Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

"A life of tranquility and few desires, far removed from worldly distractions, can indeed temporarily shield one from some superficial mental interference, proving quite effective in the early stages of cultivation," Zhang Zhiwei added, changing the subject. "But isn't this also a form of escapism?"

“Your three disciples sit quietly in the mountains, cultivating themselves in seclusion. Each of them has an air of otherworldly grace and a heart as still as water.”

"But if we take them down the mountain and take them to the bustling metropolis of Shanghai, with its brightly lit nightclubs, lavish restaurants, and debauchery in nightclubs and dance halls, they'll experience the whole thing..."

He looked at Zuo Ruotong: "Sect Leader Zuo, how many of you do you think can maintain that purity?"

Zuo Ruotong was silent for a moment before saying, "I know the character of the disciples of Sanyi. They are absolutely kind and innocent, without any ulterior motives. They can even be described as simple-minded. Even Si Chong and Cheng Zhen are no exception."

“They are all ordinary people, with their own greed, anger, ignorance, and hatred. The world is like a tiger. After going through this journey with my young friend Zhiwei, I'm afraid there won't be many who can maintain their original intentions.”

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Being able to detach oneself from the world but not be able to engage with it is an obstacle. Hiding in the deep mountains cannot be considered true cultivation."

"Back then, didn't the Sanyi Patriarch Lin Zhao'en personally lead his disciples to cooperate with Qi Jiguang in eliminating the Japanese pirates?"

Master Zuo nodded and said, "Cultivation is not enough; it must be practiced without action. If the Japanese pirates return, I will follow the example of our patriarch and lead my disciples down the mountain for training!"

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Between life and death lies great terror and great opportunity. It's not just about your own life and death, but also the life and death of others. There will be gains."

The Left Gate Master nodded and then said, "By the way, young friend Zhiwei just mentioned that small-scale mind control requires worldly experience, travel, and trials. How should we deal with such large-scale mind control?"

“Big…” Zhang Zhiwei said, “That depends on the situation. If one has a deep foundation, a clear mind like a mirror, and a high spiritual level, even if external thoughts are like a raging torrent, it will be difficult to shake them. But if not, then it depends on luck.”

"Luck?" Zuo Ruotong asked, puzzled.

“Yes, luck.” Zhang Zhiwei nodded and said, “Master Zuo, you must have heard Lu Jin mention that we went abroad together a few years ago.”

Zuo Ruotong nodded: "It was indeed mentioned to me. Jin'er once said that you traveled through a Western magic academy to London, eliminated the foreigners who were causing trouble in China, and then arrived at a small island full of cultivators. There was a towering divine tree on the island... It sounds bizarre and fantastical."

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Actually, that divine tree is best at manipulating this second set of thinking."

"It makes the people on the island extraordinary from birth, but it also controls their minds, making them worship and serve it, even the path they pursue in their lives is to protect it."

"Many people may think that these islanders are lucky, born as extraordinary beings without the need for cultivation, but in fact, they are all unlucky, puppets without their own thoughts."

Zuo Ruotong asked in surprise, "No one has awakened and resisted?"

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Yes, later, a person suddenly appeared on the island, and he suddenly realized the truth."

"He saw through the hypocrisy of the Divine Tree and the truth about its enslavement of people's minds, so he began to collude with external forces in an attempt to overthrow the Divine Tree."

"Did he succeed?" Master Zuo asked.

Zhang Zhiwei shook his head: "In the end, he realized that the reason he was able to wake up, the reason he had the idea of ​​overthrowing the divine tree, and all his subsequent efforts were actually controlled by the divine tree. It was just that the divine tree wanted to achieve some goals through his awakening."

The left gatekeeper's eyes narrowed, and he remained silent for a long time before finally answering:
"Everything is an illusion. Just thinking about this situation, let alone experiencing it firsthand, fills me with despair."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded and said, "This example is a bit too extreme. Actually, the way I used my methods to bring those two sorcerers back to their senses after they went astray and were trapped in their inner world was by influencing their second set of thinking. And the reason they went astray was also because they were influenced by their second set of thinking."

"The second set of thinking..." Master Zuo said in a deep voice, "All delusions are influenced by the second set of thinking, right?"

After saying that, he suddenly thought of himself. Wasn't his life just like those pitiful people who were controlled by the divine tree? He spent his whole life pursuing a vain goal.

However, compared to them, I am still lucky. I have seen through the illusion and found the right path.

Master Zuo said, "Young friend Zhiwei, besides traveling, experiencing, and appreciating the various aspects of life, is there any other way to hone one's true nature?"

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Actually, the answer has been there for a long time: just toughen them up and starve them, isn't that it?"

"However, when the sages speak, they often only tell you how to do it, but not why you do it."

Master Zuo nodded: "That's right, I feel the same way. To use my friend Zhiwei's words, I like classical Chinese, it's mysterious and profound."

"But actually, it's not that I don't want to explain things clearly, it's just that some things are inherently difficult to explain clearly."

"Moreover, saying it might have the opposite effect, since a trip with a destination in mind is bound to miss out on a lot of the scenery along the way."

"Sometimes, without the scenery along the way, you can't reach your destination. This actually tests your understanding. What others say and what you realize yourself are two completely different things."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded, just like when his master was preaching. People with poor comprehension would find it unfathomable, while those with good comprehension would think he was deliberately mystifying and not speaking in plain language.

Master Zuo said, "Since you are asking for advice, I naturally hope that young friend Zhiwei will explain clearly."

Zhang Zhiwei nodded: "Then I'll be frank, but this is just my personal opinion and idea, and it may not apply to everyone. You can consider it carefully, Master Zuo."

"In my view, the purpose of physical and mental exertion is to enhance one's id and strengthen one's control over one's 'sex' and 'life'."

"Control yourself, control your enemies. If you can't even control your own life, how can you talk about achieving anything in cultivation?"

"Before controlling 'sex,' one must first control 'fate,' which means rejecting the influence of external thinking."

"For example, when the weather is cold, you can directly reject the cold signals from your body. In this way, even if you stand shirtless in the cold wind, your body will not feel cold!"

Master Zuo said, "I was able to do this many years ago. Maintaining the reverse life state is a burden, and the longer it is maintained, the heavier the burden becomes."

“I can ignore the physical burden of maintaining reverse life, but I cannot ignore the mental and spiritual exhaustion and the burden on my soul.”

Zhang Zhiwei was not surprised by this. To be able to maintain it for so long, one must have some cultivation. The Left Sect Master's realm was actually not low, but he had been focused on the third level of Reverse Life in the past, ignoring the scenery along the way.

As for his level of cultivation... it was actually honed through decades of maintaining his reversal of life.

Even if he was forced to do it, these trials were genuine; even if he was moving forward passively, he was still moving forward.

However, it was Zuo Menchang's obsession with reversing life that prevented him from noticing the scenery and the true path along the way.

Master Zuo also realized this and sighed, "I told my disciples to pay attention to the scenery along the way, but I didn't expect that I would also make this mistake. I still can't put my knowledge into practice!" "It is indeed difficult," Zhang Zhiwei said, "Maintaining the consumption of the soul brought about by the reversal of life is a rule and law of the objective world, which cannot be changed by the subjective."

"But subjective and objective are equal. After you've honed your skills to a certain level, you can choose to ignore it, or even go a step further and reject it."

"Once you refuse, the only objective impact is on objective things."

"Your subjectivity is preserved, which is a higher level of preserving authenticity."

"At this level, it's not just about letting go of the temptations of the world, but about letting go of the entire world."

"When you let go of the world, you gain the world."

"You and the world are equal. The world can influence you, and you can also influence the world, or even prevent the world from influencing you..."

A true discussion of the Way is only meaningful if both parties gain something from it. When Zhang Zhiwei spoke to Master Zuo, wasn't he also speaking to himself?

At this moment, Master Zuo is a mirror in front of him, reflecting himself and sorting out his own path.

The first half of what he just said was addressed to Master Zuo, while the second half was meant for himself.

Zhang Zhiwei changed the subject and pointed out the key point: "Although you, Master Zuo, can ignore the physical pain caused by maintaining reverse life, your understanding of its essence is not deep enough."

"You haven't really analyzed which are external thoughts, which are physiological thoughts from bodily instincts, and which are id thoughts."

"Please enlighten me!" Master Zuo said humbly.

Zhang Zhiwei said, "The core is stillness. Imagine yourself as a withered tree, sitting cross-legged on your spiritual platform. With a non-action attitude, face the chaotic delusions, remain unmoved, and you will eventually attain freedom."

"The free you is not a dead piece of wood; the free you is capable of anything."

"In this state, you can clearly perceive and distinguish every thought that arises."

"This thought originates from the id, from the heart."

"It's still a mindset instilled by the environment, others, and culture, such as settling down, becoming a high-ranking official, making a fortune, and buying a big house..."

"Or it could be a thought that comes from bodily instincts, such as being hungry, sleepy, or in pain."

"The goal of our spiritual practice is to refine pure 'self-centered thinking' and weaken or even eliminate the influence of 'external thinking' and 'body-instinctive thinking'."

"For example, if I cut you with a knife, you feel pain. This pain is a thought generated by the body's instinct, not a thought of the ego."

"Many people might think that if someone stabs you with a knife and you don't feel pain, it's a sign of being stubborn."

“Let me give you another example!” Zhang Zhiwei looked at the Wudang Golden Summit shrouded in clouds and mist: “Look at that Tianzhu Peak that pierces the clouds, don’t you think it’s magnificent and majestic?”

"The Golden Summit of Wudang is indeed magnificent," Master Zuo nodded.

Zhang Zhiwei continued, "But in reality, it is not magnificent or grand. It is just a mound of earth. The reason why you feel it is magnificent and grand is because the external scenery stimulates your senses and arouses external thoughts in your mind."

Zuo Ruotong was taken aback. He really didn't dare to speak rashly about this. He believed Zhang Zhiwei's statement that Tianzhu Peak was not majestic and magnificent, but this was Zhang Zhiwei's opinion based on his own ego.

He couldn't distinguish whether his current views were a product of his own id or external thinking.

Zhang Zhiwei continued, "If you can't distinguish some things for the time being, don't force it."

"High mountains and flowing water, the sun, moon and stars, all things in the world exude information. When people live in the world, their id-like thinking will be influenced and assimilated by these ubiquitous external thoughts."

"Over time, one's id-like thinking will become blurred, and one may even lose oneself, not knowing who one is, where one is, or where one is going, which is extremely dangerous."

"Therefore, when spiritual practice goes a step further, it is called cultivating truth. This truth is our original self-thinking."

These words left Zuo Ruotong silent for a long time. He actually knew some of these principles; he read ancient books every day and could explain a thing or two about many of them, but he had never felt so enlightened as he did today.

If you know the principles in books but cannot put them into practice, it's no different from not knowing them at all.

At that moment, he deeply felt the difference between the true Xuanmen and the false Xuanmen.

Although they may appear similar in their practice, they are actually completely different.

Although both are about cultivating one's life force, the former is to help refine one's true nature and mindset, while the latter is to hone one's skills with a stronger physique.

Different goals lead to different results.

"After decades of cultivation, I still don't know who I am."

Zuo Menzhang sighed and said, “Wang Yangming said in ‘Yangming’s Philosophy of Mind’: ‘Avoiding the will of Heaven and shunning cause and effect, all kinds of shackles bind the true self; follow the will of Heaven and bear the cause and effect, and today I know that I am who I am; once I understand the Way and see the true self, why fear the old shackles of the past? The shackles of the world are just dreams, formless, without appearance, and without self.’”

"I've read this book no less than a hundred times, thinking I had a complete understanding of it, but I never expected that I would only understand its true meaning now."

"One in ten thousand people can truly understand 'who I am,' and those who can are true sages."

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Having taken this step, even if one is not a saint, one is worthy of being called an Arhat in Buddhism."

“Even within the Buddhist community today, very few have reached this level,” Zuo Ruotong said.

Zhang Zhiwei said, "Anyway, the Dehong monk I killed didn't reach this level, but the Quanxing demon Wu Man reached this realm before he died."

“I know Wu Man. He’s known as the Mysterious Hermit. He’s been a monk three times and returned to secular life three times. He’s a freak and an eccentric.” Master Zuo sighed. “It’s ironic that a mere freak has reached a realm that even the abbot hasn’t been able to achieve!”
He continued, "Therefore, the journey from emptiness to divinity is to reach a pure, primal state of mind, like the feeling of compassion one feels upon seeing a child fall into a well. Once this state is reached, one can transform acquired traits into an innate, natural whole."

“Theoretically speaking, it is indeed possible.” Zhang Zhiwei nodded, but then he thought, wouldn’t that turn him into Feng Baobao?
He paused, then added, "But I think that's also a wrong path." (End of Chapter)