Scripture of Days Past

“I’ve never heard of it,” Qiao Zhi replied, shaking his head. “However, “sacred scriptures” are generally scriptures that concern the official titles, true names, ceremonial rites, and enchantments of the divine class. These are all things required by divine class cultivators among Dao artists.

“There are divine class Dao arts among the twenty-five orthodox arts, but I’ve never heard of this Purple Mansion Sacred Scripture, so it’s probably not anything legitimate. Where did you hear about it?”

Chu Qiguang smiled to conceal his disappointment as he replied, “I heard it mentioned by a few old men at the entrance of the village.”

The Purple Mansion Sacred Scripture might be his only hope of returning to Earth, yet he didn’t know if he would be able to find it.

“Those old farts do nothing but brag and spout nonsense all day long!” Qiao Zhi scoffed. “You can listen to them, but don’t take what they say seriously. Let’s get back on track. There are many introductory paths into cultivation, and each school has its own method, such as adhering to Buddhist precepts, reciting scriptures, holding rituals, engaging in qi refinement... There are far too many of them to count.

“However, those are all too disjointed, and it’s also very difficult for the average person to gauge their level of progress in such practices. Thankfully, one of the founding figures of the Great Han Empire, Zhong Wu Feudal Lord Qi Mingde, once embarked on a journey under the emperor’s orders to collect all of the Dao arts under the heavens. Then he referenced those Dao arts to split the mental state of cultivators yet to attain the Dao Comprehension state into five states, namely Concentration, Peace, Serenity, Consideration, and Attainment.

“Today, I’m going to teach you the method to reach the state of Concentration. Don’t look down on this first state! Countless people are unable to reach it even after more than ten years of meditating and reciting scriptures. That said, you were once a heavenly immortal, so as long as you work hard in your cultivation, you should be able to reach it in about ten days.”

Chu Qiguang was feeling very anxious after hearing Qiao Zhi’s projection. He knew perfectly well that he was just a slimy trickster from Earth, not some heavenly immortal, so there was no way he had any aptitude for cultivation.

Is he going to suspect my identity if I don’t accomplish anything after say, half a month of cultivation?

Following Qiao Zhi’s instructions, Chu Qiguang had already sat down with his legs crossed. After closing his eyes, all he could hear was the wind brushing past his ears and Qiao Zhi’s voice echoing directly in his mind.

“The average person experiences countless thoughts and distractions in everything that they do. The first step in cultivation is to eliminate those distractions, achieving the state of Concentration to ensure mental clarity. Furthermore, Concentration can partially replace sleep. If you do it consistently over a long period of time, your memory and reactions will be enhanced, making you smarter and sharpening your senses.

“However, it’ll be very difficult for you to enter the state of Concentration in your first attempt. For now, write down the character for peace in your heart, then focus all of your attention on it until it’s the only thing left on your mind...”

Qiao Zhi’s voice trailed off as he stared at Chu Qiguang and exclaimed, “You’ve already done it! You’ve reached the first state of cultivation, just like that! I’ve seen quite a few prodigies in my time, but even the fastest took four days to reach the Concentration state! Your aptitude for cultivation is unbelievable! As expected of a former heavenly immortal.”

Qiao Zhi was so overjoyed that he began grooming himself in excitement, a wide smile spread across his face as he continued, “With the aptitude you’ve shown, I’m confident that I can get you to the Dao Comprehension state within five years! There’s going to be another almighty cat lover in this world soon!”

At that moment, Chu Qiguang felt like his mind was completely clear of thoughts, but at the same time, he had a perfect awareness of his own condition and his surroundings.

In this state of Concentration, he felt completely relaxed, both mentally and physically, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his mind, leaving him in an unprecedented state of rest.

However, it didn’t take long for the distractions to return. His forehead felt a little itchy, he could hear the sound of the wind constantly brushing past his ears, his back felt a little sore, not to mention the insistent grumbling in his belly...

With the rise of these distractions, Chu Qiguang was no longer able to meditate and withdrew from his state of Concentration.

Seeing his agitated expression, Qiao Zhi smiled and said, “Even though you were able to successfully enter the state of Concentration on your first attempt, your mental state is not something that can be maintained without effort. Instead, you can easily fall down to a lower mental state if you’re not careful, so you must remain vigilant at all times.

“As the saying goes, attainment is much easier than maintenance, and this applies to cultivation as well. Once you can maintain the state of Concentration at will, you will have reached the second state.”

Chu Qiguang was reflecting on the state of Concentration that he had just experienced, and a joyful look appeared on his face as he asked, “Is cultivation this easy? There isn’t anything like spiritual energy, golden cores, or nascent souls involved?”

“Easy? You only say that because you don’t know how long this first hurdle has stumped the average person,” Qiao Zhi scoffed. “It would’ve never been this easy if you hadn't awakened intelligence from your past life. As for the profound things you mentioned, those are only things that true masters can comprehend because the human language is unable to describe the state that they have attained.

“If you try to learn those things at your current level, then you'll only hit a dead-end. You could cultivate for a hundred years without making any progress! Alright, that’s enough chit-chat. Continue your cultivation. Each session of meditation is a form of deep rest and relaxation. People normally think about far too many things throughout the day, leading to daily mental exhaustion. Only through this form of daily restoration can one’s mind be enhanced.

“It’s a similar concept to nurturing soldiers; the key lies in the word “nurture”. Only with enough sleep and sustenance can soldiers grow stronger, and daily meditation is the best way to strengthen the mind. This will enhance your memory and reactions over time.

“Daily meditation over a long period of time will lead to sharpening of the mind and the senses, allowing you to become more efficient in everything that you do.”

Chu Qiguang closed his eyes and attempted to reenter the state of Concentration, but this time it was more difficult because distractions constantly arose. Only after a long while was he able to enter the state of Concentration again.

Once again, he experienced that same sense of complete relaxation of both body and mind, and his brain was also receiving ample sustenance.

About fifteen minutes later, Chu Qiguang was unable to stand the mounting agitation and emerged from his state of Concentration a second time. He stood up to walk around a little before being urged by Qiao Zhi to continue.

The process was repeated several times. Each time, Chu Qiguang found it more difficult to reenter the state of Concentration as he was plagued by numerous distractions. The beating of his heart, the itching of his skin, even the sensation of the wind caressing his body all became infinitely magnified, making it impossible for him to find peace.

Finally, after emerging from his meditative state one last time, Chu Qiguang felt so agitated that no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to continue meditating.

“You’ve reached your limit,” Qiao Zhi assessed. “For the average person, it would be impossible to continue cultivating beyond this point, but of course, I have some tricks up my sleeve.”