Chapter 241: Pond Fish and Well Frog

The involution within the Form Realm is very severe; dragons and phoenixes are merely ordinary beings of the Form Realm, possessing no particularly sacred status.

Leaping the Dragon Gate is equivalent to the college entrance exam for dragon-kind, but it does not directly "assign a job."

It is equivalent to a Seventh Rank Dragon Lord, but without a corresponding Seventh Rank fief, unless one operates one themselves, managing it from nothing to something.

Because it is so involutionary, those in the Heavenly Court without foundations will consider the "Three Supports and One Aid," being sent down to the grassroots of the Desire Realm; the Boundless Yanfu World also has great potential.

Ao Jin's father was like this; after leaping the Dragon Gate, he went to the grassroots, and his whole family followed, scattering into various Desire Realms.

Managing a Blessed Land, revitalizing the Desire Realm, and finally ascending with the entire realm, crossing the level of the whole world from the Desire Realm into the Form Realm.

However, this requires many, many, many years of time.

Xu Jia asked, "Why is your father working so hard?"

"Because he wants to climb from the Form Realm to the Formless Realm," Ao Jin said. "The Formless Realm is the true Heavenly Court immortal realm. The Form Realm can only be considered the Earth Immortal Realm; everyone's lifespan still has an end, there are still Calamities, and one can still be demoted to the lower realms for making mistakes."

"Only upon reaching the Formless Realm is there no increase or decrease, no passing through Calamities. Some places call it a Golden Immortal, an Immortal Golden Immortal... of course, some places call it the Taiyi Dao Fruit. In any case, only after attaining the Taiyi Dao Fruit can one be considered truly transcendent."

This pet from the Shangjie, no matter what, still had a father who had crossed the Dragon Gate, and his knowledge was mostly within the Form Realm; he could be considered to have seen the world within the Desire Realm.

Xu Jia felt this little fellow was very suitable to be a mascot, and he remembered that Wufeng Shizhe had been demoted into a black fish at Little Mao Mountain. Little Mao Mountain was in the Dexing territory; when the time was right, he would have to go find him, lest he be eaten by a big fish or caught by a bird.

Xu Jia's physical body returned to its position, and Ao Jin had already arrived at the door. He was a little doll carved from pink jade, but he was barefoot, holding a large carp in his hands, looking like a New Year picture doll.

"What are you holding?"

"My true form, Heavenly Master. It is very difficult for my true form to take shape; right now, this is my Primordial Spirit gathering Qi to form a shape."

"Does the master have a pond in the house?"

"If there is no pond, any large vat will do," Ao Jin said pitifully.

"There happens to be a Ming Tang in the house, Four Waters Returning to the Hall, and there is a pond, but the water is shallow."

"That does not matter, I can become smaller."

The Dragon Carp from the Shangjie was not an exotic species of mortal carp; it was actually a manifestation of luck.

"Then stay temporarily in the small pond. Once I pass you the method, you can return to the Xin River Water Mansion and personally reclaim your foundation."

Ao Jin entered the mansion, extremely Joyous, and placed his true form into the Ming Tang pond, transforming from a three-foot-long large carp into a small carp two fingers long.

The few red carp that Xu Jia had originally bought in the pond all fled one after another, not daring to approach.

At the same time, the Feng Shui of the entire house became activated.

"You actually have this kind of ability to merge with the situation of my house."

"Heavenly Master, Feng Shui is about hiding wind and gathering water; it is also a prerequisite for a Blessed Land and Cave Heaven. The little one cultivates the Innate Divine Dao and can create a Blessed Land from nothing. Isn't it normal to activate the Feng Shui situation?"

The Feng Shui in the house had long since condensed into a Daochang. Viewed from the Dharma Realm, it was no different from a temple; both worshipped "Gods and Buddhas." The God was Xu Jia, and the Buddha was his old mother.

This was the trend of human cultivation.

It was just that this was, after all, only a house, a small Feng Shui trend; it was a Blessed Field, not a Blessed Land.

After this little fellow entered the house, it faintly seemed to isolate itself from the outside, circulating internally, giving birth to a separate plane in the Dharma Realm, using the house and courtyard as the core to construct a tiny Blessed Land and Cave Heaven.

In other words, this house changed from originally gathering "Vitality" to gathering the Spirit Machine of heaven and earth, which was the same effect as a "Gathering Spirit Array" in novels.

After Ao Jin exerted his power, he looked up at Xu Jia: "Master, actually, that Water Mansion is not worth keeping, but that Rao Pearl must be taken back. It is a treasure of the Blessed Land. If Master constructs a Daochang and a Blessed Land at Sanqing Mountain, with this Rao Pearl, and then has disciples to manage it, the weather will be favorable for a hundred miles around."

Xu Jia patted his head: "That Water Mansion cannot be abandoned. My Daochang has not been built yet, so there is no need to be anxious. You cultivate the Water Virtue Method, so I will pass the water method to you."

Among the many minor methods of Xu Jia's past life, the water methods were considered proficient: Yuan Emperor Water Method, Meishan Water Method, Lushan Water Method...

Ao Jin was originally of the water-attribute deity lineage. Although he was previously just a pet, he only cultivated Water Virtue and combed the Water Veins, not having cultivated "Magic Tools." But these minor methods required one to cultivate morality first before they could be used freely.

With a little guidance from Xu Jia, Ao Jin had already mastered them.

The methods of all methods were initially liturgical rituals for praying and eliminating disasters. They all required worshipping gods, but Ao Jin was a god himself, so many incantations and rituals were omitted.

He was also a Virtuous Deity; using water to resolve disasters and calamities was even more of an instinct.

He soon learned many White Witch Water Methods such as using water to dispel evil, exorcise, refine, heal, and divine.

However, when Xu Jia passed him the Black Witch Water Method—using water to cast Gu, using water to refine evil, and the various Chang spirits of water—he just could not learn them.

In other words, this Ao Jin was purely a "support," and a soft support at that.

"If you cannot learn these, how will you protect the Dao?"

"In the water, I naturally have the ability to control water. If the Blessed Land is not opened from the inside, outsiders cannot find it. The disciple was deceived by those two demons and opened the Blessed Land, which is why they seized the opportunity to occupy my Water Mansion," Ao Jin said with a wronged and pitiful look.

"Originally, by intercepting creation, the disciple could also use the Rao Pearl to transform aquatic tribes into monsters, but the disciple was unwilling to do so. Firstly, it is Bamia, and secondly, it consumes creation, which is disadvantageous to the Blessed Land."

"As a result, what I was reluctant to use, he used recklessly. Those shrimp soldiers and crab generals, clam spirits and fish maidens, were all transformed by him like that."

Tsk tsk, the bicycle you were reluctant to ride is being pedaled standing up by someone else; a cuckolded victim.

"Since you cannot learn the evil water methods, now go reclaim your foundation."

Ao Jin thought: "Does Master know the Thunder Law? Our Dragon Carp clan, although belonging to the harmless kind among the Dragon Race, still has a talent for the Thunder Law if we follow the orthodox Water Virtue path."

Xu Jia shook his head: "My Thunder Law is Fire Thunder, which your water suppresses the most." However, Xu Jia thought of another method, which was the "Basket." Guanyin had a Fish Basket, and Lan Caihe had a "Flower Basket," both of which had the ability to restrain aquatic tribes.

Lan Caihe's Flower Basket required picking bamboo, willow, vine, and hemp to weave into a basket, then picking a hundred flowers to refine on the third day of the third lunar month. Speaking of which, it was actually a flower basket like that of the Scattering Flower Heavenly Maiden.

However, Lan Caihe's main merit was "giving medicine," so it had to be the flowers of a hundred medicines, categorized by the four seasons and solar terms.

The Fish Basket Magic Tool of Fish Basket Guanyin did not have so many requirements. One only needed to find a statue of Fish Basket Guanyin, offer an old fish basket to it, and recite the Guanyin Heart Mantra. Doing so ten thousand times would be efficacious, and one hundred thousand times would make it a Magic Tool.

But Xu Jia did not want this boy to enter the Buddhist gate. Thinking back and forth, he finally remembered a "Curse Fish Method" from the hunting methods in the Meishan methods.

This was a technique for Meishan Water Masters to cast nets and drive fish, which needed to be combined with medicine, incantations, and rituals, divided into two methods: "Gather Fish Method" and "Dizzy Fish Method."

The Gather Fish Method was equivalent to baiting a spot, which could attract aquatic tribes to gather together. Then, with the Dizzy Fish Method, the fish would become confused, as if they had encountered a Ghost Beating Wall, unable to escape, and could be caught in one net.

Xu Jia immediately passed this Curse Fish Method to Ao Jin. Ao Jin learned it quickly. The Dragon Race naturally had the instinct to drive aquatic tribes, but the Dragon Carp's status was ordinary, and he was not good at fighting techniques; he was just like a Magikarp in Pokémon—other than Splash, he had no other abilities.

After learning this method, Xu Jia also granted him the Capture Water Essence Talisman from the Register methods.

Once Ao Jin obtained this talisman, it was truly a perfect match for him, possessing even more power than those of Qiu Jinsha or Jingchi.

"Many thanks, Master! Many thanks, Master!"

Xu Jia waved his hand: "During this time, you must practice and study diligently. This Heavenly Emperor Relic Jade, I will temporarily lend it to you for contemplation and absorption. Added to your original foundation, how much certainty do you have that you can reclaim the Water Mansion?"

"Master, when the water of the Xin River is clear, it draws near to me; when the water of the Xin River is turbid, it despises me. Now that the clear and turbid are divided, I fear I cannot defeat him."

"That is no matter. These two demons have invited me to perform a rite to deliver the ghosts in the water. I shall preside over the Jiao Ritual, at which time you shall come out to cry injustice and expose the two of them. Only then can I preside over the matter and give you a chance to engage in a public duel of Dharma Power with him."

Ao Jin was deeply moved upon hearing this and said to himself, "The little one knew that only by following Master would there be a path to the Dao."

Afterwards, he marveled at the dragon-shaped Jade Ring that Xu Jia had brought out. He said, "This Heavenly Emperor Relic Jade is actually a ritual vessel. I once saw a grand ceremony in the Immortal Pond; whenever a new Emperor took office, there would be jade of this kind cast down from above the nine heavens into the Desire Realm. Also cast down were Golden Slips."

"Whether it is the Jade Ring or the Golden Slip, they are both treasures. This disciple has only seen them in the hands of those Fortune Gods."

"The specification of this Jade Ring in Master's hand is much higher than the Fifth-Rank Imperial Lord casting-jade I have seen; perhaps it was cast down by an Emperor of the Third Rank or higher."

Xu Jia said, "A Huang Zhenren in the underworld told me this was polished from jade stone from Kunlun Mountain in the Great Luo Heaven. It is quite extraordinary!"

Ao Jin became excited: "I originally thought it was an Imperial Jade that had fallen from the Formless Realm; I did not expect it to be an object from the Great Luo Heaven. Even if it is not from the Great Luo Heaven, it must have fallen from the Three Pure Heavens. The Immortals and Gods in these four heavens all possess vast Divine Abilities. That Master could obtain this jade shows that your fortune is prosperous, comparable to a Fortune God."

"How could this little god be worthy of using such a treasure to cultivate..."

Xu Jia did not feel that this Relic Jade had anything particularly powerful about it; it felt like a luxury item, all blown out of proportion. However, it was indeed an excellent auxiliary treasure for cultivation to purify Dharma Power, though it could not be considered very miraculous.

Thinking about it, if it were truly a great treasure, it would not be used as an object to be cast down to the lower realm during a ceremony; it would be a pity to lose it.

Xu Jia truly had the mindset of an emperor using a golden hoe.

However, he did not reveal his thoughts: "I see that the three Flood Dragons of gold, silver, and copper intend to offer this treasure to the old dragon of Poyang. The old dragon of Poyang could use this to repair his severed tail and refine it into a Dragon Pearl; perhaps it will be of use to you."

Xu Jia had even let Chang Yu swallow it for a period of time, only for Chang Yu to face the Five Hundred Year Earth Immortal Tribulation upon coming out.

"Kunlun Mountain is the ancestral vein of all mountains and the home of all gods. Kunlun Jade is the essence of Kunlun Mountain, which is to say, the essence of the ancestral vein. We of the Dragon Race have always regarded Kunlun Mountain as the Ancestral Dragon, and all others are but branch veins. Since this jade is in the shape of a dragon, it can naturally gather the Earth Treasure..."

"Indeed, this is precisely the Dexing Earth Treasure. No wonder the mineral resources under Dexing are so abundant."

"The Water Virtue Method that this disciple cultivates is a method of transforming into a dragon through Water Virtue. It requires one to cultivate and verify the Five Virtues in the body of a dragon carp, and to manifest five scales of a true dragon. Having governed the Water Mansion in the Xin River for many years, this disciple's first dragon scale is about to be generated. If it succeeds, this disciple will also have the cultivation of an Earth Immortal, and breaking through from a Ninth-Rank Water God to the Eighth Rank will not be difficult."

"With the help of this Kunlun Dragon Jade, this disciple's first Water Virtue Dragon Scale will surely be born very soon."

"About how long will it take?"

"About ten days will suffice." There was light in Ao Jin's eyes: "Master, after this disciple cultivates the first dragon scale, those shrimp soldiers and crab generals will regard this disciple as a descendant of the true dragon and will no longer listen to them."

"Then cultivate with peace of mind," Xu Jia said. "After you succeed, can you contact your old father?"

Xu Jia had originally intended to go to Poyang alone, but now that he had discovered Ao Jin, and this Ao Jin had an old father who was a dragon transformed in the Shangjie, it would be best to be able to pull in external aid.

"Father King is overseas," Ao Jin said. "He is cultivating the Sea Eye. I do not know if he is in the East Sea or the South Sea... or some other sea." He said with some embarrassment: "Father King was originally in the Immortal Pond, producing eggs with the Mother Queen once a year, producing about twenty thousand brothers and sisters like me each time... We are actually not familiar with Father King."

"We originally did not want to come to the lower realm. Staying in the Immortal Pond was so comfortable, with no worries about food or drink. Father King insisted on bringing all nine generations of descendants down to the lower realm."

Ao Jin sighed: "Father King leaped over the Dragon Gate for the sake of freedom, but we actually do not much want this kind of freedom in the lower realm. The Immortal Pond has immortal children specifically to feed us, and we could occasionally hear the Immortals expounding the Dharma."

Xu Jia thought to himself: "Raising fish is definitely for the sake of eating them; I fear your old father also has his own hidden bitterness."

However, fish in a pond and frogs in a well—those with long-term vision are ultimately the minority. To become a dragon is simply very difficult for others to understand.

Xu Jia had thought Ao Jin was a good servant boy, but it turned out he was one who wanted to rely on others wholeheartedly; he was indeed a "talent of a servant boy."

Perhaps when he was in the pond, what he envied most was who had been enlightened by an Immortal and chosen as a servant boy.

Xu Jia realized this and no longer held higher expectations for him. Instead, he became more curious about his old father. If he could get to know him, perhaps he could gain a clearer understanding of the Form Realm, so as to prepare for future ascension, or perhaps stay in the Desire Realm for longer-term development and accumulate a foundation.

After settling Ao Jin, on the night of the second day, that Yuan Jiangjun came ashore in person, carrying three dou of gold sand, ten hu of pearls, and five boxes of various gemstones and jade.

But upon arriving at Xu Fu, his expression suddenly turned ugly. He smelled the scent of Ao Jin and immediately returned to the Water Mansion, shouting to Guiyu Po: "The matter is ruined! We did not pull up the roots when we cut the grass; the original owner of the Water Mansion has hooked up with that Lingbao Heavenly Master!"

Guiyu Po was also startled upon hearing this; she was still using the Rao Pearl to cultivate.

"I fear this foundation will have to be returned with both hands, Madam. Otherwise, when that sword strikes, how shall we survive?"

(End of chapter)