In no time, Logan and Ethan arrived at the Daoist temple on the back mountain. Upon entering the main hall, they found that those two- or three-hundred-year-old elder Daoists were now sitting cross-legged on straw mats like elementary school students, earnestly listening to Henry Bolton explain the Daoist teachings. The scene looked extremely comical and peculiar—a group of elders with white hair and beards, faces youthful despite their age, gazing thirstily for knowledge at the young Daoist sitting cross-legged on the mat, his expression gentle. They listened intently, and some of the old fellows even took out little notebooks to jot down class notes.

“The Dao that can be spoken of is not the eternal Dao; the name that can be named is not the eternal name. Nameless, it is the origin of heaven and earth; named, it is the mother of all things. Therefore, always without desire, one can observe its wonders; always with desire, one can observe its manifestations. These two emerge together but differ in name; together they are called profound, the most profound of the profound, the gateway to all wonders. The Dao is like a road, the path that all people follow. In fact, it is the common principle that gives birth to heaven, earth, humanity, and all living things, hence it is called the Dao. Before heaven and earth were divided, this Dao hung in the void; after heaven and earth were formed, this Dao resided in the world. So, what is this Dao? It existed before heaven and earth and endures after them; it was born before heaven and earth, within the chaos and nothingness, invisible and inaudible.

Ultimately, it is the yin and yang divided by the Taiji; though the names differ, they originate from the same source, which the ancients called the Profound. The Profound means deep and far-reaching. If a student wishes to attain the Profound Dao, he must be still and ever more still, settled and ever more settled, with nothing in his mind—this is observing the wonders without desire, the first Profound. When the vital energy stirs, though there is awareness, no fixed perception arises; though there is movement, no fixed thought is formed; there is one mind, without a second thought—this is observing the manifestations with desire, the second Profound.

In short, the moment a thought arises is the Profound; it is the very beginning of the opening of heaven and earth, the birth and nurturing of all things. Since ancient times, all immortals have been moved to action by this awakening. It is also said: observe the wonders without desire, observe the manifestations with desire—one is stillness, the other movement, each the root of the other, thus they arise together but have different names...

Each and every one of these profound words about the Dao left the old fellows utterly entranced. Outside the door, Ethan and Logan had already joined the ranks of students listening to the teachings. Poor Logan and Gavin, due to their still low cultivation, could not comprehend these deep and mysterious Daoist principles, so they fully embodied the saying “a good memory is not as good as a bad pen,” and kept scribbling away furiously.

In fact, it wasn’t just the two young Daoists, Logan and Gavin, who couldn’t understand; even Owen, whose cultivation had reached the mid-stage of the Elixir Refining realm, found much that he could not grasp for the time being. It’s no wonder—what level of cultivation does Henry Bolton have? He is already a Nascent Soul expert, half a step from immortality, and his teacher was none other than the immortal George Bolton, who, before departing, imparted all his knowledge to Henry Bolton. One could say that Henry Bolton now possesses the knowledge and insight of an immortal, though his cultivation remains at the Nascent Soul stage. It’s like a child who knows the techniques of wielding swords and sabers but cannot yet lift the heavy weapons themselves. Now, having such a learned Henry Bolton teach these juniors, whose cultivation is at most mid-stage Elixir Refining, is as easy as turning his hand. The only pity is for these older students, whose heads are spinning from the bombardment of Henry Bolton’s knowledge, and for the first time in their lives, they realize how ignorant they truly are—an utter disgrace to the cultivation world, the shame of the Wudang Sect. Fortunately, these fellows, feeling ashamed, were also imbued with the spirit of Ah Q from Mr. Lu Xun’s writings: Damn it, if I don’t understand, others might not either! Daoists from other sects haven’t even had the chance to hear such profound Daoist teachings! After comforting themselves in this way, they finally refrained from biting their tongues in despair and settled down to listen attentively.

The sun quietly set, but all the Daoists were still immersed in the most profound and mysterious Dao, and a whole day of teachings had suddenly resolved many doubts in their hearts. Everyone’s understanding and knowledge were elevated to a whole new level. Almost every Daoist found that, without realizing it, their cultivation had advanced by a stage. After all, cultivation is about sudden enlightenment, and these old Daoists, who have practiced for hundreds of years, already have abundant magical power and have absorbed plenty of spiritual energy from heaven and earth; what they lacked was just that moment of enlightenment. Now, Henry Bolton’s wonderful words were like a gentle spring rain, causing the seeds to break through the soil and begin life under the sun. Of course, Logan and Gavin, these two young Daoists with mortal bodies, could not achieve this yet—after all, what Henry Bolton taught was simply too profound and mysterious for them! However, the Daoist principles taught by Henry Bolton were deeply imprinted in their minds and would be of great help to their future cultivation. It was precisely because of today’s lesson that these two young Daoists would one day achieve earth-shattering, awe-inspiring cultivation—but that is a story for another time.

Chapter 9: The Head of Wudang

When the group of old men joyfully discovered that they had broken through a bottleneck that had eluded them for so long, Henry Bolton had already stopped teaching. He simply watched quietly as these white-bearded old men wept with joy, and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly at the hardships of the path of cultivation!