Lu Xuan's Discourse Subdues the Three Pure Ones

When Laozi expounded the Dao, the entire Azure Wandering Palace was filled with a tranquil and peaceful aura.

When Primordial Heavenly Venerable expounded the Dao, the atmosphere within Azure Wandering Palace became as domineering as sovereign authority.

When it was Tongtian's turn to expound the Dao, the entire Azure Wandering Palace filled with killing intent, as though it would tear space apart.

This was the Three Pure Ones. Each had a different understanding of the Dao, representing different classes and different attitudes toward handling matters.

After the four of them had each expounded their Dao, they began the discourse on the Dao. Primordial Heavenly Venerable directly questioned Lu Xuan.

"I wonder, Fellow Daoist Lu Xuan, does my advocacy of Teaching According to Aptitude accord with the Heavenly Dao?"

Lu Xuan answered without hesitation, "The Dao spoken of by Sage Yuqing naturally accords with the laws governing the operation of the Heavenly Dao."

"However, I have a slightly different opinion. If matters are as Sage Yuqing says, then from the moment living beings of the Primordial World are born, are the outcomes of their lives already destined?"

"If that is the case, why should low-ranking living beings pursue anything at all? Since they cannot obtain it even if they strive for it, why not simply wait for their lives to end?"

"If high-ranking living beings no longer had low-ranking living beings serving them, tell me, could their path of Dao cultivation still be as smooth and unobstructed as Sage Yuqing described?"

Lu Xuan's words were, to Primordial Heavenly Venerable, questions that struck at his very soul. A thoughtful expression unexpectedly appeared on his face.

Seeing Primordial Heavenly Venerable fall into contemplation, Laozi directly asked Lu Xuan, "I wonder, Fellow Daoist Lu Xuan, what different views do you have regarding the Great Dao of Non-Action that I pursue?"

Lu Xuan was equally blunt as he said directly to Laozi, "Non-action does not mean doing nothing. It means not acting rashly and not interfering excessively."

"If Fellow Daoist Taiqing chooses to stand by and watch in every matter, that is not non-action. It is heartlessness—one might even call it unrighteousness."

"So-called non-action means there is nothing one does not do. Everything one does must arise from the heart; only by not deliberately demanding anything can it be called non-action."

For a transmigrator who had received an undergraduate education in a later age, he could have talked about such principles for three days and three nights.

Yet to Laozi and Primordial Heavenly Venerable, these words were deafening. Saying they struck straight at the heart would not be an exaggeration.

This was exactly what Tongtian most wanted to see, because to his two elder brothers, it was tantamount to guidance in finding their true Dao.

He immediately asked Lu Xuan, "Brother Lu Xuan, what do you have to say about my Sword Formation Dao?"

Lu Xuan looked at Tongtian and said, "The Dao Brother Tongtian has comprehended is not the Sword Formation Dao. The Sword Formation Dao is a Dao with form, merely a minor Dao."

"The Dao Brother Tongtian has comprehended is the Slaughter Dao. You are destined to use the three-foot sword in your hand to protect the Primordial World created by Great God Pangu."

"That is your Dao, Brother Tongtian, and also your responsibility. At the same time, you may try cultivating the Destruction Dao, for the Destruction Dao is the closest to the Slaughter Dao."

Lu Xuan did not want Tongtian to confine himself solely to sword formations. If that happened, it would be no different from stagnating in place, and his future achievements would certainly be severely limited.

Tongtian repeatedly nodded after hearing this. At that moment, Laozi and Primordial Heavenly Venerable also opened their eyes and asked Lu Xuan in unison.

"Then what understanding does Fellow Daoist Lu Xuan have of his own Dao? Do you believe your Dao is the one that living beings of the Primordial World ought to follow?"

Lu Xuan shook his head without hesitation. "I am merely a Great Luo Golden Immortal. It is still too early to speak of my own Dao."

"Moreover, I have never believed my Dao suited the living beings of the Primordial World. I even believe my Dao suits only myself, so I would never demand that others follow my Dao."

"For example, Sage Taiqing's Dao of Non-Action, Sage Yuqing's Teaching According to Aptitude, and Brother Tongtian's Slaughter Dao are all correct Dao in my eyes."

"The difference lies only in whom they are more suitable for comprehending. After all, only by choosing what suits oneself best can one travel farther down one's path."

"Therefore, maintaining oneself and refusing to imitate anyone is the most correct path of cultivation, one suited to every living being in the Primordial World."

"The Great Dao has fifty; Heaven evolves forty-nine, while one escapes. That one leaves a sliver of life for the living beings of the Primordial World. And that sliver of life is the Dao of all living beings in the Primordial World."

Primordial Heavenly Venerable looked directly at Lu Xuan and asked, "You mean that Third Brother's Interception Sect is the one that truly follows Heaven's mandate? That it alone possesses teachings capable of truly instructing the living beings of the Primordial World?"

Lu Xuan shook his head again. "Not entirely. If Brother Tongtian blindly indulges his disciples and allows them to pursue that escaped one, it would be no different from leading them astray."

"Actually, I believe that only when the Dao of the three Sages are combined can they truly instruct the living beings of the Primordial World."

"Sage Taiqing's non-action means not interfering excessively with his disciples, yet never allowing them to stray onto an evil path."

"Sage Yuqing's Teaching According to Aptitude can guide disciples in finding the Dao most suited to them, preventing them from aiming too high."

"Together with Brother Tongtian's Teaching Without Discrimination, only then can one truly teach the myriad races and living beings of the Primordial World, allowing all living beings to have a Dao to follow."

After Lu Xuan finished speaking, his gaze fixed upon the Three Pure Ones before him. He could not help secretly thinking, This is the first time, and it will also be the last. If you can understand the importance of unity among the Three Pure Ones, then all this breath I have wasted will not have been in vain.

If you still insist on following the old course of the Primordial World and ultimately become estranged from one another until the Three Pure Ones split apart, then at least I, Lu Xuan, will have tried. My transmigration to the Primordial World will not have been for nothing.

At the same time, Laozi seemed to have realized something and said directly, "No wonder Master had Third Brother establish the Interception Sect. To instruct the living beings of the Primordial World, none of the Three Teachings of the Xuanmen can be absent."

Seeing Laozi still attribute the merit of teaching the Primordial World to Hongjun, regarding themselves as mere executors, Lu Xuan was truly speechless and could not be bothered to say anything more.

He merely turned his gaze toward Daoist Duobao at the side. At this moment, Daoist Duobao had only just awakened from his state of enlightenment and was so shocked by the Dao they had discussed that he could not find words.

"Duobao, I already gave Jinling and Wudang their gifts when we were at Purple Zhi Cliff. You were not present then, so it is time to make it up to you."

As he spoke, Lu Xuan waved his hand, and another sixth-grade White Lotus flew from his hand directly toward Daoist Duobao.

The Three Pure Ones were not like Golden Spirit Holy Mother and Holy Mother Wudang, who had needed to hold the White Lotus before recognizing its extraordinary nature.

They recognized from its aura alone that the sixth-grade White Lotus Lu Xuan had gifted was a Purifying World White Lotus.

Tongtian and Laozi immediately said, "Brother Lu Xuan, how can such an Innate Spiritual Root be used as a mere meeting gift?"

Lu Xuan smiled at Tongtian. "It is for the children, so stop making empty courtesies. Besides, I have an entire pond of these White Lotuses."