Upon hearing the system's mechanical voice, Xiao Ning raised an eyebrow.
"The Great Celestial Immortal Technique? That sounds familiar. Oh right, it's the immortal cultivation technique that Sun Wukong learned from Patriarch Bodhi!"
Then, Xiao Ning suddenly realized something and looked at the system space. There was a golden book inside with five divine characters written on it: the Great Celestial Immortal Technique.
At the same time, information about this technique also appeared in Xiao Ning's mind.
...
[Item Name]: Grand Celestial Immortal Technique
[Item Grade]: Mid-grade Earth Rank
[Item Description]: This is a Taoist Golden Elixir Immortal Technique. It condenses essence and energy, eliminates evil desires, allows one to understand the Dharma nature, obtain the source, and nourish the spirit. With high moral character and profound virtue, one can live as long as heaven, achieve harmony between water and fire, be free from all diseases, transcend reincarnation, attain immortality through countless eons, practice extraordinary paths, seize the creation of heaven and earth, and delve into the mysteries of the sun and moon! Upon mastery, one can cultivate to the supreme celestial realm!
...
Xiao Ning's mind stirred, and he opened the golden book, immersing himself in this mid-grade Earth-rank immortal scripture.
The poem says:
The Tao is most profound; do not take the elixir of immortality lightly. Without encountering a sage to impart the secret formula, empty words will only leave your mouth weary and tongue dry.
Exercise formula:
The true and wondrous secret of the perfect integration of exoteric and esoteric teachings lies solely in cultivating one's nature and life; there is no other way.
All things must be kept in good order, and one must carefully guard and preserve them to prevent them from leaking out.
Do not reveal it, keep it within your body, and you will prosper by receiving my teachings.
Memorizing the mnemonic will bring many benefits, and by eliminating evil desires, one can attain coolness and peace.
It is cool and bright, a perfect place to admire the moon from the Dantai Terrace.
The moon hides the jade rabbit, the sun hides the crow, and the tortoise and snake intertwine.
Intertwined and resilient, they can even grow golden lotuses in fire.
By gathering and reversing the five elements, one can attain Buddhahood or immortality upon completion of the task...
In an instant, Xiao Ning felt a flood of information rush into his mind. Of course, for his current level of cultivation, it was just a piece of cake.
The primordial spirit split into countless forms, instantly reading and analyzing the manual. Although this manual is a Taoist Golden Elixir technique, it contains the boundless freedom, supreme infinity, and ultimate truth of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism.
"Phew! It is indeed incredibly profound! I have pondered it for a long time, but I have only grasped the general idea. To fully comprehend it, I will need countless hours!"
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Ning opened his eyes, exhaled a long breath, and muttered to himself.
He did some quick calculations and realized that more than half a year had passed since he started sitting there.
Apart from keeping a sliver of his mind occupied with daily check-ins and maintaining vigilance regarding external safety, Xiao Ning's mind was almost entirely immersed in the "Great Celestial Immortal Technique".
"Indeed, time stands still in the mountains; a thousand years have passed in the blink of an eye!"
He sighed, stood up, and flew towards Chang'an City.
Now that more than half a year has passed, I suppose that fellow traveler from the same hometown, the chuunibyou (delusional) teenager Wang Mang, must be getting impatient by now!
Kunyang is a county under the jurisdiction of Yingchuan Prefecture. It is only a few hundred miles west of Chang'an, which is just a moment's journey for Xiao Ning, who travels at the speed of riding the clouds.
A single moon shines over Chang'an, and the sound of ten thousand households pounding clothes fills the air.
In his poem "Midnight Song of Wu: Autumn Song," the famous Qinglian Sword Immortal Li Bai described a corner of Chang'an, where a bright moon hung high and the sounds of thousands of households pounding clothes could be heard.
Of course, this Chang'an is not the same as that Chang'an.
Standing atop the cloud, Xiao Ning surveyed the city of Chang'an below.
At this moment, what came into Xiao Ning's view was a city exuding ancient charm, with thousands of buildings and households, layer upon layer, and people coming and going on the streets, shoulder to shoulder, incomparably prosperous.
After pausing to observe for a while, Xiao Ning stopped and flew straight towards the imperial palace in the center of Chang'an City.
Arriving above Weiyang Palace, Xiao Ning slowly descended from the clouds, hovering a hundred feet above the ground. He stood with his hands behind his back and said calmly, "Where is Wang Mang? Come out and see me!"
The not-so-loud sound, amplified by magic, clearly reached the Great Xin Kingdom's palace below, making it audible to everyone, while those outside the palace remained completely unaware.
...
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Come on, who's afraid of who!
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Chapter 3 Settling scores with the monkey (8.4k words) [Please subscribe! Please vote! Please donate!]
Upon hearing Xiao Ning's voice coming from the sky, Wang Mang, who was frantically dealing with state affairs in the palace, was first taken aback, then overjoyed and burst into tears. He threw down what he was holding and immediately rushed out.
Ignoring all imperial dignity and the entourage of ministers and eunuchs following behind him, Wang Mang rushed out of the palace. When he saw the auspicious clouds in the sky and Xiao Ning himself, he knelt down with a thud.
Upon seeing Wang Mang kneel, the others naturally followed suit.
Nonsense! The emperor of the Great Xin Kingdom has knelt down, how dare those eunuchs and guards not kneel?