Three Sceneries Daoist Magic

The Daoist chamber was serene, incense smoke curling upwards.

Beneath the painting "Deer Call, Morning Sun," Hongzhen Zi, the master of Yunji Temple, sat cross-legged at his leisure, engrossed in a scripture.

Beside him, a mystical furnace puffed misty clouds from a bronze pot.

As the scripture pages turned, the incense eventually burned out, the lamp flickered and dimmed, but the small, bean-sized light did not conceal his sharp, spirited eyes.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, faint footsteps sounded from outside the door, followed by a knock.

"Enter."

The person who arrived was Xuanzhen Zi, the steward of Yunji Temple and Hongzhen Zi's junior brother. Compared to Hongzhen Zi's jet-black hair, his own was already streaked with white, and his face bore age spots.

Perhaps it was the burden of worldly affairs.

"Senior Brother, a Great Five-Armored Demon has appeared in Changlan City, slaughtering the populace and drawing blood for sustenance!"

"What did you say?"

Hongzhen Zi abruptly raised his head, his face filled with shock. "Wasn't the demon in Changlan City already dealt with?"

"That was the day before yesterday. It's said this demon's provocation was an excuse to avenge the vanquished demon!" Xuanzhen Zi said with a grave expression.

"This is bad. Changlan City only has Tianbao Temple capable of handling such matters, but ever since the Venerable Master Juewu passed away, its Buddhist light has been obscured. I fear it cannot withstand this demon."

Hongzhen Zi's expression turned solemn. As he spoke, he suddenly stood up, ready to go vanquish the demon.

"Senior Brother, wait. That Great Five-Armored Demon has already been slain!"

"Slain? Could it be that a powerful expert passed by?"

"Senior Brother's spiritual roots are as keen as ever. However, Senior Brother surely cannot guess who this expert is?" Xuanzhen Zi added.

Hongzhen Zi remained silent, observing his junior brother's expression. Beneath the aged face was the look of one who had witnessed the vicissitudes of the human world.

Yet, these worldly experiences did not conceal the hint of pride and shock in his clouded eyes!

"Could it be related to Yunji Temple?"

"Senior Brother is indeed exceptionally intelligent!"

Hongzhen Zi breathed a sigh of relief, his thoughts racing:

"One who can slay a Great Five-Armored Demon might have achieved Spirit Refining and emerged from the body, absorbing the sun and expelling the moon; or they might have refined Qi to absorb the creation of heaven and earth, slaying it with Daoist magic; or they might have cultivated their mind to understand the Great Dao..."

As his thoughts flowed, Hongzhen Zi's eyes flashed. "Could it be Uncle-Master Zhiquan?"

"No!"

"Senior Brother Shouzhen?"

"No!"

"...Patriarch Shenyi?"

"No!"

"Then who could it be?"

Hongzhen Zi was bewildered. He had listed everyone he could think of. The only remaining possibility was himself, and he could barely manage to slay a Great Five-Armored Demon.

And that was assuming the Great Five-Armored Demon didn't flee or run.

"Senior Brother will surely not believe this, but this expert is of our generation, with the Daoist name: Yan Zhen."

"Yan Zhen..."

Hongzhen Zi's eyes showed confusion. Being of the same "Zhen" generation, he felt a sense of familiarity.

However, regarding this Daoist name, he was completely at a loss.

"Yan Zhen is a registered disciple of Uncle-Master Tianquan. He spent three years guarding the woodshed and then left without a word. He went to Huayin Mountain and built a thatched Daoist temple in the wilderness, cultivating diligently for a Jiazi. Only a few days ago did he descend the mountain, reportedly to return to Yunji Temple."

Xuanzhen Zi spoke with deep emotion.

"Cultivating for a Jiazi? Could he have a century of cultivation?"

"Likely less than a Jiazi."

"Then how did he slay the Great Five-Armored Demon?"

"He sacrificed himself for righteousness, using the Bingjie method to emerge as a Yin Spirit, and then fell into the realm of a Jie Immortal, thereby slaying it."

Splat!

These few words suddenly caused the scripture in Hongzhen Zi's hand to fall, stirring up wisps of dust.

As the master of Yunji Temple, he knew better than anyone what these words represented!

"Is the information accurate?"

"I specifically dispatched three Yin Spirits to investigate and also entrusted the hall of Liu Xianjia in Xishan City to verify it. It is basically accurate."

Xuanzhen Zi said solemnly.

As the steward of Yunji Temple, in charge of all affairs, large and small, how could he report without being certain of the situation?

"Where is my junior brother's shed skin?" Hongzhen Zi asked, his voice trembling.

"Before my junior brother performed bingjie, he entrusted Luo Feibai, the escort captain of Changlong Escort Agency, to escort his shed skin back to the Daoist sect. I have already dispatched a Yin Spirit to protect him in secret. He should be nearing Xishan City by now!"

"Excellent! Tomorrow, Yunji Temple will ring its bells, and we will descend the steps to welcome True Person Yan Zhen back to the temple!" Hongzhen Zi said solemnly.

"I respectfully obey the Abbot's command!" Xuanzhen Zi bowed solemnly and left to carry out the order.

The rabbit ascended and the crow descended.

The next day, the believers who came to offer incense were all surprised to find that the atmosphere at Yunji Temple was unusual.

Everyone in the Daoist sect wore yellow crowns and Daoist robes, their expressions solemn. Even the usually lively Daoist boys had reined in their spiritedness.

Upon inquiring out of curiosity, they learned that a True Person's shed skin was returning to the temple today.

How strange!

What kind of exalted master would receive such treatment?

The sun rose high, and the temple bells of Yunji Temple rang long and loud across the mountains.

Amidst the lingering bell tolls, a horse-drawn carriage, covered in dust, arrived and stopped outside the main gate of Yunji Temple.

"All disciples of Yunji Temple respectfully welcome True Person Yan Zhen back to the temple!"

Amidst the long, drawn-out shouts, the Abbot of Yunji Temple, Hongzhen Zi, wearing a yellow crown and a Daoist robe, dressed in full Daoist ceremonial attire, descended the steps to welcome him.

Some of the observing believers returned and spread the word, saying:

On that day, celestial cranes landed at the temple, circling the True Person's shed skin and unwilling to leave for a long time.

The common folk heard of this and marveled, speculating with curiosity about the True Person's identity.

It wasn't until several days later, when a resident of Changxing City visited relatives in Xishan, that a legendary story, worthy of being recorded in the local annals, finally became widely known.

Only then did everyone realize who the True Person welcomed by Yunji Temple truly was!

At that moment, Yunji Temple's incense offerings surged.

Meanwhile, after Yunji Temple welcomed Yan Zhen's shed skin back to its mountain gate, they completed the roster, placed it in a shrine, and buried it.

The following day, Hongzhen Zi, the Abbot of Yunji Temple, conferred the Daoist ordination and certified his Daoist position, registering the deity in the celestial realm to facilitate communication with the spirits.

On the right edge, below the side of the Three Pure Ones statue in the Cloud-Top Grand Hall, a memorial tablet quietly appeared.

It read: Yunji True Person Yan Zhen.

During the morning class that day, the chief lecturer, Juezhen Zi, sat beneath the Three Pure Ones statue, expounding on the Yunji Daoist scriptures.

As night fell, Juezhen Zi guarded the hall and imparted the sect's secret methods to the inner disciples!

At the same time.

Mo Chuan, using the incense offerings as a mirror, listened to Juezhen Zi impart the teachings, his heart filled with emotion.

When he woke up this morning, he discovered that the Sacrificial Dao Furnace had gained another strand of incense.

And this strand of incense far surpassed the sum of all previous ones.

At that moment, he had a guess, and now, seeing it, it was indeed as he had thought.

It was simply an unexpected joy!

"Yunji Temple, oh Yunji Temple, I borrowed the body of your disciple to enhance your temple's reputation and learn some Daoist magic. It is only right and proper!"

Mo Chuan rationalized to himself, then focused his attention, listening intently to Juezhen Zi's teachings.

He became engrossed in listening.

When he came to his senses, it was already late at night.

Mo Chuan tidied himself up slightly and realized that the decline of the Fu Luan Temple's lineage was inevitable.

The Great Dao is benevolent and gives life, tempting people with its methods.

However, although there are many paths to cultivation, very few are truly viable.

The Fu Luan Temple's lineage was, after all, a bit unorthodox.

The so-called spirit mediumship relied entirely on the great power of the founder.

It was about one person achieving enlightenment and bringing their entire household along!

Mo Chuan even suspected that the founder of Fu Luan Temple, perhaps unable to find a path to cultivation, had instead turned to cultivating as a Ghost Immortal.

Furthermore, considering the Dao of Incense Offerings, which gathered the entire temple's strength to supply one person.

Although this method had suspicions of deception, it did capture three parts of the essence of pyramid schemes. All disciples could shed their mortal forms to become Ghost Immortals.

Therefore, even if someone within the sect realized something was amiss, they could not turn back and could only continue to maintain the lie.

As for whether this method was truly an evil art?

That was hard to say.

Cultivating the Dao was, in essence, seizing the creation of heaven and earth.

Seize pine and cypress, for abstention from grain;

Seize gold and stone, for alchemy;

Seize flowing pearls of water and jade, for dual cultivation of Yin cauldron and Yang furnace;

Seize plain textual talismans, for summoning ghosts and spirits;

And so on, countless examples abound.

Given this, which among them is the righteous path, and which is the heretical path?

Therefore, Yunji Temple's philosophy is that a method is neither righteous nor heretical; it lies in one's words and actions!

This indeed aligns perfectly with Fu Luan Temple's views.

Returning to the main topic.

The lineage of Yunji Temple is the Three Sceneries Dao.

This path seizes the creation of the sun, moon, and stars' three lights!

Thus, it is also known as: the Three Escapes Technique, the Three Lights Method.

This Dao is derived from the Two Sceneries Dao.

The so-called Two Sceneries Dao is also known as: Escaping Two Sceneries, Method of Storing Sun and Moon in the Mud Pill Palace, Method of Ingesting Sun and Moon Rays.

It emphasizes refining the soul with sunlight and nurturing the spirit with moonlight, prioritizing spirit over form.

The founder of Yunji Temple introduced the Taiping Astral Dao, using starlight to refine the body, emphasizing the refinement of spirit and preservation of form, following a steady and stable path.

If one's lifespan is exhausted, they can also switch to the Yin Spirit cultivation method.

"No wonder Yunji Temple has such flourishing incense offerings; this lineage sounds quite excellent," Mo Chuan nodded to himself.

This Daoist magic suited his taste quite well, and after hearing about it, he felt an even greater urge to try it.

He was currently enjoying incense offerings day and night, and his spirit and soul had grown quite robust. Despite listening to scriptures and lectures until past midnight, he felt no sleepiness at all.

He got up and walked to the balcony, looking at the moon high in the sky. A thought struck him, so he decided to go out, ascend to the rooftop, and cultivate.