What Is Immortal Cultivation? The Taotie of the Nine Earths

Because the Dharma Realm was created by replicating the present world one-to-one during the reign of the [Purple Forbidden Enclosure] (the Purple Palace Enclosure).

Therefore, nature is the same as the present world in terms of seasons and weather, except that the landscape may be more ancient than the present world.

In the soft light of dawn, on the Heavenly Dao of the [Swan Palace], Lü Yuan finally began his first step in truly understanding this Ancient Immortal Cultivation Realm.

However, before classes even started, what surprised him most was Chen Sheng standing before him.

Because right before his eyes, at this very moment, Chen Sheng's appearance finally changed; what he had seen before was indeed not his true form.

After all, since they had cultivated to the level of True Lord, Heaven and Earth could not allow them to remain ordinary.

It was as tall and imposing as a deep pool and a towering mountain, its wide robe billowing even without wind, like thick earth.

His hair was disheveled and unbound, held together only by a withered wooden hairpin, but even that could not conceal his dignified face and the sorrow between his brows.

"Teacher, why did you hide your true appearance before?" Lü Yuan asked curiously.

Surely they can't just be putting on an act, can they?

"That Non-Self intention, but I had no choice but to do it," Chen Sheng explained patiently.

"Cultivation is inherently about seizing the power of heaven and earth. Reaching the level of your father and me, we ascend to the Fruit Position, becoming True Lord— "

"It is inherently the greatest possible usurpation of heaven and earth themselves."

"Therefore, if we True Lord do not conceal ourselves in this world, then even if we do nothing, we will still distort everything around us because of us."

"To put it bluntly, cultivators and mortals below the Purple Mansion would go insane or even go mad if they just glanced at our true form."

What Cthulhu? Can't look directly at God?

But because it seizes the creation of heaven and earth, its existence is distorted... which seems to make a lot of sense.

Lü Yuan said knowingly, "I see..."

This was just a minor incident, and Chen Sheng didn't say much more, since Lü Yuan would learn these things later.

So he quickly got to the point. "How much did your father tell you about cultivating immortality?"

Lü Yuan answered truthfully, "The existence of the Immortal Path itself, how to cultivate it, including the realms of cultivation, and the lineage of the Dao in the world... that's about it."

Chen Sheng sat down opposite him, saying, "That's about what I thought. That's all he can tell you."

"Now I will tell you more precisely what cultivating immortality truly is."

To understand this, you must first understand the difference between immortals and mortals.

Chen Sheng asked, "What do you think is the biggest difference between immortals and mortals?"

The biggest difference...

Recalling everything he had experienced, Lü Yuan answered with certainty after some thought.

"Strength."

"Not bad," Chen Sheng said approvingly, "Understanding this shows that your previous experiences have indeed given you some inspiration."

"In terms of emotions, thoughts, and even interpersonal relationships, spiritual practitioners are actually not much different from ordinary people."

"Therefore, what sets us above worldly things is power."

Not only did he say it, but Lü Yuan also saw Chen Sheng gently raise his hand to the side, demonstrating not only through words but also through his actions.

Then...

With a gentle push, Lü Yuan's pupils constricted as he witnessed the most shocking and direct display of True Lord he had ever seen in his life!

With just a gentle push outwards, accompanied by a light breeze...

In that direction, everything within sight was instantly flattened, turning into a flat plain, leaving no trace of mountains, rivers, vegetation, or anything else.

Nothing was left.

However, all of this continued, with deafening roars never ceasing.

Those Qi Refinement can already see very far, and with Lü Yuan's addition of Law Technique, they can see hundreds of miles without difficulty.

But all of this is far from over a hundred miles, a thousand miles, or even ten thousand miles—

Further still, the aftershocks continue to spread to even more distant places, if this were not the Dharma Realm, which is mostly desolate and uninhabited.

But in the present world...

Lü Yuan could hardly imagine the extent of the impact that gentle push would have.

Even within the Dharma Realm, this is far too exaggerated. It's just a class; is it really necessary to make such a fuss?

Also, Liu Bang must have let the water flow freely back then, right?!

But before he could think any further, he saw Chen Sheng's hand slowly clench again.

Then, everything that had disappeared was restored, as if nothing had happened, and everything returned to calm.

"Do you see that? This is the power we wield. We can destroy and create at will. Therefore, even if mortals number in the billions, trillions, or even hundreds of billions, they cannot contend with us."

Chen Sheng said, "This is the biggest difference between immortals and mortals, and to truly understand what cultivating immortality is, one must start from this point—"

"That's right, power. That is indeed the biggest difference between us and immortals and mortals."

Chen Sheng countered, "But if that's the only difference, then why do mortals still exist as you see them?"

"Even kings and generals among mortals would love to tear them to pieces and suck their marrow. Why are we, who possess such power, so restrained?"

These words enlightened Lü Yuan. In fact, he had never understood why, despite the existence of cultivators, the mortal world remained the same.

Even the Capitalist Immortal Cultivation Realm next door, with its distinct characteristics, seemed to be within his comprehension in its cruelty, not to the point of completely abandoning mortals.

"Why?" Lü Yuan was very excited. The process of exploring the unknown was so fascinating and even joyful.

As Lü Yuan's mentor, Chen Sheng didn't keep him in suspense; he explained in great detail:

"Because cultivating immortality brings practitioners not only power, but also other ideas that come with that power."

"Yes, we can use power to rule the world, but will that truly satisfy us who possess that power?"

Do you think we would be happy if those ignorant and weak mortals remained obsequious to us?

"Cultivating immortality not only gave us power beyond that of mortals, but also corresponding ideals and arrogance."

"Therefore, this makes us not just want to rule the world, but to change it, transform it, and mold it into the way we desire it."

"But ultimately, the goal is to make it better--"

"That's why you see the mortal realm, which exists only because we temporarily compromise for our own ideas."

"And this is the essence of cultivating immortality."

"That is why we practitioners are what we are."

Under the morning light, watching Chen Sheng recount what it meant to Chen Sheng immortality, Lü Yuan tried his best to understand it all.

After that, I never longed for cultivating immortality so much. It's so interesting, really interesting, that it makes you yearn for it.

"Do you understand what I'm saying?" Chen Sheng asked.

"Yes, you don't need to worry about me," Lü Yuan replied with a grin.

Chen Sheng did not question or doubt him, because he believed that Lü Yuan was indeed capable of doing so.

So he began explaining the next stage.

That is --

"Now that we've understood what cultivating immortality is, we arrive at the most fundamental question of the path to immortality."

Where do we get this power?

"And, how does one become a spiritual practitioner?"

Chen Sheng was truly a good teacher, so why did Lü Yuan express such an opinion?

Because he saw a star light up in the sky, his consciousness rose to the heavens with Chen Sheng.

Beyond the obscured sky, until it rests upon a star of immeasurable vastness—

It was black and yellow, similar to the stars in Lü Yuan's knowledge, but surrounded by a more mysterious aura.

After Chen Sheng, who had led him here, waited for him to come to his senses before continuing, "The first question is, where did we obtain this power? What you see before you is the answer to that question."

"The Fruit Position," Lü Yuan replied softly, still in shock.

Chen Sheng nodded. "That's right, but your father must have mentioned the Fruit Position to you at least somewhat."

"In fact, this is the source of our power as practitioners—"

"Of course, they themselves have no physical form; they are closer to abstract concepts. What you see before you is merely their corresponding star in the present world."

"I brought you to see Him so that you could more easily understand and accept the existence of the Fruit Position."

As Chen Sheng finished speaking...

The next moment, Lü Yuan's vision blurred, and then he found that they had returned to the [Swan Palace] once again.

This is the Golden Core True Lord, this is the power of a great Divine Ability being!

However, Lü Yuan was still curious about the Fruit Position.

Therefore, after receiving the information, he asked Chen Sheng without waiting for him to speak:

"So where does this Fruit Position come from, and how can we obtain His power to become practitioners?"

Curiosity and a thirst for knowledge—that's how Chen Sheng saw Lü Yuan, but he didn't dislike him.

Despite how similar it is to that monkey from back then...

So he didn't mind that his question was interrupted, and patiently explained the reasons to him.

So Chen Sheng reached out, took a sliver of light from the horizon, placed it in front of Lü Yuan, and explained to him:

"After heaven and earth were freed from chaos, their Fruit Position were born. Therefore, there is no need to ask where they came from, because they should have existed on their own, just like the heaven and earth you see."

"As for why we were able to obtain the power of the Fruit Position..."

You should understand that yourself.

Lü Yuan thought for a moment, then asked in return, "Because of Spirit Root and Cultivation Method?"

Chen Sheng succinctly stated. "That's right, the former is the foundation for us to Fruit Position power, while the latter is the method of seizing it—"

"The former comes from nature, while the latter originally came from the [Three Enclosures]. I don't think I need to explain the [Three Enclosures] too much..."

"Of course, I don't know much more about the three of them than you do."

Lü Yuan nodded to show that he understood.

Chen Sheng then returned to the main topic. "Now that we've explained where we got this power and why we were able to obtain it..."

"Next, I'll address the second question I mentioned at the beginning—"

How do we become spiritual practitioners?

"This sounds to us what we were just discussing: why we are able to obtain this power from the Fruit Position to become practitioners is a question."

"But in reality, there are differences."

Chen Sheng explained, "Because although they share the commonality of having Spirit Root as a foundation, their Cultivation Method are divided into two main categories based on different practices."

In other words, there are actually two paths to cultivating immortality.

"That is, the Qi Ingestion and Nature-Nurturing Dao and the Purple Mansion Golden Core Dao-- "

Chen Sheng pointed to the still-bright stars in the sky, then to himself and Lü Yuan: "You and I are perfect examples..."

"You are a cultivator of the Purple Mansion Golden Core Dao, while I was once a cultivator of the Qi Ingestion and Nature-Nurturing Dao..."

"In the past?" Lü Yuan grasped the only point of confusion.

"Indeed, in the past..." Chen Sheng said, "Because both methods ultimately aim to Fruit Position."

"The reason there are two different methods is precisely because of the different ways of proving Fruit Position."

"Therefore, after reaching the Golden Core, there is naturally no difference."

"As for the Fruit Position I sought, there's no need for you to ask; I'll tell you directly—"

Chen Sheng sensed Lü Yuan's interest, so instead of letting him change the subject, he answered for him:

"The position I occupy is one of the Nine Earths that were divided among the Earth Luminary Fruit Position the [Great Sage of the Guard Star] ascended to heaven."

"It's called [Taotie]."