Chapter 460: Yellow Spring

Jingmo Great Master’s meaning was very simple.

Perfect Enlightenment, wondrous mind, only this one mind, is the root of all beings, saints, confusion, enlightenment, righteousness, and Karma in the Ten Dharma Realms, and the Origin of all Buddhas.

He inexplicably gained consciousness, and then, in the void of consciousness, he enlightened.

Because he himself was a Puppet, he had no ‘obstacles’; from the moment of his birth, he had never experienced anything other than his own self.

Thus, without any prompting, he enlightened to ‘emptiness’, and from ‘emptiness’ he enlightened to ‘Perfect Enlightenment’, which means that this mind-body is all-pervasive, appearing in every moment, encompassing everything.

In this way, he entered Buddhism.

Such talent…

Li Qi could only say that there was always someone stronger, no wonder he could obtain Amitabha’s Buddha Qi; this kind of person must be a Buddha Child, and a seed-level contender.

“Great Master Jingmo is indeed formidable, but what is Great Master doing here? The books you are reading… don’t seem to be related to Buddhism.” Li Qi looked at the book in his hand and asked with some confusion.

Not only were they unrelated to Buddhism, but these books were also particularly strange.

The title of the book was “Some Details on the Maintenance and Strengthening of Spherical Joints.”

The other book titles placed beside it were even more mysterious.

Li Qi scanned around and found titles like: “Introduction to the Working Principles of Small Energy Cores: A Gift for Beginners,”

“Artisan’s Delusion: How New Refiners Can Improve Efficiency,”

“One Hundred Simple Formulas for Calculating Spiritual Artifact Output that even Martial Artists Can Learn,”

“Artist’s Compendium: The Beauty of Pure Mechanical Structures.”

“Ah, naturally, they are not related to Buddhism. This humble monk is studying medical techniques. After all, when traveling outside, there are always inconveniences, and it’s not good to always ask refiners for help. It’s better to learn a bit oneself, so that when traveling in the future, one won’t always be troubled by such matters.” Jingmo Great Master responded gently.

Li Qi’s eyes twitched.

It seemed there was nothing wrong with that.

To Jingmo Great Master, this pile of things was medical techniques.

“Then I won’t disturb Great Master. Farewell.” Li Qi observed for a moment but couldn’t find anything unusual, so he simply cupped his hands and bid farewell to Jingmo Great Master.

This mechanical Great Master truly had a bit of Zen. Li Qi couldn’t see anything else from him; he was an extremely pure Great Master.

Although a bit strange, Li Qi hadn’t seen many strange things.

Having removed the suspicion from the other party, Li Qi no longer thought about it and turned to reading.

Many more detailed concepts of the Dao of Reason still had to be learned from books. With this knowledge, he would have enough foundation to face the many troublesome matters in the future.

Alas, he was only a seventh-rank; why couldn’t he cultivate properly?

Li Qi shook his head, then found a pile of books he needed and began to read.

As soon as he started reading, Li Qi would cast aside his worries and fully immerse himself in the ocean of knowledge. For him, this was a rare form of entertainment.

Learning new knowledge, seeing new unknowns, and expanding his horizons—this was precisely the purpose of Li Qi’s cultivation of the Dao.

When he stood beside Yi County in Li Prefecture and personally witnessed the magnificent sight of the Human Dao Qi rushing into the sky, he felt that his cultivation was for the purpose of witnessing scenes grander and more magnificent than this, to witness the wonders within the myriad worlds.

Although until now he had been pushed by various matters and Heavenly Demons, Li Qi had never forgotten this initial wish.

Soon, Li Qi immersed himself in learning, like a sponge, beginning to absorb water in the ocean of knowledge.

After that, Li Qi’s life became very fixed.

During the day, he would go fishing with the Shen Yijun elder, usually for two to three hours.

Fishing quickly made Li Qi and the Shen Yijun familiar with each other, and he also learned some small tips for physical exercise.

After that, he would read, reading very seriously.

Incidentally, that Jingmo Great Master also stayed in the library, truly like a Puppet, reading tirelessly, completely without the daily life needs of ordinary people.

Puppets don’t get tired, which is indeed very convenient for learning. Li Qi was even a little envious.

Then, after finishing his reading, he would listen to the Dao of Reason members, who had returned from overtime, give lectures, letting them help him digest the knowledge in the books. Both sides communicated, and his relationship with Wang Dun and the others also became good.

After the class, Wang Dun and the others went to work on the treasure ship, and Li Qi continued to fish.

A stable, orderly day.

Li Qi was very satisfied with this.

Such days continued for five days.

Five days later, after Li Qi finished his daily lecture, he came to the deck, preparing to fish.

However, today, the Shen Yijun elder did not cast his fishing rod, nor did he set up his fishing platform. Instead, he stood tall, looking into the distance from the deck, seemingly wanting to see the end of the sky.

He might actually be able to see it, because the sky in this world does have an end, and from this position, it’s actually not too far from the end.

“Elder, aren’t you fishing today? Why are you standing here looking at the water?” Li Qi walked over and greeted the Shen Yijun.

“Hmm, no fishing for now. After all, in a few more hours, we’ll reach the Deep Ocean area. It will be spectacular then. We’ll fish there.” The Shen Yijun smiled.

Then, he pointed at Li Qi’s fishing platform and said, “However, you can use the fishing platform to enhance your senses. I’ll tap your Mutongzi and Fubai Acupoints to strengthen your eyesight, and you should be able to see it.”

Upon hearing this, Li Qi immediately did as he was told.

Moreover, he curiously observed the Shen Yijun’s movements.

Acupoint tapping technique!

He had heard of it, but never seen it. This was a skilled technique among Martial Artists.

Li Qi watched the other party operate, only to see a stream of Martial Dao Inner Qi tap his Mutongzi and Fubai Acupoints. At the same time, the Martial Dao Inner Qi transformed into a warm current and surged into his Physical Body.

Immediately, Li Qi concentrated fully, trying to understand how this acupoint tapping technique worked.

He couldn’t learn it, but he had to observe it carefully.

The Mutongzi Acupoint is in the bone gap at the outer edge of the small corner of the eye, horizontally aligned with the pupil, hence the name Mutongzi. The Martial Dao Inner Qi is five fen outside the eye’s outer canthus, at the convergence of the Hand Taiyang and Hand and Foot Shaoyang meridians, penetrating three fen deep, and is cauterized with Qi and blood three times.

Then there is Fubai, behind the ear, one inch into the hairline.

It corresponded not only to the Physical Body, but Li Qi’s personal small world, the miniature heaven and earth, was also simultaneously stimulated by the Martial Dao Inner Qi. The miniature heaven and earth immediately began to fluctuate, and even the Sun and Moon Heavenly Gods and Nascent Soul became more vibrant.

The external force even formed a mysterious circulation.

The black of the pupil follows Yin, the white of the eye and red veins follow Yang, thus Yin and Yang combine to create clarity. The eye is the envoy of the heart, and the heart is where the Divine Spirit resides. Therefore, when the heart and spirit are stable and not disturbed, one can have a clear mind, sharp eyes, and keen ears.

After this set of operations, coupled with the amplification of the fishing platform Spiritual Artifact, Li Qi’s eyesight was greatly enhanced. He felt his gaze constantly traverse long distances—

Then, he saw…

A tree.

A giant tree standing in the middle of the ocean!

Could it be the legendary Fusang Tree?!

“This… could it be Fusang?!” Li Qi asked in astonishment.

“Are you stupid? You’re a Shaman, and you don’t even recognize Fusang?” The Shen Yijun rolled his eyes.

Upon hearing this, Li Qi shook his head in shame and began to observe and ponder carefully.

The characteristic of the Fusang Tree is its name. The so-called Fusang actually refers to the character ‘Fu’ (扶, to support). There are two of these trees, one Fusang and one mulberry tree. The two trees intertwine and spiral upwards, growing from the same root and leaning on each other, hence the name ‘Fusang’.

But the giant tree in front of him was tall and straight, showing no signs of intertwining or spiraling.

Moreover, it was blooming with pink flowers.

Wait… pink flowers?

Peach blossoms?

Peach tree?!

In the vast ocean, there is Mount Dushuo, and upon it stands a great peach tree, its branches winding for three thousand li. Between its branches, to the northeast, is called the Ghost Gate, where myriad ghosts enter and exit. Upon it are two Divine Spirits, one named Shen Tu and the other Yu Lei, who are in charge of reviewing and leading all ghosts.

He was very familiar with the two Divine Spirits, Shen Tu Yu Lei. In the beginning, when he was still fleeing for his life in Li Prefecture, the willow branch Teacher Zhu bestowed upon him contained the Divine Qi of Shen Tu Yu Lei!

In other words, he had arrived in front of Shen Tu Yu Lei’s peach tree?

Holy cow, these two great Divine Spirits helped him a lot in the early stages! Although they didn’t actually recognize him, and they probably dealt with countless sacrifices every day, it was just like what the Li Shui God did back then.

They might not care, but he couldn’t not care. Since he had already arrived here, he definitely had to go and pay his respects and offer tributes to show his gratitude.

If it weren’t for the Divine Qi of Shen Tu Yu Lei, Li Qi would have probably died outside long ago.

“Shen Tu Yu Lei’s great peach tree, right? This is Mount Dushuo!” Li Qi immediately said to the Shen Yijun.

“You do have some knowledge, after all. Mount Dushuo, this is a ‘Ghost Gate’. The ghosts captured by the Yin Messengers from various places all have to be reviewed here by Shen Tu Yu Lei, who distinguish between good and evil, and then send them into Reincarnation.” The Shen Yijun said.

Li Qi immediately observed the great peach tree again, wanting to remember all its details.

However, after only a few seconds, Li Qi suddenly felt that within his inner body spirits, the Sun and Moon Heavenly Gods and Nascent Soul, suddenly trembled.

At the same time, his eyes began to bloodshot.

Li Qi immediately closed his eyes. He knew it was sensory overload. When all organs, including the miniature heaven and earth, remain in a high-load state for too long, this situation occurs, and rest is necessary, otherwise it will damage the foundation.

With his eyesight, directly looking that far and seeing the great peach tree was indeed a very high load.

The effect of the acupoint tapping quickly disappeared. Li Qi released the fishing platform, and the image of the great peach tree immediately disappeared from his vision; he couldn’t even see a faint, blurry light spot.

No wonder, it was too far. Li Qi’s eyesight simply couldn’t see it.

“Ghost Gate, Elder, could it be that the destination of this scientific expedition ship is Mount Dushuo…?” Li Qi looked at the Shen Yijun and asked.

“That’s right, it’s Mount Dushuo. However, I don’t know what exactly we’re doing. I came here for another matter. When we reach Mount Dushuo, everyone on this ship will go their separate ways. What do you plan to do then?” The Shen Yijun asked Li Qi.

“Hmm, I’ll look for merchants nearby, I suppose there should be some. I need to collect some ingredients. If there aren’t any, I’ll go to the Deep Ocean area and fish for them myself.” Li Qi said.

“As for merchants, there are indeed many, after all, most people who come to the Deep Ocean are seeking wealth. It’s good that you already have a plan. After I finish my business, we can go fishing in the Deep Ocean. It’s very exciting there, much more interesting than the previous places. But I’m afraid it won’t be possible today.” The Shen Yijun said.

“Why not?” Li Qi was puzzled. Although he said they were about to arrive, they hadn’t arrived yet, had they? The remaining time should be more than enough for two casts, right?

“Why? Watch the sea view with me for half an hour, and you’ll know. Although we won’t be fishing, it’s still fine to chat with an old man, right?” The Shen Yijun smiled.

Li Qi suspiciously glanced at the Shen Yijun.

This old man only looked old; his back was straight, his muscles were firm. If it weren’t for his white hair and beard, and age spots, his body was better than his.

And much better. That robust Qi and blood and sturdy Physical Body were much stronger than Li Qi, who was like a little chick.

If you were to say such a person truly had elderly hobbies, Li Qi estimated it was highly unlikely.

“Watching the sea view? Hmm, it’s not impossible.” But he still agreed.

Only half an hour, a small matter.

Then, the two chatted about fishing and began to watch the sea view.

However, after watching for about a quarter of an hour, Li Qi suddenly realized something was wrong.

The color of the sea ahead had changed.

The sea was still blue now, looking clean and clear, with a beauty where sea and sky merged into one color.

But further ahead, the color of the sea turned pitch black.

And there were no strong winds or rough waves, but a strange calmness.

As the ocean turned pitch black, it also created a ‘clear distinction’ kind of scene, with a distinct dividing line between the blue seawater and the black seawater.

This dividing line not only separated the sea surface, but even the sky was separated!

Yes, behind that dividing line, even the sky was black! The sunlight seemed to be largely obscured, with only a small amount of light able to penetrate, like a black gauze screen descending from the sky, or as if the world itself had been given a filter.

“Where the Ghost Gate is… Yin Qi gathers, no wonder.” Li Qi quickly discerned through True Knowledge Dao Resonance and Information Stream Vision that this was due to the gathering of massive amounts of Yin Qi.

Such terrifying Yin Qi that even the heavens and earth changed color, and the sea turned into black water!

This was the Ghost Gate!

Fishing here, he probably wouldn’t catch fish.

As for what, Li Qi wasn’t sure, but he estimated it wouldn’t be anything good.

This was the Ghost Gate of the world, the opening where Reincarnation manifested in the present world, and even a tiny bit of leakage from it could pollute the world’s heaven and earth to this extent!

“Haha! Here we come. Once we cross this line, we can fish. This is much more exciting than outside. It will take another half a day to dock. If we’re lucky, we might even get in two casts to satisfy our craving. Come on, get ready!” The Shen Yijun became excited.

But Li Qi felt a chill down his spine. He didn’t move, but cautiously asked, “Casting a line in a place like this, I’m afraid it won’t be seawater that goes in. Where exactly are we fishing?”

The Shen Yijun laughed heartily and replied, “Fishing where? Haven’t you heard? Where the Ghost Gate is, what other water source could there be?”

“Of course it’s—”

“Yellow Springs.”