Chapter 1: When I Was Young, I First Heard the Truth

Dayu Country, Liucheng.

Cangwu Mountain, 300 miles west of Liucheng, the clear sound of the bell came from the most majestic hall on the peak, Mingxin Hall. The bell sounded loud but not harsh, and the sound waves rose and fell without a sense of discontinuity.

This is the morning class bell of Yiqi Taoist Temple, which can be heard ten miles away. Hearing the bell, the people in the temple stopped what they were doing and went to the temple in groups of three or five.

On the way, the disciples exchanged their cultivation experiences or talked about strange things. At this time, only one of them said loudly: "My fellow brothers and sisters, I heard that the master of the temple will give the morning class in person."

When everyone heard this, some were surprised, while others looked calm. The latter must have received the news early.

Seeing that everyone had different reactions, the man continued, "Our Yiqi Sect is the national religion of Dayu Country. Each of the 120 cities in the country has set up a temple to recruit disciples. Although the temples have accepted new disciples, most of the temple masters are old and hopeless. However, our Liucheng Wang Temple Master is a rare young and promising one. It is not expected that he will achieve the Golden Elixir in the future. If we get his guidance..."

Perhaps because he could not stand the man talking too much, a burly man interrupted and said, "Junior Brother Xu, we know the master's reputation, but it's a pity that the master is in seclusion all day long and we can only see him a few times a year. What can we do about it?"

The person who interrupted should be quite prestigious among the disciples. After hearing his words, everyone looked regretful and nodded frequently.

The man called Junior Brother Xu was not annoyed when he was interrupted. He turned to the burly man and said, "Brother Ge, do you know that the abbot granted a certificate to someone a few days ago? He just granted the certificate and gave a lecture in person. What is the abbot doing..."

Everyone's curiosity had been aroused for a long time, but Junior Brother Xu's voice became more and more subtle, and gradually drifted away from Senior Brother Ge. In the end, it was like a mosquito's buzz, and it was even more inaudible. Everyone cursed in their hearts, but they still looked calm on their faces, just asking around.

After a while, everyone had a preliminary outline of this new junior brother.

This little junior brother was called Wu Yi. He was from Daxuan, a neighboring country of Dayu. His grandfather had a lot of connections with Master Wang before he became a monk. It was just heard that his grandfather seemed to be attacked by political enemies recently, so his grandfather asked him to come here for refuge.

After the disciples found out, they dared not say much because Master Wang personally recruited the junior disciples, but the disdain on their faces was obvious. How could a son who had lost his family compare to them who had the support of their families?

Senior Brother Ge and Junior Brother Xu, who were walking at the end, smiled at each other with a look of satisfaction on their faces.

After feeling proud, Junior Brother Xu couldn't help but worry and asked, "Senior Brother Ge, what if we offend the master by doing this?"

Senior Brother Ge frowned and stared at him, and said coldly, "Junior Brother Xu, things have come to this point, do you still want to hide? If the master of the temple breaks the rules at will, will my family still have a place to stand?"

Junior Brother Xu avoided his gaze and hummed weakly, but he began to plan a way out in his heart. Senior Brother Ge was a descendant of the Ge family in Nanjun, and he was a direct descendant. After all, he himself was not a descendant of a big family. He didn't need to get too involved in the fight between the family and the master of the temple. If the master of the temple didn't let go, those children of the family might not protect themselves in the end.

Seeing him frowning and thinking deeply, Senior Brother Ge was very angry in his heart. He thought that if there was no place for this person, how could he be allowed to play both sides and be a fence-sitter. He decided that once this matter was settled, even if he couldn't kill him, he would cut off his way to progress.

All the way in silence, the disciples gradually arrived at the main hall in groups of three or two, and found their own cushions and knelt down according to the order of entrance.

After a while, the bell rang again. The previous bell was called the calling bell, which meant to summon the disciples, and this bell was called the stopping bell. If the stopping bell did not ring, it would be considered as absence from class, and the disciples would be punished to copy the Taoist scriptures.

Just when the stopping bell rang, a middle-aged Taoist stepped into the hall. His Taoist robe was painted with white clouds and red sun on the top, and mountains and rivers on the bottom. His footsteps seemed ordinary, but if you listened carefully, it was not difficult to hear that he was moving in unison with the sound of the bell, moving according to the sound, following the rhythm, and in harmony.

Behind the middle-aged Taoist was a young man, who was dressed in plain clothes and followed him step by step, as if he was not walking by himself, but was being pulled forward.

There was a high three-story platform in the hall. The Taoist climbed up the platform step by step, and the young man stood beside him.

Just as the Taoist climbed onto the high platform, the bell sound stopped. This change of movement and stillness caused many disciples' blood to surge, their breath to be unstable, and their bodies to rise and fall.

The Taoist turned around and stopped. The sound of the footsteps on the ground was like a huge bell, calming everyone's swaying minds. Everyone's mind was focused, and the whole hall was solemn.

The middle-aged Taoist was the master of the Wang Temple in the mouths of the disciples, and his common name was Wang Chuchen. At this time, he was seen slowly scanning the people in the hall, and said calmly: "I have been the master of the temple for more than three years, and I have not taught you any skills on weekdays. This master is really incompetent."

Hearing this, everyone couldn't figure out the master's thoughts, so they all bowed and said: "Master, you are serious."

Wang Chuchen laughed loudly, without any joy or anger, and said no more, and said straight to the point: "The space between heaven and earth is Qi, all things are created by Qi, and they die without Qi. This is the basic theory of my Qi Sect, so what I cultivate in my Qi Sect is this Qi..."

The disciples' hearts moved with the music, their thoughts flew, and in their minds, a magnificent picture of a breath connecting heaven and earth from ancient times to the present emerged. Then they imagined the process of a breath from birth to growth and finally extinction, and verified it with their own usual cultivation. The breath in their minds also changed with their thoughts.

For a time, everyone was intoxicated, but there was an exception, that is, the new disciple Wu Yi. He had just entered the door a few days ago and was a mortal at this time. Wang Chuchen's explanation seemed to him like playing the lute to a cow, and he scratched his ears and cheeks, restless.

But even so, he frowned and tried to remember every word Wang Chuchen said.

Not to mention, a morning class at least let him hear some common sense of cultivation.

Just like this initial stage of cultivation is called Qi Refining. The so-called Qi Refining is nothing more than breathing in and out spiritual energy. After the spiritual energy fills the Dantian to form the Qi Sea, it guides the spiritual energy to rush through the tendons and veins of the whole body, which is called opening the meridians. The stage of opening the meridians is extremely important and can be called the foundation of the Great Dao, so it is also called foundation building.

Other sects only focus on the accumulation of spiritual energy in the first stage of Qi Refining. According to the degree of spiritual energy saturation, there are nine levels of Qi Refining or thirteen levels of Qi Refining. However, for the Yiqi Sect, which regards Yiqi as the foundation of the Great Dao, the Qi Refining Stage is independent of the first stage, called the Nine Changes of Qi Refining. However, Wang Chuchen only talked about the first four changes, namely, generating qi, gathering qi, receiving qi and condensing qi. The first four changes alone are no different from other sects, while the last five changes require entering the inner sect to study, and the inner sect is the Yiqi Sect.

Wang Chuchen's explanation lasted from early morning to noon, and the lingering sound did not stop. There seemed to be a Taoist rhyme lingering in the hall.

Everyone lowered their eyes and concentrated, deducing the changes of spiritual energy. Wang Chuchen's voice was directly poured into their spiritual platforms, guiding them to walk out of their own path.

After a long time, Wang Chuchen opened his eyes and stopped making any sound, and the morning class ended.

The sound stopped, and the faint Taoism gradually disappeared. Some disciples quickly woke up from a state close to enlightenment, with regretful expressions on their faces. If they continued for a while, perhaps their cultivation would be improved a lot.

Some woke up early, some woke up early, but they all woke up before a cup of tea. Finally, everyone bowed and said, "Farewell, Master."

Wang Chuchen nodded slightly, waved his robe sleeves, and disappeared in the hall.

The disciples stood up and prepared to leave the hall. They called their friends and exchanged their previous cultivation gains. Most of them could not suppress their joy on their faces, with a brisk tone and a cheerful voice, which showed that they had gained a lot of benefits.

Wu Yi originally planned to leave together, but a voice came from his ears, and the steps he was about to take stopped, and his body stood upright like a green pine.

Some disciples did not forget to look back and observe their junior brothers before leaving. Seeing that they did not move, some people who wanted to come forward to make friends did not want to appear too enthusiastic in public.

After all, knowing that he had a close relationship with the master, there were always people who wanted to take his shortcut to seek the master's guidance. In their eyes, Master Wang gave this lecture just for this new junior brother, so how could they not be envious and jealous? I don't know what Wu Yi, who was scratching his head, felt when he knew their thoughts.

After a while, everyone left.

Before Wu Yi could wait for long, a breeze blew outside the hall. Wu Yi looked carefully and saw a person on the steps that were originally empty. It was Wang Chuchen. It was Wang Chuchen who made Wu Yi wait for a moment before.

Wu Yi bowed to Wang Chuchen and stood aside with his head bowed waiting for training.

Wang Chuchen looked at Wu Yi and stared for a while. His face showed vicissitudes, as if he was recalling something. After a long time, Wang Chuchen calmed down, his eyes became calm again, and he showed a sense of transcendence.

"Your grandfather and I were classmates. We agreed to expel the national teacher and help the country. But after ten years in office, I found that the saying that the national teacher stole power and became a thief was just a joke. The emperor was the same. Who was he helping? Who was he helping?" Wang Chuchen narrated a story that seemed not to be his in a flat voice, but it was more resentful.

Wu Yi also knew what happened afterwards. He knew these things when his family asked him to leave the country for asylum, but he still lowered his head quietly and let Wang Chuchen continue.

"After that, I resigned, but your grandfather thought I gave up the promise and broke off relations with me," Wang Chuchen said here, smiled softly, and then said, "Your grandfather was a stubborn bull, but he finally sent you to me." There seemed to be pride in his words, and there seemed to be a trace of regret. Wu Yi's appearance meant the failure of his grandfather, and he had worked hard to realize this dream.

Wu Yi was silent, and since then the two of them have taken two different paths.

Wang Chuchen traveled around and met Lingya Zhenren of Yiqi Sect. He was accepted into the sect and then rose step by step in the immortal path with his extraordinary qualifications.

His grandfather was one of the three highest officials with his outstanding political achievements. He governed the government and eliminated old abuses, which made the Great Xuan Kingdom look like a revival. However, he had to face the contradiction between the Emperor Party and the State Master Party in the end. Although Wu Yi was not clear about the specific process, the State Master Party won in the end. Even the emperor was abolished by the State Master for being licentious and immoral. The Emperor Party was completely defeated, and Wu Yi came to this foreign country thousands of miles away.

Wang Chuchen suddenly stared at Wu Yi's eyes and said coldly: "I gave you a place as a disciple, but there are always some disciples and even professors who gossip. If you can't prove your qualifications, go back to where you came from! Go!" After Wang Chuchen finished speaking, he closed his eyes and said no more.

Wu Yi bowed to Wang Chuchen and turned to leave. If a young man like Wu Yi encountered misfortune for the first time, came to a foreign land and faced the pressure of being expelled, he would be unavoidably anxious even if he didn't cry on the spot.

But Wu Yi's steps were not flustered at all. Every step seemed to be measured by a ruler, and he was regular and orderly, which showed his firm character.

Wang Chuchen didn't open his eyes, but he inferred Wu Yi's mentality from the sound of Wu Yi's steps. He didn't comfort or encourage anything. The immortal path is extremely dangerous. If Wu Yi's qualifications are really not good, it is better to go down the mountain and become a rich man. Ask for peace. Although he can't live forever, there will be fewer disputes.

The empty hall was silent for a long time, with only the smoke rising slowly and then slowly dissipating.

When the historical process and personal struggle cannot be compatible, the author usually chooses the historical process. Some readers may feel unhappy and think about whether the protagonist has violated the historical process.

The author is a history undergraduate student and focuses on strategy, or it can be said that he is scheming. If you don’t like it, you can leave.

Although the author writes a flowing online article and cannot make every word a pearl, there are allusions behind many events, and some characters have historical prototypes. It is not recommended that you copy it mechanically. After all, the author writes casually, with implicit irony and praise and criticism.

As for writing a book, I write it happily, and everyone reads it happily and grows up with the protagonist.

If you have questions about the plot, and if you have more questions, it is recommended to add the author’s QQ: 145242780, WeChat: q15979346895. It is convenient for the author to answer. Those who have read the comments know that the author always attaches great importance to readers’ suggestions.

Written on 2019.8.23. School is about to start. The author doesn’t have much time, so I reply late. Please forgive me.