Nine Star Hegemon Body Arts

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Long Chen looked at this lotus seed that had concentrated all the power of an entire world. His heart pounded wildly. This lotus seed was probably a heaven-defying divine object.

“Senior, I saved this little fellow simply because I wanted to. I did not come for any reward…” Although it was a heaven-defying treasure, Long Chen felt like accepting this present would make his heart uneasy.

“No, no, this is not a reward, nor is it a transaction. This should be considered destiny. It is karma. The Golden Lotus World’s lotus seed has just matured when you came. As for you, you need it. This is fate,” said the woman with a smile.

Long Chen looked at the lotus seed. It seemed to be made out of pure gold. However, it didn’t have the slightest weight and just floated right above his hand.

He couldn’t sense its power, and yet it also seemed to contain endless power. Although he didn’t know its origins, he could see that all the energy of the Golden Lotus World was entering it. This lotus seed was definitely a priceless treasure.

“Senior, you say that I need it? Why?” asked Long Chen.

“Your life is very bitter. Half of you is in darkness, and the other half is in light. You are working hard to maintain the balance. It is like you are walking on thin ice over a deep abyss. You know that you were right to kill those lifeforms, no matter how many it was. But you are also afraid that you killed a good person. You are carrying such weight that your heart is sinking, bringing you to the Devil Dao. You are working hard to persevere your core heart, but the more cautious you are, the harder you force yourself. You will constantly add more burdens to yourself. A person’s power can be endless, but that is only compared to external forces. No matter how strong a person is, if they constantly find burdens to carry, sooner or later, they will surpass their limit.

“Keep this in mind: The Bodhi had no tree, and the mirror had no platform. If they never existed, where did the dust come from?”

Long Chen’s heart shook. This was a saying that he had heard as a child. In the Phoenix Cry Empire’s college, this was a question that had to be answered to pass the exams.

The Bodhi Tree was also called the Tree of Wisdom. The mirror platform referred to the ability that allowed people to keep a peaceful heart, to understand their core heart. It was the ability to see themselves clearly. Amongst the cultivators, it was also called the spirit platform.

There were actually two sayings that were part of it, but they were made by two different people. The other one was: the body is like a Bodhi Tree, the heart is like the mirror platform. They must be wiped occasionally to clean away any dust.

It was an attitude of taking great care and working hard at self-cultivation. It was just like Long Chen’s current state. Afraid of making any tiny mistakes that could cause his Dao-heart to become covered in dust, he spent every day cleaning it. Just as this woman said, it was like he was walking over a deep abyss on thin ice. He was practically trembling with fear, not daring to make the slightest mistake.

The other saying that was made by the other person was also simple but contained an entirely different realm.

The Bodhi had no tree, and the mirror had no platform. If they never existed, where did the dust come from? What was the Bodhi Tree? What was the mirror platform? Those were all idle chatter, things that never existed from the start. If you wiped it occasionally, what exactly were you wiping? Who were you wiping it for? There was nothing there from the start, so which dust were you cleaning?

Long Chen hadn’t expected this little saying from when he was young to be known by this senior of unknown origins. Now that she reminded him of it, Long Chen felt enlightened.

He bowed deeply toward her, respectfully saying, “Many thanks for your pointer, senior. This little one’s eyes have been opened.”

The current Long Chen seemed as if he had been freed from a curse, as if he had escaped from some shackles. His entire body seemed to be more relaxed.

Before this, he was constantly afraid of becoming a devil, so he was always careful with what he did, constantly calculating how to inhibit the growth of his heart-devil. That state was already a kind of display of being bedeviled.

Thus, it was truly very tiring for Long Chen to be living right now. He no longer had that kind of heroic feeling, the feeling of being full of youthful energy, something from when he first stepped a foot out of the Phoenix Cry Empire all that time ago.

Now, with this woman’s reminder, Long Chen seemed to remember the days when he had nothing binding him. His body was full of energy, and he was also full of confidence in himself. At that moment, Long Chen felt like the world was full of sunlight driving away the shadows in his heart.

The woman smiled. “Take good care of this lotus seed. It will be of immense use to you. Put it away.”

“Many thanks, senior.” Long Chen once more thanked her and sent the lotus seed into the primal chaos space. He then planted it, hoping for it to grow into even more golden lotuses.

He found that it contained dense flame energy. Furthermore, this flame energy seemed to be the most primeval flame. Although he didn’t know how to use it, he knew it was definitely something amazing.

The most unexpected thing though was that right after he planted it, the lotus seed actually broke out of the earth and flew into the sky, floating motionlessly high in the air of the primal chaos space.

Once it stopped there, it slowly emitted a gentle light that filled the primal chaos space. The primal chaos space was filled with its golden divine radiance.

The primal chaos space didn’t change because of it. But the moment its golden radiance spread, Long Chen felt like he was reborn. His essence, qi, and spirit were instantly raised to their peak.

Long Chen was changing, but he didn’t know exactly how. That feeling was very mysterious, and he was unable to explain it clearly. He felt like he had become relaxed, as if all dangers were nothing to him. No matter how great the problem, he had the confidence to face it.

“Don’t call me senior. According to the human race’s way of speaking, I should be surnamed Gong. You can call me Aunt Gong,” said the woman, smiling when she saw Long Chen’s face had the golden divine radiance shining on it.

“Aunt Gong!” Long Chen respectfully said this new appellation. He was full of gratitude toward this kindly elder. Ignoring whatever that lotus seed was, just her pointer alone was enough to benefit him immensely. It was just that the Gong that she said and the Gong that he said were entirely two different concepts.[1]

“Good child. There’s no need to give yourself so many burdens. In truth, this world isn’t so complicated. There are kind people in this world, but there are also devils that throw the world into chaos. Those kind people might be killed at any moment by them. When a saint appears, they protect the lives of the kind, providing for them, not letting them freeze in the cold. They open the path for them, not letting them be trapped in danger. You are the one to provide for them, the one to open the path for them. But there will not be many people to help you. Thus, your path will be harder than others.

“When people are at their weakest, there are more bad people. Thus, many times, there’s no need to differentiate between good and evil. Persevere until you accomplish your dreams. Amongst kind people, there are also fools. When kind people are foolish, they sometimes cause even greater calamities than evil people. When they do evil things with good intentions, they bring a scourge upon the world. This is a common occurrence. In this world, only the virtue of the Heavenly Daos is the fairest. It will not allow you to escape punishment for committing grave sins just because you did them with kindness in your heart. The Dao of Virtue will only remember the result, not your heart or process. Your path is for all the lives in the world and not for your own selfish desires. Thus, you can be at ease. You don’t need to have any misgivings.” The woman brushed Long Chen’s cheek tenderly, her words solemn.

She seemed like a mother imploring her own child, telling him not to be afraid, telling him that he was right.

Long Chen’s eyes reddened and tears almost fell out. She seemed to be able to see through his inner heart, through his soul. She could see his grievances. Even Long Chen, an iron man, couldn’t bear it.

“Good child. Go. Return to your world. The golden lotus’s divine radiance will forever shine on you. You will never be alone,” she encouraged.

Long Chen nodded. He once more bowed toward her before turning around and stepping into the spatial gate.

[1] She called herself aunt Gong (功) Gong meaning meritorious deed, accomplishment. Long Chen called her aunt Gong (宫) meaning palace. They are both pronounced the exact same.