From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

Can the Mermaid understand the Hetu and Luoshu?

Although it has lived in the ocean for thousands of years, even though the Hetu Luoshu contains the principles of the innate Dao, it is still presented in a way that humans can understand.

Having cultivated for so long, Jiang Liu has come to understand the concepts of ascension and immortality. He believes that neither Taoism nor Buddhism places great importance on the physical body.

Jiang Liu simply didn't want to follow the path of abandoning his physical body to cultivate only a Yang spirit, or completely locking away his innate Qi to become a clay statue.

And the Mermaid—

According to Jiang Liu's perception, beneath the Jianmu tree was a complex of gears and mechanisms, and the bronze statues surrounding the tree were using chains to rotate it, thus storing and accumulating energy...

It's highly likely that it misunderstood, thinking that "ascension" actually means letting the physical body fly into the sky.

"So you really are descendants of the Yellow Emperor and the Yan Emperor." Duanmu Ying suddenly realized.

Jiang Liu, however, began to observe the arrangement of the ancient coral reefs and the style of the caves in front of him, and discovered that they corresponded to the pictographic principles of the Hetu and Luoshu.

In the heavens, it is the wind and the air.

On earth, it is dragon and water.

According to the extraordinary person's understanding of the feng shui of heaven and earth, it is the energy formation!

Dragon, or dragon vein.

There are dragon veins even in the seabed!

Jiang Liu comprehended the aura seal that resembled both a fish and a bird, which was connected to the aura in the water, and gained a further understanding of the existence of the Void.

Guixu—

It is wailing.

Naturally formed areas of energy may also obstruct the operation of the overall energy field of heaven and earth. Therefore, such energy fields will naturally disappear over time. As for natural energy fields that have been artificially modified, the "Way of Heaven" will guide others to completely destroy them.

However, in Jiang Liu's understanding, a kind of energy field like Guixu, which can be directly connected to the great energy field of heaven and earth and can also be transferred with the ocean currents, would not be an obstacle to heaven and earth.

On the contrary!

This type of atmospheric pattern moves across the ocean with the sea air and ocean currents, and is one of the key factors regulating climate change.

and so--

Was it the ancestors of the Dragon Otter people who visited Guixu and settled there again that caused Guixu to become the "Sea Eye"?

Do not!

Jiang Liu immediately dismissed this possibility.

According to the principle of supplementing the innate with the acquired, if humans can coexist harmoniously with blessed lands like Guixu, a certain degree of modification will not disrupt the energy pattern. On the contrary, it can further connect Guixu with the energy pattern of heaven and earth.

This reminds me of the immortals and gods in mythology who reside in blessed lands, each with their own divine duties, such as controlling clouds and rain, blowing wind and snow, and governing the four seasons—

Could it be based on the location's inherent energy?

Let's get back to the present.

The transformation of Guixu into a sea eye is likely due to internal strife within the Hentian clan. Originally, the fish and bird clans lived in peace, even coexisting harmoniously and supporting each other. However, for unknown reasons, a conflict erupted, resulting in the fish's victory over the bird, thus creating a deficiency in the acquired form's ability to compensate for the innate...

# Chapter 489 The River Chart and the Luo River Writing (Part 2)

Mind this.

Jiang Liu pondered another question:

Did the sea monster, the Mermaid, get involved in the struggle between fish and birds?

Although humans are indeed best at internal strife, the Hentian Clan, residing in the deep sea and not bordering the mainland, still retains a sense of simplicity.

It was all about vying for power and profit. In ancient times, people were the most precious commodity. If the Fish Clan had defeated the Bird Clan, killing their leader and destroying the bird totem would have been one thing, but judging from the sea-penetrating array patterns on Gu Qian and others, the Fish Clan had actually wiped out the Bird Clan.

How deep must that hatred be?

Why are we so eager to destroy each other?

They wouldn't be so ruthless as to exterminate all members of the defeated side.

Analyzing the bronze statues on both sides of the passageway leading into the bronze hall, the two seem to have the same origin and should have maintained a long-term close relationship, but the relationship seems to have suddenly taken a sharp turn for the worse.

Why suddenly?

The reason is simple.

Logically, since the fish defeated the bird, the bronze palace should be rebuilt, all the statues related to the bird clan should be dismantled and destroyed, and the statues of the fish clan should be rebuilt.

The truth is that the statues associated with the Bird Clan were only beheaded, but their bodies were not destroyed. The reasonable explanation is that not long after the Fish Clan defeated the Bird Clan and wiped out the Bird Clan, the Qi of Guixu went wrong, so the Fish Clan did not have time to deal with the Bird Clan's statues.

However, it is impossible to learn the specific details of the past from Gu Qian and Gu Kun, so Jiang Liu can only proceed slowly and enter the ancient coral reef group.

Stepping inside, one can sense the surging of sea currents and the flowing of dragon fire. The river also evokes different feelings, causing the nine orifices to tremble and the eight meridians to pulsate. Amidst these tremors, the Qi-based talisman seems to spontaneously perceive the arrangement and layout of the coral reefs here, reflecting two peculiar scenes within one's mind.

These are the Hetu and Luoshu.

The Hetu (River Diagram) confirms the numbers that create heaven and earth, while the Luoshu (Luo River Diagram) confirms the numbers that change heaven and earth.

The two reflect the inner landscape of Jiang Liu, which is what the Jade Emperor of the Golden Palace of the Heavenly Palace, the Earth Goddess Houtu, and the Mind Monkey, the Will Horse, the Golden Duke, the Wooden Mother, and the Yellow Woman have gained and realized. This further refines the inner landscape, thereby coordinating the physical landscape and achieving unity of mind and body, which helps Jiang Liu to become more sensitive to the climate and atmosphere of heaven and earth.

In an instant, the river seemed to be blessed with good fortune:

Within the physical landscape, the red and blue interwoven patterns on the bones of the body slightly changed, corresponding one by one to the landscape of the Hetu diagram, thus completing the numbers representing the creation of heaven and earth.

The Hetu (River Diagram) has ten numbers: 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 are Yang, while 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 are Yin. The sum of the Yang numbers is 25, the sum of the Yin numbers is 30, and the sum of the Yin and Yang numbers is 55.

Therefore, the ancients said: The number of heaven and earth is fifty-five.

Only in this way can one transform and command spirits!

As for the saying "The Great Dao is fifty, and the Heavenly Derivation is forty-nine," it falls under the category of the Great Derivation Number—

The number of Heaven and Earth is fifty-five, and the number of Great Derivation is fifty, which is the number of Heaven and Earth in use; the number of Small Derivation is five, which is the number of Heaven and Earth in substance. The so-called Heavenly Derivation of forty-nine is simply using the number of Heaven and Earth in use for divination and prophecy, with one substance and forty-nine in use, so its use is forty-nine.

The human body is a universe in itself.

Jiang Liu used his body as a backdrop to obtain the innate talisman diagrams. He then inscribed red and blue talisman diagrams on his bones to construct the basic framework of the human body and the universe, which is equivalent to the foundation of the innate Great Dao.

Now, entering the ancient coral reefs constructed in the form of the Hetu and Luoshu, one can understand the principles of the Hetu, complete the numbers of the creation of heaven and earth, and make one's physical form more and more perfect. The five internal organs, the primordial spirit, the brain, the muscles and flesh are also filled with red and blue runes that are difficult for even extraordinary people to detect.

Within the mind's vision, the landscape of the Luo River corresponds to the mind, completing the numbers of changes in heaven and earth.

The Luoshu (洛书) has nine numbers: 1, 3, 7, and 9 are yang numbers, 2, 4, 6, and 8 are yin numbers, and 5 is in the middle. Yang numbers represent the weather, and yin numbers represent the earth's energy, thus regulating yin and yang and harmonizing the seasons.

This allows the Jiangliu Xinjing (Jiang River's Heart Scene) to experience the changing cycles of the four seasons and six energies.

After Jiang Liu mastered the control of the Golden Crow's Fire, the Jade Rabbit's Fire, and the Fire of the Four Seasons and Six Qi, in his mind, apart from the rotation of the sun and moon, there was no change in the rotation of the four seasons.

Now that I have grasped the principles of the Luo Shu and completed my mental landscape, I have realized that my control over the timing of the four seasons and six qi is lacking!

This time, the missing parts are complete.

As the ancients said, water is the source of all things, and earth is the mother of all things. My body enters the sea, my feet tread the sand, thus completing the physical and spiritual form of myself—a truly joyous and celebratory occasion!

Jiang Liu was overjoyed.

For him alone:

The river symbol is round, representing the unity of Yin and Yang, the unity of the Five Elements, and the natural way of non-action and following the natural order.

Corresponding to the cultivation of the body and environment, it is to circulate Qi through the nine orifices, pass through the eight meridians, refine the five Qi, and combine Yin and Yang to form the nine-turn elixir method, transform the six Qi of heaven and earth for one's own use, internally refine the innate Qi, and balance the consumption of one's own innate Qi, just like a normal person eating and drinking, following the natural course of non-action.

The Luoshu square, with its intricate interplay of Yin and Yang, and the restraint of the Five Elements, embodies the principle of action and change through reversal.

The corresponding practice of cultivating one's mind and spirit is to open up one's spiritual world, reaching the highest heavens and the deepest hells, where heaven and earth take shape, the four seasons change according to their own rules, the five elements interact and restrain each other, the four seasons rotate, the climate forms itself, and changes in countless ways. It must be controlled by the mind, which is the way of action.

The Hetu and Luoshu, combined into one, embody the unity of body and mind; this is precisely:

The circle represents the heavens, and the square represents the earth.

The circle represents the heavens and is the River Chart. The Qi flows and circulates throughout the heavens. Without cultivation or proof, one can attain the Taiji and understand one's nature and achieve naturalness. The square represents the earth and is the Luoshu. The two polarities change and unite heaven and man. With addition and subtraction, one can determine the universe and fully obtain one's life and mend the heavens.

With the Hetu (River Diagram) nourishing the body and the Luoshu (Luo River Writing) embodying the mind, Jiang Liu comprehended the Dao of the perfect circle and image in a single thought, taking another step closer to refining the golden elixir and creating the sacred embryo.

What's inside the caves in these coral reefs?

Duanmu Ying's question awakened Jiang Liu, who then walked to a coral reef, where the surrounding water was separated.

"It's the corpse of a mermaid."

Inside the cave was a merman with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a fish. It had fins on its arms, fangs between its fingers, sharp claws, scales on its face, a protruding mouth, and fangs. But it was already silent, and its tail had rotted away, revealing a section of fish bone.

In general, this creature is not the same species as the jade-winged golden-scaled mermaid stored in Jiang Liu's storage ring. Although that mermaid was the size of an infant, it was clearly more in line with human aesthetics. This merman, even though its upper body was humanoid, was only humanoid, and its head was more like a big fat fish head.

"How come there are merman corpses here? How did they die?"

Duanmu Ying pulled the merman's corpse out of the cave, quite curious about the body structure of this monster with a human upper body and a fish lower body.

She then borrowed a dagger from Gu Qian.

This dagger has an extremely curved arc, with the blade and handle as one piece. It is a weapon that has been passed down for thousands of years by the Dragon Otter people. It has been nurtured by Qi and passed down from generation to generation. Even though they do not know how to refine weapons and cannot refine it into a magic weapon, it has become a divine weapon!

The blade of this dragon-curved dagger was extremely sharp; Duanmu Ying only needed to make a light cut to slice open the mermaid's abdomen.

"They must have starved to death."

Before Duanmu Ying could examine the internal organs in detail, Gu Qian suggested a possibility.

"how is this possible?"

Duanmu Ying turned around and said to Gu Qian, "Starve to death? With this merman's body being over eight feet tall, plus its sharp claws, it's enough to catch those sharks outside. Besides, there are other fish in the outer sea. At the very least, it can eat those big clams, right?"

How could they starve to death?

# Chapter 490 Can Mermaids Be Eaten?

"Unlike the legendary mermaids, the merfolk are one entity."

Gu Qian said.

"What do you mean?"

One?