Preaching on the Island and Planning for Posterity

Inside the bamboo house, Kunpeng was immersed in the comprehension of merit entering his body. Thousands of truths manifested around him, and he sat cross-legged there like the very incarnation of the Dao, profound beyond measure!

After a long time, Kunpeng suddenly opened his eyes. Two beams of sharp light shot forth like solid substance, and his gaze was exceptionally clear. Countless rivers formed from supreme truths flowed in his eyes, while the divine light of merit behind his head slowly faded. At this moment, the aura erupting from him was like an unsheathed peerless treasure sword, aggressive and overbearing!

Majestic magic power emanated from him, and an ancient, eternal aura permeated the surroundings. Every movement of his could cause spatial fluctuations and spiritual energy to run wild, and a casual attack could even shatter space itself! It was truly shockingly terrifying!

"Congratulations, younger brother, on your profound progress in the Dao. You are not far from the path of proving Dao and becoming a sage!"

As his momentum receded and Kunpeng returned to his ordinary state, a voice transmission came from outside the bamboo house! Kunpeng smiled slightly, leaped up, exited the bamboo house, and looked at Mu Jizi not far away. Walking over, he said sincerely, "This time, I must thank elder brother for your guidance!"

"We are both brothers, so don't be overly sentimental!" Mu Jizi smiled slightly, his expression calm and very casual. There was not the slightest trace of envy for Kunpeng's cultivation growth!

"Haha, it was this foolish brother who was sentimental. Elder brother, please don't blame me!" Kunpeng laughed heartily and said no more. He knew very well that without Mu Jizi's help, he could never have reached his current level of cultivation!

"Hehe!" Mu Jizi shook his head with a smile. Looking into the distance, he said, "Since younger brother's cultivation has improved this time, you must have comprehended certain principles. In that case, why don't you and I discourse on the Dao right here, to enlighten the living creatures on the island?"

"Splendid!" Kunpeng smiled and said, "This foolish brother has long wanted to listen to elder brother's Great Dao, but has never had the opportunity. Today, having this stroke of good fortune, how could I refuse?"

"Hehe!" Mu Jizi shook his head with a smile, in his heart truly fond of this affection between kindred brothers.

With that, the two spoke no more. Glancing at each other, they sat cross-legged one after the other and began to discourse on the Great Dao!

Mu Jizi said: "To be capable of transformation, to bring forth intelligence, to depart from form and discard cleverness, is to be one with the Great Dao. The root comes first and the trace comes later, hence one borrows the spirit to entrust action. The spirit follows response. The dispersion into five forms transforms ten thousand spirits. The name is thus obtained from the center."

"The lute is harmony. The three foldings refer to the three cinnabar fields, which are layered with various palaces. The fetal immortal is the great spirit of the fetal numen, also called the fetal truth, residing in the bright hall. Within the three fields are nine breaths, blazing brightly without failing to illuminate. The three cinnabar fields, the three origins, and the three grotto chambers combine to form the nine palaces. Within the palaces are the nine souls of the heavenly emperor, which transform into nine breaths and change into nine deities. They enter the human nose, circulate through the brain palace, reflect brightly and reach upward, hence they are called exiting the firmament."

"The spirit canopy is the eyebrows. The bright pearl is the pupil of the eye. Purple smoke refers to the Qi of the gaze. Essence is complete and spirit is full; spirit and essence are complete, hence it is so. There is no residual injury."

Kunpeng said: "The soul and spirit are the hun and po. By day they reside in the double eyes, by night the hun resides in the liver and the po in the lungs. Guanyuan is the navel. The navel is the palace where one receives fate, so the hun and po are above while Guanyuan resides below. The upper soul and spirit belong to heaven; the lower Guanyuan belongs to earth. The soul and spirit are formless, while Guanyuan has substance, mirroring the image of heaven and earth in man. Shaoyang is the left eye. Taiyin is the right eye."

"The secret gate is between the twin kidneys in the lower back, the entrance to the twin kidneys, resembling the portal of the kidneys. The kidneys are the palace where essence is stored; they should be guarded closely so as not to cause rash leakage. The gate of life is the navel, the gate where nature and destiny intersect before birth and at the time of delivery."

"The sun and moon are the essence of yin and yang. Respiration is the Qi of yin and yang, imitating the Qi of heaven and earth. Exhalation is going out and belongs to yang; inhalation is coming in and belongs to yin. Between breathing, the heart must retain it, right in the word of a void."

"The four breaths are the spiritual Qi of the four seasons. The arrayed constellations are the three scenes. It means constantly preserving the primordial Qi to unite with the body, concurrently preserving the sun, moon, and stars, with spiritual light illuminating and arrayed across the whole body, clearly uniting with heaven. After a long time, this brings spiritual communion, making the heart unite with the Dao."

"..."

Although Mu Jizi and Kunpeng were said to be discoursing on the Dao, they were actually preaching to the myriad living beings on the island. The Dao they lectured on was about understanding the body's acupuncture points and meridians, communicating with the weather, and guiding Qi into the body. Going from detailed to simple, it was popular and easy to understand!

"This is the metaphor of inner imagery. Purple and yellow are the three primal elements of essence and Qi within the body. What the gaze beholds are the light colors of purple and yellow, returning into the cinnabar field..."

Daos of supreme truth were spoken from their mouths, and carried far, far away on the wings of magic power!

Every living creature on the island, upon hearing this, felt their bodies shake. Then, instead of frolicking and playing as usual, they put away their smiling faces and piously gathered toward the bamboo grove where Mu Jizi and Kunpeng were!

The supreme truths of the Dao were spoken from the mouths of Mu Jizi and Kunpeng. At this moment, the two of them wore serious expressions, their magic power accompanying the truths. Although the Dao they preached was not as extraordinary as that preached by sages, it still caused strands of innate spiritual energy to gather and surge, while flowers of golden lotus transformed from magic power appeared out of thin air. These spiritual energies and magic powers seemed to have gained sentience, changing and transforming at will!

Spirit beasts moved about, and before long, they gathered beside Mu Jizi and Kunpeng!

At this moment, these spirit beasts made not the slightest clamor, each sitting down in an orderly fashion ten meters away from Mu Jizi and Kunpeng. As time passed, the two of them were surrounded circle after circle by spirit beasts resembling a tidal wave!

Spiritual energy surged and magic power transmissions echoed far beyond the island and over the great sea. For a time, even many creatures in the sea swarmed over!

The sea surface roared, and waves of tide lashed against the island's shores. The submarine spirit beasts that attempted to enter the island all felt a dizzying spin, and then found themselves back where they originally were!

Seeing this, the spirit beasts did not press the matter, and instead lurked in the seabed near the island, listening to the supreme truths of the Dao emanating from the island...

Mu Jizi and Kunpeng preached this Dao for a full three thousand years. Over these three thousand years, countless spirit beasts gained intelligence, and those with clever aptitudes even took human form through transformation. There were also quite a few bamboos and trees that gained intelligence and spirit because of this! From then on, they broke away from ordinary wood to become spirit wood, stepping into the career of cultivating the Dao.

Three thousand years passed, and Mu Jizi and Kunpeng simultaneously stopped their preaching. The two looked at each other.

Then Kunpeng said, "From now on, this island shall be named Two Sages Island. Since you have listened to the Great Dao, gained intelligence, and received great fortune, from this day forth you shall be the guardian spirit beasts of our Two Sages Island. Today's preaching ends here; you should all withdraw and cultivate diligently!"

Though the words were plain, the tone revealed an unshakeable resolve. The spirit beasts dared not say more, and consecutively bowed and withdrew!

When all the spirit beasts had retreated, Kunpeng smiled cheerfully and said, "Elder brother, now that all these spirit beasts have gained intelligence, we certainly don't need to worry about them making a mess of this island!"

Until this moment, Kunpeng still believed Mu Jizi had preached to the living beings to prevent the island's spirit trees from being destroyed! Little did he know that at the dawn of the primordial world, the earlier one gained intelligence, the greater the advantage one held in later eras. The countless living beings on the island this day might well play a role in contending for providence against the various sages in times to come!

"Splendid!" Mu Jizi nodded, offering no further explanation.