Yinshan Record

Chapter 89 Ancient Qing Emperor
“My disciple, why don’t you shave your head and go to the west to train for a few years? Once you reach the third rank, you can come back and acknowledge your ancestors. What do you say?”

Su Che had always considered himself someone who couldn't take a joke, but after hearing Yu Lizi's words, he still broke out in a cold sweat.

The lesson of the Lion and the Lotus, the Buddha, is right before our eyes; who would repeat the same mistake?

"In the Western Paradise, they often like to find a few weak-willed Taoists, promise them all sorts of benefits, and poach them to their side, as if this proves that Buddhism is superior."

Yu Lizi calmly said, "Little do they know that such behavior proves nothing except that those people have weak wills. But then again, if I think about it carefully, even I would be very happy if a Buddha from the Western Paradise were to convert to Taoism, let alone all the Taoist sects in the world."

"Years later, you will have become a Buddha in the Western Paradise, and I will have become the leader of the Yellow Heaven Path. When you return to my sect and rejoin the Daoist school, I don't know how many years that will make those people in the West jump with anger."

Su Che was speechless for a moment. He hadn't expected Yu Lizi to be such a deadpan comedian, but he simply couldn't handle this kind of joke.

Yu Lizi said solemnly, "However, your affinity with Buddhism is indeed quite profound..."

Su Che quickly picked up the Qingdi Wine Cup and placed it in Yu Lizi's hand to change the subject.

"The reason why I have been able to cultivate so quickly is largely thanks to this treasure. Every night, this item can gather the moonlight and condense the Emperor's Essence."

If this item truly originated from the ancient Azure Emperor, it might prove that I have a deep "Daoist affinity," saving Yu Lizi from having to painstakingly send me to lie low in the west.

Yu Lizi took the bronze wine vessel with a solemn expression. He looked it over and then asked a question.

"Where did you get this?"

"After my master passed on the 'Secret Manual of the Yin Heaven of Zhou' to me, I once explored the area around Kulin Temple in Shanyin County and accidentally found this wine cup. I discovered that it could condense the essence of the moon and the yin, so I kept it to assist in my cultivation."

“This item is made of Falling Star Sand. Falling Star Sand is in harmony with the Three Powers and responds to the celestial stars. Ancient immortals loved to use Falling Star Sand to make some casual playthings. The wine cup in your hand should undoubtedly be an antique.” Yu Lizi put down the wine cup and asked, “This item should indeed be from the hands of the ancient Azure Emperor Ling Weiyang.”

Yu Lizi put the bronze jue aside: "The Dao extends to nature, and the law creates creation. With just this one jue, its original spirit can still be appreciated even after ten thousand ages."

"This disciple is foolish and does not know who this ancient Azure Emperor is, or what he did that made Master praise him so highly."

Yu Lizi smiled.

"You are not dull-witted at all; you are clearly cunning and blessed with good fortune. However, you have come to the right person to ask me. If it weren't for our sect, a great sect that has existed since ancient times, probably very few people in the world would know about his past."

"This Azure Emperor Ling Weiyang can be considered a senior of our sect."

Yu Lizi paused for a moment and said rather awkwardly.

"Of course, if we're talking about it, he can be considered a senior of the Shenxiao Sect."

Are Huangtiandao and Shenxiaodao from the same source?
Su Che was somewhat bewildered. He had heard before that the birth of the Lion-Green Lotus Buddha was a joint effort between the Yellow Heaven Path and the Divine Firmament Path. The leader of the Yellow Heaven Path was his master, Yu Lizi, while the Divine Firmament Path had a Ling Su Zhenren in charge.

Since the two companies were originally one, the connection between them is now clear.

"The Daoist scriptures say, 'Man follows the Earth, the Earth follows Heaven, Heaven follows the Dao, and the Dao follows Nature.'" Yu Lizi said, "You are an official in the mortal world, so tell me, why does the mortal world need a court?"

The topic is jumping around a bit too fast.

Su Che thought for a moment and then said, “There are many disasters in the world. Floods are a scourge, so we need to provide disaster relief and build water conservancy projects. All of these require the leadership of the imperial court. Moreover, there are demons and evil spirits causing trouble, which also require the court to deal with. Furthermore, there are wars on all sides and the struggle for power among the various states. All of these require the court to take charge…”

Yu Lizi replied, "Humans cannot be separated from the constraints of morality and law. Even the extraterrestrial demons, a race that pursues destruction, still have their own unified forces under the Lord of the End of Dharma, who wage war against each other."

"But these are things that cultivators should reject and even abhor. Therefore, all sects have always been reluctant to adopt the idea of ​​imitating the human court to form a heavenly court."

Su Che understood.

The fundamental purpose of spiritual practice is to transcend.

Those who cultivate themselves must not only transcend birth, aging, sickness, and death, but also break free from all constraints between heaven and earth, ultimately achieving liberation and freedom.

If one were to climb up the ranks and discover that there is actually a Heavenly Court above them, it would absolutely not be accepted or recognized by everyone.

“But in ancient times, there was a group of cultivators who, in addition to transcending themselves, also had their own views on this world. They believed that they should use their magical powers to change the laws governing this world and make it more suitable for cultivation.”

"For example, by altering the laws of life and death, we can increase the lifespan of all beings in this world, giving more people the opportunity to ascend to the Great Dao. We can also generate more rare and precious materials by adjusting the laws of Yin and Yang."

Yu Lizi's implication was that the former Huangtiandao and Shenxiaodao were both members of this faction.

"Once a cultivator reaches the fourth rank, he/she needs to constantly ascend to the outer realms of the Nine Heavens to replenish his/her innate foundation with the supreme profound truths that only exist in the outer realms. At that time, the extraterrestrial demon race is prosperous. There are countless extraterrestrial demons outside this world, each following the Lord of the End of Dharma, occupying the heavens and intercepting all cultivators who ascend to the outer realms."

"This also requires the most outstanding figures in this world to step forward and contend with those who are destined to die out."

"The threat of the extraterrestrial demons, as well as the need to transform the world internally, have led the powerful sects to consider whether to build a system that covers the entire universe and benefits all directions. At least, they should build such a system in the East Sea and the Central Plains first. Thus, the Xuandu Palace took the lead and the Five Emperors of the Five Directions were proposed."

"Buddhism, Taoism, and even the demonic sects and the demon race all have their own set of ideas."

"At that time, the various sects of Taoism discussed and decided to divide the country into five directions based on the most basic and universal principles of Taoism, namely Yin and Yang and the Five Elements. Each direction was governed by a first-class Earth Immortal. The ancient Azure Emperor Lingwei Yang was the immortal who decided to govern the East at that time."

This wine cup is actually a relic left behind by an ancient immortal!
Su Che immediately felt that Zhongshan Society, or rather, that Lord Zhongyuan, was indeed very generous.

Regardless of its specific function, such a thing is at least a very valuable cultural relic, and it was simply handed to me with a note attached.

That's really generous.

"and after?"

"Later, things took a turn for the worse, and all five emperors perished, so everyone went their separate ways." Yu Lizi smiled and said, "It involves ancient times, and there are many things that even I don't know. I only know that someone deliberately concealed this part of the past."

"People of this era all believe that the Five Emperors of the Five Directions are a misconception, and some even say that these are just code names for the Lords of the End of Dharma among the extraterrestrial demons, which is truly laughable."

Yu Lizi placed the wine cup in Su Che's hand.

"You have so many good things in your possession, you can't just hide them away. I'll give you a treasure, you can use it to store these things in your daily life."

(End of this chapter)