The gate of Zixiao Palace looks ordinary, even to the point of being mundane, plain, and without any special features. Visually speaking, it is far from the majestic and imposing gate of the Taiyue Palace, which is several dozen meters high.
Taiyue Palace is a major Daoist temple in the capital, yet here it seems like an abandoned rural temple. However, Nuwa is very cautious and stops for ten breaths at the gate before entering. She pushes open the door and steps inside.
The place where the three thousand guests once listened to the teachings is now in ruins. The interior decorations are extremely simple, with only a two-foot-high platform and six ordinary round cushions, and that's all there is.
Nuwa's mind flashed with memories of the past. It seemed that Hongjun had not yet completed his cultivation. His four direct disciples and two prominent disciples sat here with trembling hearts, not as lowly followers like ordinary attendants, but without the awe-inspiring demeanor of today's sages.
There were six round cushions. Nuwa looked at the fourth one, as she had sat there on that day. On her left was Tong Tian, and on her right was Jie Yin. Her brother, Fan Xihui, sat behind her. The morgue master of the Morgue River Sect, who had been cheated out of the Xuan Yuan control water flag by a certain Chacha Yin and almost driven mad, sat in the right rear corner, very close to Jie Yin and Zheng Ti's position.
The past is gone. Among the three thousand guests in the former Zixiao Palace, there are now few left.
Nuwa walked to the round cushion she had sat on before, bowing slightly: "Master, my disciple has a mediocre student who is bound by worldly desires and lacks moral depth. He may find it difficult to achieve enlightenment. May I borrow this cushion for a moment?"
The six round cushions are not just randomly placed here; each has its own name and purpose.
Laozi sits on the Fenghuo cushion, Yuanshi Tianzun sits on the Tiandi cushion, Tongtian Jiaozhu sits on the Qinglian cushion, Nuwa sits on the Shengyan cushion, Jieyin Dao Ren sits on the Jile cushion, and Zhunti Dao Ren sits on the Jiemie cushion.
These round cushions were already designated before they came to Zixiao Palace.
A lean, venerable Taoist figure unexpectedly appeared in the air on the high platform. Even with Nuwa's current Daoist attainment, she couldn't see how Hongjun appeared.
Nuwa did not explain her intentions any further. She knew that Hongjun was well aware, and indeed, as if an old computer had processed it, it took him more than ten breaths to respond rather slowly.
"Okay."
Nuwa immediately took the Shengyan cushion she had sat on in the past.
There is some record of her path here, and Deng ChanYu cannot follow this path, but she can refer to it.
Normally, this path has been walked to its extreme by Nuwa, and it is a dead end for any Daoist. Fortunately, the Phoenix can use its racial talent to reborn from the flames, and at that time, Deng ChanYu could go back to correct her Dao path.
Nuwa took her own Shengyan cushion, bowed slightly, and turned to leave the Zixiao Palace.
At that moment, the other sages also had an intuition.
What? When you go to a restaurant to have a meal, you can take the tables, chairs, and benches away? You should have said so earlier!
The other sages might still weigh the pros and cons.
Like a street urchin with explosive action, Zhunti quickly arrived at the Zixiao Palace. Hongjun knew he was coming and didn't leave, sitting there to listen to Zhunti's lengthy explanation of the hardships of the Western Church and the poverty of the Western land. After that, he also said a "yes," letting Zhunti take his own Jiemie cushion and the Jiele cushion of Jieyin.
The Western Two Sages have always gone together, and Zhunti could represent Jieyin. This is just a cushion, not the Henglong Zixi, so there's no need for two sages to come together. The six sages still care about face, but Hongjun has long passed the stage where you respect me and I give you face.
Zhunti was well aware of the benefits and drawbacks of using a sage's cushion for cultivation. Thankfully, they had researched the phoenix tribe's path to reincarnation early on and built the Baobao Merit Pool. By then, the disciples could go in to use merit for "washing their points."
The Three Pure Ones did not move.
Laozi had only one disciple, Xiantudadaoshi. The outside world was not aware of this, but in reality, Xiantudadaoshi had already become a Quasi-Saint. His Daoist attainment was not much worse than Duobao Dao Ren of the Jie Jiao Sect. He simply preferred to keep a low profile and neither he nor his master had promoted themselves widely. At this level, their own Dao has been determined, and they do not need cushions anymore.
Yuan Shi Tianzun and Tongtian Jiaozhu were in a difficult position.
Having too many disciples is a problem. Whether you give them to someone or not, it will cause trouble later on.
Not counting the Nansen Xianweng and Jiang Ziya, among the twelve Jin Xian revered by Yuanshi Tianzun, twelve people split into three factions. The close-knit Guangchengzi, Chijingzhenren, Taixi Zhenren, and Lingbao Daofazheng were on good terms with their master. Wenshu, Puxian, Cihang, and Jiliusun from the Western Church were secretly aligned with them. The neutral Zhixing Tianzun, Yunding Zhenren, Qingxu Daode Zhengjun, and Huanglong Zhenren were all neutral parties.
With just the twelve Jin Xian, it's already like this. But for Tongtian Jiaozhu's numerous disciples numbering in the thousands, it's unimaginable.
As Laozi and Yuan Shi Tianzun did not move, Nuwa pretended not to know about this and hoped that it would be resolved without any further discussion.
Tongtian Jiaozhu hesitated for a long time, but in the end, he did not move
Three days passed.
Qinglan gave the Shengyan cushion to Deng ChanYu.
"Was it the cushion Master used when he was at the Zixiao Palace?" Deng ChanYu struggled to resist the urge to open the cushion and see if there was any Henglong Zixi inside.
Qinglan spoke seriously to her, "A Yu, the Empress has asked me to remind you again and again. Remember your true nature and do not lose yourself in cultivation. Remember, you are a Daoist, not an imitator."
"ChanYu remembers her teacher's teachings."
After sending off Qinglan, Deng ChanYu immediately entered the Cuigui Liangyi Light and placed Taiyue Palace inside.
The Taoist palace had been specially refined by Taiyi, condensing the essence of the Dao, which is peaceful and calm, and has a very good effect in resisting heavenly demons. One can't do anything about the internal heart demon that one generates, but if there is an invasion of heavenly demons from outside, the great sun golden flame of the Taoist palace will immediately respond and burn the heavenly demons to death, turning them into fuel for the internal flames of the palace.
Now with the saintly cushion, the cultivation effect has been upgraded to another level.
As soon as she sat down, she felt her perspective change. She seemed to have also gone to the Zixiao Palace and quietly listened to the old Taoist above telling about the three thousand Dao paths.
Many things were unclear to her, with sounds like "aba aba," not knowing what was being said. Excluding the option that Hongjun is an idiot, she guessed that it should be that even then, the Nuwa of that time didn't understand either. As a recording treasure, the cushion could only be passed over in a vague manner.
She didn't understand half of the content, but about 50-60% of it was memorable.
"This is a treasure!" Deng ChanYu was so excited that she wanted to do flips, but remembering the "calmness in times of crisis" principle, she finally held back.
The Shengyan cushion is like a study note, recording the vast majority of the knowledge and topics that Nuwa learned during her lectures at Zixiao Palace for thousands of years, tens of thousands of years, and even ten million years. There are too many topics to remember, even for Nuwa, the top student. Therefore, she records many important points to avoid forgetting or worrying about exams.
Now, Deng ChanYu can use the study notes of the top student to learn.
The advantage is that it allows for a quick grasp of the learning content, saving time for one's own thinking and deduction, and diving straight into the main topic. The disadvantage is also this: without the process of repeated thinking and argumentation, one may easily lose their Dao heart, and in the end, may not find their own path in the Dao.
