The waterfall is like silver, falling in the cold pool.
The water foam dispersed and the pearls shone brightly.
In this deep and secluded place behind the peach grove but not yet in the academy, an old man and a young man looked at each other with their sleeves down.
The old man was wrapped in a washed white robe. He had bark-like wrinkles on his forehead, and his eyebrows were also slightly wrinkled, but his eyes were very bright.
This kind of brightness has a bit of "detached from the world and does not care about the world" edges and corners, so that those who are accustomed to mellowness feel a panic like a thorn in their hearts, just because they are familiar with all the secular methods of mellowness. It is destined to be useless to this old man.
You can't get close to him, you can't please him, you can't flatter him, but he has his own world in his heart.
The young man is gentle.
It is neither sophisticated and worldly nor detached, but all-encompassing.
Even without a few words, the old man had begun to understand that this young man was extremely extraordinary.
But even though he is extraordinary, he is just a rising star after all. Why do you dare to talk nonsense and say "teach him"
Although it is a good thing that newborn calves are not afraid of tigers, it is a different story.
teach him
Isn't this the most ridiculous thing in the world
The old man was going to teach the young man some lessons to prevent him from going astray and wasting this raw jade.
Therefore, he asked again: "Do you know the age, the inferiority, the nobleness and the inferiority?"
Xia Ji said gently: "Does Tao look at elders, young ones, superiority and inferiority, and nobleness and inferiority?"
The old man was stunned for a moment.
Xia Ji continued: "Where the Tao exists, where the teacher exists, do you know the order of years?"
The old man was stunned again, and then slowly said three words: "Why teach?"
There is no beginning or end to this statement.
But Xia Ji said directly: "If you don't get angry or enlightened, if you don't get angry, you won't be angry. If you raise one point and don't turn it back with three points, you will never recover."
As soon as he finished speaking, the old man froze like a statue. He stood quietly on the withered grass, repeating this sentence over and over again in his mind. He felt that the theory he had originally hidden was less powerful than this sentence. Actually fell behind.
He asked again: "Why learn?"
Xia Jidao: "Learning and thinking will help each other. Learning without thinking will lead to failure. Thinking without learning will lead to peril."
The old man breathed quickly and asked hurriedly: "What is a teacher?"
Xia Jidao: "You can learn something new by reviewing the past, and you can become a teacher. If you are three people walking together, you will also have me as a teacher."
The old man smiled and shook his head and said: "If among these three people there are uneducated and unskilled disciples, can they also be considered as teachers? Can we generalize them?"
Xia Ji said calmly: "Choose the good ones and follow them, choose the bad ones and change them, think about them when you see the good ones, and reflect on yourself when you see the bad ones. How can you not be a teacher?"
After saying this sentence, the old man felt a buzzing in his head and a ringing in his ears. The voice of the young man in front of him was like the voice of a saint falling from the sky. It was repeated over and over again in his mind, making him feel like he was living in vain. so long,
I thought I had everything hidden in my heart, but I didn't expect it to be much worse.
"Choose those who are not good and change them; when you see those who are not good, reflect on yourself..."
The old man couldn't help but murmur.
It was the first time that he encountered such a conceptual impact, and it was also the first time that he encountered such a person. He was at a loss for a while.
But immediately, a feeling of joy surged in his heart.
Because he began to feel that some of the prejudices, shackles, and shackles in his heart were shaken by this young man's words, and they were not far away from being completely shattered.
And the understanding of the mind means that the strength can also increase with the tide.
The old man broke away from his thoughts, raised his head suddenly, and looked at the young man in front of him.
I saw the young man's expression was calm, and his eyes seemed to contain mountains, rivers, sun, moon and stars.
If he didn't look so young, the old man would only feel like a child in front of this person.
Thinking of this, the old man felt refreshed. He took three steps back, bowed his hands, bowed in front of Xia Ji, and said sincerely: "Ouyang Mu, thank you very much for teaching me."
Unity of knowledge and action…
After saying this, the shackles of "respecting the inferior, the elder, the younger" in his heart were instantly shattered, and many new thoughts emerged from his mind.
The old man was overjoyed.
I didn’t expect that I would have such an opportunity when I went fishing today.
Xia Ji smiled and nodded.
When the old man saw him like this, he felt that the young man's whole body was increasingly shrouded in a vague and mysterious halo.
Most young people in this world would not even be able to say anything when they see themselves.
And some are forcing themselves to perform some grandiose and exaggerated performances in order to leave some impression on themselves.
And only a very small number of students can manage to be neither humble nor arrogant.
But this young man was not anyone he had ever seen.
Xia Ji knew that although just a few words could convince the old man, it still lacked some persuasiveness, so he asked: "Dean Mu, can you talk with me?"
Ouyang Mu's eyes lit up and he smiled and said, "I know a little bit."
Xia Ji nodded and said, "Me too."
So the two of them walked to the four-corner pavilion not far away in tacit understanding.
In the center of the pavilion is a square stone table with nineteen rows across it.
The two of them sat down, guessed first, and then started making moves.
The old man holds black, Xia Ji holds white.
White moves later and black moves first.
Normally, when Ouyang Mu was playing chess with a junior, let alone going first, he would have to give in a few pieces before starting to move. But now when playing against this young man, not only did he not give in, but he actually made the first move...
This gave the old man from Tingxue Academy a strange feeling in his heart.
The two fell quickly...
And Xia Ji would never make a mistake.
Not to mention that when he first came to Dashang, he was already a master of hand-to-hand talk and defeated Yan Min, the teacher of the Eight Wonders of Confucianism;
Even during the nine thousand years of Dashang, he also had many pseudonyms and incarnations, leaving many chess games, chess records, and endgames in the world that were almost mythical.
How could this old man beat him
This is not a level at all.
After one set, the dean of Tingxue Academy was already sweating profusely...
The old man actually felt like he was "playing Go for the first time" in his heart.
The method he was so proud of turned out to be extremely clumsy in front of this young man.
The skillful hand that once made him secretly proud was like a self-righteous and reckless beast, fighting left and right in the dragnet constructed by the pure white chess pieces of the young man, but could not get out.
What's even more ridiculous is that the old man actually had the feeling that the young man in front of him was playing "guidance chess".
The flaws he accidentally discovered were just flaws deliberately exposed by the young man, aiming to make him think and improve, or to test his level, chess skills, and character in school.
The old man grabbed two black stones and placed them on the chessboard, signaling to admit defeat, and then said with a wry smile: "What on earth is the reason for the young gentleman to come to Tingxue Academy?"
Xia Jidao: "Learn."
The old man said sincerely: "Young gentleman, if you want to ask anything, it's okay to say it. If you have any requests, please just say it's okay..."
Today, just this kind of guidance has really benefited me endlessly.
If you are willing, sir, I don't mind the attention of the world, and I can worship you as my teacher. "
Xia Ji shook his head, said "No need", and then asked: "Is there any place for empowerment in this world?"
The old man said: "Initiation is something that can be accomplished overnight. If you have not kept up with your cultivation and state of mind, many problems will arise later."
After he said this, he suddenly laughed at himself, as if he was laughing at himself for looking at this young man with ordinary eyes.
He paused for a moment, collected his thoughts, and then said, "Most of the places for initiation are left over from ancient times, often in evil areas, and are unknown...
If you encounter these areas,
Except for some people who dream and want to soar into the sky, who think that they are the protagonist and will be different from others, they will take the risk of direct initiation.
But other people with inherent power will not regard it as a chance, but will carefully try to move back into the power. If they cannot move back, most of them will be destroyed directly or ignored.
The reason is simple, because no one knows what the methods of initiation are in these places of initiation.
The place is so strange and dangerous that if someone learns a strange secret, he might become a madman. "
Xia Ji listened quietly and felt that this initiation was indeed different from the previous life. However, the reason why the "initiation was safe" in the previous life was entirely because "the location of the initiation was among aristocratic families." If he suddenly saw a "young dragon pond" in the deserted mountains and forests, "I'm afraid no one would dare to enter a place like this directly.
The old man continued: "I think the young gentleman just hopes to improve quickly, and is not obsessed with the initiation itself.
Well, I have a solution. "
He stroked his long beard and whispered five words: "Bagua Spirit Gathering Array."
Then, he continued: "All you need to do is place the eight flags of the spirit gathering array in the place where the spiritual energy is acceptable according to the Bagua directions.
Then, the practitioner sits in the center of the array and practices. If the method is correct, he can make great progress with each passing day.
However, I just have a set of Bagua Spirit Gathering Formation flags. "
"Bagua Spirit Gathering Array?"
Xia Ji had indeed never heard of this thing. Although it theoretically existed, it did not exist in Dachang nearly tens of millions of years later.
At that time, all the land merchants had was the Xuan Formation...
Come to think of it, this may be because Tiandao has eliminated these things over time in order to reduce variables.
Ouyang Mu was well-informed and continued to talk: "In addition to the formation flags, there are also pills.
However, the elixir contains erysipelas, so unless it is used to break through a great realm, it should not be used much at other times.
Of course, there are also some monsters that have special devouring methods, such as swallowing enemies and then directly gaining strength. "
The old man spoke eloquently for a long time, then stopped and suddenly said: "With what identity does the young gentleman plan to enter Tingxue Academy?"
"Ordinary students."
"Understood."
Ouyang Mu nodded, "That young gentleman will be a student of the academy from now on."
Xia Jiqi asked: "What about the assessment?"
Ouyang Mu smiled bitterly and said, "Didn't you pay attention, sir
The chess pieces, the chessboard, and even the pavilion itself that we used to talk about all contain some strange spiritual influences...
If you have a weak character or a weak character, even if you are a superb chess player, you will frequently fail here.
The bigger the flaw in the heart of a person, the harder it is to concentrate here...
And this is the assessment. After three days, all the students who want to enter Tingxue Academy will need to come to these pavilions to play chess, but most of them will not be able to persist even for several moves... Therefore, the assessment will be very fast. "
Xia Ji didn't feel the impact at all, but still said: "No wonder I felt a little distracted just now..."
Ouyang Mu:…
If you are distracted, can you still play "guidance chess" against me when you are behind? ! !
No, you are comforting me.
I...
The two chatted for a while, and Ouyang Mu became more and more curious as they chatted. He felt that it was not strange at all for him to call "little sir". This young man took it seriously.
When Xia Ji saw that it was getting dusk, he directly chose to leave.
Ouyang Mu also understood the meaning of "praising and killing", and he also understood that this young gentleman didn't care about his "empty reputation of sending him away". He didn't send him off in person, but just watched Xia Ji's figure go away.
a long time,
A gentle sigh sounded beside the pool:
"Is there anyone in this world who is born to know...
And is this a born saint
A saint really cannot make any assumptions based on a mortal's mind.
I always think highly of myself, but I don’t think I’m just a mortal, hahaha. "
Although the old man said these words, he obviously did not feel discouraged or frustrated, but felt sincerely happy.
Especially when I think that such students are joining my own Tingxue Academy, not the Biluo Academy in the east of Lintian City and on the coast of the East China Sea, or the Haoran Academy in the south of Mingyue City, I feel even happier.
Normally, if he were a mortal person in power, he would definitely find out the identity of this young man, and even send someone to follow him and investigate secretly.
But the old man didn't.
And this is the most basic respect he has for that young gentleman.
…
On the way back, Xia Ji saw many young students, either romantic or beautiful, with strong aura of poetry and calligraphy, and a restrained and arrogant self-confidence on their young faces.
When these students saw him walking out of the mountain gate, they only glanced at him with their peripheral vision and stopped looking at him.
Xia Ji walked along the mountain road for about ten miles and came to the mountain gate. He went to the stable and handed the "horse picking order" to the child.
The boy was feeding the horses with fodder. When he saw the "horse order", he led Xia Ji to the second seat in the third row and took out the black and yellow mare.
The little mare seemed to know Xia Ji from time to time and rubbed his clothes affectionately.
At this time, the cool west wind started from the end of the road, causing the students who were still "pre-registering" in the mountain gate to wrap up their clothes tightly. Several students saw Xia Ji walking peacefully from the mountain gate, and they felt a little agitated. I also thought about exploring opportunities inside.
But no matter what they thought or what they would encounter, Xia Ji had already ridden away.
From the South City Gate, go back to the West City Gate, and then return to the house on the west side of Liangzhou City.
In the house,
Miaomiao's expression was unusually serious, and she was holding a page in her hands.
Xia Ji locked up the little mare, and when he passed by Miaomiao, he glanced curiously and saw what moves appeared on the page.
Miaomiao shrank her hand to prevent him from looking, and then said: "There is dinner in the pot, go and eat it quickly."
Xia Ji didn't ask too many questions...
Then, he vaguely heard Miaomiao making gestures and muttering, "How should I break this move?"
…
At night, with the bright moon hanging high, Miaomiao frowned and thought for a long time. Then suddenly her eyes lit up. She drew a little figure on the paper, wrote some words, and then put the page of paper away. Under the eaves in front of the door, lightly press it with a stone and go to bed.
When Xia Ji heard his breathing become even, he suddenly opened his eyes, stood up, and came to the front of the house.
He quietly grabbed the stone and looked at the paper in the moonlight.
At this moment, he understood.
It turns out this is a "test question".
Apparently someone gave Miaomiao a "question" and asked Miaomiao to "answer" it.
But this "problem" is just a sword move.
Xia Ji looked at the sword move and felt that it was indeed somewhat immortal and mysterious.
And Miaomiao's answer seemed to take into account the back-up of this sword move, but it was unknowingly led into a hidden trap... and it was inevitable to lose to the questioner.
So, Xia Ji thought for a while, then took out a pen and added a few strokes on the paper.
Suddenly, the "wonderful answer" was impeccable.
Not only is it invulnerable, but it also completely overwhelms the opponent's intention, making the opponent's originally mysterious sword moves become clumsy.
After Xia Ji finished doing this, he quietly pressed the paper back under the stone, yawned and went to bed.