The World's Number One Medical Hall

Chapter Fifty-Nine: Taoist Sect Members Never Descend the Mountain

"After the collapse of the previous dynasty, for about thirty years, the world was leaderless, with numerous vassal states scattered throughout the land, and heroes vying for supremacy. At that time, the people suffered greatly, and the Holy Ancestor's family was destroyed in the war. Seeing corpses everywhere, the Holy Ancestor rose in anger, took up his sword, mounted his horse, and roared to the heavens, thus emerging into the world… In the founding war, who could remain uninvolved? The Daoist sects of the world were inevitably drawn in, assisting their respective Holy Ancestors… And the Holy Ancestor, from nothing to something, with his unparalleled prowess, became invincible in just over ten years, defeating countless heroes…" Xiong eventually bowed down and submitted, with Taoist followers assisting him... When the Holy Ancestor rode into Pingjing, peace returned to the land. During his grand investiture of the realm, he selected 108 Taoist sects who had rendered great service to him, bestowing upon them 108 mountains to ensure their continued prosperity... However, at that time, there were far more than 108 Taoist sects in the land. Many others had followed him only after witnessing the Holy Ancestor's overwhelming power, or had previously lived in seclusion. Seeing the world at peace, how could they be complacent? Seeing the resources of the land controlled by the 108 mountains, though respected by the Holy Ancestor's authority, none dared to... Arrogant, yet secretly unwilling to submit… In reality, with so many sects engaged in continuous warfare at the time, their strength was already depleted. Some were not strong to begin with, only falling under the Holy Ancestor's command early in his campaigns, and were only granted the title of famous mountain by the Holy Ancestor out of consideration for their contributions… Unlike a dynasty, the Daoist sect needed to recruit disciples to continue its lineage in order to develop. But clearly, if the master was incompetent, why would the disciple choose to join his sect… Furthermore, the Daoist sect did not restrict competition based on skill, so those without a famous mountain often climbed it to challenge… Many sects were simply unable to withstand the challenge, and this famous mountain… Instead, it became the source of trouble. Helpless, he had no choice but to ask the Holy Ancestor to resign his merits and retire to the mountains... The Holy Ancestor was a peerless hero who always kept his word. Seeing such chaos, he naturally did not want his meritorious officials to be humiliated. However, this has always been the way of the Daoist sect. It is impossible to restrict the Daoist sect from exchanging skills. Therefore, relying on his overwhelming power, the Holy Ancestor issued another decree to all Daoist sects in the world. The 108 mountains of the Great Xia Dynasty will hold a grand gathering every ten years, with famous mountains assigned to specific individuals, and the most capable will reside there... From then on, the 108 mountains of the Daoist sects will exchange skills every ten years, and the pattern of the capable rising and the mediocre falling will be established... Tie Xiong's voice slowly echoed.

Mo Bai listened intently, and it was not difficult to understand. He quickly discerned the history of the 108 Mountains.

However, he still had doubts. He glanced at Tie Xiong, paused slightly, and then spoke up: "It's understandable to reward those who have made contributions. But since some of the Daoist sects weren't those who made contributions, and it's clear they weren't loyal to the dynasty at the time, why did the Holy Ancestor give them the opportunity to occupy famous mountains and develop their power? Doesn't that discourage those who made contributions back then?"

Mo Bai was indeed puzzled. After all, once this rule was established, these Taoist sects that had conquered famous mountains would no longer be relying on the imperial grace. They might not be so loyal to the imperial family. Based on the majesty of the Holy Ancestor at that time, if he wanted to truly set the quota of 108 mountains, just from Tie Xiong's tone, one could tell how powerful the founding emperor was at that time. If he really wanted to, why would he need to compromise with the Taoist sects?

Moreover, with the world at peace, why would there be any need for these Taoist figures to possess such remarkable abilities? The founding emperor should have sought ways to weaken them.

The best course of action would be to protect those who are not powerful but have made contributions, and to legitimately suppress those who are powerful but have not made contributions. This is in line with the principle of a founding emperor planning for future generations.

Upon hearing this, Tie Xiong shook his head and said, "Sixth Master, have you ever heard of a debate on the Dao throughout the world?"

Mo Bai shook his head.

Only then did Tie Xiong believe that Mo Bai might truly be unfamiliar with Taoism, and continued, "I won't be disheartened. The Holy Ancestor has already shown immense grace. It's not just our Great Xia that reveres cultivation; many nations also seek immortality. Long ago, our country and other nations' cultivators fought endlessly, especially during national wars, where the two sides were locked in fierce battles. Cultivators possess great power; a True Person realm cultivator, disregarding their own life, could truly slay an enemy marshal amidst the chaos of battle, and a Grandmaster realm cultivator could draw a bow and arrow, beheading an enemy general from a thousand meters away. Without checks and balances, this would be disadvantageous for us. At that time, the Holy Ancestor had just established peace in Great Xia, and neighboring countries were restless. If our country hadn't..." The corresponding strength is needed to deal with certain special wars, and even the safety of the commander-in-chief might be threatened during such a war. Moreover, even without national wars, there is the grand Daoist gathering held every ten years, where cultivators from all over the world gather to exchange and hone their skills. Our nation must demonstrate its strength to deter cultivators from other countries, preventing them from venturing into our territory and causing trouble. Our 108 Mountains are the orthodox sect of the dynasty; we cannot allow only incompetent individuals. Therefore, it is necessary for the capable to rise and the mediocre to fall within the Daoist community. The Holy Ancestor's granting those who made contributions at that time a generation to develop is already an immense favor.”

Tie Xiong clearly had a deep understanding of Taoism, which surprised Mo Bai. He hadn't expected that Tie Xiong would even know about things related to politics.

However, after he explained it to me, Mo Bai finally understood what was going on with this door.

Indeed, in the era of cold weapons, the role of personal martial prowess was extremely important. In fact, even in later generations, which high-ranking official travels without a few capable bodyguards by his side?

The Holy Ancestor organized this grand event once every ten years, which was actually a way of bestowing both grace and authority.

After all, I've provided you with resources to develop for ten years. If you still can't perform, then I can't blame the royal family. As for others, even if you haven't contributed to my cause, I'm still giving you a chance, and you should be grateful.

As expected, the Holy Ancestor, a great ruler, would not do anything without reason.

But after hearing this, Mo Bai finally understood the status of Taoism in this world.

To be honest, this society is still a society of mortals, and the Taoist sect is just an enlarged version of the martial arts sects of the past.

As for Tie Xiong's claim that he could change the course of a war, Mo Bai felt that it was not that exaggerated. The struggle between dynasties was not determined by conspiracies or assassinations of a single person. Even war was only one aspect. The outcome of a national war involved many factors and could not be decided by a few military men.

However, he couldn't deny that necessary precautions were still required; in that sense, Daoist practitioners were indeed still essential for the nation. Mo Bai continued, "What is the current strength of the Daoist sects?"

Tie Xiong continued, "Of the 108 sects, the three famous mountains, the four famous sects, and the seven families are the leaders! Among the three famous mountains, Shangqing, Taiqing, and Yuqing are the most illustrious, with True Persons presiding over them. Although the four famous sects do not have True Persons, they all have Dao Masters who are only one step away from True Persons presiding over them. The other famous mountains also have at least one Dao Master presiding over them..."

Mo Bai's eyes flickered, not at all surprised. The Realm of True Person was already comparable to that of a living immortal.

Although his master reached this level in later generations, in reality, throughout his time, he was the only one who had achieved this.

This shows how difficult it is to cross this threshold.

However, he finally realized that the limit of human power in this world is still that of a real person! It is impossible to overturn the world with personal strength alone.

This gave him a clear answer: the dynasty did not refrain from attacking Shangqing Mountain because of military force, so there was no need to ask further; there must be other checks and balances.

In fact, after listening to Mo Bai talk about the founding of the country by the Holy Ancestor and the role of these Taoist sects, he also understood that these Taoists could be of assistance in war. Emperor Dingwu's reluctance to act in this chaotic world was in line with his tolerant character.

"So, in this case, there are five True Persons in the Taoist sect, nearly two hundred Martial Arts Grandmasters, and thousands of novice Taoist practitioners. Their strength is indeed extraordinary. But if that's the case, why do they allow the Qi Kingdom to bully our people in Jinhai? After all, they didn't invade with a large army. If the Taoist sect truly showed its power in Jinhai, how come they couldn't achieve anything and were instead driven to hide and flee?" Mo Bai asked in a deep voice, his brows furrowed.

"What?" Tie Xiong was taken aback. "Jin Hai, how come there are Taoist practitioners here?"