Chapter 30: Bai Jing Discusses the Primordial Spirit

"But we, the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers, have already taken on physical form!" Dijiang said, frowning.

"For that, you must thank the Pangu Hall. The Pangu Hall contains the will and the Dao resonance of Pangu, which share the same origin as you. Under the influence of Pangu's will, your essence and energy interacted, giving rise to an acquired consciousness and eventually a sentient physical form. However, because this consciousness took command, your true spirits retreated into seclusion. Thus, your innate, singular true nature has remained hidden deep within the sanctuary of your hearts. To allow the primordial spirit to return to the seat of command, you must first transcend this acquired consciousness. But you Ancestral Sorcerers have always utilized baleful energy to temper your essence and refine your bodies; your consciousness is powerful, and your hearts find it difficult to achieve stillness. When the heart is not still, how can the primordial spirit emerge?"

Upon hearing Bai Jing's words, the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers fell silent.

"So, does that mean our Sorcerer clan has no way to possess a primordial spirit?" Dijiang asked in a deep voice.

"I cannot speak for the other members of the Sorcerer clan, but among you twelve, eleven are unable to possess a primordial spirit. However, it is possible for you to discover your own true nature, and Fellow Daoist Houtu is the only one among you who has the potential to cultivate a primordial spirit."

At these words, the eyes of the Ancestral Sorcerers lit up, and they all looked at Bai Jing with eager anticipation.

Bai Jing did not keep them in suspense. He shared parts of the Daoist classics he had read in his previous life concerning the nature of divine intent: "In my view, Ancestral Sorcerers, the true spirit and the intentional spirit both reside within a single thought of the heart. When the heart is still, it is spirit; when the heart stirs, it is intent. The reason your consciousness sits in command while your true spirits remain hidden is entirely because your hearts cannot achieve stillness. Why can your hearts not be still? It is because the agitation of your essence and energy disturbs your thoughts. But if you can remove the agitation from your essence and energy, smooth them out, and then move them according to a certain rhythm, you can cause your hearts to follow that same rhythm. In this way, the heart and the essence-energy become synchronized and maintain the same frequency; relatively speaking, they become still. Where there is stillness in the heart, spirit is born. If you follow this method, it is possible to find your true nature and replace the agitated consciousness with it. At the very least, this will lead to a perfection of life and nature, and attaining the Dao of the Hunyuan Daluo should not be a problem. Even after attaining the Dao, using that singular true nature as a foundation to reverse-engineer a primordial spirit through great magical power is not impossible."

"Then why is it that only my little sister can cultivate a primordial spirit?" Zhu Jiuyin asked.

"Because while essence, energy, and spirit are three, they are in truth one. The movement of life is an orderly movement, and the stillness of the nature-spirit and the movement of life can transform into one another. However, the agitation of baleful energy is a disorderly, violent movement. Fellow Daoist Houtu was born last and is least affected by the baleful energy. Moreover, she carries the Law of Earth; the nature of earth is profound and centered on bearing, which allows her to minimize this influence. Just like the earth of the Primordial World—it appears still, yet within it, there is an incredibly powerful kinetic energy. It is only because of its immense capacity to bear that this energy is unified with it; yet, inside, it is never for a moment still. If not for this kinetic energy, the earth would be a rigid, lifeless mass, incapable of nurturing vitality. The same applies to Fellow Daoist Houtu. Besides this, there is one more thing: I have heard that at the peak of Mount Buzhou, there exists the Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light. If she can obtain this ray of light to strengthen her own singular true nature and make up for her deficiencies, then by working on both fronts, Fellow Daoist Houtu should be able to give birth to a primordial spirit."

"Brother Bai Jing, how do you know of the existence of the Innate Indestructible Spiritual Light at the peak of Mount Buzhou?" Dijiang pressed.

Bai Jing had already anticipated this question from the Sorcerers. Since he dared to speak, he had already prepared a scapegoat. He replied unhurriedly, "To answer this, I must speak of my own Daoist sanctuary. My sanctuary is the Yingzhou Immortal Island, one of the three great fairy islands. Like the Penglai Immortal Island, which has already appeared, and the Fangzhang Island, which has yet to reveal itself, they are all fragments of chaos left over from when the Great God Pangu split the heavens and the earth. Before the Great Immortal Yang Mei was expelled from the Primordial World by the Heavenly Dao, he used these three islands as his sanctuary. Much of the hidden knowledge I possess regarding the Primordial World was left behind by him."

"So that is how it is. No wonder Fellow Daoist Bai Jing knows so many things," Houtu sighed.

The other Ancestral Sorcerers also believed Bai Jing's explanation; after all, a sanctuary could not be faked. If Bai Jing were lying, it would be easily exposed.

"With our current situation, we would need to reach the peak of the Hunyuan Golden Immortal realm to climb to the top of Mount Buzhou. In order to help our little sister condense her primordial spirit as quickly as possible, it seems we must send more of our clansmen to the Western lands to repair the earth's veins."

"Big Brother is right. Helping the West repair its earth's veins is also a good thing for Jie Yin and Zhun Ti; they shouldn't obstruct us."

"Regardless of whether they obstruct us or not, if they dare to interfere, we will simply beat them into submission!"

The Ancestral Sorcerers discussed among themselves and quickly decided to send four more of their kin to the West, including Houtu. Had it not been for the fact that the Ancestral Sorcerers still needed to comprehend the Twelve Capital Divine Array, Dijiang would have wanted all of them to go to the West.

Hearing this, Bai Jing quickly said, "Fellow Daoists Shebishou, Qiangliang, and Gonggong, you three should go to the West first. I will accompany Fellow Daoist Houtu to the Wuzhuang Temple to borrow the Book of the Earth from Zhen Yuanzi."

"The Book of the Earth? What is the use of this object?" Shebishou asked.

"The Book of the Earth is also known as the Precious Mirror of Heaven and Earth. One who holds it can observe the myriad worlds within the span of a palm; from then on, there will be nothing in the world that remains unknown. More importantly, the Book of the Earth is formed from the fetal membrane of the earth. It contains 129,600 mountain and river nodes, which can be viewed as an alternative map of the Primordial World. One can also use this object to canonize mountain gods and earth spirits, building the foundation of the Earth Immortal lineage. Holding it while standing upon the earth allows one to establish a connection with the Primordial earth veins. Furthermore, one can set up the Book of the Earth Array, which provides unparalleled defense, unbreakable by any force. With the help of the Book of the Earth, we can know exactly where the earth veins in the West need to be repaired and the progress of the repairs. We can also connect to the Earth Dao, gain insights into the Great Dao of Earth, and establish a connection with the Earth Dao in advance."

"If the Book of the Earth is so useful, will Zhen Yuanzi lend it to us?" Gonggong asked.

"When listening to the Dao at Zixiao Palace, Zhen Yuanzi incurred a karmic debt to me. Using this karma to exchange for the right to use the Book of the Earth for a period of time should not be a problem."

After hearing Bai Jing's words, the Ancestral Sorcerers felt even more grateful. Bai Jing was truly sparing no effort in planning for the Sorcerer clan. They were not a people who would forget a kindness, and they would certainly repay Bai Jing in the future.

Subsequently, the four Ancestral Sorcerers and Bai Jing left the Pangu Hall. Shebishou, Qiangliang, and Gonggong headed toward the West, while Bai Jing and Houtu departed for the Wuzhuang Temple, where Zhen Yuanzi resided.

Nuwa, whose sanctuary was also on Mount Buzhou, naturally noticed the movements of the Sorcerers. She sighed, her expression complex. After the third lecture at Zixiao Palace, Di Jun and Tai Yi had come to their sanctuary multiple times, trying to persuade her and her brother to join the Demon clan. Nuwa's attitude had always been clear: she did not want to get involved in the Demon Heavenly Court. Fuxi had initially been on the same side, but under the constant persuasion of Di Jun and Tai Yi—especially after hearing their desire to gather the fortune of the Primordial World to achieve sainthood—Fuxi could not resist the temptation and boarded the chariot of the Demon clan. As Nuwa and Fuxi were siblings, with Fuxi having joined the Demon clan, Nuwa naturally chose to join as well.