Lu Sheng sat back down. He felt that the empire was truly hopeless.
It was like an old man who was suffering from an incurable disease was being beaten up by a few strong men with hammers.
Even if he did not die, he was on his last breath.
He took a deep breath and asked again, "Where's the Divine Martial General, Zhu Chengguo?"
"The Divine Martial General is still suppressing the Zhaoyi Tribe in the north. The good news of the Zhaoyi King's death has just arrived. "Mi Gong shook his head slightly. "However, it'll probably take him at least 20 days to return."
And this was under the circumstance that the Divine Martial General rode in a specially made carriage.
"There's an expert who can carry the sky even if it falls. Let's not talk about this for now. Is there any news from Master Wu Youzi?" After Lu Sheng calmed himself down, he quickly returned to the main issue.
"I've noticed Wu Youzi sending a messenger pigeon back. However, I'm not sure what his exact reaction is." Mi Gong shook his head slightly.
Without any news, Lu Sheng could only wait. Waving his hand to dismiss Mi Gong, he sat back down.
Time waited for no man. It was no wonder he was in such a hurry. The karma this time was to save the entire empire. The situation was too grave. Even Lu Sheng could not say he was confident.
The city where the Moon Prince's mansion was located was a medium-sized city known as Dixuan. Six fortresses stood around Dixuan. All of them were heavily guarded.
In the following days, Lu Sheng inspected the soldiers in the fortresses. However, he did not find anything special about them. They were no different from regular soldiers.
Fortunately, Wu Youzi returned very soon.
However, he did not return alone. Instead, he brought a tall, thin old man in blue robes with him.
The old man visited Lu Sheng and inspected him for three days. Then, he turned around and left without saying anything.
Lu Sheng did not understand what was going on either. However, he soon received the Clear Crane Sect's disciple certificate from Wu Youzi. He was invited to visit the Clear Crane Sect.
Lu Sheng agreed happily.
…
Green Vine mountain. The Clear Crane Sect's mountain.
Several green-colored Daoist temples were connected together, forming the entire Clear Crane Sect's monastery.
Inside the central Taoist temple, the current sect leader, Long Hezhi, was sitting helplessly by the chessboard. He could not even put down the chess piece in his hand as he looked at his two junior brothers and sisters who were rushing toward him.
"Why didn't Sect Leader Senior Brother tell us about such an important matter in advance? Why did you have to wait until now to explain?" The nun's complexion was ugly. "He's just a prince, even if we let him cultivate, what use will it be?"
"You're mistaken, Junior Sister. Our Clear Crane Sect has been developing well in recent years. If it weren't for the resources sent back by the ordinary disciples from the outside world, we wouldn't have lasted this long," said the sect master, Long Hezhi, as he shook his head.
"That can't be used as a reason for you to break the ancestral rules!" Another Taoist master said coldly.
"Actually, it's not as troublesome as you think. The Dao Sect doesn't care about a small sect like ours. The sect's test and whatnot. If we scare that prince away, it'll be a huge loss! "Longhe Zhi said calmly.
"But you can't be completely unreserved, can you? The identity of a disciple was given to him just like that. Don't tell me you're really going to teach him the technique? "
The sect master's junior sister was exasperated.
"Of course I'm going to teach him. However, I'll have to wait until he's thoroughly tempered," said the sect master with a nod. "Come to think of it, the main sutra and minor sutras are born to rear cranes. Even if we give them to an ordinary person, they might not be interested. A prince … At most, he'll feel fresh and enthusiastic for a while. After that, it'll be over. "
"But …"
"Coming!" Suddenly, the sect master, Longhe Zhi, rose to his feet. He tossed away the chess piece in his hand, tidied his clothes, and strode out of the door.
He walked along the courtyard, around the incense burner, and arrived at the main door.
Two boys had already led the two of them into the room.
One of them was Wu Youzi, whom everyone recognized. The other was a young man with a dignified appearance and an air of nobility.
Both of them wore gray Taoist robes. When Wu Youzi saw the sect master, he immediately pulled the other person over to greet him.
"Disciple Wu Youzi greets the sect master."
"I'm Huang Jing. I've heard that there's a True Immortal in the Clear Crane Sect. I've come to seek guidance," said Lu Sheng loudly as he stepped forward and cupped his fists.
As he spoke, he stood in front of the mountain gate and sized up the three newcomers.
He had heard from Wu Youzi that there were only three orthodox sects in the Clear Crane Sect. The sect master had one, Second Master Uncle Bo Ruqing had another, and Third Master Uncle Zheng Qingjian had another.
Wu Youzi's master was Zheng Qingjian. However, due to his lack of maturity, he had not made any progress in cultivating the White Feather Mantra even after so many years.
As soon as Lu Sheng entered the door, he immediately recognized the three experts of this small sect.
The sect master, Longhe Zhi, was a bald old man with a long beard. He looked miserable.
Second Master Uncle, on the other hand, was as cold and elegant as a flower. However, his lips were thin, and the corners of his eyes were slanted upward. He gave off a harsh and unapproachable aura.
Third Master Uncle Zheng Qingjian, on the other hand, had an amiable expression on his face. At this moment, he was pinching his beard and appraising himself with a smile.
"Greetings, Moon Prince's crown prince. How can a person who is not part of the world be worthy of a crown prince's guidance? If you don't mind, you can become my disciple. "Unexpectedly, the first to speak was Third Master Uncle Zheng Qingjian.
Lu Sheng turned to look at the sect master, Longhe Zhi.
"That won't do. Junior Brother still has to train the red-crowned cranes. It's better for me to personally teach you Taoist skills," Longhe Zhi said with a straight face.
"That won't do. Senior Brother, you have to attend to a myriad of affairs every day. Cultivating Taoist skills requires a lot of time and effort. The White Feather Mantra is at a critical juncture. If it affects your breakthrough …" Zheng Qingjian shook his head.
"That's enough, all of you. It's best for you to follow me. I'm the most attentive to my disciples. Moreover, I've taken in disciples from similar renowned sects in my early years. I have some experience …" Bao Ruqing interrupted.
"…" Lu Sheng stood at the door and watched the three of them arguing. Wu Youzi was speechless as well.
However, Wu Youzi had reminded Lu Sheng about this during their journey.
Compared to the other sects, the Clear Crane Sect was not like a Taoist sect. Instead, it was more like a business. If anyone could become the Moon Prince's crown prince's master, the Moon Prince Mansion would surely receive endless tributes. It would be much more comfortable in terms of cultivation and enjoyment of life.
Second Master's Junior Uncle and Third Master's Junior Uncle disapproved of taking in disciples recklessly. They were afraid that it would ruin the Taoist sect's reputation. However, when it came to the critical juncture of taking in disciples, it was better to strike first and gain the upper hand.
After the three of them haggled for a while, Longhe Zhi, as the sect master, finally obtained the priority to become Lu Sheng's disciple.
The three of them quickly instructed the Taoist children and the other Taoists to search for the items needed for the ceremony in front of the incense burner in the courtyard.
At this moment, the clear cries of red-crowned cranes rang in the air.
A flock of white cranes flapped their wings slowly and flew over the dojo. Together with the white mist lingering in the air, they appeared even more divine.
Longhe Zhi had heard of Lu Sheng's request. He hoped to witness a true Taoist skill or two. As the person with the highest cultivation base among the three elites, although the White Feather Mantra did not contain any Taoist skills, he could still unleash one or two ordinary Taoist skills.
When he saw the white cranes flying, he suddenly waved his horsetail whisk and spoke loudly.
"A new junior brother has joined the sect today. Yue He, why aren't you coming down to greet your junior brother?"
Lu Sheng was slightly stunned. He looked to his left and right. Apart from some ordinary Taoists and Taoist children in gray robes, there were no other newcomers around.
Just as he was feeling puzzled, a clear cry suddenly rang out in the sky. A white silhouette shot down and landed lightly in front of everyone.
It was a huge white crane that was two meters tall.
The white crane's eyes were lively. It stood where it was as if it was a human instead of a bird. It took a few steps on the stone slabs with its long, straight legs. Then, it turned its head and plucked a feather from its armpit with its long, sharp beak. It handed it to Lu Sheng.
"Take it. This is a greeting gift from Yue He," Longhe Zhi said drily.
Lu Sheng looked at the feather, then at the white crane. He reached out and pinched the feather solemnly. Then, he put his palms together and bowed slightly to the white crane.
"Thank you, senior brother."
"You should call her senior sister," Longhe Zhi corrected him.
"Alright. Thank you, Senior Sister Yue He." Lu Sheng nodded.
"Yue He's white feather has the effect of calming the mind and clearing the heart. You can use it to calm the mind when you're reading, practicing martial arts, and cultivating this sutra," Third Master's Uncle Zheng Qingjian reminded him.
Lu Sheng nodded and thanked Third Master's Uncle.
There were only three leaders in the entire Clear Crane Sect. There were 15 official disciples. Most of them were not on the mountain. Instead, they were cultivating in seclusion on their respective peaks.
In reality, cultivation was like raising a flock of white cranes.
After that, it was time for the official disciple acceptance ceremony. The Clear Crane Sect's Taoist mark was carved on his arm. This meant that Lu Sheng was officially a member of the Clear Crane Sect.
After becoming a disciple, Longhe Zhi was prepared to put on an act and let Lu Sheng go back to polish his Taoist heart.
However, after Lu Sheng gave him 5,000 taels of silver, his Taoist heart was immediately more complete.
Hence, he was taught the most basic of the sect's cultivation methods — the Clear Crane Enlightened Skill.
There were only three layers to this heart skill. There was no division of realms, nor was there any division of superiority.
The three layers were merely the three steps of initiation, mastery, and mastery.
The only difference between this formation and the sect's was that the Clear Crane Enlightened Skill was like an inner force heart skill. The more profound one's skill was, the higher one's realm would be.
After Lu Sheng received the heart skill, he was reminded to cultivate it well. While he was polishing his Taoist heart, cultivating this enlightened skill could make one's ears and eyes sharper, and one's body as light as a swallow or as light as a white crane. It could also resist most illnesses.
Since the method was extremely simple, it would only be effective if one persisted in cultivating it for a long time. Hence, after Lu Sheng received the method, he stayed in the Taoist temple for a few days before returning to the prince's mansion with Wu Youzi.
As for the sect's core, the White Feather sutra, it was a supreme enlightened skill that could only be taught after one's Taoist heart was completely perfected.
It was one of the true sutras of the Taoist sect. It could not be neglected.
On the way back, Wu Youzi carefully and continuously imparted this knowledge to Lu Sheng. If he cultivated the true sutras of the Taoist sect before his Taoist heart was perfected, there was a high chance that his life would be in danger.
Lu Sheng did not insist. He was already satisfied that he could obtain the Clear Crane Enlightened Skill this time.
From the Clear Crane Enlightened Skill, he had a rough idea of the direction of this world's Taoist power.
This was about becoming one with heaven and man, becoming one with nature, and borrowing the power of the universe to absorb the parts that were beneficial to one's body and eliminate the parts that were harmful to one's body.
From there, one would attain the powerful realm of living as long as heaven and earth.
This Clear Crane Enlightened Skill required one to concentrate and calm one's Qi, and look inside one's body at an organ called the muyuan.
According to the Enlightened Skill, this inner vision was called spirit infusion. One would have to infuse one's mind into the muyuan.
The strangest thing was that the muyuan was not in one's body. Instead, it was at the intersection point between one's chin and one's chest.
The muyuan was in the void outside one's body.
The cultivation methods that Lu Sheng had come into contact with in the past were either for his body or for him to visualize his mind and condense his will. This was his first time using force outside his body.
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