After all, the State of Qin had just abolished the scripts of the six states, standardized weights and measures, and began recording the methods of alchemy in the script of the Kingdom of Goryeo—this was relatively safe, and it was only introduced in the middle section of the *Art of Alchemy*, a notably conservative approach. It seems the person who compiled this work put considerable thought into it. "Hurry! Lady Li! Translate this for me and Ping'er!" Gao Liang urged. At that moment, Lady Li began reciting from the *Art of Alchemy*, but when she first started, her cheeks flushed and her neck lowered. Since Gao Liang and Zhang Yu Ping didn't understand the Goryeo script, they encouraged her to continue. Under their encouragement and expectations, Lady Li read in a delicate, faint voice. Even though it was so soft, Gao Liang, now a deity, heard it clearly. What they heard was: "The alchemical practice emphasizes the simultaneous cultivation of nature and vital energy. In alchemical cultivation, both nature and vital energy are cultivated simultaneously. This concept of 'cultivating both nature and vital energy' refers to the two essential components—sexual cultivation and vital energy cultivation—within the The nature cultivation and vital cultivation are two inseparable aspects, closely intertwined. Nature and vital energy constitute a yin-yang pair that forms the essence of human life—akin to the Taiji diagram of a human body. A living being cannot establish its vital essence without nature; nor can it sustain its nature without vital energy. Thus, if a person loses his vital essence, the nature essence, which depends on it, will detach from the body and cease to exist within the life form. Conversely, if a person loses his nature, his life itself will vanish. This is precisely what is meant by "the interplay of yin and yang constitutes the Way" in the context of human life. Daoist Dan Yuan cultivation focuses on these two fundamental aspects of human life to achieve the crucial transformation known as "renewing nature and vital essence." In essence, nature cultivation can be summarized as refining the spirit, enhancing the energy and spatial position of the nature essence within the human body, enabling the cultivator to experience a body beyond the physical form—freeing the nature essence from the constraints of the physical body and allowing it to exist independently of the human life form. What is known as the "Ming Gong" involves harmonizing yin and yang, and transforming the five elements, thereby thoroughly purifying the human body so that it can remain in the world for an extended period. It further enables each cell of the body to transform into qi, achieving a state of shared longevity with heaven and earth, and even attaining the highest level of spontaneous ascension during the day. This overarching principle of Jin Dan cultivation establishes a unique set of practices for Dan Yuan cultivation. Most sects' foundational and introductory techniques are essentially active, purpose-driven methods aimed at building a solid foundation. To progress further or reach higher levels of cultivation, one must eventually master the method of non-action (wu wei). Active and non-action are themselves a pair of yin and yang, and must be understood and integrated as a whole—never to be treated as separate or unrelated. The movement of things is relative within specific spatiotemporal contexts, and evolves as these contexts change. Active cultivation methods are typically employed by early practitioners who use their subjective awareness to guide the process—selecting specific objects of focus, mobilizing the qi of organs and meridians, directing the circulation of true qi within the body, eliminating pathogenic qi, and absorbing true Any method of cultivation that relies on postnatal consciousness as the primary driver is considered a "willed" approach. Then, what constitutes an "unwilled" cultivation method? In contrast to willed cultivation, unwilled cultivation is not guided by postnatal consciousness or subjective thought, but rather by the activation of the fundamental nature (original essence), with postnatal consciousness retreating into a background state. The "hazy, indistinct" state of deep meditation that practitioners enter is precisely this condition. In such a state, subtle, even miraculous and extraordinary transformations occur—transformations that only emerge under unwilled conditions. As long as one maintains the transition from willed to unwilled states, achieving the state of "emerging from the willed into the unwilled," one can be said to have fully grasped the overall cultivation process. Under certain conditions, one can reach the other side of the Taiji string, thereby discovering and verifying one's spatial position and the direction and level of one's cultivation. Only in this unwilled state can the cultivator receive high-energy support. This process is crucial. For a considerable period of time, after completing each session of active cultivation practices, one must consciously and deliberately enter a state of non-action (without relying on postnatal awareness or clinging to the sensations experienced during the active practices). An elder practitioner once said, "Active cultivation is merely apparent; non-action reveals true reality" (in relative terms). Even if the active cultivation practices are refined to a high degree, the changes they bring about in one's body and mind remain only apparent and temporary. Many individuals who have practiced qigong for years, who have developed qi throughout their bodies, still frequently fall ill and are unable to further enhance their skill or advance their cultivation levels. This is because, in the dynamic interplay between active and non-active cultivation—representing yin and yang—prolonged emphasis on active practices keeps one consistently in a yang-dominated state, maintaining a semi-yang condition without fully embracing the transformation of the yin aspect. "Isolated yin cannot thrive; isolated yang cannot grow." Without mastering the holistic nature of cultivation, one's progress is thus constrained. … High light and Zhang Yurong found themselves utterly confused by Laozi Li Er’s extensive theories on alchemical elixirs—terms like “active” and “inactive” were completely beyond their grasp. While they didn’t fully understand them, the principles of cultivation were certainly worth adopting. “Wife! I believe the true elixir of immortality lies in achieving harmony between body and spirit—maintaining the principle of ‘yin movement first, yang movement following’!” High light immediately shared his insight. Zhang Yurong nodded in agreement. At that moment, Li Fei, holding the book on alchemy, began to tremble. High light noticed her face expressing clear distress and immediately asked her what was wrong. In a low, strained voice, Li Fei said, “Bright brother! Please don’t pursue this kind of elixir. It’s really important—I’ve seen in the later sections that this very process will significantly weaken a person’s vital energy!” Yet High light remained resolute. “No matter what, once I’ve chosen the path of alchemy, I will forge the genuine elixir of immortality.” "As soon as she said this, someone stared at Gao Liang with wide eyes, shaking his head vigorously, as if a windmill were turning. She was Zhang Yuping. With her mouth pouting, she looked clearly displeased. Zhang Yuping sighed quietly and walked out. Gao Liang hurried after her, calling out, but Zhang Yuping kept accelerating ahead. What was wrong with this big wife? Gao Liang watched her retreating figure, scratching his scalp. Then, Li Fei arrived, glanced at him coldly, and also walked away. Hey! Two such beautiful women had actually opposed the alchemy training. Gao Liang picked up the book he had previously set aside in the corner, 'The Art of Alchemy,' and read it carefully again. Hm, didn't he have a top-of-the-line portable computer with him all along? Haha! It had a translation software. Remember in San Francisco, at EA, he had translated dozens of thousands of English words into a 300-page Chinese manuscript in just one night—enough to impress even the foreign executives, especially Peter, and establish his position at EA." Now, pages 68 to 98 of the *Art of Alchemy*, a span of thirty pages, present the specific alchemical methods explained in the Goryeo script. The Lady Li only read three pages before she could no longer continue. In fact, she stopped reading altogether—she was simply overwhelmed by the description of the alchemical process and the subsequent depletion of vital energy. It's clear that she must first become proficient in the ancient Goryeo script before proceeding. Gao Liang devoted himself diligently to mastering the language, using translation software to render every passage the Lady Li had just read into Chinese. However, when translating the text on page 70, the software stalled. A new series of garbled characters appeared. Gao Liang discovered that the Goryeo script from page 70 onward was increasingly difficult to comprehend. Not only was the translation software ineffective, but even native speakers of the Goryeo script found it challenging to render the text clearly and fully. Because these ancient Goryeo characters are equivalent to the oracle bone script of the Chinese state—ah, these characters make full use of existing resources, yet remain untranslatable, which is precisely why Lady Li could not proceed with her translation. She only managed to read one sentence—after alchemy practice, a person's vital energy would be damaged—and then lost interest. In fact, Gao Liang had already determined that the subsequent characters were completely unintelligible. The oracle bone script of the Chinese state, now intertwined with the ancient Goryeo script, forms a complex mixture that even the most experienced scholars would struggle to recognize. This is not so bad, however, as Gao Liang discovered that in the key section of this *Art of Alchemy*, in addition to the Chinese oracle bone script and the Goryeo ancient script, there were also characters from other states. Ah—there seems to be a character representing the state of Zhao, and this is one of the specific forms of the Zhao script. Indeed, prior to the Qin unification of the six states' scripts, the character for "Zhao" had already taken on over ten distinct forms. Gao Liang and Zhang Yuping arrived at the academy near the border of Qin and Zhao and observed the Zhao scholars teaching children various ways of writing the Zhao characters. Upon closely examining the scroll on alchemy, Gao Liang noticed one particular way of writing the Zhao characters that stood out. Ah! If one truly wishes to master the elixir of immortality, it is essential first to understand this book and absorb its alchemical methods.