Taoist Myth: I am the last true immortal in the world

Chapter 704: Impacting the Heavenly Fairyland (Part )
The perfection of both body and spirit is the highest level of skill in the Taoist Golden Elixir.

Reaching this level can almost be considered as practicing inner alchemy to perfection.

If you want to make another breakthrough, it is not just about inner alchemy, but also involves other things.

"If the spirit is magical but the body is prematurely decaying, then this is not the right path for the alchemy path."

Chen Yunduan sat on the ground, slowly taking his Yang Spirit into his ancestral orifice, preparing to practice it over and over again until he reached the state where both his form and spirit were wonderful.

There are two ways to achieve both perfection in form and spirit.

They are respectively the unity of form and spirit in the void and the unity of form and spirit in the reality.

One is that after the form and spirit are combined, there is still a visible shape, which is called the unity of form and spirit.

The other type is that after the form and spirit are combined, they become formless and shapeless, which can be called the form and spirit merging into the void.

Chen Yun knew this very well.

Like Liu Haichan who came later, his body and spirit merged into one.

Finally, the elixir was completed, and his body was transformed. White gas came out from the top of his head and turned into a crane, flying into the sky.

As for the state where the body and spirit are united in reality and are similar to the natural state, it is called "ascending to heaven in broad daylight."

Of course, Xie Ziran was not practicing inner alchemy.

Therefore, she did not reach the celestial realm when she “ascended to heaven in broad daylight”, but only cultivated to the divine realm.

The "ascending to heaven in broad daylight" in inner alchemy is actually the fusion of body and spirit, reaching the realm of celestial immortals.

When the physical body ascends, it naturally has a physical form, so it can be seen when it just ascends.

For example, the "Baopuzi Neipian. Zhili" states: "In Mi County, Henan, there was a man named Bu Cheng who studied Taoism for a long time and then left with his family. At first, he took a slightly higher step and then entered the clouds and disappeared. This is what is called lightly flying and ascending to heaven in broad daylight, which is the highest level of immortality."

This is the theory of ascending to heaven in broad daylight, in which the body and spirit merge into one entity.

It was particularly popular during the period before the Song Dynasty when external alchemy was prevalent.

Most alchemists believe that taking elixirs can cause changes in the body and eventually ascend to heaven.

After the Tang Dynasty, Taoism turned its focus to the practice of inner alchemy. Although inner alchemy still has the concept of the unity of form and spirit in reality, a new concept was also born, that is, the unity of form and spirit in emptiness.

For example, Weng Baoguang said in "Wu Zhen Pian. Xijiang Yue": "After ten months of practice, the body turns into qi, the qi turns into spirit, the spirit and the Tao merge into a formless state, and its changes are unpredictable."

This means that the form and spirit are merged into the void.

Zhonglu Dandao has his own ideas about the perfection of both form and spirit.

Just like when Zhongli Quan was preaching to Lu Dongbin, he once said that one should refine the body into the yang spirit so that the divine light would shine everywhere.

Finally, one can refine the divine fire throughout the body and the body will disintegrate and shatter into the innate ancestral qi that seems to exist but not exist, seems not to exist but not to exist, has no shape or trace, and returns to the void, achieving the so-called "becoming one with the Tao".

In short, Zhonglu Dandao is actually the fusion of body and spirit into emptiness.

Although Chen Yun's inner alchemy was inherited from Zhongli Quan, he later integrated various techniques such as "True Dragon and Tiger Nine Immortals Sutra", "Flying Spirit Jade Talisman", "Laozi Xianger Notes", "Tai Shang Jiu Yao Heart Seal Wonderful Sutra" and "Pangu True Body Secret". His path is somewhat different from Zhonglu Alchemy. It does not necessarily require the body and spirit to be combined into the void, but it can take the path of combining the body and spirit into the reality.

Indeed, if his body and spirit merged into the void, then his practice of "Pangu's True Body Secret" would be in vain.

Therefore, Chen Yun's inner thought was to achieve the goal of combining form and spirit in reality.

As a result, this step caused a violent conflict between him and the philosophy of inner alchemy.

Chen Yun immediately opened his eyes and thought to himself, "Internal alchemy often requires the body and spirit to merge into the void. I want the body and spirit to merge into the real. There is a big conflict between the two. Moreover, if the body and spirit merge into the real, then it is impossible to return to the void."

Return to emptiness, return to emptiness, it is natural for the body and spirit to merge with emptiness, which is the correct principle.

So, how can we achieve the goal of achieving the unity of form and spirit and making both form and spirit perfect?
Chen Yun sat there thinking hard, trying to find a solution.

If it was just a matter of merging his body and soul into one, he could do it immediately.

It is nothing more than receiving the Yang Spirit into the ancestral orifice, constantly refining it over and over again, until the physical body is refined into the spirit.

Chen Yun thought about it carefully for a while, but still had no idea.

He hesitated for a moment, "Could it be that I can only take the path of merging my body and soul into the void?"

In fact, it is not impossible for the body and spirit to merge into one.

It’s just a pity that he had practiced the “Pangu True Body Technique” for so long.

Once he takes the path of merging body and spirit into emptiness, the seventh turn of "Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secret" deduced by the "deduction" principle will be overturned, and the method will need to be re-conceived.

Chen Yun had finally integrated "Pangu's True Body Secret" into inner alchemy, but now it seemed that he had to give it up because the unity of form and spirit conflicted with inner alchemy, which made him feel very conflicted.

"Think about it for a while longer. If I really can't figure out how to make my body and soul merge into reality, then I can only take the path of making my body and soul merge into illusion."

Although Chen Yun has plenty of time to think about it carefully, but after practicing his kung fu to this point, if he can't figure it out now, he basically won't be able to figure it out in the future.

Therefore, he could be very sure that if he could think of the "Inner Alchemy" that could achieve the unity of body and spirit in the next period of time, then it would mean that he could do it. Otherwise, the Inner Alchemy could not achieve the unity of body and spirit in the reality.

He sat there and kept thinking.

And review the various cultivation knowledge that he has learned throughout his life in his memory.

I want to find a way to perfectly combine the unity of body and spirit with inner alchemy.

Xie Ziran's "Flying Spirit Jade Talisman" is about training people to become "golden elixir", but it seems to be of no help to himself.

Erlang Shen's "Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art" is a method of refining the primordial spirit, and it doesn't seem to be of much help to him.

"Laozi Xianger Notes", "Taishang Jiuyao Xinyin Miaojing", "True Dragon and Tiger Nine Immortals Sutra"...

After a short while, Chen Yun had recalled all the cultivation techniques he knew, but still couldn't find a solution.

This made him feel a little helpless. "It seems that the inner alchemy technique really cannot achieve the unity of body and spirit. I can only go for the unity of body and spirit."

He shook his head.

Closed his eyes again.

Prepare to take the path of merging body and spirit into emptiness.

Suddenly, Chen Yun, who had just closed his eyes, opened his eyes again.

"Wait!" He seemed to have thought of something, "I remember that Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secret, starting from the fifth turn, is no longer just about refining the body and the spirit, but about combining the spirit and the body."

For example, the fifth turn in Mr. Chen’s Inner Alchemy Secret is called “Bone Changing”.

The purpose of this transformation is to utilize "Yang Sand to Change Bones" to replace the mortal bones in the body with immortal bones.

Chen Yun's eyes became brighter and brighter. "The fourth turn nourishes the inner Yin, the third turn nourishes the inner Yang, and the fifth turn nourishes the inner and outer Yin and Yang. The work of creation has been completed. The divine power of the holy fetus is free, so it is called creation. After the fifth turn, the inner elixir holy fetus is cultivated, and the spiritual body is more than a foot long. From then on, it absorbs the essence of the sun to nourish the outer Yang, and seizes the work of creation of heaven and earth. Ordinary people have nothing to nourish inside, and their spirits are scattered without a place to return. During the day, the spirit is in the heart, and at night, the spirit is out of the body. When they fall asleep, the spirit has no speed to guard, and they don't know that they have a body, nor do they know where they are. They follow the soul and the spirit, and enter the dark fun, with Ghosts gather together, and there is no one in the dream. I don’t see the four elements being destroyed. The spirits go from ghosts to heaven and hell with blessings. They are all gods without their own will, and they don’t know their bodies drifting with the waves. "He continued to analyze the fifth turn of the practice very slowly, "The Taoist master has achieved the inner elixir, and the spirit is united with the body, and things cannot seduce him. Therefore, the soul is dormant, and all evils are not involved. There is no worry, and leaving life and death is all due to me. I am in and out of the trance and unpredictable. Therefore, the alchemy classics say: The Taoist master has no dreams, this is what it means. The Taoist master has no spirit, the soul lives in me, and I can walk freely without hindrance!"

Chen Yun suddenly realized that he had already found a way to achieve the unity of form and spirit.

In fact, this method has been implemented since the fifth turn of "Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secrets".

Why the fifth conversion sacral bone?
Because mortal bones cannot bear God!
What about the sixth turn of "Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secret"?
This transformation is called "changing flesh", which means "eliminating yin flesh", and eventually the mortal flesh will be changed into immortal flesh.

Chen Yun clearly remembered the following verses of the poem he wrote during this period: The sun has five colors for three years, and the moon has nine rays for one year; the sixth time, the dantian plays with the moonlight, and the soul and spirit of the fetus are transformed and hidden.

Yang sand changes the bones and Yin sand eliminates the flesh, and everything is changed to be as flawless as jade.

Chen Yun recited the analysis and said, "When the elixir reaches the sixth turn, both the yin and yang inside and outside are complete. The holy fetus is complete, and the true person and the inner body are one. Every night when the moon is full, the moonlight is collected to accumulate the yin, so it is said to be playing with the moonlight. The fifth turn is the complete true yang, and the soul is transformed into a god. The sixth turn is the complete true yin, and the spirit is transformed into qi. The soul and spirit inside and outside, swim in the middle of the day, and there is no shadow when they move, and they become one with the pure yang of the sun. From then on, ghosts and gods cannot be seen, and yin and yang cannot be measured, so as to achieve the true immortal way. Therefore, it is said that the shadow is hidden."

He paused for a moment and read out the more important analysis later. "The mortal bones of a person are turbid, and the yin and yang are not clean. They cannot ascend to the Tao. After the immortal elixir is formed for the fourth time, the fifth time is to collect the sun's essence, and store it in the dantian to form yang sand. The cinnabar is stored in the bone marrow and disappears with sweat. Therefore, it is said that yang sand changes bones. After the bones are changed, the sixth time is to collect the moonlight and store it in the dantian to form yin powder. After collecting the moonlight for a year, the yin powder is internalized to nourish the immortal flesh. But if you often feel blood in your urine and feces, it is because the yin disappears from the mortal flesh, and the immortal flesh grows naturally. Therefore, it is said that the yin disappears from the flesh. If there is a flaw in jade, it will not become real jade. If there is a flaw in a person's mortal bones, it will not become a real person. After the sixth time, the mortal bones are replaced and immortal bones are born. The mortal flesh is removed and immortal flesh is born. The flawless and pure immortal flesh is replaced."

What is the purpose of this turn?
On the surface it seems that it is just to transform mortal flesh into immortal flesh, but in fact it is not the case.

Chen Yun finally understood today that the real purpose of this transformation was to help the body and spirit merge into reality.

Ordinary flesh, like ordinary bones, is also unable to support the "Yang Spirit".

This mortal flesh is different from the immortal muscle, in that it can carry the "Yang God".

Chen Yun had a vague realization, "So far, I am only one step away from achieving the unity of body and spirit, which is to practice the seventh turn of Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secret and achieve 'changing the five internal organs'."

Once the "five internal organs" are replaced with "immortal internal organs", every inch of the body can carry the yang spirit, and the spirit and form will be naturally combined, and there is no need to do the so-called "return to emptiness" at all.

Chen Yun didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "It turns out that the power of the 'deduction' law has helped me deduce the method of combining body and spirit into reality. I'm still racking my brains to figure out how to resolve the conflict between combining body and spirit into reality and inner alchemy."

Now the conflict between "the unity of form and spirit" and "inner alchemy" has been resolved, but new problems have arisen.

That is, according to the description of the seventh level of the "Mr. Chen's Inner Alchemy Secret", if one wants to successfully replace the internal organs, one needs to stay away from the world and practice in the deep mountains and forests for a thousand days.

This cycle is also called the Thousand Days Exercise.

Without a thousand days of hard practice, it is impossible to replace the internal organs.

If it were an ordinary day, Chen Yun wouldn't have to worry about whether it was a thousand days or not.

But now he is leading a group of gods and demons to help Khitan destroy the Later Jin Dynasty.

If one practices hard for a thousand days, that would be a full three years.

Who knows what the battle situation will become by then?

On the one hand, the time has come for him to break through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm.

On the other hand, it is related to whether one can accumulate enough good deeds to save the Master.

Chen Yun was extremely conflicted and really didn't know how to choose.

Finally, he pondered for a moment and finally decided to return to Yingzhou City first.

After all, saving the mentor is more important.

Waiting another three years to break through the Heavenly Immortal Realm will not prevent you from being unable to break through.

Chen Yun stood up, bowed in the direction of Yaochi, and said, "Grand Ancestor Jinmu, please forgive me for not being able to obey your decree. I must return to Yingzhou City."

The Queen Mother of the West's voice sounded again, "Oh, why is this?"

Chen Yun responded seriously, "I have understood how to break through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm, and there are two methods. One is to merge the body and spirit into the void, which is what you want me to understand, and the other is to merge the body and spirit into the reality, which is the path I want to take."

Queen Mother Xi said: "There is some conflict between the inner alchemy technique and the unity of body and spirit. It is commendable that you can find a solution. Since you have found a way, why don't you take this opportunity to cultivate to become a celestial being? Instead, you want to return to Yingzhou City?"

Chen Yun smiled bitterly and said, "My method of combining body and soul into reality requires a thousand days of practice, and now the Conferred Gods War is in full swing. If I practice for a thousand days, I am afraid that by the time I reach the Heavenly Immortal Realm, the Conferred Gods War may have ended. By then, I will not be able to earn any merits, and will not be able to rescue my mentor who is imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison. Therefore, for the sake of my mentor, I would rather not break through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm now."

"Ugh."

Queen Mother of the West sighed and said, "You are a child, your filial piety is commendable. If it were someone else, seeing that they could break through to the Celestial Immortal Realm, I'm afraid they would let the floods rage without even frowning, and would only cultivate to the Celestial Immortal Realm as soon as possible."

Chen Yun knew this was the truth.

The celestial beings can be said to be the most powerful group of fighters in this world.

After all, no matter whether one is Daluo or half-step Daluo, they usually don't care about worldly affairs.

Therefore, the immortals almost represent the highest combat power in this world.

In addition, celestial beings can almost truly live as long as heaven and earth.

As long as no one can find something to rely on for their lives, it is impossible for them to be killed, and their ability to survive is greatly improved.

As the saying goes, if you don't work for yourself, you will be punished by heaven and earth.

Cultivating to the level of a celestial being would bring such a huge improvement to oneself that anyone would do anything for it.

It is rare to see someone like Chen Yun who would rather delay his breakthrough to the celestial immortal level in order to save his mentor.

This is Chen Yun's principle.

My mentor was very kind to me and treated me almost like his own son, teaching me the most core skills.

In order to pass on his skills, he spent every day with me in Qingcheng Mountain. He could be said to be like a father to me.

Now that his "father" is in danger, Chen Yun naturally feels that this is the most important thing.

So I would rather give up the breakthrough and rescue the master first.

Chen Yun said: "So I cannot follow the instructions of the ancestor. I hope the ancestor can forgive me."

"Haha." Queen Mother Xi laughed, which was rare for her, and said, "You are so filial, how can I, as your elder, not lend you a helping hand?"

Chen Yun was stunned, and still didn't understand what his ancestor meant by this sentence.

The next moment, he felt ripples in front of his eyes, and then the scenery around him changed.

This is a vast void. You cannot feel any time, nor can you detect any matter, as if nothing has ever existed.

The voice of the Queen Mother of the West sounded, "This is a strange world that I created with my great magical power. It is a world of its own, and the passage of time in this world is a thousand times slower than in a normal world. You should practice well here and strive to break through to the Celestial Immortal as soon as possible."

what?
You simply created for me a world where time passes a thousand times more slowly?

Chen Yun never imagined that his ancestor would use such a powerful method to help him.

He immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed to express his gratitude: "Thank you, old ancestor, for helping me practice. I will never forget your kindness. I will never let you down and will definitely practice to the heavenly realm!"

(End of this chapter)