The Great Way to Truth, Starting from Jiazi Laodao

Chapter 265 Thirty-Six Chaos, Enlightenment in a Dream
Hidden Peak, Seeking the Way Academy.

Heavy snow weighs down the green pine, yet the green pine stands tall and straight.

When the first snowstorm of the fifth year arrived, covering Fuyun Mountain in silver, Xuanming made a new move inside the thatched hut.

The thirty-six stars overhead were all lit up, moving along mysterious trajectories, each emitting different strange phenomena.

Some stars appear out of nothing, some stars bloom in an instant, some stars move mountains and fill seas, and some stars rotate the five elements.

Some are dazzling and very high-profile.

Some radiance is gentle and understated.

These are the manifestations of the Thirty-Six Divine Powers of the Heavenly Gang.

All seventy-two springs beneath our feet have been unearthed, gurgling and shimmering with different lusters, displaying different phenomena.

This is precisely the symbol of the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends.

There are thirty-six springs on the left foot and thirty-six on the right foot, each with a spring corresponding to a star above their heads, resonating with each other.

Xuanming formed a mysterious hand seal, his lips parted and he softly uttered a single word: "Combine!"

The stars and the earth's springs trembled together.

Stars fall, springs gush forth.

The former passes through the upper dantian, while the latter passes through the lower dantian.

They eventually converge in the Tai Xuan Tian of the middle dantian.

First, the thirty-six Heavenly Stars and the seventy-two Earthly Fiend Springs moved along a mysterious trajectory, with the pure and turbid energies counteracting each other.

The operation then became more refined, with the two springs and one star rotating in opposite directions, their trajectories becoming increasingly mysterious, and the pure and turbid energies generating each other.

As the two springs and one star merged, a unique aura spread out—this was primordial energy, and even more so, chaotic energy.

Thirty-six streams of chaotic energy took shape, surged out of the middle dantian, first flowing downwards into the lower dantian, and then heading straight for the upper dantian.

Thirty-six long rivers were born within the entrance hall.

They surge ceaselessly, their aura mysterious and obscure, as if containing the essence of the Great Dao and encompassing the ultimate principles of all things.

Xuanming was suddenly enlightened and opened his eyes. He took out the Yellow Millet Spirit Wine that he had been reluctant to part with, broke the seal, and uncorked the bottle. A rich and dreamlike aroma of wine wafted out.

Xuanming's mouth watered, and he immediately gulped it down. It was smooth and delicious, incredibly fragrant.

The more he drank, the more intoxicated he became. When the wine jar was empty, he drank the last drop, his white-haired old Taoist priest's face flushed red, and he laughed heartily.
"Good wine!"

He immediately collapsed and lost consciousness.

The snoring sounds were melodious and rhythmic.

At the same time, thirty-six long rivers within the entrance hall flowed eastward into the sea, heading towards the "Huangting Neijing Yujing".

---

[First Incarnation]

Xuanming has changed his clothes again.

He found himself reborn as a wealthy young master, living in a magnificent five-courtyard mansion with pavilions and towers. From a young age, he was pampered with fine clothes and food, served by servants, and even had a wet nurse since he was an infant.

With thousands of acres of fertile land and hundreds of shops, his New Year's money increased year by year, from fifty taels to one hundred taels and then two hundred taels.

As an only son, he inherited a vast fortune and reached the pinnacle of his life. However, his joy turned to sorrow when he was murdered by his servants and relatives.

He was imprisoned shortly after his father died.

He was locked in a dark room all day, enduring beatings and torture, and forced to sign deeds for houses, land, and shops, and to reveal the locations of hidden treasures.

He cried out to heaven but received no response, and to earth he was left helpless.

Without the help of relatives and friends, and without a powerful patron to lean on.

When he became useless, he starved to death.

On his deathbed, Xuanming realized:

Money is an external thing, and it may even be the source of trouble. Wealth and riches are enough for one's needs.

What thousands of acres of fertile land?

What ten thousand taels of gold?

You can't take anything with you when you're born, and you can't take it with you when you die.

It was all mud and dust underfoot.

He had lost interest in gold and silver but regretted not listening to his father's advice to marry and take concubines earlier. He had to wait until he was over twenty to start arranging marriages, which resulted in him having no wife or children and no family to help him. Otherwise, how could these thieves have so easily robbed and killed him?

Filled with resentment, Xuanming died with his eyes wide open. [Second Life]

Xuanming discovered he had transmigrated!
Even more surprisingly, in this life he was handsome and dashing, as good-looking as Pan An, and was liked by young women and wives from a young age.

Even though her family was poor, she never lacked clothes or anything to wear, and they often fed her and gave her clothes.

As I grew up, every time I went out, it caused quite a stir. The opposite sex was fascinated by me, young girls were shy, and women teased me. Fruits, vegetables, cloth, grains, and oils were all available, and I always returned home laden with my purchases.

Even among people of the same sex, their reactions were polarized: some glared at him with envy, while others helped him with farming, grinding grain, boiling water, and scrubbing his back, their eyes filled with admiration.

Xuanming, a farm boy, managed to live a more comfortable life than the son of a landlord, all thanks to his good looks. He even received several years of free education. He was refined and cultured, and his simple clothes could not hide his brilliance.

Despite his advanced age, people frequently broke into his house at night. Xuanming had a bad feeling and moved overnight during the busy farming season.

When he arrived in town, he became even more popular. Matchmakers wore out his doorstep. Later, he was even forced into love by a wealthy female merchant, a domineering female general, and a spoiled little princess.

Even the young and handsome prince and the ruthless commander of the Imperial Guard wanted to get involved and were eyeing him covetously.

Xuanming wanted them all; each one was his sweetheart. So, he reluctantly became a master of time management, and the pond grew bigger and bigger. But secrets can't stay hidden forever, and he crashed and burned in just six months.

They pressured him together, forcing him to choose.

Xuanming, with tears streaming down his face, said that he couldn't bear to part with any of them and could only sacrifice himself to atone for his sins.

As it turned out, he was indeed sacrificed.

They agreed to share him, and as a result, Xuanming lived a more comfortable life than the emperor, choosing his concubine every day.

The revelry continued night after night without ceasing.

But the good times don't last long.

Three years later, he was terminally ill and so weak that he had difficulty speaking, but his appearance became even more handsome.

He wanted to end the relationship and focus on getting better and saving his life, but fate was never in his own hands.

In the end, Xuanming died in his bed.

He was filled with remorse on his deathbed.

The color is like a bone-scraping steel knife.

What he used to be so proud of was actually a death knell; he was lustful, and so were others.

At the same time, he had an unprecedented desire for power. In the end, he was just a vine clinging to a big tree. If he were the big tree himself, how could he be at the mercy of his fate?
How could we have ended up in this state?

[Third Incarnation]

Xuanming was excited. He had transmigrated and become a young master from a noble family, who was intelligent and learned.

As he grew older, he began to learn martial arts, and as he got older, he became proficient in both literature and martial arts.

He is capable of governing the country with his civil skills and securing peace with his military prowess.

Later, he participated in the imperial examination and passed with top honors in all six examinations. He became the most outstanding young talent in the State of Yu and rose rapidly through the ranks.

However, seeing that the emperor was incompetent, the officials were useless, and the people were suffering, he secretly accumulated power.

He rose up in rebellion when the world was in chaos, leading thousands of troops and personally fighting the enemy. After ten years of war and bloody battles, Xuanming was at the height of his power. In addition, he loved the people like his own children. Wherever he went, his soldiers did not disturb the people, he distributed land and executed corrupt officials.

With the support of the people, the chaos was eventually quelled.

He established the Great Xia Empire, which attracted tribute from all directions and made all nations submit to him. He was wise, decisive, and autocratic, and his power grew daily.

He ascended to the highest position in the human world.

He was hailed as a wise and benevolent ruler, and his name is etched in history.

However, as he grew old, old age and illness came one after another, and his body weakened day by day. Xuanming began to panic and, like emperors of past dynasties, sought immortality and enlightenment.

Although he did not consume the elixir of immortality, seek methods of longevity, or even pass the throne to his son and become the retired emperor, devoting himself to enjoying his remaining years, he ultimately could not withstand the ravages of time.

Before his death, Xuanming felt helpless and unwilling.

Fame, fortune, and grand ambitions ultimately amount to nothing more than a handful of dust. If there is an afterlife, he wants to become an immortal.

---

In his fourth life, he saw through the illusions of life and death.

Even the patriarch of a family of cultivators, who had worked hard for thousands of years, ultimately fell victim to one tribulation after another.

The fifth, sixth, seventh... Xuanming broke through layer after layer of shackles and overthrew one obsession after another.

He experienced birth, aging, sickness, and death; wine, women, wealth, and anger; unrequited love; and separation from loved ones.

Xuanming never succumbed to depravity. Instead, he comprehended the Dao in life after life, and his Dao heart became clearer and more steadfast. It was as if he could bear the whole world and be in harmony with the Dao, pure and without blemish.

(End of this chapter)