Chapter 93: Already aware of the vastness of the universe, I still pity the green grass and trees

Chapter 93: Already aware of the vastness of the universe, I still pity the green grass and trees

Chapter 93: Already aware of the vastness of the universe, I still pity the green grass and trees
Xu Qing sent King Lin away, which was considered to be the end of his worries.

King Lin has already agreed to go down the mountain before the Lantern Festival and stay near Su Lianqing's Meixiang Cottage, waiting for the great elder of the Lotus Sect to take action and then put an end to the old guy.

Before training his internal organs, King Lin Tianwang was unable to achieve unity of body and soul, so his martial arts qi and blood appeared as bright as a night lamp in the eyes of his newly hatched soul.

But now that Lin Tianwang's spirit and body are one, he has gathered his qi and blood, and even his temples are no longer bulging. He deliberately hides his strength, so unless a martial arts master comes to him, it is difficult to see how powerful his kung fu is.

At most, judging from his physique, he is a sturdy man who is much stronger than ordinary people.

Xu Qing knew very well that if a master like Lin Tianwang really focused on assassination, many dignitaries would be unable to sleep or eat.

After all, even a large mansion cannot prevent a master like King Lin from sneaking in.

As for the wealthy and powerful, they were not afraid of being assassinated by spirit masters. Firstly, they were protected by the dynasty's luck, and secondly, these families would keep spiritual mastiffs for patrol. These animals were extremely sensitive to the breath of spirits, and would be alerted immediately if a spirit sneaked in.

In the case of Wu Dinghou, it was mainly because a small branch replaced the main branch, and its rise was too short. It did not have the foundation of the original main branch, so it did not raise pure-blooded mastiffs. However, if Wu Dinghou had managed it for a few more years, he would definitely have been able to train a group of spiritual animals to guard the house.

As for Xu Qing, he was also trying to find a way to get this kind of beast to guard his house.

He felt a little regretful. If he could tame a three-tailed black fox, he wouldn't have to worry about guarding the house, let alone being assassinated by a master like the Grand Elder of the Lotus Sect.

As a great elder, his cultivation is only suspected to be at the same level as that of a beast!
Xu Qing simply ignored it. In order to kill the beast, they fought in a group, using poison needles, poisonous fireworks and so on, and put in a lot of effort.

As human beings, we should look forward.

If the three-tailed black fox resurrected, he and his brother Tianwang would be able to deal with it together. He wouldn't even have to take any action.

After Xu Qing returned, he began to write letters to his old mentor, as well as to officials such as Liu Canjiang of the Shenwu Camp in Yingtian Prefecture...

Because of running the affairs of Sergeant Zhang, the horse breeder, in Jiangning Prefecture, Xu Qing and Lieutenant General Liu also became familiar with each other.

The key point is that Brigadier General Liu, as the military representative in this bandit suppression campaign, was a little afraid of fighting and did not want to take on a tough task like Black Wind Village. He wrote a letter not long ago, asking for the opinion of Xu Qing, Jiangning's timely rain.

Brigadier General Liu was an open-minded man. His suggestion was to avoid fighting if possible.

Moreover, Lao Liu argued that most of the mountain bandits were poor people who could not survive. To solve the problem of mountain bandits, we must rely on the good governance of local officials, not the army.

If everyone lives and works in peace and contentment, who would be willing to go up the mountain and become a bandit?
I have to say that Lao Liu is not good at fighting, but he has a lot of reasons to talk about.

No wonder it is said that Yingtian Prefecture is a place of flourishing literary culture. Even a military officer can talk about the great principles of governing the world.

Of course, the letter could not mention the transaction explicitly. It only talked about Xu Qing's views on the bandit suppression and Xu Qing's plan to go to Yingtian Prefecture after the Lantern Festival.

This isn't a difficult task, but you do need to do it yourself.

Now, there are less than twenty days left to the Lantern Festival, and it will be New Year's Eve soon, so Xu Qing certainly cannot travel far.

Even Inspector Li, Lord Li, has returned to the Li residence today.

There was no other way. My aunt gave Inspector Li a fertility soup and recently found a concubine who was able to give birth. In addition, Zhou personally took part in the battle. Inspector Li was only a low-level warrior after all, but he became unrecognizable due to this.

If he went home, he would have to deal with Zhou alone, and if he stayed in the official residence, he would have to deal with both Zhou and the concubine. Inspector Li knew which was more important.

It would be difficult for him to find an excuse to keep his concubine in the inspection office!
When Xu Qing saw Old Li coming back, he was not in a hurry to practice martial arts or study. At the request of Inspector Li, he stayed in the west courtyard and talked about business with him.

Zhou was tactful and did not disturb him.

After Zhou left, Inspector Li talked about other things first, then lowered his voice and said, "Qing'er, I got news that a powerful old man from the Lotus Sect has come out of seclusion. Now the Lotus Sect, which is now divided into pieces, is showing signs of reorganization. Will they come to trouble you?"

Inspector Li knew something about Xu Qing, so he couldn't help but worry about his nephew.

Xu Qing was slightly surprised: "Even my uncle knows about this?"

"There are a lot of merchant ships traveling along the Jiangning River, and the personnel are complex. I have met a lot of people during this time I have been working here." Inspector Li was quite proud of himself.

If he were Li Yayi during his time, he would never deal with all kinds of people.

Now that I'm an inspector, I'll naturally learn the skill of making friends.

Because it is very simple.

Even if he can't speak, others will try to find things to talk about in order to please him.

In the past, whenever Li Yayi wanted to interact with people, he had to think for a long time before saying anything. In the end, the other person left before he could utter a single word.

Now others are doing it themselves and he doesn't have to worry about anything.

This is called no move is better than a move.

Xu Qing smiled and said, "It seems that your position is comfortable, uncle. I was thinking of giving you a promotion. But it seems that's not necessary."

"Ah..." Inspector Li coughed and said, "Qing'er, you said that with great ability comes great responsibility. I feel that my ability is better now than before, so why not take on more responsibilities?"

Xu Qing smiled and said, "Don't worry, uncle, just stay in the yamen. I will take care of the things outside for you. You don't have to worry about it."

Inspector Li knew that after that serious illness, his nephew was completely transformed, like a living god. In less than a year, the Li family underwent earth-shaking changes under the planning of his nephew.

With past events as proof, Inspector Li certainly understood that since Xu Qing said so, he must be sure of it.

He was also relieved.

He didn't know how much good fortune he had accumulated in his previous life to be able to raise Xu Qing.

Others want their sons to be successful, but in his case, he can just let his nephew win without doing anything.

Although I have lost the pain of climbing up step by step, I have also gained the joy of rising step by step.

There must be gains and losses.

And we can't say that he didn't suffer. In the first ten years, raising Qing Ge'er, he did suffer a lot!

After chatting for a long time, Inspector Li secretly took out some silver.

Xu Qing asked curiously, "Uncle wants me to help you save this private money."

Inspector Li shook his head. "I heard that the Fushe you founded often helps poor families and teaches people to read and write. These things cost money, but they are also good things to do to accumulate virtue. Uncle can't do much to help you. You can use this money to continue doing charity. In your name, uncle will enjoy the happiness with you."

"Okay, I'll take it." Xu Qing nodded.

...

...

Back in the yard, Xu Qing still felt some of the warmth he had with his uncle.

He felt vaguely touched.

These days, he has reached the critical point where his boxing skills have broken through to the level of "dark power" and his spirit has broken through to the level of "driving objects". In fact, there is just a thin layer of window paper between them, but he has never been able to break through it.

The ups and downs of emotions tonight seemed to have helped him grasp something.

"The way of cultivation requires not only diligence and full commitment, but also a sense of 'movement'."

Xu Qing thought of a song.

"This power is iron, this power is steel, harder than iron, stronger than steel..."

Whether it is the "driving objects" of the spirit or the "hidden power" of boxing, it actually requires a strong will to control.

This will needs to come from things that move you.

Just like a great poet writing poetry, without being moved, Bai Juyi would not have been able to write lines like "We are both people who have fallen into this world, so why should we have known each other before we met?"

"Human beings are the most intelligent creatures in the world, and they are rich in emotions. With emotions and desires, life will be vivid and lively, and longevity will be meaningful..."

Even though Neo-Confucianism proposed "preserving the principles of Heaven and eliminating human desires", it does not mean to exterminate human nature, but rather emphasizes restraining excessive desires, not asking people to cut off all emotions.

"On a fine day, I went to the Si River to look for flowers. The boundless scenery was new for a moment. I easily recognized the face of the east wind. The thousands of flowers in bloom always represent spring."

Even Zhu Xi, a great Neo-Confucianist, pursued the natural expression of emotions in his poetry.

For example, spring always comes with a riot of colour, which clearly affirms the diversity and differences of all things in the world.

The birth of Neo-Confucianism was not to restrict people's thoughts, but some people needed to use Neo-Confucianism to restrict people's thoughts, just like the later Mind Learning, which would still have endless influence after decades of development.

The same is true for martial arts and Taoism. The difference between good and evil lies in one's own heart, not in the evil skills or magic used...

"For example, there is a story about Buddhism. The demon king Mara told the Buddha that after the Dharma Ending Age, his disciples would wear the Buddha's robes, beat the Buddha's wooden fish, and misinterpret the Buddha's sutras... The Buddha heard this and shed tears..."

The story may not be a true Buddhist story, but the principle behind it is a true principle.

“I am thinking about immortality and wanting my uncle and others to live well, which is correct, but if I cause a flood to the sky in order to achieve all this, then I will be the devil king, Mara.

The Master said, "Follow your heart's desires, this is a very high state, but there is another sentence behind it, which is not to go beyond the rules."

"Freedom with restraint is true freedom." "Freedom is what I can do, and what I can decide not to do. It does not mean that I can become a slave to my desires..."

Xu Qing came to the study, spread out a piece of white paper, ground ink, soaked the wolf hair brush with ink, and then started writing:
"Already aware of the vastness of the universe, I still pity the green grass and trees."

Xu Qing finally broke through the window paper of hidden power.

His muscles and bones began to shake and vibrate slowly.

The spirit and soul let out a long crane cry.

It was not the cry of a crane, but the clear sound of a chirping bird, like the flow of a mountain spring.

Xu Qing felt the vibration of his soul and blood, and there was no more distracting thoughts in his mind. His soul seemed to be infused with a will as hard as steel.

Believe in what you believe and stand firm in what you stand firm in.

After an unknown amount of time, the shaking sound of Xu Qing's body stopped, and the crane cry of his soul disappeared.

He opened the window, and the warm winter sun shone on the earth.

There was still snow in the yard and it was bitterly cold.

but……

Xu Qing walked to the old sycamore tree and saw green buds sprouting from the places where there were dead branches yesterday.

There seems to be a kind of vigorous vitality, as if a state where all things are competing is about to emerge before our eyes.

"Sure enough, where there is a way, there is a way."

"I had a spiritual breakthrough last night and understood the hidden power in martial arts. These things are not worth mentioning at all. The biggest gain last night was that I accidentally entered the realm of 'harmony between man and nature', which infected Brother Shu and triggered this ray of vitality."

New buds are sprouting, following the branches and swaying in the wind, with a rhythm of "Tao".

"Unfortunately, it is not deep and specific enough. Otherwise, my soul would at least reach the realm of driving away objects." Xu Qing felt quite regretful.

He observed the bronze mirror and found that his martial arts evaluation had indeed added the content of "dark power". In addition, his Taoism had reached the realm of "driving objects", and even the progress of opening up the Ziwei meridian had advanced several points.

He stared at the tender shoots, and soon they began to move against the wind.

This is the power of the soul to drive things.

Xu Qing began to use his soul to try to drive other objects.

After trying it for a while, Xu Qing came to the conclusion that he couldn't use his soul to drive his body directly. In addition, his soul's power to drive things was not strong, and he only had a dozen kilograms of strength.

If it condenses on the poison needle.

Xu Qing's mind moved, and his soul was attached to a poison needle on his finger. The poison needle flew up and down, moving according to his will.

Soon, beads of sweat appeared on Xu Qing's forehead.

"The soul drives things and performs subtle control, which consumes a lot of soul energy."

He thought about it and scratched his fingertip with his fingernail, and a drop of blood fell on the poison needle.

try again!
After a while, Xu Qing separated his soul from the poison needle and thought, "The blood that the three-tailed black fox emitted last time on those stones was indeed its own blood. The soul can control the items more precisely after using its own blood for sacrifice, and the soul power consumed will also be reduced."

He understood that if he used his own blood to refine an object for a long time, it would eventually become a magical weapon refined with his own blood.

This kind of magical weapon is naturally more powerful, more labor-saving and easier to control.

But there are also disadvantages. The blood sacrifice instrument is connected to the mind. Once you encounter a Taoist master and use his magical powers, the blood sacrifice instrument can actually harm his mind.

What's more, blood sacrifice instruments will also consume the body's essence and blood.

The three-tailed black fox has a huge body and abundant energy and blood, so it doesn't care about this loss.

Compared with the three-tailed black fox, Xu Qing's body size is too different. If he does this, it will somewhat affect his training progress.

"I still lack the relevant professional knowledge. For now, I can only cross the river by feeling the stones." Xu Qing sighed to himself.

He now actually hoped that the Grand Elder of the Lotus Sect would come earlier so that he could capture him and get some equipment and secret manuals.

Look at Elder Tang, he carries all the important things with him.

I hope the great elder of the Lotus Sect will also develop this good habit.

Xu Qing secretly complained a few words in his heart, but his face showed indescribable joy.

He returned to his study and framed the calligraphy of "Already aware of the vastness of the universe, yet still pitying the greenness of the grass and trees" in his study. These two lines of calligraphy already have a verve, and can be said to have real artistic value.

If one is a master of the soul, he can also comprehend some of the "great truth" from it.

Unfortunately, the state of "harmony between man and nature" that I experienced last night is something that can only be encountered by chance.

He didn't know when he would be able to enter that state of enlightenment again.

In that state, he progressed much faster than in the state of absolute concentration. However, the absolute concentration state can be activated at any time, and in the long run, it is far more meaningful than an occasional epiphany.

The sunlight outside poured in, and Xu Qing's heart moved, and he visualized the Yaksha King.

This time, the Yaksha King is much stronger than before.

This shows that even without sufficient evil thoughts to nourish him, as long as Xu Qing's soul achieves a major breakthrough, the Yaksha King will also rise with the tide.

He drove the Yaksha King into the sunlight.

More and more sunlight gathered on the Yaksha King, and Xu Qing felt an extremely hot breath. To be more precise, a ball of light and shadow similar to flame appeared.

He threw out a piece of white paper, and soon the white paper turned burnt yellow.

"It seems that the Yaksha King can already condense sunlight in broad daylight to increase his own lethality, but he is not yet at the level of directly condensing flames."

"What if there is a fire nearby?" Xu Qing had an idea. There happened to be firewood and a grill in the yard, so he took the opportunity to try it.

"The flames burn from firewood. If there is no fuel, it will soon go out. But the Yaksha King's power to drive things is not as strong as my own soul, so I can only drive small firewood. Fortunately, it is not afraid of burning. At the critical moment, it is good to use it to pretend to be a ghost and scare people..."

Xu Qing has just started to "drive things" and needs to try various things to develop his skills.

Even like a child who gets a new toy and never gets tired of playing with it.

Especially since he was wearing a black fox robe and there were things floating around him from time to time, such as burning firewood... He looked like a dark wizard.

Xu Qing seemed to have returned to his childhood, feeling the joy brought by the spirit driving objects from the bottom of his heart.

Now it is almost New Year's Eve, and Xu Qing relies on his own skills to create some festive atmosphere for himself.

He even folded a paper airplane and controlled it with his mind, flying it around the yard.

"It's fun." A rare look of childishness appeared on Xu Qing's face.

After all, this body will not be fifteen years old until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. It is still a teenager.

The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is also called Tianguan Festival, which is the birthday of Tianguan Emperor. In Taoist mythology, Tianguan Emperor controls the blessings of the world and will come to the world to bless on Tianguan Festival.

In addition, the complete title of the Heavenly Official Emperor in Taoism is "The Heavenly Official of the Top Grade, the First Rank, the Nine Qi, the Blessing Emperor, the Yaoling Yuanyang Emperor, the Purple Star Emperor".

It just corresponds to Xu Qing's Ziwei star destiny.

Since he was reborn in Jiangning Prefecture, he has been working to control the blessings and fortune of the world.

It's somewhat metaphysical.

"Even if I am the Emperor Ziwei who has come down to earth, no one will recognize me if I don't have power." Xu Qing came to the ancient well in the courtyard. He clenched his right fist, lowered his waist and elbows, and took half a step forward.

At this moment, Xu Qing's spine began to tremble, driving the bones and muscles attached to his entire body, and his hair exploded as if it were electrocuted.

The energy and blood in the body began to boil, and all the strength gathered towards the right hand that was punching out.

When Xu Qing gathered all his strength into this one punch, the pores on his fist relaxed and the strength surged out like a flood breaking through a dam.

boom!
I saw the edge of the well frozen by a thick layer of solid ice, with stone chips and ice chips flying everywhere, and then a deep fist-sized pit appeared, with dense pinholes inside.

Even Xu Qing was surprised by such amazing destructive power.

And his fist was intact.

"Is this the power of the dark energy plus the collapsing fist?"

Xu Qing felt that even if a tiger that dominated the forest stood in front of him, he could kill it with his bare hands.

(End of this chapter)