Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 38 The Foundation of Shintoism: The Method of Offering (Please continue reading)

Boom!

After reading it, Wang Cheng felt a thunderous roar in his head, as if every word was a gem, a resounding and enlightening revelation.

He had grown up by his father's side and had heard many of the big ship captains' summaries of Shinto cultivation, but he had never heard such a direct statement about the essence of Shinto cultivation.

No wonder people say that the success of officials from the lowest ranks and the outermost eight schools is hard to replicate.

Knowing what it is but not why it is, how can one see the whole mountain when one is blinded by a single leaf?
He read it a second time, then a third time, his eyes growing brighter as he savored each word.
"It is better to rely on yourself than on God."

The cultivation of the divine path begins with the three lowest grades: building a dwelling, lighting a lamp, and purifying one's life fire to become a god through a method of offering.

External martial arts cultivation, elixirs and precious medicines, divine weapons, delicacies from land and sea, luxurious mansions, fine clothes and beautiful maids—all are essentially tributes and resources for officials' cultivation.

Initially, the officials of the Shinto rites were only divided into three ranks: upper, middle, and lower.

Essentially, it all boils down to three words: "essence, energy, and spirit".

We worship the Three Jewels and advance together.

The lower three ranks emphasize offering "essence," the middle three ranks emphasize "vital energy," and the upper three ranks emphasize "spirit."

In all walks of life, as long as one can reach the upper three ranks, one's spirit and soul will possess a sufficiently powerful essence, and there is a high probability that one will transform into a ghost, god, or earth deity after death.

My father was a second-rank "White Water Gentleman" who was about to reach the pinnacle, but he stopped there and could not make any further progress.

According to the master, the reason why the Thirty-Six Halls of the Water Class have not been able to cultivate to the first rank in the course of thousands of years is most likely because the various official positions based on the "White Water Gentleman" are inherently insufficient and have no potential to advance further.

Only by cultivating other official positions and mastering more similar Daoist powers can one create new official positions with greater potential, and even surpass the Lord of the State, and glimpse the wonders of the Water Official Emperor!
The path of cultivation for the divine officials became increasingly clear to Wang Cheng.

Light a tube of "Baozhuan Incense," a blend personally prepared by the master using precious medicinal and aromatic ingredients such as agarwood, clove bark, and fennel seeds.

"breathe--"

Sitting on the bed, he continued to refine his essence and qi using the internal cultivation method [Chenlong Breathing Technique], and brewed lamp oil, beginning his cultivation at the lower third rank.

Even without 100,000 rare sea treasures, one cannot cultivate; various rare and precious materials also exist in deep mountains and old forests.

Incense craftsmen prepare precious incense such as Baozhuan incense, and alchemists refine elixirs such as Huangya Dan pills, all of which have similar effects.

Even the meat, vegetables, fruits, and medicinal supplements we eat can be transformed into vital energy as "tribute," constantly adding fuel to the lamp of the heart.

During the first offering practice, the light of the mind gradually overflows, and the three flames of fortune, prosperity, and longevity burn ever brighter.

Wang Cheng also began to question his own heart, trying to discover his strongest desires.

After a moment's hesitation, amidst the swirling smoke, he made his first truly heartfelt wish to himself:

"I do not desire to be ennobled; I only wish for peace on the seas!"

Whoever prevents you from pacifying the seas and lifting the ban, you shall pacify them!
Keep it up, Master Wang!

In his own piece on "Rare Goods for Sale," a line of unwavering fundamental conviction was quietly added.

Woo woo woo.
With the howling north wind, time quietly entered the twelfth month of the thirty-ninth year of Shaozhi, and there were still several days before the agreed time to set sail with Han Shushu, the reserve "sea snatcher".

While diligently cultivating his skills, Wang Cheng has gradually adapted to his new identity.

With his previous outstanding performances as a foundation, and having become Master Shen's apprentice, the originally poor scholar "Wang Fugui" has become a prominent figure in Hong Kong this month.

Those few who knew him even gave him a new title: "Fourth Master".

Given Shen Yuting's status in the martial arts world, Wang Cheng, the fourth disciple, certainly had the means to intimidate others.

During this period, he did not make a fuss about his work, kept to himself and took turns watching the store with the four counter staff during the day to hone his eyesight and lay a solid foundation for his skills as a salesman.

Occasionally, he would take his fishing gang of Qingyi out to sea to fish. During one such trip, they caught a rare seafood worth 100,000 taels of silver. Instead of selling it, he shared it with everyone according to the "Qingyi Alliance" distribution ratio.

With the blessing of the offering ritual, Wang Cheng's own spiritual light steadily increased, burning brighter and brighter.

The Zhang brothers, Wu and Wen, who have each mastered the Eight Blades of Breaking Waves and the Yaksha Staff Technique, are only one step away from igniting their inner light.

Wang Cheng also did not neglect those ordinary boatmen whose fates were ordinary, only gray and white, and often guided them in practicing external cultivation methods.

As their original core group, even if they don't eventually become officials, they can still be selected and trained into temple army ghost soldiers like the [Five Peaks Selection] and [Sea Island Ghost].

"This weather is getting colder and colder. This year, even Minzhou, located in the south, may experience heavy snow."

Wang Cheng walked with Zhang Wen along a street lined with antique shops, pawnshops, and money exchanges. He tightened the fur coat his master had sponsored for him, and his eyes kept scanning the roadside stalls.

During this time, he practiced at Fenglinzhai and became more and more proficient in the "rare goods are worth hoarding". With the help of his cheat code, his appraisal skills were also improving by leaps and bounds, and he was getting more and more itchy to do it.

I'm hoping to snag a great deal.

The small stalls sell a wide variety of items, including antiques, calligraphy and paintings by famous people, the Four Treasures of the Study, cinnabar talismans, knives, spears, and halberds.

Some blond-haired, blue-eyed Francois were even openly selling muskets and cannons.

It was a unique sight of that era to see both Western-made firearms and firecrackers made by Taoist alchemists on the same stall.

A quick visit is much more interesting than waiting in a pawnshop for someone to deliver the goods to your door.

He's been going out for a stroll these past few days and has managed to find quite a few good things.

Fortunately, few people know Wang Cheng, the "Fourth Master," and he never flaunts his wealth, quietly making a fortune in secret.

"One should have morals."

If you take advantage of something and then go around showing it off, what's the difference between that and eating delicacies in front of a beggar and smacking your lips? It's incredibly rude.

After walking along, Wang Cheng finally found his target. He bought some inexpensive trinkets from a small stall, acting like a half-baked enthusiast, allowing the stall owner to make a small profit.

But his eyes had already secretly glanced at a "door panel" on the stall next to him.

It looks about the size of a door panel, but it is carved with a majestic lion's head. Although the paint is a bit mottled due to wind and sun, it still looks very imposing.

In particular, its eyes are bright and piercing; from any angle, it feels like they are staring right at you.

So this is not a door panel in the eyes of an outsider, but a lion head panel that is standard on the bow of a sailboat!
“I’ve heard from some of the ship captains from Wufengqi who have dealt with the Franks that many of the Western sailing ships, which are very different from the Fujian ships, are equipped with all sorts of figureheads.”

Some of the finest pieces can even grant ships special abilities.

The most common type of Fujian ship in the Great Zhao Dynasty also had similar protective objects, and there was more than one of them. They were called: Dragon Eye, Head Lion, Tail Wing, and Loach, each with its own unique abilities.

The lion-head plaque mounted on the bow of the ship is one of them.

Wang Cheng looked up and saw ships from all over the world anchored in Yuegang. The Fujian ships of the Great Zhao Dynasty were the most numerous and had the most distinctive appearance.

In addition to a skilled crew, they must be equipped with four protective charms and worship the ship god on board before daring to set sail fully armed.

In Wang Cheng's eyes, a small portion of the Fujian ships shone with a unique brilliance, radiating golden light and auspicious energy.

It is only because some old objects on ships, under the long influence of incense and prayers, or under the influence of certain historical events with great impact, will generate talismans and become real "talismanic objects", exhibiting certain peculiar abilities.

As for the area in front of us, it seems
"My friend has a good eye; this lion-shaped plaque is a genuine talisman."

"This treasure is only given to those of the Yuan Dynasty. Our meeting is fate. I'll take a loss and sell it to you cheaply for five hundred taels."

(End of this chapter)