Chapter 8: The Method of Guidance

The "Mysterious Pearl Spirit-Worship Technique" was far more extensive than the "Taiyin Breathing and Wheel-Nurturing Sutra." It primarily expounded on how to use the mirror’s body to draw in the lunar essence of the Taiyin moon to condense a "Mysterious Pearl Talisman Seed."

By planting this talisman seed into another person’s dantian, one could assist them in their cultivation. Once that person achieved success in their cultivation or passed away, the seed would feed back into the user, allowing them to refine Taiyin Mysterious Light.

Within it was also a "Method of Reception," which taught the recipient how to summon the Mysterious Pearl Talisman Seed from the mirror and nurture it within their own dantian.

Lu Jiangxian was stunned. He felt that this "Mysterious Pearl Spirit-Worship Technique" seemed somewhat sinister, much like the demonic arts described in books. Upon closer inspection, he read the incantations from top to bottom, confirming that the Mysterious Pearl Talisman Seed was not only harmless to the recipient but also offered many benefits.

The "Mysterious Pearl Spirit-Worship Technique" was the innate technique awakened by the mirror. The number of Mysterious Pearl Talisman Seeds he could condense depended on the strength of his divine sense; currently, he could only support six.

Thinking of this, Lu Jiangxian’s divine sense stirred, sweeping through the Li family’s home from top to bottom, inside and out. He couldn't help but sigh

"What a great change!"

He had been asleep in the mirror for three years. Now, the Li family had dug a pond and built a large courtyard—it was quite prosperous! Li Changhu had even taken a wife and grown a beard, looking every bit the new head of the Li family.

He activated the technique and swept it over the members of the Li family, only to find—as expected, yet disappointingly—that not a single one of them possessed "spiritual apertures."

In other words, without a miracle, the members of the Li family were destined to have no connection to the immortal path. They would spend their lives struggling in the mortal world, and if they were lucky, they might live to seventy before passing away peacefully.

Looking at the Li family members beside him, Lu Jiangxian sighed deeply and activated the technique.

"Father, look!" The Li brothers had already gathered around. Li Chijing, having sharp eyes, called out.

Li Mutian quickly focused his gaze. On the surface of the mirror, white light flickered, revealing small, fly-head-sized characters. He patted Li Chijing on the shoulder and said repeatedly

"Bring cloth, brush, and ink!"

The brothers scattered to fetch them. Fortunately, the Li family had built a study and equipped it with the Four Treasures of the Study discarded by a local teacher; otherwise, they would have had to go to the village entrance to find them.

Before long, Li Changhu brought the cloth, and Li Tongya brought over a wooden table with ink and brushes. Fortunately, Li Chijing had been waiting by the mirror, memorizing the text as it appeared and vanished on the surface.

Among the brothers, Li Chijing was the youngest but had read the most books, so Li Mutian had him hold the brush to transcribe the small characters.

The "Method of Reception" was quite long. Li Chijing held the brush for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, his wrist aching so much that he had to let Li Tongya take over. Everyone else watched from the side, terrified of making a mistake.

They took turns like this for an hour before they finished.

Lu Jiangxian was also afraid they might practice the technique incorrectly, so he displayed it three times in total, including detailed annotations for the obscure jargon in the Daoist methods and several diagrams of the energy meridians. Only after seeing them carefully proofread it did he slowly dim the light.

"The 'Method of Reception'."

Li Xiangping looked at the small characters on the cloth and read slowly

"The Mysterious Pearl is the True Elixir. At the beginning of the first cycle, the elixir descends into the heart meridian; thus, it is said the elixir cave is in the middle palace, and the descent of the elixir is the first cycle... After the elixir descends, one must hold the breath for nine periods as one session, reaching nine-times-nine, eighty-one, for nine sessions. Hence, it is called the number of the double nine..."

"This is an immortal technique!"

Li Changhu was both shocked and overjoyed; he wanted to pick up the mirror and kiss it.

The group suppressed their excitement, passing the technique around to read it carefully, and began to memorize it along with the annotations in the scroll.

Li Xiangping’s gaze swept quickly across the cloth and landed on the final few sentences.

"After mastering the Method of Reception, wait for the days of Jiazi, Gengshen, the birth date, the Three Origins, the Three Meetings, the Eight Festivals, or the dark and full moons. On these days, the heavens announce life, and the bright yang fades into darkness. Place the Dharma Mirror under the moonlight, burn incense, bathe, and bow to request: 'Disciple [Name], respectfully requests the Mysterious Brightness Marvelous Method, to govern fate and calm the spirit, to serve the Dao and cultivate. I shall speak of my merits in time, never failing in faith, burning the talisman as requested, and dedicating my body to the Taiyin.' After finishing, swallow the qi three times."

"Speak of merits in time, never failing in faith, burning the talisman as requested, and dedicating my body to the Taiyin."

He repeated it in a low voice.

Li Mutian looked at the child who was bowing his head in silence and patted his head comfortingly, saying with a calm expression

"Govern fate and calm the spirit, serve the Dao and cultivate."

————

Early in the morning, wisps of cooking smoke drifted from the rooftops of the village, and a thin, veil-like mist permeated the air.

"Uncle Li, is there some happy event today?" Li Mutian was humming as he walked past the fields, hearing someone from the fields ask with a smile.

Li Mutian looked down and saw his nephew, Ye Chengfu. The boy looked honest and simple, but his words were clever.

"The green ears of grain in this field are a sight to behold!" Li Mutian laughed heartily and replied.

The four great surnames of Lijin Village were Ye, Tian, Li, and Liu. The Ye surname was the largest, with over thirty percent of the villagers sharing it; if they could pull together, they would be a force not to be underestimated.

"Ho, that must be the good fortune brought by Brother Changhu!" Ye Chengfu leaned on his hoe with both hands and replied respectfully.

"You brat, you sure know how to talk!"

The old man knew he was referring to Li Changhu’s wedding a few days ago. Ren-shi was lovely, sensible, and obedient, and she was completely devoted to Li Changhu.

Li Mutian was waiting for Ren-shi to conceive an heir before revealing some information. Ren-shi was someone who could keep a secret; living under the same roof, being overly secretive would only cause friction.

"It’s just that Tongya is unwilling to marry, and Xiangping is also of age." Li Mutian stroked his beard, counting the households in the village.

"That Tian Yun girl raised by the old brother is quite good, and her age is appropriate. I'll ask Xiangping when I get back. If things go well, I'll bring the wild geese to propose in a few days," he thought with a smile.

Li Tongya and his brothers were carefully studying the "Method of Reception" in the courtyard, while Li Changhu had made a quick patrol of the fields in the morning and hurried back to study with his brothers.

Only he, an old man, felt his age and that his mind was not what it used to be, so he left the immortal techniques to watch the fields.

For one, the mundane affairs of the world needed someone to manage them, or there would be no source for food and drink. For another, it was to guard against any prying eyes trying to peek over the walls.

Li Mutian was in a great mood today, sitting leisurely on the ridge of the field, chatting idly with the village elders.

————

At the Li residence.

Lu Jiangxian’s divine sense fell upon the four of them—Li Tongya and his brothers—sitting cross-legged in the courtyard with their eyes closed. Faint white glows suddenly appeared above their heads.

Li Chijing’s white halo was the longest, about eight inches, shimmering brightly. Li Tongya and Li Xiangping had six and five inches respectively, while Li Changhu’s was only three inches long.

The white halo manifested upon the first practice of the "Method of Reception" represented the individual's compatibility with the Mysterious Pearl Talisman Seed. One with a one-foot halo could, upon swallowing the talisman seed, cultivate as if they possessed spiritual apertures.

Li Chijing’s eight-inch halo meant he could achieve eighty percent of the cultivation speed of someone with spiritual apertures, while Li Changhu’s three-inch halo meant his speed was only thirty percent.

In other words, Li Changhu’s entire day of cultivation couldn't even compare to four hours of someone else's...