Chapter 26: Reclaiming the Path to Longevity
The profound and enigmatic text of the Cycle of Twelvefold Longevity slowly flowed through Li Shun’s mind:
Great Evolution follows cycles, with eras alternating in turn. Even the heavens have their lifespan, so how could the earth be without its end? If the Heavenly Dao were truly without limit, whence the of cold and heat? If the thick earth were inexhaustible, how could seas transform into mulberry fields?
The calculations of heaven, the measures of earth, and the fate of man all arise from a single source, governed by the primordial qi of the precelestial state. Since qi shares the same origin, creation may be measured; since life shares the same body, surplus and deficiency may be borrowed. The great thousand worlds are but a grand market of Taiji; the path of cultivation is nothing more than the fine balance of yin and yang.
Knowing that destiny has its fixed allotment, the unused remainder may be temporarily borrowed within the mortal realm.
Under the influence of this mysterious method, Li Shun’s consciousness seemed to leave his body, soaring beyond his residence.
He rose above Lengshan County, higher and higher, until his perspective rivaled the sun and moon, overlooking the vast expanse of the world below.
Mountains and rivers, the myriad forms of life, all came into view.
It was as if some unseen force governed everything between heaven and earth, maintaining the cycle from birth to death.
“Life Qi…”