Chapter 48: The Way permeates beyond the form of heaven and earth; thought enters the shifting shapes of wind and clouds.

In the height of late summer, the weather is fickle. A morning of boundless, clear blue skies can swiftly transform by afternoon into a realm of flashing lightning and rolling thunder.

Fierce gales drift with stray bolts as heavy black clouds gather. Sudden torrents lash the towering forest with a clattering rain sound, while gusts of wild wind sway the grass and trees, turning the mountainous earth into a dense expanse of mud.

It was rare for Xuanming to forgo his contemplation of Qi-refining insights. Instead, he sat cross-legged upon the summit, his white hair fluttering in the wind, willingly letting the gale and rain buffet him as he sought to comprehend nature at close quarters.

Bringing his index and middle fingers together into a sword mudra, he slightly twisted and raised his hand. The peach-wood sword resting horizontally across his knees emitted a resonant hum, transforming into a streak of light that shot straight up into the sky. Plunging deep into the thunderclouds, it continued to subject itself to the tempering of wind and lightning.

Xuanming waved his hand once more, and the horsetail whisk he held was likewise cast into the thunderclouds to undergo the tempering of the celestial thunder. The process focused primarily on hardening its jujube-wood handle, allowing the energy to slowly conduct into the three thousand strands of silver hair in a relatively gentle manner.

If a craftsman wishes to do good work, he must first sharpen his tools.

Though he disliked strife and hoped to pursue the Dao in tranquility forever, the Heavenly Dao was ever-fickle and rarely aligned completely with one's wishes.

Some matters could not be avoided simply by wishing to escape them.

Thus, Xuanming naturally hoped his protective treasures would be as powerful as possible, for only then could he protect others, protect himself, and safeguard his Dao.

Having properly stationed the peach-wood sword and the horsetail whisk, Xuanming produced two iron spheres, one large and one small. Originally the inherited golden sabres of the Chen family, they had been purified by his Hundun Dharmic power and returned to their primordial state through the force of the thunder.

These, too, were tossed into the thunderclouds. Xuanming had already formulated a plan in his heart regarding this piece of Yin-Yang iron.

Having completed these tasks, he concentrated entirely on feeling the wind, watching the rain, and listening to the thunder.

Unlike in the past, Xuanming closed his eyes this time. Regarding his comprehension of the thunder and rain, he had progressed from observing mere surface phenomena to entering their inner essence.

His spiritual perception flowed like water, replacing his physical eyes and ears to observe the flashing lightning, rolling thunder, raging wind, and beating rain within a radius of three hundred miles.

He watched the dark clouds churn and shift, observed the surging and falling of rushing waters.

He beheld the transformation of the Qi currents between heaven and earth, and watched the grasses and trees bow and rise.

Through his spiritual perception, Xuanming perceived far more.

The strength of air currents formed the wind, while the cold and warmth of temperatures gathered the rain.

The collision of Yin and Yang gave birth to thunder, and the communion of Qian and Kun sparked lightning.

In essence, it was simply a mass of Qi operating naturally according to rules, creating and transforming.

These rules were the Dao, and the Qi that evolved from them constituted the principles, while wind, rain, thunder, and lightning were the external manifestations—the concrete carriers of those principles.

The thunder and lightning grew increasingly violent.

The storm raged through the mountain forests.

Upon the peak, Xuanming sank deeper into his profound contemplation. The Dao charm surrounding him shifted from faint to delicate, and within a radius of three paces, heaven and earth resonated, automatically manifesting visions of thunder being born and extinguished, and rain gathering and falling.

On Xixin Peak, upon the summit, the square-faced Xuanyu was likewise listening to the thunder.

Unlike Xuanming, who comprehended the principles of the transformation of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, Xuanyu focused solely on the single element of thunder among the four seasonal weather manifestations.

He kept his mind calm and concentrated intently on listening to the thunder.

He listened to the sound and resonance of the thunder, and observed the light and form of the lightning.

This most solemn Daoist of the Seeking Truth Temple gazed with intense focus and a devout expression, as if on a pilgrimage, born solely for the Dao.

On Fude Peak, Xuntong was also seated cross-legged upon the summit.

The difference was that he observed only the rain.

He raised his head to witness the rain falling, and lowered it to observe the momentum of the deluge.

The rainwater descended among the mountains, nurturing all things, yet once gathered into rivers, it scoured away the soil, dust, and rock.

It both nourished the earth and eroded the earth.

Yet it never flowed wildly in all directions; instead, it moved according to its momentum, flowing toward lower places while maintaining steadfast principles within.

Good and evil intertwined, encompassing both light and dark.

Xuntong gained a new realization of the Dao of Knowing and Maintaining.

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After about an hour, the clouds scattered and the rain cleared.

The peach-wood sword, the horsetail whisk, and the Yin-Yang iron each returned to their respective places.

The three-pace anomaly vanished into the formless.

Xuanyu and Xuntong concluded their cultivation, each having gained their own insights.

Only Xuanming remained unawakened.

The thunder and rain had washed away the dust, leaving the mountain forests cool, clear, and pristine. His spiritual perception flowed among them, bringing him an extraordinary sensation.

Heaven and earth were renewed, and the universe was purified.

In the wake of the thunderstorm lingered a palpable air of a myriad things being made anew.

He had entered yet another marvelous realm.

Amidst the rising, falling, opening, and closing of the air currents before and after the thunderstorm, he sensed the breathing of heaven and earth. The rising of Qi was the exhale, and the sinking of Qi was the inhale. Within this respiration lay the Great Dao, magnificent scenery, and supreme creation.

If one were to metaphorize heaven and earth as a person, the mountains would be the bones and limbs, the rivers the blood vessels and meridians, the earth the destiny, and the vault of heaven the spiritual nature.

A single thunderstorm was equivalent to a single respiration.

A single respiration was equivalent to a baptism.

The Qi circulated between nature and destiny, its rising and falling, opening and closing naturally harmonious. Coursing through the entire body, it cleansed the viscera, meridians, limbs, and all apertures in an endless, cyclical, and ceaseless flow, satisfying the Qi required by every organ.

This cycle constituted a complete Heavenly Circuit.

A thunderstorm was a transport of energy.

A transport was a cycle.

Together, they formed a closed loop.

The Dao gives birth to all things; heaven and earth are the greatest of things, while humans are the most spiritual among things. Seeking no other Dao, humanity is one with heaven and earth.

Thus, beneath the illumination of his divine thoughts, he perceived the grand through the minute: the Great Heavenly Circuit was thunder and rain in summer, frost in autumn, wind and snow in winter, and gentle drizzle in spring.

Xuanming's profound light birthed wisdom, and his Dao heart grew serene. The thunderstorm washed away his haze, granting him liberation and a harmonious mind and body.

Having attained the realm of a True Person nearly four months ago, and having spent the last month listening to thunder and observing rain, alongside observing the Great Heavenly Circuit cultivation insights of figures like the Four Phenomena True Person to nourish himself, he finally comprehended the profound mysteries of the Great Heavenly Circuit today, grasping his own principle of the Great Heavenly Circuit.

With the Dao clarified and principles understood, his Dao attainment naturally ascended.

Spiritual Qi from heaven and earth surged into Xuanming's body.

A mighty wind rose in the mountains. A robust and vigorous deer sprinted along with the wind, running joyfully toward the mountain peak, crying out melodiously—*yee-yee-yee!*

The vault of heaven was right at the transition of the setting sun and rising moon, drawing down Yin and Yang spiritual Qi to encircle Xuanming, forming an illusory Taiji diagram of Yin and Yang.

His aura surged drastically. As naturally as water flows to form a channel, he breached the final of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, establishing a wondrous-meridian Great Heavenly Circuit. His Dharmic power increased, his physical body was reinforced, and his spiritual perception became exceptionally pure.

Even four of the Twelve Regular Meridians were stirred; though not yet fully breached, it was only a matter of days. Once connected with one another, they would form a special circulation.

When his aura stabilized, Xuanming opened his eyes. Deep within his pupils, the four phenomena of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning swirled, and the cry of the deer reached his ears.

Looking at the bounding little deer and the impending dispersion of the Taiji diagram, an idea struck him, and he lightly pointed his finger.

"Go!"

As the little deer cried out in delight, the Taiji diagram plunged directly into its body, swift as the wind.

The little deer: "???"

What did I just eat?

Before it could figure it out, its eyes rolled back, its tongue lolled out, and it tumbled heavily to the ground, passing out cold.

Waving his horsetail whisk slightly, a strand of Dharmic power was injected into the little deer, sealing the Taiji diagram while leaving a tiny slit to slowly release energy, purifying its bloodline, elevating its innate constitution, and augmenting its foundation.

Rising to his feet, he walked over to the deer. Seeing the Taiji diagram growing upon its soft fur, Xuanming stroked his beard and smiled benevolently.

Standing upon the summit, holding his whisk and gazing out over the magnificent rivers and mountains, he felt as though he beheld the Dao, his mind relaxed and joyful.

"The Dao penetrates beyond the visible forms of heaven and earth, and thought enters the shifting states of wind and clouds. All things harbor the Dao, and all living creatures contain principles. It seems this old Daoist should set aside more time in the future to wholeheartedly comprehend nature."

This elevation in his Dao attainment and the breaching of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians—equivalent to the perfection of the ordinary Heavenly Circuit realm—was entirely the fruit of observing nature.

Of course, his gains did not stop there.

However, the day was already growing late, and Xuanming had no mind to test his abilities further. He planned to return to meditate in silence, carefully organizing and digesting his insights to consolidate his Dao attainment, which might yield even more unexpected rewards.

There was no need to rush everything at once.

With a wave of his sleeve, he put away the Yin-Yang iron, and then tapped the peach-wood sword with his finger. The sword emitted a reluctant, resonant hum before suddenly expanding in size, supporting the little deer as it descended the mountain.

The bright moon illuminated the mountains and rivers, casting a layer of silver radiance that brightened the Dao-hiding Peak. Dewdrops glistened like crystals upon the leaves of the mountain forest, and puddles rippled with shimmering light. The old Daoist walked ahead, his wide sleeves fluttering, stepping forward with bold strides, while the great sword followed closely behind like a shadow, moving step by step in steady rhythm.

Upon the sword, the little deer lay sprawled across the blade, its four limbs splayed, sleeping soundly as a water bubble occasionally formed at the tip of its nose.

*Pop*, it would burst only to be reborn.

The environment was secluded, the imagery picturesque.

Yet, perfection remained elusive.

Just as they reached the Asking Dao Courtyard, the little deer drooled all over the sword body. The peach-wood sword, having endured the entire journey, instantly grew frantic and began electrocuting the little deer.

The old Daoist's laughter, the little deer's miserable shrieks, and the joyful humming of the wooden sword intertwined, infusing the Asking Dao Courtyard with a vibrant sense of vitality.