I was forced to cultivate immortality when I just wanted to lie down

Chapter 245 Preaching, Rebellious Spirit

In the dead of night, in the middle of nowhere, with a fox den nearby, the statue in front of them suddenly opened its eyes.

Doesn't this allow people to live?

Their eyes met, and Xu Qing instinctively reached for the axe handle, while Xuan Yu beside him gripped his longsword in perfect unison.

The two figures, one stiff and one lively, resembled a pair of thieves who robbed and plundered. Their posture clearly told the idol: You have indeed been kind to us, but if you want to take action after scaring us, then that is wrong of you!

In addition, we have already burned incense for you and fulfilled your vows, so let's see if you are moved!

They dared not move the statue at all.

"Who are you, who awakened me?"

The statue remained silent for a moment before finally speaking.

Xuan Yu was startled by the sound and drew his long sword half a hand's breadth from his hand.

Hearing the statue speak, Xu Qing felt somewhat at ease.

This statue of Lord Yuan may seem strange, but in reality, the incense and magical power inside has been exhausted. Without the two offerings of incense from him and Xuan Yu, this statue would be nothing but an inanimate object.

Xu Qing bowed and first explained his origins in cultivating the divine path, but deliberately omitted the matter of zombies.

To prevent the statue from asking random questions, Xu Qing took the initiative and asked first: "My Baosheng Temple was established at the request of the county magistrate and conferred by the imperial court. We have always been known for our meritorious deeds and have saved countless people. May I ask if you are Lord Yuan in person? If not Lord Yuan, then which deity have you performed any good deeds?"

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Hearing this question, both strange and familiar, the statue thought it had returned to the time when it first started learning and seeking knowledge. Back then, when it went to find a master, people always liked to ask it this question.

At that time, he was just a white ape. Although he had developed spiritual awareness, he would never be able to explain what merits he had achieved.

This is like having to achieve something before you can become an apprentice. But if you don't become an apprentice or learn any skills, how can you have the ability to achieve so much?

Xu Qing's words stirred up unpleasant memories for the statue. After a moment of silence, the statue spoke softly, "I am the master of Baiyun Cave in Yunmeng Mountain. I was once ordered by the Heavenly Emperor to guard the Heavenly Book within the cave. Later, having achieved my goal, I returned to the Upper Realm, leaving only a divine statue in Ruyi Temple. What you see now is merely an incarnation of my offerings."

At this point, Yuan Gong looked at the little girl who was looking at him with great curiosity and said in a gentle tone, "You, Xuan Cat, were born in response to the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. I did not expect that when we meet again today, the pure energy on your body is even more pure and spiritual than before. It can be seen that you have indeed embraced simplicity and truth all these years and have not become lazy."

Xuan Yu knew that Yuan Gong had been kind to it, so after hearing these words, it cupped its hands and bowed respectfully to the statue of the god.

Looking at the statue before him, Xu Qing's doubts not only did not lessen, but instead gave rise to even more questions.

He had witnessed so many things in Tianjin, and the corpses he had exorcised came from all corners of the country, but he had never seen a real deity descend. On the contrary, it was the rebel groups that liked to fabricate lies about deities descending to deceive people.

If what Master Yuan said is true, then why don't we see other deities with incense offerings and incarnations walking in the world?
Furthermore, since Lord Yuan is an immortal and a saint, why would he sit idly by and watch the old fox demon occupy his White Cloud Cave and cause havoc?
Xu Qing voiced his question, and Yuan Gong sighed with regret upon hearing it, then revealed a truth unknown to the world.

"When I returned to the upper realm after achieving perfect merit, the Heavenly Emperor destroyed the Tai Shi Peak where the White Jade Furnace was placed, and suppressed that enlightened wild fox in its cave, just to prevent future troubles."

"Under normal circumstances, it would be extremely difficult for this fox demon to escape, but it happened to be during the great calamity of the imbalance of Yin and Yang and the fall of the Nine Netherworlds. In order to block the passage between the underworld and the mortal world, the Heavenly Emperor cut off the path to heaven, but the restrictions of the White Cloud Cave also lost most of their effectiveness."

"The world is now a corrupt and evil place, and all the gods in the mortal realm have returned to the upper realm. The fox demon knew that the gods could not spare any attention, so it took the opportunity to have the idea of ​​escaping."

Xu Qing's heart stirred, and he asked curiously, "When I was cultivating in the mortal world, I heard others mention the rumors of an imbalance between the underworld and the mortal world, and the severance of the path to heaven, but I didn't know the specific reasons. I wonder if you could clear up my doubts, senior?"

"This matter is a cataclysmic event of the heavens and earth, which is beyond the control of ordinary people. Listening to it is of no use to you."

Despite saying that, Master Yuan still answered some of Xu Qing's questions.

"Even the most sacred and divine beings harbor evil thoughts. Since the beginning of time, how much filth has been hidden in the world? Heaven and earth are divided into pure and impure. Pure energy rises and impure energy descends. There is no impure energy in the upper realm. So where do you think all that impure energy has gone?"

"Ah, this is indeed the Nine Netherworld, the place under the jurisdiction of the Underworld!"

Yuan Gong sighed, “During the Nine Netherworld Calamities, Ksitigarbha reached the ears of Heaven, and most Buddhas, immortals, and saints chose to sever the connection between Heaven and Earth, cutting off the link between the underworld and the mortal world.”

"Only a few immortals and gods who were not lacking in fighting spirit persisted in eliminating the disasters and purifying the universe. They made a great vow that they would not become Buddhas until hell was empty. However, the first to come out and stop them was the Netherworld Lord and the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha."

“The Buddha Ksitigarbha said: Before the calamities occurred, hell was not empty. Now that the Nine Netherworlds have suffered drastic changes, who can cleanse these defilements?”

Xu Qing sensed the sigh of disappointment in Yuan Gong's tone, and he vaguely realized that Yuan Gong might be one of the very few immortals who chose to support the elimination of the demonic forces and the reopening of the Path to Heaven.

Under the premise of stable order, the upper realm will not care about the life or death of cultivators in the lower realm.

In this turbid and evil world, the path to heaven is severed. No matter how hard mortal cultivators try, they cannot break through the barrier to ascension. They can only choose to cleanse the underworld of calamities and reopen the path to heaven.

But if even immortals and gods don't have the courage to open up the Heavenly Road, how can cultivators below easily open it up?
Xu Qing thought of the skeletons along the Yinhe Ancient Road, including the remains of humans, demons, and spirits.

The Yinhe Ancient Road is a bloody path carved out by cultivators from the lower realms with their lives.

The sand and dust filling the sky were not river sand, but ashes and corpse powder.

Xu Qing then thought of Hu Baosong's deep longing, even in death, that he wanted Hu Baosong to send him to the Populus euphratica mausoleum, where fallen leaves can return to their roots.

The poplar family has been reduced to only one main lineage, Hu Baosong.

Without exception, everyone else laid their bodies on the ancient Yin River road leading to the underworld.

"No wonder there are so many evil spirits and heretics in the world, no wonder it's so hard to find a true practitioner."

Xu Qing gradually saw a corner of the truth about this world.

Those who were farsighted and willing to be pioneers, even demons, mostly used their bodies as a stepping stone and remained forever in the Yin River. Only those who were greedy for life and afraid of death, or like the White Cloud Taoist and Abbot Dingguang, who relied on feeding on the lives of the weak to sustain themselves, continued to live recklessly.

“This world is sick,” Xu Qing suddenly said.

"It is an illness, but it is not beyond saving."

In the stone eyes that Yuan Gong had painted with lacquer, a dazzling light seemed to suddenly appear.

"Human cultivation is subject to calamities, and the continuation of heaven and earth is also subject to calamities. Since the beginning of time, which calamity has not been a catastrophe that shook the heavens and the earth? Some people want to enter the calamity, some want to escape the world, and some want to manage the calamity." "Nowadays, there are many who want to escape the world, few who are willing to enter the calamity, and even fewer who are willing to manage the calamity."

At this point, Yuan Gong's bright eyes dimmed again.

“I have always admired Ksitigarbha, but he first tempered his own spirit and became despondent when he encountered setbacks, which is really a pity.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Qing was completely certain of the camp that Yuan Gong had chosen. If what the other party said was true, the Upper Realm was now divided into two factions: one conservative faction, which supported the Severing of Heaven and Earth.

The other faction, though small in number, supported the cleansing of the Nine Netherworld plagues and the reopening of the Heavenly Road.

This faction, whose ideas contradict those of the Heavenly Emperor, mostly consists of those deities with rebellious tendencies.

Yuan Gong believed that the Heavenly Emperor was impartial and selfless and should not have any "secrets". The Nine Heavens Secret Manual contains the word "secret" and does not allow others to study it. Doesn't that prove that the Heavenly Emperor has selfishness?

Because of his rebellious nature and unwillingness to follow the rules, Yuan Gong stole the Nine Heavens Secret Manual and engraved it in the White Cloud Cave.

Once the Heavenly Book is engraved, it cannot be erased. Yuan Gong wanted the beings in the lower realm to also learn the Heavenly Book that the upper realm monopolized, but how is he any different from a rebellious traitor?

If it weren't for the fact that Master Yuan was a disciple of the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden, he would probably be suppressed in the White Cloud Cave by now, and paired up with that old fox!

Thinking back to the past when Yuan Gong stole the Heavenly Book, and then considering Yuan Gong's current choice, Xu Qing had a strange feeling that this was quite reasonable.

"These things are not secrets. You don't have a deep connection to the upper realm and don't have a proper master, so naturally you don't know about the news from the upper realm."

Xu Qing was speechless.

Can you blame him?
If one day he could receive the corpse of an immortal or a saint
"Forgive me, forgive me," Xu Qing thought, "My strength doesn't allow it for the time being." He decisively extinguished this dangerous idea.

After learning the reason for the imbalance between the underworld and the mortal realm, Xu Qing asked one last question: "Since you said that the gods who stayed in the mortal realm have returned to their original positions, why do you still have incense offerings and incarnations in the lower realm?"

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Yuan Gong remained silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Back then, I stole the Heavenly Book and committed a heinous crime. The Heavenly Emperor punished me by subjecting me to the Five Elements Calamities, namely, the five calamities of wood damage, fire burning, earth burial, metal injury, and water drowning. These are divine calamities that cannot be undone."

"Although I have returned to the heavenly realm with perfect merit, there are still calamities of wood damage and flooding that have not yet been fulfilled. The laws of heaven cannot be changed, which is why the Heavenly Emperor has given special permission to let me take the punishment in place of my original self by incarnation of incense and statue of a deity."

"Back then, the Taoist Baiyun committed all sorts of evil deeds, killing and harming people, and tricking them into offering incense to me. That incense was a deadly poison to me. Incense is made from plants and trees, which just so happens to be a calamity caused by the harm of wood."

"What you see now is my broken body being thrown into a deep ravine by the White Cloud Taoist and defiled with evil magic, which is the fulfillment of the calamity of being submerged by water."

Lord Yuan laughed and said, "You helped me get out of trouble today, which is enough to avert disaster."

Xu Qing suddenly realized that Yuan Gong had saved Xuan Yu in the past, and today Xuan Yu used her demon core to replace the bright moon, illuminating this deep ravine and together with him, fulfilling Yuan Gong's calamity.

All these experiences, seemingly without cause, are actually intricately connected.

“This spirit cat helped me out of my predicament, and I have already repaid its kindness. The only thing I haven’t repaid is the kindness of the layman who helped me.” Yuan Gong looked at Xu Qing with great interest: “While I still have a trace of divine power left, you can tell me what you wish for.”

Any wish is allowed? Then I'd like to have an endless stream of corpses to collect every day, and it would be even better if the line of people coming to hold funerals stretched from the streets to the city gates every day!

Xu Qing suppressed his inner turmoil and ultimately didn't dare to voice his true feelings.

"Senior, this junior wishes to seek a destiny of immortality together with the Xuan Yu Immortal who is traveling with me."

"You certainly know how to keep someone company!"

Yuan Gong chuckled. Xu Qing's words were clever; he said he was asking for a chance to become immortal, but he was actually asking for the chance to become immortal for two people, including his family.

However, Xuan Yu and he had some kind of karmic connection, so if Xu Qing really wanted to speak, he couldn't very well refuse.

"That's all."

Master Yuan sighed and said, "It's no problem for me to teach you the secrets of immortality, but there are some things I need to say beforehand."

"Juniors are all ears."

Yuan Gong pondered and said, "Everything that happens in the world has a solution. In the past, Shennong tasted hundreds of herbs. When he came to a dangerous cliff, he picked a poisonous herb, which was the Heartbreak Herb! Shennong tasted it and realized that it was poisonous. At that time, Shennong suffered from severe abdominal pain, and even the antidote tea that had always worked was ineffective."

"When Shennong felt he had reached the end of his road, he discovered a flying insect that feeds on poisonous plants on the poisonous grass."

"Flying insects feed on poison and must be the antidote. Shennong wanted to catch the insect, but by then the poison had seeped into his bones, and his limbs were stiff as withered wood. How could he possibly catch the flying insect?"

Yuan Gong sighed and said, "This insect took flight and flew off the cliff right in front of Shennong. When Shennong came to his senses, he found that there were countless phosphorescent flying insects in the valley below the cliff."

The Classic of Materia Medica states that north of Shennongjia, there is a perilous cliff. On windy and rainy nights, a faint blue phosphorescent light often floats on the mountaintop, resembling flying insects seeking their master. The villagers all say, "This is the unfulfilled wish of Emperor Yan."

After listening to what Yuan Gong said, Xu Qing had a vague understanding in his heart, but like Shennong Yandi, he could not grasp the flying insect that could solve his confusion.

"When the path to heaven is cut off and the connection between yin and yang is severed, it is the time for the demon fox of Baiyun Cave to emerge into the world. This matter may be delayed, but it cannot be avoided. That demon fox is a harbinger of disaster, and now it has been suppressed for hundreds of years, accumulating deep resentment. Once it is released, it will surely bring calamity to the world."

Yuan Gong seemed to be referring to something, saying, "However, there must be a way to neutralize a highly poisonous substance, just as the mysteries of heaven are self-evident, and the balance of yin and yang is self-sustaining."

"Today I pass on to you the method of protecting the path. If you encounter the same predicament in the future, I hope you will remember these words and not lose your fighting spirit."

"Juniors always remember the teachings of their predecessors."

Xu Qing readily agreed, but he had no curiosity or concern about the implied meaning behind Yuan Gong's words.

He came here to learn about immortality, not to take over someone else's business!
The debt of gratitude owed to him by Lord Yuan would be settled after today. As for the idea of ​​being entrusted with a great mission by Heaven, Xu Qing was not interested.

He currently only wants to manage his small temple and take care of his business and temple. If he were to leave Tianjin, disband his temple, and run to this place in Qianzhou to guard Yunmeng Mountain, like Yuan Gong did back then, he would rather let Yuan Gong's statue remain buried in the ground until the truth is cleared up and the past issues are addressed.

In short, if he was absolutely confident in handling the mess at Baiyun Cave, he wouldn't stand idly by. But to ask him to give up his promising career and go live in this godforsaken place like Yunmeng Mountain was absolutely out of the question!

Unlike the commercial port of Tianjin, Yunmeng Mountain was not convenient enough to receive corpses from all over the country and from all over the country.

(End of this chapter)