Chapter 68: People of the State Identity? What identity?

Identity? What identity? I froze for a moment. In my mind, my master was just a lazy, good-for-nothing man who had real skills but was content to live in obscurity. Could he possibly have some other identity?

Although I was only ten years old and not particularly sensitive, seeing Old Man Jiang so serious, I still thought of a few things. The mysterious hotline my father used to make phone calls, the small courtyard in the town, and the large and vigorous relocation of graves, which had surprisingly been promised by the township leaders as work points. I had always thought all of that would be counted on Old Man Jiang himself.

I had never thought deeply about these things before, but now they all surged into my mind at once. I really started to feel that my master was full of secrets.

“Although I like living as a free and unrestrained wanderer, I work for the state,” Old Man Jiang said.

“Work for the state?” I looked at him in confusion. With how lazy he was, if state workers were all like him, the country would never get built. I had truly never seen him do anything serious.

“Strictly speaking, it means that whenever the state needs me to act, as long as it is for a positive cause, I will take action. My condition back then was that I would never do things for any individual, only for matters related to the nation and people’s livelihood.” Since I was still a child, Old Man Jiang explained it to me in the simplest way possible.

“But...” My mind struggled to keep up. “But... wasn’t there a campaign to Destroy the Four Olds in earlier years?”

“The campaign to Destroy the Four Olds did not target people with real abilities,” he said. “In the past there were too many frauds, which made the people ignorant. Genuine masters could not cultivate in peace, resulting in chaos where the real and fake were mixed together. There were even people with ulterior motives. These matters are complicated. Besides, Daoist metaphysical arts are like a sharp blade. Do you think a sharp blade should be given to bad people? Or to children?”

“Am I not a child?” I muttered. That did not sound good. I was almost becoming a target of the campaign against the Four Olds.

“I am using a metaphor!” Old Man Jiang snapped. “Just like many people who are ignorant of the world, like children, if they suddenly learn a trick or two, they can easily be misled. Do you understand? Besides, metaphysical practices are too limited. Compared to science, they are not easily turned into productive force. Only a small number of real experts are needed to help keep watch over the country, deal with certain matters, and prevent public panic so people can live their lives peacefully. That is all.”

I nodded, half understanding, and asked, “Master, do you hold a high official position?”

Anyway, I had seen how everyone in that courtyard treated him with respect, and even township leaders had shown up.

“That...” He hesitated. “In truth, worldly power is meaningless to me. I will tell you more about my identity in the future. You are still too young. Just remember that I work for the state.”

“Then Master, why do you help the state? Didn’t you say you liked freedom?”

“People of the Dao naturally follow the Dao. We assist those who are aligned with it. Have you studied the Dao De Jing for so long and still do not understand this much? Besides, this was your grandmaster’s instruction. He once said that our disciples’ place in life is to help the current government, because they represent the great Dao of the world and thus represent the state. Working for the nation and family is great virtue and great goodness.”

Old Man Jiang ended the topic there.

My understanding was simple. My master seemed to care a lot about accumulating virtue.

From that day on, my daily lessons became even heavier. I no longer had to copy or read the Dao De Jing, but after three and a half years of reading and writing it, I could not possibly forget it. As for what I could understand from it, that was my own business.

But even though I no longer read or copied the Dao De Jing, a whole new set of things suddenly had to be memorized. The first was the complex incantations for drawing talismans. I had once thought the Dao De Jing was already extremely obscure, but these incantations were true heavenly scripture to me.

Old Man Jiang never let me write them down on paper. When teaching me, he only transmitted them orally, going through each character. The entry level talisman incantations were relatively simple, usually only four sentences, but the pronunciation and meaning were enough to make my head explode.

“Each talisman has its own incantation. You must deeply understand its meaning. This is only the beginning. Besides the incantation used when drawing the talisman, each talisman also has a sealing incantation. Some are to be recited silently in the mind, some must be chanted under the breath, and some must be spoken aloud. Hey, pay attention to your phrasing and which syllables are emphasized.” This was how Old Man Jiang responded to my complaints, and the result was usually that I got scolded.

Heaven knows how much I wanted to actually try it myself and draw a talisman to see the effect, but Old Man Jiang only glanced at me and said, “You little silly kid, without any power, whatever you draw is just waste paper. Go practice.”

Yes, practice.

From that day on, what I practiced was no longer simple health methods, but true cultivation. This cultivation was not what ordinary people imagined as the art of immortality. Perhaps it once was, but by now it had become something distant.

Simply put, I began practicing real qigong. Old Man Jiang once mysteriously told me that those who reached great mastery could live by absorbing qi, and within qi there was spiritual essence. The highest breathing method was called fetal breathing.

I almost fainted when I heard this. First, I could not accept not eating and only drinking wind from the northwest. Even if I could become an immortal, I would not do it. Second, what was fetal breathing? In simple terms, it meant not breathing through the mouth or nose, but absorbing natural qi, the energy of heaven and earth, through the skin, with internal energy circulating through the body’s channels. Just thinking about it made me feel like I would suffocate.

Seeing my reaction, Old Man Jiang found it very amusing. “Silly kid, you are thinking too much. The qi in absorbing energy is the primordial energy of heaven and earth, not the yin and yang air you breathe through your mouth and nose. Do you think you can reach that level? If you could, I would cook for you every day. As for fetal breathing, reaching that state even for half an hour occasionally would already be impressive. For your whole life, just practice turtle breathing. Haven’t you seen how long turtles live?”

“If I could reach that level, would I still need you to cook for me? I could just live on air, or rather, heavenly qi. Master, are you messing with me?” After so many years of sparring with Old Man Jiang, I had already developed experience in spotting his tricks.

“Right, right, then I will cook qi for you,” he chuckled.

“How do you cook qi? Can you fry it? Steam it? Or stew it with wild pigeons?” I said disdainfully.

“Why not? I could just fart for you every day. Isn’t that also a kind of qi?” Old Man Jiang said proudly, lifting his head.

At that moment, I was about to begin meditation practice, and I almost coughed up blood from my throat. I held it in so hard my face turned red. Fine, fine, I would just assume I owed this cheap master in a past life.

Joking aside, when it came to actual training, Old Man Jiang was more nervous than anyone. Although he had repeatedly explained the unique techniques of our lineage and carefully taught me his insights, he was still anxious.

Qigong was not a joke. If done incorrectly, one could go astray in cultivation or even suffer qi deviation and lose control. His concern was understandable. That was why Daoist inheritance was so important. Without a master’s guidance, ordinary people absolutely could not attempt it.

Even the basics of qigong were already extremely difficult. I spent a great deal of time on it every day, yet progress was very slow. The first hurdle was sensing qi. Qi sensation was extremely elusive. Before you could grasp it, you could only rely on visualization and guiding energy with intention. This practice sounded simple, but concentrating all your thoughts on a single point was extremely draining. At first, I often felt dizzy and nauseated after less than half an hour.

In response, Old Man Jiang often encouraged me. “Your talent is already very high. When I first started, I could not even maintain visualization for ten minutes before losing focus. Forcing it further would only harm the mind. Take your time. My disciple is very capable.”