Under One Person: The Seeker of the Dao in the Lü Family

Chapter 72 Stepping the Divine Path, Independent Inner Landscape

"Alright, alright, get up quickly, child."

The old woman quickly said "good" a few times, her face full of smiles. With a flick of her whisk, a gentle breeze lifted Lü Qian, who was kneeling and bowing on the ground, to his feet.

"I was right about you, young man. Your talent and character are truly rare in this world."

"You flatter me, senior."

Lu Qian rose from the ground, carried by the gentle breeze. He looked again at the old woman on the stone platform. "I wonder how those two seniors are doing? Should I hurry and go to their aid?"

"It's alright, just walk around normally. Those two are suspended by the dragon vein's energy, so a little longer won't make a difference. Let me first tell you about the [Stealing Celestial Immortal] technique you requested."

The old woman waved her hand, "Our Nine Peaks Ironclad Mountain's secret technique, the 'Stealing Immortal,' is the 'Stepping the Dipper' method. I will teach you the incantation and footwork; you can try to understand it first."

After saying that, the old woman waved her whisk at Lü Qian, and a golden light flew out from it, striking Lü Qian's forehead.

Lu Qian sat cross-legged on the futon, not bothering to guard against the incoming golden light.

The golden light seemed illusory, dissipating automatically upon touching Lü Qian's mind. In his mind, scriptures and diagrams appeared, which were the methods of "Stepping the Dipper and Stepping the Stars".

Lu Qian closed his eyes and entered a meditative state, focusing his mind on the spiritual platform and beginning to comprehend the [Stepping the Dipper].

【Stepping on the Dipper】is the footwork of Taoist priests when praying to heaven or performing rituals. Their steps are based on the constellations of the celestial palace, and they step on the corresponding directions.

To the average person, this is nothing more than a set of ritualistic actions for worshipping the stars and summoning the gods.

However, in the world of supernatural beings, the "Stepping the Dipper" technique, when combined with the corresponding mental cultivation incantation, allows one to draw upon the power of heaven and earth to empower oneself.

His mental reading speed was very fast, and in the blink of an eye, Lü Qian had finished browsing through the classics in his mind.

He reopened his eyes, frowning in confusion. "Senior, this [Stepping the Dipper] technique seems incomplete, or perhaps it has been lost for a long time?"

The old woman wasn't surprised by this; instead, she calmly nodded. "That's right!"

"The method of 'Stepping the Dipper' is not as simple as people think. This method has a long history and contains many profound mysteries. What a pity!"

She shook her head and continued, "Leaving aside the fact that many traditions have been lost due to the turmoil and upheavals over the past thousands of years, the ever-changing environment has also rendered many traditions obsolete."

"In particular, a cataclysmic event more than 600 years ago caused many cultivation methods that relied on the power of heaven and earth to gradually decline, including the [Stepping the Dipper and Stepping the Stars] technique."

Upon hearing this, Lü Qian raised an eyebrow. "More than six hundred years ago? Was it Liu Qingtian who severed the dragon vein?"

"It cannot be spoken! It cannot be spoken!"

The old woman shook her head and closed her eyes without saying a word.

Seeing this, Lü Qian understood what was going on. It seemed that there was a lot involved, and there was probably a restriction similar to the [Celestial Master's Degree], but sometimes attitude is also a form of response.

He tactfully stopped the conversation and didn't press further. Instead, he asked, "Senior, I have already understood the method of [Stepping the Dipper], but today I have a new question. Please answer it!"

"Ask away."

"yes!"

Lu Qian got up from the futon, looked around at the simple cave, took two steps in all directions, his eyes filled with a pale blue glow.

The Secret of Qimen Dunjia Manifestations!

He used this method, which sorcerers used to see through illusions and find the truth, to look around the cave.

The cave was still a cave, but once Lü Qian calmed himself down, the once simple cave transformed into a scene in his eyes.

The dusty rocks around him transformed into flowing golden light in Lü Qian's eyes, making him feel as if he were standing in a sea of ​​golden light.

After glancing around, Lü Qian became even more certain of his guess. He put away the [Qimen Manifestation Technique] and turned back to the futon.

"When I first entered, you affirmed my statement that this place is essentially an 'inner landscape.' Now, I would like to ask whether this is your 'inner landscape,' or the 'inner landscape' of Nine Peaks Iron Mountain—no, it should be said that it is Guo Zu's 'inner landscape'?"

Lu Qian looked at the old woman in black who suddenly smiled on the stone platform and asked in a deep voice, "This junior is not talented, but I have also come into contact with the lineage of sorcerers, and I have also entered the inner realm when practicing meditation."

"After a sorcerer enters a meditative state according to a specific method, he will naturally enter an inner vision."

"To the world, the Inner Realm is where sorcerers perform divination, calculations, and deductions of heavenly secrets; it is a place infinitely close to the Way of Heaven!"

"Here, as long as you are strong enough, you can have whatever you want, even if it means reincarnation for hundreds or thousands of lifetimes. But who can truly distinguish between what is real and what is false?"

"Warlocks need sufficient mental cultivation and a strong will to resist those temptations; otherwise, they will become addicted and unable to extricate themselves."

"And there's another secret: everyone's inner visions are interconnected!"

The old lady looked at Lü Qian, her smile growing even wider. Although she didn't say a word, she was even more satisfied with this junior in front of her and gestured for Lü Qian to continue.

Lu Qian paused, then pinched himself, and the pain was indeed felt.

"I sensed it when I was pulled in. Although the feeling here is incredibly real, and it doesn't even show the distracting thoughts I've let go of, it's still the same as when I entered the inner realm. It's empty and desolate, yet it seems to contain all things in the world."

"I then used the Qimen Manifestation Technique to observe, and at first I could not see any flaws, but after that I still saw the true nature of this place."

"This is both a fixed [interior scene] and an independent [interior scene]!"

"Here, the so-called Heavenly Way is no longer in charge, but the true master of this place!"

Lu Qian looked intently at the old woman in black who was laughing silently on the stone platform, and said loudly.

His voice echoed in the cave, one after another, gradually fading into silence, just like in reality.

"Hahaha......"

After Lü Qian finished speaking, the old lady threw her head back and burst into laughter.

After laughing, the old woman with the dark skin looked at Lü Qian with a smirk, "Young man, you really dare to think, and you really dare to guess!"

"That's right, but you only guessed half right. It's not your fault if you couldn't guess the other half. At your age, you have such insight, which is already quite remarkable."

The old woman swept her whisk, and a gentle breeze rose in the cave, making the surrounding scenery resemble water disturbed by the wind.

What was originally calm and uneventful gradually began to stir up ripples.

The ripples grew larger and larger, gradually spreading throughout the entire cave, and the originally simple scene was also dispersed under the stirring of the ripples.

The pitch-black, boundless landscape, as desolate as outer space, was revealed, and the original cave had vanished without a trace.

Lu Qian and the old woman sat facing each other, standing in the void. The original futon and stone platform had also disappeared without a trace.

"boom!"

An explosion, as if the heavens and earth were created, roared through the void. A golden light was generated from the void and, in the blink of an eye, it transformed into a stream of light that filled the entire void.

A voice also rang out from the darkness.

"Junior, you are truly remarkable!"