Shi Feiyang said to Zhu Zaiyu that he wanted to see another volume of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas."

Zhu Zaiyu somewhat regretfully said, "That other volume is not with me; it's no longer in Central Earth."

It turned out that several years ago, some official friends who often visited him brought members of the West Pole Sect. They frequently talked about the grandeur and magnificence of the West, where governance and human affairs flourished—describing it as better than the Spiritual Space Immortal Realm, subtly hinting at trying to recruit him into their sect.

Zhu Zaiyu said it wasn't right. "I have a part of the Classic of Mountains and Seas here, and it includes some information about West Pole Mountain. In ancient times, it was a savage wilderness, with wild men everywhere. There are also records left by Zheng He when he visited West Pole Mountain. Although there are some states on the mountain, they are merely large tribes."

Those friends were quite surprised and borrowed those books to study. At that time, this volume of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" was also borrowed. Since it was an ancient manuscript, he treasured it greatly. After asking for its return several times, they copied a duplicate and returned the original, but then borrowed another middle volume.

Later, when he went to ask for it, the friend had moved, and many things were lost. He repeatedly inquired about the whereabouts of that volume of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas." After thinking it over, his friend eventually said it was taken to the West by a sect member.

The West Pole Sect! Shi Feiyang remembered that it was a very powerful sect. There were over ten large nations and several hundred small nations on West Pole Mountain, all followers of the West Pole Sect. The sect had six individuals with undying bodies.

Shi Feiyang figured that he couldn't even defeat a single one with an undying body currently; relying on his Magical Treasures, he might be able to fight two or three, but that would be just to protect himself. Winning was out of the question. Later, once he also attained an undying body, he would have to venture to the West and meet those six individuals.

In his heartache, he wanted to ask Zhu Zaiyu for this lower volume of the "Classic of Mountains and Seas."

But he also realized how much Zhu Zaiyu treasured this ancient manuscript. He felt embarrassed about asking rashly, so he pondered what he could exchange for the book.

Zhu Zaiyu naturally noticed his interest in the book and took the initiative to say, "I have a request, and I hope my fellow Daoist can grant it."

A moment ago, Shi Feiyang had asked him not to address him as True Master Long, as it felt too distant; he requested to be called fellow Daoist.

Zhu Zaiyu laughed and said, "I'm not a Taoist..."

Shi Feiyang replied, "The two of us study the Heavenly Dao and meet through the Dao; how are we not Taoists? We truly are those who cultivate the Dao!"

Zhu Zaiyu understood his meaning and laughed heartily, "Then the music, natural science, geomancy, and medicine we've discussed, are they all Daoist skills?"

"Exactly!" Shi Feiyang answered very formally.

Zhu Zaiyu then freely addressed him as fellow Daoist, and he also called Zhu Zaiyu fellow Daoist.

"I am growing old, with limited days ahead, having few descendants, and no one who understands the Dao. I ask you to take this book, to spare it from others coveting it."

Shi Feiyang, hearing his offer to give him the book, was naturally delighted, "Fellow Daoist comprehends the Heavenly Dao and has neared what Confucius once called the dragon-like state. I possess methods for prolonging life and have Spiritual Medicine for maintaining youth; although you are past your prime, you have seen the Dao. Lesser techniques are simple to cultivate and to gain; there's no need for such mournful sentiments."

Zhu Zaiyu said, "I came from the earth and will return to it; life and death are but an illusionary dream, neither delighting nor saddening..."

He had detached himself from worldly attachments because, as a prince, he had experienced difficult times due to his father's criminal charges, suffering even more than common folks during his youth.

Shi Feiyang stood and bowed deeply to Zhu Zaiyu, who quickly rose from his seat to support him, "Why do you do this, my fellow Daoist?"

Shi Feiyang sincerely said, "Let it be me, asking you to stay in this world for more years, not for the Great Ming, but for the transmission of the Dao in Huaxia, which must not be severed in a single lifetime!"

Zhu Zaiyu laughed again and asked him to sit back down. "I did not say I was going to pass away tomorrow…"

Shi Feiyang again engaged in a deep philosophical discussion with him. They covered topics ranging from Astronomy, Geography, Calendars, Music, Natural Science, Mathematics, and Script, to finally discussing health preservation, self-cultivation, and achieving longevity. Considering Zhu Zaiyu's current circumstances, Shi Feiyang designed a cultivation technique that was best suited for him.

He did not show Zhu Zaiyu Guang Chengzi's Heavenly Book, as the latter part of the text focused not on Dao but on various alchemical artifact refining and spell formations. Zhu Zaiyu was older and could not physically handle such dense material, which would be harmful rather than beneficial. If they eventually acquire the first volume that primarily discusses the Dao, then with that foundational understanding, he could handle the latter part without issue.

Zhu Zaiyu had reached his sixties and his essence blood was depleted. Yet, his spiritual realm was extremely high, as he was mentally ahead. First, his essence blood needed replenishing, but it couldn't be too excessive or it would not be absorbed effectively—what worked as a tonic for Shi Feiyang could act as poison for mortals. Even a small amount of residue from the Angry Mysterious Pill would be deadly for Zhu Zaiyu.

Shi Feiyang took out the spiritual medicine he had collected and introduced them one by one to Zhu Zaiyu. The two together formulated three prescriptions and brought out the pill furnace to concoct the medicine on site. In the end, they produced one type of elixir, one type of pill medicine, and one type of plaster. The plaster filled a large jar, from which three spoons were to be taken daily with warm water. After a month of improving his constitution, Zhu Zaiyu could start taking one pill medicine daily. After a year, he could begin taking one elixir annually, all while practicing the internal cultivation techniques of breath control and mental stability. With no unexpected interruptions, living past one hundred twenty years would not be an issue.

Shi Feiyang also took fifty pounds of Five Carriages Eater, which he prepared during his initial alchemy practices for Zhu Zaiyu to consume daily like a small cake; both fragrant and nourishing, and exceedingly gentle.

He heard that Zhu Zaiyu's lineage was sparse, as his two sons had no children.

"This is an easy fix!" Shi Feiyang took a small piece of Harmony Incense and, in the evening, went to the courtyards of both sons. He burned the incense with the Dan Fire, directing the fragrance into each son's room.

The Harmony Incense was tremendously powerful. For those cultivating Dao, it cleared their blood vessels and integrated them with heaven and earth. Any infertility issues were resolved in moments. That very night, both daughters-in-law conceived. Shi Feiyang took this opportunity to extract Geng Peng's divine soul and transferred it into the younger daughter-in-law for reincarnation.

Days later, both pregnancies stabilized, and Zhu Zaiyu, overwhelmed with joy, moved all of his collected books out and invited Shi Feiyang to take any he fancied.

Shi Feiyang finally chose a volume of Classic of Mountains and Seas along with Zhu Zaiyu's Tadpole Script translation book.

Time swiftly passed, and Shi Feiyang stayed there for over a month. When it was time to leave, he silently calculated his future path.

This visit to the Capital and Huaiqing had entangled him in numerous causal relationships, but Daoist interpretations of causality differed from Buddhist interpretations:

Daoists view causality as a network of relationships, where interactions influence each other progressively—actions intertwining and intertwining. This view holds no moral binary; it merely states that certain causes lead to certain effects, where well-intentioned actions might still lead to unfavorable outcomes.

In Buddhism, causality implies that one event directly determines another, like planting good causes to reap good fruits, or bad causes yielding bad results. Thinking of Amitabha Buddha in this life plants the indestructible Vajra Seed, which guarantees enlightenment after innumerable eons. If one commits murder now, they will be murdered in the future; theft now leads to losing wealth later...

Among the most famous is the axiom that birth leads to death and death to rebirth; since life has begun, death is inevitable, no matter how diligently one might practice their cultivation—even extending life to its utmost limit ends ultimately in death. Even Amitabha Buddha, known for immeasurable life span, must eventually reach Nirvana, though his life before Nirvana is boundlessly long.

As tough as Shakyamuni was, having been born, he too must eventually die. Every birth leads to a lifetime of suffering summarized as the cyclical suffering of birth, aging, illness, death, and the emotional turmoil of love and separation. Thus, Buddhism's pursuit is not longevity but non-birth, to avoid death entirely, achieving silent Nirvana.

Buddhist causality not only distinguishes between good and evil but also has many other classifications, such as the causes and effects specific to becoming a Buddha; seed the future with Buddha causes, and attaining Buddhahood becomes inevitable likewise, as every Buddha effect must have its corresponding Buddha cause. The notion that Bodhisattvas fear causation doesn't mean they avoid all causations; they plant good and Buddha causes so that they can reap good fortune and achieve Buddhahood. If they didn't plant Buddha causes, they wouldn't attain Buddhahood.

Like speaking of karma, certain devotees always advise against creating karma, yet practicing Buddhism itself generates karma—the karma of Buddhism. There are many kinds of karma, like virtuous karma, harmful karma, learning karma, and career karma; Buddhist disciples must cultivate Buddhistic karma finally to achieve complete Buddhahood.

The idea of accumulating provisions means tirelessly planting good and Buddha causes, doing it lifetime over lifetime, planting more and more. The more one plants, the greater the harvest and the greater the achievement.

Since causes and effects are fixed, and causality is unequivocal, high monks in Buddhism don't need to calculate; simply by observing someone's present actions and state through Destiny Communication, they can predict the outcomes and transformations someone will face.

Shi Feiyang, of course, calculated according to Daoist principles. He assessed how his actions might impact others in the future, such as being titled "Master Yuan Yang of the Nine Heavens" by Emperor Wanli, which could lead to what outcomes...

Despite this involving many people and events, they were fundamental mortals, and he, standing from a higher realm, calculated downwards akin to examining patterns on his palm.

It was all pretty trivial!

Shi Feiyang determined that his first interaction with the mortal emperor had perfectly achieved the desired results, especially obtaining the latter volume of the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

He had previously calculated that he could gain substantially from Zhu Zaiyu, who would gift him a book greatly aiding in the deciphering of Guang Chengzi's Heavenly Book, which now coincidentally coincided with the Classic of Mountains and Seas.

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