I Killed Gods and Demons in Song Dynasty

Chapter 34 Four Side Doors
"Four side doors?"

Li Qingyun had learned from Song Ke about the three main orthodox ways of cultivation, namely, practicing martial arts, cultivating Taoism, and practicing Buddhism, but it was the first time he heard of the four side doors.

"Yes." Lu Zhen said, "The four side sects refer to spiritual cultivation, witchcraft, Confucianism, and incense."

Just by hearing the name, Li Qingyun roughly understood the meaning and blurted out subconsciously:

"Aren't they all cultivation? What's the difference between them and the three major orthodox ones?"

Lu Zhen patiently explained:

“First, the three orthodox traditions all worship supreme gods who are truly beyond the ninth realm, namely the God of War, the Taoist Master, also known as the Infinite Heavenly Master, and the Buddha.

"The other four sects also have gods to bless them, but their status is slightly lower, all of which are at the ninth level, or between the ninth level and the highest god. They are called sub-gods or subordinate gods. They are the 'Mother of Destiny' of spiritual cultivation, the 'Ancestor Witch' of shamans, the 'Confucian Saint' of Confucianism, and the 'God of Creation' of the incense and fire path, which is commonly known as the great god 'Pan Gu'.

“Secondly, the three orthodox traditions all have complete cultivation paths, and the various techniques and branches are also very clear. They are also blessed by the Supreme God. As long as they are cultivated properly, the possibility of losing control and collapsing is very low.

"The cultivation of the four side sects comes more from communication with the gods, and they receive gifts from the gods through various sacrificial ceremonies. The various techniques are not so complete, so it is relatively dangerous when advancing, but it is also within a controllable range."

Li Qingyun asked with some doubt:

"Aren't the three main schools much better than the four side schools? If that's the case, why would anyone still practice the four side schools?"

As soon as he said this, he remembered that the person in front of him was a spiritual practitioner from one of the four side sects. He felt a little embarrassed and scratched his head awkwardly.

Lu Zhen smiled slightly:
"When it comes to the path of cultivation, you don't have to choose whichever one is better. It still depends on your own talents and preferences. For example, I was born with a stronger connection with the spiritual world, so I got twice the result with half the effort by choosing the path of spiritual cultivation. My second brother, Han Tianjin, also has an innate resonance with the power of nature, and is a genius in practicing the way of incense and fire.

"But if you ask us to practice martial arts like our third brother Xu Liang or Yun Rui, I'm afraid we'll be forced to do something too fussy, and we won't achieve much even if we work ourselves to death.

“Moreover, the magic spells of the four side sects each have their own characteristics. In actual combat, they are not inferior to the three main sects’ cultivators of the same realm. As for the risk of failure in advancement, at least before the fifth realm, they are not much worse than the three main sects. And this is basically the limit for ordinary people.

"Life is short. Unless one is very lucky or a true genius, who can truly become a cultivator of a high level?"

Li Qingyun suddenly became enlightened after hearing this, but thinking that he had the magical power of "initiation", he should not have the problem of insufficient talent no matter which path he took, so naturally he should choose the three orthodox ones.

So he continued to ask:
"Third brother, I am not very interested in the four side sects. Which of the three orthodox sects do you think I should choose?"

Lu Zhen tilted his head and thought for a while before saying:

"Well, I heard from Yunrui that you follow the authentic Xuanmen body-building path, and have reached the initial stage of the first realm. The initial stages of cultivation for martial arts, Taoism, and Buddhism are not much different, and they all focus on martial arts training to strengthen the body, so you can choose any one.

"But with your personality, I'm afraid you can't stand the Buddhist precepts, nor can you bear the hardships of training a warrior. You should practice Taoism. Taoism is quiet and inaction, and you can do whatever you want. It's very suitable for you."

No, have you peeked at my file? That was my predecessor... Li Qingyun felt a little depressed, but it was not easy to say it directly, so he nodded and said:

"Do I need to become a monk to practice Taoism?"

Lu Zhen couldn't help but laugh:

“Kaifeng Prefecture controls the cultivation methods of the first four realms of the three major orthodox schools. You don’t need to become a monk for the time being. As long as you follow Yunrui and others and make contributions, you can obtain the corresponding cultivation methods.

"But if you want to continue practicing, you have to become a monk in Longhu Mountain or Maoshan. Of course, it's not that Taoists can't marry and have children. The difference is not that big, unless you want to be the Heavenly Master of Longhu Mountain or the Master of Maoshan, then you can't get married.

"Similarly, when a Buddhist reaches the fourth level, he must go to Daxiangguo Temple or Shaolin Temple to be ordained. Do you know Senior Ouyang Chun, the 'Northern Hero'? After he broke through to the fifth level, he went to Daxiangguo Temple to become a monk because he had no subsequent skills."

Hearing this, Li Qingyun thought about it and decided to practice martial arts. Life in Bianliang City was comfortable and easy, with plenty of delicious food and fun things to do. After all, he was still the leader of a gang, so why would he go out when he had nothing to do?

As for how much hardship he would have to endure in practicing martial arts and strengthening his body, he didn't care at all. Anyway, he had the magical power of "initiation" and didn't need to really practice hard.

He was just about to tell Lu Zhen his decision when he suddenly heard someone humming. He knew it was Fang Shuan, the noseless man, who had come.

Sure enough, Captain Fang came in humming a little tune, and when he saw Li Qingyun, he advised:

"Boss Li, if you ask me, you shouldn't choose anything. Just do what I did, like Lao Fang. You don't have to work hard, and there's no danger of losing control. You can be free and easy every day. How great!

"Look at my uncle and his friends. They have to practice martial arts at 2:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. every day. They can only sleep for a few hours a day and are busy as hell during the day. Isn't that torture?"

Li Qingyun just smiled, and Lu Zhen also shook his head:

"Shu'an, as an official of Kaifeng Prefecture, how can you handle cases without some skills? You can't always count on Yunrui to take action."

Fang Shuan pointed at his big head disapprovingly:
"Well, Fourth Uncle, solving cases requires brains, not brute force. Although I am not very good at martial arts, I am extremely intelligent. It's a pity that I don't have the cultivation path of 'strategist', otherwise I would at least be a powerful warrior at a high level."

Well, if there was a cultivation path of 'chatter', you would probably have become a true god... Li Qingyun secretly complained in his heart.

Lu Zhen was too lazy to engage in idle chatter with him. After chatting with Li Qingyun for a long time, he was also very tired, so he ordered:
"Shu'an, I have checked Qingyun. His spirit is intact and there is no sign of contamination. Take him to get the official documents for employment in Kaifeng Prefecture, and then send him back for me."

After hearing this, Li Qingyun immediately said goodbye and went to the classroom with Fang Shuan to apply for identity documents.

On the way, he asked curiously:
"Captain Fang, can I ask how you lost your nose?"

Fang Shuan said very frankly:

"Oh, you're asking that. It was stabbed by my old man Xu Liang with a large gold-threaded ring knife."

what?
Li Qingyun was very confused:
"Why did he do this? You are obviously much older than Brother Xu San, why do you want him to be your godfather?"

Fang Shuan did not feel any shame at all and explained seriously:

"My old family used to be the king of the mountain and was a bandit for a while, but later my uncle passed by my village and flattened it. I was bragging to others at the time, saying that I was the godfather of the white-browed hero Xu Liang, and my uncle happened to hear it from outside the window. He got angry and jumped in to cut off my nose.

"But he said I was just a small gangster and hadn't done anything bad, so he didn't kill me. He gave me a chance to turn over a new leaf and took me to Kaifeng Prefecture."

"This favor is like a rebirth, so I sincerely worship him as my godfather, that's it."

Even after having his nose cut off, he still willingly worshipped his enemy as his godfather. You are really something... Although Li Qingyun still felt that Fang Shuan was a little bit stupid, he couldn't refute him. He could only smile politely, complete the formalities, and leave Kaifeng Prefecture.

As soon as he walked out of the yamen, he saw a familiar figure.

Song Ke was exhausted and hiding in the corner, whispering with a wretched-looking old man. No one knew what they were talking about.

His face was gloomy and his expression was very serious. Even though he did not have the psychic ability like Lu Zhen, Li Qingyun could tell that he was in a very bad mood.

Could something have happened in the gang again?
……

(End of this chapter)