The world is like a prison, my body is holy

After a hearty meal, Wang Wen returned to his general's mansion.

He first handed over the military power and defense of Zhenyuan Pass to Zhong Shidao and Zhi Baiqing, and then summoned Ao Qing and Ao Hei, two dragons, to the mansion to protect him.

After settling everything, he entered the secluded meditation chamber, sat cross-legged, and began to recover his true energy and magical power.

After three days and three nights of meditation, he finally brought himself to his peak condition.

He opened his eyes, and the dragon-shaped jade seal popped out from under his eyes, the background blurring into a vast view of the sea of ​​clouds atop Huangshan Mountain.

He focused his gaze on the radiant "+" after "Boundless Ocean Divine Skill," and with a thought, an endless stream of spiritual energy from heaven and earth surged in from all directions like a tsunami. The dense spiritual energy condensed directly into white mist, and the excessive speed of movement created a hurricane.

Looking out, it was as if a thick fog was rising in the mountains after the rain, with visibility less than 20 meters. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers at Zhenyuan Pass benefited from this!

Ao Qing and Ao Hei, sitting like two guardian deities outside the secret chamber, were undoubtedly the biggest beneficiaries. The two dragons took a few deep breaths of spiritual energy and felt a kind of "drunken spiritual energy" sensation, as if their blood was boiling.

They exchanged horrified glances and turned to look at the tightly closed, heavy stone door.

Ao Qing swallowed hard a few times, then whispered in shock, "General, you're becoming more and more unfathomable!"

Ao Hei puffed out his chest and raised his head: "Of course!"

Ao Qing: ? ? ?
The old man is the general's right-hand man, what are you so proud of?
Zhi Baiqing, who was patrolling the city wall, looked at the General's Mansion in the distance. His eerie face showed a hint of surprise and uncertainty... He felt that the scene in front of him was familiar, as if he had seen it a long, long time ago.

It racked its brains for a long time, then suddenly realized something, slapped its thigh, and exclaimed, "Oh no, it's those damn JD.com..."

Before it could even utter the word "Xi," it realized who it was criticizing and hurriedly covered its mouth, fearing that its voice would drift to the residence of the General of the Cavalry.

He looked around and, seeing that no one had appeared out of thin air, relaxed, muttering to himself incredulously, "Wasn't the lineage of ancient martial generals broken long ago?"

The ancient generals it speaks of are not the military generals who need to agree on a time and place before fighting, but rather those ancient generals who can open the gates of heaven with a single sword, open the gates of Kui with a single sword, be skilled in civil affairs, open mountains and fill seas to protect clans and secure the country, be skilled in martial affairs, chase down countless immortals and Buddhas who have nowhere to go in heaven, be able to slaughter ancient demons over thousands of miles, and be able to keep dragons as guard dogs when retreating!

Surely no one really believes that the human race became the protagonist of the world because of the favor of Heaven?

How could anyone think that a force capable of defeating ruthless figures like Chi You and Xing Tian was merely favored by others?

Its poor old father, Wuzhiqi, was just... a little mischievous back then, and was then hacked to pieces by those fierce warriors under Yu the Great...

But wasn't the lineage of ancient warriors completely wiped out with the collapse of the Shang Dynasty?

Zhi Baiqing couldn't understand it.

At the foot of the city wall, in a stable, an elderly auxiliary soldier with gray hair and beard but still strong, with a gray longsword resembling a fire poker at his waist, was slowly chopping hay while gazing in the direction of the general's mansion, a kind smile on his lips.

In the white sky where visibility was less than twenty meters, his clear black and white eyes, as clean as a baby's, reflected a towering, upright divine general clad in golden armor and covered with a black dragon-patterned battle robe!

He had always thought it would be a long spear that could pierce through the air.

Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a towering and indomitable god-general.

"Young man, you have no sportsmanship!"

He chuckled to himself and said, "You've made this old man wait for nothing!"

'The Yangtze River pushes forward wave after wave…'

He murmured to himself.

……

Inside the stone chamber, Wang Wen's consciousness was divided into hundreds and thousands of parts and placed into countless time and space.

In some timelines, he was a middle-aged fisherman in the Air Force.

In some timelines, he was a weathered garbage collector.

In some times, he was a poor farm boy...

There are countless time periods and spaces, each with a different historical context.

The farm boy had a buzz cut that looked like it had been chewed by a dog, and wore coarse cloth straw sandals, looking like he was dressed in the Republican era.

The fisherman was dressed in clothes reminiscent of Pinduoduo (a Chinese e-commerce platform), flip-flops, and riding a small electric scooter—a look that seemed quite modern…

In every timeline, he has the same face as his previous life, but none of them have his memories.

Everyone lives their own life, whether leisurely, diligent, or busy, with strong and delicate emotions, just like living, breathing people.

Wang Wen's rigid thinking shifted constantly with their perspectives, changing the scene each time.

The fisherman, returning empty-handed, encountered a girl who had fallen into the water. Without hesitation, he threw away his electric scooter and jumped into the rushing river.

Despite his parents' advice, the impoverished young man put down his carrying pole, picked up a red-tasseled spear, and threw himself into the great battle against the Japanese devils.

The weathered garbage collector clutched his hard-earned money tightly. As he passed a woman kneeling at the hospital entrance, trying to raise money for her seriously ill husband, he hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly pulled out half of his hard-earned money from his pocket and placed it in front of her.

Wang Wen's will cannot interfere with everyone's decisions, but he can clearly perceive the complex emotions in everyone's heart.

The fisherman knew perfectly well that rescuing the person might put him in danger, and he also knew that his wife and children were waiting for him to eat at home.

The young man knew he was the pillar of his family, and he also knew that once he left, he might never return.

Even the garbage collector knew that what he was leaving behind was a week's worth of food...

Later, the fisherman who rescued the drowning girl not only failed to receive a word of thanks, but was also falsely accused of molestation by the girl. When he returned home, he was severely scolded by his father, wife, and children.

During the battle, the young man tumbled down a hillside while carrying a Japanese soldier who was much stronger than him. After being taken back to camp by his comrades, he remained unconscious for three days before he miraculously survived.

The garbage collector, who had barely managed to make it to the second month by cutting back on everything, saw the woman holding a sign outside the hospital again, raising money for her seriously ill husband, only this time the cause of illness on the sign had changed...

Wang Wen sensed their complex psychological state and continued forward, following their perspective.

The unlucky fisherman, returning empty-handed under the threat of the tyrannical old woman "Old Purple Shudao Mountain," once again encountered a boy who had fallen into the water. He stopped his electric scooter, hesitated for three seconds, then took out his phone, threw it onto the scooter, and jumped into the rushing river again, successfully rescuing the boy. However, he himself was too weak to climb back ashore.

In his final moments, he looked at the boy on the shore who was about the same age as his own son and thought to himself, 'It seems like I didn't lose out.'

The brave young man, after recovering from his injuries, threw himself back into battle. In a fierce positional battle, his comrades fell one after another, while the Japanese devils were about to storm the position. Behind them lay the base they had not yet evacuated. Without hesitation, he tore off his ammunition belt and stuffed it into his comrade's arms. He pulled two grenades from his waist, held them in his hands, tore off the fuses with his teeth, and shouted, "You unfilial son!" He rushed out of the position and threw himself onto the Japanese devils' hordes...

In his final moments, he looked down at the limp turtle shell and the three Japanese soldiers flying in the air, and proudly muttered to himself, "I've made two." The increasingly unkempt garbage collector once again encountered a poor elderly couple in front of the hospital, trying to raise money for their seriously ill son. Looking at their swollen eyes and listening to the crowd gossiping about how the couple had been begging there for three days straight, he hesitated for a long time before finally pulling out half of his hard-earned money, which he had barely warmed in his pocket, and placing it in front of the elderly couple.

As he left, he overheard someone in the crowd say he was a shill, but he didn't pay it any mind. He just silently thought to himself, 'What if they aren't scammers?'

The revolving lantern of time and space flashes rapidly, with time and space constantly disappearing and new time and space constantly being born.

At times, he is a lifeless corporate slave.

Sometimes he is a refined and cultured official in charge.

Sometimes it's the delivery guy, tanned black...

A corporate worker broke several ribs while catching a child falling from the fourth floor.

A deliveryman was severely burned while trying to rescue a driver whose car had caught fire after an accident.

Officials, in their desperate attempt to seize the opportunity of urban transformation, remained entrenched in the old city, effectively dying from overwork...

Wang Wen's consciousness gradually became lost in these lives. These characters were not the stereotypical figures created by clumsy writers, nor were they the kind of heroes who turned evil into good. Each of them had a very complex human nature.

The unlucky fisherman, when he was in the air force, would sneakily steal a couple of cucumbers or pumpkins from the villagers' fields and put them in his pocket. If there were no cucumbers or pumpkins, he would at least grab some sweet potato leaves to make sure he didn't leave empty-handed. Several times he was caught by the villagers and scolded until his face turned red, but he never changed his ways. He never thought of being a good Samaritan; he just happened to be there.

The lame garbage collector would often get into heated arguments with other garbage collectors over a couple of empty bottles or cardboard boxes, using foul language. He understood the hardships of life better than most people, and he was also more frugal than the vast majority. He would hesitate for a long time before buying some braised pig's head to improve his meals. He never intended to be a generous good person; he just happened to meet him.

The refined and courteous official also harbored his own petty schemes and calculations. He was single-mindedly focused on achieving political success, getting promoted to a higher position, and becoming a more powerful official. He always told others not to worry about saving face, but in reality, he enjoyed the respect others showed him. He never intended to dedicate his entire life to that old city redevelopment project; he just happened to be involved...

So many vivid and three-dimensional characters, like waves crashing against the sea, challenged Wang Wen's concept of "I".

He gradually lost the ability to distinguish who he was and who was himself.

Until one vivid, three-dimensional, and lifelike character after another emerges from endless time and space, arm in arm to form a "crowd," then a "city," and finally a thick history book...

Until all of time and space, a single, vibrant willpower is extracted, like a thread connecting all of time and space, overlapping thousands of people of different identities and circumstances into the same face...

Wang Wen's consciousness finally broke free from the endless wandering of time and space.

"Yes……"

He murmured softly, as if suddenly realizing something.

He is not them.

He is one of them.

They are becoming him.

He is becoming like them...

A sudden inspiration struck him, and he looked up, declaring firmly and resolutely, "If a gentleman will not save, a sage will not shirk his duty!"

A wise person will not easily interfere in the cause and effect of others when they are unable to protect themselves.

However, a sage will not hesitate to step forward when faced with something that aligns with his own morality.

To put it another way, a gentleman is one who does not easily interfere in the cause and effect of others.

A saint is one who disregards his own safety and steps forward to save others from dire straits!

A self-saint!
This connects to his previous understanding of the "Trinity of Physical Incarnation and Sainthood" from the Buddhist Diamond Sutra: "One's inherent nature is self-sufficient, requiring no external seeking. One should abide nowhere, yet give rise to the mind."

His complete understanding this time is: don't care about other people's opinions, firmly do what you want to do, do what you think is right, seek the path you want to seek, and prove the path you seek!
This is both a process of integrating knowledge and action, and a process of constantly surpassing the past!
That is a saint!

With a thought, the golden-armored general above the stone chamber, visible only to the elderly auxiliary soldiers, swiftly materialized and shone brightly.

The surging true energy within his body transformed into a higher-level power possessing both lightness and heaviness, instantly rising from a weak, stream-like state to a majestic, roaring force.

In that instant, everything in the world seemed to appear in his mind like a space telescope rapidly pulling away!

Even the "space" that he had never perceived before now appeared before his eyes like a beautiful, dazzling, and fragile glass vessel.

He gazed curiously at this fragile space, then casually made a sweeping motion in front of him, and a hazy white light immediately illuminated his vision.

In that patch of light was a rough stable, and he could even smell the stench of horse manure and urine.

The elderly auxiliary soldier chopping hay in the stable stared in astonishment at the sudden appearance of another space before him, and at Wang Wen sitting upright in the very center of that space. He was somewhat bewildered and at a loss, like a child caught doing something wrong...

"Senior Zhang, you're in high spirits!"

Wang Wen smiled as he looked at the rusty guillotine in his hand, clearly seeing a sliver of sword light, as bright as moonlight, clinging to the blade.

The elderly auxiliary soldier quickly released the guillotine as if it were burning his hand: "Well, hahaha... I'm an old man who's worried about you young people, so I've come to check if you're alright?"

"Of course there's nothing wrong with it..."

Wang Wen chuckled, not exposing the old man's hypocrisy: "This junior is more than happy to welcome senior, what could possibly be wrong with me... Senior, please go ahead with your work. This junior's seclusion is not yet over. I will come back to ask for your guidance after I come out of seclusion."

After saying that, he clasped his hands in a fist salute, and the spatial passage between the two disappeared immediately.

The elderly auxiliary soldier stared dumbfounded at the scene, wanting to scratch his head but afraid of embarrassing his senior, so he could only mutter to himself, "This move... how come I don't know it? Am I some kind of fake land-based sword immortal?"

As the light faded, Wang Wen sensed the remaining true energy within his body rapidly converting into true essence. He calculated the time taken for this breakthrough and muttered to himself, 'There's still time.'

His path of martial arts training has come to a temporary end.

But his true path of cultivation has only just begun...

Not long after, deep within the General of the Cavalry's mansion, where the white mist had dissipated, a bright and gentle golden light suddenly shone forth, clear and pure, capable of piercing through all obstacles and reflecting the past, present, and future.

At the center of this golden light was a blurry figure in golden armor, seated cross-legged in the center of the stone chamber in the posture of five hearts facing the sun, with a five-colored golden wheel of merit, like a small sun, shining brightly behind his head...

Outside the stone chamber, the two dragons, who had just benefited greatly from Wang Wen's breakthrough to become a terrestrial immortal, stared wide-eyed at the scene.

"Merit, merit, merit, merit..."

Ao Hei's finger trembled as he pointed at the golden-armored deity. Overwhelmed with excitement, he bit his tongue, tears welling in his eyes, yet he continued to exclaim excitedly, "Golden Wheel of Merit!" (End of Chapter)