Demon Sword Immortal

"Just lead the way."

Is it troublesome?

Bai Xiang sat in the stone pavilion and looked around. He noticed that several entrances and exits of the Zen temple were guarded by martial monks, which was a bit strange.

After a while, the young novice monk walked over quickly and bowed to her again.

"Master said that this female benefactor should go alone."

Bai Leying immediately pouted. Bai wanted to reassure them a little, telling them they didn't need to wait there any longer and could go to the pedestrian street to get something to eat. Then she followed the little monk to the back.

Silence fell on the road.

Upon entering the main hall of the rear wing, the first thing she saw was a huge Buddha statue facing the main entrance.

The Buddha statue is four meters tall and is made entirely of cast brass. The connecting panel also depicts two shorter deities, but their identities are not discernible.

In front of the Buddha statue was an incense table, and beneath it, two monks sat facing each other on prayer cushions, their gazes falling upon her.

One of them, with dark skin, a white beard, and a protruding forehead, was wearing the robes of a monk, and was the very Master Cizheng she was looking for.

The other person, however, was:

He wore an earth-yellow monk's robe and a white bone rosary around his neck.

His long beard trailed wildly on the ground, and he held a wine cup with a beaming smile.

Who is this?

Bai frowned.

He looked older than Master Cizheng, yet he dared to break the precept of drinking alcohol in front of the Golden Buddha Hall.

"Little Xiang'er? Don't you recognize me?"

The drinking monk waved to her with a grin, and even let out a burp while his face was flushed.

"Back then... Oh!"

"When you were brought to this place, it was I, the Buddha, who gave you your name~"

Chapter Thirty: Prohibited Dharma Speaks Before the Buddha (Please add to your favorites and continue reading!)

"You are... Master Hua'an?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Xiang immediately remembered that Bai Shengju had told her the whole story of how she was adopted by Yinling Temple.

Bai Shengju had just lost his youngest daughter, and with family conflicts and ideological clashes unfolding simultaneously, he could not suppress his grief and chose to come here to seek solace from Master Cizheng.

She was found abandoned at the temple gate that very night. Bai Shengju, thinking of his daughter, asked Master Cizheng for her back. On his way out, he happened to meet Master Hua'an of Longhua Temple, who gave him the single name "Xiang," and he became known as Bai Xiang.

My grandfather seemed to have mentioned that Master Hua'an came from Longhua Temple.

That Tao Shuohua, Aunt Tao, she said the Jade Phoenix Sword was stolen, I think it was at Longhua Temple.

After recalling many details, Bai Xiang's gaze finally fell on the prayer beads worn by Master Hua An.

The prayer beads don't look too bad at first glance, but upon closer inspection, they're actually miniature skulls...

However, they are not human skeletons; they either have protruding snouts or spiky horns on their heads.

If that wasn't a polished decorative item...

Upon hearing Bai Xiang call her name, the old monk, who was drinking, put down his wine cup, smiled, and nodded. His hazy eyes fell on her, scrutinizing her from head to toe, his demeanor rather rude.

Bai Xiang steadied himself, looked at Master Cizheng sitting next to him, and bowed to him with a wooden sword in hand: "I wonder if Master has read my grandfather's letter?"

The fact that Master Cizheng was able to remember Bai Shengju during his most distressed time and go to confide in him to relieve his worries shows that the relationship between Master Cizheng and Bai Shengju was extremely close; they could be described as confidants and close friends.

Furthermore, Bai Shengju told her "not to be embarrassed," so she followed her heart and faced Cizheng with a straightforward attitude.

Master Cizheng straightened his legs and immediately stood up from his seated position. He also bowed to her, chanted a Buddhist prayer, and said, "I have already seen it."

"But there are some ambiguities in the letter, and I still don't understand why you think the 'Nourishing the Spirit and Strengthening the Organs' method is a hoax?"

Bai Xiang didn't reply, but instead looked at the old monk who was drinking.

“Master Hua’an is my senior brother and also the successor of my ‘Kan Jin lineage’,” Master Cizheng explained with a smile. “Kan Jin swordsmanship emphasizes the foundation the most among all schools, and Senior Brother Hua’an is the chief of Kan Jin. Perhaps I can’t help you with your question, and in the end you will have to ask him for advice.”

such.

Kan Jin Sword Path, one of the Seventy-Two Paths.

After thinking for a moment, Bai Xiang didn't hide anything and described her doubts about the Nourishing Spirit Method in more detail.

"You mean," Master Cizheng frowned after hearing this, "that you can vaguely sense the flow of the inner vision? And that you can also sense that, according to the universally circulated 'method of nourishing the spirit and cultivating the organs,' there are many corners that cannot be nourished?"

“Exactly,” Bai Xiang said frankly. “Grandpa asked me to consult the master.”

She wasn't faking it; she genuinely encountered a problem with her cultivation.

The methods for cultivating the spirit stage are so varied that it's hard to find any significant differences among the various schools and sects of the Great Yu Dynasty.

In modern times, with the internet at our fingertips, scientific research and data collection using various instruments have long established the ideal way to cultivate one's spirit during the nourishing phase. There's little disagreement on this point.

Bai Xiang also knew this principle, but because she could achieve "divine illumination of the inner landscape," she believed that she could cultivate "flow" to the extreme.

She could even distinguish the smallest nerve branch or capillary branch. It was under this level of microscopic introspection that she noticed that the 'Universal Nourishing Spirit Method' had an unusual effect on the internal organs.

It's not that we're raising them wrong, but rather that we're not raising them well enough.

Strictly speaking, this deficiency had already occurred during the skin and muscle training phase.

The standards described by Bai Shengju probably only account for about 80-90% of Bai Xiang's own standards. The rest she filled in with her 'Divine Illumination Inner View'.

It can be said that she deviated from the universal training method from the very beginning, striving for perfection in the cultivation stage.

"You're not lying?"

While Master Cizheng was still in a daze, Master Hua'an spoke first, and immediately questioned Bai Xiang.

"The Great Yu Kingdom, together with the surrounding countries, has hundreds of millions of people. With so many people and scientific instruments, the training method that you ultimately measured and finalized is flawed. Do you know what you're saying?"

Bai looked at him for a while and nodded: "Of course I know."

“Alright! Then I’ll test you!” Master Hua’an became interested. “It is said that ‘the heart houses the spirit, and the acquired spirit is the consciousness spirit.’ The heart is the head of the five internal organs. Logically, when practicing the internal organs, one should first nourish the heart. But in reality, all methods advocate nourishing the kidney essence first. Why is that?”

“Because ‘the kidneys store essence, which is acquired as turbid essence,’” Bai Xiang answered fluently. “The kidneys are the valves that defend against external pathogens and govern the body’s excretion. Whether it is the liver’s detoxification, the spleen’s immunity, or the lungs’ respiration, these are all innate laws. Only the kidney essence defends against external pathogens and regulates the five vital energies.”

"Huh?" The old monk's eyes widened. "I'll ask you again—besides following the practice method to guide the mind's flow, what else should we pay attention to when nourishing kidney essence?"

"Medicinal supplements, dietary restrictions."

How is flow mode induced?

"Nourish the exterior while also addressing the interior, prioritizing blood circulation."

Master Hua'an asked Bai Xiang more than a dozen questions in a row, and none of them could stump her.

This has really stumped the old monk.

He and Master Cizheng stared at Bai Xiang, their eyes wide with shock and curiosity.

At such a young age, his understanding of internal organ training is so detailed, he's almost on par with me, the Buddha.

What kind of monster is this?

Could she see inside?

But that's not right either—

He stroked his beard.

Viewing interior scenes can also be done using machines and instruments.

But what's the use of just looking at it?

Even the most meticulously crafted films can sometimes go astray when trying to guide the viewer into a flow state.

Because the five elements are constantly changing.

Even with the wealth of the Nine Great Swords, and the ability to use instruments to verify the route at every moment, they still cannot distinguish the smallest tributary at the very end.

That's why they "didn't practice enough".

That's utter nonsense—of course not!

Not enough practice is to protect you!

The fear is that you've "practiced enough" and insist on pushing the flow state to penetrate your entire internal organs, which could lead to a deviation in the flow state, causing you to bleed violently and die!

On this side, Bai Xiang bowed to the two of them again.

"Please enlighten me, Master."

Now they both understood what Bai Xiang meant.

For example, if perfect organ training is 100%, then the universal organ training method can only nurture about 60-70%. Beyond that, one dares not nurture it any further.

Because the longer you raise it, the more dangerous it becomes, and it could become possessed and cause serious harm at any time.

Kan Jin's swordsmanship places great emphasis on fundamentals, and he has devoted considerable effort to cultivating his spirit. Using their unique training method can slightly improve one's progress by half a step.

Unfortunately, I haven't reached that level yet.

Bai Shengju probably thought that Bai Xiang was seeking this "half-finished" result, so he introduced her to Master Cizheng, who was seeking the internal organ refining method of the Kan Jin lineage.

This thing isn't exactly swordsmanship. It also has nothing to do with visualization techniques or anything like that. It's perfectly fine to teach it to Hakusou.

After all, Kendo doesn't place that much emphasis on the body.

Nourishing the spirit and giving back is merely laying the foundation for enduring demonic power.

But judging from Bai Xiang's words... she wants to perfectly train her internal organs?

While one might call her whimsical, her vivid descriptions of the interior scenes demonstrate a remarkable level of perception, indicating a genuine talent for it.

"Alright then," Master Cizheng sighed, "I'll fetch you the cultivation method of the Kan Jin lineage later. Take a look, and if you don't understand anything..."

"Oh, don't go to such trouble!"

He was interrupted halfway through his speech by Master Hua'an.

Bai Xiang remained silent, and then he saw the old monk reach into his sleeve and pull out a tattered, thread-bound ancient book.

The ancient book's surface was yellowed and had severely curled edges. The cover had five characters written in small regular script: "Chaoyuan Huaqi Jing".

"Brother!"

Upon seeing the book, Master Cizheng's expression changed, and he instantly stood in front of Bai Xiang.

"no!"

You can't give this to her!

"You know my relationship with Bai Shengju. You've got him killed. How am I supposed to face this?"

Master Hua'an said impatiently, "What if she can practice it?"

"That's not OK!"

Master Cizheng suddenly lowered his voice.

"This is an old practice of the Golden Cicada Temple..."

"Jin Chan Temple is already... Senior Brother!!"

"Ok."

Master Hua'an was also taken aback and put the ancient book away.

"What a pity..."

He glanced at Bai Xiang and sighed.

"Since we are not destined to be together."

"Please, female benefactor, discuss Kan Jinfa with my junior brother as soon as possible."

Chapter Thirty-One: White Ice Cream, Black Ice Cream

Wearing an antique-style long dress, Bai Xiang emerged from Yinling Temple, holding a sword in one hand and another thread-bound ancient book in the other, while recalling the scene of the two monks confronting each other.

The Classic of Chaoyuan Huaqi.