Chapter 1443 — The Ethereal Form and the Material Frame
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 5
The Empress took the opportunity to shed her primordial spirit, and thus came to be Yan Tianfei. Wei Suifeng had shown her the grace of completion, enabling her to break free from the shackles of the Ancient Gods.
Later, it was also Wei Suifeng who preserved the Empress's corpse, and for this, Wei Suifeng held the grace of preserving her true body over Yan Tianfei.
Yet when Wei Suifeng was the Yunluo Emperor and his identity was exposed, he was suppressed in the Heavenly Prison, and Yan Tianfei did not come to his rescue. Therefore she felt she owed nothing to anyone—only to him did she owe a great deal, and so she was unwilling to see him.
Xiu Hongsu came to find Xu Shenghua, and the Taiji Ancient Gods said to him, "We reside here permanently. You may visit often, Daoist friend."
Xu Shenghua assented and took his leave, saying, "Having listened to your teachings, I too have gained some understanding. I feel that your Taiji Dao can transform into the ten thousand Daos of heaven and earth. But because your achievements in the Dao-heart cannot be perfected, you must emerge into the world ahead of time to undergo worldly trials. The path you two walk is the same as that of acquired beings—it is the path of reverse cultivation to attain the Dao."
The Taiyin Ancient God could not help asking, "What is reverse cultivation to attain the Dao?"
Xu Shenghua said, "The Taiji generates the ten thousand Daos, and from the ten thousand Daos one can also reverse-deduce the Taiji Dao. Attaining the Dao through Taiji is difficult, and so you enter the world, comprehending the great Dao of heaven and earth amid the mundane, and from this reverse-deducing the Taiji Dao—this is called reverse cultivation to attain the Dao. I have two Daoist friends, one walking forward and one walking in reverse, and so seeing you two I could not help but think of them, feeling that this is your path to attaining the Dao."
The two Ancient Gods each gained insight.
Xu Shenghua continued, "If you two seek the great Dao of the Ancient Gods, you may go to Jingping. Jingping has Dao Master Lin Xuan, who is proficient in macroscopic and microscopic divination arts, analyzing the innate Daos of the world with unmatched achievement. If you wish to comprehend the acquired Dao, you should also go to Jingping—the acquired Dao has flourished greatly there. And if you wish to comprehend the Dao Realm, you should meet the Kaihuang Shen Ye, whose Dao Realm is unparalleled."
The Taiji Ancient Gods thanked him, saying, "In that case, we shall first make a trip to Jingping. If Daoist friend Xu returns to Jingping, we can reminisce."
As Xu Shenghua was about to leave, the Taiyang Ancient God suddenly said, "Daoist friend Xu, you mentioned just now that you have two Daoist friends, one walking forward and one in reverse. May I ask what manner of divinities these two are?"
Xu Shenghua halted and said, "One is Lan Yutian, a youth. The other you two are already familiar with—it is Shen Mu, the Mu Heavenly Venerate."
The two Ancient Gods exchanged glances.
As Xu Shenghua departed, the two Ancient Gods caught up with him again and asked, "May we ask what Lan Yutian's abilities are like?"
Xu Shenghua halted and said, "A body that has attained the Dao, with unmatched Dao-nature. He takes the universe and heaven and earth as his mining district, the great Dao of heaven and earth as his divine stones, the Dao-heart as his raw ore, his footsteps as the mountain veins of the mining district, and the great Dao as his ladder. He measures heaven and earth, rising step by step, ascending the cornerstone of the great Dao."
The two Taiji Ancient Gods were moved—that such a being existed in this world!
"And what of the Mu Heavenly Venerate? In your heart, how does he compare?"