Controlling the Five Thunders and the Two Worlds

"Does the senior know about this place?" Gu Zhao asked.

"I know." Wang Lingguan nodded. With his cultivation, he could scan an area of ​​tens of thousands of miles with his divine sense and understand the terrain at a glance.

"Three thousand years ago, when the Taiqing Dao Ancestor preached in the Taiqing Heaven, the Jade Emperor, the Four Emperors, and all the named Heavenly Venerables and Emperors of the Daoist sects would listen in whenever they had time."

"When the Taiqing Dao Ancestor was preaching, his primordial spirit roamed the void. Suddenly, he told everyone that he had discovered a realm where wise and resolute individuals existed, and brave individuals possessed extraordinary talents. Unfortunately, the spiritual energy was not abundant, making it difficult for them to cultivate."

"The Heavenly Dao here is unclear, and the future is unpredictable. Even the Supreme Pure Dao Ancestor could not foresee how this world would develop in the future. Therefore, the true spirit descended to the mortal world and passed down the Five Thousand Words of Morality, which taught about cultivating the Dao, cultivating oneself, governing morality, and governing the world."

"Plant a seed, and wait for it to bloom in the future."

"Upon hearing what the Dao Ancestor said, the Jade Emperor, the Queen Mother, the Four Emperors, the Heavenly Venerable Emperor, the Celestial Master, and the scattered immortals present that day either descended to earth as true spirits or entered dreams to transmit the Dharma, and each passed down the myths of the Heavenly Realm and the lineage of the Daoist sect."

"Wow—" Gu Zhao finally knew where their heritage came from.

"However, the Heavenly Dao of this realm is difficult to understand. Apart from the mortals who are quite intelligent, the realm is not large, the spiritual energy is thin, and the location is remote and far away from the Daoist realms. Therefore, apart from passing down myths and traditions, this realm has not been drawn into the Daoist realm."

"But I never imagined that such a realm could reverse the Five Thunder Token back to its original state. It's truly remarkable!" Wang Lingguan exclaimed.

"Why this realm?" Gu Zhao asked.

"Because the Great Sun Demon is in that small world of the demon race, since he knocked down the Five Thunder Token there and brought it to this world, the Five Thunder Token must have been reverted to its original state in this world," Wang Lingguan explained.

As he spoke, Wang Lingguan nodded, “Not only did the Taiqing Dao Ancestor have good judgment, but the Western Buddhist sect and the Olympian gods also had good judgment, and they also left their legacy in this realm.”

At this point, Wang Lingguan chuckled and said, "The Olympian gods are indeed incompetent. Their lineage in this world has been broken, leaving only mythology."

Gu Zhao stared blankly, "There really are Olympian gods? Aren't Buddhism and Taoism together?"

"They're both enemies and friends," Wang Lingguan said casually. "The relationship is rather complicated; you'll understand when you ascend to heaven."

Gu Zhao, “…”

"The Grandmaster of Taiqing was right after all. Although the spiritual energy in this world is thin, the mortals are wise and intelligent, and it is developing very well." With his profound cultivation, Wang Lingguan could understand Blue Star in a very general way with just a sweep of his divine sense.

Gu Zhao couldn't help but ask, "Are all the realms under the Daoist sect similar to the agricultural societies of the demon race's small worlds?"

“Most of them are,” Wang Lingguan admitted. “Taoist cultivation involves cultivating the three flowers on the top of the head and nourishing the five qi in the chest, so that great power returns to oneself. Most realms are not well-developed in this way.”

"But some realms have their own characteristics and develop independently, including what this realm calls... industry."

Wang Lingguan said, "However, the stronger the external forces are developed, the better ordinary people live, the less they pay attention to themselves, and the less they respect and believe in gods. It can be said that there are both advantages and disadvantages."

Gu Zhao understood perfectly. If it weren't for their public displays of power, there wouldn't be many people in Tianxia who respected Buddhism and Taoism anymore.

"Our Dao Realm is relatively good; we let things take their natural course and don't hinder the development of our realms. Some more domineering realms, however, will send down divine miracles to interrupt development if there is a possibility that the small worlds within their realms might break free from their control."

Gu Zhao was dumbfounded. "You can do that?"

Wang Lingguan nodded and laughed heartily, "Isn't it written in 'Journey to the West'? What's so surprising?"

Gu Zhao: ???
"Is Journey to the West true?" Gu Zhao asked in surprise.

“There’s truth to it and falsehood to it,” Wang Lingguan shook his head. “I don’t know which deity first passed down some fragments, which were later circulated and transformed, perfected and developed by people, and finally became a book.”

Gu Zhao's eyes lit up. "Sun Wukong is real too?" Gu Zhao suddenly remembered that Wang Lingguan also appeared in the book "Journey to the West"!

Wang Lingguan stroked his chin, his smile enigmatic, "You'll understand when you ascend to heaven."

Gu Zhao, “…”

"Let's not talk about that anymore." Wang Lingguan waved his hand. "It's rare for me to come down to the mortal realm, especially to such a bustling and prosperous one. Show me around and let me have a look around."

“Alright!” Gu Zhao nodded. “Putting everything else aside, when it comes to food culture, Tianxia is second to none on Blue Star. I’ll take you to the old town for a stroll first!”

Wang Lingguan's lips curled up, and he couldn't help but lick his lips. "Very good, very good. That's the good thing about society developing. There should still be plenty of good wines and spirits, right?"

"Of course there are. Domestically, there are baijiu and huangjiu. Baijiu is further divided into sauce-aroma, strong-aroma, and light-aroma types, etc.," Gu Zhao introduced. "Internationally, there are also brandy, whiskey, vodka, and so on."

"Good, good, good!" Wang Lingguan was visibly happy. "This trip was worthwhile. Let's drink domestic wine first, and then foreign wine. We have to try all the fine wines in this world before it's considered a success."

Gu Zhao patted the gourd and immediately changed into modern clothes.

Wang Lingguan's method was even simpler: with one step, his white ancient costume transformed into casual wear.

Since the purpose was to experience life, Gu Zhao did not bring Wang Lingguan with him to fly invisibly. Instead, he went down to the underground parking garage, got into his SUV, and merged into the rolling traffic on the city streets.

……

Gu Zhao originally wanted to take Wang Lingguan out for hot pot, since hot pot is definitely one of the representative dishes of Tianxia.

However, hot pot is not suitable for drinking, so the two found an old barbecue shop. Gu Zhao went to a nearby shop and brought back two bottles of Moutai, two bottles of Wuliangye, two bottles of Jiannanchun, two bottles of Xinghuacun, and two bottles of Hongxifeng.

The customers in the shop looked at the two of them as if they were gods.

Gu Zhao took two small cups, filled them with Wang Lingguan's and his own, and then raised their glasses in a toast to the grilled chicken wings, grilled beef, grilled seafood, and other dishes that the owner had brought over.

"Senior please!"

"Don't call me senior. With your talent and cultivation, ascension is just a piece of cake. Once you're up there, we'll be colleagues. We're destined to meet. Just call me Brother Wang."

Gu Zhao couldn't help but swallow, but Wang Lingguan was so forthright that he couldn't be modest.

"Brother Wang!"

"Brothers!"

Wang Lingguan patted Gu Zhao on the shoulder, then downed the Maotai in his glass in one gulp, smacked his lips, and said, "The taste is a bit strange, but not bad."

Gu Zhao opened another bottle of Wuliangye and filled Wang Lingguan's glass, saying, "Brother, try this one!"

Wang Lingguan sniffed, raised his cup again, drank it all in one gulp, then his eyes lit up as he praised, "This is delicious! It's rich, fragrant, and smooth!"

The guests at the surrounding tables gasped in surprise, their eyes filled with horror as they looked at Wang Lingguan, as if he were a deity.

"Holy crap! This is divine!" (End of Chapter)