Every night, Li Dingxun would go to the Pure Land.
The strange old man would constantly teach him various cultivation methods, many of which he was only told to remember and not to rush into practicing.
Besides that, he continuously imparted combat experience and spoke of very profound concepts, which Li Dingxun understood only vaguely. He didn't particularly like this master, because the old man was long-winded, always loved to lecture, and always reminisced about the past. Whenever this happened, his words would become vague and low, sounding like two stone slabs rubbing together rather than meaningful sentences.
However, the old man valued Li Dingxun highly. He praised Li Dingxun's inner energy aptitude, saying that he would definitely master the Vajra Sect's supreme techniques.
When speaking of his own sect's techniques, the old ghost always spared no effort in using flowery language, but when it came to the martial arts of other sects in the Jianghu, he was greatly disdainful. First, he declared that all inner energy besides Vajra Inner Energy was trash, then he refuted the Lion Appearance Sect's brute-force methods, and finally, he scorned the Shaolin Sect's inner energy for being hesitant and sluggish, lacking the essence of fierce power.
Li Dingxun, as the Young Sect Master of the Lion Appearance Sect, felt a bit like he was suffering an undeserved calamity. So he asked the old ghost, "So, the Vajra Sect's martial arts are the best in the world? Then why did its legacy break?"
His words were like a needle pricking a balloon; the old ghost's tone immediately dropped, and he stammered in reply: "It can only be the best in the human world, I wouldn't dare say the best in the entire world."
"What martial art is the best in the entire world?"
"It's the Xumi Divine Palm of the Buddha Son."
"Can I learn it?"
"You? Haha, no!" The old ghost was amused. "Not to mention that the Buddha Son didn't leave any legacy, even if Mount Sumeru itself were placed right before them, the common people of the world wouldn't be able to comprehend its true meaning." He seemed a little out of breath—strange, how could a ghost be out of breath? Anyway, his laughter was exaggerated, as if he was venting a lot of emotions.
"Fortunately, you, kid, are truly lucky. Throughout the world, only I can allow you to glimpse a trace of the Xumi Divine Palm's true meaning!"
"I want to see it."
"No, you are too weak. If you see it, you will be shocked into an idiot."
"Then when can I see it?"
"At least, after you open your crown chakra."
"Okay." Li Dingxun's reply was understated, which the old ghost took as ignorance and arrogance.
"Kid, that you can come to the Sacred Pure Land is a blessing you accumulated in your past life. Perhaps you were one of the fourteen Venerables back then, but even they weren't all geniuses. If you are so arrogant and conceited, you will eventually crash head-first into the obstacle of 'Brahman-Self'..."
Li Dingxun closed his eyes, ignoring his nonsense, and stood in his stance.
Practicing martial arts in the Pure Land was indeed useful, but only limited to the Sacred Pure Land and Virtuous Path Pure Land. The Evil Path Pure Land could not enjoy this treatment.
This led to a trend towards goodness; people all hoped to enter the Virtuous Path Pure Land, so various unorthodox methods appeared, such as hypnosis and fate alteration. However, truly effective methods were always few.
Some well-known ones included the Face-Changer's secret Heart-Swapping Art and the Ran Mountain Sect's Wang Chan classics.
Perhaps, to some extent, the Buddha Son truly pushed the world a great step forward towards a utopian society.
"Alas, I have no regrets about losing to the Buddha Son. The Buddha Son's Tao is far superior to that of Confucius and Mencius. It's a pity that I won't be able to see it."
Li Dingxun thought of the supreme goodness and righteousness spoken of by his tutor. Was there anything higher than righteousness?
"Don't get distracted! If you're standing in a stance, stand properly. What's with this restless impatience?" The old ghost seemed to want to distract him so he could scold him to his heart's content.
Li Dingxun fell for it a few times, then learned his lesson. No matter what the old ghost said, he just continued practicing his martial arts.
Time passed little by little.
His younger siblings gradually grew up. Fortunately, their family only had six members; Li Piguang and his wife had not added any more children, simply because raising good successors was very troublesome.
His third sister was Li Piguang's favorite, and his fourth brother was the most boisterous, thus attracting most of Li Meizheng's attention.
As a result, Li Dingxun and his second brother, Li Zhongshou, were neglected.
Fortunately, both boys could take care of themselves, as they had been assigned to separate courtyards since childhood, making them less dependent on their parents.
Li Zhongshou, like his elder brother, entered the Virtuous Path Pure Land at the age of five. This time, he couldn't stop himself, and his favorite thing was to play in it every day. He neither liked practicing martial arts nor reading, spending all his time in the side room. Besides meal times, Li Dingxun rarely saw him.
Li Piguang sighed repeatedly, believing his second son was a lost cause. To prevent the boy from further degenerating, the Sect Master, with a clap of his head, had Li Zhongshou recognize Vice Sect Master Shi Minghua as his godmother, and then let this female hero discipline him.
The entire Lion Appearance Sect adhered to a simple and straightforward approach, which was excellently reflected in their education. Things were taught by the master; if one couldn't learn, they were beaten; if they still couldn't learn, they were beaten again, which also served to practice their hard qigong.
So, during the days Li Zhongshou was absent, Li Dingxun often lit incense and prayed for his brother.
…
Life, for Li Dingxun, was something too complex and difficult to articulate. Even though he had read "The Analects," "Li Sao," and "Records of the Grand Historian" thoroughly, he still couldn't define his own life.
While practicing and studying, he counted on his fingers and realized he had already lived for ten years.
This sounds strange; children generally don't care how old they are, except when using age as a bragging right. Ten years old was no different from five years old.
But Li Dingxun still felt a sense of sadness.
This sadness was similar to that of a caged bird; he knew his wings were fully grown, but he still couldn't cross the high courtyard wall.
He had, of course, witnessed the world separated by the courtyard wall. In fact, he had explored the scenery all around Lotus Mountain, through all four seasons. However, his gaze extended far beyond these tangible things; he could perceive a more distant world, very free, very dangerous, where villains roamed and the aura of the Jianghu lingered.
These were blocked by an even higher wall, an invisible wall.
Every time he returned to his small courtyard, Li Dingxun felt genuinely exhausted.
The existence of the wall separated him from the outside world, making everything beyond the wall a chaotic system. Even if he knew what was happening outside, he couldn't help but be curious.
Humans have a desire to peek.
The old ghost told him that when he cast aside these irrelevant emotions, that's when he would approach being a true strong practitioner.
"My father says to be a lion. I don't want to be a stone."
"Your father is wrong."
"Aren't lions stronger than stones?"
"Lions have weaknesses; stones do not."
Li Dingxun was convinced.
So he continued to stay obediently in his small courtyard, and ten years passed in a flash.
He didn't participate in any activities and didn't communicate with anyone.
To be a stone, deeply hidden beneath the earth, no one knows what kind of divine blade or unpolished jade it is nurturing.
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