Chapter 6, Ancient and Modern Legends · Xianxia

Li Ziye shook his head: "The so-called pioneers of modern law do not refer to a single individual. Have you ever heard of the ancient scholars Bi Ge Ci and Ji Mi De?"

Wang Qi pondered for a moment. If the ascension trial participants of this celestial alliance organization were as he imagined, then he had nothing to fear. It was merely a matter of exam preparation, something he was quite familiar with from his previous life. However, he needed to reassure the villagers

Li Ziye closed his eyes, seemingly reminiscing about the era when the world was filled with enemies, and the predecessors of the current law fought their way through a bloody path: "The masters of primordial power and the talented individuals of their generation completely turned the tide of battle, and the current law finally overwhelmed the ancient law, becoming the legitimate orthodoxy of Shenzhou"

Zhen Chanzi asked: "What is extraordinary about these myriad paths?"

Where are you from, old man

Who said that the intelligence quotient of ancient people in another world is only 9

Wang Qi opened his eyes wide: "So what you're saying is that when you talk to me, you're merely pretending to be naive and unaware of the world, just to extract information from me, all for the purpose of lingering there a little longer?"

As we reach the later stages, we can directly emulate nature, forging a perfect inner world, rather than struggling to find our own path as dictated by ancient methods

Li Ziye nodded slightly: "In the opinion of this younger brother, where would be suitable for the two of us to settle down?"

This time it was Xiang Qi who was bewildered

Li Ziye explained: "Heaven and Earth also engage in the exchange of spiritual essence with the outside world. If we compare Heaven and Earth to a person, what else could it be but breathing? The simplest examples are the power of solar fire and the power of the stars, both of which come from beyond the heavens"

What about Wang Qi's younger brother

Xiang Qi waved his hand and said, "Senior Brother Li, it's just about teaching him some basic knowledge, either you or I can handle it."

Li Ziye shook his head: "We originally thought so as well, but there is a problem. In order to prevent the Unrighteous Daoist from noticing any abnormalities and to avoid the few in the Immortal Alliance who sympathize with the Unrighteous Daoist from leaking information, both I and Junior Sister Xiang were temporarily transferred from nearby. However, I am a disciple of the Ten Thousand Methods Sect"

Wang Qi shook his head to indicate that he did not know

Li Ziye pondered for a moment: "Indeed. Young brother, what are your thoughts? I must declare in advance that this is merely introductory knowledge. My teaching alongside Sister Xiang is not much different from that of the lecturers on the podium."

Ah?

Wang Qi: "I always feel like I have seen this system somewhere... how strange..."

Having spoken, Li Ziye activated his escape technique, using the light of his escape to lift Wang Qi as they gradually flew towards Dabaicun, while Xiang Qi raised his sword light and closely followed behind

It seems to be two great masters of the Mahayana from ancient times

Wang Qi asked, "By the way, Senior Li, you often mention the ancient methods of cultivation and the modern methods of cultivation. What are the differences between the two?"

Because this is the name of the nuclear bomb, you nuclear bomb sword immortals!

"Act according to the regulations, it's only a year that is remarkable"

The Primordial Heavenly Sovereign Bi Ge Ci and the Geometric Demon Sovereign Ji Mi De were both great mathematicians of ancient times. The teachings of these two figures were historically unified, which is the origin of the foundation of the Ten Thousand Methods School. The core principles of the Ten Thousand Methods School are regarded as the orthodox teachings of contemporary methods, and nearly all practices of modern sects bear the influence of the Ten Thousand Methods School

Xiang Qi's expression changed: "You practitioners of ancient methods... do you really need to be mad to enter the Dao? How disgusting!"

We will follow the host's arrangements

The current practice of the law is to immerse oneself in the breath of heaven and earth, directly drawing upon the endless pure spiritual energy from beyond the heavens. This process not only does not harm the heavens and earth in the slightest, but also strengthens their breath, making this realm even more robust. Conversely, as the power of heaven and earth grows stronger, our ability to gather spiritual energy becomes even smoother.

Li Ziye was taken aback on the spot. Xiang Qi, frowning, asked in confusion: "This doesn't sound like the name of a flying sword at all. How did you come up with it?"

A sharp sound pierced the air as Xiang Qi's flying sword suddenly appeared before Wang Qi, pressing against his neck

Wang Qidao: "My ancestors still had some family assets, and the residence is quite spacious. I wonder what the two of you think about this."

Wang Qiqi asked: "What is the task?"

Li Ziye said: "It is now late spring, and for young brother Wang Qi, time cannot be delayed even for a single day..."

Li Ziye smiled and patted Xiang Qi on the head: "To be honest."

Xiang Qi interjected, "Heaven and Earth breathe."

Xiang Qi snorted and recalled the flying sword

Xiang Qi's voice carried a hint of chill: "Some words should not be spoken carelessly"

The breath of heaven and earth

At the moment when Wang Qi's thoughts drifted towards the farmer who exclaimed, "What a big deal, I thought someone was stealing my eggs," Zhen Xuanzi opened his mouth in admiration: "Remarkable, the true pioneers of modern law are truly impressive. Who is the great being that established modern law? Could it be an immortal?"

Li Ziye smiled and said, "Since there is nothing else to do, I will tell you a story."

Upon careful consideration, the fellows in the village indeed live up to my grandfather's expectations. I shall regard this as an opportunity to do a good deed before departing

Zhen Chanzi could not help but roar in everyone's consciousness: "At least I am a normal person!"

Li Ziye smiled and said: "Speaking of which, it has some relation to you, little brother. The ability of the Mysterious Palace to investigate in detail is extraordinary; even a master of the same realm as the Carefree Sect would find it difficult to infiltrate the vicinity of a master from the Mysterious Palace. Moreover, the Daoist's body technique is unparalleled in the world; unless he is confined to a specific area, it is fundamentally impossible to capture him. The plan of the Immortal Alliance is to have a low-level cultivator with direct affiliation to the Immortal Alliance approach him, allowing him to focus his attention slightly on this low-level cultivator."

Zhen Chanzi sighed: "This fellow is rambling about some incomprehensible nonsense again, no need to pay him any mind"

"Borrowing?" Wang Qi pondered, "If it is a loan, then there must be a repayment... Is this to disperse the magical power back to the heavens and the earth?"

Li Ziye gave a bitter smile and said, "I mean, you all... However, we are indeed quite troubled about how to reasonably enter the village without raising the suspicions of the locals."

Xiang Qi's big eyes rolled around twice: "In my opinion, shall we wait here for a while?"

Wang Qi nodded and said, "Alright then"

Zhen Chanzi asked again: "How did you discover my method of breath control?"

Due to the extensive social interactions of the practitioners of the current school of thought at that time, they were able to draw from the teachings of Ling Beast Mountain, Wan Hua Valley, and Xuan Xing Temple, thereby transforming their own cultivation methods and ultimately establishing the current sect. Due to ideological differences, the current sect has been in constant conflict with the masters of the ancient sect. However, during that period, no matter how miraculous the current methods were, they could not withstand the overwhelming numbers of the ancient cultivators. The practitioners of the current sect faced extremely difficult circumstances during that time

Zhen Chanzi: "... ... Just take it that way."

Traditional cultivation emphasizes the concept of 'stealing the essence of heaven and earth' and 'the sage is a great thief of heaven', aiming to absorb the spiritual energy from the universe to build one's own small world. In contrast, modern cultivation focuses on 'the way follows nature', harnessing the power of heaven and earth

Li Ziye finally came to his senses. He persuaded Xiang Qi, who was eager to argue with Zhen Chanzi, to retract the Heavenly Sword: "Alright, Junior Sister Xiang, now that the four seniors have failed to pursue Daoist Ren, what do you think our next step should be"

The Xuanxing Temple is currently the most powerful sect in the realm of immortality, adept at meditation and breathing exercises under the starlight and moonlight. Since the founding of the sect by Master Ge Bai, the Xuanxing Temple has consistently produced remarkable talents. In his early years, Master Ge Bai was a low-level protector of the Shengying Sect, the foremost ancient cultivation sect at that time. Gradually, he came to realize that the Heavenly Dao practiced by ancient cultivators was not the true Heavenly Dao. After a lifetime of depression, he ultimately decided in his later years to defect from the Shengying Sect and establish the Xuanxing Temple in pursuit of ultimate truth. Consequently, in the early days of its founding, the Xuanxing Temple faced severe oppression and persecution from ancient law cultivators, with many of its first-generation disciples, such as Bruno, sacrificing their lives to attain enlightenment.

Li Ziye explained: "According to the regulations of the Immortal Alliance, if one discovers ancient methods of cultivation, they should assist others in transitioning to contemporary methods. For those cultivating with ancient methods below the Foundation Establishment stage, they must participate in the unified entrance examination of the Immortal Alliance's Shenzhou sects alongside those seeking immortality every June. On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, various branches of the Immortal Alliance and the residences of each sect will hold forums to impart the methods that seekers of immortality need to study for their examinations"

Li Ziye asked: "Why?"

Ahahaha, I was just joking, why take it seriously, fairy?

Xiang Qi asked with a tentative tone while pointing to her head: "Is it... this way?"

Xiang Qi nodded and said, "I suppose you are clever."

We are here to assist several seniors, and we should prioritize their needs; it would not be appropriate for us to return alone. Furthermore, given that Dabaicun has gone through this incident, it is likely that there is some apprehension among the villagers. Therefore, if the two of us stay here for a few days, it can serve as a form of reassurance, which can be considered a meritorious deed.

Li Ziye shook his head: "No. Did not Sister Xiang just tell you that all things in heaven and earth are actually participating in the natural flow of spiritual energy? Do you know where this natural flow comes from?"

Pythagoras and Archimedes! Wang Qi thought. Once this absurd premise is accepted, the corresponding relationship becomes exceedingly easy to guess

Xiang Qi continued, "But afterwards, the current law encountered great fortune. On the island of Lie Dian, located in the far west of the Divine Land, a once-in-a-century genius emerged, the Master of Yuanli, Newton! The Master of Yuanli originally belonged to the lineage of 'Cultivating Power' in ancient methods..."

On the other side, the sects gradually establishing the practice of the current method are Ling Beast Mountain and Wan Hua Valley. These two sects originally advocated for the principle of not harming the living beings of heaven and earth during their cultivation, but they could only ensure that the essence of heaven and earth would not harm the living beings around them. It was not until the appearance of the God of Heaven's Choice, Darwin. The God of Heaven's Choice, Darwin, is a legendary figure of Ling Beast Mountain. Similar to Master Ge Bai, the God was an outer disciple of the Holy Infant Sect in his early years, but later discovered that the ancient methods were not viable, and thus returned to Ling Beast Mountain.

Xiang Qi nodded: "Indeed, but the Master of Yuanli felt his own inadequacy and entered the Ten Thousand Methods Gate, elevating his cultivation techniques to a level that transcends skill and approaches the Dao, thus establishing his own lineage. It is said that the Master of Yuanli was favored by heaven and earth, and through the hand of a fruit, heaven and earth imparted to him the three great principles, encompassing all things!"

Xiang Qi continued, "At this moment, a subtle change occurred in the flow of spiritual energy between heaven and earth. Senior Brother Li deduced that it must be related to the ancient method of cultivation completed in Da Bai Village... Wait a moment, the ancient method is called the Spirit Body, right? Fortunately, the Immortal Alliance has a special system for transferring those who unexpectedly obtain ancient methods of cultivation, so I went over there."

Wang Qi nodded slightly and thought to himself: This world has even developed the concepts of "heaven and earth," "celestial bodies," and "the universe."

Wang Qi felt that he could hardly suppress the one million galloping alpacas in his heart

Zhen Chanzi: "Is that the one who does not cultivate the Dao but specializes in strength and martial skills?"

"The disciples of all methods are the best at calculations, capable of calculating countless paths." Li Ziye spoke with a hint of pride, saying, "Disciples of the myriad methods, when competing with others in the art of strategy, either cannot prevail, but if they can prevail, there will absolutely be no room for the enemy to escape."

Wang Qi shouted: "Hey, if you don't understand the joke, please don't treat those who do as if they are crazy"

However, although the Ten Thousand Dharma Gate is the earliest sect to study the path of contemporary law, it is not the earliest contemporary law sect. The true pioneers in the study of the embryonic form of contemporary law are the Xuanxing Temple and Tianling Ridge

Wang Qi, hearing something related to himself, could no longer sit still and shouted: "Hey! What does 'acting according to the rules' mean? What does 'remarkable for a year' mean?"

Doesn't this all sound so lewd

Xiang Qi scoffed: "Can you really call that restraint? Completely isolating the internal from the external to prevent even a trace of your magical energy from leaking? Hmph, you think you are pretending to be as unyielding as a rock, but little do you know, even the most stubborn stone or decayed wood participates in the subtle fluctuations of spiritual energy in the world. By separating the internal from the external, you are extracting yourself from this fluctuation, making you as conspicuous as a stone in flowing water"

Relying on the three great principles of heaven and earth, the Master of Yuanli established the 'Yuanli Gate' in the central region of Shenzhou. The Master of Yuanli's friend, Bo Yier, founded the Burning Gold Valley, while his rival, the scattered cultivator Hu Ke, unified the Spirit Beast Mountain and the Ten Thousand Flower Valley by reforming the foundational cultivation methods, achieving what is now known as the Tianling Ridge. Later, the noble-born Lord of Burning Heaven, Ka Erwen, gathered a group of distinguished guests to establish the Burning Heaven Mansion.

Wang Qi nodded. Cultivation is about transforming oneself into a "small universe," capable of living independently away from the vast external world, and truly sharing longevity with the universe. ... If we compare the universe to a farmer woman and the spiritual energy to eggs, then the ancient method of cultivation is akin to toppling the farmer woman and seizing the eggs entirely, whereas the contemporary method of cultivation involves using the farmer woman's hen to lay one's own eggs

Wang Qi touched his neck and asked, "Then why not let Fairy Xiang play the role of the defected cultivator, who, in a panic, enters the village, and then Senior Li goes in to capture him?"

Therefore, he asked Li Ziye: "Senior Li... is your Heavenly Sword called 'Fatty', 'Slim', or 'Little Boy'?"

Li Ziye said: "In any case, thanks to the little brother, we have completed our task. Junior Sister Xiang, should we stay here and wait for the return of our seniors before going to report back to the headquarters of the Immortal Alliance together, or should we go directly to the nearest branch of the Immortal Alliance? Also, regarding the matter of Junior Brother Wang Qi."

Wang Qi pointed at Xiang Qi and said: "So, is Fairy Xiang here to attract his attention? Relying on selling her beauty to catch that old man's eye?"

Xiang Qi stuck out her tongue: "What a splendid sight it is to be able to go to the main hall with the four carefree true lords! Moreover, having stayed in such a remote place for a long time, one inevitably longs for the prosperity of the main hall."

He felt rather embarrassed to refer to himself as the Wonderful Law again