Chapter 5: Bingchen Courtyard, Joyous Drinking All Night During Grain Rain

The winding path led to a secluded place, and after a few turns, they arrived at Lantern Street, which Feng Jihu mentioned.

Lantern Street could be seen at a glance how it got its name. Many courtyards and cave dwellings had lanterns hanging in front of them, in different numbers and shapes.

At the end of the street, in a small courtyard, seven or eight lanterns hung under the eaves of the gate, some lotus-shaped, some melon-shaped, some orange-shaped. There was a sign on the gate, written "Third Heavenly Stem Courtyard".

This courtyard was supported by wood and stone, hanging in the air outside the stone peak. Two green pines drilled out of the cracks in the stone wall above the courtyard, covering half of the courtyard like a green canopy.

The courtyard gate was open. At this time, the sun was already setting in the west. The golden sunlight passed through the pine needles, dappling on the amber wooden floor, reflecting waves of light.

The courtyard was empty, with only two rooms and a pavilion. The east and west rooms were residences, standing side by side, and opposite was the Dan Pavilion, with a half-person-high alchemy furnace in the pavilion.

On the stone wall on the side of the Dan Pavilion, there was a small stream. The stream water fell into a stone vat. The vat was not big, half a person high. The water was full and flowed down along the vat wall, flowing out of the courtyard along the stone cracks, forming a waterfall.

Feng Jihu was very familiar with the courtyard. He first glanced at the west room, and the door was also open, with no one inside. Feng Jihu was not surprised and led Yunqi into the east room.

The room was spotless, without partitions, just divided into two pieces by a paper screen. The piece at the door was a study setup, with bookshelves and a desk. Behind the screen was a wooden bed, with a long table beside the bed, and nothing else.

However, what made Yunqi's eyes light up was that the bookshelf in a row at the door was full of books.

"Not bad, right? These books were accumulated in the years I entered the sect. It really cost a lot of silver. There are also some of my notes inside. I didn't move them when I left back then, thinking about taking care of the juniors. Now that I have led you into the sect, it just happens to be useful."

Feng Jihu said with a smile.

Yunqi nodded, "It can be said to be extremely good. Thank you, Daoist brother."

The two sat and chatted for a while. Yunqi learned that Daoist Jihu's secular name was Feng Xuhuai. He entered the mountain at the age of thirteen and lived in Ten Thousand Households Peak for seven years. At the age of twenty, he opened the wood mansion and officially entered the gate of Du Juan Valley, practicing medicine and herbal medicine. It has been three years now.

Feng Xuhuai was of the Ji generation, gentle and taciturn by nature, introverted and partial to humility. His master gave him the Dharma name "Tiger", hoping that he would be as humble as a valley, but there would also be a fierce tiger sitting in his heart.

Feng Jihu said that he entered the gate of Master Yu Jianci of Du Juan Valley, and his master ordered him to take miscellaneous tasks in the sect at the Martial Arts Institute, no less than ten items per month. After three years, his introverted and taciturn nature was changed.

Recruiting disciples for Master Yu Daoist Sukong was also one of the miscellaneous tasks he mentioned.

Feng Jihu was a local from Yu Zhang, from a wealthy background, and also practiced the guiding health-preserving technique passed down by Yulin Temple since childhood. But he only cultivated clear spiritual Qi at the age of ten, so he praised Cheng Yunqi's talent a lot.

Time passed quickly in the chat. The two suddenly heard a high cry of a bird, followed by a burst of footsteps. Yunqi was careful and heard that the footsteps were loud and urgent, so it should be a tall person.

"Bingkun!"

Feng Jihu beside him had already called out.

"Eh, who is here?"

The person outside muttered, and walked over with big strides.

Soon, Yunqi saw the person. This person was indeed tall, blocking the whole door when standing at the door. The sunset shone on him, making him look like a guardian god.

"Xuhuai!"

The person saw Daoist Jihu, and immediately beamed with joy, lowered his head and walked in, hugging Daoist Jihu. Feng Jihu's figure could be considered tall, but in his arms, he was like a little chicken.

"Alright, alright, let me go."

Daoist Jihu hammered the person's back a few times before being let go.

"Yunqi, this is He Bingkun, who entered the mountain with me and lived together for seven years. Bingkun, this is Cheng Yunqi, who entered the mountain gate today. Yunqi is quite to my liking, so I specially let him live here. You should teach him more in the future."

The two met.

Feng Jihu added a few more details, "Bingkun is the same age as me and is a registered disciple of the Nine Heavens Yingyuan Mansion among the eight veins of the Lotus Blessed Land. This vein requires the three mansions of thunder, cloud, and wind to be opened before opening the mansion, connected in one breath, with thunder and lightning sounding between breaths, so it takes a longer time. But it should be soon in the next two years."

He Bingkun grinned, "At the latest, by the summer and autumn of next year."

"Yunqi is also one of the eight veins of the Blessed Land, a registered disciple of Mount Mingzhi, only fifteen years old this year. By the way, Yunqi, didn't you worry about how to go to Mount Mingzhi just now? Let Bingkun take you along when the time comes. He is about to open his heart mansion, and he goes to the Yingyuan Mansion almost every day these days. Plus, he encountered an opportunity when he went out of the mountain a few years ago and got a thunder bird, which has extreme speed."

He Bingkun sized up Yunqi. Seeing that the young man was clear and refreshing, fresh and handsome, and his eyebrows and expressions were quite peaceful, without any sharpness, he also felt quite good in his heart. Hearing that he was a registered disciple of Mount Mingzhi, he also smiled and said:

"I have seen the Little Daoist Master."

A bitter smile appeared on Yunqi's face, "Daoist brother, don't make fun of me, just call me Yunqi."

He Bingkun laughed, and turned to Feng Jihu: "Xuhuai, don't leave today. Let's have a drink tonight to welcome Yunqi, how about it?"

Feng Jihu smiled: "That's exactly what I intended!"

"Good! You two don't need to move. I hung smoked meat in the alchemy furnace. It is mountain pork smoked with pepper wood last winter. I will go and cut it. There is also good wine in the vat, which is good wine from Chenglu Valley."

After saying that, He Bingkun rushed out, and soon the sound of the alchemy furnace being uncovered came.

"Smoking meat in an alchemy furnace, only Bingkun can do it." Feng Jihu scolded with a smile, and then realized and looked at Cheng Yunqi, "Can Yunqi drink?"

"I can drink some, but I dare not get drunk. Master Yu Daoist Sukong has assigned a lot of homework to read."

Feng Jihu smiled when he heard this: "No problem, no problem. What the Master Yu asked you to read must be some books on introductory cultivation. Bingkun and I have already read them rotten. I will tell you about them tonight, which is also a side dish for wine."

Yunqi agreed.

Feng Jihu moved out the case, and the three sat in the open space in the courtyard. At this time, the golden sunset had turned deep red, the red clouds were all over the sky in the west, and countless people who had achieved success in cultivation, either riding swords, riding cranes, or riding clouds, like tired birds returning to the forest, fell into the mountains one after another.

Cheng Yunqi looked at the strange scenery in front of him, thinking back to the morning when he was still in the secular world, and by sunset he had entered the immortal mountain, and there was good wine and food waiting. It was truly like a dream, and for a time, he couldn't help but be infatuated and didn't move for a long time.

Feng Jihu and He Bingkun looked at each other and smiled, not urging him, nor moving their chopsticks, quietly waiting for Cheng Yunqi to come back to his senses.

About ten breaths later, Yunqi came back to his senses. Seeing the two waiting for him, he apologized repeatedly.

He Bingkun opened the wine jar, and the wine fragrance overflowed. Yunqi smelled it and only felt refreshed, somewhat like the feeling of smelling the He Shouwu fragrance when his Earth Soul traveled outside earlier.

He Bingkun took out three wine cups, white porcelain texture, filled with wine, "Today, the three successive masters of this courtyard gather here to welcome the old master and the newcomer. Isn't it worth a cup?"

Feng Jihu and Cheng Yunqi agreed, the three touched cups and drank it in one gulp.

The wine was cold and biting, like fire down the throat, refreshing the mouth and teeth, warming the stomach, and had the fragrance of grass and fruit. It was good wine that Yunqi had never tasted in his life. "After this gathering, I will sign the list at the Duwu Institute tomorrow, and after finishing the matter of Master Yu Daoist Sukong accepting disciples, I will leave the mountain."

Feng Jihu put down his cup and said this.

He Bingkun was stunned, "What is the matter?"

"I plan to open the water mansion. A few days ago, I asked Xu Jishen of Zhuoxing Pool to calculate a hexagram for me. He said my opportunity is in the south, and I should go out and walk around."

He Bingkun nodded, "That's a good thing. Where do you plan to go?"

"I plan to go to the Textual Inquiry site first, and if there is no harvest, I will turn to the Southern Wilderness."

Yunqi took the opportunity to ask: "May I ask the two Daoist brothers, what exactly are mansions, what are mansions, which are the eight veins of the Lotus Blessed Land, and what Daoist lineages do we have in the mountain?"

Feng Jihu and He Bingkun looked at each other, and the former opened his mouth to say:

"There are many Dharma lineages in the world today, generally divided into four categories: Daoist, side-door, Buddhist, and demonic. The orthodox Daoist lineage has more than 90 types such as internal alchemy, external alchemy, talismans, five thunders, praying to gods, observing stars, body refining, and primordial spirit.

My Sanqing Sect takes internal alchemy as the foundation for entry, and at the same time advocates practicing other methods, paying attention to integration and mutual reference, taking inheriting the unique learning of the past sages and creating unprecedented miraculous methods as its own responsibility, so it is also called the Wanfa Sect.

Since the ancestor founded the sect, after six thousand years of accumulation and inheritance, counting the restoration of ancient methods and the creation of new methods, nearly forty Dharma lineages have been passed down, which formed today's pattern. Listen to me carefully."

Feng Jihu took a sip of wine and told it slowly:

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"There is a Lotus Blessed Land in the northwest of the mountain. Yunqi, you have seen it. It is the source of the earth vein of these thousands of miles of mountains. The Lotus Blessed Land has nine mountains, with one flat-topped mountain in the middle and eight high peaks surrounding it.

This flat-topped mountain is called Liangyi Mountain, with the Sanqing Palace standing on it, and there are Pure Yang and Original Yin halls on the side, which are the residences of the past sect masters.

The eight peaks are arranged according to the Eight Trigrams orientation, namely:

Qian position Ziyan Mountain, with the Flying Immortal Terrace on the mountain, enshrining the two ancient gods, East King Father and West King Mother, practicing the Dao of Yin and Yang, endowing nature with stones, and breaking the void;

Xun position Mingzhi Mountain, with the Living Dead Tomb on the mountain, also known as Zhan Biyun's Bamboo-Hiding Place, practicing Pure Yang, Wood Method, Earth Method, Wind Method, Corpse Dissolution, Soul Returning, and Corpse Raising;

Kan position Yaoguang Mountain, with Zhuoxing Pool on the top of the mountain, enshrining Guan Yinzi, practicing building observation and mountain gazing;

Gen position Moya Mountain, with the Yan Jiao Hall on the mountain, enshrining the Jade Pure Primordial Ancestor, and also the place for storing books in the sect, practicing talismans, character interpretation, and summoning spirits and driving ghosts;

Kun position White Tiger Mountain, with the Correction Mansion on the mountain, practicing metal method, weapons, array diagrams, and puppet mechanisms;

Zhen position Shuji Mountain, with the Nine Heavens Yingyuan Mansion on the mountain, enshrining the Nine Heavens Yingyuan Thunder Sound Universal Transformation Heavenly Venerable, practicing thunder method, breaking delusion, and praying to gods;

Li position Danxia Mountain, with an alchemy well connected to the underground fire spring, enshrining the Tai Pure Moral Ancestor, practicing fire method and external alchemy;

Dui position Baicao Mountain, with Qingbai Lake on the top of the mountain, planting thousands of acres of lotus flowers, forming a world of its own, enshrining the Upper Pure Lingbao Ancestor, practicing array diagrams, water method, and void method.

These eight mountains have all produced immortals, either heavenly immortals, earthly immortals, scattered immortals, or corpse-dissolution immortals, each with Dharma lineages passed down, so they are called the eight major veins.

In addition, the sect also has the Du Juan Valley to the southeast and the Ni Mountain to the northeast for practicing the arts of Yellow Emperor-Qi medicine; to the north is the Chenglu Valley, for practicing the Dao of Yin-Form Refining; to the northwest is the Toujian Mountain, for practicing Flying Sword Arts and Dharma Sword Arts; to the northeast is the Mingjing Stone Forest, for practicing the arts of Pacing the Dipper and Body Sword Arts; to the southwest is the Shouyin Mountain, for practicing the Dao of Weaving Clouds and Playing with Mists; and to the south is the Mengmeng Mountain, for practicing curse arts and formula arts. There are many such kinds, and I shall not list them all.

In addition, I don't know how many Daoist masters are seeking the ancient and innovating in the mountain gullies. Maybe in a few years, new Dharma lineages will appear in the world, which is not yet known."

He Bingkun looked proud and continued: "As Jihu said, our sect takes internal alchemy as the foundation and practices others. As the first great Dao of ancient and modern times, internal alchemy pays attention to the refining of essence, Qi, and spirit, divided into five great realms.

The first realm is called Qi Refining, mainly eating Qi into the body, tempering the physical body, and opening up the human body's major orifices and acupoints. Just eating Qi has methods such as contemplation, sitting and forgetting, and body bending, each family is different. After eating Qi into the body, spiritual Qi is used to temper the physical body, also known as cutting hair and washing marrow, removing the lead and flowers of the body, leaving only a clear and spiritual body, and then opening the house and opening the mansion.

Internal alchemy calls the human nose orifice, throat orifice, and ear orifice as thunder house, cloud house, and wind house. After opening the three houses, store the corresponding spirituality, and then hum thunder, exhale into clouds, and ears move to summon wind. The three orifices move together, and rain arrives in an instant.

It also calls the five internal organs of heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney as five mansions, corresponding to the five elements of fire, wood, earth, metal, and water. After opening the mansion, incorporate the essence of heaven and earth, and you can respond to the five elements and command the original Qi.

The "Spiritual Pivot Classic" says: The five internal organs are where the spirit, blood, Qi, soul, and soul are hidden. The five internal organs are the foundation of the human body, so opening the mansion can store Qi and essence, and can also prolong life.

Opening the three houses and five mansions has methods such as storing gods, taking food, and medicinal baths, and the order of opening is also different for each family. Look at me, the practice method requires opening the three houses first and then opening the five mansions. To this day, not a single mansion has been formed, while Jihu first opened the cloud house, then opened the wood mansion, and now is about to open the water mansion.

After the five mansions are opened, the essence and Qi of the five elements of the human body rise from the five mansions and converge in one place, opening a small world of the human body, which is the Jiang Palace. This small world is on the side of the heart mansion, illuminated by blood Qi and appearing dark red, hence the name.

This barrier is a watershed, and it also has a name, called Chong Palace.

And the Jiang Palace is the residence of the Nascent Soul in the future, so this move is also called the Five Qi Facing the Origin.

Cultivating to the Five Qi Facing the Origin is the perfection of the Qi Refining realm. The realm of Qi Refining, in a word, is to hide Qi in the body, refine essence and Qi together, and man and nature are one."

He Bingkun spoke for a long time, his mouth was dry, and he drank a few more cups of cold wine.

Feng Jihu continued: "Yunqi, do you know that our Mount Sanqing has a total of 150,000 people including masters, disciples, and registered disciples, and those who open the mansion are no more than 100,000.

"That is to say, in this mountain, there are always 50,000 people coming and going, entering and leaving, who will never enter the gate of the Great Dao in their lives. These people either grow old in this Ten Thousand Households Peak, doing some sweeping and kitchen help in addition to eating Qi, or voluntarily leave the mountain, can be a hero, or can be registered in a Daoist temple, which is no longer hungry for a lifetime, which is not a bad thing for those with low aspirations, or can be called a beautiful thing!

"Those who are lucky enough to open the mansion and still think about going further are naturally running towards the Five Qi Facing the Origin, but how many people can really walk past it in the end?

"About 10,000 people.

"Do you hear me? From opening one mansion to opening five mansions, 90% of people are stuck.

"Is there anyone who forcibly ascends to the next realm without opening the five mansions, and goes to smelt Gangsha? Yes, but that is what side-door people or demonic people do, which is absolutely not allowed in our Mount Sanqing.

"The orthodox path of the Daoist sect, although it is an orthodox path and a smooth path, is also a long path, a long path, and it is sailing against the current. If you don't advance, you will retreat. Many people regret that their practice was not hard enough when their lifespan was exhausted, so Yunqi, time is like a knife, cutting people old. We practitioners should cherish time the most and don't waste it."

At this point, Feng Jihu sighed, looking at the rising bright moon, which was cold and clear, but his expression was slightly trance,

"The moon is cold and the sun is warm, coming to boil away human life. The Qi Refining realm alone is already this difficult; ahead, there are still the four great realms of Life-Embedded, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Dao Integration before one can even catch a glimpse of the immortal sound. This Dao of becoming an immortal is further divided into Heavenly Immortal, Earthly Immortal, Corpse-Dissection Immortal, and Scattered Immortal. A Heavenly Immortal is hard to become, an Earthly Immortal is hard to advance to, a Corpse Immortal is hard to pass, and a Scattered Immortal is hard to transcend. I often ponder this deeply, yet every time I ponder, I feel even more the difficulty of becoming an immortal. Sometimes, in the depths of night when I am despondent, I cannot help but feel shaken and confused: is there truly a Golden Immortal above the Heavenly Immortal, let alone the Great Luo Dao Fruit or the Hunyuan Extreme Realm?"

He Bingkun snorted coldly when he heard this, like a thunder on dry land, exploding in people's ears. Feng Jihu was startled and scolded with a smile: "You kid, I am just feeling, and I haven't lost my Dao heart, no need to startle me with thunder sound."

"Yunqi hasn't entered the sect yet, why are you saying these things."

Feng Jihu smiled when he heard this, and asked Yunqi: "Yunqi, the path of practice is long, and the end is far away and unreachable. Do you really believe that someone can cultivate to the extreme, transcend life and death, and live as long as heaven and earth?"

Cheng Yunqi listened quietly, and said softly: "Two Daoist brothers, in Yunqi's shallow opinion, the great thousand worlds have everything. The mayfly doesn't know the life of the cicada, the cicada doesn't know the life of the turtle, and outside the turtle, there are thousand-year cypresses and ten-thousand-year pines. The mayfly doesn't know the pine, which doesn't mean there is no pine in the world."

"Hahahaha", the two laughed loudly when they heard this.

He Bingkun pointed at Feng Jihu, "Still Yunqi's Dao heart is firm. Jihu, have you heard clearly? Yunqi said you are a mayfly in the depression!"

Feng Jihu shook his head repeatedly, already drunk in his eyes, "We are all pines and cypresses!"

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(End of this chapter) ===== CHAPTER 6 =====