allonlinenovel Chapter 370 Three Calamities Refining, Walking in the Eight Trigrams Furnace
Chapter 370 Three Calamities Refining, Walking in the Eight Trigrams Furnace
On that day, thunder roared and fierce winds raged in the martial arts arena of Wudang Mountain. The three calamities that belong to cultivators took turns to strike. From time to time, hearty laughter and howls of pain that cut to the bone could be heard from the arena.
"Awooohoo..."
Not far from the main hall, Master Yunlong frowned as he looked toward the martial arts arena, while a loud, increasingly powerful howl filled his ears. Although the sound was pitiful, the spirit in it was even more vigorous.
Even though he disapproved of Wang Ye's usual laziness, Master Yunlong still cared for his disciple and taught him according to his aptitude. He had long recognized Wang Ye's extraordinary talent, so he turned a blind eye to his disciple's past laziness and never made a big deal out of it.
"Master, is Wang Ye alright?"
Master Yunlong couldn't help but take a few steps forward, but he was stopped by Zhou Meng before he could go far. "No need to rush. Didn't you hear that Xiao Wangye's voice wasn't in pain, but rather full of energy?"
"Lu Qian is a sensible kid; he wouldn't harm his junior brother."
Zhou Meng glanced at the anxious expression on Yunlong's face, chuckled, and teased, "You're usually the one who scolds and beats Xiao Wang the most, but now you're the one who's most worried about your disciple. I never thought that you, Yunlong with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, would learn to be two-faced. Hehe..."
"Master, everyone else knows what I mean, how could you not?"
When Daoist Yunlong was stopped by Zhou Meng, his worries subsided somewhat. He looked up at the sky with a melancholy expression and sighed.
"Over the years, as a Taoist instructor at Wudang, I have been overseeing my disciples' cultivation while also learning the principles of hospitality from you, my master."
"I have heavy responsibilities on my shoulders, both inside and outside the home. I am exhausted and mentally drained, but I will do my best to fulfill them."
"Wang Ye, even with Lü Qian ahead of him, is exceptionally talented, but his personality is not as respectful as Lü Qian's, and his attitude towards cultivation is lazy. Actually, it's nothing, there are plenty of people like that on the mountain."
Master Yunlong recalled his past experiences, and his evaluation of Wang Ye included both praise and criticism, objectively treating his "problem disciple".
"But he was a latecomer to the profession. He had a smooth life for the first ten years or so. His mind seemed detached, but he was just looking at the moon across the water, looking down at the reflection of flowers in the water, but not seeing the bright moon above."
At this point, Master Yunlong clapped his hands helplessly, "But he is stubborn and lacks the cultivation and composure to overcome difficulties. If he is not careful and encounters a calamity, he is very likely to be thrown into a state of mental chaos and then make a mistake."
"As for this stubborn donkey who thinks he's so great, I can only force him to cultivate and scold him to reflect on himself, to ensure that he has enough ability to cope with the calamities."
Zhou Meng listened quietly to Daoist Yunlong's evaluation of Wang Ye without interrupting. He simply smiled and nodded slightly before casually unleashing a bolt of lightning.
"Yunlong, you have done a good job. In a while, I will hand over the position of Wudang Sect Leader to you."
"Okay...wait a minute, what did you say, sir?"
These few words, spoken as if in a village gossip, immediately silenced Master Yunlong, who rarely complained. After a moment's thought, Master Yunlong's eyes widened as he looked at Zhou Meng in shock.
"It's my turn so soon... No, Master, your health isn't good enough... No..."
Master Yunlong was stunned by Zhou Meng's sudden announcement of his abdication. He waved his sleeves incoherently and kept asking the ever-calm and easy-going Zhou Meng a series of questions.
"Heh, why are you so eager to step down after hearing the news?"
"No, Master, you're teasing me again. Don't you know who I am?"
Upon hearing the joking words, Master Yunlong breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that the situation was not as complicated as he had thought. Then, with a mix of anticipation and excitement, Master Yunlong asked Zhou Meng for confirmation again.
"Um...Master, are you sure I'm the one who's taking over as sect leader?"
"If it wasn't you... then who else could it be, that brat Wang Ye?"
Zhou Meng paused for a moment, teasing his honest and kind-hearted grand-disciple, then looked at the three calamities gradually dissipating in the sky and nodded.
"Ahem, Master... when will you be holding the ritual? I'd like to be prepared."
"What are you preparing? Just bring your people with you. Wang Ye's side is almost over. As his master, why don't you hurry up and check on things?"
Zhou Meng kicked Yunlong Daoist in the waist, sending the excited grand-disciple, who was speaking in a Beijing accent, flying.
"Alright, sir, don't worry."
Master Yunlong twisted his hips and swung his sleeves, using Tai Chi energy to support his body and land steadily. He patted the footprints behind him and strode towards the martial arts arena.
"Hey, this honest guy is really honest."
Zhou Meng saw the reflection of Daoist Yunlong's hopping gait in his eyes. He wasn't angry; instead, he smiled sincerely. Then, as he sensed Wang Ye's gradually harmonizing energy amidst the three calamities, a hint of surprise and understanding flashed in his eyes.
"After being cleansed by the Three Calamities, enduring lightning strikes, fire burnings, and fierce winds, the demonic aura has been washed away. Only now can the King be considered to have an indestructible body and a body with both life and health intact. That kid, King Ye, is very lucky."
"That kid Lü Qian actually came up with the idea of borrowing the power of the Marquis of Wu's Qimen to activate the three calamities in the world, so that the king could also temper his foundation and solidify his cultivation."
In "Journey to the West", after the Monkey King Sun Wukong rebelled against Heaven and was captured, he was taken to the Demon-Slaying Platform. Thunder and fire and wind and rain could not harm him in the slightest.
Later, Laozi (the Supreme Lord Lao) revealed that Sun Wukong already possessed an indestructible body, but that was only because he had swallowed the peaches of immortality, imperial wine, and elixir of immortality whole and refined them into a ball with the Samadhi Fire; it was not a true immortal body.
Wang Ye is quite talented, and he also possesses the Wudang tradition and practices the Feng Hou Qi Men, both of which are top-tier methods in the world.
He was rather lazy and his cultivation was improper. Just like the Monkey King who swallowed the Dao Fruit Golden Pill whole and only did a little forging, he seemed indestructible, but was easily suppressed by the Three Calamities and trapped in the battlefield of the Wuhou Qimen, wasting his lifespan.
When Wang Ye tried to cheat and use magic to summon Lü Qian's energy, Lü Qian, far away in the Northeast, instead schemed against his junior brother, who had become somewhat lazy due to relying on his connections, and sent Wang Ye into the "Three Calamities" Bagua Furnace for a cleansing.
That aura, originating from Lü Qian's past and transformed by Duanmu Ying, is both the demonic energy that Wang Ye is meant to be worn away by heaven and earth, and the bridge that ensures Wang Ye's life is connected amidst the three calamities.
With that wisp of energy, Wang Ye endured the pain of the fierce wind piercing his internal organs and the thunder and fire tempering his body and spirit, while undergoing the baptism and tempering of the three calamities. His life was constantly colliding and melting, until finally the wind subsided, the fire died down, and the thunder disappeared, and he truly became the carefree and unrestrained "King Hou".