But to these minor cultivators who had yet to reach the Nascent Soul stage and had never touched upon the Dao, these methods and discussions were more than just profound.
Not only were they obscure and difficult to grasp, but they also carried a faint, hidden aura—a certain energy.
It was somewhat similar to Dao Rhyme, yet lacked that eternal breath of true Dao Rhyme.
It felt as if she had stepped into the library of Book Peak, surrounded by countless jade slips, the air thick with the scent of ancient records.
The only difference was that in her current situation, the jade slips had been replaced by the infinite Dao itself.
A few seats away, the sound of snoring drifted over.
Then came a rush of wind, and the snoring abruptly stopped.
From the corner of her eye, Gu Ningyun saw an alms bowl containing a fish fly from the left and land to her right, caught by a pair of hands wrapped in prayer beads.
Jue Sheng blew a long string of bubbles without making a sound, though it looked like it was swearing up a storm.
Soon, Gu Ningyun could no longer afford even the slightest distraction.
She couldn't understand it, and she couldn't grasp its essence, yet every word and every sentence drilled relentlessly into her mind.
She lost track of day and night; she had no idea how much time had passed.
Her mind spun, and her vision blurred.
Unable to help herself, her head began to bob like a chick pecking at rice.
Her forehead bumped against Yang Churan’s straight back, making a dull thud.
She jolted awake and straightened her posture once more.
She didn't last long before her vision went black again, and she slumped over.
After waking with a start once more, Gu Ningyun finally understood why Martial Aunt Yang had said it was better for minor cultivators like them to sit further back.
Because of the array, the content heard was roughly the same regardless of where one sat.
However, if they had been in the front row while the experts discussed the Dao, a group of juniors would have been reeling right behind them.
They might have even collapsed onto the experts' backs.
Just thinking about that scene forced Gu Ningyun’s sea of consciousness into a moment of clarity.
Her left shoulder grew heavy as Wen Xuan’s head tilted over onto it.
Before she could reach out to support her, Gu Ningyun felt a wave of dizziness.
Everything went dark, and her forehead hit a supple yet firm wall.
Her consciousness plunged into darkness.
Bizarre and kaleidoscopic dreams followed one after another.
Gu Ningyun felt as though she couldn't get any restful sleep.
In her dreams, someone was constantly chanting in her ear, “Supernatural powers are unfathomable and free, manifesting everywhere in the eight directions.”
“When the Great Dao is abandoned, benevolence and righteousness appear; when wisdom and intelligence emerge, great hypocrisy follows.”
“One who values fame and reaches too high will surely be alienated; one who is greedy and insatiable will surely possess little.”
“Great perfection seems flawed, yet its use is never exhausted. Great fullness seems empty, yet its use is infinite. Great straightness seems crooked, great skill seems clumsy, and great eloquence seems hesitant.”
...
She seemed to transform into different cultivators, experiencing the most memorable events of their respective cultivation paths.
At other times, she seemed to be a mere stone, a blade of grass, or a tree within their experiences.
From a bystander's perspective, she watched them meet, experience life, part ways, reunite, and say final goodbyes.
Or perhaps, she was a wisp of wind or a stray cloud, floating freely between heaven and earth.
She listened to the myriad states of the mortal world, where human hearts plotted and schemed without end.
She watched cultivators struggle for supremacy, their endless slaughters turning rivers red with blood.
Life was like a mayfly, born in the morning and dying at dusk in the natural cycle of reincarnation.
Life was like the Great Chun tree, for whom ten thousand years were but a single spring or autumn.
...
“Yuan Tong, you are a junior! How can you restrain me like this!”
“I want to go play with Gu Ningyun and the others! I don't want to be with a boring blockhead like you!”
“Martial Uncle Jue Sheng, they haven't woken up yet. Why don't we come back tomorrow?”
“Then get out of the way! I'm going back to the East Sea!”
“Martial Uncle Jue Sheng, True Venerable Wu Nian sent a message yesterday saying he will return in a few days. He intends to test you then.”
“Is he just bored? He keeps such a tight leash on me!”
“Yuan Tong, isn't your master also a disciple of that Great Baldy? Why doesn't the Great Baldy watch him? Why does he have to watch me!”
“It's unfair, unfair, unfair! That Great Baldy is biased!”
The golden larch in the courtyard was a vibrant golden-orange, framing the window like a timeless painting.
Sitting up in bed, Gu Ningyun rubbed her forehead as she listened to the lively bickering between Jue Sheng and Yuan Tong outside the door.
She suddenly felt as though there were no calendar in the mountains, and the years had passed unnoticed while the cold faded.
The scenes from her dreams faded one by one, leaving no tail to grab and no trace to follow.
Closing her eyes in meditation, she vaguely sensed something.
At the edge of her memory, in the depths of her consciousness, she now possessed a lake of Dao.
The lake was there, the Dao was there, and the insights were there.
It was just that her current realm was insufficient to touch or reach them.
It was said that the opportunity to observe a Dao Discussion Meeting was not to be missed, yet hearing it once was enough.
Only today did Gu Ningyun truly understand the meaning behind those words.
This lake of Dao, this reservoir of insights from the great experts, was the foundation this meeting had given her.
Although her current self—and perhaps even her self before the Nascent Soul stage—might be unable to touch the waters of this lake...
As long as this water flowed through her memory and her consciousness...
As her cultivation level rose, her experience broadened, and her state of mind matured in the future...
She would eventually have a sudden moment of realization.
So, that was what that expert meant.
When her cultivation reached the Nascent Soul stage and she began to comprehend the Dao...
This lake of Dao and insights would be her starting point and her support.
It would ensure she was not shallow, not hesitant, not ignorant, and not bewildered.
Within this lake, she could savor different experiences, different paths, and different reflections.
By gathering the essence of a hundred schools of thought, she could forge a path of her own.
She pushed open the door, only to have an alms bowl fly straight toward her.
She reached out and caught it.
“Martial Nephew Yuan Tong, you can go back now. I’m going to play with Gu Ningyun.”
Yuan Tong fingered his prayer beads in silence for a moment before letting out a long sigh.
“Little friend... my martial uncle has caused you trouble.”
“Senior Jue Sheng is my friend. It's no trouble at all.”
After bidding farewell to Yuan Tong and chatting with Jue Sheng, Gu Ningyun learned the truth.
The Dao Discussion Meeting had lasted for six months, and she had slept for another two months after it ended.
Eight months had passed in total.
The content discussed by the powerful cultivators far exceeded their current realms; minor cultivators like them couldn't absorb it directly.
Their consciousness's instinct for self-preservation had taken over, plunging them into a deep sleep.
While their consciousness slept, their bodies did not.
Under the influence of their cultivation instincts and the power of the Daoist methods themselves, the exchanges from the meeting had entered their minds through their ears.
In their dreams, these were organized into a lake, accumulating in the deepest parts of their consciousness and memory.
They had spent six months listening and organizing simultaneously.
After the meeting ended, it took another two months for their subconscious to completely finish sorting the information.
Every three months, the sect elders would come by to feed fasting pills to the disciples who were trapped in a trance.
Gu Ningyun was the first Qi Refining cultivator to wake up.
A month later, while disciples from other sects were still fast asleep, all the low-level cultivators from Xiaoyao had awakened from their slumber.
Daoist Lord Yi Guan released the spirit boat, and the Xiaoyao disciples boarded it.
Jue Sheng maneuvered its bowl, sticking firmly to Mu Chenze’s hand.
“Now that you're leaving and that Great Baldy is coming back, my life is going to become miserable again!”
It flicked its tail and produced a Spirit-Attuning Jade Token. “Add me as a friend! I want to be friends with all of you!”
“When you come to the East Sea, you must let me know, okay?”
“I've already talked to my little brothers. As long as you come to the East Sea, they'll all look out for you.”
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