Chapter 147: The Induction Technique

Wang Yuanfeng rose to leave, but as he reached the door, it suddenly occurred to him that while there were countless Daoist methods and sects springing up like mushrooms, very few could actually enter the threshold of cultivation, mostly serving merely as a psychological comfort.

Then there were those who walked unorthodox paths, such as the Three-Break Sect, which embraced a doctrine of seeking death to exhaust karma, ultimately ending in world destruction. This was harmful and of no benefit to normal people, yet it could still be considered a path. However, the path of longevity was the choice of the majority; if they could live well, no one wanted to seek death, if they could be healthy, no one wanted illness, and if they could attain longevity, no one wanted to die prematurely.

Originally, according to the traditional Daoist habit, one should simply cultivate oneself, and whatever others wished to do was none of one's business. But since he had forged karma in this realm and his family was all in this world, those who had a good relationship with him naturally deserved special care.

He immediately said, "You may weave the affairs of the Three Realms into stories and spread them far and wide, ensuring that everyone knows them."

Then he continued, "I observe that all living beings are continuously plagued by various disasters, their minds confused and lacking direction, suffering from illnesses and natural calamities. Unable to bear this, I shall pass down a simple method to allow all living beings to leave suffering and attain happiness."

Upon hearing this, the generals all perked up, afraid of missing a single word. After all, this was a simplified method, presumably one that anyone could practice. Although they were soldiers and could eventually be ferried into the Heavenly Court after performing military exploits in death, there to refine their Yin spirits and become heavenly soldiers and generals, it never hurt to know one more method. Whose method you practiced made you that person's confidant—this was an unchanging truth. Even if they did not rely on this method themselves, they had relatives and friends; those who would learn of it first through spreading it would be the soldiers' own relatives and friends. None of them dared to miss even a single word.

Wang Yuanfeng looked around, unsure of what else to say, and stated, "I have attained the Dao of the Primordial Beginning Jade Clear Celestial Venerable, and walked the path of realization through the Huntian Instrument, establishing my revered title as the Huntian Divine Venerable. If anyone is fated to know the name of Huntian, and recites it with a sincere heart, over time a natural response will arise."

"Whoever recites the name of Huntian can resolve adversity, attain peace of body and mind, eliminate the Three Disasters, alter destiny and transform malevolence, dispel illnesses, resolve curses, dissipate official disputes and verbal altercations, dissolve unfavorable romantic entanglements and peach-blossom tribulations, banish ominous dreams and evil apparitions, ferry the deceased to ascend to heaven, and erase disasters and absolve sins. Those with profound resonance may have immortal officials transmit the Dharma to them in dreams. This is a simplified method; you may observe people's character and preach it yourselves."

As soon as Wang Yuanfeng finished speaking, everyone felt this was somewhat incredible. Could merely reciting a name have such great power? Nevertheless, they all answered in unison, "Yes, Divine Venerable."

General Fu felt somewhat hard-pressed to understand this, knowing that the method of reciting names was commonly used by believers in ordinary temples. Seeing that a few others also looked doubtful, he hesitated, bit the bullet, and stepped forward to say, "Yuan... Young Master Feng, you previously told your subordinate that the divine path mostly uses this method to absorb the incense fire of faith, but this method..."

Wang Yuanfeng observed the expressions of the crowd, all of whom wore half-believing, half-doubtful looks, and finally fixed his gaze on General Fu, looking at him with a half-smile.

General Fu was so stared at that cold sweat streamed down his back. Others might not know Wang Yuanfeng, but he certainly did. Although he had followed Wang Yuanfeng for three years, those had been three years akin to hell. To harbor doubts about this matter was a very dangerous thing indeed, yet if he could not understand the underlying principle, his mind would never find clarity.

Gritting his teeth, he said, "Isn't it... a bit too simple?"

"Hahaha!" Wang Yuanfeng laughed out loud, wondering what the reason could be. The others were at a loss, bewildered by the laughter, as they heard Wang Yuanfeng say, "You must know that the Great Dao is extremely simple; all who attain it achieve the Dao by grasping the One. You can all be considered martial arts experts; surely you have all experienced moments of sudden enlightenment where your martial prowess advanced tremendously overnight."

Hearing this, the crowd nodded one after another. After reaching a bottleneck in martial arts, no matter how one practiced, it seemed impossible to exceed a certain limit. Yet through continuous accumulation, a sudden flash of enlightenment would finally elevate their realm by a level overnight, which could truly be called stepping into the heavens in a single bound.

Wang Yuanfeng continued, "This method of reciting the name is based on the same principle as attaining enlightenment; both are penetrated by the One. With single-minded recitation of Huntian, resonance will naturally arise. Huntian belongs to the category of spiritual treasures and will naturally record this matter. The body will achieve a state of self-refinement without deliberate practice, emphasizing the integration of humanity and the divine, the unity of man and heaven. When the reciter encounters tribulations, Huntian will naturally rely on this resonance to adjust the person's fortune, turning misfortune into auspiciousness."

Wang Yuanfeng silently recited the sacred title of the Celestial Venerable and felt a faint, elusive resonance. He then continued, "The Celestial Venerable titles spoken of by the Daoist school are all anthropomorphized representations of the Dao. The deities of the Great Dao are born from the pneuma of the Dao and are not something humans can artificially create. What does it matter to the Dao whether one more person believes or one fewer person believes?"

Upon hearing this, the crowd seemed to understand, though they also felt somewhat ashamed. They had wondered if Wang Yuanfeng wanted to collect incense fire just like the visible divine path methods did—such as the Dragon Lord of Dongting Lake or various local evil cults. Ever since the founding of the current dynasty, such practices were neither strongly encouraged nor opposed, merely left to circulate among the common folk, though people were somewhat terrified of things like the Dragon Lord that reduced the populace to destitution.

Having heard this principle, however, they understood the underlying reason and silently concluded that this was by no means an ordinary method; upon returning, they must inform their relatives and friends.

Right-wing General Yang thought for a moment and asked, "Divine Venerable, is this method also a universal salvation method?"

Wang Yuanfeng nodded and said, "That is the meaning. Whoever sincerely recites and resonates with it can benefit from it."

General Yang pondered for a moment and asked further, "Then if it is for the universal salvation of all living beings, and living beings are in distress, will the Divine Venerable, like other revered deities, rescue the myriad common people from water and fire?"

The others also listened curiously to this question, which sounded trivial yet significant, and watched as Wang Yuanfeng gave General Yang a strange look. "What other people do has what to do with me? The Dao is not far from man, yet man distances himself from the Dao. Perhaps others practicing other paths are all part of the Great Dao; just take good care of your own people. Perhaps those people actually sought out hardship in the first place."

"Gasp..." Everyone drew in a cold breath, never expecting such a response.

Sensing that it would be good to give them some understanding, and since whatever was spread from here might serve the Three Realms in the future, Wang Yuanfeng decided to popularize some concepts for them.

Gathering his thoughts, he said, "What you usually see and hear are deities whose duty is great mercy and great compassion, rescuing people from suffering!"

The crowd nodded one after another. Wang Yuanfeng continued, "Those deities either achieved the Dao by making vows, or they purely depend on incense fire to survive. The former must rescue those in distress to repay the karma of attaining the Dao; without this karma, the Dao cannot be achieved. Therefore, they end up manufacturing disasters and then saving the world in order to maintain their revered status. As for the latter, they survive purely on human faith; when people stop believing in them, such deities simply vanish."

"Those who cultivate and attain the Dao all have their own Dao. Leaving behind a lineage of the Dharma is merely out of a bond of incense fire; saving beings boundlessly also means saving those with whom they share an affinity and their own disciples. No matter how well outsiders do, it is of no consequence. Once the Three Realms are established in the future, we will only look after the people of our own world. If it is of no benefit to our Dao, would we go and save people from other places?"

Seeing the crowd sink into deep thought, Wang Yuanfeng asked further, "If you are appointed in the heavenly realm in the future, will your attitude toward the disciples of your own Dharma lineage and ordinary living beings under your rule be the same?"

Hearing this, the crowd suddenly experienced a flash of enlightenment. That made sense. Although all children were children, one felt differently about one's own children compared to outsiders' children. No matter how high one's status was, one could not fail to distinguish between the inner circle and the outer; treating other people's children better than one's own children was something only a deranged person with a warped worldview would do.

Wang Yuanfeng looked at the crowd and knew they understood. An advanced life form that could not distinguish between the inside and the outside might exist in other sects, but certainly not in the Daoist school.