Shang Qing Daozi was silent for a long time. After a period of mutual silence between the three, he chose to inquire about the greatest secret.
What did it mean for the world to be divided into four regions?
"You are an ancient person, do these four regions refer to the Four Symbols?"
The Four Symbols celestial regions, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise. Generally, when the world is said to be divided into four, it refers only to four regions of the sky, as in "The four spirits of heaven, to order the four cardinal directions."
However, the Nameless Immortal denied this.
"Since you ask, and I haven't spoken to anyone in a long time, I might as well chat with you."
"This matter dates back to... around the late Han Dynasty... young man, have you heard of the Ten Continents and Three Islands?"
Shang Qing Daozi: "I have heard. Dongfang Shuo told Emperor Wu of Han that there are eight great seas in the world, and within the seas are the Ten Continents and Three Islands, where immortal beings who have not yet ascended to heaven reside."
"Nowadays, it should be called the Inner Mountains and Rivers."
Nameless Immortal: "The Yang world we inhabit is the Outer Mountains and Rivers, while the immortal realms like the Ten Continents and Three Islands are the Inner Mountains and Rivers, also known as immortal realms."
"There are many caves left by immortals in this world. Entering them, the passage of time differs from the outside. These caves are gateways to the Inner Mountains and Rivers, but over thousands of years, many caves have become dead ends, no longer leading to the Inner Mountains and Rivers."
"During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the entrances to the Ten Continents and Three Islands were first discovered. Since the Qin Dynasty, the upper world has never heard of them."
"Dongfang Shuo led a group of alchemists into the Ten Continents and Three Islands, forming the first Celestial Path."
The Nameless Immortal raised his first finger.
"Afterward, Emperor Wu of Han dismissed the hundred schools of thought and honored only Confucianism."
"The embryonic form of Confucianism was born. They emerged from the Confucianism of the Qin Dynasty. Dong Zhongshu entered the Ten Continents and Three Islands, forming the second Celestial Path."
The Nameless Immortal raised his second finger:
"Later, during the reign of Emperor Ming of Han, white horses came from the east, and a sixteen-foot golden statue arrived from the west. Buddhism flourished in the Central Plains, and beyond the Ten Continents and Three Islands, the Four Great Continents appeared."
Shang Qing Daozi asked in surprise, "What do you mean? The Ten Continents and Three Islands existed originally, but after Buddhism appeared, the Four Great Continents were differentiated?"
"I heard that the Inner Mountains and Rivers have immortal methods but not the Great Dao."
Nameless Immortal: "I don't know about that. After the arrival of Buddhism, the Four Great Continents appeared, with Mount Sumeru at the center. Kashyapa Matanga and Dharmaratna led the Buddhist assembly to occupy it, forming the third Celestial Path."
"Buddhism preceded Daoism."
The Nameless Immortal raised his third finger.
Shang Qing Daozi had no objection to this. Although the Daoist sect originated from ancient Daoist thought, other sects and doctrines that emerged indeed came after Buddhism.
Before that, there was no term "Daoism"; it was merely called the "School of Huang-Lao," referring to the lineage of cultivators who inherited the ideas of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi from the Qin Dynasty.
He listened quietly.
The Nameless Immortal then raised his fourth finger:
"Zhang Daoling led the Daoist followers into the Ten Continents and Three Islands, forming the fourth Celestial Path. His deeds need no further explanation; you junior disciples of the Daoist sect should be able to speak of them fluently."
"Thus, the Four Celestial Paths were completed. The Ten Continents and Three Islands, the Eight Great Seas, and the Four Great Continents had no remaining empty space."
"With Buddhism being powerful, it possessed the Four Great Continents and two of the Ten Continents, and two of the Eight Seas;"
"Confucianism was second, possessing four of the Ten Continents and three of the Eight Seas;"
"Alchemists were third, possessing three of the Ten Continents and two of the Eight Seas, with all Three Islands belonging to them;"
"Daoism was last, only obtaining land from one of the Ten Continents and one of the Eight Seas."
"As for the current territories, I am not clear."
Having started the latest, Daoism thus obtained the smallest territory. However, the Nameless Immortal added, "Zhang Daoling was quite a figure. Although he was a latecomer among the various schools, he managed to surpass them."
"And these four factions, those at the Heavenly Heart level can influence the Outer Mountains and Rivers. They demarcated regions in the Outer Mountains and Rivers, and the influenced areas would gradually transform into their faith. However, the Outer Mountains and Rivers have the existence of the Great Dao."
"With the existence of the Great Dao, these Heavenly Heart level individuals cannot completely influence the behavior of beings in the Yang world. Moreover, Daoism is very clever, Zhang Daoling is extremely clever."
"If the forces in the Inner Mountains and Rivers are too weak, then they occupy the land of the Outer Mountains and Rivers. Thus, Daoism gradually flourished in the Outer Mountains and Rivers, with countless 'ancestors' emerging from the disciples of the Tai Qing Heaven cultivators."
"The reactions of Buddhism and Confucianism were equally swift. Buddhism spread among the populace, rising in dependence on Daoism, without regard for reputation. Confucianism entered the imperial court, belonging to the realm within the four cardinal directions, the easiest to approach the Great Dao of dynasties. This was all thanks to Emperor Wu of Han."
"As for the alchemists, their influence became very small. Their faith in the Outer Mountains and Rivers was gradually absorbed by Daoism."
"It was during this long process that they discovered that the Inner Mountains and Rivers could not touch the Great Dao. Although the spiritual energy was abundant and cultivation could continue, they could ultimately not glimpse the true Great Dao."
"Thus, under the Four Celestial Paths, each had a Heavenly Heart realm cultivator, recommended by the various schools. These four individuals would play important roles in the rise and fall of dynasties over thousands of years."
"Daoism possessed little, but its influence in the Outer Mountains and Rivers was vast. Thus..."
Shang Qing Daozi was greatly surprised, "Thus the Yellow Turban Rebellion occurred?"
"Then the first, the Heavenly Heart realm closest to the mortal world within Daoism, was the Great Teacher of Virtuousness!"
The Nameless Immortal said as a matter of course, "Of course. Otherwise, how could the imperial court at that time suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion? With just that technique of 'Heavenly Governance, Earthly Governance, Human Governance; when the three energies reach their extreme, all things that walk and crawl are governed,' the Han court could not deal with it."
"This is a true Heavenly Heart technique. Heavenly Governance is the heart of the Emperor of Heaven, Earthly Governance is the will of the earth, and Human Governance is the aspirations of the common people. Do you know what divine power this is? Heavenly Governance is the most perfect state of a nation, while the governance of crawling things is a state that causes a nation to perish."
"The Han Dynasty inherited the destiny of Heaven, was harmed by Wang Mang, and revived by Liu Xiu. Merely by intercepting the destiny of these three eras, the Han Dynasty could be plunged into a state of irrecoverable destruction. It did not perish due to weakness, but died while strong."
"The Great Teacher of Virtuousness's goal was to destroy Confucianism and establish Daoism, to change the situation where Confucianism controlled the dynasty after Emperor Wu of Han, and to bring the arts of Huang-Lao back to the imperial court. And when would Huang-Lao arts be needed? Naturally, when the nation is damaged and all is in ruins!"
"So, did Zhang Jiao truly exist? Why could the Great Teacher of Virtuousness never be caught? Under the influence of the Heavenly Heart, the image of this mortal is false. Everyone thought the Great Teacher of Virtuousness was below, but in fact... he is not here."
"However, other Heavenly Hearts would not stand idly by and allow him to cause chaos, so they took action."
"Therefore, after the late Han Dynasty, following the failure of the Great Teacher of Virtuousness, Buddhist and alchemical arts often manifested. Buddhism relied on alchemical arts for propagation, and alchemists integrated Buddhist teachings into metaphysics. After the Jin Dynasty, during the Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen dynasties, Buddhism greatly flourished, and the influence of Daoism in the Outer Mountains and Rivers was finally riddled with holes."
Shang Qing Daozi asked doubtfully, "How do you know all these later events... as an ancient person?"
The Nameless Immortal chuckled, "That, you will have to ask the successive patriarchs of your Shang Qing sect."
"To preserve the Daoist lineage, they continuously projected the Xuan Tian Stone Coffin, reflecting the Shang Qing sect, to prevent the sect from suffering great disaster. The sect could then be restored to its original state in an instant. They mastered the art of projection. And those who secretly opened the Xuan Tian Stone Coffin over the generations and fell into it, becoming lost within, were not few."
Shang Qing Daozi fell silent. This explanation from the other party was somewhat untenable, as he was not the owner of the Xuan Tian Stone Coffin. Could it be that this slumbering individual had been awake for a period of time before?
If someone entered, would he go and ask what era it was outside?
This was naturally impossible. The two cultivators from the Quanzhen sect, after entering, were dragged out by Daoist Master Ji, and neither of them mentioned encountering this Nameless Immortal.
Moreover, he himself said he hadn't spoken to anyone in a long time, though that statement might not be true.
But if, if the other party truly maintained a certain degree of clarity, then... perhaps he already knew about the existence of Daoist Master Ji, a Yu Qing cultivator?
But Shang Qing Daozi still did not speak.
It was the Ghost Immortal, however, who, upon hearing these secrets, although not fully understanding them, found it natural to listen to the excitement and muttered:
"So later Buddhism flourished and declined, becoming too arrogant and repeating Daoism's old path, and was then hunted down by the other three factions. This time, Daoism became the exterminator, and the main force carried out the anti-Buddhism movement?"
"Then, Sui, Tang... Song... Song was when Confucianism greatly flourished, right? But looking at it this way, the alchemists suffered greatly."
Everyone has their moment of glory. While it's said not to take a moment as permanent, the alchemists never truly stood up. It seems they were always working for the other three factions.
"Oh, you think the alchemists suffered?"
The Nameless Immortal scoffed, "The alchemists suffered nothing at all! Because controlling the faith of the world, or the Great Dao of dynasties, was not their ultimate goal."
"They have already obtained many things they desired from the three schools of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. Among the three schools, which one has not had contact with alchemists?"
Shang Qing Daozi asked, "What about the Yu Qing cultivators? The earliest Yu Qing cultivator was not the Tai Su San Yuan Jun, nor the Qing Xu Patriarch, nor even Madam Wei. Then who was he? Was the Shang Qing Patriarch Scripture left by him?"
Nameless Immortal: "He has a name, but cannot be spoken, cannot be spoken. If spoken, one will be influenced by evil beings, leading to a fall into an unknowable realm!"
He closed his eyes, "Not even a thought can be formed! You only need to know that he must be killed!"
"Have you never considered? Tai Qing is the beginning of Dao, but why did Shang Qing emerge from Yu Qing, and why is there no origin of Yu Qing in the world? It appeared out of nowhere, attached to Dao."
After saying this, he banished the thought from his mind. This greatly astonished Shang Qing Daozi. What kind of realm was this person, who, at the Flying Ascension realm, nearing peak cultivation, could not even form a thought?
Having learned that his sect had such a terrifying and mysterious ancestor, all Shang Qing Daozi could do was to follow the ancient texts and legends, and try to deduce who this person was from the ancient records.
But there were too many ancient immortals, some of whom were legendary figures from the True Spirit Positions Chart. Now, with this revelation, no matter who Shang Qing Daozi thought of, it seemed to fit this terrifying ancestor. It seemed that every ancient person could be embellished with a hundred thousand words of conspiracy in a story.
Cannot be spoken?
The more it is not spoken, the more one wants to speak.
Unknowable?
The more it is unknowable, the more one wants to know.
The Nameless Immortal had also erased his thoughts and looked at the sky, "My strength cannot contend with the Heavenly Heart, but these Heavenly Heart realms cannot come to the mortal world. If they were to come to the mortal world, they would not be my match."
"I will recover for a few days."
The Nameless Immortal looked at the Ghost Immortal, "Then..."
The Ghost Immortal asked in surprise, "Help me eradicate my future troubles?"
The Nameless Immortal shook his head, "Using your existence, I will search for the traces of those evil beings. As for your ancestor, I dare not move him for now."
"These evil beings make it difficult for me to deal with them."
The Ghost Immortal forced a smile, "You are so powerful, and yet there are things you cannot deal with? Have you not become an immortal?"
The Nameless Immortal gave the Ghost Immortal a meaningful look:
"Evil beings come from Yu Qing, and naturally, only Yu Qing cultivators can deal with them."
.........
Master Jing Xian and the other three Arhats returned to Lingyin Temple. As soon as the Master entered the temple, he felt that the atmosphere around him was somewhat off. However, the other three all indicated that they had not noticed anything unusual.
"Since I came into contact with the Ming King's power within that Zhenwu statue, my heart of doubt and confusion has only grown heavier. Is it the Ming King's power that is problematic, or have I myself undergone some change?"
Master Jing Xian greeted the monk on duty at the entrance and entered the meditation room. The monk on duty at the entrance, who was chanting scriptures, had his appearance slightly change into something ferocious and terrifying. His robust physique instantly alternated between an饿鬼 (hungry ghost) form, but he himself seemed unaware, and these hungry ghost forms flashed by in an instant.