Journey to the West: Beginning with the Apprenticeship of Bodhi Patriarch

Chapter 215: The magical power of alchemy is the creation of the world

Time flies, and before I knew it, a month has passed.

Jiang Yuan stayed in the thatched cottage, collecting the gains from the game of chess with Laojun, and never went out. However, he saw a divine light appearing outside the thatched cottage of the immortal, surrounded by auspicious mist.

Outside the thatched cottage, Bull Demon King, Sun Wukong, Zuo Liang and others gathered together, sometimes looking at the Immortal's thatched cottage, sometimes looking at Laojun's thatched cottage, all of them marveled at the mysteries of the two places.

Wukong sat cross-legged on a piece of bluestone and saw two thatched cottages. He said, "The sitting habits of the eldest brother and Laojun are really amazing. I don't know how long it will take for them to come out."

The Bull Demon King leaned on the side and said, "My dear brother, you have already attained Buddhahood, so how can you say that the non-sitting nature cannot be achieved?"

Wukong waved his hands and said, "Brother, I have become a Buddha now, and I have some meditation skills, but compared with Laojun and the elder brother, I am no match, no match."

The Bull Demon King laughed and said, "But if you compare your sitting temperament with mine, you are definitely much better than me."

Wukong said: "Brother, you can't say that. You are also a practitioner. How dare I say that I am better than you?"

The two talked about spiritual practice.

Zuo Liang found it difficult to understand. He knew that Grandpa Buddha and Grandpa Niu were both gods to him, so it was normal that he couldn't understand them.

Zuo Liang waited until Sun Wukong and Bull Demon King finished talking, then stepped forward and asked, "Grandpa Buddha, Grandpa Bull, I still don't know where that Laojun came from, but seeing how politely you treat him, he must be a man of great rank. I wonder what his title is?"

The Bull Demon King said, "Old Zuo, you must have heard of the name Laojun. He is the Taishang Laojun, who resides above the thirty-three heavens in the Lihentian Tushita Palace, and is also known as the Taishang Daozu."

Zuo Liang was so frightened when he heard the name that he fell down. He asked in surprise, "Is this Taishang Laojun? The Taishang Laojun who is known as the founder of Taoism?"

The Bull Demon King smiled and said, "That's right, that's right."

Zuo Liang trembled and asked, "How could the Supreme Lord Lao be so kind? Although he is a bit mysterious, he does not look fierce at all, which makes people feel close to him."

Sun Wukong covered his mouth and laughed secretly, saying: "Laojun is always like this, making people feel close to him. Don't look at Laojun's great name, but Laojun does good deeds. If you do evil things, you will be a different person when you see Laojun."

The Bull Demon King echoed, "My dear brother, I have seen the Lord Laojun's angry appearance before."

Zuo Liang heard this and looked at Sun Wukong again, saying, "Did Grandpa Buddha really see the angry look of Taishang Laojun?"

Sun Wukong pondered for a moment, then said with a smile, "When I was young and ignorant, I once made Lao Jun angry. At that time, I was drunk and stole many of Lao Jun's elixirs. Later, Lao Jun locked me in the elixir furnace and refined me for forty-nine days, which is forty-nine years in human terms. Only then did he let me go. If I didn't have some tricks, I would have been killed by Lao Jun long ago."

Zuo Liang was so frightened that he swayed his body and dared not ask any more questions.

A group of people were talking here, but they didn't dare to make loud noises, for fear of disturbing the Immortal and Laojun.

After they talked for a long time, they suddenly saw the door of the Immortal's thatched cottage opened and the Immortal walked out.

When the crowd saw him, they immediately surrounded him and greeted him.

Jiang Yuan smiled and asked, "What are you all doing here?"

Sun Wukong said, "Big Brother, we are just chatting here."

Jiang Yuan asked: "What are you talking about? Are you confused?"

Sun Wukong and the others all shook their heads and said, "Big Brother, we have no doubts."

Jiang Yuan said, "Since you have no doubts, I will go to visit Laojun. You should practice hard. If you have any doubts, come and find me."

Sun Wukong and Bull Demon King both responded with "yes".

Jiang Yuan looked at Zuo Liang again and said, "Zuo Liang, you haven't practiced cultivation yet. Wouldn't it be boring to stay in the mountains?"

Zuo Liang replied, "It has never been boring."

Jiang Yuan smiled and asked, "What do you mean?"

Zuo Liang said, "Sir, if your mind is always calm, then you are practicing. So how can practicing with a calm mind be boring?"

Jiang Yuan smiled and nodded, then left. When he reached Laojun's thatched cottage, he said, "Laojun, Guangxin is here to visit you."

Say it.

He performed a great ceremony and bowed down to the thatched cottage.

After a while, a voice came from the thatched cottage.

"Open your mind and come in." A gentle breeze came and pushed open the door of the thatched cottage.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuan walked into the thatched cottage, where Laojun was sitting cross-legged on a cushion. On the chessboard in front of him was the same game that the two of them had played more than a month ago.

Jiang Yuan approached and bowed, "Laojun."

Taishang Laojun smiled and said, "Guangxin, no need to be polite, just sit down."

Laojun designated the cushion on the opposite side.

Jiang Yuan bowed and sat down, saying, "Why is Laojun here studying the old situation?"

Laojun said: "In this game, you have made some brilliant moves, which have benefited me, so I am studying them here. Why don't you stop and listen to the magical power of alchemy?"

Jiang Yuan bowed and said, "That's right, but please tell me about it, Master."

Laojun smiled and said, "I thought you would come and ask me directly what the alchemy magic is, but I never thought that you would return to the thatched cottage to rest. You came to ask after you rested enough. Maybe you could explain it to me. Why aren't you in a hurry?"

Jiang Yuan replied, "Old Master, why are you in such a hurry?"

Laojun stroked his beard and asked, "Tell me the reason."

Jiang Yuan said: "Old Lord, I know for sure that this magical power of alchemy will come true. It is just a matter of time, so there is no point in rushing."

Laojun smiled and said, "You are a person who has made great achievements in meditation. Come on, come on, come on. Let me explain to you what the magical power of alchemy is. Guangxin, you should listen to me calmly."

Jiang Yuan replied: "I wash my ears carefully and never forget."

Say it.

The Immortal sat upright and listened to what Laojun said.

Laojun pointed outside and said with a smile: "As for the so-called alchemy supernatural power, I told you earlier that you must learn the whole way of the golden elixir. There is the inner golden elixir way, which is to seek within oneself, and there is the number of heaven and earth in the body. There is the outer golden elixir way, which is to seek the heaven and earth outside, and use the essence of heaven and earth to prepare the golden elixir. If you learn these two, you can learn the whole way of alchemy supernatural power."

He said, and after a moment's hesitation, he continued, "The power of alchemy is not really about preparing elixirs. This refining is the power of heaven and earth."

Upon hearing this, the Immortal was moved and asked, "Laojun, how do you say that it is refined into heaven and earth?"

Laojun smiled and said, "Dan, what's the meaning?"

The immortal replied, "Dan means perfection. It means being flawless, and the same applies to Hunyuan. My master taught me in the past that gold means immortality, and the golden elixir means the perfection of immortality through cultivation."

Laojun said: "It is exactly this principle. The elixir is for perfection. Therefore, the elixir-making magic is not to prepare pills. The elixir-making magic is to refine the heaven and earth. Therefore, the elixir-making magic is known as 'the creation of heaven and earth'."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuan suddenly understood. He wondered why his magic power was increasing day by day. He had never practiced in meditation, but mostly traveled, yet his magic power increased rapidly. This was because he practiced the magical power of alchemy, which was the magical power of creating the world. If one wanted to learn it, one must first learn the numbers of heaven and earth. Knowing the numbers of heaven and earth, one can create the world and then magic power will arise naturally.

Whether it was the book that Laojun gave him to read, or the inner and outer alchemy, they were all one of the numbers of heaven and earth.

The magical power of alchemy is to create the world.

It is indeed a great supernatural power, it is indeed a great supernatural power!
Jiang Yuan stood up and bowed deeply, saying, "Guangxin thanks Laojun."

Laojun stood up and helped Jiang Yuan up, feeling surprised and asking, "Why are you doing such a great honor?"

Jiang Yuan said: "The Lord has given me such magical powers, how can I not pay homage to him?"

Laojun shook his head and said, "This magical power is mostly for you to realize on your own. I have taught you very little. It is just a chance for you to guide me."

Jiang Yuan said: "If there is no chance for me to be guided, how can I have the chance to realize it on my own? I should pay homage to Laojun."

Laojun said: "Now you have realized the magical power of alchemy, but your practice is still shallow, and there is still a distance to go before you can achieve the magical power of alchemy. You should learn the outer alchemy as soon as possible, and then you can walk in the human world more clearly. Once you have achieved the magical power of alchemy, you will definitely be a person with great magic power. At that time, there will be no one who can defeat you in the three realms."

After hearing this, Jiang Yuan hesitated for a long time and said, "Laojun, when I have mastered the law, it will not be too late to learn the whole external alchemy."

Laojun said: "Why? Now that you know the magical power of alchemy, wouldn't it be better if you quickly mastered it? Why do you still need to practice the law? Why are the laws more important than practice?"

Jiang Yuan said: "I have already promised Emperor Xuan. A man cannot stand without trust, so I should put my promise first. Besides, the revision of laws is a matter of cultivation for the world, so it must be taken seriously. Besides, I can learn the numbers of heaven and earth as I travel around the world."

Upon hearing this, Laojun was very pleased and taught Jiang Yuan some matters concerning Xi Quan's magical powers of alchemy.

Jiang Yuan listened attentively.

(End of this chapter)