Bright Palace

The piece came to an end.

Yunqi lifted Heavenly Wind Over Pine and Snow in both hands, signaling for the Green Chi-Dragon to take it back.

Without any visible movement from the Green Chi-Dragon, a current of qi enveloped the ancient zither. Like an invisible hand grasping it, the qi lifted it from Yunqi's hands, swept it through an arc in midair, and delivered it into her mouth.

Yunqi watched with envy in his eyes. He knew this was a drawing technique, but to learn it, he first needed magical power within his body, then had to project that power outward and control it as freely as his own limbs.

Yunqi had no magical power within him yet.

Magical power meant transforming the spiritual qi of heaven and earth into something one could use.

From spring's arrival to winter's coming, Yunqi had fed on qi for nine months. Spiritual power of the five elements had nourished his flesh and nurtured his five organs, but all of it had become sustenance for his body. None had transformed into magical power.

To turn the spiritual qi he consumed into magical power, he still needed another process:

Circulating the heavenly circuit.

Circulating the heavenly circuit meant setting the spiritual qi absorbed into the body in motion, guiding it along specific apertures and meridians until it formed a closed loop. That was one heavenly circuit.

During this circulation, the spiritual qi of heaven and earth cleared blockages in the body's apertures and meridians. At the same time, the body's vital essence and blood cleansed the spiritual qi, discarding the dross and preserving the cream, transforming it into magical power.

Like breathing exercises and feeding on qi, circulating the heavenly circuit was fundamental to cultivation.

The essence of circulating the heavenly circuit lay in guiding the spiritual qi of heaven and earth along specific apertures and meridians. Cultivators also called this act Qi Circulation. It had two key points: how to set the spiritual qi in motion, and which route it should follow.

The latter needed little explanation. The heavenly circuit's route was an untransmitted secret of every school and lineage, different in each.

As for the former, everyone largely agreed: use spirit to command qi, or, alternatively, thought to command qi. Wherever the power of thought reached, qi would be drawn along.

Yet that intangible, elusive power of thought was not something people were born with. What they were born with were merely thoughts. The power of thought had to be "condensed," "tempered," and "refined" from those thoughts.

As for how to condense that power, each school and lineage had its own methods.

There was another term encompassing the power of thought, spiritual qi, and magical power. Passed from mouth to mouth for tens of thousands of years, it invariably appeared in every school's scriptures: the Three Treasures of Essence, Qi, and Spirit, also called Refining Essence, Qi, and Spirit Together.

Use spirit to command qi; transform qi into essence.

This process turned the spiritual qi of heaven and earth to one's own use. It was the meeting of the human body's little world and nature's greater world.

Yunqi had fed on qi for nine months and condensed his thoughts for nine months as well. Everything was ready; all he lacked was the east wind.

His teacher Sukong had once told him that he could only seek her out again once he had either cultivated the Five-Character Mantra's qi-feeding method to the ninth level or fed on qi until he "could eat no more."

Now, at last, the time had come.

Today, just moments ago, he had used the [Blow] mantra to absorb water-element spiritual qi, yet his kidneys had shown no response. Yunqi knew he had reached the point where he "could eat no more."

It was time to return to Bright Governance Mountain and learn the art of Qi Circulation.

Yunqi rose and bowed to the Green Chi-Dragon. "I'm truly grateful for your protection, fellow Daoist. You've spared me a great deal of effort."

Yunqi meant every word. After meeting the Green Chi-Dragon in this lake on the Mid-Autumn Festival, he had discovered that whenever this water-aligned spirit beast was nearby, he absorbed water-element spiritual qi three to five times faster than usual, and the water qi was far better in quality.

Once he realized this, Yunqi had tried communicating with her. He would play music for her, asking only that she linger nearby while he fed on qi.

The Green Chi-Dragon truly was an extraordinary dragon breed. Though she looked so small and had yet to refine away her transverse throat bone, she had no trouble communicating with people. Not only had she agreed, she had insisted that Yunqi play a zither she provided.

From then on, Yunqi had devoted more effort to absorbing spiritual qi of the other four elements. With the Green Chi-Dragon's help, he could gain twice the results for half the effort with water-element spiritual qi.

And today, at last, the water had flowed and the channel had formed.

The Green Chi-Dragon, however, had no interest in all these thoughts of Yunqi's. With a roar, she plunged into the lake's depths and soon vanished from sight.

Yunqi promptly departed on his cloud, heading straight for Bright Governance Mountain.

Once again, Yunqi landed his cloud at Gentleman Liang's Crossing. He came beneath the Hidden Bamboo Stele and looked toward the pavilion, but saw no sign of Master Su Kong. He was not surprised. On his first visit, she had made it clear that she taught from the ninth to the fifteenth of each month. Today was only the sixth. Presumably, his teacher was in secluded cultivation herself, or had gone traveling.

Yunqi turned to leave, intending to return on the ninth. Just then, however, Daoistess Sukong's voice sounded beside his ear.

"Is that Yunqi? Come over."

Yunqi looked back. At some point, his teacher had appeared in the pavilion again, seated with her five centers facing heaven and her eyes half closed, as though she had been there all along.

Yunqi stepped forward and bowed. "Your disciple greets you, Teacher."

Wen Sukong slowly opened her eyes, glanced at their surroundings, then looked at Yunqi and said:

"Open your eyes and behold the green jade gentlemen; flakes of wintry cream fall upon their verdant lips. Yunqi, how many years have you been on the mountain?"

Yunqi replied, "Your disciple entered the mountain in spring. Now it is deep winter, so this is still my first year."

A faint smile appeared on Daoistess Sukong's face. "Then have you come because you've perfected the Five-Character Mantra, or because you've fed your fill of qi?"

"I've fed my fill of qi. My five organs are saturated and no longer accept spiritual qi."

"Good." Daoistess Sukong nodded, then continued, "I told you to construct a palace or temple in your mind to condense your thoughts. How has that gone?"

"I've made some progress there as well. Please instruct me, Teacher."

Daoistess Sukong nodded. "Find a cushion and sit down. Relax your body and thoughts, clear away stray thoughts, then imagine what I tell you."

Yunqi assented and found a cushion to sit on-the very one he had used during the trial when he first entered the mountain.

Once seated, Yunqi loosened his shoulders twice, took two deep breaths, and closed his eyes. After roughly four or five breaths, he nodded to signal that he was ready.

"Now, before your eyes lies darkness."

Yunqi nodded. That was indeed so.

"Now, there is a stretch of level ground, a patch of yellow earth. It floats amid boundless darkness like an island, situated at the very center of this dark world."

And so a floating island appeared in Yunqi's mind.

"Now, a person appears on the floating island."

Master Su Kong spoke.

Yunqi did not know how to respond. What sort of person? Who?

Suddenly, Yunqi's eyelids jerked, almost opening.

A person really had appeared on the floating island, yet Yunqi had not even begun imagining that person!

Yunqi could not see it, but just then, Daoistess Sukong had closed her eyes as well. A speck of purple light shot from between her brows, staining the surrounding green bamboo and white snow purple.

The purple mote moved at an indescribable speed. The instant it appeared, it traced a purple thread through the air, whose other end sank into Yunqi's forehead.

Yunqi did not know that only great cultivators of the third realm could accomplish such a thing.

"It's me."

A voice suddenly rang out in Yunqi's mind, so clear and so close that it sounded like his own inner monologue. In that same instant, Yunqi "saw" the person clearly. It was Master Su Kong.

Within this world of darkness:

Master Su Kong looked down at her feet and said, "This patch of ground is too small. Make it ten times larger."

Though he had been somewhat prepared, Yunqi was still so utterly astonished that he failed to respond.

"I said this patch of ground is too small. Make it ten times larger."

This time, Yunqi heard her and enlarged the floating island in his mind tenfold.

"Now, stand beside me."

Master Su Kong's words left Yunqi stunned again. How... how was he supposed to stand over there?

"In your thoughts, you always regard what you imagine as something you see."

Master Su Kong offered him a reminder.

Yunqi understood at once. His viewpoint rapidly drew closer, descending onto the floating island and settling at the level of Master Su Kong's upper body, contracting from an omniscient perspective into the view through a person's eyes.

"Good. With your eyes fixed in place, you should be able to fix your body in place as well."

Yunqi grasped it quickly and imagined his own appearance. Just like that, a living, breathing Cheng Yunqi stood on the floating island beside Master Su Kong.

Master Su Kong looked at the Cheng Yunqi who had suddenly appeared and nodded.

"Now, use the two of us as your measure of scale, and bring forth your palace before us."

Growing increasingly adept, Yunqi began constructing his palace on the floating island.

Before Wen Sukong's "eyes," earth-shaking changes began unfolding across the empty ground.

First, earth piled up into a platform. A square earthen terrace abruptly rose from the ground, six feet high.

Within the terrace were thirty-six large pits, each containing a stone column base shaped like Baxia, the dragon's son, and colored a dark blue-green.

A great column rose on each base, three feet in diameter and fifty feet tall, painted vermilion and decorated with firebirds.

Bracket sets appeared atop the columns, their bearing blocks green and bracket arms blue-green, painted with crouching tigers and reclining suanni.

Beams and crosspieces spanned the brackets, followed by purlins and rafters, forming a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof. Cloud-and-dragon motifs adorned the beams and crosspieces, while swift motifs decorated the purlins and rafters.

Tiles covered the purlins and rafters-bright yellow glazed tiles, each painted all over with pearl-like flames.

Walls rose, railings enclosed the space, and doorways opened;

The terrace foundation was faced with masonry, and floor tiles were laid;

The interior was painted and decorated, and plaques and signboards were hung;

Complicated as it sounded, the gleaming palace took only moments to rise.

Daoistess Sukong kept nodding. Watching his lofty hall rise, she asked with a smile, "Why is the plaque blank? Haven't you decided on a name for this Dao Palace?"

Yunqi nodded. "Your disciple truly cannot decide. Please bestow a name, Teacher."

Wen Sukong smiled. "Come, let's look inside first."

They ascended the terrace and opened the vermilion palace doors.

"Hmm. You chose this one."

Daoistess Sukong looked at the divine statue inside with some surprise.

The statue was not large. It was lean, with a fair, beardless face, fiery eyes with golden pupils, and an oddly hooked nose. Upon its head rested a crown of golden pearls and peach leaves. It wore a scarlet robe patterned with colorful clouds gathering around stars; auspicious clouds billowed thickly, and the stars formed the Hairy Head Lodge.

It was none other than the Star Lord of Hairy Head Sun.

"To think you chose this one. What led you to that decision?"

Seeing the smile in his teacher Sukong's eyes, Yunqi knew there was probably no serious problem. He explained how he had found the White Tiger Seven Lodges Scroll to use as an illustrated visualization guide, then described why he had chosen the Hairy Head Sun Chicken rather than the Turtle Beak Fire Monkey.

His teacher Sukong was delighted to hear it. She said with a smile:

"Yunqi, you must understand: whether I am merely your nominal teacher now, or truly become your formal teacher in transmitting the arts later, as your guide, I will tell you what runs contrary to the proper path, what is urgent and what can wait, what requires gradual progress, and what calls for preparing before the rain falls. But I will never dictate each step of your cultivation. Otherwise, every master and disciple under heaven would follow the same Dao Path, and that lineage would be destined to perish. Remember: change opens the way; rigidity brings ruin.

"Take choosing an Inner Landscape Deity, for instance. I told you to open your Heart Mansion first because our Bright Governance Mountain lineage cultivates the Way of the Living Dead. Between the living and the dead, one difference lies in the spirit, and another in the heart. When the heart moves, the body lives; when the heart thrives, it wards off all evils. Opening your Heart Mansion first will benefit your future cultivation.

"But I will not demand that you visualize any particular Inner Landscape Deity or absorb any particular fire qi. That depends entirely on your own thoughts and the opportunities you encounter.

"That is what it means for one tree to bloom with a hundred flowers, each different, all competing in splendor.

"Among the twenty-eight stellar lodges, the four yang lodges-Room Sun, Emptiness Sun, Hairy Head Sun, and Star Sun-and the four fire lodges-Tail Fire, Encampment Fire, Turtle Beak Fire, and Wings Fire-can serve as the Heart Mansion's chief official. Among them, Room is inward, Emptiness is yin, and Star is dim. Only Hairy Head is true yang. Tail Fire, Encampment Fire, Turtle Beak Fire, and Wings Fire are mere firefly glimmers, unworthy of comparison with the sun. So Hairy Head Sun is indeed the first choice. This is your destined opportunity."

Naturally, Yunqi was delighted. He had never known there was so much behind it.

His teacher Sukong continued, "Since you've chosen the Star Official of Hairy Head Sun, I'll tell you more about him.

"First, let me make this clear: the Star Lord of Hairy Head Sun is a star official of our Daoist tradition, trained in the Supreme Clarity lineage. Venerating him is perfectly proper under the principles of our teachings.

"The star official attained the Dao during the Shang and Zhou era. In answer to a talismanic summons from the Haotian Jade Emperor, he ascended to heaven to take office as master of the Hairy Head Lodge. Before ascending, he cultivated in the Supreme Clarity School and once attended teachings on Mount Zhongnan."

Yunqi was surprised to hear that. There was actually such a connection between them.

"Second, Hairy Head has exceedingly lofty origins. His father was a White-Feathered Heavenly Chicken on Ancient Peach Capital Mountain of the East Sea-the first chicken after the Primordial Wilderness opened and heaven and earth took shape. He held the duty of heralding dawn: when he crowed, the sun rose. He also had close ties with the Golden Crow clan, the ancient Demon Race's imperial family. His mother is Bilanpo Bodhisattva of the Western Buddhist Religion, one of its revered guardian deities.

"Perhaps precisely because of his orthodox lineage and lofty origins, this star official's later accomplishments far surpassed those of other star lords. He became the second kind of living being, after the Golden Crow clan, able to roam freely on the Solar Star.

"After Di Shang destroyed Zhou, this star official withdrew to the Solar Star. Later, he actually refined Solar Bing Fire, whose power is said to rank only beneath True Solar Fire. If you truly form an Inner Landscape Deity of Hairy Head within your Heart Mansion, absorbing Solar Bing Fire through visualization may not be impossible."

Even with his steady disposition, Yunqi was left somewhat dazed by these revelations arriving one after another. Fortunately, they were all good news.

Yet just as joy arose in Yunqi's heart, Daoistess Sukong continued:

"However, making Hairy Head the master of your Heart Mansion also presents difficulties. You must be mindful of them."

Yunqi mustered every ounce of concentration, afraid to miss even a single word.

"First, as I just mentioned, Hairy Head's mother is Bilanpo Bodhisattva of the Buddhist Religion. Those people care more than anyone about cause and effect. If you encounter them later, keep your wits about you.

"Second, misfortune is what fortune leans upon. Hairy Head's divine standing is too high. To transform him into an Inner Landscape Deity through visualization, the illustrated guide you currently possess will likely make it difficult to capture the essence of his divine intent. You must seek other objects connected to Hairy Head-the closer the connection, the better. But Hairy Head attained the Dao long ago, so this will be no easy task.

"Third, again because Hairy Head's divine standing is too high, even if you succeed and place him in command of your heart fire, how will you find a matching master for your kidney water afterward?"

Yunqi fell silent.

Seeing this, Daoistess Sukong reassured him. "Cultivating the Dao and seeking immortality is itself a matter of knowing something cannot be done, yet doing it anyway. Nor is there any such thing as claiming every advantage under heaven. Simply make each step firm. In the end, everything comes down to this: do all you can, and leave the rest to Heaven."

Yunqi bowed with clasped hands. "Your disciple has learned."

"Isn't the plaque of your Dao Palace still blank? After Hairy Head answered the summons to heaven, he took residence in the eastern Bright Palace. You could use that name."

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