Shulong Daojun

"No," Lin Shu shook his head.

His expression was carefree, his eyes gleaming, but his tone was very calm: "Master, I have found the dragon."

A dragon? The Taoist priest was stunned.

Hidden in the deep sea, soaring through the clouds, its head is seen but its tail is not; it is not that it is not seen by chance, hence it is called a dragon.

He had spent his entire life cultivating the Tao, yet despite all his opportunities, he had never seen such wondrous things created by nature.

Tempted by a sudden urge, he grabbed the Taoist priest and asked with great interest, "Good disciple, quickly tell your master where you met him."

What does it look like? Does it have antlers like a deer, a head like a camel, ox ears, rabbit eyes, and two golden whiskers growing from its mouth?

Lin Shu remained silent, only taking out the blue-green stone from his bosom, holding it steadily in his palm, and softly chuckled:

"Master, this is the dragon."

But in the eyes of the Taoist priest, it was just a beautiful pebble with spiritual energy.

After a moment of silence, he frowned, looked at Lin Shu, and asked with concern, "Good disciple, did you bump your head when you went out?"

"No," Lin Shu replied truthfully.

Seeing the expression on the monk's face, he suddenly understood and added, "Thank you for your concern, Master. I am perfectly fine."

These two sentences left the Taoist priest speechless and speechless.

After a long silence, he finally said slowly, "Is it possible that it's just a rock?"

Without waiting for Lin Shu's reply, he probed, "Good disciple, do you intend to use the spiritual essence of this pebble to condense your Dao embryo?"

"Master has discerning eyes," Lin Shu praised with a smile.

On the contrary, the Taoist priest raised his eyebrows, tucked his whisk into his belt, rolled up his sleeves, and revealed his strong arms.

"Traitorous disciple—"

All things in heaven and earth possess spiritual essence. A Daoist, through the gathering of clouds, receives this essence, which enters their body. By guarding the dantian (lower abdomen), this essence condenses into a Dao embryo, allowing one to glimpse the Great Dao and attain immortality.

He glanced at Lin Shu sideways and said earnestly, "Do you still remember?"

"My master's words are still fresh in my mind, always relevant and new." Lin Shu bowed respectfully.

"In that case, one should know that the innate spiritual essence, such as dragons and snakes, and the spirits of mountains and rivers, is pure and untainted in its embryonic stage, and close to the Dao once formed."

The acquired spiritual essence is that of the enlightened demons who drink the moon's essence and swallow the sun's essence. Although their embryos are spiritual, they are still imbued with demonic energy, and over time, they inherit the nature of demons.

While folk beliefs may dictate the use of fox spirits, weasels, white foxes, and willow branches for offerings, their spirits are mixed and their energy impure, thus deviating from the proper path and considered an inferior choice.

As the Taoist priest spoke, his tone gradually turned to helplessness, "Good disciple, if you choose this pebble, the Dao embryo you condense will probably not even be as good as the incense embryo."

The road ahead is long and arduous; you should think this through carefully.

Upon hearing this, Lin Shu stroked the blue-green stone in his hand, feeling its warmth and smoothness. His gaze fell on the dark gold patterns, sensing its extraordinary nature, and then he smiled faintly.

"Master, my mind is clear and my will is firm."

Seeing this, Bao Daoren felt a sense of relief, but also a great headache. All sorts of emotions swirled around him like a river flowing eastward, eventually all returning to one.

"Enough. The path of cultivation is up to the individual. To say more would be superfluous."

He murmured to himself, took off the whisk from his waist, held it in his hand again, rolled up his sleeves, and resumed his previous indifferent demeanor.

"Good disciple, if you have any questions about the method of forming the Dao Embryo, come and ask your master for clarification."

He left the Taoist priest with a message, then turned to enter the temple.

Just then, Lin Shu suddenly asked, "Master, may I go to the small pavilion and fetch some items for my use?"

"Take it, take it. Don't ask me about such a trivial matter." The Taoist priest waved his hand and his figure gradually disappeared.

"Small" implies subtlety and intricacy.

Seeing the small is called enlightenment, and guarding the gentle is called strength. There is also a saying that the Tao is hidden in the details.

Therefore, the items stored in the small pavilion often appear ordinary, yet possess incredible abilities.

Lin Shu greeted Xiao Dou'er and his junior brother, then entered the temple and arrived at this place.

Upon entering, in the very center, there is an incense table with a small bronze incense burner and two ever-burning candles.

Behind it was a white jade platform about three feet high.

The table is divided into three layers, each covered with thick, bright yellow silk mats, and displays a collection of simple and heavy objects, which correspond to the numbers "five," "seven," and "nine," arranged neatly from top to bottom.

Lin Shu followed etiquette and took three sticks of incense from the side, lighting them with the candlelight.

As the smoke curled upwards, he held the incense sticks and asked the patriarchs of the temple for their permission. After placing the incense in the burner, he approached the lowest level of the altar.

Although the indigo stone has dark gold patterns, which could be described as "dragon seed", it is actually just a stone now.

To transform it into a stone egg capable of nurturing a dragon, one must follow the methods recorded in the "Dragon Book."

"Some rocks are round like eggs. Over time, patterns will appear on them. When the patterns are complete, they will crack, and a dragon will emerge from the crack."

The meaning of the Wen Tong pattern is that when the pattern is fully formed, a dragon will naturally emerge from the stone egg.

Lin Shu pondered as he carefully examined the nine objects on the silk mat.

Withered branches, pottery shards, scorched leaves, red ropes, and so on—each different, yet all carrying a trace of Taoist charm, revealing the profound wonder of change.

"It's you."

He examined each of the scales one by one, learning their intricacies. After careful consideration, he finally settled on a piece of smooth, full metal, which was both blue and gold in color.

Originating from the depths of the earth's veins, it is imbued day and night with the vitality of spiritual trees and the metallic energy of mineral veins. If damaged, it can slowly repair itself by feeding it with herbs, trees, and metals.

It is perfect for bringing out the dark gold patterns on the indigo stone, making it more complete.

"Golden dragons are born after a thousand years, and azure dragons are born after a thousand years, as are red, white, and black dragons."

Five colors correspond to the five elements, and the five elements correspond to the five directions. Although there are five methods for a dragon to emerge from a stone egg, the gold from the other four directions is currently too scarce to find.

This Eastern Wood-element Azure Dragon is the best choice.

Having made his decision, Lin Shu immediately took out the book with both hands without hesitation and quietly walked out.

After walking several dozen steps, continue westward along the corridor until you reach the end, where you will find a stone forest.

A hundred or so huge rocks lie on the ground, resembling an immortal splashing ink to paint a picture. There are words on the rocks, which are scriptures, and mottled green moss underneath.

Lin Shu looked up with a scrutinizing gaze, and upon seeing a large, pitted blue stone, he couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.

He leaped lightly and landed on the bluestone.

Immediately, he took out the blue-green stone and placed it in a large pit on the blue stone, then carefully covered it with the piece of blue-gold metal.

He finally breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Dragons dwell in water and also in caves; they ascend to the heavens at the spring equinox and dive into the abyss at the autumn equinox."

This piece of bluestone is large enough to serve as a dragon's lair, nurturing stone eggs and giving birth to a blue dragon.

As he spoke, Lin Shu sat cross-legged to one side, waiting quietly, while another matter came to mind.

The process of forming the Dao embryo is divided into four steps: seeking the spirit, sensing the spirit, dividing the rhythm, and forming the embryo.

Among them, the task of venturing into deep mountains and near vast marshes to seek out the wonders of nature is easy.

To observe its form, contemplate its spirit, and then discern its spiritual essence is difficult.

The things that heaven and earth nurture are not entirely in tune with human reason. If we have no kindness or favor towards them, how can we share in their spiritual essence?

Ordinary practitioners often get stuck at the step of distinguishing rhymes.

However, this azure dragon, which he had personally nurtured, should not be like this.