I began to understand the myriad things by chopping wood

Xie Yuan spent two minutes carefully digesting everything the old Taoist priest told him.

"It turns out that this is how everything happened."

He sighed, and then said seriously:
"Even if I didn't know all this, I would have gone anyway. Now that I know, it has become even more of my responsibility. Senior, I'm ready."

The old Taoist smiled and nodded:
"In that case, I wish you good luck, and good luck to...both worlds."

He waved his hand, then suddenly stopped, thought for a moment, and asked:
"Would you rather cliff jump or ride the cable car? Well, I'd say the old way."

"…Is there no more normal way?"

Even though Xie Yuan was no longer an ordinary person at this time, he still felt sympathetic towards this method.

The old Taoist priest showed a look of regret:

"Well, if you are ready, go through the Tianmen Cave yourself."

Upon hearing this, Xie Yuan took three steps back and bowed solemnly to the incarnation of the Heavenly Way in the past.

The old Taoist priest calmly accepted his greeting, and then watched Xie Yuan leave the Taoist temple, walk across the platform on the top of the mountain, and pass through the magnificent Tianmen Cave, and his figure disappeared in the clouds and mist.

Visitors came and went, but no one seemed to notice the conversation or actions of the two people, or even the desk where the old Taoist priest was sitting.

"Master, what are you looking at?"

Suddenly, a young Taoist priest with clear eyes asked.

The old Taoist turned around and saw that it was an orphan adopted by the Taoist temple. He couldn't help but smile and said:

"Nothing. I just sent a young man away to save the world."

The boy curled his lips:

"Master, please watch less online novels and cartoons. You are always out of tune, so the uncles and uncles in the temple don't like to pay attention to you."

He thought the old Taoist had no presence in the temple, simply because he was always talking nonsense. Only the young and enthusiastic teenagers would often talk to him.

The old Taoist laughed and said:

"You're still blaming me? Don't you like watching it yourself?"

"I'm here to watch, but it doesn't affect anything...Okay, I'm here to say goodbye to you. Summer vacation is almost over, and I have to go down the mountain to school. I'll leave tomorrow."

The boy said.

The old Taoist was stunned for a moment:
"We're leaving..."

He was a little reluctant:
"Can't you stay two more days?"

The young man was somewhat speechless and sighed:
"Master, I'm in my third year of high school now, so I have to go to make-up classes in advance."

As an orphan, his experience is both strange and ordinary.

The strange thing is that he was adopted by a Taoist temple and grew up in the mountains;
The ordinary thing is that he still has to go to school. He has been studying in a town at the foot of Tianmen Mountain since he was a child, and now he is facing the college entrance examination.

The educational resources in the town are not that good, and now there is a two-day weekend off to reduce the burden. For young people who do not have more conditions to make up for the lessons, they have to work harder to avoid failing to get into university and finally returning to the mountains to become a Taoist priest for the rest of their lives.

Perhaps the ultimate outcome of getting into university is actually not better than living a life of ease and comfort in a Taoist temple, where you might inherit the position of temple master and even wear a purple robe - the Taoist temple is not large in scale, but its specifications are not low, and it is registered. Being a Taoist priest here is more or less a position, and it is the end of the road for many people.

However, the young man who had grown up in the mountains for eighteen years wanted to go out and see the world, very much. He did not want to stay in this small Taoist temple for the rest of his life, even if it was not a bad idea.

The old Taoist priest also knows.

So, looking at the boy who was packing his things, he suddenly called out:

"Baby, do you want to live a different life?"

"what?"

The young man looked at the old Taoist priest in surprise. Seeing his subtle expression, he hesitated for a moment and said, "I think he is a bit strange.

"Yes, Master, do you have a few houses at the foot of the mountain that no one has inherited? Do you want to give them to me now? Hey, I have been waiting for you to say this for eighteen years."

The old Taoist priest laughed, and this time he did not joke with him. He just turned around with his hands behind his back:
"follow me."

Seeing this, the young man's heart began to beat inexplicably. He followed the old Taoist priest through the side door of the Taoist temple, came to the edge of the cliff, and stood shoulder to shoulder with him. He looked at the old Taoist priest's eyes and looked down the cliff, but he only saw a white fog covering it and could not see anything clearly.

"Grandmaster, what are you looking at... Hey, hey hey hey!"

Before the young man could finish his words, he was suddenly pushed by a slap. The old Taoist priest who looked old was much stronger than he thought. He couldn't stand steadily at all and flew directly into the cliff and fell into the endless clouds.

The old Taoist priest sighed when he saw the young man disappearing off the cliff:
"Another one is gone. I feel better now."

He clapped his hands and looked satisfied.

Then, he looked up at the sky, looked down at the earth, and looked far away, looking at the mountains, rivers, lakes and seas, and then he sat cross-legged and sighed:
"It's a really nice place, almost the same as where I live. Unfortunately, I didn't protect it well."

He sighed and chanted slowly:

"Born without consciousness, gluttons come to fight for food."

"Escape to the source of the Tao and go out to sea, attracting a real dragon into the pool."

"That's enough."

After reciting the poem, the old Taoist smiled, and his figure gradually faded and disappeared with the mountain wind.

……

Xie Yuan respects the old Taoist not because he is the way of heaven, nor just because he has given him a great opportunity.

It is because, having escaped from his own world and possessing a world of Taoism, he is the freest and most powerful being in the universe.

His experience is unique, and as long as he wants, he can easily embark on the path that the God of War dreams of.

But he didn't. Instead, he gave the source of Tao to Xie Yuan and gave up longevity and the endless path.

To save the people and to stop the God of War.

And after leaving the source of Tao, he finally returned to the world.

This is what Xie Yuan respects.

Xie Yuan passed through the Heavenly Gate, walked through the clouds and mist, and when he walked out again, he found himself in a dense forest. It was dark night.

He jumped lightly, stood on the treetop, looked up at the starry sky, made some calculations based on the positions of the stars, and then was stunned.

"It's actually in Beidu Mountain... not far from Xiaoshi Village."

Perhaps this is understandable.

Then Xie Yuan moved his feet slightly, and a whirlwind suddenly appeared. He soon flew to the depths of Beidu Mountains, to the old site of the Mu family.

After many years, the ruins here have become dilapidated, with only the neatly arranged tombs left, which should have been repaired by Mu Chaoyun before.

But it looks like no one has been here for many years.

Xie Yuan stood silently at the Mu family ruins for a while, and bowed three times towards the graves of Mu Chaoyun's parents.

Since he failed to find Mu Chaoyun, Xie Yuan quickly left Beidu Mountain and went to Xiaoshi Village.

But I found that this old place had also been desolate, with no one living there and no houses.

Yunzhou was a frontier area even in peaceful times, with fierce folks and poor public security. Now that the world is in chaos, it is probably not a good place anymore.

Xie Yuan frowned slightly and suddenly shifted his gaze to the south.

Outside Yunzhao County.

There were layers of dark red bloodstains on the ground.

Outside the low city wall, there was a battalion of Western Region cavalry, attacking the city fiercely.

"Master, we can't hold on any longer!"

A blood-soaked disciple of the Iron-Armored Sect spoke to the exhausted Monk Liu.

"Senior Mu..."

Monk Liu looked up into the sky and saw an old man in green fighting with a big man from the Western Regions. However, the old man was clearly at a disadvantage and was retreating step by step, getting closer and closer to the county town.

He gritted his teeth and shouted:
"We have to hold on even if we can't! If we let these beggars enter the city, we will be the next Jinshan County!"

Jinshan County is right next to Yunzhao. It was recently attacked by the rebellious Western Region cavalry and is now a wasteland.

But no matter how strong one's will is, it cannot completely replace strength. The rangers wandering around Yunzhou are all elites from the Western Regions. One battalion has 100 people, led by a Grandmaster, and there are no less than 20 people in the Qi and Blood Transformation Realm.

Even if there were reinforcements from Yunzhou Prefecture, they would still be no match for these cavalry.

Seeing that Yunzhao was about to follow in the footsteps of Jinshan County, Monk Liu's eyes turned red, his body was boiling with blood, and he was about to jump out of the city wall.

"Master Liu, what are you doing!"

A big man next to him yelled.

"I'm going to fight these barbarians! Chief Qin, what are you doing? Don't stop me!"

Qin Hai pulled Monk Liu and said anxiously:

"Master Liu, you are in such a state now that you will die if you go!"

"If I don't go, I'll be dead! Can I stare at them to death just by standing here and gasping for breath? Can I let the heavens strike them to death with thunder? The heavens have gone mad. If they really want to strike someone, who knows! Maybe it will strike you or me!"

"Boom!"

Suddenly, a loud thunderclap sounded in the clear sky.

Monk Liu was startled and said quickly:
"I just said it casually, don't hit me!"

They turned their heads and watched dark clouds gathering outside the county town, followed by a flash of lightning.

"Boom - boom -"

"what--"

The continuous thunder drowned out the screams of the Hu cavalry, and soon the entire camp of Hu cavalry was silent. The Hu master in the sky was stunned, and then he shuddered, chopped the old man in front of him with a knife, and turned into a rainbow of light and fled.

Suddenly, an arrow shot from behind arrived first and pierced his back directly.

His eyes bulged, and he became silent in an instant and fell down.

The old man was stunned for a moment, and after a closer look, he realized that the object that pierced his opponent, whom he had fought for a long time, was not an arrow, but a dry branch.

A dead branch streaked across the sky, killing the extremely strong Western Region Grandmaster who had beaten him back step by step...

The old man was extremely shocked, felt a chill in his heart, and looked forward.

A young man was strolling leisurely, slowly coming from a distance.

He frowned, not daring to be careless at all.

Even though the dead branch method of killing the enemy showed incredible strength, the five thunders that struck the head and killed hundreds of people in an instant was an unheard-of divine method.

The young man easily saved Yun Zhao from a critical situation with a calm expression, without a trace of worldly airs.

Really like a banished immortal.

The old man was still trying to figure out the young man's identity when he suddenly heard a shocked shout from below:
"Xie, Xie Yuan... It's Xie Yuan!"

The old man was stunned for a moment, and his eyes slowly widened.

Xie Yuan?

After a while, clouds covered the city.

Xie Yuan felt relieved when he saw that most of his old friends from Tieyimen and Longteng Escort Agency were safe and sound.

"Xie Yuan! Back then they all said you were dead! Damn it, I even wiped two tears for you. But now it seems that they were all rumors. I knew that with your ability, no one could kill you!"

Monk Liu's face turned red and he was extremely excited, and so were Qin Hai and other old people from the escort agency beside him.

Xie Yuan was quite moved when he heard this, but he did not elaborate, he just said:
"It's all in the past."

Five years have passed...

Xie Yuan had mixed feelings. He expected that the time on both sides might be different, but five years was not too long or too short.

He learned from the people around him what had happened in the world in the past five years, and his brows could not help but frown, and it was difficult to relax.

There was a great battle on the banks of the river, and Xie Yuan killed many top masters, especially those from different races and species. He tried his best to eliminate them to prevent them from bringing disaster to the world.

However, since only King Ming died, the Western Regions were not seriously hurt; the royal family suffered heavy casualties, but they still targeted the aristocratic families.

As a result, in the past five years, the Western Regions have broken through the Yanmen Pass and occupied most of Yanzhou. They have already taken root and are slowly advancing with Yanzhou as their base camp.

Although Yunzhou is blocked by Beidu Mountain, the northern line has become a battlefield. Cavalrymen continue to penetrate deep into the hinterland of Yunzhou, attempting to break through Yunzhou and even Shuzhou, open the West Gate Hulukou, and completely open up the passage from the Western Regions to the Central Plains.

Several states in the western border were ravaged by war, but the people had nowhere to flee because the world was in chaos. During these five years, the people suffered heavy casualties, the population dropped sharply, and thousands of miles of land were barren and uninhabited.

Meanwhile, the royal family was still focused on dealing with the aristocratic families. The three families had each suffered huge losses, and the royal family was not much better off.

The Cui family of Qinghe simply declared independence and took over several surrounding counties; although the Wang and Xie families did not say it explicitly, they actually did the same.

Uprisings continued to arise in various places, and the shadow of the Kitchen God was always behind them.

There are disputes in the government and turmoil in the world.

The spiritual power of the world is fluctuating. Secret realms, relics, and treasures are emerging one after another. The major sects are fighting each other to the bitter end. There are more and more powerful people, but also more and more casualties.

The demons of the Nine Netherworlds, the monsters of the Mist Source, and the ghosts of Fengdu also began to cause chaos. They wanted to take advantage of the great catastrophe in the world and the loss of luck of the human race to regain their control of the world.

The end of the world has come.

Xie Yuan sighed.

In that case, he couldn't stay in Yunzhao for too long.

Just as he was about to say goodbye and leave, he suddenly heard a familiar call:

"Yuan...Xie Yuan?"

Xie Yuan turned his head and saw the face of a middle-aged woman in the crowd. He couldn't help but said in surprise:

"Sister Orchid!"

He looked around and saw Wang Lei with a stubble on his face and a chubby boy. His eyes widened:
"Brother Shitou! This is... Tiger Boy? He's already this big..."

Xie Yuan was overjoyed to see his neighbor brother and sister-in-law again. Li Lan and her family of three were also very happy to see Xie Yuan.

Li Lan even took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears. She also thought that Xie Yuan had unfortunately died five years ago. After seeing Xie Yuan, she began to ramble:
"Those damned gangsters spread all kinds of rumors! Pah! Gossiping is the way to hell!"

Xie Yuan laughed, then frowned and asked:

"Sister Lanhua, you guys were supposed to be in Yunzhou Prefecture, right? Why are you back to Yunzhao again?"

"Hey, Yunzhou Prefecture was surrounded by elite troops sent by the Hu people and was almost broken. If it weren't for the hero Yu who risked his life to rescue us and killed two great Hu people's masters alone, breaking the siege of Yunzhou Prefecture, we would definitely have died, and Yunzhou Prefecture, Yunzhou, and even the entire western part of the Central Plains would have been ruled by the Hu people!
"We felt that Yunzhou Prefecture was too conspicuous and might not be as safe as Yunzhao in the rear, so we moved back. But who knew... Alas! It seems that no place is safe."

Wang Lei took over the conversation and said with emotion.

Xie Yuan nodded repeatedly after hearing this:
"Either we move to Yizhou or go back to Yunzhou Prefecture... It doesn't matter, I'll take care of this place first.

"Who is that hero Yu? It seems that heroes emerge in troubled times. There are indeed many chivalrous people in the world!"

The people around didn't know what Xie Yuan meant by "solve" but since he didn't elaborate, Wang Lei explained first:
"Master Yu was originally a teacher at Yunlu Academy in Jizhou. In the past few years, he has been doing justice everywhere and saving people from danger. After Yanzhou was conquered, he organized an army to resist the Hu people. He was the leader of the resistance and was known as the 'scholar hero' and the 'first hero in the western border'. When he heard that Yunzhou Prefecture was in trouble, he came to help from a thousand miles away, working day and night from Yanzhou to the outside of Yunzhou Prefecture, killing two top Hu masters and saving Yunzhou Prefecture from danger!"

Xie Yuan was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and said:
"It's Yu Ping?"

He remembered this person. He had chased him and tried to snatch the Black Book. Even after being subdued, he still had the audacity to ask for it, which made him laugh out of anger.

But seeing that he had a chivalrous heart and was very persistent in seeking the truth, Xie Yuan passed on to him a passage of scripture to break through, leaving it to his own fate.

Unexpectedly, the fruit planted that day actually blossomed today. If Xie Yuan hadn't let him go, he would have saved fewer people, and even Sister Lanhua's family and Yunzhou would no longer be here!
Xie Yuan sighed with emotion, and then asked:

"Where is Yu Ping now? I want to go see him."

As soon as he asked the question, the atmosphere around him became heavy.

Qin Hai sighed:
"In that battle, Hero Yu died on the spot, perishing together with two enemies."

Xie Yuan was stunned for a moment, and the scene of that day suddenly came back to his mind.

Yu Ping looked serious and bowed to himself:
"I dare not neglect the trust of a gentleman, and will repay it with my life."

I will repay it with my life.

Xie Yuan sighed and said slowly:
"The greatest heroes serve their country and their people. Yu the Great Hero kept his promise and died a worthy death."

He looked calm, looked around at the old friends around him, and said:

"I will first resolve the danger facing the Hu people. As for the rest..."

He looked up at the deep black hole in the middle of the sky:
"It will take a while. Take care of yourself... Goodbye."

Xie Yuan stepped forward and disappeared in an instant.

The people around were stunned. Even Master Mu, who had been wanting to speak but didn't get a word in, didn't see Xie Yuan's movements clearly, and they looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Where did he go? Why did he say that... it seemed like he could just chase the dog away easily. Is it that easy?"

"Why? Our Xie Yuan is just so powerful! What are you questioning?"

"How could I question it? I just find it incredible... What do you think of his current strength? His methods don't seem like those of a warrior, but rather like those of... an immortal."

"Yes, there has been no news about him in the past few years. Could it be that he has gone to seek immortality and has returned after achieving enlightenment?"

"Senior Mu, you are the strongest. What realm do you think he is in?"

Seeing everyone around him looking at him, Senior Mu from Yunzhou Prefecture slowly shook his head:
"I don't know. I only know that he is definitely not at the Grandmaster level."

Everyone looked at each other.

Not the Grandmaster level?

that……

The crowd had no conclusion about Xie Yuan's strength, but they soon knew whether Xie Yuan could resolve the chaos in the Western Territory.

A few days later, news came from Yanzhou that the camp of the Western Hu coalition had been broken into.

The red flames spread for hundreds of miles, and thunder struck the top of the head. The commander-in-chief of the Western Hu coalition and the King of the Arabs were killed on the spot. Many masters and senior generals could not escape with their lives.

Almost all the high-level leaders of the coalition forces were wiped out. The coalition forces were leaderless and retreated thousands of miles out of Yanmen Pass.

Rumor has it that the Western Hu committed evil and slaughtered people everywhere, which angered the immortal and led to this disaster.

However, everyone in Yunzhao knew that it was Xie Yuan who did it.

High in the sky above Yanzhou, a streak of light moved eastward.

Xie Yuan showed his face and thought to himself:

"It's still a bit strenuous to do this. I don't have much cultivation at the moment. Although I don't need much cultivation to have the means, having a realm alone is not enough to climb the Tower of Babel."

After comprehending the true meaning of "Taiqing Daodezhenjing" or the source of Tao, Xie Yuan, in terms of realm but not cultivation, was already equivalent to a grandmaster of martial arts, the Taoist unity of man and nature.

It's just that he is starting from scratch, walking the righteous path of Tongxian. Even if warriors below the Grandmaster level are no match for him, if he wants to fight against higher-level warriors, he still needs to improve comprehensively. Especially his ultimate goal will not allow him to have any shortcomings or weaknesses.

“The true Dharma originally helped me understand all dharmas, and now that I have comprehended the true Dharma, I can see the One in all dharmas.

"Now, the more I practice, the more I can improve my cultivation strength, and see the truth from all things. The more I practice, the closer I am to enlightenment. That's the most suitable place..."

Xie Yuan thought for a moment and sighed:
"The most suitable one is the Black Heavenly Book. With nine pages of the Black Heavenly Book in hand, I am equivalent to holding the Heavenly Book. Combined with the Dao Source, I can become the Heavenly Dao Senior back then. But I can't get it now...

"Then the most suitable place at this moment is the armory. The armory contains thousands of books. If you digest them, there will be no rivals in the Heavenly Man Realm."

He nodded, made a decision immediately, turned into a stream of light, and fled to Chen County. (End of this chapter)