enjoyebooks Chapter 58 Xuanmen Slang: This time, Baiyun Temple is in!
Chapter 58 Xuanmen Slang: This time, Baiyun Temple is in!
That night, the stars shone brightly, and the moon was half-hidden behind the clouds, making the entire Wudang Mountain appear somewhat gloomy.
But at this moment, a faint light from candles shone in the Ancestral Hall of Wudang Mountain.
The dim candlelight shone through the cracks in the doors and windows, casting a long shadow on them.
Master Yunlong stood in front of the Ancestral Hall, his hands tucked into his sleeves, his back against the closed door, his eyes scanning the surroundings warily.
"Yunlong, are there any outsiders?"
In the silent hall, Zhou Meng's voice suddenly rang out, and the figure in the window turned to look at the hall door.
"Reporting to the clerk, no!"
Without turning his head, Daoist Yunlong continued to keep watch around the temple gate, keeping watch for Zhou Meng inside the main hall.
"Sir, it's nothing serious, why are you so nervous?"
"Hmph! One must be cautious when undertaking important matters. Besides, this matter is of utmost importance, so the ceremony must be carried out properly."
The shadowy figures on the doors and windows turned their heads away again, and Zhou Meng's voice sounded slightly muffled after being blocked by the main hall.
"Alright, keep a close eye on things and don't let any outsiders in."
"yes!"
Master Yunlong replied respectfully in a low voice, then continued standing guard.
Inside the main hall, Zhou Meng was dressed in a yellow robe, wearing a ceremonial cap and a golden lotus crown.
Holding three lit incense sticks, he respectfully kowtowed to the statues of the patriarchs enshrined in the main hall, chanting Taoist scriptures.
A peculiar rhythm flowed from his mouth, making it difficult to discern the slightly strange syllables.
"Sizzle!"
After paying homage to the ancestral master statue, Zhou Meng stepped onto a wooden stool and placed the incense sticks in his hand on the offering table. Then, he took three steps back and bowed to the incense burner again.
Wisps of white smoke rose from the incense burner, but instead of dissipating in mid-air, they landed on a stack of yellow paper in front of the burner.
"Whoosh!"
After finishing his prayers, he took a wad of yellow paper, still damp with the scent of incense, from the offering table, then picked up a vermilion brush and dipped it into the inkstone.
With his vermilion brush fully soaked in ink, Zhou Meng muttered incantations as he lifted the brush and drew several lines in the air on the yellow paper.
"Buzz!"
The yellow paper, which had been infused with incense, suddenly emitted a faint glow. The pale yellow light moved across the paper and quickly formed several cloud-shaped talismans around its edges.
After the Dao patterns were formed, Zhou Meng solemnly put down his brush and began writing rapidly on the yellow paper.
Soon, several lines of the celestial script with its dragon-and-phoenix-like patterns were written, containing a poem with irregular rhymes.
The monkey was given a surname and a name, and the patriarch sat high and asked what it sought.
He rejects all unorthodox and heretical methods, seeking only the art of immortality and longevity.
Three strokes of the ruler on the back of the head, and in the dead of night, someone comes through the back door.
The secret formula for the Golden Elixir of Life and Death must not be heard by others.
If a high-ranking Taoist master were here, he would surely recognize that this doggerel-like thing is actually Taoist slang.
After finishing writing, Zhou Meng put the brush aside and lifted a handful of yellow paper in front of him. He saw that each sheet of yellow paper had the same cloud-patterned Taoist talisman and the same thunder-patterned heavenly book.
He lit the yellow paper in his hand one by one with the candles on the offering table, and then threw them into the incense burner.
"The Great Pure Yang Longevity Palace!"
"Chongyang Palace of Longevity!"
"Baiyun Temple!"
……
As each sheet of yellow paper inscribed with celestial script was lit, Zhou Meng would recite the name of a Quanzhen Temple.
The yellow paper ignited upon contact with fire, quickly transforming into streaks of golden runes that rose into the air and disappeared into the air above the incense burner.
The yellow paper in Zhou Meng's hand was quickly burned out. He picked up the Three Pure Bell next to him and gently shook his wrist.
"jingle--"
The clear and melodious sound echoed in the empty hall. He shook it three times, then put down the Three Purities Bell, took a few steps back, and bowed.
After performing the ritual, Zhou Meng looked at the rising smoke from the incense burner and sighed.
"Alright, now that I've sent out this heavenly book, those who need to understand will understand."
"Yunlong, retreat!"
After he finished speaking, all the candles in the hall were extinguished, and Zhou Meng's figure disappeared into the silent hall, leaving only three sticks of incense burning slowly in the incense burner.
……
Wudang, relying on the incense offerings of its patriarch, sent out the Taoist Heavenly Book to all branches of Quanzhen. That night, candles suddenly lit up in the patriarch halls of some temples.
Baiyun Temple in Beijing
This is the headquarters of the Quanzhen Longmen Sect, and one of the three ancestral temples of Quanzhen.
The current leader of the Longmen Sect is an old Taoist priest of the same generation as Zhou Meng, named Fang Dongtian.
The short-statured Taoist master was sitting cross-legged in his room, his eyes closed in meditation, when he suddenly felt a sudden urge.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
"Master, Wudang has sent us a secret book."
Outside the door, Liu Xingyang, dressed in a light blue Taoist robe, held a yellow form in one hand and knocked on the door with the other.
"Come in!"
"yes!"
Liu Xingyang respectfully pushed open the door, took the yellow document, went inside, and turned to close the door.
"Squeak!"
The wooden door opened and closed, the hinges making a slight creaking sound.
After closing the door, Liu Xingyang handed the yellow paper in his hand to Fang Dongtian, who was meditating on the couch.
Fang Dongtian opened his eyes, picked up the yellow paper in front of him, and frowned as he looked at it. Soon his brows relaxed again.
"Xingyang, has anyone from Wudang come down the mountain recently? Hmm, it should be a young man."
He handed the yellow paper to Liu Xingyang, gesturing for him to take a look as well. Only after Liu Xingyang had finished reading it did he ask a question.
"Yes, he's Senior Brother Yunlong's disciple, named Lü Qian, he looks about eighteen or nineteen. I heard today that this kid went north all the way, killing any Quanxing he encountered. Last night he killed three hundred-year-old ghosts from Quanxing, I heard he ground their bones to ashes, he's really ruthless."
Liu Xingyang shook his head and said, "What does Wudang mean by this? Do they want us to teach them the [True Fire Refining Spirit]?"
"But this is our most treasured heritage, and it's not something we can easily pass on."
"Hehe, you have vision, but unfortunately you're still a few years behind me."
Fang Dongtian shook his head, not surprised that Liu Xingyang could understand the Thunder Pattern Heavenly Book. As long as one knows some Taoist esoteric language, one can quickly master these things.
This celestial letter also clearly outlines Wudang's attitude and approach.
In Journey to the West, Sun Wukong had no name before becoming a disciple; he was only called "Monkey," which meant that he was not yet enlightened.
Later, the Patriarch Subhuti bestowed upon him a name, with the surname Sun and the given name Wukong.
Since the two characters of his name are homophones for "life" (性命), Sun Wukong thus determined his destiny and status.
【Sun】 means child or youth, and in Taoism it is regarded as the image of Lesser Yang. This means that a young man who understands the Tao of life and destiny has come down from Wudang Mountain.
After bestowing a name upon Sun Wukong, the Bodhi Patriarch asked him what he wanted to learn and offered him four unorthodox schools and eight hundred unorthodox methods to choose from.
But the monkey was unwilling to learn these unorthodox methods; it only wanted to seek the secrets to immortality.
This is also the first half of the Heavenly Book: "The monkey has been given a surname and a name, and the Patriarch sits high and asks what he seeks. He does not accept any unorthodox or heretical paths, but only seeks the art of immortality."
In other words, the young man who came down from Wudang Mountain, just like the monkey, wanted to ask the Quanzhen masters he had met along the way for the "art of immortality and longevity." It seems that Wudang wanted them to lend the young man a hand.
The second half of the Heavenly Book reads: "Three strokes of the ruler to the back of the head, at the dead of night, through the back door. The Golden Elixir of Life and Death, the Heavenly Immortal's Secret, must not be heard by others."
This echoes the scene in "Journey to the West" where the Bodhi Patriarch summons Sun Wukong in the dead of night to learn the Great Dao of the Golden Elixir and secretly imparts to him the method of cultivating both body and mind.
This also demonstrates Wudang's approach and attitude, hoping that these Quanzhen Daoist lineages can secretly transmit their teachings.
"Hey! This week, that little monkey is pulling this trick on me again."
Fang Dongtian reviewed the meaning of the Heavenly Book in his mind, then took the yellow paper from Liu Xingyang and burned it.
"Xingyang, when Lü Qian arrives, test him. If he is truly a person who is single-mindedly seeking the Dao and focused on refining his life force, then you should pass on to him the alchemy method of Baiyun Temple—[True Fire Refining the Spirit]."
He looked at Liu Xingyang standing beside him and said seriously, "Remember, pass it all on, leave nothing behind!"
"But Grand Tutor, this...this is a bit improper. Even if that young man surnamed Lü is exceptionally talented, our Baiyun Temple shouldn't be so eager to offer him such an opportunity."
Liu Xingyang was very puzzled. The Quanzhen lineage had its own methods, all of which were paths to heaven and could be considered great opportunities. Now, a Wudang disciple was being asked to learn them, which puzzled him greatly.
"You don't understand what his talent means. If this child is truly as that little monkey Zhou said, wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, and he can already kill three hundred-year-old ghosts before even reaching adulthood, his cultivation is not much different from that of the old Celestial Master back then."
Fang Dongtian turned to look at the burning candlelight. Through the flickering flame, he seemed to see once again the Heavenly Daoist who overshadowed the world.
"Since the Taoist Zhang Sanfeng attained enlightenment and passed away, our Quanzhen School has been in continuous decline for the past six hundred years."
As he spoke, Fang Dongtian sighed, "Over the years, due to the rules of Quanzhen, many young people have switched to Zhengyi, and the number of Quanzhen followers has been decreasing."
"Now, Wudang has invited my Baiyun Temple to participate, because they want to gather the strength of all the Quanzhen sects to support a patriarch."
"I must say, this method is truly insane, yet truly reasonable. I, Baiyun Temple, am betting on this!"