Eternal Life

coThe Ten Levels of the Mortal Realm

Dali Dynasty, Longyuan Province, within the largest clan, the Fang clan, mansion’s “Wanxiang Garden,” the early morning fog has yet to disperse yet a group of Fang clan children have already begun their morning exercises, and martial arts training.

[TL: Help me come up with English names?]

The master of the Fang Clan is the also the governor of Longyuan Province and follower of the Emperor of the Dali Dynasty. In the century prior, the ancestors of the Fang clan created the Yuhua Style considered to be the best Immortal style of the ten great schools.

[TL: Suggestions welcome for what 仙道 should be called, I was thinking something along the lines of immortal style]

Qianlongzaiyuan of the Longyuan Province was originally the capital of a former great dynasty. After the founding of the Dali Dynasty, the emperor originally wanted to make this place his capital, but because he considered the area to be too humid, he eventually gave up on that idea.

The emperor, who considered himself born of flames, conquered everything beneath the heavens. However, he decided that he found the water of Longyuan too restricting and finally decided to found his capital in the southern province of Lijing instead.

[TL: So the first sentence was weird as h.e.l.l so I winged it from what I a.s.sume the meaning to be]

Thus, the imperial court decided that the governance rights of the old capital be bestowed upon the Fang clan to show the court’s trust and affection towards the clan.

Therefore the Fang clan rose to prominence, their lands covering thousands of acres. Inside their courtyards contained an immeasurable number of gardens and bustled with people constantly coming in and going out. It was said that if one were to find himself/herself lost in the courtyards, one would never leave.

From inside the Fang clan’s mansion, one could discern the name of the garden, “Wanxiang Garden,” the all-encompa.s.sing garden. “Peng!” “Peng!” “Peng!” “Peng!”

[TL: 砰砰砰砰, I a.s.sume its just sounds]

The roaring of fists and the sounds of the displacement of air could be heard emanating from inside the garden where children were training; their movements very supple, and as ruthless as a tiger hunting sheep, as fierce as a lion attacking a bull, as agile as an eagle striking a rabbit, and as calm as a crane standing on a mountain. Specifically, the movements of their four limbs and spine, from the moment they began to move to the moment they stopped, were similar to five bows getting fully drawn. Their fists extended like arrows, swift as the wind, showing off their strong basic foundations.

Before too long, a pair of eyes could be seen behind a group of fake mountains in the distance, stealthily watching the actions done by the children.

Is someone was secretly learning the Fang clan’s martial arts? The owner of those eyes is a fifteen/sixteen year old youth with delicate facial features wearing a gray cloth cap as if he is a servant.

If not for last month’s discovery of the waterway which leads directly to this slit in the fake mountains, how would I be able to enter the inner courtyard and secretly learn martial arts? However, if I am found, death is the only road. But how could I, Fang Han Zong, accept being a servant forever? Fang Han carefully observed the movements of the Fang clan children, memorizing all of their movements in his head.

Surprisingly, Fang Han, a servant of the Fang clan was actually secretly learning the Fang clan’s martial arts!

Fang Han’s father was originally a bodyguard of the Fang clan, thus, as soon as Fang Han was born, he was considered a servant of the clan, as would be his descendants and the generations after. To think that a lowly servant would sneak into the inner courtyard and secretly learn his master’s original martial arts… this kind of action could only be described as reckless and unafraid of death.

“Coming!”

In the distant training ground, Fang Han could see a middle-aged man wearing a purple gown appear and stop. This man was nine chi1 tall, and walked very proudly and arrogantly, as if he was a tall mountain. Even with the great distance between the two, upon seeing the man, Fang Han felt oppressed and almost stopped breathing.

[TL:chi is the unit of measuring in ancient Chinese times man was one of the Fang clan’s masters, “Ju’ling Hand,” Fang Tong, the prestigious master who was renowned in both the north and south, and who had come to the Fang clan to teach the more advanced youth martial arts.

“Officer! There are nine at level eighteen, one Chengxiang, and nine local deputies! During practice, we split ourselves into ten realms. First level cultivating energy, second level practicing force, third level learning style, fourth level firm yet gentle, fifth level G.o.dly strength, sixth level controlling qi, seventh level inner strength, eighth level G.o.dly courage, ninth level spiritual expert, and tenth level G.o.dly transformation!

[TL: So this paragraph sucked… anyone have a translation for 丞相 or a better translation than deputy for 巡检?]

As soon as the man wearing the purple gown, “Ju’ling Hand” Fang Tong, appeared, the Fang clan children practicing in the courtyard all suddenly stopped their movements, standing upright like a pencil, awaiting his lecture.

Fang Han also stood still, straining his ears as hard as he could to try and listen as well.

“If one can train to the tenth realm of G.o.dly transformation, not even five horses can tear apart their body! Years ago, our Fang clan had an ancestor who was captured by an enemy general. They tried to execute him by using five horses to tear apart his body, but as soon as he used the entire might of his body, he pulled all five horses over, and flew away. This is the might of someone who reaches the tenth realm of G.o.dly transformation!”

The sound of “Ju’ling Hand” Fang Tong’s lecture covered the area, the powerfulness of his speech conveying the intensity of the story, and causing Fang Han’s ears to ache as if they were about to rip.

Even five horses couldn’t rip his body apart! What kind of absurd strength did he have? Can the body actually reach that kind of st.u.r.diness? Fang Han was shocked!

“However! You children shouldn’t think that the tenth realm is the limit of the body, this is only the start. This ancestor of our clan, upon receiving the teachings of the Yu’hua Style from an immortal being, became different from other clans, as he learned that above the mortal body, there are even more G.o.dly realms! Only once one throws off the shackles of the mortal body and enters into the realm of the divine expert can one truly laugh at the world below and be considered as king. For our clan, strive for the light in the shadow of your ancestor.”

[TL: 光宗耀祖 anyone?]

“Above the mortal realm, the secrets of the divine realm!”

Listening to Fang Tong’s words stirred up Fang Han, making him feel as if he had opened a new door to the world. Although he had been secretly learning martial arts here every day, he had never heard a lecture before, and was astonished to hear from Fang Tong’s mouth that above the steps of the ten realms, there was yet another set to climb.

At this time, a child asked, “What is the secret of the divine realm?”

“The divine realm’s ‘secrets’ are those that shatter the truths that we know about the mortal world.”

Amidst his talking, Fang Tong’s eyes expressed a very solemn, dignified look: “For example, the mortal body, once trained to the limit, can rip apart tigers and split panthers and lift weights of a thousand catties! But can you grab your own hair and lift yourself up?”

[TL: 1 catty is approx. 500 grams in China]

Upon hearing this, a child promptly said, “To lift yourself up, is that truly possible? It clearly seems impossible, as it defies the truths of the world.”

It is impossible. No matter how great your strength is, there is no way one could lift themselves up reasoned Fang Han.

“Only doing the impossible can it truly be considered divine! How else could we consider it divine?” stated Fang Tong. “Ripping apart the truths of the mortal world, that is the divine! To lift yourself up, this is the secret to crossing the border of the divine realm! Other than this, there are also other secrets, such as the ability to spit water and fire, walking on air, control of thunder and lighting, and using a flying sword, these are all the secret means of the divine realm.”

“Then Mr. Tong, have you practiced to the divine realm yet?” asked the children in succession.

“Reaching the divine realm is no trivial matter. The masters who understand the secrets of the divine realm are all the geniuses of their generations, as for I, I have only reached the eighth level of the mortal realm. If anyone amongst you can practice to the level of the divine realm, I can state with complete certainty that the position of family head of the Fang clan will belong to you! Even the Da’li Empire will grant you your wishes to try and gain your services! However, crossing the border from the mortal realm to the divine realm is harder than ascending the sky! If any of you can reach the fifth level of G.o.dly strength in the next three years and manage to draw a thousand catty bow, run as fast as a horse, and have the strength of a horse, then you will already be in the graces of the Fang clan. Alright, the things I have told to you today are for you to experience yourselves, and to help you persevere through your hard training! It was to let you know of a possible future of fame and wealth! Okay, everyone start training again, calm longevity crane hand. This is the training method that was bestowed upon our Fang clan ancestor by the Yu’hua immortal. You must thoroughly absorb and cultivate, I will stand here and explain. Remember, you must train your flesh to the limit, only then can you try to cross the border of the divine realm, as our ancestor once said, divine power comes from the strength of the mind, called mana, not only is it vast, but its power is endless! Only by training flesh to the limit, can your body supply a large enough of nutrients to the mind, and allow one to feel mana. Without enough strength, don’t even think about the divine realm.”

[TL: This guy went around in circles the entire time zzz. Oh, anyone have a better translation for 松鹤万寿拳, calm longevity crane hand sounds stupid]

Calm longevity crane hand, Fang Han held back the excitement in his heart and began to watch. Within the next half hour, Fang Han secretly listened to Fang Tong’s explanations and obtained full mastery over the martial arts he had learned over the past month, as well as principles of training the body.

When training the body, there are ten steps, correspondent to the ten levels.

The first level, cultivating energy: By maintaining a rigorous schedule and eating and sleeping well, you develop your body to become vigorous.

The second level, gaining strength: Through running, lifting weights, jumping, hitting sandbags, kicking, squatting, and tumbling, and following strictly the laws of Dharma, train your four limbs, waist, strength, and gain flexibility that greatly surpa.s.ses ordinary people.

The third level, learning styles: By training in all different kinds of styles, allow your four limbs and waist to connect their strengths, straighten your bones and control your breath, allowing your body to come together as a whole.

The fourth level, firm yet gentle: The entire body, waist, bones, shoulders, back, elbow, hand, wrist, and palm come together, breath and blood mix. Soft when soft, hard when hard, firm yet gentle simultaneously. Flexibility and coordination reach their limit. Swift as an arrow in the wind, as flexible as a civet.

The fifth level, G.o.dly strength: Following the entire body learning to be firm yet gentle, the body becomes increasingly stronger, the arms contain the G.o.dly strength of one thousand catties and the force of a horse, upon moving, the entire body moves resolutely with the discipline of an army, the sound of thunder emanating from amidst the flesh.

If one trains to the level of G.o.dly strength, then they can be considered top notch. Considering the following levels of controlled breathing, inner strengthening, G.o.dly courage, spiritual expert, and G.o.dly transformation, the five great levels, Fang Tong did not explain, but Fang Han was not annoyed, for the lecture allowed him to start training by himself using the techniques memorized by him during the past month.

Through understanding the steps, as long as I put forth my efforts, there will always be a day where I will shock everyone and toss off the ident.i.ty of a servant, Fang Han knew that through his secret learning, he had grabbed an opportunity to forever change his fate.

After listening to Fang Tong, Fang Han suddenly realized that he had forgotten something. Oh no! I forgot that today in the morning, the second lady wanted to ride horses and go out hunting! She wanted the thousand li snow that I raised.   

[TL: Thousand li snow is the name of some horse 千里雪]

Upon remembering, Fang Han no longer had the want to listen any further, and stealthily crept down from the fake mountains and dove into the waterway. Fortunately, no one had spotted him inside the inner courtyard.

It was also fortunate that Ju’ling Hand Fang Tong had yet to reach the ninth level, for if he had, even without seeing, Fang Han would have been found by senses gained during the ninth level.