Unknowingly, three years have passed.
Jiang Yuan, feeling discontented with the Horse Path, sighed at the difficulties of the righteous path, yet he did not utter a single word of complaint, still searching for the intent horse.
On this day.
Jiang Tong'er stepped out of his cave dwelling, going to the stream in the mountains to fish, calming his mind and spirit, so as not to let the two gods interfere and disrupt his cultivation.
He had been on the path for a long time, possessing spiritual energy.
By the stream, he cast his rod, and even without bait, he still caught plenty of fish and shrimp.
He simply thought that since he did not consume grains, he would take some to the Zuo family, leaving the rest behind.
Jiang Yuan took the fish and shrimp and headed to the Zuo family home.
As he approached the Zuo family residence, he saw a young boy outside and called out to him.
The boy stepped forward to pay his respects: "Master!"
Jiang Yuan asked, "Where has your family head gone?"
The Zuo family had been residing in the mountains for several generations, and now the boy should refer to the elder Zuo from years past as an ancestor.
The son of the Zuo family had died many years ago, and now the head of the Zuo family was the grandson of the Zuo son.
It was said that the Zuo family had settled in the mountains for several generations, a long time ago.
The boy replied, "The family head has gone to chop firewood and has not returned for a long time."
Jiang Yuan handed the fish and shrimp to the boy, saying, "Since he is busy, I will not wait for him. You can keep the fish and shrimp and add some oil and water."
The boy accepted them, trembling with fear.
Jiang Yuan asked, "I am familiar with your family. You usually see me joking and playing around. Why do you look like this today?"
The boy placed the fish and shrimp down and then said, "Master, I am not afraid of you, but I am afraid of the fish and shrimp. Please do not blame me. When the family head returns, he will surely punish me."
Jiang Yuan laughed, "You have a round head and square feet, with nine orifices and four limbs. How can you be afraid of fish and shrimp?"
The boy looked around in a panic and said, "Master, you do not know. During the day, the family head told me that those fish and shrimp are mostly the subjects of the Water Dragon, and eating too many will bring disaster."
Upon hearing the boy's words, Jiang Yuan found it amusing and said, "You live on Lingtai Fangcun Mountain. How could a dragon harm you?"
The boy continued, "Master, the family head said that the Water Dragon has great abilities. It can be large or small, can rise or hide. When large, it stirs up clouds and breathes mist; when small, it conceals itself and hides its form. When it rises, it soars through the cosmos; when it hides, it lurks within the waves, most fond of concealment."
Jiang Yuan listened, knowing that the Zuo family head was just playing tricks on the boy, not taking it seriously.
The boy, being quite talkative, said, "Master, you do not know. The family head said that the Water Dragon loves to change its appearance, hiding in places you would never expect, like in your eyes or ears, tormenting you day by day."
Jiang Yuan shook his head, not fearing such tricks.
What he should be seeking now was an intent horse; how could he waste time here listening to the boy's tales when he had fish and shrimp to deliver?
Just as Jiang Yuan was about to leave, he suddenly recalled the boy mentioning 'in your eyes, in your ears.' He thought that the intent horse might be hidden in his kidneys.
He searched his kidneys thoroughly but found no trace of the intent horse, leaving him at a loss.
Today, hearing the boy's words, could it be that the intent horse was hidden in a place he never expected?
There is a saying: 'The kidney qi connects to the ears; when the kidney is harmonious, the ears can hear the five sounds.'
The kidneys are indeed connected to the ears.
The intent horse...
Could it be hidden here?
It makes sense, it makes sense!
No wonder he had been searching desperately in the kidney area, only to come up empty-handed.
Truly, the one in the situation is confused, while the observer sees clearly.
Jiang Yuan's eyes sparkled with divine light as he looked at the boy and said, "Kid, today I owe you a favor, and I will surely repay you in the future."
Having said that, he returned to the Xieyue Sanxing Cave.
...
Back in the quiet room.
Jiang Yuan sat cross-legged on the mat, focusing on the spiritual platform, allowing himself to enter a meditative state, intending to search for the intent horse within his ears.
Just as he was about to search, suddenly a resistance arose, causing his mind to be unsettled, making it difficult to enter his ears to seek the intent horse.
However, he was not afraid and used the Heart Monkey Golden Prince to break through the resistance, directly entering his ears.
Before he could fully enter his ears, he felt a gust of cold wind blowing into his crown, sweeping through his five organs, dantian, and nine orifices, causing him to feel alarmed.
He sensed that if he did not withdraw from his ears, he would surely be harmed by the cold wind, leading to his death and the dissolution of his Dao.
The two gods had come to block his path!
Now that the two gods appeared, his previous conjecture was indeed correct; the intent horse was hidden in his ears, not in his kidneys.
No matter how he searched, he would not find it.
"Two gods, what kind of magical power do you have to block me?"
Jiang Yuan ignored the cold wind at his crown, focusing entirely on entering his ears.
He believed that the two gods had not harmed him yet; they were merely trying to scare him, and they could not truly injure him.
Sure enough, the cold wind swirled around his crown, but it could not harm him.
Jiang Tong'er focused his mind, wanting to enter his ears, but the resistance reappeared, growing more frantic, vowing to block him from entering his ears.
Jiang Yuan had never seen the two gods like this.
He realized that this moment was crucial, determining whether he would achieve the Dao or not.
He was unwilling to relent, ensuring that the foundation remained solid, grinding down the resistance of the two gods, seeking an opportunity to break through.
If Tong'er could gain the assistance of the intent horse, he could travel a thousand miles a day, and from then on, the two gods would no longer be a hindrance, and his Golden Core would surely be formed.
If the two gods were to blind Tong'er, causing the intent horse to be absent, over time, Tong'er’s cultivation would become futile, leading to his eventual death and dissolution of the Dao.
...
In the quiet room.
The ancestor sensed the qi mechanism, clapped his hands in appreciation, and said, "Good child, you have truly found the intent horse. The two gods cannot hinder you like this; now that the intent horse is in front of you, your righteous path is certain to be established. The two gods are restless and fearful. Let me assist you, child."
As he had said years ago, among the five, three had risen in power, and the two gods had no blocking force.
Jiang Tong'er had the Heart Monkey and Golden Prince at his disposal.
If the intent horse were to appear, it would surely submit, and with three out of five, the Golden Core would be within reach.
This struggle with the two gods was a matter of life and death.
He needed to assist Tong'er with strength.
Years ago, when Tong'er subdued the Heart Monkey, he had passed down a Buddhist incantation to him; today, he would pass down a Daoist incantation.
The Heart Monkey needed to be subdued, so he used the Buddhist incantation to suppress it.
The two gods needed to be fought, and the Buddhist incantation was not as effective as the Daoist incantation.
The ancestor said, "Expand your heart; this incantation must be remembered. It will help you fight the two gods and establish your foundation in the Dao."
Having said that, the ancestor recited the incantation and transmitted it to Tong'er.
...
Jiang Yuan struggled against the two gods.
Even with the Heart Monkey and Golden Prince to protect him, he still could not push back the two gods.
The resistance from the two gods was truly formidable; he realized the severity of the situation.
For a moment, he was at a stalemate, unable to gain the upper hand.
Jiang Yuan felt a deep sense of torment within, unable to advance even an inch.
Suddenly, he heard the voice of the ancestor, realizing that the ancestor was assisting him, and he immediately began to recite the incantation.
As he spoke the incantation, it was as if a sharp sword cleaved through the resistance, breaking the stalemate and causing the resistance to dissipate.
Before long, the resistance from the two gods could no longer block him.
The power of the incantation was formidable, and seeing Tong'er unafraid of the cold wind, it completely retreated.
Tong'er’s mind followed the momentum and entered his left ear, finding it empty, with no trace of the intent horse.
He then went to his right ear and indeed saw a black shadow inside, resembling a long shape.
This could not be a dragon.
Jiang Yuan looked closely; this black shadow did not have dragon horns and instead looked like a snake.
Just as he was about to examine it further, the black shadow suddenly 'whooshed' away, disappearing without a trace, moving so quickly that even the black and white fish could not intercept it.
Jiang Yuan, momentarily caught off guard, when he regained his senses, saw that the black shadow had vanished.
However, he was not anxious, as he had already seen the black shadow return to his kidneys.
In the future, there would be a way to cultivate, waiting to subdue this black shadow as the intent horse.
The ancestor had said in the past that the Heart Monkey was the reins of the intent horse.
Subduing the intent horse was of great use; if the primordial spirit could obtain the intent horse, it could travel a thousand miles in a day.
Now that he had found the intent horse, he just needed to wait for the right opportunity, perhaps using the Heart Monkey to subdue the intent horse in one go.
As he observed this black shadow, he pondered what kind of temperament it had, so he could know how to subdue it...
(End of Chapter)