"I have heard for a long time that the hometown of Lingbao is a pure land that is admired by all monks. Immortal Master Ge Hong amazed China and became one of the strongest in the history of Taoism. We came here to admire the Dharma and want to pay homage to the holy land." Ye Fan said.
Guo Zhen also stepped forward to salute and asked for accommodation. They had no disrespect in their hearts and came here to visit him precisely because they respected him in their hearts, hoping to satisfy their wish.
"To see the relics of the saints, you can go to the Taoist temple outside. This secret land is never open to the outside world." A disciple of Lingbao Sect looked cold and unhappy.
As expected, the four young men had little friendship with Guo Zhen. Guo Zhen had already followed them here, but they were so ruthless. They would not even say a word to help, but they also spoke so coldly, with a hint of contempt.
"Although we are acquainted, this place does not allow Xianza to enter." Another person was very direct, classifying him and Ye Fan as Xianza, with a disdainful tone.
"What kind of talent is not considered idle?" Seeing Guo Zhen's embarrassment, Ye Fan asked, saying that he would not leave just now, and Ge Hong would have to watch what he said from his seat.
"Do you really think you are a senior?" Another young man couldn't help laughing.
The old Taoist priest next to me once said that only senior masters can come here to lecture on scriptures and teach Taoism, and can enter and leave the pure land of Lingbao's past.
"There are thirty-three steps at the mountain gate, which represent the heavenly position of reaching immortality and enlightenment. If any of you can walk up to eight steps, you will barely pass the test and can enter." The old Taoist priest said.
Several ancient pines stand at the foot of the mountain like a dragon lying in the coils. According to legend, they were planted by Ge Hong himself. They are evergreen and as strong as a hornet.
There are thirty-three steps there, which are different from other bluestone steps leading to the mountain. It is said that in ancient times, this was the most common test. Even the Taoist boys who served the real people were able to walk over it, otherwise they would not be able to go up and down the mountain freely.
But now, only the older generation can leave, and ordinary disciples can only go around and avoid these stone steps from the side roads, which is incomparable to the ancient times.
Ye Fan originally wanted to walk up and forget it, but Guo Zhen was very stubborn and insisted on giving it a try. Being repeatedly looked down upon by people he knew, it was inevitable that he would feel a little angry and find it difficult to calm down.
One step, two steps, three steps. With his own Taoism, Guo Zhen only took three steps and found it very difficult. It would be difficult to take the fourth step. Due to the great environment of the world, compared with the ancient monks, today's Taoist practitioners generally practice
It is low and difficult to improve.
Next to them, the four young men chuckled and shook their heads. Even they did not dare to walk up the stone steps, thinking that Guo Zhen would only make a fool of himself if he did not understand this.
"brush"
A ball of green-blue light lit up, and a blue-gold sheet appeared in Guo Zhen's hand, with a talisman engraved on it. It was extremely ancient, and streaks of blue-gold light overflowed, covering him.
"Bang", "Bang"...
Guo Zhen took six steps in a row, taking a total of nine steps, exceeding the standard set by the old man. He was sweating profusely, and then he jumped out of the stone steps with all his strength and retreated.
The four young people next to him were all surprised. They stared at the blue and gold sheet in his hand. The talisman on it was very mysterious, which made Guo Zhen behave like this all of a sudden. Under normal circumstances, these four people would not do anything at all.
If it's less than that, it can only take three steps. I never thought that Guo Zhen could do it.
The old Taoist priest was also very surprised. He kept staring at the blue and gold talisman and said, "Although you have used a spiritual weapon, you have passed the test and can go up."
Guo Zhen let out a long breath, wiped the sweat from his head, and carefully put away the blue gold sheet. At his level, he could not put soldiers into the wheel of the body.
"It's just relying on foreign objects, what kind of ability is this." A young man whispered. The four of them felt that it was embarrassing, so they quickly went up the mountain without stopping.
Guo Zhen seemed exhausted after walking nine steps like this. When he came back, he hurriedly sat cross-legged on the ground to regain his energy.
Ye Fan looked at the thirty-three stone steps, walked up step by step, until he finished all the steps, and then walked down again.
Below, the old Taoist priest was almost frightened and speechless in surprise. Even he could only walk halfway, but this young man was better than just strolling. He knew that when he saw a real master, he had to call his senior and then salute.
Ye Fan stopped him, shook his head, and then came to Guo Zhen's side and applied a pure divine power to him. His tiredness was instantly wiped away, and he felt comfortable and recovered as before.
"Brother Ye..." He was naturally shocked and quickly opened his eyes.
"Xiao Dao'er, I just use the magic weapon to store an extra inner energy." Ye Fan explained with a smile.
Guo Zhen was relieved, otherwise he would have really thought that he had met a senior master. It would be very draining to save someone's vitality like this. It would be a completely different matter if it were contained in a magic weapon.
The old Taoist priest watched respectfully as they walked up a path leading to the Taoist temple on the rooftop. However, he did not move, shook his head vigorously, and continued to guard the mountain gate.
Along the way, all you can see are green pines and green cypresses, cranes flying in the sky, circling from time to time, and the place is filled with steaming clouds and rosy clouds. It looks like a fairyland, with spiritual energy many times stronger than the outside world.
When they arrived on the platform of this broken mountain, the first thing they saw was a bluestone statue. This was a Taoist man, with a calm, Taoist fairy air, and a feeling of lightness and lightness, as if he had seen through the world.
of everything.
This is a statue erected by later generations to commemorate Immortal Master Ge Hong. It is lifelike, free of smoke and fire, and seems to be about to ascend into heaven.
The Lingbao sect was founded by Ge Xuan and flourished in Ge Hong. It played an important role in the history of Taoism and had unparalleled influence. Gezao Mountain has also become one of the three sacred mountains of Taoism in the south.
Ye Fan stood on the rooftop and looked down in all directions. He saw rolling clouds and mist, majestic mountains, and beautiful peaks and valleys. He sighed for a while, this place is really amazing.
There were several broken mountains standing side by side with this place in the distance. Although the spiritual energy had dried up, there was still a trace of the remaining ripples of great creation, which shocked his heart. Was it left by Ge Hong?
One of the reasons why he came to the hometown of Lingbao Sect was to pursue Ge Hong's legacy. In addition, he also wanted to verify whether a secret that was a bit too illusory was true.
In Taoism, the reason why the Lingbao sect is so important and the leader is because the Lingbao Tianzun among the Three Pure Ones revered by Taoism originated from this lineage. It is recorded in the history of the development of Taoism that this sect participated in the positioning of the Three Pure Ones.
"It is rumored that in the ancient times, there was a deity named Lingbao. I don't know if it is true or not." Ye Fan said to himself.
Lingbao Tianzun is now respected by all Taoist schools. For the world of spiritual practice, it has long been impossible to verify whether it actually exists.
The Lingbao Sect took such a name to establish the sect, which is enough to explain everything, and also indirectly proves its supreme status in Taoism.
Ye Fan captured the traces of the creation of the great avenue and thought carefully. He had heard about the origin of the Nine Secrets when he was at the other end of the starry sky. Some people said that it was created by several Taoists who had passed away. Others said that it was created by the supreme figures of different periods in the ancient times.
A secret technique left behind by each before the transformation was combined by later generations. Some people say that the Nine Secrets are the result of countless people perfecting them.
"Ge Hong may be in charge of one or two of the Nine Secrets, and it is not difficult to make some associations from the name of the sect. Could it be that Lingbao Tianzun was one of the several Tianzun who created the Nine Secrets back then?"
On Broken Mountain, these Taoist temples are very old. Although the great supernatural beings have all disappeared, everything here proves its former glory. The remaining traces of Taoism and the incomplete sage array are shocking.
However, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is too thin, making it difficult for these things to operate, and for some reason they are slowly damaging themselves. Over time, they will all be wiped out.
"Is this the senior expert you are talking about?" A young girl stood in front of a Taoist temple and chuckled. She looked at Ye Fan and Guo Zhen, and there were some young people beside her.
"Yes, this is a man who has passed through nine bluestone steps. You will need to ask for more advice soon." One of the four young monks who had known Guo Zhen said.
Several people laughed immediately after hearing this. They were all junior figures who came here with the elders of the master's sect, and they had obviously known each other for a long time. Ye Fan patted Guo Zhen on the shoulder and told him to calm down. There was nothing to worry about, and pulled him
Let's walk towards the Taoist temple together.
"You really go in, that's the place where the elders go to practice. Do you still want to give me a sermon?"
Upon seeing this, a group of people followed in. There were green grass and towering ancient trees in the courtyard. Not far away, there were more than a dozen old people sitting cross-legged on futons, discussing Taoism, while some young people were listening.
Ye Fan took Guo Zhen and found two futons at the edge and sat down on them. Some young people suddenly showed strange expressions and looked over.
"You really...really think of yourself as a master, do you really dare to sit here?" The four young people who knew Guo Zhen now showed sympathy instead of contempt.
Many people looked at it, even the elders noticed this and were a little surprised.
"What's wrong?" Guo Zhen was a little confused.
"Look at who dares to sit down. Aren't they all respectfully standing here to listen to the true Dharma?" One person said with a look of gloating.
"Aren't they also young people? They are also sitting there." Guo Zhen pointed doubtfully at the dozen young men and women in front of him.
"Guo Zhen, you are so naive. Can you two compare with them? They are both core genius disciples who came out of the dense soil."
The young men and women standing were both envious and jealous of those people. They shook their heads at Ye Fan and the other two, especially the four people earlier who showed a sneer, looking like they were watching the fun.
Guo Zhen was at a loss and was about to stand up. Ye Fan stopped him and said that he had already sat down and there was no need to get up again.
"Who are you? Why are you sitting here? Who invited you in?" Across the way, a core disciple sitting on a futon asked.
Ye Fan took a closer look and found that these young people were not bad at all. They were all above the realm of life spring. Compared with others, they were indeed extraordinary.
"They came up on their own by climbing the nine stone steps." Someone quickly told the story.
More than a dozen old people were shocked. They looked at the two of them seriously, which made Guo Zhen feel uncomfortable all over. At the same time, Ye Fan was looking at them. These experts were all above the secret realm of the Dao Palace, and they were indeed very powerful in today's era.
Yes, there are even three people in the Four Extremes Secret Realm.
"Really? You came here on your own. Let me try to see if I am qualified to sit here." A core disciple of the Lingbao Sect stood up from the futon and was in the late stage of the Life Spring Realm.
"Haven't you already tried it down below? Why continue?" Guo Zhen has a big head. He is a casual cultivator, and the people here are all disciples of the big sect. It is said that there may be people in some secret lands.
Disciples of such a sect cannot afford to offend a living person with great supernatural powers.
"The test path at the mountain gate is too simple. People with reasonable cultivation can walk up to the first step. It doesn't matter. If you can walk up to the fourth step on that ladder, I have nothing to say. I will respect you as my lifelong predecessor."
Either way." The young man pointed to the highest platform, where there were thirty-three stone steps leading straight to the platform.
Everyone else's expression changed when they saw this. What kind of place is this? It is the place where the ancient sects took the stage to preach. Can anyone still go up there now? Even if there are only a few steps up, there are very few people.
"I once heard that Immortal Master Ge Hong of the Lingbao Sect once wrote a Taoist book discussing the Nine Secrets. If we can go there, we won't force others to do it. We just need to tell you the origin of the Nine Secrets." Ye Fan said.
He came here for the Nine Secrets, and his purpose was very clear. He wanted to determine whether the Lingbao Sect really had one or two secrets!
Many people laughed, only a dozen old Taoist priests looked moved, but after looking at Ye Fan and the others, they relaxed again and did not realize that there was any profound Taoist practice.
"Do you really think you can compare to the supreme headmaster in ancient times?"
"Even if there are people with great supernatural powers today, they may not be able to complete the thirty-three flights of stairs. Just you?"
Many people laughed, with a sarcastic look, feeling that it was too unreliable. A few people who knew Guo Zhen shook their heads. They really sympathized with these two people.