The Northern Song Dynasty returned south, seeking the truth of the Dao.

Wang Zhenhuan was startled, then overjoyed. He hadn't expected his palm strike to be so powerful, enough to send an adult flying.

Although he was overjoyed, his expression remained cold and stern. The remaining beggars, upon seeing this, were utterly shocked. For a moment, they couldn't figure out Wang Zhenhuan's true nature.

They stood there, unsure whether to advance or retreat. The men exchanged glances, put down their sticks, and turned to run out the door. Wang Zhenhuan watched them coldly, making no move.

Just as the last person was about to leave, Wang Zhenhuan suddenly spoke up, "Wait!"

The beggar froze on the spot, stiffly turning around. Seeing Wang Zhenhuan looking at him, his body trembled violently, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, hurriedly begging for mercy.

"Tell me, has anything major happened in the martial arts world lately?"

"Replying to...replying to...great hero, it's nothing...nothing serious. I heard the Jurchens have already surrounded the east..."

"I didn't ask you about the Jin people! Has anything major happened in Jeju?" Seeing that he was beating around the bush, Wang Zhenhuan simply asked directly.

After pondering for a while, the beggar suddenly exclaimed, "Yes, yes, yes!! I heard that the master of Qinglong Manor has obtained the Jizhou True Scripture and returned to Qinglong Manor for seclusion."

"When did this happen? How is Qinglong Manor now? Who is in charge?" Wang Zhenhuan asked, frowning.

"About a month ago, the current head of the Qinglong Manor was the young master. I heard that because the old master was in seclusion, the young master had ordered the manor to be closed," the beggar said, bowing.

"Take him with you and get out of here. Don't let me see you again, or I'll beat you every time I see you!" Wang Zhenhuan breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this answer.

This result was roughly in line with his previous predictions; even if the old monster Yin wasn't dead, he would be half-crippled, otherwise he wouldn't have closed the manor so hastily. Wang Zhenhuan pondered this as he reached out to help the old man on the ground up.

Unexpectedly, the old man, seeing his actions, was so frightened that he shrank back. Wang Zhen was taken aback and was about to explain when the old man suddenly got up from the ground.

Under his dumbfounded gaze, the old man scrambled out of the courtyard gate. Wang Zhen watched his retreating figure, utterly bewildered. He was the one who had saved the old man, so why was the old man afraid of him?

He turned and went back into the temple, where he used the firewood gathered by the beggars to start a fire. Sitting by the fire, he was completely baffled. Even the joy he had felt after breaking through his cultivation level had faded considerably.

He recalled the refugee family he had encountered during his solo journey south. Why such drastically different reactions from those he had helped? Sitting in the hall, he vaguely heard voices coming from next door.

It turned out that all the fleeing refugees had gone to the mortuary next door. The breakthrough in his cultivation level, which brought him enhanced hearing and vision, didn't excite Wang Zhenhuan. Instead, the faint sounds of conversation coming from next door annoyed him.

He tossed and turned, unable to sleep, the old man's terrified, cowering eyes constantly replaying in his mind. He felt he had done nothing wrong, yet he hadn't received the reward he deserved, not even a thank you.

His doubts remained unresolved, gradually giving rise to inner demons. The thought of the old man who would rather live with the dead than with him fueled his growing anxiety and frustration, even leading him to contemplate going over and beating the old man.

Wang Huanzhen stood up angrily and went to the neighboring mortuary. There, the refugees were cooking a pot of mushy stuff. Seeing him approach, they all cowered and moved aside.

Seeing that no one was around, the old man hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed to Wang Zhenhuan without saying a word. At this moment, Wang Zhenhuan was furious. He stepped forward, gathered his spiritual energy in his palm, and raised his hand to strike the old man.

"Whoa—!"

Suddenly, a child's cry rang out from the woman's arms beside him. Wang Zhenhuan instinctively turned his head to look, and was so frightened that the woman hurriedly covered the child's mouth with her hand, her eyes full of pleading.

What am I even doing?!?

Wang Zhenhuan looked at the pleading woman and the old man kowtowing repeatedly before him. Suddenly, he came to his senses and felt ashamed when he thought about how he had almost indiscriminately killed innocent people.

He didn't understand why he had become like this; it was simply because he hadn't gotten the result he wanted. This caused his thoughts to become blocked, and he even harbored murderous intentions.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..."

Wang Zhenhuan bowed his head in apology, his face burning with embarrassment, and hurriedly turned to leave. Before leaving, he took a few copper coins from his pocket and tossed them to the woman with the child.

Back in the temple, Wang Zhenhuan's mind remained unsettled for a long time. He sat cross-legged by the fire, closed his eyes, and recalled the contents of the scriptures in his mind, trying to find an explanation for his rash actions.

This "True Scripture of Primordial Dao Qi" truly lives up to its reputation as a work left by the Grandmaster Taiqing. Soon, Wang Zhenhuan found the answer. The reason he had previously developed inner demons was because his actions of saving people did not yield the expected results.

The sacred text says: "The highest good is like water. Water benefits all things without striving, dwelling in places that others disdain, thus it is close to the Way." This means that the highest level of goodness is like water.

Water nourishes all things without competing with them. It stays in places that others dislike, thus being closest to the Tao. The Taoist works for the world not because the world is worthy of it.

Rather, it is because of what the heart desires that one acts accordingly. Therefore, never expect too much; everyone understands the importance of reciprocation and gratitude. In simpler terms, it means being kind to others.

Don't expect others to appreciate your kindness; if you don't have expectations, you won't be disappointed. This is the root cause of why Wang Zhen was so troubled before—because the old man didn't appreciate his kindness.

Everything in this world is subject to the concepts of loss and gain. The same applies to Taoists. If one's actions cause loss to others, one's own virtue will be impaired, and the Great Way will be difficult to achieve. If one causes loss to oneself, inner demons will arise, releasing evil thoughts from one's heart.

After thinking these things through, Wang Huanzhen's thoughts gradually became clear. The essence of cultivation lies in cultivating the mind. In the end, the whole matter stemmed from his restless mind, and a restless mind leads to turmoil.

When the mind is not at peace, it is easily influenced by external things. Gradually, inner demons arise, leading one astray from the true path and ultimately astray. The true scriptures also say: "The human spirit loves purity, but the mind disturbs it; the human heart loves tranquility, but desires pull it away."

To remove these distractions and attain "tranquility," one must "discard desires and the mind will naturally be still; purify the mind and the spirit will naturally be clear." One must reach the state of "no mind," "no form," "no thing," and "only emptiness is seen."

This state is called "serene and eternal stillness." As the saying goes, "In stillness there is nothing to be still about; how can desire arise? Since desire does not arise, that is true stillness." Only by entering the state of "eternal purity and stillness" can one "gradually enter the true path."

It is called: Attaining the Dao...