Worshiping the Ancestor of Chaos

  Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi was buried on the east side of Maoshan, under Longmian Peak, with his back to the mountain and facing the water. The area is surrounded by dense forests of pine and cypress trees, which were specially selected by Mao Lao Dao as a feng shui treasure land, said to be auspicious for descendants.

  Yue Qing brought Liu Quan, Wei Zhan pulled Si Tu Ping, and the four of them walked along the river.

  Yue Qing explained to everyone: "The source of this river is the nine streams on the mountain over there, all of which converge here, exactly at the Jiulong Water Bureau. To the east, the Qinglong Mountain stretches far and wide, to the right, the Baitu Mountain is gentle and smooth, behind it, the Xuanwu Mountain hangs low, and in front, this Zhuque River flows with a moderate pace." He said with admiration, "If we talk about Feng Shui and geomancy, Mao Shan Pai can be said to be unparalleled in the world."

  As they walked up the mountain slope, Wei Zhong asked: "Master Uncle, is that the thatched cottage where Master Ancestor practiced swordplay in seclusion back then?"

  Everyone looked towards the side of Songlin Road, where there was a small hut built with lemongrass, consisting of two rooms inside and out. Now more than 40 or 50 years have passed, the thatched hut is still in its original state, looking as if someone has been sweeping and repairing it regularly, every single blade of grass is neatly arranged, without any disorder, not showing any signs of decay after withstanding wind and rain for decades, just like someone lives inside all the time.

  Yue Qing's eyes were slightly moist, this thatched hut was still built by him and his fellow apprentices for their master. Now the thatched hut was still there, but the master could no longer be seen. He walked slowly into the thatched hut, the tables, chairs, beds, and tea sets inside were all used by the master in those years. He picked up one thing after another, and the scenes of Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi's presence here appeared before his eyes.

  Wei Dou is quite mischievous, seeing three soft cushions by the wall, he pulls Si Tu Ping to sit down, striking a meditation pose. He even teaches Si Tu Ping how to cross his legs and breathe deeply.

  Liu Quan reached out and pulled him up: "Don't be reckless!" When he looked at Yue Qing again, his eyes were already blurry with tears, and he called out softly, "Shixiong."

  "Alright, I'm fine." Yu Qing wiped away her tears. "Let's go, I'll take you to our teacher's grave for a memorial ceremony."

  Apart from the thatched hut, in front of the tomb of Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi, the grave was also built by Lao Dao himself. On top of it is a very small temple, inside which is enshrined a jade statue of Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi, carved out of a whole piece of white jade, over three feet tall. Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi sits on a nine-headed divine turtle, wearing an eight-trigram immortal robe, holding a scepter in his left hand and a dustpan in his right hand, with a benevolent face, quietly looking down below.

  Because the temple was too small to enter, Yue Qing took out a cushion from under the statue and knelt down with Liu Quan in front of the gate. Wei Zhan and Si Tu Ping knelt behind them, and they all kowtowed together: "Master! Master! Your unfilial disciples have come to see you!" Yue Qing only said one sentence before tears filled his face and his voice choked. From a young age, he had experienced war disasters at home, escaped difficulties, and begged for food when he was rescued by Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi, who brought him to the mountain, raised and educated him. The master-disciple relationship lasted nearly three hundred years, with feelings that surpassed those of ordinary people. At this moment, what floated in his mind were scenes of his teacher explaining scriptures, helping him practice flying swords, and standing up for him when he was bullied by others during martial arts competitions. Now, his master had fallen to a state of death and destruction, and they could never meet again, leaving Yue Qing with unbearable grief.

  Yue Qing cried more and more sorrowfully, and eventually even Si Tu Ping followed suit. Liu Quan hastily comforted them from the side.

  Yue Qing smiled and pulled Liu Quan's hand, praying inside the temple: "Master, I have made a vow to revive the Five Towers and restore the prosperity of your time. I will also behead the Three Immortals and Two Elders, making them disappear completely, to avenge you! Even if they ascend to heaven, I won't give up! If I fail to fulfill these two wishes, I will never achieve enlightenment! Master, there's another thing I want to share with you - I've taken in a good disciple for you. Liu Shidi is clever and wise, with excellent qualifications and understanding. He's also kind and gentle, and will surely become a pillar of our Five Towers sect in the future. Liu Shidi, come pay your respects to Master."

  Liu Quan knocked his head on the ground according to the etiquette of paying respects: "Master, I've always heard about your great name and deeply admired you, but unfortunately never got to see you. However, from my senior brother's demeanor, I can also see your shadow. My senior brother is heroic and generous, straightforward and pure-hearted. He said he was raised by you, so you must be the same as him, or even ten times stronger! As a disciple introduced by my senior brother, I'm grateful to have entered the sect. From now on, I will definitely work hard, cultivate the Taoist arts, and together with my senior brother, make our sect prosperous!" He bowed again, feeling as if there was a gentle breeze floating above his head, like an invisible giant hand gently stroking him, not cold or gloomy, but rather warm and comforting, like a parent's caress, making his heart feel extremely at peace.

  "Junior brother, what's wrong?" Yue Qing looked at him with an unusual expression.

  "It's nothing." Liu Quan calmed down.

  Next, Yue Qing pulled over two younger brothers and had them kowtow to their ancestors. He prayed again, burned a large amount of incense in the censer, lit sea lanterns, sprinkled clear water, and offered melons and fruits.

  After the worship, the four of them did not return to Yuanshu Palace, but instead stayed in the thatched hut. Yue Qing brought out two wooden swords and taught the two younger ones sword techniques, while explaining the Taiyi True Explanation to Liu Quan. In their free time, they told stories about the ancestors of Taiyi Hunyuan.

  That night, Yue Qing and Liu Quan sat in the thatched hut, while Wei Zheng led Si Tu Ping to catch fish from the river outside, then climbed a tree to dig out bird eggs, which they roasted over an open flame.

  Yue Qing burned the incense that her master liked best, sat on the meditation cushion that her master had used in the past, and quietly practiced the Hunyuan Xuan Gong.

  At that time, the bright moon was in the sky, the night wind was blowing gently, the mountain mist was lightly sweeping over, the ancient cypress trees were rustling, and the temple flags were fluttering in the wind.

  Yu Qing gradually merged his primordial spirit with the chaos of heaven and earth, achieving a state of sitting forgetfulness.

  In a daze, he heard a familiar voice: "Disciple! Disciple!"

  "He was shocked at heart: 'Master? Are you Master? Where are you?'"

  "It's me, it's me." Indeed, Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi said, "In these years, your Taoist practice has made great progress, and I am very pleased."

  Listening to the familiar voice, Yue Qing's heart was urgent, and in the vast chaos, he searched everywhere: "Master, where are you?"

  "Disciple, don't look for me anymore. I have already merged with the universe and become one with heaven and earth. Your realm is not enough, even if I am right in front of you, you won't be able to perceive my existence."

  Yue Qing exclaimed happily: "Master, you're still alive..." As he spoke, his voice choked with emotion.

  "Foolish child! For us cultivators, what difference is there between life and death? Have these years of studying the Zhuangzi been for nothing?"

  "Yes, Master's teachings are correct." Yue Qing obediently admitted his mistake.

  Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi said: "Yue'er, I know you've been searching for the upper volume of the Tian Shu of Hunyuan Xianjing all this time."

  "Master, I'm searching for the Heavenly Book only because I want to inherit your Taoist lineage and revive the Five Peaks, with no intention of selfishly hoarding it."

  "As your master, I know you're impatient, but listen to me. My mixed yuan immortal scripture, the middle volume is the northern demon sect's ten demon scripture, the lower volume is Chen Tuan Lao Zu's Tai Yi true explanation, and the supplementary volume is a collection of various elixir refining and pill refining formulas that I've compiled. As for the upper volume, it's the Tong Xuan True Scripture."

  "Tongxuan Zhenjing? Tongxuan..." Yue Qing heard this name and felt a sense of familiarity, "I only remember that back then, my old man had a personally transmitted disciple named Wenzi, with the Daoist name Tongxuan Zhenren. Could this Tongxuan Zhenjing be...?"

  "Alright, the Zhongxian Zhenjing was indeed created by Zhongxian Zhenren. The Taoist schools in the world can be roughly divided into two factions. One faction is the heavenly immortals descending to the mortal realm, transmitting Taoist teachings among humans, such as the Eastern Green Emperor, also known as the Eastern Huasheng Emperor and the Lesser Yang Emperor. He transmitted his teachings to Zhengyang Zhenren Zhongli Quan, who then passed them on to Chunyang Zhenren Lü Dongbin. Most people in the world today who cultivate internal alchemy, condense and refine their inner elixir, and give birth to the primordial infant, are following this lineage of Taoist teachings.

  Another faction is that of the Old Master, who was reincarnated as Li Er during the Spring and Autumn period and wrote the 5,000-character Daodejing, which has been passed down through the ages. Wenshi Zhenren Yin Xi received the transmission of the Tao at Hangu Pass and established the Wenshi faction. This faction has achieved the highest level of attainment, but its teachings are too profound and abstruse, making it impossible for anyone without exceptional talent and insight to succeed. As a result, there are very few people who have been able to transmit this lineage.

  The phrase 'Wenshi is the highest, Shaoyang is the greatest' refers to the state of these two factions of Taoist teachings."

  Yue Qingdao said: "I heard that in the past, the Sanfeng Taoist of the Wudang Sect had obtained the True Scripture of the Origin of Writing. Is it true?"

  Taiyi Hunyuan Zushi said: "It's embarrassing to say, but I entered the path earlier than him, however my roots and talent were not as good as his, and my achievements were far from his. Sanfeng Daoren was the leader of both the Wenyi and Shaoyang schools, and within less than two hundred years, he achieved the Golden Immortal position and ascended to the heavenly realm, making all past and present cultivators sigh in admiration. However, because he ascended too quickly, the Wudang school's foundation became unstable, and after his ascension, his disciples lost their restraint and were unable to comprehend the profundity of the Wenyi True Classic. The transmission only lasted for two generations before it declined, and later Xingming entered the Buddhist gate to seek supplementary methods to make up for the shortcomings of the Wudang school's Taoist teachings. He also refined the Jiukou Taiyi Fangguang Sword with his fellow disciple Linglingzi, and was able to reverse the decline. After several years of recuperation, the Wudang school flourished once again. Alas, the Wutai school has now fallen into the same situation as the Wudang school back then."