Episode 168

  Recalling all past events is not enough to evoke a sense of nostalgia and regret.

  I have been in this famous city for several months. Hunger and cold are not a problem, the biggest difficulty is that there is nowhere to live at any time. Now that I have food and lodging, my heart is slightly at ease. After paying the rent, I immediately returned home. In the small single room of about 10 square meters, I sat cross-legged and practiced meditation. Withdrawing my mind and looking inward, circulating the method of the heart, it was not even half a day when suddenly the whole body above and below shone with golden light. Inside that skin, where life is born, I suddenly felt the unity of heart and pulse, without joy or worry.

  "The three stages of mental cultivation are complete: the stage of thorough understanding, the stage of attainment, and the stage of unity. In the past, I abandoned my boat and went ashore, parting ways with Zhu Yun at the temple of the mountain god. There, I carefully reflected on my experiences, both refined and mundane, and suddenly gained insight into the difficulties of worldly affairs, becoming thoroughly enlightened and free from worries. This is what is meant by thorough understanding! Years ago, when I stood on a high platform watching famous courtesans dance to elegant music, I grasped the true meaning of the mysterious and wonderful. At that time, my thorough understanding was already complete. Again, years later, when my emotions were tangled like a hundred knots, they suddenly became clear and open, and human relationships became refined and pure. Attainment had transcended the ordinary. Now, having endured countless hardships and maintained my will, having experienced innumerable difficulties and understood the subtleties of time, I have reached the stage of unity."

  Although his cultivation was insufficient, his state of mind had already transcended the three realms! He recalled that in the past, when his ancestors taught him, they once said:

  "There are five things that a cultivator must cultivate! The first is that the Tao can be awakened, the second is that the Dharma can be cultivated, the third is that skills can be created, the fourth is that the source can be obtained, and the fifth is that emptiness can be transformed. These five things are the cultivation of the Tao, Dharma, skills, source, and emptiness. In cultivating these five things, the state of mind is the most important! If the state of mind is not obtained, all kinds of cultivation will be unable to break through the bottleneck, and cultivation will fail and be lost, with nothing gained! Therefore, the key to cultivation is to prioritize the state of mind first; otherwise, everything will be in vain, and there will be no gain!"

  The state of mind that is cultivated, even if it were to be passed down from ancient times, would still be impossible to transmit. Therefore, although the insufficiency has been obstructing the boundary of the Dharma body for a long time, the state of mind is not yet cultivated, and the bottleneck has not been broken. Even if one is not very intelligent, the learning of the Dharma array is extremely high and profound, taking the mysterious array's subtle principles, breaking through in all directions, but ultimately there is still no way to overcome it!

  At this time, if the ancestor is still present, he will surely frown and be speechless. The cultivation has not yet reached the state of condensing the yuan, but it has already gathered the consciousness like one, and has formed a realm of gathering consciousness. At this time, the cultivation of the heart has already reached the third pass! Even if you enter the Tao, the three realms of yin-yang harmony are all passed, there is not much left to do! This matter is only afraid that there will be no one in the past and no one in the future.

  However, his overall magical powers are shallow. He has reached the peak of his physical body but can't condense his yuan. I don't know if he's happy or worried about how different his cultivation path is from others.

  Iron Spear Agency, a small agency. People can't live forever, but there are only over ten masters of spear techniques anyway. When it's not enough to join, the head of the agency, Hu Lao Da, is very happy. That night, a banquet was set up in the main hall.

  "Gentlemen, this is Brother Jin, a native of the Great Wall City. Today, he has won three matches in a row and has been accepted as a disciple of my Iron Spear Bureau. Brother Jin's martial arts skills are exceptional, surpassing even those of our former teacher. With Brother Jin joining us, our bureau will surely achieve great things."

  Except for the three or four people who were in charge of recruiting bodyguards, no one else recognized him. The other bodyguards looked at his ugly appearance and most of them felt a sense of disgust. Moreover, when they heard that the leader of the bodyguards was highly praising this person and seemed to have surpassed the old leader's martial skills, they didn't believe it. One of the bodyguards, who was tall and strong, holding a wine cup in his hand, stepped forward and said:

  "What's your honorable surname? Oh! The chief of the escort agency calls you Golden Foot, I suppose you're quite skilled in martial arts. Now that you've entered our agency, we'll be brothers from now on. I'm Han Zhan, let me offer you a cup."

  Just as he finished speaking, he stretched out the wine cup in front of him and raised his hand to pour it into Insufficient's mouth. Insufficient reached out a hand to intercept it, smiled faintly and said:

  "This Korean War brother is kind, our family is grateful."

  With that said, he gently loosened his hand and took down the wine cup, drinking it all in one gulp. The entire action was as smooth as a play, without any hint of difficulty.

  Everyone in the hall was shocked, that Han Zhan's martial arts were excellent, with one hand he could lift a 400-jin stone lock, and a large gun made of pure iron, extremely heavy, yet it seemed like nothing in his hands. His powerful spear moves had been heard far and near. At this time, he arrived hastily, but to Jin Zu, he was as weak as a child!

  Humiliated and enraged by the Korean War, he became furious with shame.

  "Brother Jin is so energetic, today we drink wine, why don't you and I dance with a round of gunfire to add to the festive atmosphere?"

  "Obedience is better than respect. Brother Han, please!"

  "Brother Jin, please!"

  Two men got down from their seats and came out of the door. Insufficient took a waist knife from the weapon rack, stood upright in the middle of the courtyard, and held the waist knife with one hand at an angle. Han Zhan ordered someone to bring out his iron spear. After a few steps, he grasped the iron spear tightly, looked at Insufficient, and shouted:

  "Be careful, Brother Jin!"

  Then, with a few swift steps, he jumped up, and the dust flew in all directions. His body suddenly soared into the air, reaching a height of over six feet, with the dust swirling beneath him like clouds, supporting his body, as if he were a celestial being flying down to earth! The gun wheel spun round and round, forming numerous circles of light, and then the gun point came to a stop, pointing straight at the enemy's chest.

  Insufficient to change the waist knife to the right hand, suddenly stretched out his left hand, and grasped the iron spearhead with one hand. Then he raised his hand again, and the Korean war was hung on the iron spear, straight and suspended in mid-air.

  At that time, the masters and soldiers in the hall and courtyard were all stunned. For a long time, even when Han Zhang had already stood up, the crowd finally came to their senses and shouted "Good!"

  "Brother Jin, great martial arts skills! My brother admires you!"

  That Han's face turned pale, his footsteps were light and floating, his hands were clenched into fists, and he said in a low voice.

  "Haha! Keep drinking. Tomorrow we'll make a big show of it and get the brothers to find us some old wives! Haha!"

  The leader of the escorts burst out laughing.

  Then everyone went inside and had a whole table of wine to drink. The wine was still warm as before.

  The next day, early in the morning.

  The General's Study Room.

  "Gentlemen, a few days ago, the Lv's Chamber of Commerce issued a wanted poster. The amount is huge, the goods are expensive, and the transportation route is far and risky. However, the reward is generous, even if it's equivalent to our earnings for over ten years."

  "Chief Escort, has this escort been completed?"

  "This wonderful thing must be accepted before it can be said!"

  ······

  The brothers all heard the news and were overjoyed. They all jumped up, eager to try it out, making a big fuss. It seemed as if they already had the silver spear in their hands and were about to divide the spoils.

  "Chief Escort, may I ask what is being pressed down by this escort?"

  Mr. Wang of the Escort Bureau asked with his mouth open.

  "Great master, calm and wise, please devise a plan."

  "Easy to say."

  "This escort has never heard of such goods being transported. The head of the Lv family's merchant association once said that no matter what, as long as the goods are delivered to their destination, they will be rewarded with 100 catties of gold!"

  "Oh! Ah!………"

  "Huang... Huang Jin... one hundred catties?"

  Everyone was shocked to the extreme, their mouths agape, and they couldn't close them for a long time.

  One hundred kilograms of gold!

  How can it be compared with the gains of a escort agency!

  "Where is the land? When will it be delivered? To whom will it be given?"

  Half a response, Mr. Wang Da opened his mouth again and asked, but his voice was already slightly trembling.

  "Wolf Castle of Canglang County! Delivered within a year."

  The leader of the gang sighed and said.

  "As for the person receiving the goods, the Lu family business owner didn't say anything, only saying that someone would come to collect the goods at the time!"

  "Head of the Escort Agency, in my opinion, there's something suspicious about this escort."

  "Oh?"

  "This escort is unprecedented, we have never heard of it before. Such an escort has three disadvantages."

  "Oh?"

  "There are three reasons: Firstly, we don't know what the goods are, so we can't take responsibility for losing them. Secondly, the route taken by the escort is too difficult and the time is too short; if the road is difficult and the time has passed, it's not our fault. Thirdly, we don't know who to hand over the goods to, whether they have been delivered or not, we can't prove it. These three points are not suitable, combined into one place..."

  "Mr. Wang and others are all from the same family, no harm in speaking frankly."

  "I'm afraid this mission is perilous, and our lives are at stake!"

  "Ah! Is your life in danger?"

  The five escorts were all silent at this moment, each lowering their heads in deep thought.

  After a long time, someone said:

  "We live on the edge of a knife, licking blood! It is often said that wealth and honor are sought in danger! In my opinion, nothing in this world cannot be snatched! We've taken it!"

  So everyone chattered back and forth, arguing for half a day. In the end, they surprisingly reached an agreement and all agreed to take the risk of escorting.

  Insufficient newcomer, entering the circle of this gathering, without a word, at this time hearing words sighing and muttering to himself:

  "After all, one dies for wealth!"