshi Tianzun,' and the core classic is the 'Lingbao Immeasurable Salvation Superior Grade Wonderful Scripture'."

"The Celestial Master Dao's lineage takes Laozi as its ancestor; which classic is used for commentary?"

"It first appears in the 'Laozi Xiang'er Commentary - Ordinary Volume,' which records: 'One is the Dao... it disperses its form to become Qi, and gathers its form to become Taishang Laojun'."

"Good."

Cheng Xinzhan nodded with satisfaction. Zhu Shuyu's responses were becoming increasingly fluent; she was not as nervous as she had been at the beginning.

"Shuyu is good. Now let's test Fengnian."

Lin Fengnian seemed to be bolder; he did not know what stage fright was. He said "good," then looked up at Cheng Xinzhan, waiting for the question.

"Do not bully the lonely and poor, or seize people's wealth—from which set of precepts does this originate?"

"It comes from the seventh of the 'Nine Precepts' in the 'Taishang Laojun Precept Scripture'."

"If one is to perform a ritual offering, what should be done if one's clothing is untidy? Which classic has the rule?"

"The 'Zhengyi Dignity Scripture,' article thirty-two: 'Whenever Daoist robes are tattered, one should bathe and change clothes; those whose clothing is untidy may not ascend the altar'."

"Which venerable deity does the Inner Alchemy Quanzhen Sect primarily serve? What is the textual basis?"

"The Inner Alchemy Quanzhen Sect primarily serves Laojun. The textual basis is the 'Quanzhen Pure Regulations': 'Laojun is the treasure of the Dao, performing rituals to save people'."

"Which venerable deity does the Shangqing Sect's visualization method take as its foundation? Where is it found?"

"It takes 'Yuanshi Tianzun' as its foundation, found in the 'Shangqing Great Cavern True Scripture - Ordinary Volume: One': 'Yuanshi Tianwang is in the Jade Purity Upper Realm, speaking on the thirty-nine chapters'."

"Not bad."

Cheng Xinzhan was satisfied in his heart. That these two children could pass the dharma examination naturally proved their aptitude. Now that they could recite all kinds of regulations and classics off the top of their heads, it showed they had not been lazy over these three months. Having aptitude and the ability to cultivate meant that the Great Dao was within reach.

"After you have thoroughly read the secular Daoist books, you must read the Daoist books of the mountain, such as the 'General History of Ten Thousand Years,' the 'Yu Zhang Immortal Records,' the 'Treatise on Dao Body and Life-Embedded,' and the 'Spiritual Pivot Scripture.' Go to the library to borrow them yourselves. Master used these books as his enlightenment on the path to immortality back in the day."

The two children nodded and committed it to memory.

"Now that you have read the Daoist books, I will tell you about the origin of our dharma lineage."

Cheng Xinzhan bowed toward the statue of the Heavenly Venerable behind him and said,

"Our Mount Sanqing believes in the Three Pure Ones and honors the three sages equally. Our sect was founded by Ancestor Ge Hong during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It has been over six thousand years to this day, and it has been passed down for over forty generations."

"Our Mount Sanqing takes the Inner Alchemy Dao as the foundation for entry, while simultaneously advocating for the concurrent practice of other methods, mutually referencing and observing them, and integrating them into a whole. We take it as our duty to inherit the lost teachings of the sages and create unprecedented wonderful methods, which is why we are also called the Wanfa Sect."

The two children listened with wide eyes. As mortals, and children at that, it was hard for them to understand the concept of six thousand years, but just hearing titles like "millennial great sect" and "mutual reference of ten thousand methods" made them feel incredibly awestruck.

"Master studied under Master Sukong Yu of Mount Mingzhi. Mount Mingzhi worships Yin and Yang and cultivates the Yin-Yang Great Dao. However, Master holds two dharma lineages within the sect. What you are to inherit and cultivate has nothing to do with Mount Mingzhi; it is the Mount Lixue lineage."

"I am the founding master of the Mount Lixue lineage. Now that you have passed the dharma test and entered the immortal mountain, you are registered disciples of Mount Lixue. If one day you succeed in opening your mansion and recording your name in the register, you will be entry-level disciples of Mount Lixue, and also founding disciples."

Their eyes were bright. They had long heard of their master's great name back in Little Wan Mountain, and they had also heard of the various benefits of being founding disciples.

"Mount Lixue takes Inner Alchemy as its foundation and concurrently practices the visualization method. Fengnian has already answered the source of the visualization method's dharma lineage just now: it is in the Shangqing Sect, taking 'Yuanshi Tianzun' as the venerable deity. Our lineage believes that the human body is a small universe, and the world we see is a great universe; our own small universe and the great universe are in harmony."

"For example, our eyes correspond to the Taiyin and Taiyang, our four limbs correspond to the four directions, our breath is the clouds, and our roar is the thunder. In the great universe, there are all kinds of gods: mountain gods, water gods, rain gods, thunder gods. We of the Visualization Sect believe that every aperture in the human body should also have a corresponding god. This god must be imagined according to the innate attributes and acquired functions of the aperture; more accurately, it must be visualized."

Cheng Xinzhan only explained it roughly and did not go too deep. After saying a few simple words, he said,

"The matter of dharma lineages cannot be explained in a few words. As your cultivation deepens and your horizons broaden in the future, you will naturally understand more and more. We will not talk more about it today. Now I will teach you how to consume Qi; in every sect and school, cultivation always begins with consuming Qi."

Next, naturally, he talked about the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the methods of consuming Qi, and the realms of cultivation. Just as Master Wen Sukong had taught him back then, he now passed it on to the next generation.

However, he emphasized two points, which were also rules that future Mount Lixue disciples must follow.

First, consuming Qi must be done through visualization.

Second, opening the mansion must begin with the Heart Mansion.

When he finished explaining the key points of visualization-based Qi consumption, he felt he had said enough. No matter how gifted the two children were, they were still just children. He immediately let them return to the mountain first, telling them to carefully study the visualization charts sent by the two elders, Wang and Li of Mount Juqu, on the day he accepted them as disciples, and from those, according to their own intentions, select an Inner Landscape God to serve as the beginning of their Qi consumption.

Cheng Xinzhan had already looked at the visualization charts sent by Wang and Li. Although the charm was not that profound, they had the advantage of being numerous. They were much richer than when he himself, short of funds at the time, had to rummage through the library for visualization charts. The two children would certainly be able to find an Inner Landscape God suitable for themselves.

He summoned Sanmei, who was dozing in the shade of the pear trees outside the temple, and had him send the two children away.

Watching them ride the clouds away, Cheng Xinzhan felt a stir in his heart, sensing the thoughts of his Youjing primordial spirit.

This was also good. Let the Youjing primordial spirit plot against Mount Tianqiao, and send another primordial spirit over to retrieve the incarnation; after all, there were still many things to be busy with.

However, now was not the time. His primordial spirit had just undergone one purification and could not yet leave the body in broad daylight. He would wait until the midnight hour to wander in spirit again!

Having made up his mind, his Youjing primordial spirit a thousand miles away naturally knew. Afterward, Cheng Xinzhan left Mount Lixue and came to the Sanqing Palace.

The last time Cheng Xinzhan had come was when he had just returned to the sect after crossing the tribulation; it had been quite a while since he had come to pay his respects to the Sect Master.

Ji Hehe was very happy to see Cheng Xinzhan arrive. He excused Cheng Xinzhan from the formalities and told him to sit down quickly.

"Xinzhan has always been one who doesn't visit the Three Treasures Hall without a reason. This time, you certainly didn't come specifically to pay your respects. Speak, what is the matter?"

Ji Hehe looked over with a cheerful expression.

This Sanqing Sect Master had been in a good mood recently. Although the demonic scourge had been severe in recent years and the world would certainly not be peaceful in the coming years, these things could not dampen the joy in Ji Hehe's heart.

The Haoran Alliance was now on the right track, and every family had invested heavily; slaying demons and eliminating devils had become the norm. But this also meant that parting in life and death was also the norm. Every sect had suffered casualties, and there was no lack of figures at the level of dharma lineage seeds and Golden Core Daoist children.

Like Lu Yizhao of Mount Juqu, who died on Three Corpses Island; it was that seductive corpse Cui Ying who had discarded her dignity to bully the young and ambush him. Zheng Zhaoguan of Wan Shougong died in Yu Yang, ambushed and besieged by two of the Eight Vajras of Mount Baiman.

Before Xinzhan crossed the tribulation, these two were figures of equal fame to Xinzhan. On the battlefield, it was not as if there were no Fourth Realm profound cultivators watching over them, but one moment of carelessness, and they were gone.

If Daoist children and seeds were like this, there was no need to mention the other ordinary disciples.

But Mount Sanqing was strange; not a single Daoist seed or child from any peak had fallen. Even those true disciples and registered disciples who had received orders to go down the mountain to slay demons had a much lower number of casualties than those of other sects.

This made other sects particularly puzzled.

If you said that Mount Sanqing disciples were slacking off on the battlefield, no one would believe it. Everyone had eyes to see, and Mount Sanqing's record of slaying demons was something everyone had witnessed. Moreover, the demonic path didn't care whose family you belonged to when they killed.

Besides this, the recent recruitment of disciples by various branches had also gone very smoothly.

Many elders and direct descendants who were out slaying demons or traveling as heroes had accepted disciples and brought them back to the sect. Daoist temples in various secular places had also recommended people, and their aptitude was quite good.

Even the open recruitment of disciples that Xinzhan had tried by casting a wide net among mortals through the Yulin Temple had actually succeeded on the first try, and he had even accepted two.

Ji Hehe had sat in the Sanqing Palace watching the recruitment on Mount Lixue that day; the aptitude of those two dolls had surprised even him.

Not to mention that Xinzhan had been cursed and turned a misfortune into a blessing, purifying his core early. A first purification before the age of forty—this was a step ahead, and naturally, every step thereafter would be ahead.

Could all these things, one after another, be mere coincidences?

Naturally, that was impossible.

Then what was the reason?

Ji Hehe wanted to laugh every time he thought of this.

What else could it be?

Naturally, it was because there was a Ginseng Fruit Tree to stabilize the sect's fortune!

Ji Hehe didn't know when the Ginseng Fruit Tree would bear fruit, and he probably wouldn't live to see the day he could eat one, but that didn't matter!

As long as the Ginseng Fruit Tree took root in Mount Sanqing for one day, Mount Sanqing would naturally have endless benefits!

And all of this was brought by this precious treasure before his eyes.

So, how could Ji Hehe not laugh every time he saw Xinzhan?

Cheng Xinzhan cupped his hands. He indeed had something to ask the Sect Master. He said,

"Sect Master, this disciple wishes to go to Wan Shougong."

Ji Hehe looked at Cheng Xinzhan, quietly waiting for what followed. Wan Shougong had said so many times that they wanted to invite Xinzhan over to give a lecture, and Xinzhan was so close to Shen Zhaoming, a Daoist seed of Wan Shougong. If it were just a visit, why would he need to specifically ask for his permission?

Sure enough, the next sentence he heard was,

"This disciple wishes to prepare the ceremonial guard and go to Wan Shougong to seek the true scriptures."

(End of chapter)