A Long Grind to Daoist Monarch

Chapter 371 - 233: Heaven Is Dead—Who Shall Rise? (Part 2)

"Dock the boat, holding the big fish, circle the posthouse seven or eight times, to let those mischievous juniors know the fishing skills of me, Chunyu Cultivator!"

The middle-aged man took off his bamboo hat, revealing an ordinary face, except for the gray-white long hair, which was somewhat special.

"Yihai Prefecture, Nu Yun River... Senior Brother Kou, oh Senior Brother Kou, you told me the spring wine here is the most mellow and wanted to invite me for a drink to the fullest, unfortunately, there’s no chance now."

This current Elder of the Meridian Sword Sect stood alone, a reminiscence flickering in his eyes.

"The Daoist is dead, the Sect Leader is in seclusion, the True Inheritance Inner Sect repeatedly harmed... managing a household is indeed difficult.

The prestige of the Upper Sect rests on me, this worthless failure, to shake up."

Chunyu Cultivator drove the light boat swiftly, like an arrow, skimming toward the shore.

Breathing the moist air, he inexplicably thought of someone, his face faintly tingling:

"In the blink of an eye, many years have passed. If I could meet you again by the roadside and test swords, it would be a beautiful affair."

...

...

Inside the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, Bai Qi’s Divine Soul Embryo had become increasingly solid, almost lifelike, each thought gathering into shape, indistinguishable from a flesh and blood shell.

"The Innate Soul forms into a Postnatal Embryo, like a baby gradually growing facial features and limbs from a mass of flesh and blood.

My skill in nurturing the embryo is nearly complete, after gathering ’Ren Lead’, ’Yang Fire’, and ’Ganlu’, the Divine Soul Thoughts have acquired the nature of water and fire.

Next, I just need to fill with blood energy, using Yang to supplement Yin, to achieve perfection."

Bai Qi pondered:

"The First Realm of Dao Skill, eating elixir and fasting, often consumes immensely, but having achieved the Golden Flesh and Jade Veins, I don’t need to consume so much Spiritual Objects of Gold, Stone, Grass, and Wood.

By the Second Realm of Dao Skill, it’s even more so, ordinary people must nurture the embryo with great care, like a woman during her confinement, intolerant of the slightest damage, supplement day and night, constantly meditate, to let the Divine Soul Thoughts form from the embryo, even high family disciples of the thirteenth line wouldn’t go out, wholeheartedly closing in.

With my ten blood changes, I need not be overly cautious, each kind of Four Great Refinements’ perfect achievement clearly complements Dao Skill practice..."

Bai Qi’s mind stirred, pondering, martial arts and Dao skills seem like two paths but ultimately lead to the same destination, why have so few tried dual practice of both?

Among all the great masters he had seen, none, even with talents as eminent as Master Ninghai Zen, chose to pursue dual cultivation of Dao and martial arts.

"Because of the Heaven and Earth Profound Barrier."

Facing Bai Qi’s question, Chen Xing answered:

"’Dao’ is nourishing the Divine Soul, breaking life and death, pursuing transcendence and freedom, from Pure Yin and Pure Yang, understanding the principle of endless transformations;

’Martial’ is forging the body, tempering the physique, from outside to inside, muscles, bones, skin, membrane, internal organs, nurturing into one, thus immune to weapons, terrestrial fire, disasters, tribulations.

If you push both paths to their limits, elevate your ’Spirit’ and ’Soul’ to an unprecedented level.

You will be discovered by Heaven and Earth, imprinted with your aura, and then you will face the trial and baptism of this Heaven and Earth.

Before the collapse of the Dao, the sages and elders called it ’crossing tribulation’.

The Daoist and Buddhist Sects, as well as others, have interpretations; the Daoist Sect advocates joining the world to practice external skills, the Buddhist Sect also emphasizes eradicating karmic debt and resolving cause and effect.

Restraining oneself with precepts, regulating behavior, minimizing tribulation energy."

No wonder it is now called the era after the collapse of the Dao, where rites have disintegrated and music has faltered!

Bai Qi lamented that the cultivators of this era do not speak of precepts and rules anymore, especially the heterodox loose cultivators, many use living human blood and souls as materials, practicing magic and refining magical artifacts.

This makes people like Qi Yan and Master Lv Nan rare.

"After the collapse of the Dao, the Turbid Tide once engulfed ninety percent of the Red County Divine Land’s territory, during that period, even those with iron-hearted could not bear to read related records swiftly.

’Lotus skin roasted for fragrance, milk turned into wontons seized by all. Arms first cut hanging in butcher shop, leisurely cutting fatty flesh for soup. Not letting life end wanting fresh meat, piece by piece seeing into hungry stomachs. Male flesh too foul to eat, female skin fat coagulated slightly grainy’... People selling themselves as ’菜市’ for hunger, were almost everywhere.

Lasting roughly for over a hundred years, the Turbid Tide suddenly receded, restoring some vitality.

But the precepts and rules set by the True Lineage of each family in the past were completely gone, Evil Demons and heterodox sects killed overwhelmingly, and ’mass graves’ and ’hundred burial mounds’ were a common sight during tribulations, no less ferocious than the righteous path.

Hence, there is the saying of the post-collapse of the Dao being the hour of rites and music’s destruction. Some even believe that the Celestial Dao is broken, that ’Old Heaven’ who occasionally cared to glance at the human world is gone."

Heaven already dead?

These four words inexplicably emerged in Bai Qi’s mind.

"There are also those who think the Turbid Tide has become the new Celestial Dao, that the living beings of the Red County Divine Land should follow the grand trend, throw themselves into it, rather than sticking to the old patterns.

In any case, opinions vary, and there’s no conclusion to this day."

Chen Xing’s knowledge was vast and logical, explaining from the shallow to the deep, always benefiting others immensely.

"Moreover, about the Heaven and Earth Profound Barrier. Dual cultivation in martial arts and Dao skills, both achieving perfection, the person’s ’Spirit’ and ’Soul’ become overwhelmingly powerful, making Heaven and Earth set limits for you, this is the Heaven and Earth Profound Barrier.

It’s not a bottleneck in cultivation, but a tangible obstruction, and extremely difficult to break.

Dear, you just asked why few choose dual cultivation of Dao and martial arts.

Because once, the number one person in the world personally demonstrated.

The brother of the Dragon Court Supreme Emperor, the King of Support, he had achieved perfection in the Four Great Refinements, Dao Skill Fourth Realm Great Perfection.