Chapter 232

"For five thousand years, the white sand in the middle of the river accumulated, slowly forming a reef. Generations of patriarchs waited in vain, and it wasn't until twenty-four years ago that the sand reef finally broke through the river and became a sandbar. Until last year, it finally took the shape of a dragon, but who knows how many years of effort it would have taken to rise higher than Nanchang City.

"But today, a heavy rain outside the calculation of astronomical numbers and celestial destiny caused a flash flood, completely washing away the White Longshan, which had been polished by the river for many years. Countless white sand and stones flowed downstream, and were caught by you, Cheng Xinzhan, who had stopped the procession in the middle of the river to seek the Dragon-Slaying Water Method from our Wan Shougong. You piled them onto the dragon sandbar, making its dragon spine higher than Nanchang City."

True Person Baoyuan suppressed his excitement and finished the last part of the story.

Inside the Patriarch Hall, expressions of excitement and agitation appeared on everyone's faces simultaneously. They looked at Cheng Xinzhan with burning eyes, and there was not a sound.

Cheng Xinzhan himself was equally shocked and speechless.

"Daoist Shouren, the Patriarch's prophecy is accurate to this point—the year, the origin, the dragon sand, the dragon disaster—none of it has failed to be verified. Tell me, should we, as his disciples and grand-disciples, believe it or not?"

Dong Shouren remained silent, but in reality, he believed it the first moment he heard it, because the first thing he thought of after hearing the prophecy was the Ginseng Fruit Tree within the sect.

Cheng Xinzhan, is he to inherit the Dharma position of the Great Immortal Zhenyuan?

But what Dong Shouren could not understand was that he had no doubt Cheng Xinzhan could attain the position of an Earth Immortal, but what was going on with the eight hundred Earth Immortals in this prophecy?

Eight hundred Earth Immortals in one generation—what kind of magnificent scene was this?

Today is not the ancient times!

"True Person, how should this 'eight hundred Earth Immortals' be understood? Is it an imaginary number or a real number?"

He asked directly.

The number eight hundred belongs to the celestial numbers in the Daoist sect; it belongs to the broad numbers and is often used as an imaginary number. Just like the sayings often heard by practitioners of the Dao, such as the three thousand Great Daos and eight hundred side-door sects, there are also sayings like eight hundred life-tribulations, eight hundred good deeds, eight hundred merits, eight hundred spiritual mountains, eight hundred fasts and rituals, and so on.

So in this prophecy of Xu Zu, was the number eight hundred an imaginary number or a real number?

True Person Baoyuan swallowed several times, swallowing back the words that were on the tip of his tongue several times, which showed that he also found it hard to believe what he was about to say. But in the end, he still said it in an extremely firm tone,

"Our ancestor was pragmatic. The dragon sand fulfilled the prophecy, and Cheng Xinzhan is undoubtedly the master of the Earth Immortals. Therefore, the eight hundred disciples he accepts will naturally be able to attain the fruit of the Earth Immortal!"

Dong Shouren still didn't quite believe it. Even if the dragon sand prophecy was fulfilled and there really were Earth Immortals born, there shouldn't be so many.

True Person Baoyuan saw Dong Shouren's strange expression and then explained in an extremely mysterious and inexplicable tone, as if he were persuading Dong Shouren, and as if he were also persuading himself and the Jingming Sect Daoists present,

"The situation in the sky is chaotic now, and immortals fall from time to time. Perhaps, Earth Immortals are the trend of the future. The present age may be the beginning of the golden age of Earth Immortals."

After hearing this, Dong Shouren only felt a reasonable sense of absurdity!

At this time, True Person Baoyuan asked again,

"I wonder how many disciples Cheng Xinzhan has now?"

Dong Shouren glanced at Cheng Xinzhan, seeing that he was still silent in shock.

Cheng Xinzhan's heart was naturally unable to calm down for a long time, because besides the prophecy and the ginseng fruit, there was one thing that only he had known all along:

His own ambition to become an immortal had always been to be an Earth Immortal!

Could it be that he really was the person who fulfilled the prophecy, and there really were eight hundred Earth Immortals in the world?

If that were really the case, then why worry about the demon sects at home and abroad not being pacified?

Dong Shouren thought Cheng Xinzhan was just shocked that he was going to become the master of eight hundred Earth Immortals and did not guess that what he was thinking about was sweeping away the demon scourge. He opened his mouth to answer for him,

"Currently, in the main line of Mount Mingzhi, Cheng Xinzhan has not accepted any disciples. However, after negotiations between the Sect Master and Mount Juqu, Cheng Xinzhan was specially permitted to open a new branch of Mount Lixue within the sect to teach the Huangting Scripture and spread the method of preserving the spirit. He has already accepted two registered disciples."

True Person Baoyuan became anxious as soon as he heard this. Eight hundred Earth Immortal quotas sounded like a lot, but how many practitioners are there in the world? If it were said that one could attain the Earth Immortal fruit, who wouldn't want this quota?

True Person Baoyuan would feel that eight hundred quotas were too few even if they were all given to the Jingming Sect. To say that Cheng Xinzhan had accepted disciples for his own Dharma lineage was one thing, but how could the first two quotas be picked up by Mount Juqu!

"Daoist Shouren, we can also talk. We can also specially permit Cheng Xinzhan to teach the Jingming Dao within Mount Sanqing!"

True Person Baoyuan grabbed Dong Shouren's hand and said earnestly,

"Our two houses have been friendly neighbors for six thousand years and are both in the territory of Yu Zhang. In terms of closeness, aren't we more intimate than Mount Juqu?

"Our two houses should naturally form a close friendship. Please be sure to tell True Person Hehe that it would be best to build another mountain within your sect's territory so that Cheng Xinzhan can concentrate on teaching the Jingming Dao. Wan Shougong can pay for the expenses of moving the spiritual mountain and opening the Daoist arena.

"In addition, we must also build another palace in our Mount Sanyuan, hoping only that Cheng Xinzhan can often come to preach and teach. The Wanfa Scripture Master of Mount Sanqing will be the Chief Scripture Master of our Wan Shougong!"

At this moment, True Person Baoyuan felt that the only commendable thing about Mount Juqu was that it had already opened up such a path for spreading the Dharma outside the sect, and his own Wan Shougong could just follow suit.

Dong Shouren nodded slightly. He would naturally report today's events to the Sect Master in detail, but he thought the Sect Master would certainly not refuse such a great good thing.

In addition, after returning, he would have to discuss with the Sect Master that he must find a reason to let Cheng Xinzhan accept disciples widely. If he followed the rules of Mount Mingzhi, when would he be able to gather eight hundred? He couldn't let Mount Juqu and Wan Shougong take all the benefits of these eight hundred disciples, while Mount Sanqing only got the small share; that would definitely not work.

Thinking of this, a sense of urgency suddenly arose in Dong Shouren's heart. He asked another extremely critical question,

"True Person, when do you think is the opportunity for these eight hundred Earth Immortals to attain immortality?"

True Person Baoyuan thought for a moment and replied,

"Regarding the specific timing of attaining immortality, the prophecy is vague. But according to my understanding, the disciples accepted by the Earth Master should follow their master's orders to slay the dragon-monsters and water-monsters that harm the world. After their merits are complete, they will naturally attain the Earth Immortal fruit."

At this time, True Person Baoyuan looked at Dong Shouren again and asked,

"Daoist, where do you think the dragon-monsters and water-monsters that harm the world are now?"

"The Southern Demon Sect and the Overseas Demon Sect."

Cheng Xinzhan answered.

True Person Baoyuan clapped his hands and said loudly,

"That's it. The master of the Earth Immortals has already issued the decree, so naturally, the time to slay the Southern Demon Sect and the Overseas Demon Sect is the opportunity for the Earth Immortals to attain immortality!"

Everyone was lost in thought and did not speak for a long time.

"True Person, what about seeking the true scriptures today?"

After a long while, Dong Shouren broke the silence and changed the subject with a smile. This matter of the dragon sand prophecy was too big, and all parties needed to digest it for a period of time. It was certainly impossible to reach a clear understanding today.

"All the classics of Wan Shougong are available for Cheng Xinzhan to read!"

True Person Baoyuan said loudly.

After True Person Baoyuan made the promise, he said again,

"After Fellow Daoist returns to the sect, please ask True Person Hehe for his time. I want to pay a visit, and at that time, I will discuss some matters in detail with True Person Hehe."

Dong Shouren understood and nodded in agreement.

There were too many things to discuss here, the most critical of which was naturally the distribution of the eight hundred quotas. Of course, when discussing this matter, Cheng Xinzhan would naturally have to be present.

In addition, there were some things that were not convenient to discuss publicly, and Cheng Xinzhan was not convenient to be present, for example, how those who already had masters should transfer to Cheng Xinzhan's sect. Among them, there were even Fourth-Rank and Fifth-Rank Great Cultivators who were interested. At that time, how should the seniority be calculated...

True Person Baoyuan was also incomparably emotional at this moment. Why was such an immortal seed born in Mount Sanqing? If he had been born in Wan Shougong, how could he have let others pick up the bargain?

However, True Person Baoyuan did not know that True Person Chengchu of Mount Juqu had once had the exact same emotion.

————

Two days later, the scripture-seeking procession of Mount Sanqing left Mount Sanyuan fully loaded, the jade scripture sedan in the procession radiating treasure light.

Seeing this scene, some were naturally happy while others were sad.

The people of the Haoran Alliance were naturally happy to see it. The solid alliance formed by Mount Sanqing, Mount Juqu, and Mount Sanyuan was a great thing for the development of the Haoran Alliance. The benefits of the alliance were not only reflected in slaying demons and defending the Dao, but also in daily preaching and exchanging goods for elixirs, which were much more convenient relying on the alliance of great sects.

The people of the Zhengyi Alliance were naturally unhappy to see it. These three houses had great influence in the Eastern Daoist sect, and their relationship was too close, which was naturally unfavorable to the leading position of Mount Longhu. Moreover, in recent years, it was obvious that the people in the Haoran Alliance were becoming increasingly disrespectful to Mount Longhu.

However, Wan Shougong did not care what others thought. Many high-ranking cultivators personally saw them off, sending the Three Pure Ones' procession across the Gan River, and for a time, both host and guest were happy.

As for the people near Nanchang, they naturally could not guess the thoughts of the immortals. They were even more surprised by the eye-catching white mountain that had suddenly emerged in the middle of the river, which they called White Longshan.

Five thousand years had passed, and White Longshan had been moved from southern Jiangxi to northern Jiangxi by the great river. Except for the change in location, it seemed that nothing else had changed.

White Longshan was now very close to Poyanghu. If the Dragon Mother still had a spirit, she could look out at Poyanghu from here. It was just that things were different; the great lake and the white mountain were still there, but the Poyang Dragon Palace had long since disappeared into the dust of history.

And for a long time afterward, the two idioms "Stopping the Procession to Watch the Water" and "Raising the Sand Mountain" were widely circulated in the Nanchang area, used to tell of the compassionate heart and infinite power of the immortals.

————

And when Dong Shouren and Cheng Xinzhan returned to Mount Sanqing, they naturally went to the Three Pure Ones' Hall the first time to tell Ji Hehe the news.

To prevent the news from leaking and causing a monstrous wave, Dong Shouren did not even dare to explain this matter through his Primordial Spirit from a distance; he had to explain it clearly in person.

After Ji Hehe heard about the Dragon Sand Prophecy, he was also extremely shocked and called over several Fourth-Rank Great Cultivators in the mountain.

These Great Cultivators listened and were also silent for a long time, their eyes flashing with light.

This time, the degree of shock of these people was probably three points higher than when they saw the ginseng fruit with their own eyes last time.

After all, when the ginseng fruit is planted, by the day it blooms and bears fruit, those present will probably have become a pile of withered bones, but the prophecy of the eight hundred Earth Immortals is right now! The master of the eight hundred Earth Immortals is right before their eyes!

And this kind of prophecy is common in the cultivation world; some have been fulfilled, and some have not.

But it is generally believed in the cultivation world that the way of prophecy is the Great Dao of Heavenly Secrets. Those that have not been fulfilled are just because the person making the prophecy did not know the celestial destiny and spoke nonsense. As long as it is a Great Cultivator with a deep realm, once they understand the heavenly secrets, the prophecy they make will definitely be fulfilled.

The most famous prophecy in the history of the cultivation world is naturally the one left by the Yellow Emperor ancestor when he rode the dragon and ascended: "Heaven releases the murderous machine, moving stars and changing lodges. Earth releases the murderous machine, dragons and snakes rise to the land. Man releases the murderous machine, heaven and earth reverse." It accurately predicted the human-god war during the Shang-Zhou era.

The most recent prophecy fulfilled was the one left by True Person Sanfeng when he ascended: "Heaven's mandate reaches the extreme, Zhenwu shall flourish." Not long after that, Emperor Ming Taizong offered heaven and pacified the difficulties to take the throne, and immediately the world flourished with Zhenwu palaces and temples.

What kind of person was True Person Xu Xun? Before ascending, he was revered as the Tian Shi in the world, founded the Jingming Sect, and was a True Immortal who called himself the ancestor of the Dao! The prophecy left by the old man when he pulled his house and ascended, even if it was so shocking, one could not help but believe it!

After the several Xuanzai silently digested the prophecy, they looked Cheng Xinzhan up and down.

Well, they were afraid that others would not be willing to give the true scriptures, so they made many arrangements to beg others, and also added the title of Wanfa Scripture Master to save face. The Jingming Sect was good; as soon as they saw the person, they immediately gave him the title of Master of Earth Immortals. This child is really a treasure wherever he goes.

Cheng Xinzhan felt uncomfortable being watched by everyone and said,

"Xu Zu is not a saint, and the prophecy may not necessarily..."

"Shut up!"

Ji Hehe immediately shouted at Cheng Xinzhan and said sternly,

"You are the person who fulfills the prophecy. Anyone else can say this, but you cannot. Not only can you not say it, but you must not even think about it in the future!"

The other elders also nodded with a look of course, and one after another advised Cheng Xinzhan not to think or say nonsense. Everyone present knew about the ginseng fruit, and they thought the same as Dong Shouren: could this child have some origin with the Great Immortal Zhenyuan?

Facing the earnest gazes of the elders, Cheng Xinzhan had to agree.

Cheng Xinzhan did not know that these Great Cultivators were avoiding him and communicating with their Primordial Spirits at the same time, and in a fleeting moment, they reached a consensus:

Since Ancestral Tian Shi really said this prophecy, even if it is fake, Mount Sanqing must make it real! As long as one Earth Immortal disciple comes out under Cheng Xinzhan, then naturally ten thousand directions will come to join!

Having clarified this matter, the next step was naturally to discuss Cheng Xinzhan's acceptance of disciples.

Cheng Xinzhan is currently a direct descendant of Mount Mingzhi. According to the ancestral rules of Mount Mingzhi, he cannot accept disciples yet. He has accepted two for the Mount Lixue Dharma lineage, and they seem to have good qualifications.

Now Mount Sanyuan wants to follow the old story of Mount Juqu and wants to invite Mount Sanqing to open another branch with Cheng Xinzhan as the mountain master, and also said they are willing to pay for the spiritual mountain and build a Daoist arena. This made Mount Sanqing look stingy. Even if they really wanted to build a new one, it would be their own mountain. How could they want outsiders to pay? Moreover, there is a Mount Yunzhong next to Mount Lixue in the sect that is empty.

It was just that after the several Sect Masters thought about it, they found that doing so was somewhat inappropriate.

Cheng Xinzhan wants to spread the Yin-Yang Great Dao on Mount Mingzhi and the method of preserving the spirit on Mount Lixue. If he opens another mountain to spread the Jingming Dao method, then this kind of thing will become a precedent. How will Cheng Xinzhan accept disciples and spread the Dao in the future?

Then if Cheng Xinzhan wants to teach the Thunder Method and the Sword Method, does he have to open two more mountains, or serve as the master of Mount Shuji and Mount Toujian concurrently?

This is impossible.

Cheng Xinzhan is a person who is expected to gather all the great methods in one body. It is not good to divide the acceptance of disciples and the spreading of the Dharma too much.

This is really a difficult problem.

(End of chapter)