Chapter 454: Ancestor's Grandeur

The Huashan Sect was currently a scene of prosperity, at least that was how it appeared while Xu Jia was present.

Throughout the Huashan Sect, including the various Buddhist temples and Daoist monasteries, there were a total of three hundred and twenty-seven people who held legitimate monk or Daoist ordination certificates and practiced orthodox Buddhism or Daoism; as for those who had practiced properly before, there were barely eighty-three.

But now, the Ancestor had shown great mercy and bestowed upon the Huashan Sect the foundational martial art "Huashan White Ape Technique." It was an extremely exquisite light-body technique; by mastering the corresponding breathing rhythm and movement essentials, one could walk as if flying while ascending or descending the mountain, possessing enduring stamina. Furthermore, it could work from the outside in, generating Postnatal True Qi from the soles of the feet.

There was also the Huashan Two Forms Sword, simple and easy to learn, with an accessible entry. This sword formula could also cultivate True Qi. With two strands of True Qi, one in the hand, it traveled through the Hand Three Yang and Hand Three Yang Meridians, which was the Small Heavenly Circuit of the upper meridians.

One strand was in the foot, traveling through the Foot Three Yin and Foot Three Yang Meridians, which was the Small Heavenly Circuit of the lower meridians.

When the two combined, one could complete the cultivation of the Twelve Main Meridians. Once the main meridians were fully cultivated and, at a deeper level, integrated and connected, one could thoroughly open the Ren and Du Meridians, thereby refining the Great Heavenly Circuit and breaking through to the Innate Realm.

At that point, one could also practice the Huashan Innate Technique. If one stood out, one could even be taught the Innate Purple Cloud True Qi or the Chen Tuan Sleeping Technique. These three were all cultivation formulas sufficient for the Innate Realm, and even for refining the Golden Core at the Earth Immortal level.

If it were just this, it would be enough; they only felt that the Ancestor was compassionate and the Huashan Sect was destined to flourish.

But when Xu Jia even had Huo Can'er distribute one Purple Cloud Pill—a foundational spirit pill—to each person, they completely pledged their hearts to the Huashan Sect.

Even if some felt this Ancestor was not a true Ancestor, felt the two Huashan elders were forgetting their roots, or felt the methods used to clear out those Outer Path heretics were cruel and disregarded all sentiment—after all, some disciples had friends who had also become Outer Path heretics, though they never felt it was their own willing degradation, and some even believed there were many hypocrites among the righteous path and true loyalty among the Outer Path heretics...

Now that they had received the spirit pills and refined them, their Dharma Power was pure, their Daoist Practice had improved, and the pills even served to heal old wounds, clear internal toxins, and cleanse the marrow.

Since then, they felt: "Those Outer Path heretics truly deserved to die; they were hindering my progress."

If anyone asked, they would say: "The past squalor is not worth mentioning; now I realize that outsiders are outsiders after all, and it is better to be with one's own people."

After all, such a spirit pill, if it were to circulate even slightly among loose cultivators and Outer Path heretics in the outside world, would cause fathers to kill sons, sons to murder fathers, couples to turn against each other, and masters and disciples to become enemies!

How many Sun God Real Persons in the outside world had such profound methods and were willing to open a furnace to refine pills for low-level disciples like them? And how many could gather spirit herbs from the Blessed Land and Cave Heaven of ancient female Immortals to refine spirit pills?

And how many could gather massive amounts of Purple Qi from the East and raise a spirit fungus, transforming a Spirit Horse into a Zhilong?

Or possess such an Alchemical Furnace and several types of heavenly spirit fires? Although Xu Jia did not think much of it and could refine three thousand six hundred pills in one go, if an Earth Immortal were to do it, they might have to refine for three to five years to produce eight or nine pills, and they would still have to prioritize their own disciples, followers, friends, and family.

Those who did not practice, upon receiving such Immortal Pills, even drew the covetousness of disciples who were already practicing: "Why give such good things to mortals? Do they even understand what they are eating?"

If not for the fear of the Ancestor's orders, combined with the new sect rules—that fellow disciples must not kill each other, must not scheme against each other, and even had to swear extremely vicious oaths—many of the mortal disciples' pills would likely have been stolen that very night.

But soon, these "mortal disciples" also understood the use of the spirit pills.

They could not digest them if they swallowed them, so they just held them in their mouths, using their saliva to slowly refine them, then practiced their arts; it was truly one day of practice equaling a hundred days of practice.

Among the mortals, there were seventy or eighty-year-old Buddhist scripture masters and Daoist alchemy masters who did not cultivate life, only nature, reciting scriptures and performing repentance, sitting in meditation. Although they had practiced health preservation, their blood and marrow were gradually drying up. After consuming the pills, they actually began to regenerate blood, and their physical vitality and life force were awakened.

Those who dealt with Buddhist and Daoist scriptures year-round, although they had never practiced properly, did not need anyone to point out the various key points; as long as they understood the meaning of the classics, there was nothing they did not grasp.

Now, there was already a hundred-year-old Zen master who had achieved the Innate Realm in seven days, and an eighty-nine-year-old alchemy master who had achieved the Innate Realm in three days. Although they had the help of the pills, achieving it so quickly starting at such an old age inspired a large number of ordinary Huashan Sect disciples, and even disciples who had already reached the Innate Qi Refiner realm went to ask them about Zen principles and Daoist philosophy.

When Huo Can'er heard that two mortal old men had such ability, he ordered them to study the three Innate cultivation formulas on their own.

The old Daoist had some insight and believed that since the Ancestor was present, he should naturally practice the Huashan Innate Technique created by the Ancestor; although everyone could learn it, it did not mean it was inferior to the Purple Cloud True Qi or the Chen Tuan Sleeping Technique.

As for the old monk, he had originally practiced Zen and meditation to cultivate the spirit and had long since attained a certain Buddhist realm, so he learned the Chen Tuan Sleeping Technique, continuing to gather his life force, comprehending the Nirvana of withering and flourishing, appearing to sleep yet not sleeping, his spirit connecting with the Dharma Realm, listening to the Buddhist wonders within the Pure Land of the Dharma Realm.

Xu Jia's attitude toward this was also inclusive; after all, they were also part of the Huashan Sect.

It was just that the disciples all felt that the Huashan Sect was the orthodox lineage of the Daoist school, so how did some monks get mixed in? They felt a subtle sense of exclusion toward them.

More importantly, in this cleanup of the Outer Path heretics, the most killed were those hiding in Buddhist temples, where there were many demonic evildoers; they felt there were many unorthodox monks and few orthodox ones.

Even if this hundred-year-old Zen master was truly devoted to the Buddha, he might not necessarily receive respect.

Xu Jia did not pay attention to these trifles; instead, he hoped that the Buddhist lineage could also grow, giving the Daoist lineage a sense of pressure, although he himself had not made a clear statement, such as passing on the Buddhist heritage obtained from Baiyun Chanshi or the Outer Path Buddhism of the Western Region Golden Buddha Kingdom to them.

If, while possessing the three great legacies of Ancestor Chen Tuan, Dutian Liehuo Zushi, and Xu Jia, they could still be surpassed by the Buddhist school, then this Huashan Sect would truly have exhausted its destiny.

Apart from these two old monks and old Daoists who had suddenly achieved the Innate Realm, most of the other ordinary disciples were actually barely at the level of Postnatal Martial Artists.

Daoists, monks, and those of the Miscellaneous School who were neither monk nor Daoist and dressed as laypeople were arranged in columns on the square outside the main hall of Jade Maiden Peak of the Huashan Sect.

Xu Jia carried two swords on his back, one Weiji Immortal Sword and one Dutian Liehuo Sword, holding a spirit treasure Ruyi in his hand, sitting upon the Ten Thousand Crow Fire Cloud transformed from the Ten Thousand Crow Pot.

The Dutian Fierce Fire Array Flags were hidden in the void, serving as the Huashan Sect's mountain-protecting array.

Huo Can'er transformed into a young boy to attend to him.

Below were the two Outer Path Earth Immortals, the two Huashan elders, serving as the left and right Protectors.

Next were Duan Ziyu, Huang Yi, Zuigai, and Shan Ren.

Duan Ziyu was the True Transmission Disciple and stood in a separate column.

Huang Yi was of the Daoist lineage, Shan Ren was of the Buddhist lineage, and Zuigai was implicitly of the Miscellaneous School and Outer Path lineage.

Following them were the rest of the ordinary disciples and Outer Disciples of the Huashan Sect, arranged by seniority.

It was quite orderly.

(End of chapter)