https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-229-Auspicious-Omen-Balancing-Action-and-Stillness-Part-1-/12587025/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-230-229-The-Opportunity-to-Achieve-an-Immortal-Body-Part-1-/12587027/
Chapter 229: Auspicious Omen, Balancing Action and Stillness (Part 2)
Chapter 229: Auspicious Omen, Balancing Action and Stillness (Part 2)
There were four young companions who had accompanied the Crown Prince on this trip away from the capital.
In addition to Shangguan Zhengqing and Zhang Ziye, there was also Ye Song from the Ye Clan of Qingzhou.
Ye Song was the Crown Prince's cousin. His father was the full blood brother of the Crown Prince's mother, both being children of the current clan head of the Ye Clan of Qingzhou, Ye Yan. Ye Song was the clan head's grandson and heir.
However, compared to these three, Lei Jun was more interested in the fourth companion.
Not because his background was particularly impressive, but precisely because it was so ordinary.
The others were all scions of royalty, nobility, or prestigious clans.
As far as Lei Jun knew, the last young man was of humble origins, born into a poor family. A year ago, he had been studying at the newly established academy, and had only recently been transferred to the East Palace as one of the Crown Prince's companions.
It was said that he had become acquainted with the Crown Prince during his classes at the academy, by the Emperor's arrangement.
Considering the Empress's recent establishment of the academy and her efforts to promote commoners in recent years, this young man, Meng Shaojie, had naturally attracted a lot of attention.
The fact that the Crown Prince got along very well with him naturally led many to speculate that the Crown Prince had been influenced by his aunt, the Empress.
However, there was a small problem...
Meng Shaojie's aptitude was relatively mediocre.
Not that he was a complete dullard.
Strictly speaking, Meng Shaojie was not bad. While he might not be a genius or a monster, he was still a talented individual.
There was a teacher from the Dragon and Tiger Mountain Celestial Master's Mansion, Lin Shan, who taught at the academy.
Although Meng Shaojie was not his student, Lin Shan had paid special attention to him after he became the Crown Prince's companion.
Meng Shaojie was not an exceptional talent whose brilliance overshadowed all others, but his scholarly aura was quite dense. With hard work and dedication to his studies, along with guidance from a capable teacher and sufficient resources, as long as he didn't encounter any major calamities or setbacks, he had the potential to reach the Middle Three Heavens realm.
With deep blessings and good fortune, he might even be able to strive for the Fifth or Sixth Heaven.
Most cultivators in the world never progressed beyond the Lower Three Heavens, or even remained stuck at the First Heaven.
Meng Shaojie, in this regard, was already a one-in-a-million talent.
However, everything was relative.
Take Crown Prince Zhang Hui, for example. At the age of nineteen, he had already reached the Fourth Heaven realm. Even among the various famous sects and sacred lands, it would be difficult to find someone of similar age and cultivation level. Some might say that he fell short of expectations, but that was only because he was the heir apparent of the Tang Dynasty.
Compared to Zhang Hui's companions, whether it was Shangguan Zhengqing, Ye Song, or Zhang Ziye, they were all outstanding individuals among their peers. Endowed with extraordinary talent, they were being cultivated as pillars of their respective families, all aiming for the Upper Three Heavens.
As long as they didn't meet an untimely end, they were destined to become the backbone of their clans.
In this context, placing Meng Shaojie among them made him stand out like a chicken among cranes...
He was also very low-key, keeping a low profile in the group, almost as if he were invisible.
It was Zhang Hui who stepped forward and asked with concern, "Shaojie, are you feeling unwell again?"
"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I'm fine," Meng Shaojie quickly replied.
Zhang Hui turned to Lei Jun and politely asked, "Dragon and Tiger Mountain is the foremost sacred land for Taoist pill refining and medicine in the world. May I trouble Elder Lei to take a look at Shaojie?"
"What happened?" Lei Jun inquired.
Meng Shaojie hesitated before explaining, "Elder Lei, it's like this. After our group left Bashu, we encountered a powerful demon causing chaos. There were disturbances in the earth veins and spiritual energy, and I accidentally fell into an underground cave, where I was assaulted by the earth qi and fell ill. Fortunately, the imperial physicians accompanying us helped to nurse me back to health. My body has recovered, but... just now, as we were walking through the mountains, I felt a bit dizzy again."
Meng Shaojie apologized, "It was rude of me, Elder Lei, please forgive me."
He offered his wrist, and Lei Jun placed his fingers on his pulse, a thread of spiritual power gently probing his body.
Previously, Lei Jun had suspected that Meng Shaojie might be a hidden talent cultivated by the Empress, pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger while staying by the Crown Prince's side.
But after examining him, Lei Jun realized that, at the very least, Meng Shaojie's innate talent and root bone were somewhere between the upper-middle and top tier of a normal five-star talent, but not a spiritual body root bone.
To reiterate, he had talent, but it wasn't exceptionally dazzling.
If he had the ability to hide from Lei Jun's perception, then that would be another matter.
However, the gap between their current cultivation levels was vast, and Lei Jun possessed the Yin-Yang Holy Body, his soul fused with the Heaven Master Seal, the hidden side of the Heavenly Tome, and the Heavenly Tome Trinity. The likelihood of Meng Shaojie hiding anything from him was minuscule.
Nonetheless, the young scholar's soul was quite agile, and Lei Jun wondered about his innate comprehension talent.
Lei Jun was helping to diagnose his condition, not intending to dig for his secrets, so he didn't delve too deeply.
His attention was mostly focused on Meng Shaojie's current "ailment."
In reality, with court physicians having already examined him and the presence of Zhang Mu, the Xun'an Prince, for the past three days, Lei Jun didn't think that Meng Shaojie would have any unknown hidden illnesses or secrets.
The court physicians were all from the martial arts lineage of the medical martial arts tradition, experts in the intricacies of flesh and blood. Logically, they shouldn't have missed anything.
Meng Shaojie's condition didn't seem like he had been possessed or taken over by a demonic creature...
Hmm? Wait a moment.
Lei Jun's heart stirred slightly.
Within him, the black and white streams of spiritual power intertwined, yin and yang interplaying, lively and vibrant.
The thread of Lei Jun's spiritual power that entered Meng Shaojie's wrist pulse also underwent a transformation, initially maintaining a balanced interplay of yin and yang.
But then, it shifted towards the yang aspect.
Meng Shaojie was male and cultivated the Confucian indomitable righteousness, so he didn't feel any discomfort at first.
However, after a moment, he felt dizzy again, and his mind began to spin faintly.
Lei Jun also noticed that his thread of slightly yang-oriented spiritual power seemed to be affected by some unknown force.
But everything lasted only a fleeting moment.
Meng Shaojie's consciousness quickly regained clarity.
Lei Jun's thread of spiritual power also returned to its previous state.
"It's not a problem with your physical body, but rather with your mental state, which has sustained some damage. You need to calm your mind and soothe your spirit," Lei Jun said calmly as he released Meng Shaojie's wrist.
In his heart, he speculated whether the changes in Meng Shaojie's body were innate and the reason why the Empress or Crown Prince valued him, or if they were indeed caused by a recent encounter with danger after leaving Shu Mountain, as Meng Shaojie had claimed.
However, Lei Jun was merely curious and had no intention of taking any action.
Although he also wondered if the auspicious sign of the upper-upper draw predicted an opportunity that would arise not with Crown Prince Zhang Hui but with this young companion of the Crown Prince, at the moment, there was no enmity between them, and Lei Jun had no intention of taking advantage of the situation.
Perhaps the opportunity lay elsewhere?
"Thank you, Elder Lei..." Meng Shaojie was about to express his gratitude when a deafening roar suddenly rang in his ears!
"Boom!!!'
The thunderous sound came from the Heavenly Master Hall of the Dragon and Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master Mansion.
Pure golden lightning spread out in all directions.
However, it didn't harm anyone or damage the surrounding buildings.
The visiting group from the Eastern Palace was startled by the sudden thunder, but they were not harmed.
As for the Heavenly Master Mansion disciples on the mountain, they had grown accustomed to similar occurrences happening every now and then over the years.
"Our sect's leader, your senior martial sister, has reached a critical juncture in her cultivation, so there might be some noise," Lei Jun apologized to Zhang Hui. "We've disturbed Your Highness."
Zhang Hui shook his head repeatedly, "Not at all, not at all. The Heavenly Master of Tang is a genius, and news of her creation of a new thunder law in addition to the Heavenly Master Mansion's inherited Nine Heavenly Thunder Laws has spread throughout the capital, inspiring admiration. We're fortunate to catch a glimpse of her prowess today, and it hasn't caused any other issues..."
As he was speaking, the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty suddenly froze.
Because Meng Shaojie, who was standing in front of him, was swaying as if he were drunk.
Then, he fainted on the spot.
Zhang Hui: "..."
Lei Jun: "... The thunder was sudden, and it's understandable if it startled you."
Zhang Hui: "You're right, Elder Lei, you're right."
Lei Jun quickly supported Meng Shaojie, preventing the young scholar from falling to the ground.
He calmly instructed the stunned Shangguan Hong and the other Heavenly Master Mansion disciples, "Take Meng Mister to rest, and I'll go check on him soon."
Shangguan Hong and the others hurriedly complied.
The Crown Prince Zhang Hui said, "Elder Lei, please don't worry about us. Go ahead and take a look at Shaojie's condition."
Lei Jun: "Alright."
Shangguan Hong and the others brought the unconscious Meng Shaojie to a room and placed him in a quiet chamber.
The Eastern Palace group followed and spoke to Lei Jun, "We'll rest in the front hall while you observe."
Lei Jun nodded, "Your Highness, rest assured. When we arrived, I took a look at his condition, and although he fainted, there shouldn't be any major issues. Just in case, I'll help him recuperate."
Zhang Hui: "Thank you for your hard work, Elder Lei."
Lei Jun went to the quiet chamber to check on Meng Shaojie.
The Eastern Palace group rested in the front hall.
"Your Highness, don't worry. Since Elder Lei said that Meng Mister is fine, there shouldn't be any problems.
"Zhang Ziye, the son of Prince Zhang Mu of Xun'an, smiled and said,"
"Zhang Hui nodded, 'I thought the same, but the matter arose suddenly, and I don't know the reason behind it.'"
Shangguan Zhengqing and Ye Song also offered their comfort, each with their own thoughts about Meng Shaojie hidden in their hearts.
After all, they were also curious to see what was so special about this classmate of humble origins.
Even if they wanted to do something, it wouldn't be right now.
In the quiet room, Lei Jun's fingers once again rested on Meng Shaojie's wrist, sensing something amiss within his body.
A thread of his spiritual power, infused with yang energy, entered Meng Shaojie, but it was met with obvious interference.
It seemed to be forcibly shifting towards yin energy.
Meng Shaojie's physical body was indeed fine at the moment.
But there was another issue.
He had fallen into a coma and showed no signs of waking up, as if he would remain in this state indefinitely.
It was as if his soul had been restrained by something.
The catalyst for this change seemed to be the thunderclap that rang out earlier.
"Little Martial Sister, you're quite fierce. You weren't targeting anyone with your cultivation, but you still managed to shock someone unconscious..." Lei Jun felt both amused and helpless.
Of course, he didn't mean that Tang Xiaotang's thunder had actually harmed Meng Shaojie.
Rather, Meng Shaojie's situation was unique.
The key to the problem lay in Tang Xiaotang's thunder, which originated from Pure Yang Immortal Thunder and contained pure yang true intent.
It didn't affect anyone else, but it caused Meng Shaojie to faint.
Lei Jun withdrew his thread of yang-oriented spiritual power and, with the intertwining of black and white streams, shifted it towards yin energy before probing Meng Shaojie's wrist pulse again.
As expected, this time, his yin-oriented spiritual power was affected by some unknown force, showing signs of shifting towards yang energy, opposite from before.
Lei Jun then made a more pronounced move.
With his spiritual power intertwining and flowing, he began to stir Meng Shaojie's soul.
Meng Shaojie's soul trembled, and a faint shadow emerged within it.
However, the shadow remained deeply embedded in Meng Shaojie's soul, refusing to leave.
Lei Jun didn't want to harm Meng Shaojie's soul, so he refrained from using any violent means or the power of the hidden side of the Heavenly Tome.
But he had another trick up his sleeve.
Lei Jun manifested the principles and essence of the creation of the cosmos through yin and yang from that page of the Heavenly Tome.
With his foundation as the Yin-Yang Holy Body, he maintained a balance of yin and yang, tugging at the seemingly unstable shadow.
In the past, Lei Jun had received a scholar's inkstone from Chu Andong, which was crafted by a Confucian cultivator and further refined by a Taoist cultivator.
Lei Jun had already disassembled the inkstone using the hidden side of the Heavenly Tome.
Through this process, his understanding of Confucian cultivators had deepened.
Therefore, even with this delicate and harmless approach, Lei, the Daoist Master, was still able to handle it skillfully.
Under his guidance, the faint shadow detached from Meng Shaojie's soul and gradually transformed into a tangible spiritual object.
This spiritual object resided within Meng Shaojie's flesh and blood, resembling a small and exquisite ruler. It was mostly dull, with only a flickering gleam at its center.
The gleam at the center seemed unstable.
Lei Jun's heart stirred as he realized that while his spiritual power maintained a balanced interplay of yin and yang, his act of dragging the ruler was inherently disrupting that balance, causing the ruler to become unstable.
As the ruler trembled slightly, the gleaming point at its center began to shift towards one side.
Meng Shaojie's body also trembled in response.
"No wonder the imperial physicians and Prince Zhang Mu couldn't find the cause," Lei Jun understood.
The strange ruler, as a whole, was more balanced and nourished within the human body, but it could shift between the tangible and intangible.
Thus, when the imperial physicians treated Meng Shaojie's injuries, this peculiar spiritual object transformed from tangible to intangible, hiding within Meng Shaojie's soul.
When Meng Shaojie arrived at Dragon and Tiger Mountain, his body was affected by the cultivation methods of the mountain, which emphasized the balance of water and fire, yin and yang, with active flows of yin and yang energy.
Therefore, when Meng Shaojie's soul trembled, this strange spiritual object showed signs of emerging from his soul and returning to his physical body, causing him to feel dizzy.
But then, it was startled back into his soul by Tang Xiaotang's pure yang thunder...
Until now, it had been drawn out again by Lei Jun's manifestation of the Heavenly Tome's principles and the continuous flow and interplay of his yin and yang spiritual power.
Although it was challenging, Lei Jun carefully and gradually guided it.
Finally, the strange ruler with a flickering gleam at its center detached from Meng Shaojie's body and hovered in the air, held aloft by Lei Jun's spiritual power.
At that moment, Lei Jun had a sudden realization and named it:
"The Balance of Motion and Stillness."
Meng Shaojie, who was lying nearby, also woke up.
Lei Jun didn't put away the treasure but smiled at Meng Shaojie and asked, "How do you feel now?"
Meng Shaojie slowly regained his senses and said, "Elder Lei, I just..."
Lei Jun described what had happened in general terms.
Meng Shaojie looked at the Balance of Motion and Stillness, his face showing both recollection and enlightenment. "This thing looks familiar. When I was attacked by a powerful demon and fell into the underground cave, I think I saw it, but I fainted soon after and didn't remember anything when I woke up, so I didn't think much of it..."
Lei Jun said, "Now that it has left your body, you shouldn't have any major issues. Take some time to rest and recuperate, and you can slowly ponder this treasure. Don't feel burdened by it; after all, it's an opportunity that presented itself."
As he finished speaking, the Balance of Motion and Stillness descended in front of Meng Shaojie.
Meng Shaojie didn't reach out to take it but instead asked Lei Jun, "Elder Lei, what would have happened if this thing had stayed inside my body and wasn't removed?"
PS: 8k chapter
(End of Chapter)
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