Chapter 170 To Believe Firmly, Even Until Now (2/2)

As written in the Daoist scriptures, ‘regulate the breathing, out with the old and in with the new, imitate the hanging of the bear and the stretching of the bird, for the sake of life only; this is the guiding technique of this undertaking, the art of self-cultivation, the kind of people like ancestor Peng and the Changchun people love.1”

Therefore, Ludi zhenxian are not truly the divine celestials or Buddhas since they are still confined to the level of practicing their Qi and honing their form. They could only extend their lifespan and not live for eternity. To be able to extend 800 years is only an estimated numbered, if the source of it is studied, it would probably be from the phrase ‘the kind of people like ancestor Peng and the Changchun people love’. Ancestor Peng was the man of legends and not of celestials or Buddhas. Shen Lian had heard the legend of this man before in his previous life, the one thing that was most memorable was that this person had lived 800 years.

Actually, many huandan cultivators did not live till 800, either they had already powang, or that they were trapped in state and could not find a way out, finally wasting their divine Qi and died.

Just like how the ordinary human could rarely live till they die in bed.

Song Qiyi saw the leisure expression of Shen Lian and really admired him. Even though he was under Lu Jiuyan’s tutorage, but to reach huandan this point, without absolute assurance, even Lu Jiuyan could not directly send him to venture through it.

Ultimately, it could be said that all that Shen Lian needed is a quiet place to retreat for confinement, with the coming together of essence and spirit to thoroughly enter the huandan state.

As for Shen Lian’s divine qi, it looked like that he had completely opened his closed orifices, there was no obstacles at all.

The scary part was that even when he already had one feet in, he was still able to have one feet staying outside. To be able to receive and dispatch so freely, this calm state of mind was truly scary than him going into huandan.

He saw Song Qingyi’s facial expression and Shen Lian leisurely walked over. He patted him on the shoulder and sad slowly, ”Don’t worry, that day will come for you.”

Song Qigyi sighed, ”I hope so, now that I’ve seen you today, I am afraid I cannot let my emotions recover.”

Shen Lian answered with a smile, ”Do not be this way, I ravenously breakthrough, now all I want is to say my goodbyes to you all.”

Song Qingyi was confused as he said, ”Since you could restrain yourself and be struck at a junction point, why not directly return to Qingxuan there for huandan? No one would disturb you.”

Shen Lian answered, ”I would still need to return to the sect but not now. Furthermore, I am waiting for my own huandan. There would be an uproar of abstruse noise from the heaven and earth, disturbing the five elements and the yin and yang during the sympathetic of gods and humans. How could the ordinary cause such disturbance?”

Song Qiyi knew what Shen Lian said had its reasons. To be able to achieve huandan by oneself means that those who entered Dao, unlike the demons who undergoes transformation and the divine thunder trials, tallying with the abstruse of the heavens and earth, during the moment of huandan and sympathetic of gods and humans where one is temporarily blended with the heaven and earth. It cannot be overstated that that time would be when the huandan cultivator is most powerful before having achieved longevity. That temporary understanding of the state where man is one with the heaven was also one of the rarer experience. Therefore, those who used external alchemy and celestial elixir does not produce their own ‘dao’, which could not tally with the abstruse of heaven and earth. Not only there is danger during huandan but there is a lacking of that understanding, that is why the huandan would stop at the fifth turn.

The reason why using the top grade celestial elixir is able to help people to achieve the seventh turn, eighth turn and even the ninth turn, was because there is some true meaning of Dao in it which the cultivators could directly transform for their own usage.

This time, Xiuqi came over and heard that Shen Lian wanted to seek a breakthrough. He was happy but at the same time, he was still quite reluctant to part with him. Song Qingyi was like the caring brother and Shen Lian was that teacher, the way he conducted himself was something that was worth learning from Shen Lian. Furthermore, he still remembered the time that his life was saved by Shen Lian.

Luckily, since everyone was a cultivator, there was not too much sentimental. Furthermore, if everything went well for Shen Lian, he could succeed with his huandan and they could meet again in the future.

But when they heard Shen Lian said his goodbyes with no restrained, the song was prolonged without a break, it went like this:

”Like the determined warrior that searched for the treasure sword for twenty years, a few rounds of leaves falling and new branches sprouting, he accidentally watched the blossoming peach blossom, from that moment on till now he did not hesitate anymore.2” [2]

It had been twenty years since he came to this universe.

Translator’s Notes:[1] Took reference from original poem wrote thirty years instead of twenty years as the author did. This was written by the fifth generation monk, Lingyun Zhiqin, of the late Tang dynasty. (三十年来寻剑客)