Chapter 845: Solitude
The Telephathic Technique was a Buddhist method, which was then absorbed by the Cihang lineage and categorized under the Heart Series of the Cihang Sword Sequence.
The Cihang Sword Sequence was divided into four series—the Sword Series, Heart Series, Nought Series, and Self Series. Among them, the Self Series was the most profound. These four series build upon each other progressively, like laying a solid foundation before constructing a tall tower. Therefore, the Cihang Sword Sequence was considered an orthodox Daoist method.
The Heart Series was the advanced form of the Sword Series and the foundation for the Nought Series. The heart in its name referred to not just one’s heart and mind, but others’ too. Similar to the Taishang Emotionless Sutra, it inherited some methods from mind cultivators.
For Qi Xuansu, the biggest issue was that he lacked any foundation in the Sword Series, which was unrealistic to pick up at this moment. If he did so, he might as well try learning the Wa language instead.
Fortunately, Zhang Yuelu had a solution. Back when the Daoist Order and the Buddhist Sect clashed, the Buddhists adopted the Daoist rank system, while the Daoists also gained something in return. They mimicked the Buddhist empowerment technique and created a method for instantaneous realization. Simply put, it was the ability to copy one’s own understanding and directly transmit it to someone else, saving time and effort.
However, the threshold for this method was very high. The recipient must be at least a Heavenly Being to endure the mental impact without damaging their soul. The transmitter’s requirements were even higher, having to be at the Wuliang stage or higher, with significant mastery in soul cultivation. In other words, Martial Arts Practitioners could not use this method at all.
Moreover, even if the transmission was completed and the recipient accepted it, there could be an issue with compatibility. In truth, just as people chose what methods to practice, such methods also chose their practitioners. There must be an affinity between the two. Some were born physically robust and excelled in martial arts with minimal effort, but when it came to spells, they were hopeless no matter how hard they tried. That was a suitability problem.
The more crucial issue was that this method had major limitations. Since the entire content was based on someone else’s realizations, any skill gained through it tended to stagnate for life. Furthermore, the transmitter would suffer some loss in cultivation. That was why respectable masters rarely used this method to teach their disciples, who were made to cultivate on their own. Large-scale use was also impossible since not enough people qualified. Moreover, even minor losses in cultivation could shake one’s foundation if accumulated over time.
Zhang Yuelu was a Banished Immortal at the Wuliang stage, and Qi Xuansu was a Heavenly Being, so both met the requirements. Qi Xuansu also had no intention of delving deeper into the Cihang Sword Sequence, so he was not concerned about future stagnation.
Still, Zhang Yuelu was concerned that Qi Xuansu might be incompatible with the Heart Series, so she first had him memorize the mantras for a few days. He did not need deep comprehension and only a general understanding of the concepts. If anything was unclear, he could ask her.
After all, Zhang Yuelu had many responsibilities. She had just helped arrange the meeting between Zhang Wuliang and Sage Qingwei and had no time for hands-on teaching.
After Qi Xuansu had thoroughly memorized the mantras, he went to find Zhang Yuelu.