Chapter 7: Three Disasters, Six Tribulations, Eighteen Calamities
Rustle rustle!
Fang Shu transformed into the Gray Fox, weaving through the mountains and wilderness, his speed much faster than before.
He continuously darted through forests and under trees, and in some rarely visited places, he no longer needed to clear paths through the mountains as he had in the past.
Finally.
After hurrying along for several days straight, that towering and massive Mount Lu had already appeared in his eyes.
Under the moonlight, Mount Lu resembled a sleeping dragon, stretching across thousands of miles, clad in silver armor, towering over five thousand zhang high.
This was also Fang Shu’s ultimate destination, the location of the Immortal Cultivator Marketplace!
However, although he had spotted Mount Lu, it was still at least three days and nights away from reaching the foot of the mountain.
And even just the outer foothills of Mount Lu, because spiritual energy gathered in the mountains, were already teeming with spirits and full of dangerous creatures.
For a mortal like Fang Shu, who had only mastered a few spells, entering the mountain easily would be seeking his own death.
He had to first find the nearby mountain entry guide as instructed by his Second Uncle, and only under the other’s arrangements could he enter the mountain relatively safely and head straight to the Immortal Cultivator Marketplace in the mountains.
“Cultivating Immortality is within sight!”
Although he could not arrive immediately, Fang Shu’s face was still full of joy.
He shakily straightened his fox body, pacing under the moonlight, leisurely heading toward Mount Lu.
Tonight’s journey was already complete, no need to hurry any further.
Just right to walk and browse at the same time, find a place to rest.
Suddenly.
Fang Shu’s fox ears twitched slightly. He extended his claw, took down the gourd hanging from his neck that he had been biting, held the gourd, and carefully tilted his ear to listen.
Chirp chirp!
His ears picked up many sounds similar to fox cries and hisses, rising and falling one after another, interspersed with human voices.
His heart stirred, and Fang Shu immediately crouched down, probing toward the direction from which the sounds came.
Not long after, a mound appeared in his eyes.
There were some broken steles and desolate graves around, like a mass grave from a previous dynasty.
The night was deep and serene, stars sparse and clouds thin.
Ahead was a human figure clad in a Daoist Robe, sitting cross-legged on a square stone, shaking his head and swaying as he lectured on something.
Around that person, a pile of figures knelt and sat, all listening.
They varied in height, uneven and irregular.
Fang Shu drew closer and saw that they were a group of deer, rabbits, foxes, hedgehogs, and so on, some in human form, some in beast bodies.
Fang Shu glanced a few times and saw no powerful monsters.
Relying on his current fox form, he quietly stepped forward and observed and listened for a while.
It turned out that this group of monsters was gathered together learning to speak human language.
The figure lecturing on the stone was not a Daoist, but a weasel clad in a Daoist Robe and transformed into human form.
The other’s eyebrows were long and thin like whiskers, no demonic energy detectable on his body; instead, he appeared gaunt with kind brows, his back straight, even more like a Daoist than Fang Shu.
He was spouting classical Chinese phrases.
The group of monsters and beasts below the stone were all shaking their heads and swaying along, babbling as they imitated.
Fang Shu found it somewhat interesting and continued listening to the other lecture.
Suddenly, a small monster below the stone could not hold back and raised its claw to speak:
“Sir, sir! We want to hear about the Path of Cultivating Immortality, we don’t want to hear these classical Chinese phrases anymore.”
Squeak squeak! The other monsters also chimed in agreement.
The Weasel Daoist paused and lightly sighed:
“See, so impatient again.”
He shook his head: “Although you all have gained demonic energy, you are still far from cultivating immortality.”
The monsters around chattered noisily, restless and agitated.
“Sir, teach me, teach us!”
The Weasel Daoist could only explain:
“Monsters who want to cultivate immortality must first cultivate humanity.
And to cultivate humanity, they must first learn human language; to learn human language, they must first learn bird language, mastering a hundred or eighty kinds of bird language, before they can possibly speak proper human language.
After that, they must still wear human clothes, eat human food, learn writing, and all such things, to formally step onto the Path of Cultivating Immortality.”
He shook his head again: “Although some among you can already speak human language, you are all still far from proficient.
The best have only learned fifty kinds of bird language and cannot speak pure human language.”
Fang Shu eavesdropped on this conversation, his fox eyebrows twitching involuntarily.
What this old weasel said matched exactly what his Second Uncle had said; it seemed he truly had some substance.
At this moment, the small monster who had spoken earlier stepped forward.
It was a Rabbit Demon less than three feet tall. After formally saluting the weasel, she said:
“Reporting to sir. Sir said he would teach us for four or five days, and today is already the fourth day; I’m afraid you will soon depart.
Please, sir, first impart the Path of Cultivating Immortality to us. Even if we don’t fully understand, we can learn from each other and fill in the gaps. Lest after sir leaves, we have no more opportunity.”
Hearing this, the Weasel Daoist could not help but laugh heartily: “Somewhat clever.”
He shook his head again:
“In that case, today this old man will lecture to you on the Three-Six Pill Method.”
Fang Shu, who had been hiding nearby eavesdropping, heard this, and his fox ears on his head immediately perked up.
Three-Six Pill Method—he understood this; it was the Great Dao, the Righteous Path!
It seemed this weasel was indeed just lecturing and imparting methods, without ill intentions.
And this could be considered an opportunity, not to be missed.
Thus, Fang Shu hesitated for a moment.
He no longer eavesdropped but boldly emerged from the grass, walked to the stone, and saluted the Weasel Daoist on the stone.
After the salute, he blended in among the monsters.
The Weasel Daoist only glanced at him once and paid no mind.
As for the small monsters around, they all had their ears perked, each concentrating intently, with no time to notice Fang Shu.
Seeing the group of monsters perk up, the Daoist did not delay.
His voice murmured, as if chanting scriptures:
“This Three-Six Pill Method, also known as the Three-Six Bait Method, has been passed down from former sages and former masters, now over ninety thousand years, and is the essential technique of cultivating truth in the world, the shortcut to immortality.”
“Mortals and monsters have many defects; they need food and drink, suffer illnesses and calamities, hard to escape death.
The name ‘Three-Six’ refers to the ‘Three Disasters, Six Tribulations, and Eighteen Calamities’ of a human or monster’s life.”
A discourse on the origins of the pill method came from the Weasel Daoist’s mouth, leaving the monsters on the ground entranced and yearning.
“I want to learn it, I want to learn this pill method!” A small monster could not contain its excitement, mumbling incoherently, immediately drawing glares from the other monsters.
The Weasel Daoist smiled and began explaining the pill method word by word, sentence by sentence:
“The Three Disasters are: lower body disaster, middle life disaster, upper fortune disaster.”
“The Six Tribulations are: refining essence, refining qi, Foundation Establishment, golden core, refining spirit, refining void.”
“The Eighteen Calamities, also called the eighteen passes or eighteen transformations, though calamities, are also good fortune and changes.
Specifically based on the Six Tribulations, one tribulation has three calamities, each different. Those who pass them will possess good fortune in body, to the point of being free from illness and hunger, not falling or aging, not dying or perishing…”
Although the Daoist was trying his best to explain in simple terms, toward the end, the complex vocabulary in his mouth increased, making it harder for the monsters to understand, leaving them confused.
After a while, the monsters were either staring blankly or scratching their ears and cheeks; only Fang Shu and that Rabbit Demon could still keep up.
Seeing this, the Weasel Daoist slowed his voice and explained in detail again:
“For example, the First Tribulation of entering the Dao is named ‘Ten Sicknesses and Nine Pains’.
Mortals and monsters, though possessing intelligence, are still short-lived and prone to diseases. Passing this tribulation, you all can be free from illnesses, immune to cold and heat, no longer suffering swelling pain, stabbing pain, cold pain, burning pain, twisting pain, dull pain, heavy pain… all kinds of painful torments.”
“At that time, those who pass the calamity will have ‘refining essence’ in body, mastering qi and blood, formally stepping onto the Immortal Path, becoming immortal cultivators; the world calls them ‘Human Immortals’, the lowest rank among immortals.”
Even so, many monsters still listened with swaying heads, staring dazedly at the Weasel Daoist.
Seeing this, the Daoist sighed lightly, roughly covered the first three calamities, and then looked at the group of monsters, asking:
“Have you all understood?”
Fang Shu had understood.
What the Weasel Daoist lectured on was actually the realm divisions of current immortal cultivators and their corresponding titles. He had learned this from the letter his Second Uncle sent and did not find it novel.
But what the Daoist said was more comprehensive than what his Second Uncle had said, giving him a small gain.
However, Fang Shu had no intention of showing off; he huddled low-key, lest he ruin these monsters’ opportunity.
On the mound, no monster answered.
The Daoist’s gaze continued to scan.
Finally, a monster boldly raised its hand.
But it said: “Sir spoke too fast; we all forgot.”
Laughter erupted around.
With one monster leading, the others also kowtowed or rolled on the ground, hoping the Daoist would lecture again, slower this time.
Seeing this, the Weasel Daoist was momentarily speechless with laughter, shaking his head repeatedly.
A look of boredom appeared on his face.
At this moment.
A voice rang out: “Sir, everyone has not yet entered the Dao. Even if sir teaches the Great Dao, we won’t be able to learn or use it.
Why not have sir teach the specific cultivation steps?”
