Chapter 593: Reincarnation into Immortality, Guarding the Body for Three Years
The Apricot Corpse Technique is a very strange Taoist technique, generally used to achieve corpse-reincarnation immortality.
There are five kinds of immortals: heaven, earth, human, gods and ghosts. But besides these five, there is actually another kind of immortal, called the corpse-reincarnation immortal.
Volume 87 of The Supreme Secret states: "The transformation of the body is the transformation of the form, the transformation of the true nature, and the transformation of the body."
Taoism believes that after a monk attains enlightenment, he can abandon his physical body, or pretend to die with an object in his place to deceive heaven, thus becoming an immortal and achieving immortality.
Generally, shoes, walking sticks, weapons and other items would be used to replace the dead. For example, Bodhidharma traveled east and returned west with only one shoe. People found only a shoe in his tomb, but no remains.
There is also the founder of the Taoist Lingbao School, Tai Chi Zuoxian Gong Ge Xuan, who is said to have also achieved immortality through corpse transformation.
The corpse-reincarnated immortal is a lower grade immortal, not among the five immortals, so it is also called a scattered immortal. It is a tricky way to become an immortal without going through the heavenly tribulation.
However, the method of achieving immortality through corpse transformation had long been lost. Li Daoxuan had only seen related records of the so-called apricot corpse technique in ancient books from Mount Longhu, and there was no specific content for cultivation.
Not only in Longhu Mountain, but in the entire Taoism, there are only records of corpse-reincarnation immortals, but no method of practicing corpse-reincarnation immortals.
Otherwise, in the past few hundred years, there wouldn't have been so many great Taoist masters who were reduced to ashes in thunder disasters, and many people who spent their entire lives studying the method of corpse transformation only to gain nothing in the end.
Li Daoxuan told his master what he had seen. He was shocked after hearing it and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
No matter what, the old man is not dead yet, and that's the best news.
Otherwise, even he would not be able to bear the loss of his best friend and his father in one day.
"Tianshi!"
"Big Brother!"
"Big Brother is back!"
The sudden appearance of Li Daoxuan and Zhang Qianyang shocked everyone. Liu Ningyan, dressed in mourning clothes, came over with her son Zhang Weiyang and winked at the two of them.
Li Daoxuan immediately understood that it seemed that his master's wife had something to say to them, but she just couldn't say it in public.
"Qianyang, Taichong, you are the people that the old man values the most, come and kowtow to him ."
Li Daoxuan and his master looked at each other, and then according to the rules, they put on white shoes, white socks, white clothes, and white crowns, and bowed respectfully in front of the old Taoist priest's grave.
"Taichong, before the old man passed away, he left a will, ordering you to resign the position of the Tang Dynasty's Imperial Master and keep vigil for him in the mountains for three years. Are you willing to obey?"
After saying this, Liu Ningyan took out a piece of white paper and handed it to Li Daoxuan.
The paper was very ordinary, but the words on it were quite extraordinary. There was only one word, but it was so powerful that it could penetrate the back of the paper. It was elegant and refined, with a clear and vigorous spirit, and had the air of a master.
It is written in running script, with the character "隐".
Li Daoxuan looked at the characters and confirmed that they were the work of the old Taoist priest. Even though the handwriting could be imitated, the fluctuations of the magical power flowing through them were vast and profound, extremely refined and pure, and were the unique aura of practicing the "Huangting Ancient Scripture".
hidden……
Did the master leave this word for him to retreat from the current situation and live in seclusion in the mountains?
In fact, half a year ago, when the battle with Chiyou had just ended, the master had written him a long letter, in which he advised that he should practice with the help of the power of a country. His luck was like flowers blooming in bloom and oil boiling in a raging fire. It seemed brilliant but was actually dangerous.
It is better to withdraw early and retire after success, which is in line with the true meaning of Taoism's naturalness.
At that time, Li Daoxuan also discovered that his path of cultivation was too intense. He often fought to the death and risked his life with others. Difficulties came one after another, as if there was no end.
Although he made great progress, he lacked some of the Taoist spirit of forgetting the world and returning to simplicity and nature.
In short, it is the lack of sedimentation, and when one reaches his level of cultivation, ordinary resources are no longer useful. Instead, it is more important to walk in the world and hone his Tao heart.
That is why he did not return to Chang'an, but asked Li Jing to bring back a letter of resignation for him. However, Li Shimin refused to accept the letter and tore it up directly.
The title of national teacher has never been cancelled.
However, during the past six months, he traveled around the world and his heart gradually calmed down. His practice became even more advanced than when he was the Imperial Master. In just six months, he had already seen the bottleneck of becoming an immortal.
Although there is still some distance, at least he has seen it. This point alone has surpassed countless old seniors who have wasted time in the late Yang Shen stage.
"Taichong, are you willing?"
Seeing that Li Daoxuan didn't say anything, Liu Ningyan asked again.
However, she did not show any sign of coercion, and even all the other Longhu Mountain disciples did not dare to show any disapproval, because Li Daoxuan was too famous and had too high a prestige.
Even if it was the old master's last wish, in their opinion, the eldest brother had the right to refuse.
Little Wei Yang looked at Li Daoxuan with tears in his eyes and begged, "Big Brother..."
There are two people he admires the most, one is his grandfather, and the other is his eldest senior brother. Naturally, he doesn't want to see any conflicts between his eldest senior brother and Longhu Mountain.
Zhang Qianyang frowned and said, "Ningyan, Taichong is just the old man's disciple. According to the rules, I should be the one to guard the spirit. Why do you have to let Taichong--"
"Master, I do."
Li Daoxuan carefully folded the piece of white paper with the hidden words written on it, put it close to his body, and then bowed to the old Taoist's tombstone.
"Disciple Taichong, I will obey the will of my master, resign from the position of national master, and guard the spirit for three years without leaving the mountain!"
He still couldn't figure out the ins and outs of this, but he was sure of one thing: his master would never harm him!
Liu Ningyan finally breathed a sigh of relief, and the disciples of Longhu Mountain also breathed a sigh of relief.
If the eldest senior brother openly disobeys the orders of the master, then they really don’t know what to do.
That night.
Liu Ningyan, Zhang Qianyang, Tai Wei and Li Daoxuan were sitting in the room.
"Ningyan, what is going on?"
Zhang Qianyang asked immediately.
Liu Ningyan explained: "You should have noticed that the old man is not dead. There are only six almonds in the coffin. They should be the lost method of corpse transformation in ancient books, the apricot fake corpse technique."
Li Daoxuan nodded and said, "That's right, but I've communicated with my master before. He doesn't know how to transform corpses, otherwise he wouldn't have watched his old friends die one by one."
Liu Ningyan continued, "I don't know what happened. After Qian Yang received the message today, he left in a hurry. Not long after, the old man called Tai Wei and me over at the same time. He said that he would die in an hour and asked us to prepare a coffin for him immediately."
Li Daoxuan looked at his junior sister.
Taiwei nodded to him, indicating that it was true.
"The old man also said that after he died, there was no need to keep the coffin or go through all those red tapes. He had to be buried at 15:00 on the twilight hour, without any mistakes."
Li Daoxuan suddenly realized that it was no wonder that his master's wife had buried the old master in such a hurry that she didn't even have time to wait for the master to come back.
"The old man also left a will, saying that he wanted to be buried with his wife after his death. He also specifically asked you, Taichong, to resign from the position of national teacher and return to the mountain to guard his body for three years."
"Then the old man said nothing. No matter how Taiwei and I asked him questions, he just looked at the book quietly and ignored us."
"Even when his favorite grandson came, he never even looked at him or said a word to him."
Li Daoxuan suddenly asked, "Master's Wife, what book was Master reading at that time?"
This question made Liu Ningyan stunned for a moment. She really didn't pay attention to this detail.
"It is the first edition of the Laozi handwritten by Wang Bi of the Jin Dynasty."
Tai Wei added that she had not paid much attention to it at the time, but as a Yang Shen realm, having a photographic memory is a basic ability.
"Brother, is there a problem here?"
Li Daoxuan shook his head and said, "Not yet. Please continue, Master."
Liu Ningyan nodded.
"Although Taiwei and I were surprised, we didn't dare to disobey the old man, so we prepared a good coffin. At first I thought it was a joke from the old man, but I didn't expect that exactly one hour later, the old man suddenly closed his eyes and was no longer alive!"
"After that, I followed the old man's instructions and hurriedly buried him at 15:00. Taiwei told me that she had been watching the coffin with her Dharma eyes and found that not long after the burial, the old man's body suddenly disappeared , and only six almonds appeared."
Li Daoxuan looked at his junior sister.
Tai Wei was also confused and said, "Brother, I think I have achieved a lot in my practice. I was never distracted at that time, but I just didn't see any flaws!"
She really couldn't understand why her master's body turned into almonds right under her nose.
After hearing their words, Li Daoxuan remained silent for a long time.
This matter is really strange and there are many unsolved questions.
First, the master said that the old master had not yet reached the end of his life span and that it would not be a problem for him to live another 20 years. But why did he suddenly say that he was going to die and even accurately stated the time of his death?
Second, the method of corpse transformation had long been lost, how did the old man suddenly learn it? Moreover, he was able to disappear in front of Tai Wei, a Yang Shen sword cultivator, without revealing the slightest flaw.
You know, even those who have written records of becoming immortals through corpse transformation often experience various strange phenomena that can be seen even by mortals, let alone Yangshen cultivators.
The third and most important point is that the old man did not leave any last words to his son, daughter-in-law and grandson. Instead, he only left a last word to himself and specially wrote a hidden word.
Each of these three major doubts is elusive, and the matter is full of weirdness. Even he feels that he cannot figure it out for a while.
What to do if you can’t figure out something?
Just count it!
He is a Taoist priest, not a detective, so he directly starts to deduce the secrets of heaven using Zi Wei Dou Shu.
Rays of starlight fell, as if covering it with a layer of fairy clothes, making it more ethereal. Between those slender fingers, there seemed to be thousands of starlights and infinite mysteries.
Even if Yuan Tiangang, the current head of Louguan Dao, came, he would be shocked to see this scene.
Li Daoxuan has cultivated Zi Wei Dou Shu to an extremely high level. He can predict the weather, know the future, understand nature, and comprehend the mysteries.
A hazy mist appeared in his mind, and he could vaguely see a figure that looked somewhat like his master.
Li Daoxuan tried his best to mobilize his magic power to get rid of the fog and see where his master had gone.
“Senior Brother!”
"Daoxuan!"
There was a faint shouting in his ears, but Li Daoxuan turned a deaf ear to it because it was only a little bit away.
Just a little bit more and he could see clearly!
As a huge amount of mana was consumed, the clouds finally became thinner and thinner, and Li Daoxuan finally saw where his master was going.
His heart was shocked and a huge uproar broke out.
That is...Heaven!
