Chapter 18: The Grand Supreme Trinity of Three Blossoms

Chapter 18: The Threefold Apex of True Innate

At first, Luo Feng intended to go along. Unexpectedly, Zheng Zha mocked him, saying, “With your current frail body, be careful not to lose control and become a false innate prematurely.” Luo Feng was crestfallen, feeling as though Zheng Zha had changed—grown mature, no longer the naïve newcomer once at the mercy of his sharp tongue. Truly, all men are unreliable, except for himself.

Before parting, Luo Feng gave a small gift. Zheng Zha glanced expressionlessly at the mountain of packages behind him, accepted them without a word, and waved, “Three years at most, I’ll return to invite you for a drink…” Luo Feng stiffened, sensing Zheng Zha had set himself a formidable challenge. Time waits for no one; departures are inevitable.

Republic of China, 1926. Yuan Yuan was now six years old. Someone, out of kindness, had sponsored the village to hire an elderly scholar. Though his learning was modest—not one to advise on ruling the land or saving the people—he was gentle and upright, treating all students, boys and girls alike, with equal care. Luo Feng sent Yuan Yuan to the school to learn, to make friends, to enjoy a happy childhood. A child deserves a childhood, not endless worries.

One evening, as the sun set, Luo Feng stood in the wind, smiling to greet Yuan Yuan as she returned from school. Ruffling her hair, he asked, “What did the teacher teach today?” Yuan Yuan replied with delight, “Uncle Feng, he taught us five new characters! I know them all!” Luo Feng chuckled, took a fruit from his pocket, popped one in his mouth, and handed another to Yuan Yuan. “You’re so clever.” Yuan Yuan’s eyes curved into crescents as she grinned mischievously. She whispered, “But I only wrote three today and ranked sixth in class.” Her little head lifted high, eyes sparkling, seeking praise. Luo Feng nodded in satisfaction, patting her head, “Not bad. When we get home, I’ll teach you an extra math formula.” Yuan Yuan beamed brightly.

For children of such an era, knowledge was a distant miracle, the most precious gift. Walking along the village path, smoke curled from chimneys, lending the scene a tranquil charm.

Arriving home, Luo Feng heard a villager call out, “Brother Feng, there’s a package for you!” Luo Feng’s eyes lit up, and he stepped forward to receive a small burlap sack. He didn’t need to ask who sent it; in this world, he had no other friend. After offering the messenger a bowl of water and a few wild fruits, he saw him out.

Then came the daily routine: teaching Yuan Yuan math, eating, washing, sleeping—unchanged, as ordinary as ever.

At midnight, Luo Feng lit a lamp, exhaled deeply, and opened the package. Inside were a letter and three books: The Inner View of the Yellow Court, The Outer View of the Yellow Court, and a manual for Arhat Boxing, a Shaolin practice even menial workers could cultivate. Seven pages of the letter bore Zheng Zha’s signature.

A year and two months had passed since Zheng Zha left home. Modern men both, Zheng Zha never bothered with literary pretension in his letters. He began with a furious tirade at the Azure Robe stranger who’d given him the credential for the Shangqing Sect’s apprentice exam. The letter brimmed with invective for this soul-selling scoundrel, lower even than worms and flies.

Luo Feng fell into deep thought. What had happened to Zheng Zha in the past year and two months?

With his grievances aired, Zheng Zha described his situation in the Shangqing Sect. The Azure Robe stranger was indeed a scoundrel, and the apprentices were truly menial workers. After half a month of chopping wood and carrying water, Zheng Zha was exhausted. Fortunately, with his talismanic tricks, he displayed astounding talent and caught the attention of Elder Shui, who promoted him to an outer disciple.

The Shangqing Sect was famed for talismans, and Zheng Zha thrived there, like a dragon entering the sea. Where once Zheng Zha was like a pistol, drawing talismans alone, now, with the ritual platform and spiritual aids, he was a machine gun—his power markedly increased.

Within a year, Zheng Zha gained considerable reputation among the outer disciples. Had it not been for the need for strict vetting due to his unclear background and apprenticing with skills, Elder Shui would have taken him as a disciple.

He hadn’t forgotten Luo Feng’s cultivation dilemma, consulting teachers and elders everywhere, and finally reached a conclusion: Luo Feng’s goal was not the martial artist’s innate, but the True Innate, the realm of the Real Person, which required opening the Mysterious Gate.

What was the Mysterious Gate? Zheng Zha wrote it on the last page. Luo Feng turned to the seventh page, densely packed with the annotations of sages and secret teachings.

This gate is neither outside nor inside the body; its opening unlocks all gates and meridians, clearing the path for cultivation. The Mysterious Gate appears when the division of Taiji and the separation of the Two Forms is imminent. When it arrives, the cultivator is neither fully asleep nor fully awake; suddenly, a movement in consciousness occurs—a single spirit operates, the true intent emerges.

Upon opening this gate, all pores and joints burst forth; energy flows unimpeded, innate elixirs are produced at will, and the path to the immortal inner alchemy is within reach.

How to open the Mysterious Gate? A certain Daoist pinpointed it: the Threefold Apex, where spirit, energy, and essence converge. The Mysterious Gate is the locus of spirit, energy, and essence. When these are perfected, one achieves the Great True Innate and earns the title of Real Person.

Previously, Luo Feng had sensed something and, letting go of his restraints, pushed his true energy through, opening the Ren and Du meridians—this was energy breaking into the innate, the realm of the False Innate.

Now, his energy was complete, but essence and spirit were yet to be formed. To advance, he must cultivate both body and soul.

A single transmission is worth more than thousands of volumes. The phrases “Threefold Apex” and “Five Energies Return to the Origin”—eight characters known to all, yet without revelation, the path remains hidden.

With a clear goal, Luo Feng’s temperament underwent a transformation. If an old acquaintance from Earth saw him, they’d surely laugh and say, “Isn’t this the aura of a hardcore gamer?” The hardcore, ascetic, fearless—never daunted by distance or difficulty, only by the absence of a path forward.

Essence refers to the perfection of the body. Arhat Boxing is the simplest martial art, but also the most widely practiced and safest. Perfectly suited for Luo Feng, the tireless cultivator. Zheng Zha had considered everything, showing great thoughtfulness. Moreover, as energy nourishes the body while opening the meridians, cultivating essence is simply a matter of time and effort.

The key is in cultivating spirit. Fortunately, Luo Feng had some clues, though he needed to test them. While performing rites for the deceased, he used breathing techniques with scripture recitation; his voice thundered, cleansing the universe, purifying the mind, and dispelling negative energies. If some scriptures could drive away evil, surely others could aid the soul’s cultivation.

After reading thousands of Daoist, Buddhist, and Confucian texts, Luo Feng selected three scriptures beneficial to his soul: The Inner View of the Yellow Court, The Outer View of the Yellow Court, and the Scripture of Pure Tranquility.

The first two were the very ones Zheng Zha had sent, recited by disciples of the Shangqing Sect. The Scripture of Eternal Pure Tranquility was Luo Feng’s own discovery.

(End of chapter)