《真龙虎九仙经》

The Perfected Emperor of Heaven (Tianzhen Huangren) said to the Yellow Emperor: "If you wish to cultivate yourself, you must first settle your mind and intention."

Lord Ye said: "Anyone who practices cultivation for long life and enduring vision (living long and keeping the spirit clear) must first forget stray thoughts and remain undisturbed by seven conditions before success becomes possible. Therefore it is said that one must first settle the mind and intention." These seven conditions are: a scattered mind and spirit, agitation and anger, fixation and worry, wandering and idle thoughts, craving and attachment, deviant thoughts and conduct, and indulgence and laxity.

Lord Luo said: "If, in cultivating the Dao (the Way), the mind and spirit are scattered and the will is unsteady, when will success ever come? If anger arises in the heart, the spirit becomes restless; indulgence and laxity likewise scatter the mind and spirit. Nor should one cling to all manner of worries. Thus the essentials of cultivation are single-minded focus, diligence without slackening, and the avoidance of delusive thoughts. A person's mind and intention are often drawn along by craving and attachment, which in turn give rise to deviant thoughts; if the heart cannot let these go, cultivation will hardly succeed. If there is no craving, how could deviant conduct arise? Cultivating the self requires wholehearted devotion, and one must not be indulgent or lax, or else success cannot be achieved. Even if one has practiced for a year, and has persevered for more than eleven months, stopping for just a few days and then starting again may cause all the earlier effort to be wasted. Therefore one should cultivate diligently at all times and never let the mind run loose."

"Within, settle the Shen (spirit); without, rid oneself of desires."

Lord Ye said: "To settle the spirit within refers to what the Huangting Jing (Yellow Court Scripture, a Daoist classic of visualization and life-nourishing practice) describes: a person has the five viscera and six bowels, the three Hun and seven Po souls, and the hair on the body..." At this point the original text goes on to repeat passages such as "Therefore... let the mind run loose," which connect poorly with what precedes them and are suspected to be corrupted or incomplete.

"Within, settle the Shen (spirit); without, rid oneself of desires" means: inwardly, bring the spirit to rest; outwardly, cast away desires.

Master Ye said: As for "calming the spirit within," the Huangting Jing (Yellow Court Classic) teaches that a person has five viscera and six receptacles, three Hun souls and seven Po souls, and that even each strand of hair has its own spirit. One should often tap the teeth to gather in the Shen (spirit). The teeth may be tapped thirty-six times or twenty-four times, so that the inner spirit is settled and does not scatter. Above all, one must abstain from indulging desire.

Master Luo said: Calming the spirit means visualizing the three Hun souls while tapping the teeth, imagining them transformed into the forms of immortals and perfected beings. The three Hun are the guardian spirits of fortune that protect life within the body, and they are called Taiguang, Shuangling, and Youjing. When visualizing them, if you hold a wish in your heart, you may tell it to them and then act in accordance with that wish. The three Hun rest securely below the navel. When the three Hun are settled, all the spirits are settled; when the three Hun are unsettled, all the spirits are unsettled as well.

Therefore the Huangting Jing says that the three Hun are Yang spirits, and those who cultivate life should cherish them. When a person indulges desire, Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) are depleted, and when they are depleted, lifespan is diminished. Thus Youjing, worried that the person's Jing and Qi are running dry, weeps and tells Shuangling. Once Shuangling learns of this, it leaves the crown of the head. Taiguang, at the crown, then gradually weakens, and the Shen scatters in disorder. The many spirits are thereby denied peace. When a person's breath is cut off, life ceases; when spirit and Qi disperse, it means death. One should therefore renounce desire in one's outward conduct.

When practicing this method, if various illnesses arise, regulate them with Qi.

Master Ye said: This passage comes from the Celestial Perfected Sovereign (Tianzhen Huangren), who is citing what the Yellow Emperor asked of him.

The Yellow Emperor asked the Celestial Perfected Sovereign: "Do those who cultivate the Dao also encounter illness?" The Celestial Perfected Sovereign replied: "When ordinary people come upon the opportunity to cultivate the Dao, they have often already missed the earlier season. Their true Qi has long since been dissipated, and their bodies have become weak and decayed as a result."

Master Ye said: "Before that point, people often expend and leak their Jing and Qi to excess."

The Yellow Emperor asked: "How does one regulate with Qi?" The Celestial Perfected Sovereign replied: "Use less water and more fire; of all the severe illnesses, none can withstand fire." Here "water" and "fire" are technical terms in the context of cultivation, and what they refer to varies according to the method of practice.

Master Ye said: Water and fire are what the ancient sages called the "Great Medicine," and they are not found outside the body. Every person carries both water and fire within. Though the explanations differ, in the end they amount to one and the same thing. The heart belongs to fire and corresponds to Li in the Bagua (Eight Trigrams); the kidneys belong to water and correspond to Kan. In cultivating the Dao (the Way) and refining the Golden Elixir, one relies on the coordination of Dragon and Tiger, and of water and fire. First, settle the "Earth Gate" until it is still, as calm as water. Then employ the union of Dragon and Tiger, mastering the proper measure and number of repetitions. Next, warm and refine with the fire of the heart. It is said that this can remedy many kinds of deficiency and illness and restore the face to the look of childhood. For this reason it is called the "Dragon-Tiger Golden Elixir Great Medicine," and it is said that all manner of ailments can be healed by it.

For those whose qi (vital energy) is faint, one may wash the body with water according to the method, from the crown of the head down to the soles of the feet. The water meant here is the water of the kidneys. In applying it, one must master the measure and the number of repetitions, and then warm and refine with the fire of the heart. For those whose illness is severe, the heart's fire is instead applied to warm and burn from the soles of the feet up to the crown of the head. If the illness is critical and the patient is even facing death, fire is used to ward off malevolent spirits; the specific method is given in the commentary below.

Master Luo said: Treating illness with water and fire is accomplished within the span of a single breath. When using water, imagine two streams of black qi rising from the kidneys like smoke, ascending to the crown of the head and filling the Niwan Palace (the cultivation site in the head), where they transform into water. This water then rushes downward from the Niwan, washing as far as the arms. Once the washing is complete, let the water enter the five viscera and six bowels and flow all the way to the soles of the feet. Then lift the feet, and in your mind let the water return to the Kidney Palace. If one suffers from paralysis, abscesses, or similar conditions, imagine the water entering the large intestine, so that the diseased qi naturally stirs and disperses. When using fire, imagine the fire beneath the heart reaching down to both feet, then rising to the hands and the crown of the head. Circulate qi nine times within a single breath, and the illness will clear of its own accord. Use water when the body is hot, and fire when the body is cold.

One who studies the Dao should close the eyes and rest the attention at the tip of the nose, as though a fine thread were there. The mind must not leave its original place; the moment a thought stirs, gather it back and settle it. The "arising" spoken of here refers to the stirring of a thought, and "settling" means not allowing it to advance any further.

Master Ye said: Placing the original thought at the tip of the nose is called the "Xuanpin Gate" (Mysterious Female Gate, the aperture in Neidan (internal alchemy) practice where the mind abides and the breath enters and exits). Set aside all other matters, cling to nothing at all, and do not depart from this single thought. Steady the breath and observe its coming and going, so that it neither goes out nor comes in, and does not advance.

Master Ye said: Gather the mind's attention on the nose; this is the "Mysterious Female Gate" (Xuanpin men, a term in Daoist practice for the nasal aperture). Put down all other matters, leaving not a trace of attachment, and depart from your habitual stray thoughts. Settle the breath and observe the coming and going of the qi (vital energy). Reach a state in which you seem neither to exhale nor to inhale; this is what is called the "method of stabilization" (a way of calming the mind and spirit).

Master Luo said: The "Mysterious Female Gate" is the nose. The nose connects with the lungs, and the breath passes in and out through it. The method of stabilization described here lets the breath rest at the tip of the nose and guards it with a single-pointed, steadfast intention, which is why it is called "Guarding the One."

Do not chase after any images, and do not let them stir the mind and spirit; what could they possibly be? Next, shift your contemplation to the point between the two eyebrows, and the white-hair light will appear.

Master Luo said: If you can enter stillness at the tip of the nose, the various images in your contemplation will not shake the mind and spirit; they will seem as illusory as the hair of a tortoise or the horns of a hare. The thoughts that agitate the mind will quiet of their own accord. Next, move your intention to the point between the eyebrows and contemplate there, and you will see the radiance of the white-hair light, and you will see events of the past, present, and future. This comes from the power of concentration, but you must never cling to these images. You may also continue contemplating the point between the eyebrows and let them appear there.

Once the contemplation between the eyebrows has reached a certain level, move the intention to the crown of the head. When these three places, the tip of the nose, the point between the eyebrows, and the crown of the head, have each been cultivated firmly, you may advance further. In practice, be free of deliberate mind and attachment, let no outside thoughts enter, and do not be disturbed by any misfortune. Cultivate in the order of "from nine to nine, refining seven to seven."

Master Luo said: "From nine to nine" refers to completing one round. The intention moves from the tip of the nose to the point between the eyebrows, then from the eyebrows back to the tip of the nose, and finally from the tip of the nose to the crown of the head. Each of these three places is done three times, and together they make one round. After each round is finished, practice nine rounds a day, for a total of eighty-one repetitions. Cultivate in this way for forty-nine days, and you will naturally enter stillness; within a full day and night, the breath will seem to cease, with neither exhalation nor inhalation.

Master Ye said: One who attains this power of concentration can become a true immortal.

If you still cherish coming and going and wish to live in the world, then you should contemplate the gate at the crown of your head opening, and a yellow haze (a yellow, cloud-like luminous vision) filling heaven and earth.

Master Luo said: This method of cultivation allows one to conceal one's traces and live in seclusion from the world. First, visualize a yellow cloud rising from the spleen region and surging toward the crown of the head. When a man practices, he covers and presses down on the right side with his left hand. After visualizing the yellow cloud rising, he sends it surging to the left, imagining the left side swelling upward; then he visualizes the Sacred Body (the divine form that appears during cultivation) emerging. At this point he presses the right side with his hand, pushing it downward. When a woman practices, she visualizes the yellow cloud surging to the right side, and then visualizes the Sacred Body emerging; she presses the left side with her hand, pushing it downward, and only then does the Sacred Body come forth.

Master Ye said: This is a method of emptiness and non-being. In practice, only after the yellow cloud has spread throughout the entire body does the Sacred Body emerge. A man presses his right side downward with his hand; a woman visualizes the yellow cloud surging to the right, and as the Sacred Body emerges, she presses the left side downward, and only then does the Sacred Body come forth. Master Ye added: This is a method of emptiness and non-being. When one's practice reaches the point where the yellow cloud pervades the whole body, inner and outer respond to one another, and the body, above and below, takes on a yellow hue.

In practicing this method, one must stir up the yellow cloud and, each day, visualize it striking the Gate of the Crown (the portal at the top of the head). Within a single breath, it strikes three times seven, that is, twenty-one times. One does this twenty-one times a day for twenty-one consecutive days. When the practice is accomplished, yellow qi (Qi) can be made to appear, which is why it is said, "Yellow mist fills heaven and earth."

Settle the spirit (Shen) and quiet the thoughts, observing with fine attention, until one knows that within the body there dwells another divine presence. Move it according to one's intention, and it will come and go freely. When one wishes to leave the body, the yellow mist will envelop it layer upon layer.

Master Luo said: Gather the mind and spirit (Shen), and carefully visualize the numinous presence within your body (lingming, the object of cultivation or divine image in the scripture). See yourself seated within the Golden Hall and Jade Towers (a symbolic celestial palace). Next, visualize this presence rising upon a yellow cloud, opening the gate at the crown of the head, and departing through it. When its strength reaches its limit, it returns upon the cloud into the crown gate, closes it, and settles again in the Golden Hall and Jade Towers. Repeat this visualization of exit and return forty-nine times in all. Hence the scripture says: "Practice the Way at the six periods, forty-nine times." ("Six periods" refers to dividing the day into set times of practice.)

Each time the numinous presence leaves the body, a yellow cloud must be left behind to cover the crown gate. It then descends upon another yellow cloud and looks back at its own body. The practice must not be interrupted, for only then can it succeed. By the forty-fifth day, a form like ink-wash shadow should appear, and others can see it as well. By the one hundred and eightieth day, one will naturally be able to come and go freely. When one departs, the body from top to bottom becomes like ice and snow; when one returns, the crown gate is opened and the presence enters the body again, and the whole body grows warm once more.

Master Ye said: The immortals' manner of sleeping is a practice carried out outside the body, just as Master Luo described. No matter how many years or months one has cultivated, departing is like falling asleep and returning is like waking.

At times one returns and abides in one's own original body; at times one leaves it and enters another person's body. At times one begins cultivation anew from the starting point; at times one seizes another's body to house oneself, or causes another to leave their body. One may also seek to rescue others, extending peace and protection widely, or one may think only of oneself and harm others. If one is punished for this, one will surely fall. Such is the law, and it does not change through countless kalpas.

Master Luo said: This speaks of the immortals. One leaves one's original body and enters another's, or begins cultivation anew from the starting point, or seizes another's body to house oneself, or causes another to leave their body. One may also seek to rescue others, extending peace and protection widely, or think only of oneself and harm others. If one is punished for this, one will surely fall. Such is the law, and it does not change through countless kalpas.

Master Luo said: Such a person is already an immortal (shenxian). Their body has remained hidden for many lifetimes, and their Shen (spirit) and Qi (vital energy) are subtle and numinous. They come and go with perfect clarity, and so they are called spirit immortals, or Qi immortals. They move freely, but if they violate the immortals' precepts, they are punished at once. Master Ye said: For all the functions of the immortals, if one still hopes to attain the true path of immortality, and then to cultivate the practice of ascending to heaven as an immortal, one must continue to rely on practicing these methods.

This is a minor art, and the practitioner cultivates it mainly for their own benefit. Once it is accomplished, one can dwell in the human world for a long time, passing freely between appearing and hiding. What are called "first, entering a womb; second, transferring to another dwelling; third, returning to the old abode; fourth, seizing a position" are names for several kinds of transformation. To practice the method of dividing the body (the technique of cultivating a separate body), one must wait until the "Yang number" arises, then enter stillness with full concentration in a quiet chamber, and clearly nourish the Five Spirits.

Master Luo said: In every practice of cultivating the body and refining Qi, one begins to work only as the time of "the birth of one Yang" approaches. "The birth of one Yang" refers to the season, or the inner movement of Qi, in which Yin-qi gradually recedes and Yang-qi first arises. To practice the method of dividing the body, one must likewise wait until the Yang number arises, then enter stillness with full concentration in a quiet chamber, and clearly nourish the Five Spirits.

Master Luo said: The Golden Elixir and great medicine (the core essence and Qi spoken of in Neidan, or internal alchemy) must all be cultivated in focused stillness. If the mind can be unified, nothing will fail to succeed. If one is fortunate enough to receive oral instructions from an accomplished teacher, one should practice according to the method and be careful to keep the precepts. In the quiet chamber, set aside all affairs, and within a state of trance in which things cannot be distinguished, visualize spirit beings appearing. This is called "numinous obscurity." Only by nourishing the Qi of the five organs can one accomplish the Great Dao.

Therefore the Daodejing (Dao De Jing) says: "Vague and indistinct, yet within it there is a thing; dim and dark, yet within it there is an essence (Jing)." Master Ye said: The Great Dao is not far away; it lies within the human body. What is called the vague and the dim must be learned and understood by oneself. Thus Laojun said: "I too reached this through learning; I was not born this way." One should first become practiced in the methods of concentration described earlier, and then, when the one Yang is born, enter stillness with full concentration in a quiet chamber and nourish the essence and Qi of the five organs. Only this counts as cultivating the Dao.

At the crown of the head the Yang Qi is stored, and the number forty-five is already complete,

Master Luo said: The sun represents the hun (ethereal soul) and belongs to Yang; the moon represents the po (corporeal soul) and belongs to Yin. For this reason, a true immortal casts no shadow, having become a body of pure Yang. As for the practice of swallowing sunlight, different schools offer different accounts. The subtle method is simply to receive the sunlight with the nose without drawing it in.

There is another method that does not use the "river cart" (hechе, a practice of guiding the breath through the body's circuits). Instead, one lets the breath enter of its own accord through the Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female, the root from which the body's energy movements come and go) and rise straight to the crown of the head. When the three points are tilted upward, a circular halo appears behind the crown. This scripture (Jing) does not discuss the river cart, so it should be firmly concluded that the river cart is not to be used. The sun moves by forty-five degrees, and on the forty-fifth day Yang qi (Qi, vital energy) begins to stir. This is the beginning of spring, and it is also a manifestation of the Yang number.

Master Ye said: The hun of the sun and the po of the moon each have their own Yin-Yang numerology. The sun belongs to Yang, yet it takes the Yin numbers eight, nine, and seventy-two; the moon belongs to Yin, yet it uses the Yang numbers nine times nine, eighty-one. What is being discussed here is the cultivation of pure Yang, so the number forty-five is adopted. In practice, the river cart is not used. One follows the Way of Heaven by moving to the left, accompanying the movement of qi from the Xuanpin to the back of the crown. Each cycle advances forty-five degrees, and over forty-five days the total comes to 2,025.

"Below the brows the five wheels revolve, and still they arise within stillness."

Master Luo said: The "five wheels" refer to the eyes. Within stillness and concentration, one makes water and fire circulate in the eyes, which is why it is said they still arise within stillness.

"Within fire there is the spirit of Wood; within water there is the qi of Metal. Water and fire mingle with the five organs, coming and going, never departing from Earth."

Fire contains the spirit (Shen) of Wood, and water contains the breath of Metal. Water and fire interact with the five organs and circulate among them, yet they never depart from Earth.

Lord Luo said: The so-called "True Dragon and Tiger" refers to the transformations that occur when Yin-Yang, and water and fire, interact within the body. The eye is called the "King of the Five Wheels," and fire too has its king of the five wheels. Water rises from below; first make it flicker, then let it be held and nourished in the mouth. Next, direct the water to enter the liver from beneath the flickering fire. The liver belongs to Wood, and Wood is green, so it is called the "Green Dragon." When the water enters the lungs, which belong to Metal, and Metal is white, it is called the "White Tiger."

The Dragon fire descends on the left side into the liver, passes through it and exits on the right, then returns to the left. The Tiger water descends on the right side into the lungs, passes through them and exits on the left, then returns to the right. This describes the Qi (vital energy) of the five organs meeting and mingling with one another.

Lord Ye said: By day the Green Dragon goes first and the White Tiger follows; this belongs to Yang, and by day the cycle runs twenty-four degrees. By night the White Tiger goes first and the Green Dragon follows; this belongs to Yin, and by night the cycle runs thirty-six degrees. The daytime cycle follows the number four-times-six, and the nighttime cycle follows the number four-times-nine. As in farming, cultivate the Yellow Sprout in the spleen. Only when the Yellow Sprout emerges is the root of life established.

Next, visualize the True Jing (essence), meaning the essence-Qi spoken of in cultivation. When the two kidneys unite into a single Qi and the blood of the heart congeals downward, the image of an infant takes form.

Lord Luo said: The True Jing is the body's own bodily fluids, and the body is like a cauldron. In practice, press the left foot over the right and place both hands behind the back, so that the body takes a posture like the legs of a cauldron. Use the heart's blood to make the essence congeal, then cover and solidify it. Only by visualizing in this way does the image of the infant take shape. Although this infant has already congealed into form, one must still wait for the Yellow Sprout to grow in the spleen before it can be said to have the root of life.

Only when the Yellow Sprout grows from the Earth does one have one's own root of life.

Master Ye said: When essence-Qi (jing-qi) is warm and blood-Qi is vigorous, they gather and condense into an embryo. When a woman unites with a man, it is likewise the joining of essence and blood that forms the embryo. The "Sacred Embryo" (shengtai) spoken of in cultivation is achieved from within oneself rather than coming from outside, and for this reason it is called "sacred." When women cultivate, they likewise visualize the essence-Qi of the kidneys flowing out and entering the "sea of blood" (xuehai, in Chinese medicine the place where blood gathers), where it condenses and takes form. Afterward, they take the "Great Medicine of the Yellow Sprout" (huangya dayao). This refers to the "True Dragon-Tiger Cinnabar" (zhen longhu danshA, an important medicine in Daoist Neidan, or internal alchemy). It is held to be achieved from within oneself rather than obtained from outside, and for this reason it is called "sacred"; it is the root that sustains life.

When the sun has just risen, face the water and reflect it a hundred times. When the sun shines upon a person's shadow, the person's two kidneys become like the sun and moon, each radiating the red Qi of sunlight.

Master Luo said: Once the "Sacred Embryo" (Shengtai) has formed, one must continue to cultivate the "Sacred Body." Each day at the Mao hour, when the sun rises, sit in quiet meditation and visualize the right kidney transforming into the moon. From within the moon, red qi (Qi) rises; once it enters the waters of the Sea of Jing (Jing, essence), it turns white and takes the shape of a half-moon. Then visualize the Sacred Embryo rising along with this movement. Next, visualize the left kidney transforming into the sun, from which white qi rises; once it enters the Sea of Jing, it turns red like fire and rests beneath the half-moon. Carried upward by the sun and moon, the Sacred Embryo gradually ascends to the Golden Hall and Jade Portal (the immortal palace visualized by the practitioner), and then descends again from the crown of the head. For the first forty-five days, let the sun shine upon the Sacred Embryo; the moment the embryo is touched by sunlight, it is startled and plunges into the water, and this whole process must be completed within a single breath. Visualize thirty-three times in each double-hour, so that across the three double-hours from Mao through Chen and Si, the total comes to ninety-nine repetitions.

Master Ye said: Begin cultivating the Sacred Embryo each day at the Mao hour, and count the period until before noon as one cycle. In each session, visualize the two kidneys transforming into the sun and moon. The sun emits white qi, which enters the Sea of Jing, then returns to its original form and regains its original crimson color; the moon emits red qi, which enters the waters of the Sea of Jing, then returns to its original form and appears white like a half-moon. Then, from within the Sea of Jing, visualize the infant being carried upward. Visualize the white qi in the sun turning into red fire, like a round wheel of light with flames around its edge. In every cycle, let the sun above the crown of the head shine upon the Sacred Embryo; the sunlight passes clearly from the crown into the five organs, and this continues until dawn. Once the holy light has shone upon the infant, the infant turns over and enters the Sea of Jing, and one then continues by visualizing the sun and moon rising again. The accompanying diagrams are listed below, and practitioners should examine them carefully. This method takes ninety-nine repetitions as its standard; even if one reaches one hundred, the extra repetition does no harm.

Every night, the Sacred Embryo will emerge from the crown gate seven times seven (forty-nine times), and corresponding responses will appear. After ten months of such cultivation, the Sacred Embryo becomes equal to the practitioner's own body and quietly becomes an Earthly Immortal.

Master Luo said: Once the Sacred Body has been perfected, every night it will rise from the Sea of Jing riding a purple cloud.

Master Luo said: "Once the 'sacred body' is perfected, each night it rises from the sea of Jing (essence) riding purple clouds and goes to inspect, one by one, the Golden Halls and Jade Towers (the palaces of the immortal realm), examining everything carefully from the crown of the head down to the soles of the feet. It then bursts out through the crown and travels on the purple clouds. When the stilling of the breath (regulating and controlling respiration) reaches its utmost limit, it descends and re-enters the Golden Halls and Jade Towers. After that, one releases the breath, holds it again, and repeats the entry and exit by the same method. This is done forty-nine times. When ten months are complete, two bodies appear, identical in size, length, and appearance. From then on, one may leave the body at will and move about freely."

Master Ye said: "The Earth Immortal surpasses the Spirit Immortal in being able to come and go with such freedom. The key to the Spirit Immortal's method of cultivation lies in forming the sacred embryo, and one must work at it day and night throughout these ten months. When it is perfected, if the body casts no shadow at noon, one dresses it in clothing so that ordinary people will not notice, and has it wear robes and a hat like anyone else. When sunlight falls upon it, the shadow sinks out of sight and looks like the image of a figure wearing a hat. Because it can show a shadow at noon, it is called 'Sun-Concealed Form.' After one hundred and eighty days of the 'Hunting Step' practice, one can travel ten thousand li in a day; entering the mountains, one becomes an Earth Immortal."

To cultivate the Qi (vital energy) of the kidneys, let the breath go in and out through the ears. After practicing in this way for one hundred days, one can then remain within rivers and seas.

Master Luo said: "In the cultivation of the Water Immortal, one must still the breath and refine the Qi, visualizing the kidneys transforming into black clouds and letting them move in and out of the ears for one hundred days. After this, when you enter the water, companions who have attained the Dao (the Way) in the water will naturally come to welcome you and ask you to serve as their leader."

Master Ye said: "Although the Water Immortal needs only one hundred days of cultivation, its efficacy is clearly inferior to that of the Earth Immortal."

One who refines the essence into a sword and roams the four directions of heaven and earth, repaying kindnesses and answering grievances, is called a "Fierce Knight."

Master Luo said: The "knights-errant" (xia) among the immortals fall into nine types. The first is the Celestial Knight, the second the Immortal Knight, the third the Spirit Knight, the fourth the Wind Knight, the fifth the Water Knight, the sixth the Fire Knight, the seventh the Qi Knight, the eighth the Ghost Knight, and the ninth the Sword-Encounter Knight.

The Celestial Knight is originally a celestial immortal who receives a sword bestowed by the Supreme Emperor. The Immortal Knight has already completed cultivation as a Supreme Perfected One and ascended to the heavens, and then forges a sword instrument as well. The Spirit Knight is originally an earthly immortal who guards a mountain peak. Once such a person has forged a sword or dagger, whenever injustice occurs in a distant place, the flying sword arrives at once, which is why this type is called the Spirit Knight. The Wind Knight is also an earthly immortal who has forged a sword instrument, but whose cultivation is not yet complete, so its efficacy is limited. Upon learning of an injustice, the Wind Knight travels by riding the wind, and the sword arrives together with them. The Water Knight is originally a water immortal who has attained this status through cultivation, and can soar by means of water wherever they may be. The Fire Knight begins cultivation by setting oneself aflame, a practice also called "fire-light samadhi" (taking fire as the gateway of practice). Once the sword instrument is forged, anyone who wishes to fly back and forth must transform into a mass of fire and ride it, which is why this type is called the Fire Knight. The Qi Knight (Qi, vital energy) specializes in the methods of regulating and stilling the breath, and then refines the essence into a sword. Once forged, the sword is like Qi itself and moves as its master wills; it is called the "Qi sword." The Ghost Knight can make the body invisible to others. What this knight cultivates is the immortals' "ink-wash form" and "ink-wash sword," coming and going like Qi, leaving no discernible trace. The Sword-Encounter Knight is one who happens upon a precious sword by chance, and is therefore able to appear and transform at will in any place, east or west.

Master Ye said: In forging a sword, one first gathers the essence (Jing) and then kindles the heart-fire. The lungs serve as the bellows, the liver's Wood as the charcoal, and the spleen's Earth as the furnace mold, while within the kidneys lie the essences of the sun and moon. Using kidney water and spleen earth as clay, one shapes the furnace mold in the form of a sword. Between each exhalation and inhalation, one applies the oral formulas so that the breath condenses into sword-Qi. Then the heart-fire is used to smelt the essence, and the sword is whetted nine times upon the gallbladder. With each whetting, the blade is dyed with liver blood, which is why it is called "Yehan iron-forging," here referring to sword material refined from essence. It is said that one whets the gold grains of Lishui with a lion's gallbladder: as the heart-fire smelts, the lungs are tempered by the fire, and the metal melts and drips onto the sword. Washing the sword in the blood of a flood dragon symbolizes the liver blood that dyes the blade during whetting.

The method of forging the golden hammer is different. The practitioner daily swallows and draws in the essences of the sun and moon, letting them enter the lungs. The lungs belong to Metal, hence the name "golden hammer." Someone asks: the lungs ought to correspond to white, so why is the golden hammer yellow? The reason is that the lungs are the child of the spleen, and the lungs govern nasal mucus. When the essences of the sun and moon have been swallowed into the lungs for a full twelve months, the heart-fire is kindled to cast and forge. Fire overcomes Metal, so the Metal melts; the spleen belongs to Earth and can serve as the mold. What is called "the child returning to the mother" refers to the lungs (Metal) returning to the spleen (Earth, the mother) as a symbol. When the spleen's yellow Qi rises and holds back the force of the fire, the golden hammer is complete.

Whoever succeeds in forging a sword instrument belongs among the ranks of the immortals. Such beings roam freely among the four directions of heaven and earth, upholding what is right and eliminating injustice, so that people dare not do wrong. If someone meets such an immortal and receives the transmission of a golden hammer, a dagger, or a precious sword, that person too will gain spiritual powers.

Cultivate the essence-qi (Jing and Qi) of the five viscera until each organ reaches the number nine times nine, eighty-one. Then gather these energies with the Golden Cauldron, and the practitioner can rise bodily into the heavens.

Master Luo said: The refining of the five viscera is not something ordinary people may practice at will. Those who are fated to encounter this method and receive such implements as the "Golden Hammer and Dagger-Sword" will obtain spiritual powers.

The cultivation of the five viscera's Qi must follow the correspondence between the Five Phases (Wuxing) and the seasons. In the seventh lunar month, when Water qi arises, refine the kidneys. In the tenth month, at the Beginning of Winter, when Wood qi arises, refine the liver. In the first month, when Fire qi arises, refine the heart. In the fourth month, when Metal qi arises, refine the lungs. Earth qi flourishes at the end of each of the four seasons, so the spleen is not restricted to any particular time. Each Qi is refined for eighty-one days. Once the Qi of all five viscera has been perfected, one may come and go freely. Some people can emit lights of five colors from the fingers of their left and right hands, while others manifest five-colored clouds of Qi above the head or beneath the feet, and so they are able to ascend to heaven.

Master Ye said: Once the Qi of the five viscera has been perfected, even before one has been received in audience by the Supreme Emperor, one can ride the Qi and roam freely through the four directions of heaven and earth, coming and going without obstruction. If one waits until the Supreme Emperor issues a heavenly talisman (fu) and decree, and then goes to pay court in heaven, one can rise bodily into the heavens and dwell beyond the mundane world.

The sage's body departs from the dusty world; the breath continues unbroken and the mind is still. Within a state of meditative stillness, the sage takes rebirth once more, continues to cultivate, and again forms the body of the Dao. After twelve years, four forms are transformed into being. Thereafter, following the earlier method, the sage gradually continues to transform, and the manifested emanation bodies may be inexhaustible. Only this is called the true Way of transformation. All these transformations are accomplished by following the natural course of things, and never come about through reversal.

Lord Luo said: "What is called 'non-reversed transformation' means neither burning one's own body nor expelling the Three Corpses (Sanshi) and Nine Worms. There is another method called 'reversed transformation': one cultivates the body so that fire burns upward from below to the crown of the head, and visualizes the flames spreading through the whole body like a red light; one then visualizes the Three Corpses, the Nine Worms, and the Seven Po souls all leaving the body. This is called reversed transformation. All of the methods described here can enable a person to attain the Dao (the Way). The Three Corpses, the Nine Worms, and the Seven Po souls also ascend to Heaven together."

Lord Ye said: "What is called 'accordance' means that when one's lifespan reaches its end, one does not struggle against it but transforms naturally, going along with the course of things, and does not resist with fire. Some practitioners use samadhi-stilled breathing (gathering the mind through meditative concentration and calming the breath), and the ghosts and spirits naturally submit. Others use samadhi-stilled contemplation to visualize transformation into fire, which is called the 'Ground of Sun-Flame Wisdom.' Still others avoid it by moving their dwelling. This is why it is called 'accordant accomplishment,' and it is by no means reversed transformation. For all who practice this method, the key lies in firmness of will."

This scripture (Jing) must not be passed on to those who are unsuitable.

Lord Luo said: "I worry that later generations will not understand, so I have appended diagrams at the end. Anyone who is to transmit this must first observe a fast and purification, then bow facing north on a jiazi day or a jiawu day before the transmission. The one who transmits the text is the master, and the one who receives it is the disciple; whoever violates these rules will incur a grave offense."

Scripture of the Nine Immortals of the True Dragon and Tiger (Zhen Longhu Jiuxian Jing)