The Great Dao Is Inherent

Lu Zhao recounted the general sequence of events, as well as his current predicament at the border defense station. After listening, the old Taoist countered with a question. "Where do you think you went wrong?" Lu Zhao answered with conviction, "Your student did nothing wrong. I merely stood by what was right. You once said that cultivation requires immense perseverance. If I could be swayed by a few words from them, how could I ever accomplish great things?" "Hahahaha." The old Taoist looked at him with a touch of appreciation. "Thinking back to when the Jiajing Emperor entered the capital, Yang Tinghe prepared to receive him with the etiquette befitting a crown prince. The Jiajing Emperor insisted that he be received with the etiquette of an emperor, or else he would turn right around and return home to remain a prince. "You handled it very well. Those meant for greatness must never bow beneath others." Lu Zhao realized that this teacher of his was quite talkative, not at all the detached hermit indifferent to worldly matters that he had initially seemed. Instead, he was like an old man at a village entrance, fond of reminiscing about the past and seizing every opportunity to talk about the Ming dynasty. In the old Taoist's telling, he held Emperor Jiajing in the highest esteem, praising him lavishly and even declaring that across the dynasties since the Three Dynasties of antiquity, Emperor Wen ranked first, while Emperor Jiajing fell only slightly short. Lu Zhao felt an urge to make a witty retort, but he was no fool. He was only rigid when it came to principles; there was no reason to argue with his teacher over personal preferences. Lu Zhao said, "It was entirely thanks to Master's spirit-refining art. Without psychic attacks, I wouldn't have been able to dispatch the thugs so quickly." A metal-nature divine power combined with considerable physical fitness was almost unstoppable in a chaotic melee. If Lu Zhao hadn't mastered psychic attacks to momentarily daze his targets, they likely would have slipped away. "That is precisely where you are wrong." The old Taoist shook his head with a beaming smile. "In five hundred years, you alone have reached the inner landscape. If you couldn't enter, how could this poor Taoist take you as a disciple? And if not for your extraordinary natural talent, how could the spirit-refining method have shown results so swiftly? "You were also wrong in another matter. Do you know what it is?" Lu Zhao fell into thought, pondering it over and over without arriving at an answer. He bowed and asked, "Please enlighten me, Master." "Only titles and regalia may never be granted to others." The old Taoist chanted the line under his breath, then smiled without speaking, playing the riddler once again. Lu Zhao did not press further, turning instead to his bottleneck in cultivation. "Master, when I first started refining spirit, it felt like swallowing needles." "A beginner is like a toddler learning to walk. Feeling as if you were swallowing needles only means you routed your qi incorrectly." The old Taoist was not surprised. When imparting the technique, he had deliberately withheld the knack. He had done so mainly to let Lu Zhao suffer a little. If cultivation went too smoothly, one would lose reverence, which boded ill for future growth. Only by knowing how arduous cultivation was could one ride the wind and break the waves. "Master will now teach you a trick to prevent your circulation from feeling like swallowing needles." "Master, your student has already found the trick." The old Taoist's expression stiffened slightly. Only a dozen or so days had passed, and he had already found the trick on his own? Back in his day, it had taken him nearly half a year of fumbling before he achieved painless spirit refining—and that was even with knowing the knack beforehand. Impossible. Utterly impossible. The old Taoist put on a stern expression and reprimanded him, "A gentleman values sincerity above all." Lu Zhao demonstrated it right there and then. When he reopened his eyes, the old Taoist had regained his customary calm and breezy demeanor. "Not bad, not bad. You have half of Master's style from back then." "Master, how many days did it take you to master it back then?" "One day." The old Taoist replied casually, and Lu Zhao harbored no doubts. After all, the man was already an immortal who had attained the Dao; he couldn't possibly be worse than himself. "Presumably, you should be approaching a bottleneck soon..." "Your student has already sensed the bottleneck." "..." The old Taoist fell silent for a moment before commanding, "From now on, whenever you enter, report to me first on where your studies stand. Stop being so rash and blundering about, never finishing a sentence properly." Lu Zhao felt somewhat baffled, yet he still nodded. "Yes." The old Taoist asked, "Do you now feel that your divine sense can neither continue to grow nor increase in number?" "Indeed." Lu Zhao extended his hand, condensing a white worm that had grown from threadlike thinness to the size of a little finger. Its potency had increased from momentarily dazing someone to causing severe dizziness—something Lu Zhao had tested on himself. When projected outward, this thing was like a bullet, capable of dealing harm to whoever it hit. "That indicates your spirit refining is approaching minor accomplishment, needing only a sliver of opportunity to break through. Cultivating spirit is intimately linked with nature cultivation. The former is the method of application, while the latter is the method of Foundation Establishment." The old Taoist drew a book from his sleeve and asked, "Master can perform direct initiation to lead you into minor accomplishment in spirit refining, or you can comprehend it on your own." Lu Zhao asked, "Is there any difference?" The old Taoist answered proudly, "For others, cultivating on their own is naturally better, but this poor Taoist can grant you a breakthrough superior to your own comprehension." Lu Zhao pondered, doubt flickering in his eyes. He wasn't doubting the old Taoist's ability, but wondering whether the old man was laying a trap. Would he seize the chance to grab the ferule the moment Lu Zhao agreed? "Since ancient times, there has always been the concept of bestowing enlightenment. There is no need for Master to deceive you." The old Taoist stroked his beard. "Since you are skeptical, I shall tell you. "This method is called comprehending the Dao: awakening to the Dao within one's heart. One must let the mind arise without resting on anything. Thus it is said that one must first comprehend the Dao before one can cultivate it. "This is also why nature cultivation is arduous, and the dual cultivation of nature and life is harder than ascending to the heavens." The old Taoist began recounting how past grandmasters had attained comprehension. Laozi had read widely, witnessed the rise and fall of the realm, and traveled to Hangu Pass to write the Dao De Jing. Zhuangzi had comprehended the Dao while fishing on the Pu River, merging with nature through dreaming of a butterfly. Confucius had traveled the various states, harmonizing ethics and societal norms, and ascertaining the Mandate of Heaven. There were no secret methods, no oral formulas, delivered just like an ordinary chat. Lu Zhao found it dull at first, but later came to vaguely grasp what the so-called method of comprehending the Dao was. It was neither an object nor a technique. It did not exist, yet it was everywhere. Following predecessors was a breakthrough; seeking one's own Dao was a natural culmination. While the processes differed, the end result was the same. Still, this ancient method of cultivating the Dao was truly abstruse. No wonder it had not spread widely in the modern era, let alone been written into textbooks. After finishing the tale of Wang Chongyang comprehending the Dao in the Tomb of the Living Dead, the old Taoist asked, "Do you know how to comprehend the Dao now?" Lu Zhao replied, "The Great Dao is everywhere. There are no fixed methods; one must comprehend it oneself." "A teachable student." The old Taoist nodded and said leisurely, "Where is the Great Dao to be found? Laozi already wrote it at the very start of the Dao De Jing, and the past grandmasters have all found it. Why must you tread the very same path walked by those before you? "Now I ask you, which path will you choose?" Lu Zhao thought for a moment, his gaze turning resolute. "Since the Great Dao is ever-present, your student should naturally seek it out." The Dao comprehended might be no different, but it had to be intimately connected to the cultivator himself. Otherwise, why would the grandmasters of every dynasty insist on comprehending it on their own? If he was to cultivate, he wanted the best, or at least to do everything within his power. The old Taoist's smile broadened, and he offered one more sentence: "The Great Dao is inherent within oneself; it is not borrowed from others. "Go and try. If you show no results within half a year, then obediently accept Master's initiation."