Poor Taoist Qiu Chuji

Chapter 400 The Unattainable Great Luo
Stepping into a new world, one sees the jade-colored light of the heavens enveloping the entire Pure Land, with a light and ethereal aura drifting through every corner of the world.

The gnarled peach wood branches gleam with a warm, jade-like luster; they are not only the core of the world, but also its pillars, and indeed, the world itself.

The old immortal's snow-white wide sleeves, which reached his knees, were ruffled by the wind. His three-inch-long silver beard trembled slightly with his breath, brushing against the jade whisk carved with dragon patterns on his knees. In an instant, all the peach branches blossomed with bright and dazzling peach blossoms.

When Qiu Chuji arrived in this world, the white crane beside the old immortal suddenly opened its closed eyes and turned to look at him.

Then it turned its head back, called out twice to the old immortal, flapped its wings... and flew into the misty clouds, disappearing without a trace.

"What? It's only been a short time since we last met, and you've already forgotten me, your senior brother?" the old immortal asked with a smile, but he didn't turn to look at Qiu Chuji. His protruding head resembled a plump and juicy peach.

He seemed to really like this evil peach-like skin, and he wore the same outfit when he came to see Qiu Chuji this time.

Qiu Chuji appeared opposite the old immortal in an instant, and with a wave of his hand, his disheveled leaf-covered clothes transformed into a familiar blue Taoist robe.

Straightening his clothes, Qiu Chuji bowed respectfully.

Putting aside the fact that he was far inferior to the old immortal in front of him in terms of cultivation, this old immortal was also his senior brother in name and had taken good care of him, so he should pay attention to etiquette.

"Junior Brother Qiu Chuji greets Senior Brother!"

This old immortal is naturally the Antarctic Immortal.

Although in many mythological worlds, Guang Chengzi is the senior disciple of the Chan Sect, that only applies to the Twelve Golden Immortals.

In terms of when he became an apprentice, the Antarctic Immortal was the first to enter the sect, and his rank in the Heavenly Court was 'Antarctic Longevity Emperor'. In the myriad realms, he would also be a Heavenly Emperor, ruling over countless worlds.

In the worlds under his jurisdiction, he is undoubtedly the supreme ruler of the Three Realms.

He is even more noble than an ordinary Golden Immortal.

The Antarctic Immortal looked Qiu Chuji up and down and nodded with satisfaction: "Not bad! Not bad! A Golden Immortal who has attained enlightenment, not a Golden Turtle that has been boiled down..."

Qiu Chuji was speechless in response to these words.

To cultivate into a Golden Immortal, one must thoroughly see through the illusion of time, thereby trampling time underfoot and allowing immortality to truly spread to the very root of the soul.

This can be either proactive insight or passive acceptance.

For example, some beings who are born powerful and have a lifespan of almost infinite life, after being tempered by several eras, will naturally see through the essence of time at a certain moment, thus spreading the immortal golden intent and becoming powerful Golden Immortals.

This kind of Golden Immortal depends on two things: talent and luck. While he is not inferior to the Golden Immortal, he does have an element of coincidence.

Of course, even if a Golden Immortal is formed by chance, only a great figure like the Antarctic Immortal can make fun of him; Qiu Chuji did not have the confidence to do so.

If we're talking about coincidences... who isn't?

He would feel guilty if he said he had relied entirely on himself all along.

"How do you feel? Do you have the urge to break through again?" Seeing that Qiu Chuji did not answer, the Old Man of the South Pole did not take it to heart and continued to speak.

A hint of doubt flashed in Qiu Chuji's eyes. Logically speaking, since he had mastered the characteristics of the Great Luo Immortal, as long as he cultivated to the Golden Immortal realm, even if he didn't immediately ascend to the Great Luo realm again, he would at least be one step closer to the legendary Great Luo Golden Immortal... such as obtaining a half-step Great Luo realm or something.

But in fact, he felt nothing at all.

Looking upwards, the Great Luo Road seemed ever more distant, like the moon reflected in water or a flower in a mirror, an illusion.

The so-called Great Luo characteristic now seems more like a 'Golden Immortal' with special skills. He was just a Great Immortal who obtained a talent that was not appropriate for his level at that time.

"Uh...no!"

"Please enlighten me, Senior Brother!" Qiu Chuji guessed that the Antarctic Immortal was waiting for him here, and that this was probably what he wanted to talk about.

Moreover, the fact that the other party is so eager for him to "improve" might mean that there are some urgent situations where they need to use him.

"The Great Luo Golden Immortal cannot be cultivated!" The Antarctic Immortal's words were so astonishing that Qiu Chuji, who had just heard the news, was not able to fully react for a moment.

"Could it be... that being a Great Luo Golden Immortal is some kind of inherent qualification?" Qiu Chuji thought for a moment, then calmed down and asked.

He didn't want to accept this answer, because it would turn the romance of spiritual practice into the most shameful lie.

One radish, one hole... What is the essential difference between this and feudal enfeoffment?
Qiu Chuji then thought of the Legend of the White Snake, a story about someone who was about to break through to the Great Luo realm. This was an event he had personally experienced and in which he had played a significant role.

It was because of that incident that his relationship with the Old Man of the South Pole became 'close'.

If the Great Luo is a fixed, allocated resource, then is the claim in the "Legend of the White Snake" that the Great Luo is about to be a lie?

You're only half right!

"There is no fixed number for becoming a Great Luo Immortal, but if you want to become one, you must be qualified!" The Antarctic Immortal still didn't explain it clearly, but Qiu Chuji dared not complain.

When you encounter doubts, it's already a blessing if a senior member of your sect steps forward to answer your questions. To demand that they explain everything in just one sentence is incredibly greedy and ungrateful.

"What do you mean by that, Senior Brother?" Qiu Chuji asked, puzzled.

The Old Man of the South Pole retorted, "Are you a Great Golden Immortal now?"

Qiu Chuji was taken aback, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind, and he shook his head blankly.

"Were you a Great Immortal in the past?" the Antarctic Immortal asked again.

Qiu Chuji continued to shake his head.

Qiu Chuji had fully understood what the Old Man of the South Pole meant.

The term "Great Luo Golden Immortal" refers to all the myriad realms, endless time and space, and all possibilities, all of which converge into one.

That is, there is only one in the past, present, and future.

Ubiquitous, yet uniquely unique.

Following this theory, if Qiu Chuji was not a Great Luo in the past and is not a Great Luo now, then what makes him a Great Luo in the future?

Just as Hawking denied that humans would create time machines in the future, because we have never seen anyone from the future travel back in the present or the past.

Since Qiu Chuji is not the Great Luo now or in the past, it indirectly proves that he will not be the Great Luo in the future.

This logical dead end seems to be declaring that there are only naturally born Great Immortals, not Great Immortals cultivated later in life.

However, many examples refute this rigid and outdated view.

There are some Great Luo Golden Immortals in the heavens who, although they all have extraordinary origins, still climbed up step by step, rather than being born that way.

Conflicting thoughts swirled in Qiu Chuji's mind, and he could not find an answer.

The Old Man of the South Pole did not rush to answer his question, but let Qiu Chuji think about it on his own first.

From the distant mist came the sound of flowing water, like the chime of jade chimes. As the thirty-sixth petal melted into a dewdrop in Qiu Chuji's outstretched palm, the crisp sound of the Jade Void Bell suddenly echoed in his mind. Ripples appeared in Qiu Chuji's eyes.

"I am not, but it is!"

"I am it!!" The Jade Void Bell appeared in Qiu Chuji's palm, as if he had grasped the answer.

The Antarctic Immortal beckoned, and the Jade Void Bell floated down, landing in his palm.

When the wind rises, a gauze curtain woven from nine layers of celestial mist hangs down from the treetops, revealing bronze bells suspended among the branches.

Suddenly, the copper bell, mottled with verdigris, moved on its own without wind, and the falling petals wove a shimmering silk painting in the air. In an instant, all the copper bells hanging on the treetops transformed into the shape of the Jade Void Bell.

Qiu Chuji couldn't even tell which one was the real Jade Void Bell.

Qiu Chuji felt his face turn red and hurt.

He is not Yu Xu Zhong... He guessed wrong!

His relationship with Yu Xuzhong was truly just a 'cooperative' one.

The Jade Void Bell is more like his guide and protector. Perhaps after he reaches his predetermined position, the Jade Void Bell will return to the Jade Void Palace and continue to fulfill its original responsibilities.

"Immortals, Buddhas... and all cultivation civilizations are actually special!"

“They belong to ‘gods,’ or rather, derivatives of ‘mythology.’” The Old Man of the South Pole suddenly seemed to have changed the subject, steer the conversation away from the main topic.

Qiu Chuji calmed his mind and waited quietly for what was to come.

Once he understood the concept of time, his heart was no longer so impatient. He believed that if he waited longer, he would eventually find the answer to any questions he didn't understand.

Besides... since the Old Man of the South Pole has come knocking on our door, do you really think he'll only tell us half the story?
"Everything first had a god, and then the ambition to become a god arose, which led to the emergence of concepts such as immortals, Buddhas, saints, demons, monsters, etc."

"Therefore, to return to the origin and become a Great Luo Golden Immortal, you must become an irreplaceable, universally acknowledged god, and become the very embodiment of that god." The Antarctic Immortal coldly explained the underlying principles to Qiu Chuji.

Admittedly, in many mythological worlds, the status of gods is not as high as that of immortals and Buddhas. They do not seem to be as carefree as the immortals and Buddhas, and are more like puppets bound by the laws of heaven.

Have you ever considered that the gods in Heaven are all versions that have been restricted?

For example, if the authority of a thunder god is divided among many generals of the Thunder Department, and also shared by the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas and various dragon lords, then this god is naturally meaningless.

What if power were centralized?
Or... if all divine authority were concentrated in one person, becoming the only God, would such a 'God' still be looked down upon in terms of divine authority?
Of course, this discussion only concerns the distribution of authority.

The composition of the gods in the Heavenly Court is inherently complex, and divine authority is only one aspect of their power.

Let's take the Thunder Department as an example. Wen Zhong, the commander of the Thunder Department, controls the thunder of the nine heavens. He has at least 30% of the power of the Thunder God. However, he is not only good at controlling thunder. He can also use many other magical techniques of immortals. Considering his overall abilities, he is stronger than the Thunder God of other civilizations.

Furthermore, the legal structure of the Heavenly Court is a network!

It covers every aspect of the lives of billions of beings in the Three Realms, and the Heavenly Emperor sits high above, able to control everything within the network.

Wen Zhong is the commander of the Thunder Department, so he has about 30% of the Thunder God's authority. However, if the Heavenly Emperor, the supreme ruler of the Three Realms, wants to use this authority, he can mobilize more than 80% or 90% at any time. The same applies to the rest of the authority.

Therefore, in the structure of the Heavenly Court, the Heavenly Emperor is not like the god-kings in other civilizations, who have a very fixed divine office, but rather a very broad one.

Upon closer examination, his power is concentrated in his command of all the immortals and gods. As long as the immortals and gods are strong enough and control enough power, then the Heavenly Emperor, who commands thousands, will naturally have unlimited power.

Putting the present situation aside, the meaning that the Old Man of the South Pole wanted to express is very clear.

Immortals, Buddhas, and other practitioners all emulate and yearn for the source of 'gods'.

To become a Great Golden Immortal, one must become an undisputed being within the concept of a god.

For example, Yang Jian's title of "God of War".

This universally acknowledged identity as the 'God of War' allowed Yang Jian to connect the past, present, and future, and find the trajectory to the Great Luo, because the concept of an individual is fixed, but the definition of a god's position is vague.

Throughout history, there have been war gods. They are all very powerful and immortal.

Therefore, becoming a universally recognized God of War means possessing an immortal and indestructible lineage, through which one can cultivate their own Great Luo Path.

This is what the Old Man of the South Pole wanted to pass on to Qiu Chuji.

It all boils down to four words: using someone else's resources to make something of itself.

But first, Qiu Chuji needed to have this chicken.

"I understand what you mean, Senior Brother!"

"It seems that my path to becoming the Great Luo is still a very long one."

"I need to find a divine path that suits me, then make a name for myself, spread my fame throughout the heavens and myriad realms, until it is universally recognized... Then, by using this divine position, I can connect my past and future, and become a Great Golden Immortal!" Qiu Chuji summarized, but in his heart he did not actually believe that this was the path he was meant to take.

If that's his path, then the Old Man of the South Pole had no reason to make this trip at all.

"Slippery!" The Antarctic Immortal naturally sensed Qiu Chuji's insincerity, pointed at him with his finger, and then continued, "The era is about to begin anew!"

"All parties are prepared!"

"You are one of the preparations we made!"

"Now you have two choices."

"First, stay among the heavens, choose a world to settle down in, and accumulate and cultivate little by little... Of course, I want to take the Jade Void Bell. It is one of the core cheat codes in this arrangement. If you give it up, it will be put back into the past and another person will be chosen."

"Second, return to the ancestral land, the birthplace of all civilizations, cultivation, and mythology, and seize the initiative in the next era. Incidentally, you can also easily achieve your goal, becoming a synonym for a certain type of god, possessing the foundation to span the past, present, and future."

The two choices that the Old Man of the South Pole made so casually exploded into a dazzling display of ideas in Qiu Chuji's mind.

At this moment, Qiu Chuji could only think of one answer: "The time traveler returns home!"

This is the answer hidden behind a series of arrangements.

As he had imagined, there were indeed some similarities, but they were quite different from reality.

It turns out that it's not about competing with Buddhism, nor is it about pushing the superstructure of Taoism further or making up for certain conceptual shortcomings.

Instead, they return to the beginning of everything, competing with many other deliberately cultivated "transmigrators" to set an example and guide the overall civilization and tradition.

This is a more core and more intense struggle and game than the so-called competition in the vast universe.

Qiu Chuji was already clear that he was by no means the only option for the Taoist sect.

Unbeknownst to him, there were many fellow disciples in the same sect.

(End of this chapter)