Primordial Era: Reborn as a Qi Immortal, Steadily Cultivating

Chapter 63 Discussion on the Dao at the Three Immortal Islands

Seeing that Ma Yuan readily agreed, Yunxiao's gentle face also revealed a sincere smile.

"Fellow Taoist, please come this way."

After saying this, she led her two younger sisters, Qiongxiao and Bixiao, riding on auspicious clouds to guide the way.

Ma Yuan also gestured for Ao Xuan to follow, trailing behind the three auspicious clouds at a leisurely pace.

The sea of ​​clouds surged, and celestial light guided the way.

As they traveled along, the surrounding sea became increasingly clear, with a misty, ethereal atmosphere rising from its surface.

Clearly, they had entered a blessed land shrouded by a primordial array.

Before long, three majestic fairy islands, connected by rainbow bridges and shrouded in mist, appeared before Ma Yuan's eyes.

These three fairy islands are arranged in a triangular pattern, with strange peaks, craggy rocks, ancient trees reaching the sky, and waterfalls cascading down.

The rich, innate spiritual energy transformed into visible, colorful clouds that rose and swirled between the islands.

Countless celestial birds and mythical beasts frolic and chase each other in the mountains and forests, creating a peaceful and serene atmosphere reminiscent of a celestial realm.

"What a blessed land!" Ma Yuan couldn't help but exclaim in admiration upon seeing it.

"I'm sorry to make you laugh, fellow Daoist. This island is the place where my two sisters and I were fortunate enough to find refuge when we first took human form. We usually call it the Three Immortal Islands."

"Although this island is named Three Immortals Island, it is actually formed by interconnected earth veins. My two sisters and I each live on a separate peak, and we also have a place to cultivate together, which is quite peaceful and carefree," Yunxiao said modestly.

He then led Ma Yuan to the center of the three islands, to the most magnificent palace.

Above the plaque in front of the hall, the three ancient Taoist characters "Qionghua Palace" were carved in a flowing, elegant style.

Inside the palace, the immortal energy transformed into a tangible spiritual liquid, which gathered on the ground to form a clear, bottomless spiritual pool.

Several five-colored carp were swimming leisurely in the pond, clearly also spirits just beginning to develop intelligence.

The four people sat down by the Lingchi Pond, as host and guest respectively.

Celestial children offered them celestial tea brewed from the island's spiritual roots and plants, as well as some rare innate celestial fruits.

Ao Xuan, being sensible, transformed into human form and found a futon in the distance to sit down.

Keep your eyes focused on your nose, and your nose on your heart. Listen attentively without daring to overstep your bounds.

After enjoying tea and fruit and exchanging pleasantries, the conversation naturally turned to the cultivation of the Great Dao.

The discussion of Tao progresses from the basics to the deeper levels, starting with the initial practice of breathing exercises, then moving on to the condensation of the Golden Immortal Dao Fruit, and finally to the various mysteries of the Five Elements of Taiyi.

Ma Yuan possessed extraordinary insight and personally witnessed the creation and evolution of the 'Purple Jade Sky'.

His understanding of the laws of heaven and earth far surpasses that of ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortals.

Their words often draw on a wide range of sources, directly pointing to the origin of the great Dao.

Yunxiao, who already had a deep understanding of this path, listened with her beautiful eyes shining brightly. She felt that many of the obstacles in her past cultivation suddenly became clear at this moment.

The two girls, Qiongxiao and Bixiao, listened with rapt attention.

He wished he could imprint every word Ma Yuan said deep into his soul.

As the Three Immortals of Sanxiao were born from innate clouds and mist, they also had unique insights into the ever-changing winds and clouds and the way of the primordial energy of heaven and earth, from which Ma Yuan also benefited greatly.

Before we knew it, the sun rose and the moon set, and countless years had passed.

When Ma Yuan spoke of the profound and mysterious Dao of cause and effect.

Yunxiao, who had been listening attentively, finally couldn't contain his confusion and asked the first question.

She bowed to Ma Yuanying and asked:
“Fellow Daoist Ma Yuan, my sisters and I have only known how to follow the will of Heaven in our cultivation, comprehending the laws under the Heavenly Dao, and seeking our own freedom.”

"May I ask, fellow Daoist, what supreme Dao is this that can sever predetermined karma and reshape the cause and effect of the future in the unseen realm?"

Her voice was clear and melodious, yet it expressed the common sentiment of the vast majority of cultivators in the primordial world.

Under the laws of Heaven, cause and effect cycle, and retribution is inevitable.

This is already a consensus among all living beings.

To them, Ma Yuan's talk of "severing cause and effect" sounded almost like going against the heavens.

Upon hearing this, Ma Yuan simply smiled calmly.

He put down the jade cup in his hand, gazed at the koi fish playing in the pond, and slowly spoke.

"The Way of Heaven is like a net, and all living beings are like fish." "Those who follow the Way of Heaven find a relatively spacious gap in this net, seeking temporary freedom and lifelong peace."

"But my way is not to think about how to forcibly tear this big net apart, nor to try to escape from this net."

He extended a finger, pointing to the calm surface of the pool, and an invisible ripple spread from his fingertip.

"What I ask for is to see clearly how each thread of this net is woven."

His voice was calm as he began to explain his own philosophy:
"Knowing the cause is the only way to avoid the effect. Planting good causes is the only way to reap good results."

The so-called 'severing' is not a true severing, but rather clarifying the origins and development of these causal threads, allowing them to return to their source and cease their entanglement.

After saying this, Yunxiao fell into deep thought, her beautiful brows sometimes furrowing and sometimes relaxing, clearly deeply moved.

Qiongxiao and Bixiao, on the other hand, were completely confused, only vaguely understanding what they were hearing.

Seeing this, Ma Yuan didn't point it out.

The principles of the Great Way can only be understood intuitively, not explained in words.

How much one can comprehend depends entirely on one's own opportunities and comprehension.

After a long while, Yunxiao finally let out a long breath and bowed solemnly to Ma Yuan.

"Fellow Daoist's words are more valuable than my sisters' ten thousand years of arduous cultivation. Yunxiao has learned a great deal."

Ma Yuan accepted the greeting without hesitation.

He then turned his gaze to the invisible array that enveloped the entire Three Immortal Islands, a hint of admiration and curiosity in his eyes, and took the initiative to ask:

"The three fairy maidens' dojo has a natural cycle of immortal energy, and the formation is in harmony with heaven and earth, without any trace of artificial intervention."

"I have also set up a protective array at my own Daoist temple, but I always feel it is too rigid and lacks dynamism. May I ask the three fairies, what is the essence of this array technique—is it defense or change?"

He knew that these three people in front of him were future masters of formations.

The Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation, which shook the primordial world and struck fear into the hearts of even the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect, was created by them.

Their understanding of the Dao of Formations must be unique at this moment.

Now that he has this excellent opportunity to perfect his array formation skills, he naturally won't miss it.

Hearing Ma Yuan ask about the formation.

Yunxiao, who had been deep in thought, finally snapped out of it.

When talking about her area of ​​expertise, a confident and composed glow appeared on her face.

She looked at Ma Yuan, but instead of answering his question directly, she asked him in return:
"Fellow Daoist, what do you think is the purpose of the formation?"

After a moment's thought, Ma Yuan replied, "For defense, and also for trapping and killing the enemy."

Yunxiao gently shook his head.

"This is merely the function of the formation, not the essence of formations."

She slowly rose to her feet, her delicate hand gently waving.

Pointing towards the vast and boundless Three Immortal Islands, and the distant heavens and earth.

"Fellow Daoist, please look. Isn't this world itself an unparalleled array encompassing all things and all living beings?"

"Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning are the changes of the heavens."

"Mountains, rivers, streams, and peaks are the guardians of the land."

She turned around, looked at Ma Yuan, and said, word by word:

"The way of formations lies neither in defense nor in change."

"But it lies in... 'momentum'!"

"Power?!" Upon hearing this, Ma Yuan felt as if a thunderbolt had exploded in his mind!
“Excellent!” Yunxiao began, explaining his understanding of the Dao of Formations.
"Using the array base as the skeleton and the laws as the network, drawing upon the power of heaven and earth and gathering the spirit of mountains and rivers, one can create a unique force belonging to the array setter, a force that allows them to control everything!"

"The ultimate goal of formations is to use the 'power' of my own small world to resist, or even overwhelm, the power of another great world!"

"With sufficient strength, the formation is invincible!"

"If the enemy is weak, the formation will collapse on its own!"

"As for defense and change, they are merely different manifestations of the operation of this 'momentum'."

(End of this chapter)