First Display of Divine Skill

"Young Lin, you misunderstand! This poor Daoist is not a member of the Qingcheng Sect."

Tai Yuan explained calmly, without haste.

His voice was gentle and steady, as if carrying an invisible power that pierced directly into one's heart.

Strangely, despite being a simple and even plain explanation, the ferocious and terrifying expression on Lin Pingzhi's face gradually receded, slowly returning to his gentle and quiet appearance, as if the maddened person filled with hatred just now was not his usual self.

This was naturally Tai Yuan's handiwork.

Since entering the realm of cultivating the spirit, Tai Yuan had encountered many difficult problems.

Tempering the body still left traces, but the spirit was like viewing flowers through a mist, its tracks hard to find.

Various sects and schools had vastly different understandings of the mind and spirit; even within the same sect and the same method, different people practicing would arrive at completely different results.

The Confucianists emphasized setting the intention and nourishing the nature, cultivating virtue through inner refinement.

The Daoists focused on cultivating the heart and tempering the nature, using the cultivation of the spirit to elevate their realm.

The Buddhists pursued clarifying the heart and seeing the nature, hoping to realize their Buddha-nature through insight into their original heart.

Though the paths of these methods differed, their purpose was the same: through the cultivation and nourishment of "nature," to achieve spiritual liberation, freedom of thought, and the highest realm of moral and personal cultivation.

However, "Those who learn from me live, those who imitate me die!"

The paths and experiences of predecessors could only serve as a reference; they could not be repeated.

Just like practicing ordinary martial arts, the most suitable person for a technique was naturally its creator.

Because when the creator forged the technique, it was based on their own height, weight, limb length, bodily functions, reaction speed, and many other personal factors.

If those who followed merely practiced the moves rigidly without knowing how to adapt them in their hearts to suit themselves, they would forever stand at the feet of giants, rather than on their shoulders.

Therefore, Tai Yuan did not go about condensing any martial truth, such as Sword Intent or Saber Intent, nor did he rashly choose any visualization method, such as the Buddhist White Bone Visualization or the Daoist Green Lotus Visualization.

He simply continuously improved his understanding of natural laws and acted in accordance with them.

At the same time, he perceived the essence of the natural universe—the essence of the "Dao"—and its subtle, endless changes.

This was the state mentioned in the {Dao De Jing}: "Always without desire, one observes its wonders; always with desire, one observes its manifestations."

Tai Yuan integrated this perception of nature and the "Dao" into his own cultivation, making it a unique method.

Just now, Tai Yuan had utilized his own spiritual field to release his goodwill, using a detached and tranquil heart to influence Lin Pingzhi, allowing him to settle down from his hatred and vigilance.

Similarly, Tai Yuan could also make a generous and kind person become impulsive, irritable, and easily angered.

Explained with later scientific theories, this was like the mutual influence between life fields.

Of course, Tai Yuan was not yet capable of letting the spirit interfere with matter.

But regarding the spirit and the heart—existences that leaned toward the metaphysical—he had already gained some insight.

This was also why, throughout his journey, Tai Yuan could sleep peacefully every night without being disturbed by rats, insects, snakes, or scorpions.

"Forgive me, Daoist. It was Pingzhi who was reckless," Lin Pingzhi said with a look of shame on his face.

The Daoist before him was as clear as the moon and as bright as the stars, with a temperament as vast as the stellar sky, nothing like those ox-headed and horse-faced, arrogant people of the Qingcheng Sect. Furthermore, Tai Yuan spoke with an accent leaning toward the charm of the Wu dialect, completely different from the Chuanshu accent.

Lin Pingzhi had followed behind the Qingcheng Sect all the way, hiding and evading with extreme caution, feeling as though every bush and tree was an enemy soldier.

At this moment, his emotions finally calmed, and he couldn't help but feel a few more points of trust toward Tai Yuan in his heart.

"It is no matter."

Tai Yuan waved his hand, his tone gentle.

"To meet is to have destiny. Seeing Young Lin's appearance, you likely haven't eaten yet? It so happens that this poor Daoist also needs to make an offering to the temple of the five viscera. Why don't we join together?"

"This..."

Lin Pingzhi was about to refuse—not because he suspected the Daoist would poison him, as he was still inexperienced and lacked such worldly vigilance. It was just that he had grown up in luxury and had always been the one to treat others; he had never experienced being invited by someone else. For a moment, his thin skin made him feel too embarrassed to respond.

"Gurgle..."

Before the refusal could leave his mouth, his stomach unhelpfully let out a cry.

It turned out that after several days of pursuit and high mental tension, he had completely forgotten his body's hunger. But now that his whole being had relaxed, various sensations rushed in like a tide.

"Then this one shall be thick-skinned. Many thanks, Daoist!"

Lin Pingzhi still did not forget to bow, his voice carrying gratitude.

Seeing Lin Pingzhi's current state, Tai Yuan couldn't help but feel emotional.

Even after falling to this level, Lin Pingzhi had not resorted to theft or robbery, which showed that in his heart, he was still that youth of integrity, unlike the ruthless and cold-hearted person he would become after castrating himself.

But no matter who it was, after experiencing everything Lin Pingzhi had, it was hard to say what kind of person they would eventually become!

Lin Pingzhi was still a youth at this point. Therefore, a thought began to grow in Tai Yuan's heart: to change Lin Pingzhi's tragic fate from now on.

Although Tai Yuan studied the Dao, and Daoism emphasized following nature and "non-action while leaving nothing undone," he wouldn't go out of his way to run errands for anyone from the original story. But if they crossed paths, then that was destiny, or one could say, Karma.

While various thoughts turned in his mind, Tai Yuan's hands were not slow.

He lightly flicked his sleeve, and his Inner Qi wound out like a spiritual snake, leaving his body. Under the control of Tai Yuan's powerful mind, that originally invisible Inner Qi gradually condensed, becoming tangible and perceptible, spinning into a large vortex that extended toward the surface of the water and the sky.

The surrounding air seemed to be pulled by this strange power, vibrating slightly and emitting a low humming sound.

"Splash! Splash!"

Under Lin Pingzhi's shocked gaze, several grass carp leapt out of the water, flying directly toward Tai Yuan's position.

The fish tails wagged vigorously, but they still flew rapidly toward Tai Yuan's position against their will.

"Swish! Swish!"

At some point, two tree branches had appeared in Tai Yuan's hands, piercing through the bodies of two fish from head to tail. Meanwhile, the bellies of the fish had somehow split open with a wound, as if sliced by a sharp blade, and their internal organs had vanished.

"Young Lin, you must handle your own fish."

Tai Yuan handed one over, smiling at Lin Pingzhi.

"Oh..." Lin Pingzhi finally recovered from his dazed state.

The fish had been about three zhang away, yet with a wave of this Daoist's hand, the fish had flown over on their own.

What kind of method was this!

He feared even Immortals were only thus!

Lin Pingzhi had seen Yu Canghai take action, but compared to the Daoist before him, they simply could not be mentioned in the same breath.

Dazed, Lin Pingzhi didn't know what he was thinking, but suddenly, with a thud, he knelt on the ground, his eyes filled with longing and pleading.

"Daoist, save my life!"