Lao Tzu is Ji Gong

Zhunti asked, "Senior brother, what are your thoughts on the battle just now?"

Jieyin said, "Tianlong's cultivation has increased rapidly recently. Apart from you and me, I'm afraid there is no one in the sect who can rival him."

Nodding, Zhunti asked again, "Did you notice the spear in Tianlong's hand, Senior Brother?"

Jieyin said, "If I'm not mistaken, it should be the God-Slaying Spear of the Witch Clan. Wasn't this spear always in the hands of the Goddess Houtu? How come it's with her now?"

After a long pause, Jieyin said again, "It seems that he has sided with the Witch Clan."

Zhunti shook his head and said, "Senior brother, you're mistaken. If he had sided with the Wu tribe, he wouldn't have asked Tathagata to confer the title of Arhat upon his disciple. Besides, the Wu tribe is already a pariah, hated by everyone. He wouldn't be so foolish. I think as long as we don't push him to the brink, he will absolutely not side with the Wu tribe."

Jieyin said, "I just saw him injure Dipankara and Tathagata, and I wanted to punish him. But what you said has made me give up that idea."

Zhunti said, "He has such strength, but he doesn't have an equal status, so naturally he harbors resentment. With his strength, we should try to win him over now, instead of punishing him."

“That’s right.” The guide nodded.

The two discussed for a while, and then a streak of light flew towards the Western Spirit Mountain.

Li Xiuyuan accepted the twelve Sea-Stabilizing Pearls from Randeng, then turned around and descended to the mortal realm. He found a quiet and peaceful place with abundant spiritual energy and began to refine the mark of Randeng from the twelve Sea-Stabilizing Pearls.

Each of the twelve Sea-Stabilizing Pearls was the size of an egg. Li Xiuyuan took one and held it in his hand, releasing his primordial spirit to begin rubbing away the mark of the Burning Lamp on it little by little.

Burning Lamp's strength was considerable; it was impossible for Li Xiuyuan to erase the mark on it in a short time. Furthermore, after erasing Burning Lamp's mark, Li Xiuyuan would still have to leave his own mark on it.

The process can be described as quite lengthy.

Time flows by, like water, never stopping for a moment.

In the blink of an eye, eighty years had passed. During these eighty years, Li Xiuyuan had not left the area once.

However, the fact that he didn't go out doesn't mean that Li Xiuyuan was completely unaware of what was happening outside.

During the years he was in seclusion, many major events occurred in the Three Realms, three of which were directly related to him.

The first incident occurred after the Buddha returned to Mount Ling. Kong Xuan, the Peacock King of Mount Ling, upon learning that Li Xiuyuan had actually beaten the Buddha, was filled with arrogance. Taking advantage of the Buddha's inattention, he swallowed the Buddha whole, intending to kill him and become the Buddha himself.

However, Li Xiuyuan was an existence who had severed both the good and evil corpses, while he had only severed the good corpse. Although he had fought Li Xiuyuan once before, the two fought to a draw.

But that was before Li Xiuyuan reached the Quasi-Saint level. If he were to fight Li Xiuyuan now, Li Xiuyuan could probably kill him with a single finger.

He imitated Li Xiuyuan's attack on the Buddha, and tragedy struck instantly. The Buddha pierced his back and flew out. At that moment, the Buddha was about to attack him and kill him, but he was persuaded by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, who said, "You flew out of his belly, killing him is like killing your own mother."

Left with no other choice, Buddha had to suppress him.

Chapter 496 Cultivating the Mind in the Mortal World

The second matter is that the Buddha promised to bestow upon him the title of Heavenly Dragon Buddha. Li Xiuyuan's current status is no longer that of a Bodhisattva, but that of a Buddha.

The third matter was naturally Bodhidharma becoming the head of the eighteen Arhats, and the Buddha also accomplished this.

Over the past eighty years, Li Xiuyuan has removed the imprints from the twelve Sea-Stabilizing Pearls of the Burning Lamp, leaving his own imprint inside.

With a thought, Li Xiuyuan saw twenty-four egg-sized, crystal-clear beads, spinning rapidly, fly out.

The twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls were dazzling and eye-catching, displaying a variety of colorful hues, like the five colors reflected by sunlight on the water's surface.

These twenty-four Sea-Stabilizing Pearls are powerful enough to be used for both attack and defense.

In particular, the twenty Sea-Stabilizing Pearls can manifest as the Twenty-Four Heavenly Kings, which hang above Li Xiuyuan's head, amplifying his boundless magical power.

Emerging from the dark cave, a completely different scene unfolded. The sun shone brightly, birds sang, and flowers bloomed; vast mountain peaks were covered and shrouded in lush forests. A delicate floral fragrance lingered around Li Xiuyuan's nose, and the babbling of mountain streams was as melodious as music.

Li Xiuyuan took a deep breath. The air was fresh and fragrant. He thought to himself, "I have already severed my good and evil corpses. If I want to advance my cultivation to the next level, I must also sever my own self-corpse. However, this self-corpse is very difficult to sever. It takes a day or two to achieve enlightenment and see one's true nature."

The Three Realms are currently at peace, with nothing major happening. There are still over four hundred years until Wukong's journey to the West to retrieve the scriptures. While we have this time, why don't I delve into the mortal world and experience the mundane, bustling lives of ordinary people again? As the saying goes, the Way of Heaven is the Way of Man; perhaps in the mortal world I can gain some insights and advance my cultivation to the next level!

Having made up his mind, Li Xiuyuan walked down the mountain step by step. Because Li Xiuyuan wanted to experience what it was like to be a mortal, he did not use his magic power.

Although he didn't use any magic, Li Xiuyuan was still extraordinary. He strode swiftly along the rugged and steep mountain path without encountering any obstacles.

Along the way, Li Xiuyuan traversed mountains and crossed rivers, neither eating nor drinking, completely relaxing his mind. When he wanted to rest, he didn't care where he was; he would lie down and rest. He didn't know where he should go; he simply followed his heart and went wherever he wanted.

In the mountains and forests, there are many tigers, leopards, jackals and wolves. Sometimes he befriends them, and sometimes he rescues wild deer and wild cattle that are being hunted by them.

He was extremely carefree and unrestrained, with no inner constraints whatsoever.

Under these circumstances, Li Xiuyuan felt a slight tremor within him. Something he had never felt before suddenly stirred within him.

He seemed to instantly become a sentimental person; his thoughts would drift away with the white clouds, and when he heard the rustling of flowers carried by the breeze through the forest, he would unconsciously stop in his tracks.

Sometimes, he would look down at the ants at his feet, or use magic to transform into a golden, palm-sized fish, drifting aimlessly along the rushing river.

He seemed to have transformed into all things in nature, and understood the transformation between heaven and man.

His aura was rapidly receding; both his malevolent, demonic, and benevolent auras seemed to have vanished from him. Yet, it also seemed as if they hadn't disappeared entirely.

He became a completely ordinary person, experiencing joy and sorrow, crying and laughing, and the fluctuations of magical power within his body could no longer be felt at all.

Previously, although he could conceal his aura, anyone with high cultivation could still detect the magical power within him.

Li Xiuyuan felt that he had reached an unprecedented state. When he closed his eyes, he could vaguely feel that endless light was enveloping him.

The light was like the bright midday sun, dazzling and with a golden hue.

However, his cultivation level did not increase; it remained the same. He still had no understanding of how to sever his own corpse.

Although his cultivation level did not increase, his strength increased significantly. All his movements appeared incredibly natural and unconventional.

He walked and walked, losing track of how long he had walked. Time had become static in his mind. Everything seemed unchanged, as if nothing had happened.

On this day, Li Xiuyuan, holding a reddish-brown peach wood cane that he had picked up by the roadside, slowly and leisurely traversed the forest.

He was wearing a light blue robe, which had been worn out from walking in the forest for a long time. Stripes and ripped lines were visible through the tattered clothes, revealing his skin, which was as smooth as mutton fat jade.

Moreover, despite walking in the forest for a long time, Li Xiuyuan did not develop any unpleasant odor; instead, he was surrounded by a fragrance as sweet as musk and as sweet as orchids.

Countless colorful butterflies fluttered and danced around him, drawn by his aura.

But in the next instant, Li Xiuyuan suddenly turned around and glanced at the colorful butterflies. The fragrance emanating from him vanished completely.

Leaning on his peach wood cane, Li Xiuyuan began his journey again.

Just then, a tremendous bang suddenly rang out. The sound was incredibly loud, like a muffled thunderclap in the summer. Countless birds in the forest fluttered their wings and flew out in a panic.

At the sound, Li Xiuyuan looked up. A huge purple rock was flying towards him from the horizon.

Under his observation, there seemed to be two figures on the rock. Both figures were very strange. One was a scorpion demon, with a large, burly body and no five fingers. It had a pair of hands that looked like pincers.

The other figure on the rock was a snake spirit with a human upper body and a snake tail.

Chapter 497 Calabash Immortal Vine

The two scorpion demons and the snake demon were swept up by the purple stone and crashed into the forest.

With a loud thud, the purple stone landed on the ground, the impact so powerful that the entire ground trembled. Instantly, the sounds of tigers roaring, monkeys howling, and various wild beasts crying out in terror filled the air.

Leaning on his cane, Li Xiuyuan walked towards the spot where the purple stone had fallen.

A huge crater had been smashed into the ground, and the black silt from the ground had been churned up. The stench of decay carried by the soil desperately tried to enter Li Xiuyuan's nostrils.

The purple stone was no longer in the deep pit; in its place was a small child.

The child was over four feet tall, with a small purple gourd on his head. He was dressed in purple clothes, his chest and breasts were exposed, and his eyes were closed, as if he was unconscious. Beside the child was another purple gourd about the size of a palm.

The purple gourd seemed to possess sentience, circling around the child. Upon seeing Li Xiuyuan approach, it glared at him menacingly, filled with hostility.

"This is……?"

Looking at the child's figure and the small purple gourd, Li Xiuyuan's eyes showed a rare hint of doubt.

Li Xiuyuan sensed a trace of innate energy from the child and the purple gourd. The presence of this energy indicated that both the child and the purple gourd were innate objects.

However, the innate energy was not abundant; the child and the gourd contained more acquired energy.

Although the acquired aura was very strong, the trace of innate aura was like a candle in the dark, extremely dazzling.

Compared to ordinary people whose bodies are full of acquired energy, this child possesses a trace of innate energy, which is extremely precious.

If this child can return to his original state and strengthen his innate energy, he will be an extraordinary being.

However, it is impossible to reverse one's innate nature. After all, this mortal world is full of acquired energy, and it is already good enough if one can keep that trace of innate energy from being eroded.

Curious, Li Xiuyuan activated the Chaos Divine Eye between his eyebrows to look.

Suddenly, all of the child's past came into Li Xiuyuan's view.

A majestic, continuous mountain range, resembling a dragon lying prostrate on the ground, appeared, spanning tens of millions of feet in size.

"This is the Kunlun Mountains! And it's the Kunlun Mountains from the primordial era!"

Feeling the wild aura emanating from the mountains, Li Xiuyuan thought to himself.

Although there is a Kunlun Mountain in this Immortal Realm now, it is vastly different from the Kunlun Mountain in this picture. The Kunlun Mountain now is like an earthworm compared to a dragon in the primordial world—there is a huge difference between them.

After the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity, the Lich-Demon Calamity, and the Investiture of the Gods, the entire Primordial Continent was shattered and transformed into the Earthly Immortal Realm, which is now many times smaller.

In the primordial era, on Mount Kunlun, a gourd vine with emerald leaves and verdant tendrils appeared. Initially extremely short, the vine gradually grew, blossomed, and bore fruit, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Later, several figures appeared. One of them, over seven feet tall, dressed in white robes and sporting a long white beard, was an old man.

The old man was delighted when he saw the gourds on the vine and quickly picked them.

"This is Laozi!"

Li Xiuyuan's heart stirred upon seeing this. He had previously interacted with Laozi, so he immediately recognized the figure.

As for who the remaining figures were, Li Xiuyuan didn't recognize them. However, since they were able to stay with Laozi, they must be renowned figures in the Three Realms.

After those figures plucked the gourds from the gourd vine, the entire vine quickly withered, its branches and leaves turning yellow and dry, as if it had died.