Longzang

Chapter 1006 Achieving Sainthood through Merit
The True Man of the Hoeing Fields holds a boundary stone in his hand and walks step by step through the air, with lotus flowers blooming wherever he goes.

His eyes gleamed as he kept counting his steps until he finally arrived at a place with beautiful mountains and clear waters.

Here stands a small hill, less than a hundred feet high, with a spring flowing naturally from it. The spring water gathers into a small pool, so clear that the bottom can be seen. The pool water cascades down a cliff on the other side, forming a waterfall that, in the glow of the setting sun, creates a rainbow.

This place is clearly a convergence of natural energy, a place of exceptional beauty. The city built around this small hill is one of the most beautiful sights in the world.

The old Taoist priest, who was hoisting the fields, looked on with shining eyes and stroked his beard, muttering to himself, "Ah, if I could build a thatched hut here and spend the rest of my life cultivating myself, that would be a joy in this world!"

But the old Taoist priest who was hoeing the fields was not the same as before. After thinking about it for a while, he had many ideas: "I need to get a copper pot, boil water, and put in a few slices of snowflake pork... Where can I get the pork? Do I have to cut it myself?"
You have to raise at least one brood, and that requires a shed. You also need to take them out to cultivate the land regularly to ensure the meat is flavorful. The land needs to be large enough, and there should be a medicinal herb garden so the meat will have a medicinal aroma…

"...The alchemy workshop needs to be set up...So much meat, the cold storage needs to be bigger...How can I eat all that by myself? Besides, with so many produce, we need to transport it out; do we need to build another road?"

The old Taoist priest thought more and more, and the more complicated it became, the more he realized that maintaining a quality of life while practicing solitary cultivation seemed impractical. Finally, a sudden inspiration struck him, and he spat a few times, saying, "I've done so much already, why should I force myself to suffer without any real hardship?"

So the old Taoist priest flipped his hand, and the boundary stone fell down, landing on the top of the hill, beside the spring. A faint light quickly spread outwards, subtly adjusting the surrounding world.

Chu He chuckled and said, "Such a beautiful view is really not very interesting to see alone. It's better to see it together with thousands of people, so that everyone can enjoy it."

This was the last boundary stone for the migration of the eight prefectures. After it fell, the eight prefectures became one, and all the boundary stones resonated at the same time. The Heavenly Dao moved, the earth veins burst forth, and countless new tiny earth veins were generated. All living beings in this world felt it and inexplicably felt joy.

A faint glimmer of light appeared between the brows of the True Immortal Chuhe, and a Dharma image manifested above his head. Eight immortal swords transformed into eight pillars supporting the sky. The world was chaotic and disorderly, with groves of trees here and clusters of flowers there. Various strange terrains and creatures roamed the land, and even broken walls and ruins could be seen. Several small, white-furred mice darted about. Among the trees and flowers, countless other creatures, all lively and agile, roamed freely.

The whole world was wild and vibrant, like a realm untouched by immortals or Buddhas. Only one place in the center was somewhat strange: a towering sycamore tree with a chicken coop on its branches.

At this moment, the clouds on the horizon turned purplish-red, and large patches of dark clouds gathered, indicating that a heavenly calamity was imminent!
The True Man of the Hoeing Fields was taken aback, then smiled helplessly, straightened his clothes, and faced the situation calmly.

He knew his own situation well. Although he was fortunate, his physical body and primordial spirit were ordinary, and his soul had nothing special about it. His mental world was chaotic and disordered, without any spiritual array or immortal artifact to suppress it. There was absolutely no way he could survive the Heavenly Tribulation of the Ascension Realm. The moment he broke through to the Ascension Realm would be the moment the old Taoist perished.

Chuhe had lived in Qingming for a long time, witnessing firsthand how Wei Yuan transformed a poisonous land into the prosperous kingdom it is today, and how Wei Yuan was blessed with good fortune.

Therefore, Chu He has already come up with some ideas. He plans to cultivate hundreds of millions of acres of land, saving countless lives. After the immortal rooster ascends to heaven, he will accumulate enough fortune, borrow an immortal sword from Zhang Sheng to suppress the rooster, have Ji Liuli calculate the time and heavenly secrets, take Xu Henshui's pills to prolong his life, and finally be saved by Sun Yu when he is on his deathbed. If they work together, they may be able to survive the Heavenly Tribulation of Yu Jing.

Chuhe's cultivation was still some distance from the perfect Dharma Aspect, and his cultivation speed wasn't fast either. He estimated it would take him at least thirty to fifty years to fill the last gap, so he hadn't even thought about preparing for the tribulation. But unexpectedly, the infusion of heaven and earth's spiritual energy just now directly pushed him past the critical point of the tribulation.

When the time came, even the farmer was not afraid. Looking back on his life, he felt it had been quite remarkable. He had made contributions to the world, to humanity, and to the chickens, and had no regrets. So he looked into the distance and faced death with equanimity.

Calamity clouds loomed overhead, flashes of purple and blue lightning within them, followed by a light drizzle that fell directly into the image of the farmer hoeing the fields.

The fine rain, like silk threads, quickly seeped into every corner. Then, tiny blue thunder rumbled in the rain, cleansing away impurities and allowing the primordial spirit and physical body to grow. Finally, all the myriad spiritual beings in the world merged into one, yet remained independent of each other, thus forming their own world.

The old Taoist priest looked at himself, then at his surroundings, feeling his divine sense suddenly expand dozens of times, and for a moment thought he was dreaming.

The tribulation is over already? This tribulation was truly considerate, not only nourishing and completing the mental world, but also bringing just the right amount of lightning to temper the physical body.

However, Chuhe himself was of average constitution. Although the Heavenly Tribulation was considerate, his physical body was still ordinary, and his mental world was also ordinary. He was extremely ordinary in the Imperial View, except that he was exceptionally harmonious with heaven and earth.

The old Taoist suddenly seemed to be deep in thought. Just like the mineral veins in the world, they are far less tough and solid than refined metal. But mineral veins are the original face of the world, while refined metal is a product of nature. It is hard to say which is better or worse.

The old Taoist felt he understood something, yet it was as if he didn't. Suddenly, he had a premonition, looked up at the sky, and saw two pairs of emotionless eyes beyond the heavens.

The old Taoist priest was taken aback, then laughed and said, "So after the Heavenly Tribulation, there is also the Tribulation of Slaughter. Now that I have seen you all today, I'm afraid I won't be able to survive this tribulation. I only have one request: this body came from the world and should return to the world. After I die, leave me with a little something to hold onto, so that my physical body can fly back to the Azure Netherworld and pass away peacefully, returning to my homeland. Then I will not hate you."

Two pairs of eyes stared indifferently at the hoeing, offering neither reply nor anything else. Suddenly, one pair of eyes shifted slightly, looking towards the west.

In the Azure Netherworld Herb Garden, a crimson aura tinged with bright yellow suddenly rose up. The immortal rooster, its killing intent surging, broke through the formation, taking large strides, its feathers bristling on its mountain-like body!
It was extremely angry, and its cry resounded through the heavens and earth, making the setting sun appear a little brighter, as if it had been pulled back slightly by the cry!

The celestial rooster spread its wings slightly, took long strides, and climbed one mountain peak at a time, heading eastward.

Wei Yuan was preparing for tomorrow's Dao Foundation Ceremony in his study when he suddenly rose into the air. A flash of azure light appeared at his fingertips, and countless azure points of light came from all directions, transforming into a long azure spear. This spear required the effort of at least ten million people to lift. Wei Yuan struggled to raise his hand, as if lifting a mountain, and prepared to hurl it into the distance.

Beyond the heavens, those eyes withdrew their gaze and returned to Chuhe. At this moment, a clear pillar of light emanated from Chuhe, completely different from the ordinary aura of fortune.

In the void, two obscure divine thoughts were conversing.

"It turns out he's also a key figure, no less so than that other person. If we eliminate him, this matter will be half accomplished."

"But this person repairs heaven and earth, nurtures life, and his merits flow like a gentle stream. Even if he is eliminated, the great edifice will not collapse immediately, but the price paid will not be much less than that of the other person. Should we really take action?"

Two pairs of eyes watched the pure light of merit emanating from Chu He's body, which gradually faded away, leaving only a divine thought echoing in the void:

"In this world, there are actually people who can reopen the path to sainthood through merit, it's truly..."

The second half of the sentence vanished into thin air, and no one knows what it was.

The change happened in an instant; to the farmer, it seemed as if the world had only darkened for a moment, and nothing had happened.

The world returned to normal, but the celestial rooster had only just escaped the azure sky and traveled less than a thousand miles. Suddenly, it looked up and saw heavy tribulation clouds in the sky, lightning like a prison, and a terrifying heavenly tribulation was forming right above its head!
The celestial rooster, its soul scattered, let out a loud cry, flapped its wings, turned tail, and fled back to the Azure Sky in a flash. The Heavenly Tribulation, having lost its target, circled back and forth for a long time before reluctantly dissipating.

The figure of a Liao man appeared in the air; he was none other than the Junior Grand Preceptor of Northern Liao. He stretched out his hand, and a pure white feather slowly drifted down from the sky, landing in his palm. This was a feather that the immortal rooster had flung off in its panic when it fled.

The young imperial advisor sighed softly and said, "Even the food can't fly anymore! Are you really that happy staying here?"

He stamped his foot, gritted his teeth, and turned to leave. But seeing the pure white feather in his palm, he hesitated for a long time before his gaze softened. He didn't throw it away, but muttered to himself, "You still know to leave me a keepsake. Do you still care about me? Never mind... If you ever need anything in the future, I... I'll help you one more time, the last time! Absolutely!"

The young national advisor turned and stepped into the void, his figure both forlorn and tinged with a glimmer of hope.

Wei Yuan also sensed the changes in the world. The source of the crisis had disappeared, rendering his counterattack shot ineffective due to a lack of causal connection. Wei Yuan finally breathed a sigh of relief. His ability to sense the danger was solely due to his recent joint exploration of the earth's veins and the re-laying of the boundary stones with Chu He. With such significant causal connection, Wei Yuan was able to sense Chu He's calamity. This shot was locked in by causal connection, only able to be fired after Chu He's demise. Now that he didn't have to fire, it was a good thing.

At this moment, the enormous celestial rooster rushed back in a flurry of activity, striding boldly and powerfully, each step seemingly off-beat, creating a particularly exhilarating effect.

Upon seeing it, Wei Yuan couldn't help but exclaim, "What a magnificent free-range pheasant!"

The celestial rooster had already plunged into its nest when it suddenly heard these words. In an instant, it appeared in front of Wei Yuan, tilting its head and staring at Wei Yuan with an eye the size of a carriage, almost touching Wei Yuan's face.

The rooster's eyes flashed with murderous intent as it asked, "Explain yourself clearly, what does 'walking rooster' mean?"

Wei Yuan was completely baffled, not understanding why the Immortal Chicken was so sensitive to those three words.

At this moment, the old Taoist priest appeared, ascending to heaven in one step, becoming a Yujing, his speed not much slower than that of the ground-walking immortal rooster. Upon seeing the old Taoist priest appear, the immortal rooster instantly lost all its murderous intent, returning to its nest to rest and wait for its meal.

Wei Yuan greeted Chu He, looked him up and down for a while, and finally smiled, saying, "Congratulations, Uncle Chu He!"

Chuhe Zhenjun laughed and said, "I suddenly found myself undergoing tribulations, one heavenly tribulation and one killing tribulation. I don't even understand how I got through them. Hmm, here you go."

Wei Yuan looked at the recording ball the old Taoist priest handed him and asked, "What is this?"

"This is my experience in surviving the Heavenly Tribulation of the Imperial Realm. I'm sharing it with you for reference. If you have time, you might want to take a good look at it."

Wei Yuan swept his divine sense across the scene and saw the drizzling rain of the heavenly tribulation. His face instantly turned green. This was a heavenly tribulation? Could this really be called a heavenly tribulation? Wei Yuan felt that he hadn't even been this respectful when facing his wealthy patron!
Seeing Wei Yuan's expression, True Monarch Chuhe instantly felt his Dao heart become clear. Not only did his cultivation advance slightly, but he also gained another bit of merit light! It has to be said that the Azure Sky Secret Technique is indeed very effective.

Overjoyed, the old Taoist priest pondered where this new merit came from.

(End of this chapter)