In the study room of Wang Zhao's residence, "The void of Kunlun in the sea is in the northwest, the capital of the emperor. The void of Kunlun is eight hundred miles across and ten thousand ren high..." Wang Hao was fascinated by Tao Hongjing's lecture on the Classic of Mountains and Seas. Those legendary things He was fascinated by the stories of cultivating immortals and practicing Taoism, and traveling to overseas fairy mountains.
Wang Hao's eyes were bright and full of desire, "Brother Tao, do you think the rumors are credible? If I have the opportunity to go and see it, I will really have no regrets in this life."
Upon hearing this, Tao Hongjing's thoughts drifted back to the dream he had been in for a while. After regaining consciousness for a while, he smiled calmly at Wang Hao, "The world is so big and full of wonders. There will be opportunities in the future."
Tao Hongjing is only two years older than Wang Hao, and the relationship between the two is also a teacher and a friend. Wang Hao would always remember to prepare another copy for Tao Hongjing if he sent it to anyone's house. He often thought that if he had a brother, he would be as independent as Tao Hongjing, as far away as a mountain.
The next day, there was drizzle in the air, drenching the blue and white stone streets in the city. Tao Hongjing arrived at the Wang family's residence on time. Wang Hao looked like he was still awake and laughed at himself, "Brother Tao is the leader in terms of learning, and in terms of having enough to eat all day long. If I am not the leader, who else can be the leader?"
After that, he asked the maid to bring some fruit snacks, and then the lecture began. Suddenly, there was a burst of lightning and thunder, making Wang Hao shudder and cover his ears.
Tao Hongjing put down his book, and before he could say anything, there was a sound of hurried steps coming towards the study.
It was the mistress of the Wang family who came in. Mrs. Wang's clothes were also wet from the rain, and her bun was a little loose and messy. At this time, she couldn't care much anymore. She said anxiously, "You two children, come with me quickly."
There was another thunderstorm, and Tao Hongjing hurriedly asked, "Madam, what happened?"
It was unclear whether it was rain or tears on Mrs. Wang's face. Her eyes were red and she said, "There are officers and soldiers surrounding the mansion, and there is a back door through which you can go. Mr. Tao, my son is entrusted to you. I will definitely escort you out of the mansion." "After saying that, he bowed deeply. Tao Hongjing knew that this trust was as valuable as a thousand pieces of gold. Although he is not yet weak, he is already somewhat calm and self-possessed.
Wang Hao's face turned blue, obviously frightened by his mother's appearance. Tao Hongjing thought very quickly, grabbed Wang Hao, who was still dazed, and hurried in the direction Madam said, while Madam Wang stayed behind to deal with the officers and soldiers to buy them time to escape.
The main courtyard of the Wang family's residence was already buzzing with noise. The emperor's favorites Wang Daolong and Ruan Dianfu led their troops to open the gate of Situ's Mansion. It was rumored that the two men were taught by the leader of the Changsheng Bliss Sect. Little is known about them, and the Immortal Paradise Sect behind the two of them is even more elusive and mysterious. The arrival of this uninvited guest plunged the entire mansion into chaos.
When Wang Zhao saw that the door of the mansion was breached, he was filled with anger. He held a long sword and led the guards in the mansion to resist. The atmosphere was tense and chilling. Unexpectedly, before he could draw his sword, he was kicked to the ground by Ruan Dianfu. The guards were also surrounded by officers and soldiers. Seeing that he and the guards were trapped, Wang Zhao couldn't help laughing loudly, "Unexpectedly, I, Wang Zhao, will be like this."
Wang Daolong took out the imperial edict and laughed sinisterly twice, "Master Wang, accept the edict!" Wang Zhao knew that his fate was about to be over, so he had no choice but to surrender and let the officers and soldiers rush into the house and search the house.
Tao Hongjing walked through the verandah and finally reached the end of the garden. As soon as he passed through the covered flowers, he hurriedly dragged Wang Hao out before he had time to clean up the dust on his body.
But as soon as he raised his eyes, Ruan Dianfu was looking at the two teenagers with joking eyes.
"The family members of the guilty minister still want to escape?"
Tao Hongjing suppressed his dissatisfaction and said with a normal expression, "Who are you, Your Excellency? The sin of a long history will not bring harm to the family." Wang Hao looked at the officers and soldiers holding swords in front of him, felt dizzy in front of him, and collapsed to the ground.
Tao Hongjing hurriedly wanted to check, but Ruan Dianfu held his sword against his throat and did not dare to move any further.
"Who is it? You, a book boy, are worthy enough to ask my official name?"
Wang Hao's eyes were full of fear, "No...don't hurt Brother Tao..."
Tao Hongjing pointed to the sword and secretly gathered a sword energy to attack Ruan Dianfu. After nearly a year of hard training, he finally reached the fourth level of Qi refining. However, in front of Ruan Dianfu, his cultivation level was like a worm shaking a tree. He stretched out his hand and crushed the sword energy into pieces. He smiled sinisterly and said, "It turns out that there is a monk hiding in Situ's Mansion. It's just that you dare to do the axe during your Qi refining period. You really don't have a long life!" After that, he raised his head and raised his eyebrows. He stabbed Tao Hongjing in the chest with his sword.
Ruan Dianfu's casual blow blocked all his escape routes with thunderous force. Tao Hongjing felt despair, and the figure of a drunken Taoist priest suddenly appeared in his mind.
At this critical moment, a wine gourd flew over to block the blow, and then a sharp sword light instantly knocked back Ruan Dianfu. It was none other than Taoist priest Sun Youyue.
Sun Youyue said domineeringly: "Who dares to hurt my disciple!"
Ruan Dianfu flew up with his sword, preparing to hit Sun Youyue hard. However, when Sun Youyue saw this scene, the corners of his lips rose, he quickly drew talisman seals in the air with one hand, and then suddenly pushed forward. A bright light struck Ruan Dianfu, knocking him back, and a stream of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. Ruan Dianfu was horrified in his heart. He had forced himself to this point with just one blow from one hand. Could this person be a monk in the pill-forming realm?
Wang Daolong was waiting a little impatiently in the front yard, "What's going on, it takes so long for a few fish to slip through the net?" He was about to order someone to go check, but he saw the sword light rising into the sky in the backyard of Situ Mansion, and Ruan Dianfu was forced to He fled to the distance in mid-air, and he immediately rushed to support him.
Ruan Dianfu saw Sun Youyue chasing after him in mid-air. He gritted his teeth and took out a snake shadow blade from his arms. Then a black light shot backwards. Sun Youyue's eyes were stern, like a cold knife in the cold wind. He With a flick of his finger, a golden ring quickly flew out from his fingertips and hit the black light that was shooting towards him. The two magic weapons met in the air, causing a violent explosion in an instant. The surrounding trees and eaves collapsed and fell under the shock of this force, and dust was everywhere for a while.
This man has a lot of magic weapons. So far, the opponent has lost no less than four magic weapons. Sun Youyue was a little surprised. He shot another spirit-binding talisman in the direction of Ruan Dianfu. The talisman instantly turned into a net of light and covered Ruan Dianfu. Ruan Dianfu's face changed drastically, but the blow was blocked by Wang Daolong who arrived in time with a bronze shield.
While Wang Daolong and Sun Youyue were fighting each other, Ruan Dianfu silently recited the incantation and transformed into two black shadow clones. Together with his body, three figures rushed towards Sun Youyue at the same time. Sun Youyue quickly retreated, and at the same time formed seals with his hands again to activate defensive techniques.
The three of them fought in the air, and the collision of spells and weapons caused ripples in the space. Ruan Dianfu drew out his long sword, and the sword body emitted a faint light, and stabbed directly towards Sun Youyue.
Sun Youyue had quick eyesight and quick hands, and quickly dodged the sword, and then slapped Ruan Dianfu with his palm. The wind blade in his palm was as fast as lightning. Although Ruan Dianfu tried to dodge, his shoulder was injured and he fell to the ground. Sun Youyue then used the God-Binding Curse, preparing to deal with Wang Daolong. He knew that these two people were the emperor's favorites, so he never pulled out the Wuya Sword behind him, leaving room for action. He only suppressed it in terms of cultivation. At the moment There can be no further delay, and a quick decision must be made, otherwise it will surely attract more masters from within.
His footwork in the air was soaring, and he attacked Wang Daolong from all directions in the air, breaking! A golden light appeared in the air, its power penetrated the bronze shield, and hit Wang Daolong's heart. Wang Daolong instantly vomited a mouthful of blood. Seeing that the situation was not good, Ruan Dianfu had to use his clone to hold Sun Youyue back again. Wang Daolong knew this Taoist's cultivation Because their realm was not comparable to the two of them, he suddenly looked at Tao Hongjing and Wang Hao who were looking nervous. Sooner or later, he quickly aimed at Wang Hao and Tao Hongjing, and shot two poison-quenched sleeve arrows in succession. Wang Hao was unprepared, was injured and vomited blood, and fell to the ground. When another sleeve arrow was shot at Tao Hongjing, the young man A green light suddenly rose up in the body, and the sleeve arrows immediately turned into dust.
Seeing this situation in the air, Sun Youyue used the Shangqing Kung Fu to force the two men back with one move. Then he quickly flew to Tao Hongjing and Wang Hao, lifted the two men onto the wine gourd, and flew away in the wind. Wang Daolong and Ruan Dianfu saw that they were not willing to let the three of them go, so they quickly picked up their magic weapons and chased after them.
Sun Youyue brought his two children to Chongxu Pavilion. After a while, Ruan Dianfu and Wang Daolong also caught up with him and were about to rush straight into the pavilion.
At this time, a purple-gold light enveloped the two of them, and they suddenly felt a mountain-like pressure on their bodies. Beads of sweat rolled down their foreheads, and their feet could no longer move forward. Then an old man's voice sounded in the Chongxu Pavilion, "Please Tell the Holy One that the lives of these two young men have been saved by me."
Ruan Dianfu and Wang Daolong looked at each other, and they remembered the identity of the owner of Chongxu Pavilion. The two hesitated for a moment, then gave up and left.
The situation in Chongxu Pavilion is not optimistic either. Wang Hao's lips have turned purple, he is constantly vomiting black blood, and his forehead veins are exposed.
Tao Hongjing's eyes were so anxious that he knelt in front of the old man, kowtowed and begged, "Master, please take action to save Brother Hao!"
Lu Xiujing checked his pulse, then raised his eyelids and looked at Wang Hao's pupils. He was afraid that the poison had entered the internal organs, and medicine and stone could not cure it. Lu Xiujing remained silent for a long time before saying, "Let's prepare for the funeral."
Hot tears rolled down from Tao Hongjing's eyes, and he could no longer control his emotions. He hugged Wang Hao's gradually cooling body and cried bitterly. Sun Youyue felt guilty and stood aside with his head hanging.
"I owe it to Mr. Wang and Mrs. Wang..." he said vaguely while crying. The fists in his hands were clenched so hard that they turned blue. Lu Xiujing walked out of the room. They chose to let the young man face the death of his friend alone and go through an important practice in life - separation between life and death.
The next day, the sky cleared away the dark clouds and gradually cleared up. But this warmth did not shine on the young man's heart. His face was pale and his expression was gloomy. Under the guidance of Sun Youyue, Shangqing disciples performed rituals for Wang Hao, saved his soul, and buried Wang Hao's body in the forest behind Chongxu Pavilion, accompanied by green bamboos and birds singing.
Seeing that Tao Hongjing's mood gradually calmed down, Sun Youyue introduced to Tao Hongjing that the old man next to him was Lu Xiujing, the head of the Qing Sect on Maoshan Mountain, and told him that Lu Xiujing wanted to accept him as a disciple of the Qing Sect on Maoshan Mountain. Although Tao Hongjing was grateful to the Qing Sect Zong's life-saving grace, but my father would never allow him to become a Taoist.
He bowed again and said with some guilt, "Master Lu, to be honest, the Tao family has always passed down poems and books, and has been in officialdom for generations. If I become a monk and become a Taoist, I feel guilty as a son. It is indeed inappropriate to become a monk and become a Taoist."
Seeing the young man's sincerity, Lu Xiujing said, "You two are indeed destined to be masters and disciples, but what Hong Jing said makes sense. Why not You Yue? You should accept Hong Jing as a lay disciple first."
When Sun Youyue heard this, he naturally agreed. That night, after the two of them performed the apprenticeship ceremony, Sun Youyue taught Tao Hongjing the first level of the "Foundation Building" chapter and the second level of "Refining Qi" of the Shangqing Sect's supreme Kung Fu "Shangqing Great Cave Manual":
"The Tao of the husband is born from nothingness, and it is hidden in all spirits, but it is unpredictable; the spirit is concentrated in the emptiness, and it is wonderful and changeable but has no direction; there is essence in the darkness, but it is still and luminous; it is too mysterious and boundless, so it remains silent in emptiness. This is called a big cave.
Human beings are born with Qi in Tai Chi, and the movement and stillness of the law are related to heaven and earth; the spirit is based on one yuan, and the body is closed and opened up in Yin and Yang. ..."
As he listened to the verses from the scriptures, Tao Hongjing seemed to open a door to a new world. Some of his questions in the past cultivation process were also answered, but they were followed by more questions.
"The Shangqing Sutra of our sect was passed down from Wei Huacun, Lord Zixu Yuan, and was later given to his disciple Yang Xi, who in turn passed it on to Xu Mi. This sutra is the most important classic of our Shangqing sect. Its internal exercises are divided into six levels, including Qi refining. , build foundation, refine Qi into Qi, refine Qi into spirit, refine spirit to return void, refine void to combine with Dao, I hope you will practice more diligently in the future and understand the Dao." Sun Youyue explained seriously.
Tao Hongjing suddenly asked: "Master, I have heard that the cultivation of monks in the world is divided into eight realms: Qi refining, foundation building, elixir formation, Nascent Soul, spirit transformation, void refining, integration, and Mahayana. Why does this have to do with the Kung Fu I teach? Is there any difference in the Dharma realm?”
Sun Youyue smiled and said: "The eight realms you mentioned are exactly the division system that has been agreed upon by the major cultivation sects for thousands of years. Since the techniques practiced by each sect are different, the cultivation methods are also strange, so there are good things going on. The author organizes the pedigree according to the level of cultivation of monks in the world and divides them into various levels, so as to rank seniority according to their seniority."
"I see, then Master, what level has your cultivation reached?"
Sun Youyue looked at his apprentice's eyes full of curiosity and hope, then he sat upright and said: "Pindao broke through the state of refining energy and transforming into gods in the Shangqing Cultivation Technique three years ago, and he should be at the level of Nascent Soul."
After that night, Tao Hongjing looked at Sun Youyue with more reverence and passion. Sun Youyue didn't show it on his face, but he was already happy in his heart.
