blogombal Chapter 113 Movement, Stillness, Flow, and Technique: The Four Major Unorthodox Paths
Chapter 113 Movement, Stillness, Flow, and Technique: The Four Major Unorthodox Paths
Those in the mountains are unaware of the passage of time, and those inside the caves are oblivious to the light of the sun and
"Wang Ye, that's enough for now."
The three old men on the stone platform stopped their magical spells, and the light and sound in the cave immediately disappeared. They looked at Wang Ye with satisfaction.
"Although you're a bit lazy, your talent is undeniable. After two years, you've finally mastered the seventy-two transformations of the Feng Hou Qi Men."
Wang Ye approached the three of them with his hair down, scratching his head somewhat embarrassedly.
"You flatter me, seniors. It is because you never gave up on me, your junior, and constantly honed my skills that I was able to master this method of transformation."
The three old men on the stone platform chuckled, "Hahaha..."
"Boy, we don't know whether this Feng Hou Qi Men is your good fortune or your calamity."
Wang Ye was somewhat stunned, and asked in confusion, "Are you referring to the [Jiashen Rebellion], seniors?"
"It is the [Jiashen Rebellion], but it is not this."
The old man surnamed Fang shook his head. "You are still quite young, and your understanding of the world of supernatural beings is limited to the various rumors about Wudang Mountain."
"But the world is chaotic, and you will not truly understand until you have experienced it yourself."
The old man surnamed Lu nodded. "The three of us old folks can all see that, young Wang, although you come from the mortal world, you have never truly entered it."
"If you are just an ordinary Taoist priest on Wudang Mountain, then you don't need to worry about these things; just let things take their course."
"But now that you have mastered the Feng Hou Qi Men, if you want true peace and tranquility, your current state is not enough."
"The complexity of the Jia Shen Rebellion far exceeds your imagination. Even though Feng Hou Qi Men is wonderful and extraordinary, it cannot cope with the complexities of the world."
"Otherwise, why has Zhou Sheng, who mastered this extraordinary skill, disappeared without a trace for decades?"
"Although the methods are good, the foundation for a practitioner's existence in this world lies within yourself, in the path that belongs to you."
Hong Yinchao smiled and said, "Whether you understand or not is your business. You can only walk your own path, and no one can walk it for you."
Although Wang Ye was somewhat puzzled, he still remembered the guidance these seniors had given him. "Thank you for your guidance, seniors."
Then, with some curiosity, he asked, "Could you seniors tell me what you and Grand Tutor Zhou Meng are planning?"
"For the past two years, whenever the four of you seniors have gathered together, I always fall into a deep sleep for various reasons."
At this point, Wang Ye couldn't help but feel a headache coming on, and the back of his head was throbbing.
He had initially sought a secluded spot in the back mountains to avoid Master Yunlong's training, but accidentally stumbled upon this cave and overheard the four's secret conversation, where they were discussing things like the Golden Summit, Heaven and Earth Thunder and Fire, and the Patriarch Master...
Before he could hear clearly, he was discovered by the four men. If they hadn't realized that he was unaffected by the Feng Hou Tu, the three old madmen on the stone platform probably wouldn't have let him go so easily.
Even so, apart from regularly reporting his safety to his family, he was kept in a cave by these three madmen for two years to cultivate.
Over the past two years, Zhou Meng would come over every now and then to deliver clothes and food, and each time he came, it was just when Wang Ye had been passively falling asleep.
As time went on, even a fool would realize that these four old men were plotting something big.
Although Wang Ye didn't want to meddle in other people's business, he was now from Wudang and had learned Feng Hou Qi Men, so he considered himself to be inextricably linked with Wudang, and whether Wudang was peaceful or not was related to him.
But Wang Ye was unaware that he had committed a cardinal sin for sorcerers—arrogance!
A sorcerer is someone who uses magic to unravel the mysteries of the universe; to become a sorcerer, one must possess sufficient talent.
It is said that nine out of ten sorcerers are crazy. Those who can become sorcerers are all so-called geniuses with great opportunities.
These people believe they possess power that ordinary people cannot control, which easily leads to a disease—arrogance and pride, commonly known as conceit.
If one can understand the principles of Yin and Yang, the universe is in the palm of one's hand.
Feng Hou Qi Men is considered one of the world's top magical arts, and Wang Ye, who learned Feng Hou Qi Men, inevitably underwent some changes in his mentality.
This is shown in the original work: he was seriously injured by calculating the karma of the Luo Tian Grand Ceremony, his interference in the affairs of the Old Celestial Master implicated his family, he was on the verge of death in three battles with Chen Jinkui, and he fell freely from a height of 10,000 meters...
Wang Ye only truly began to grow after descending the mountain. The various hardships that followed allowed him to truly understand himself and the chaotic world...
The three old men on the stone platform looked at Wang Ye with meaningful smiles on their faces.
They had anticipated Wang Ye's current state. Although he had suffered many setbacks in the past two years, they hadn't considered it a hardship, and they didn't expect him to grow much.
I only hope that the king can be more shrewd and face future calamities more easily.
The elderly man surnamed Fang spoke first, "Young man, the plan is not something you can participate in. Sometimes, a sorcerer needs to walk the path of a sorcerer step by step."
The old man surnamed Lu nodded. "That's right. And young man, remember this: the most fundamental thing on the path of cultivation is life and health. No matter how complicated the methods are, they must all come down to cultivating life and health."
"Moreover, in our Taoist sect, although the path of sorcerers can also lead to enlightenment, it is ultimately a heretical and unorthodox art."
Hongyin Chaowang laughed and scolded, "You junior, you're probably just a lazy and slacker, you didn't listen carefully to your master's explanation of our Taoist classics."
"Very well, since your Grandmaster Hong is in a good mood today, I'll tell you a story about 'Journey to the West'..."
In the Tibetan Buddhist text "Journey to the West," when the Bodhi Patriarch was teaching Sun Wukong the Dharma, he listed four unorthodox methods: movement, stillness, flow, and technique.
The "movement" character refers to the dual cultivation method of absorbing yin to supplement yang, and the art of sexual intercourse.
The "Quiet" gate refers to the practice of meditation and the art of entering samadhi through tranquility and non-action.
The "Flow" category refers to the doctrines, theories, and strategies of various schools of thought during the Hundred Schools of Thought period.
The term "术" (shù) refers to the divination and fortune-telling techniques used to invoke spirits and spirit mediums.
Although these "Four Unorthodox Paths" sound incredibly impressive and promise to lead to enlightenment, they are actually ridiculed with hidden meanings.
Among the four characters 动 (dòng), 静 (jìng), 流 (liú), and 术 (shù), 动 (dòng) and 静 (jìng) are opposites, but in the text, the character 流 (liú) is opposite to the character 末 (mò), which is a peripheral or minor detail.
The characters 【术】 and 【末】 are similar, implying that the 【术】 is a trivial matter and therefore despised.
This also illustrates the Taoist attitude towards the "technique" category: although it can lead to enlightenment, it is a peripheral aspect of unorthodox and unorthodox practices and should not be investigated too deeply.
Hearing Hong Yin's profound words, Wang Ye looked at Hong Yin with a strange expression and asked hesitantly.
"Since you, Grandmaster Uncle, understand so many principles, why are you still trapped in the [Inner Realm] due to your obsessions and unable to find liberation?"
Wang Ye's words were like a bucket of cold water, poured over Hong Yin's body and heart.
The mad old man, who had just been gloating over being able to instruct the younger generation, was suddenly doused with a bucket of cold water.
An unnamed rage rose from Hong Yin's dormant heart, and he looked at Wang Ye with a strange laugh.
"Hehe, young man, you know quite a lot... I'm not afraid to tell you."
"yes!"
"I spent my whole life in the Inner Realm, but I have no regrets, because I have now found my own path."
As he spoke, he turned to look at the other two old men, "The three of us brothers have all found our own paths."
"Although we are now entangled in our obsessions, we are experiencing a peace we have never felt before."
"While achieving enlightenment is wonderful, I, the Daoist, do not covet it. I want to prove my own Dao attainment!"
As he spoke, he turned to look at Wang Ye, tilted his head, and asked with a strange smile,
"Kid, which path do you choose?"