Chapter 441: Taoist Senior

Chapter 441: Chapter 441: Taoist Senior

Ye Feng chuckled in amusement. "You’ve been run ragged by these islands lately. Who would’ve thought these unremarkable islands in Jinshan Bay could have so many stories?"

"The treasure recovered by those heroes has seen the light of day again. That incident caused a huge stir, both among the public and in the higher-ups. It’s living proof."

"And now there’s a Tang Dynasty tomb. Judging by its scale, the person who built this place must have had an extraordinary identity."

"It’s not just you who’s surprised. Even the old folks who have lived in Jinshan Bay for generations never imagined Jinsha Bay had things like this. It’s just too shocking."

But these weren’t the only shocking things. The discoveries made by Yao Ziqian and Mr. Zhao added another layer of mystery.

Hearing that Mr. Zhao had come out of the secret passage to rest, Han Xiaorui invited him, Yao Ziqian, and Wu Lingling over to her house for a meal.

She had specifically asked her godmother, Granny Cai, to come over and help. Liu Huamei, who was back from a trip out to sea, also came to lend a hand, busying herself with her master.

Mr. Zhao was animatedly recounting their discoveries in the secret passage. "Xiao Han, I can now say for certain, you should find another location for your water park and aquarium. After the survey Ziqian, Professor Xu, and I conducted, we’ve determined this is a place where a Tang Dynasty Cultivator practiced."

"This was once the cultivation site for a lay disciple of the Tang Dynasty Daoist, Sima Chenzhen. This person isn’t famous in history. He was the youngest son of a wealthy family in Jiangnan, named Yuan Cheng. He was frail and sickly since childhood, so he began to cultivate with Sima Chenzhen."

"His family doted on their youngest son. Yuan Cheng’s ’Five Elements and Eight Characters’ chart showed he was lacking water, so his family spent a fortune building a Seven Stars Formation for him on the island to aid his cultivation. Those murals are all paradisiacal scenes that Yuan Cheng carved himself, bit by bit, based on his cultivation insights."

"Not only are the murals incredibly precious, but there are also many Taoist scriptures. This Yuan Cheng had very broad interests, dabbling in literature, medicine, and the agriculture of his time. There are many books. Among them is a woodblock-printed edition of Sun Simiao’s *Thousand Gold Formula*, which we are most familiar with."

Yao Ziqian added, "Master, you forgot to mention there was also a copy of the *Tang Code*. When Professor Xu saw it, his eyes turned red with excitement."

They studied metaphysics, so they were interested in the Taoist scriptures but not so much in legal codes.

But for historians, the Tang Code represents the nation’s laws and will, making it immensely important for their research into the Tang Dynasty.

Wu Lingling asked curiously, "Ziqian, since this is a place for Taoist cultivation, aren’t the Daoists in our country interested?"

"Of course they’re interested," Yao Ziqian replied. "Sima Chenzhen was the twelfth patriarch of the Maoshan Sect of the Shangqing School of Taoism, and one of the ’Ten Friends of the Immortal Sect.’ His posthumous title was Mr. Zhengyi. Yuan Cheng was his disciple, so people from the Maoshan Sect and the Taoist Association have already been dispatched."

Han Xiaorui’s heart sank. ’I get it now. I’ll have to find another place for the water park and aquarium.’

Yao Ziqian smiled and said, "The plans are scrapped. Those murals are exquisitely beautiful and perfectly preserved. The staff from the cultural relics bureau practically want to eat and sleep in there to protect them, preventing any damage from exposure to the outside air."

"Right now, we predict there’s one more, even more important location: what is likely the secret chamber where Yuan Cheng achieved ’seated transformation.’ We’re waiting for people from the cultural relics bureau, the Taoist Association, and the Maoshan Sect to arrive before we all go in together."

Han Xiaorui was taken aback. "Seated transformation? By doing this, aren’t we disturbing a great master?"

Yao Ziqian and his master, Mr. Zhao, exchanged a glance, a hint of embarrassment in their eyes.

Logically, they shouldn’t disturb the final resting place of a predecessor, but they were curious.

In this End of Dharma Era, many scriptures were lost to the flames of war throughout history.

"Although we are disturbing the predecessor’s final rest, the scriptures discovered here will be a tremendous help to us Taoists and are vital for reviving Taoism. If the predecessor’s spirit is watching from the heavens, he would also wish for Taoism to flourish and wouldn’t blame us."

Mr. Zhao looked at his disciple, Yao Ziqian, with an approving expression. They couldn’t afford the reputation of having disturbed a predecessor.

Han Xiaorui nodded. "That’s true. Our Hua Country places the utmost importance on heritage."

Yao Ziqian replied, "Taoists have always followed their hearts. We descend the mountains in times of chaos and ascend them in times of peace. During the War of Resistance, Daoists came down from the mountains. Nine out of ten died, if not more. The Taoist lineage was severely impacted."

Han Xiaorui sighed wistfully. "Although my investment plans have been shelved, it’s a good thing that more of our culture can be brought to light. I haven’t been there myself, but I heard from Wu Yao that the murals have many peach blossom designs."

"If you need to plant peach trees on the island in the future, I can provide saplings from cuttings of my family’s peach trees. Ziqian and Lingling know my family’s Taozi; they taste amazing. The blossoms are beautiful, too."

Mr. Zhao smiled. "I’ve had them too. That girl Lingling is so considerate. She brought some for me when she went to Yue Province. They were absolutely delicious—the best Taozi I’ve ever eaten in my life."

"Xiao Han, that’s a great idea. I’ll mention it to my senior brothers from the Maoshan Sect later, and we’ll see how to handle it."

"Senior brothers?" Han Xiaorui was surprised. "Mr. Zhao, you’re also from the Maoshan Sect?"

Mr. Zhao said humbly, "I’m unworthy. I only learned the basics at the Maoshan Sect. I’m just an Outer Disciple."

Wu Lingling was puzzled. "Can Daoists get married?"

Yao Ziqian smiled. "Taoism is divided into the Quanzhen Sect and the Zhengyi Sect. Daoists from the Quanzhen Sect must be celibate monastics and cannot marry, but Daoists from the Zhengyi Sect don’t have such restrictions. They can marry and have children."

"Maoshan Taoists belong to the Zhengyi Sect, so we can get married. Of course, many of our fellow disciples, and even our elders, are so immersed in their cultivation that they choose not to marry. It’s all about following your own path; there aren’t so many restrictions."

Hearing this, Wu Lingling let out a sigh of relief. She had been genuinely worried that her husband might one day abandon his wife and child to become a monk. "That’s good. Daoists are people, too, and all people have emotions and desires. Since it’s all about following your own path, it’s normal that they can marry."

Yao Ziqian nodded. "That’s exactly right."

Everyone ate and chatted through the meal, which didn’t end until three in the afternoon. It was a real eye-opener for Han Xiaorui.

Even Han Xiaoqing, who had been listening on the side, was completely shocked.

The things she had just heard Mr. Zhao talk about actually shared some striking similarities with certain concepts in psychology.

Han Xiaoqing was very interested, especially in the Taoist Body Refinement Realm, Tai Chi Boxing, the Five Animals Qigong, and so on.

Proper training could improve a child’s physical coordination. Many of the current athletic programs were just training methods copied directly from abroad.

Han Xiaoqing felt that with China’s five-thousand-year-old civilization, the things that had been passed down were refined over hundreds, even thousands, of years, making them better suited for tuning the human body.

Thinking of this, Han Xiaoqing had a new idea.