Under One Person: The Seeker of the Dao in the Lü Family

Chapter 99 The Truth About the Patriarch's Transmission of the Dao, Ding Shian Comes to Become

Lu Qian stretched out his left hand and flicked it in the air, and the yellow-robed Taoist's whisk appeared out of thin air in his palm.

He held the whisk in front of his eyes with his left hand, and with his right hand, he brushed the three thousand white strands in front of him, his fingers weaving through the strands of white silk.

Lu Qian played with the whisk in his hand, examining the wooden handle and white silk, confirming that it was the same whisk that the yellow-robed Taoist had held earlier.

He lay on his side on the stone platform, looking up and peering through the gaps in the pine branches at the clouds drifting across the sky.

"Do not seek externally; be a sage within and a king without."

Journey to the West is a Tibetan Taoist book containing profound principles of alchemy and cultivation.

The profound meanings and plots contained within have abstract significance in the context of spiritual practice.

Sun Wukong is the "Mind Monkey," which also symbolizes the seeker of the Tao.

In the first chapter of the book, the Monkey King seeks a master. The Monkey King sets off from Flower Fruit Mountain in East Sheng Shenzhou, passes through South Zhanbuzhou, and arrives at the "Lingtai Fangcun Mountain, Xieyue Sanxing Cave" in West Niuhezhou, where Patriarch Subhuti is located.

Both "Lingtai Fangcun" and "Xieyue Sanxing" contain the character for "heart," and the monkey is the "heart-monkey."

The Mind Monkey sought the Way all the way, but in the end, it returned to the Mind.

In his heart, he saw "Subhuti Patriarch". But who is this Patriarch?

This requires discussing the role and status of the "heart".

The heart is one of the five internal organs, but it is different from the lungs, liver, kidneys, and spleen. In addition to its role as an organ, it also has the function of communicating with the mind.

The phrase "heart and mind intertwined" refers to the heart as the place where the mind and spirit meet.

The "heart" in "heart and spirit intertwined" refers to the Monkey King, also known as the "Mind Monkey." So, who is the "spirit" that the Monkey King encounters here?

That is none other than "Master Subhuti"!

This patriarch is a god. When the patriarch and the monkey mind meet, it naturally becomes a "meeting of mind and spirit".

When minds and spirits unite, the Great Way can be heard.

Under the guidance of the gods, the mind of the monkey has determined its destiny and path.

The mind is oneself, and the spirit is also oneself. Therefore, the Great Way must be sought within. If one seeks it externally, even if one travels across the three continents and spends decades, one will not find it.

When can we, with our hearts and minds in perfect harmony, inquire about the Great Dao?

The Journey to the West also explains that when the Bodhi Patriarch was teaching Sun Wukong the Daoist arts, he told him to come in the middle of the night.

Therefore, "the dead of night" is not only the time when Sun Wukong meets his ancestor, but also the moment when his heart and spirit intersect.

This is also why Lü Qian, the "traveler," met [Master Lü] and [Master Chongyang] in the dead of night.

Master Guo of Jiuding Tiesha Mountain in Northeast China is still in the [inner landscape], but Master Qiu, the [Changchun Zhenren], is nowhere to be seen at Baiyun Temple.

I saw [Lu Zu] at midnight at Da Chunyang Palace, and [Chongyang Zushi] at midnight at Chongyang Palace.

The latter two have already become "celestial immortals," and in theory, they have transcended worldly concerns. They should be like Master Qiu, the "Changchun Zhenren," whom we should never see again.

However, following the method instructed by Guo Zu, Lü Qian saw Lü Zu and Chongyang Zushi, who looked exactly like him, when he put his mind to it.

They are real, and they are fake.

The truth is that they are the inner visions of the two patriarchs; the falsehood is that they are essentially Lü Qian's "gods".

Just like the Bodhi Patriarch whom the Monkey King met in "Journey to the West," Lü Qian also met his own "god" in his own "heart."

These two "patriarchs" imparted the Great Dao to him, the "practitioner," in the dead of night.

Having figured all this out, Lü Qian lay down on the stone platform, put his arms behind his head, closed his eyes, and pretended to sleep.

"Who awakens first from the great dream? I myself know the truth of my life."

"Enough, I am still just a minor Taoist priest cultivating in the mortal realm. The path to immortality is still a long way off."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lü Qian's mind moved, and in an instant, he left the [Inner Realm].

In reality, Lü Qian, who was sitting cross-legged in the dark hall, opened his eyes. His eyes, which were flashing with golden fire, were calm and deep, as if nothing could disturb them.

A flash of golden light appeared in the dark hall. Lü Qian looked up at the statue of the patriarch in front of him, and respectfully rose to offer incense and pay homage to the patriarchs in the hall once again.

After doing all this, he sat back down on the futon like an ordinary person, watching the wisps of smoke rising from the altar, and began another day of practice.

The cultivation of extraordinary individuals is usually a gradual process of accumulation, where they eventually unleash their full potential.

For an ordinary cultivator, their combat strength will always be lacking before the age of 30 because they have not accumulated enough Qi and their life cultivation has not been honed to a certain level.

However, after the age of 30, they also reached a watershed moment in their cultivation of supernatural beings, which is also the golden period for their cultivation.

It wasn't until they reached the age of 40, after their cultivation had stabilized, that the difference between experts and ordinary people became apparent.

When he competed with Ding Shian at Shanhaiguan, he had just begun to show his talent due to his mastery of various arts. He was only in his early thirties and far from having reached the profound level of skill described in the original work when he was known as one of the "Two Heroes" alongside Na Ruhu.

At this time, Ding Shian was stronger than most of his peers in the world of supernatural beings, but he had not yet reached the point where he would later return to simplicity from the various arts.

He had not yet been seduced by Bi Yuan to join the Quanxing Sect; he remained a layman.

"In the end, it's still missing a partner."

Lu Qian closed his eyes and pondered quietly, and soon realized his own shortcomings.

Law, wealth, companion, land.

Of the four, [Dharma] he has mastered the path of Quanzhen Taoism, [Wealth] he is born into the Lü family and has no shortage of resources, [Earth] after he understands his true nature and finds tranquility, [Location] he can go anywhere.

But he still lacks a partner who can help him integrate the various paths to heaven and verify each other's paths.

Before descending the mountain, he used a cunning tactic, and with Master Yunlong giving him time to accumulate power, he perfectly stacked eight layers of force, catching Master Yunlong off guard and allowing him to take advantage of the situation to ambush his opponent.

After all, Master Yunlong's Tai Chi had reached an extremely profound level. If he truly did not seek victory or defeat, then Lü Qian could only waste time with him.

The Quanxing demons he encountered along the way were all scoundrels, and although some were outstanding, none of them could rouse him to use his full strength.

Although the Japanese in the Northeast had some tricks up their sleeves, they were pursuing a quick victory at that time. They temporarily used the "Dual-Handed Technique" to enhance their life cultivation, and various tricks came up one after another, which is why they killed chickens like minions.

The so-called "Four Madmen" have not yet risen to power, and the "Three Corpses" and "Six Thieves" have not been encountered either.

At this point, based on his cultivation level, he should still be slightly inferior to the two heroes after they had reached the Great Perfection stage, but the difference was only approximate.

"Next, we should head south."

"In the future, unless it's an emergency, it's best not to use the 'Dual-Handed Technique' when fighting with others."

"This thing is too evil. I'd better stick to discussing and fighting with others."

"It seems my only options are to go to Longhu Mountain to find one of the senior disciples of the Celestial Master, or perhaps hope to encounter some powerful, experienced cultivators?"

Lu Qian, sitting on the futon, closed his eyes and pondered, considering his future path of cultivation.

……

Just as Lü Qian closed his eyes to ponder his future, things were not peaceful at Longhu Mountain during this period.

"Ding Shian, what did you just say? I'm old and can't hear you clearly."

"The recluse Ding Shian wishes to become a disciple of Longhu Mountain and follow the Celestial Master in cultivation!"