《三洞群仙錄》Vol. 14

The fourteenth volume of Records of the Immortals from the Three Caverns documents the deeds of four Daoist transcendents, compiled by Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) priest Chen Baoguang.

The first is Wang Bao (courtesy name Zideng), who wore a deerskin headscarf and coarse cloth robes while wandering through famous mountains and rivers. One night in the forest, he suddenly heard the clamor of horses and men—a celestial host of thousands riding through the sky. A divine being descended in a jeweled chariot drawn by three clouds, holding a tiger tally (hufu), and declared: "Your name is already recorded in the golden registers of Shangqing (Highest Clarity). You are inscribed in the immortal records of Donghua (Eastern Florescence), and a place awaits you in the Qingxu Palace of the Lesser Heaven. In time, you shall oversee celestial scriptures and assume the high office of a heavenly king."

The second is Sun Hanhua, granddaughter of the Wu Kingdom’s imperial family. After attaining immortality through cultivation on Maoshan, she ascended in broad daylight, earning the mountain its alternate name, Mount Huamu. The Declarations of the Perfected (Zhengao) records that she studied under the immortal Du Qi, mastering the "Primordial White Method" (yuanbai fa) to preserve eternal youth. She is said to manifest near Great Mao Peak, occasionally appearing to those with deep affinity.

The third account tells of Perfected Wang Xi, who gathered medicinal herbs on Xishan to save lives during a plague. One day, a Daoist priest remarked on his "immortal bearing and virtuous deeds," teaching him the transcendent art of "feeding on wind and drinking dew" (a method of abstaining from grains and absorbing qi). Later, divine dew descended upon the bamboo and trees near his dwelling; after drinking it, he ascended in flight.

The fourth records the miraculous deeds of Master Tian, a reclusive tutor in Poting. When the daughter of Raozhou’s governor, Qi Tui, died during pregnancy due to ghostly affliction, her husband, Scholar Li, encountered her spirit in the wilderness after failing the imperial exams. Guided by her, he sought Master Tian’s help. Summoning underworld officials, Tian negotiated her revival using "divine glue" (shenjiao) to reattach her soul to her body. Immediately after her resurrection, Master Tian vanished without a trace.

(Note: The "Primordial White Method" refers to Daoist visualization practices; "divine glue" is a legendary elixir said to mend souls; "feeding on wind and drinking dew" denotes methods of fasting and qi absorption in transcendence practice.)

The Register of Immortals from the Three Caverns (Sandong Qunxian Lu) records remarkable accounts of several extraordinary individuals:

Li Xiazhou was a Tang Dynasty Daoist with supernatural abilities during the Kaiyuan era (713-741), summoned to the imperial palace. At the end of Tianbao reign (742-756), he suddenly vanished, leaving only prophetic verses on his chamber walls that accurately foretold An Lushan's rebellion and Emperor Xuanzong's flight to Sichuan. The line "All have departed from Yan market" predicted An Lushan's uprising, while "No steeds return from Hangu Pass" foresaw Geshu Han's defeat at Tongguan. "Ghost beneath the mountain" cryptically referenced Mawei Station (through homophonic wordplay on "wei"), and "Silk robe tied round the ring" presaged Lady Yang (whose childhood name was Yuhuan, meaning "jade ring") being strangled with a silk scarf by Gao Lishi at Mawei.

Guo Zhongshu was an unrestrained eccentric. When he publicly mocked scholar Nie Chongyi's surname in verse, Nie instantly retaliated with a witty rebuttal using the characters of Guo's own name "Zhongshu" (忠恕), leaving him mortified. Later exiled for slandering court policies and illegally selling official goods, Guo died en route. At burial, relatives discovered his corpse resembled a cicada's molted shell, suggesting he had transcended worldly existence.

Another figure called "King Hollow who Sheds his Shell" (Tuokong Wanglao) had unfathomable longevity. He frequently feigned death before reappearing elsewhere, earning his name through multiple cicada-like rebirths.

The text also describes the eccentric Sima Jiao, capable of traveling a thousand li daily but notorious for his violent temper. During an altercation at a Xuancheng inn, he suddenly collapsed pretending death - his body turning cold and discolored, drawing crowds. Just as villagers prepared to arrest the innkeeper, he dramatically revived.

As dusk fell, Daoist Master Sima feigned death, only for the inn to erupt in commotion the following night when people realized he had staged his demise to slip away unnoticed.

Daoist Master Niu Wenhou possessed innate wisdom and encyclopedic knowledge spanning ancient and modern times. He consistently taught people to practice virtue. Each winter, he scattered grain on the ground to feed birds and insects. His acts of kindness, whether aiding others or protecting living beings, were unwavering—a lifelong cultivation of De (Virtue/Power).

When Guo Pu (a renowned Eastern Jin dynasty occultist) visited the residence of Hu Mengkang, governor of Lujiang, he took a liking to a maidservant in the household. Secretly, he scattered three liters of red beans around the estate. The next day, the master saw thousands of red-clad figures encircling the house, only for them to vanish upon approach. After performing divination, Guo Pu declared, "This maidservant brings calamity—she must be sold twenty li to the southeast." Once the master complied, Guo Pu discreetly arranged for her purchase. He then cast a Fulu (talisman) into the well, causing the red figures to leap in and disappear.

During the chaos of the Jin dynasty, Wang Zuan composed nightly memorials to Heaven, pleading for relief from the people’s suffering. Moved by his devotion, Taishang Laojun (the supreme Daoist deity) descended and bestowed upon him the Three-Five Purification Method, promising immortality through diligent practice.

Zhang Zhi, a Tang dynasty Daoist, learned the Six Ding Spirit-Summoning Art (a method to command divine generals) from Master Jiang Zhenbian. Once, Cui Mian, military governor of Xichuan, urgently needed to submit a memorial to the throne. Three days after dispatching it, he discovered the original still buried in his documents. Zhang Zhi lit incense, placed the memorial atop the rising smoke, and in an instant, it flew straight to the capital.

This passage recounts several stories of ancient immortals. The first tells of Ma Shihuang, a horse physician during the Yellow Emperor's era who mastered equine medicine and could cure all ailing horses. One day, he saw a dragon lowering its ears and opening its mouth before him. Recognizing the dragon sought medical treatment, he used acupuncture needles to heal its lip ailment. Thereafter, dragons frequently visited him until finally carrying him away.

Next comes the wondrous encounter of Cui Wei. During the Zhengyuan reign period, he met an elderly woman who called herself Bao Gu and received mugwort from her. Later, when Cui fell into a dry well, he discovered a white snake with a tumor on its lip. Using the mugwort Bao Gu had given him, he applied moxibustion treatment. After the snake recovered, it carried him skyward on its back, where he met a blue-robed youth who revealed this serpent was the dragon "Jade Capital Offspring" (Yujingzi) often ridden by the immortal An Qisheng, while Bao Gu turned out to be Ge Hong's wife.

The final two sections describe the deeds of He Zhizhang and Ge Hong. In his later years, He Zhizhang dreamed of visiting the celestial palace and requested to return home as a Daoist priest, whereupon the emperor granted him Jian Lake as a liberation pond for releasing captive creatures. As for Ge Hong - originally surnamed Zhuge - his ancestors came to Jurong and lamented "Why am I left alone here?" thus dropping the "Zhu" from their surname to become Ge, the origin of this family name. Ge Hong later became a renowned Daoist and authored the Biographies of Divine Immortals (Shenxian Zhuan).

These stories illustrate the marvelous connections between ancient healers and celestial beings, as well as the transcendent experiences of Daoist figures. The mentioned "moxibustion therapy" refers to the ancient medical practice of treating illness with heated mugwort, while "Jade Capital" (Yujing) in Daoism denotes the celestial palaces where immortals dwell.

This passage records the deeds of several historical figures associated with Daoist cultivation and immortality:

Ge Hong (styled Zhichuan) was widely read with particular fondness for the Way of Divine Immortals. Though relatives recommended him for official positions, he consistently declined. In his later years, desiring to refine elixirs, he heard that cinnabar was abundant in Jiaozhi (modern northern Vietnam) and requested appointment as Magistrate of Julou, taking his nephews there with him.

Tang Gongfang of Xingyuan Prefecture lived near the extraordinary Dou Mountain Abbey with its sheer cliffs on all sides. Legend tells that after drinking the immortal wine of Li Babai (a divine immortal's title), his entire household ascended to immortality together with their dwelling. Later generations composed poems describing this event, and traces remain to this day.

Peng Zong (styled Faxian) trained under Perfected Person Du Chong. During nocturnal meditation one evening, several divine lanterns appeared in midair illuminating the meditation mat, astonishing all present.

Ma Mingsheng (originally surnamed He, styled Junxian) was wounded near death while pursuing bandits as a county clerk in his youth. A sixteen-year-old goddess appeared, bestowing medicine that healed him. After recovery, he changed his name and followed her to Mount Tai (Dai Zong), where An Qisheng transmitted the Golden Liquor Elixir formula. He eventually consumed the elixir and ascended.

When Fan Zhongyan served in Chenzhou, the prefect's mother fell ill and summoned Daoists to submit memorials to the Celestial Emperor. Fan laughed, questioning how mortals could communicate with Heaven's Sovereign. The Daoist remained motionless all night at the altar, only awakening at the fifth watch to inform the prefect his mother's lifespan had reached its end.

The Register of the Immortals from the Three Caverns (Sandong Qunxian Lu) records several stories of divine beings:

A high-ranking official’s mother had been ill for six years when a Daoist priest performed rituals for her. The priest was delayed for a long time and later explained that while passing through the Heavenly Gate, he encountered the celestial announcement of the next year’s imperial examination results. The official asked for the top candidate’s surname, and the priest replied it was "Wang," though the second character of the name was smudged with ink. Later, the official’s mother recovered, and the following year, the top scholar turned out to be Wang Gongshou (later renamed Wang Gongchen by the emperor). The official then marveled at the priest’s ability to commune with the divine.

Master Guiguzi (a renowned recluse of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods) lived during the reign of Duke Ping of Jin. He secluded himself in the Ghost Valley (Guigu) of Mount Song, hence his name. Originally named Wang Xu, he taught the art of diplomacy to Su Qin and Zhang Yi. At their parting, Guiguzi gifted them a dog transformed from a shoe, which carried them to the state of Qin in a single day. He lived for centuries in the human world before vanishing without a trace.

Wang Xizhi (the famed Eastern Jin calligrapher) resigned from office and befriended the Daoist Xu Mai, developing a deep interest in spiritual cultivation. He had a particular fondness for geese. A Daoist in Shanyin kept a prized flock, and when Wang saw them, he longed to buy them. The Daoist offered to give him all the geese in exchange for a handwritten copy of the Yellow Court Scripture (Huangting Jing). Wang gladly complied, transcribing the text and returning home with a cage full of geese.

The herb-gatherer Wo Quan of Mount Huai was known for his love of pine nuts. Covered in hair, he could fly and run swiftly, living for three hundred years. In the Shangqing Mountains of Shu, Ge Yonggui often found human-shaped fuling (a rare medicinal fungus) beneath giant pines. After refining it into elixirs, he gained the power of flight and transformation, eventually ascending to immortality in broad daylight. The mountain was later renamed Mount Ge Gui in his honor.

The Celestial Master Zhang Daoling (founder of Daoism) once waged a great battle against demons in Chengdu, transforming twenty-four hells into blessed lands. He also subdued the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions to harmonize the righteous Qi (energy) between heaven and earth.

At the foot of Mount Qingcheng resided a Ghost Marshal who presided over the marketplace where humans and spirits conducted trade (commonly called the "Ghost Market"). When Celestial Master Zhang (Zhang Daoling, founder of Daoism) arrived, the Ghost Marshal instantly conjured a jeweled throne to receive him with reverence. Neither blades nor raging flames could harm the Celestial Master, and witnessing this, the Ghost Marshal submitted in allegiance.

The Records of Western Mountain recounts how Perfected Lord Xu Xun (one of Daoism's Four Great Celestial Masters) encountered a strikingly handsome youth surnamed Shen while touring the Yuzhang region. Though the youth spoke with extraordinary grace, he abruptly took his leave. Xu told his disciples: "This is no mortal, but a Mirage Spirit (a phantom creature formed from mirages). It likely came to test me upon hearing of my demon-slaying mission." To prevent future trouble, Xu pursued it to the riverbank, where the spirit transformed into a yellow ox frolicking on the sand. Xu then cut a piece of paper into a black ox to wrestle with it, ordering his disciple Shi Cen to ambush with a sword. When the two oxen became entangled, Shi struck the yellow ox's left leg. The wounded Mirage Spirit fled into Hengquan Well outside the western gate, whereupon the black ox reverted to paper.

Miscellaneous Tales from the Secret Pavilion records how Wang Baoyi, serving as Military Marshal of Jingnan, had a vegetarian daughter who could recite the Huangting Jing (a key Daoist scripture) by age five. Upon reaching adulthood, she dreamed of ascending an immortal mountain, meeting dozens of female transcendents including Magu (the Hemp Maiden) on Mount Fangzhang (one of the legendary Three Immortal Isles), forming sisterhood bonds and learning over a hundred pipa melodies. Most remarkable was the "Solitary Shang Finger" tune, playable with just one finger. Later, Magu appeared in a dream announcing her ascension. The next morning, cranes and auspicious clouds filled the courtyard as the maiden shed her mortal form.

During Emperor Xuanzong's Tang reign, the eminent Daoist Xuanyuan Ji dwelled on Mount Luofu. When the emperor once mentioned never having seen cardamom or lychee blossoms in the capital, two flowering trees instantly sprouted in the hall, their foliage as fresh as if newly trimmed.

The Daoist Qiu Jun, styled Daoyuan, mastered yin-yang divination. In his youth aspiring to cultivate at Huayang Grotto-Heaven (one of Daoism's Ten Major Grotto Paradises), he specifically requested appointment as Magistrate of Jurong. Upon completing his term, he sent this verse to his Maoshan brethren: "The phoenix's call invites us to virtue's radiance, where pines and vines henceforth..." (expressing longing for the ascetic life).

The Records of the Immortals from the Three Caverns documents several extraordinary accounts of Daoist practitioners:

There was an ascetic named Jun who once told his family he would live to eighty-one. True to his words, that spring, after washing his face in the morning, he composed a poem titled Spring Grass. Upon finishing it, he sat upright and passed away. When his body was being prepared for burial, it suddenly vanished. Everyone claimed this was an instance of "corpse liberation" (a Daoist term for an immortal ascending to heaven, leaving their physical form behind). Years later, a messenger in yellow robes delivered a letter in Jun’s own handwriting. It explained that he was originally destined to join the ranks of immortals, but because he had calculated celestial omens and revealed heavenly secrets, he was demoted to become the ruler of Mount Tai.

During the Zhenyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, Wang Qiong, the magistrate of Danyang County, failed his official evaluations for three consecutive years. Seeking answers, he consulted the Maoshan Daoist priest Ye Xuzhong, who wrote a memorial to inquire about his fortune. The petition rose with the incense smoke and later descended back to earth, bearing a red-inked annotation: "Accepting a bribe of one hundred taels of gold has cost you three years of salary; unjustly executing two people will be settled after death." A year later, Wang Qiong indeed died suddenly.

Wang Kejiao, a fisherman from Huating County, was once rowing his boat on the river when he suddenly spotted a painted pleasure boat carrying seven Daoist priests who called his name. The priests told him, "Though your bone structure is auspicious, you were born into poverty." They then offered him immortal wine and celestial fruit—a chestnut glowing with blue light, shaped like a jujube but two inches long, crisp and sweet. When Wang Kejiao opened his eyes again, he found himself seated before the Waterfall Temple on Mount Tiantai, half a year’s journey from his home.

Another practitioner, Yin Wenxiang (whose Daoist name was Qiqi), was once teased by a courtesan at a banquet. In response, he took out two chestnuts and declared he would play a drinking game. Just as the crowd found this strange....

During the chestnut procession, an unusual fragrance wafted through the air. Only Zuojiu and Xiao Qiqi caught its scent, after which their noses turned to stone—unremovable and reeking unbearably. The two began dancing wildly, their floral hair ornaments tumbling to the ground, then burst into tears, their makeup streaking down their faces. Other performers joined the chaotic dance as drums and music spontaneously played in perfect rhythm. Even after the music stopped, they kept dancing, leaving the entire audience in stitches. The host hurriedly offered apologies and prayers until, after a while, the stone fell from their noses, and their hair ornaments and makeup miraculously restored themselves.

The Mystic Maiden of the Nine Heavens (Xuannü) appeared behind opulent curtains, while Lady Yang (Taizhen) danced in her feathered rainbow robes. According to Records of Omissions, during King Zhao of Yan's reign, the kingdom of Guangyan presented two women named Xuanbo and Zhuoyan. King Zhao, devoted to Daoist immortality practices, recognized them as celestial maidens descended to earth—their skin like jade, their forms weightless, their breath fragrant. He housed them behind gossamer curtains and served them jade-like ambrosia. These immortals excelled in dance, summoning fragrant winds wherever they moved, their movements intoxicating. When the king flicked his tassels, they swayed seductively; with a wave of his sleeve, they stilled. Knowing their divine nature, he lodged them at Chongxia Terrace, spread with qilin-patterned mats, burning the intoxicating incense of Bogyo.

The Unofficial Histories recount how, during Emperor Xuanzong's mid-autumn festival in the Tianbao era, Daoist priest Luo Gongyuan asked, "Would Your Majesty join me to visit the Moon Palace?" Tossing a cassia branch skyward, it transformed into a silver bridge carrying them there. Hundreds of white-robed immortals danced in the courtyard. When the emperor inquired about the music, they named it Rainbow and Feather Garments. In Tianbao 4, when Yang Yuhuan was enfeoffed as Guifei, this very melody accompanied her palace entrance. Liu Yuxi later versified: "The Kaiyuan Emperor wanted for nothing / Yet lamented time's fleeting rush. / Gazing at immortal peaks from Sanxiang Lane, / He returned to compose the Rainbow Feather tune. / Thereafter his transcendent heart dwelt in Jade Pools, / Amidst the Three Pure Ones and Eight Scenes. / Riding white clouds to ascension's heights, / Leaving mortals only autumn wind lyrics."

The New Records of the Cinnabar Terrace documents how the Buddhist monks Shi Daowei and Zhu Falan questioned Immortal Ge (Ge Xuan): "The Great Dao has neither beginning nor end, defying description. We wonder whether Laozi or the Crown Prince (referring to Daoist perfected beings) holds greater..."

This scripture recounts several allegorical stories related to Daoist cultivation practices.

The text first explains the nature of the Dao: The Dao has no distinction of before and after, left and right, nor high and low, noble and base. It is formless and without attributes, so it can only be referred to by the word "Dao" (the Way), as language cannot fully capture its essence. Although Laozi was born in later times, due to accumulated merit from past lives, he was able to consume the Supreme Golden Elixir (a type of transcendent pill), causing his body to emit purple-gold radiance—hence he was called the Golden Immortal.

Next, it recounts the story of Emperor Shun: The Long-Bearded King of the Northern Barbarians presented Shun with White Jade Frost (an immortal elixir) and the Tenfold Purple Blossom (a transcendent pill), which granted longevity and ascension to immortality. After consuming them, Shun passed away and was buried in the wilderness of Cangwu—yet this was actually a feigned death through "corpse liberation" (a Daoist method of transcendence), intended to demonstrate to the world the natural principle of life and death.

Following this are two stories of cultivators: Bai Shi Xiansheng (Master White Stone) had no interest in practicing ascension methods, desiring only immortality to enjoy worldly pleasures—he was called the "Hidden Immortal." Another tale tells of Lu Sheng, who encountered the Daoist Lü Weng at an inn in Handan. Using an immortal pillow, he dreamed a fifty-year life of wealth and honor, only to wake and find the millet porridge still uncooked—thus realizing the illusory nature of human existence.

Finally, two Confucian figures are mentioned: Yan Zhenqing (Duke of Lu) remained physically robust when interrogated by Li Xilie due to having received an elixir from a Daoist in his youth. Meanwhile, Yan Hui (Confucius’ disciple) attained spiritual transcendence through "sitting in oblivion" (a Daoist meditation technique). These stories collectively illustrate the relationship between Daoist cultivation and worldly life.

This passage recounts several miraculous stories related to Daoism:

The first story tells of a high-ranking official who, at seventy years of age, faced calamity when the rebel leader Li Xilie ordered his execution by hanging and burial south of the city. After the rebellion failed, his family opened the coffin to find his complexion unchanged as if alive, his entire body turned golden, his nails grown through the back of his hands, and his beard and hair several feet long. Later, a merchant encountered two Daoist priests playing chess on Mount Luofu (a famous Daoist mountain). One asked the merchant to deliver a letter to the Yan family in Luoyang. The Yan descendants recognized it as their deceased patriarch's handwriting, and upon reopening the tomb, found the coffin empty.

The second story, recorded in the "New Records of the Cinnabar Terrace," states that Yan Hui (Confucius' disciple) had become the Heavenly Court's Minister of Bright Springs and Commissioner of the Three Heavens. He once told Confucius about attaining the state of "sitting in oblivion" (zuowang, an advanced Daoist meditative state). When Confucius asked in astonishment what this meant, Yan Hui explained it as transcending physical constraints, abandoning intellectual cleverness, and merging completely with the Dao. Confucius marveled that this indeed represented the realm of sages.

The third story describes the strange execution of Qin dynasty's Zhao Gao: after being submerged in a well for seven days without dying, then boiled in water for seven days without the water heating, he was finally killed. Jailers discovered a blue spherical object in his robe. Daoist adepts claimed this was because his ancestors had received the elixir methods from immortal Han Zhong, granting immunity to temperature extremes. After Zhao's death, a blue sparrow flew from his corpse into the heavens, indicating he had successfully refined the Nine-Cycle Golden Elixir (jiuzhuan jindan, the highest achievement in Daoist alchemy).

Finally, the story of Jin dynasty recluse Tao Dan: descendant of a prominent family, he took up Daoist practice in youth, beginning grain avoidance (bigu) and Qi absorption at fifteen or sixteen, neither marrying nor serving in office. He built a hut in the Linxiang Mountains of Changsha, keeping a white deer as companion. When relatives visited, he would hide across mountain streams. Later, when the provincial government nominated him for official selection, he fled deeper into the Luo County mountains, never to return, with none knowing his final fate.

King Mu of Zhou (the fifth ruler of the Western Zhou Dynasty) ascended the summit of Mount Kunlun and gazed upon the ruins of the Yellow Emperor's palace. At the Jade Pool, he hosted a banquet for the Queen Mother of the West (the immortal ruler of Kunlun), presenting her with white jade tablets, black jade discs, and hundreds of exquisite silk fabrics. In return, the Queen Mother gifted him a song: "White clouds drift over the mountain peaks, the path is long and fraught with peril. May you live long and well, that we may meet again." King Mu replied, "When I return to the Central Plains and govern the people justly, I shall surely visit you once more."

In the first year of the Yongshou era of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Supreme Venerable Sovereign (Taishang Laojun, the highest deity in Daoism) descended upon Shu (modern Sichuan). The earth spontaneously rose to form a jade platform, upon which Laojun seated himself. He imparted the essential teachings of the Scriptures of the Northern and Southern Dippers (Nanbei Erdou Jing) to Celestial Master Zhang (Zhang Daoling, founder of Daoism), instructing him to deliver all beings from suffering.

When Liang Hong (a recluse of the Eastern Han Dynasty) married, his bride, Lady Meng, adorned herself in lavish attire. But Liang Hong said, "I had hoped to retire to the mountains with a companion clad in coarse cloth." His wife immediately changed into a simple dress with a thornwood hairpin, to which Liang Hong joyfully responded, "Now you are truly fit to be my wife." The couple later withdrew to Mount Baling. A similar tale is told of Zhang Jizi, who rejected his wife's extravagant adornments until she adopted plain attire. Eventually, at Mount Shan, he encountered the immortal Shan Tu Gongzi, who bestowed upon him the method of cultivating immortality known as the "Nine Clouds and Waters of Unyielding Strength."

Xiahou Ziyun (a Daoist Celestial Master, Tianshi), while cultivating spirit mushrooms in his medicinal garden, articulated a key principle of longevity: "The sages of antiquity used supreme elixirs (Jindan) to nourish the spirit (Shen), middling medicines to cultivate the heart-mind, and ordinary remedies to treat illness." This reflects the Daoist cultivation principle of "prioritizing the nourishment of spirit."

The Register of the Immortals from the Three Caverns (Sandong Qunxian Lu) records marvelous deeds of several Daoist transcendents. One adept excelled in healing, using medicinal herbs to restore health and awaken spiritual potential. He often distributed remedies in marketplaces, prescribing different formulas according to each individual's condition. His herb garden contained a poem depicting the lush growth of celestial plants. When this immortal later achieved feathered ascension (the Daoist term for attaining transcendence), a woodcutter witnessed him riding a mythical beast resembling yet distinct from a tiger, swiftly disappearing into the Eastern Mountains.

The Pure Discourses of the Jade Pot (Yuhu Qinghua) recounts the story of Wang Zhaosu. This sage from Suanzao County maintained impeccable virtue, never haggling over prices. At seventy-seven, he was summoned by Emperor Taizong of Song, his face glowing like cinnabar with piercing dark eyes. Having lived forty years in celibate seclusion, he was honored with the title "Erudite of the National Academy." He advised the emperor that governing well required loving the people, while nurturing life demanded purifying the heart and restraining desires. Taizong inscribed his words on palace screens, and Wang Zhaosu ultimately lived to eighty-nine.

The Collected Records of Immortals (Jixian Lu) describes the female transcendent Magu. During Emperor Ming of Han's reign, she descended with the immortal Wang Yuan to Cai Jing's home. Appearing eighteen or nineteen with an elaborate coiffure and resplendent robes, Magu had hands resembling bird claws. When Cai Jing secretly imagined how pleasant those claws would feel scratching his back, Wang Yuan detected the thought and whipped him.

The Records of Neglected Fragments (Shiyi Ji) documents Yu the Great's encounter while taming floods. At Longmen Mountain's deep cavern, he witnessed wondrous sights: boar-like beasts holding night-shining pearls in their mouths, azure dogs that barked. After traveling ten li, these creatures suddenly assumed human form, whereupon he met a deity with human face and serpent body. This spirit showed Yu the Eight Trigrams (Bagua) engraved on golden tablets, flanked by eight attendant deities. Recognizing them as descendants of Huaxu (legendary mother of Fuxi), Yu received confirmation that Huaxu was indeed the Goddess of Nine Rivers.

Note: The term "feathered ascension" denotes Daoist practitioners achieving transcendence; the "Eight Trigrams" constitute a core Daoist symbolic system; "Huaxu" belongs to ancient Chinese mythology. These narratives exemplify Daoism's distinctive understanding of immortals, spiritual cultivation, and mystical experiences.

This passage recounts several immortal tales from Daoist tradition:

The first story tells how during Yu the Great's flood control efforts, the serpent-bodied deity (Fuxi) bestowed upon him a jade tablet measuring one foot two inches, corresponding to the twelve earthly branches, which aided him in measuring heaven and earth while regulating water and land.

The second narrative describes how Cui Chengzi cultivated the "Five-Stone Cloud Essence" (a type of elixir) in the Fei Mountain cave for ten years before achieving immortality. When someone stole five white elixir pills from his cave, Cui reprimanded the thief for seeking immortality without accumulating merit. Later when the thief fell gravely ill, Cui appeared in a nocturnal vision to teach him repentance methods, after which the illness was cured.

The third account speaks of Ge Qi (styled Baopuzi) who could lift thousand-pound weights and had five-colored auspicious clouds above his head, eventually ascending to heaven astride a dragon.

The fourth tale recounts an extraordinary man called "Heavenly Freedom" in Lizhou who could predict celestial phenomena. When a great fire broke out in the city, he lamented the locals' extravagance and moral decline. Scooping water from a temple stone basin, he sprinkled it skyward whereupon black qi transformed into rain that extinguished the flames, after which he disappeared without trace.

These stories collectively embody the Daoist cultivation principle of "accumulating merit and virtue" (jigong leide), emphasizing that immortality and Dao-realization require prior accumulation of good deeds - even obtaining elixirs proves insufficient without this foundation. They simultaneously reveal the compassionate heart of Daoist immortals in relieving worldly suffering.

Liu Zheng is recorded in Biographies of Divine Immortals as possessing extraordinary Daoist arts. He could manifest doppelgängers—transforming one person into a thousand, and a thousand into ten thousand. By exhaling Qi (vital energy), he could summon mists over water, pile earth into hills, and with a stroke of his sword, carve abysses into the ground.

Li Song styled himself a disciple of the "Three Immortals' Gate" and wandered the world under the name "Leisurely Wanderer of All Under Heaven." In his preface to Diagrams Pointing to the Origin, he wrote: "To fathom the mysteries of heaven's workings, one must receive guidance from an enlightened master. Without encountering a true transcendent, it is nearly impossible to grasp the essence of the Dao. During my travels south of the Yangtze, I met the Perfected One Shi Jianwu (Daoist name Xisheng) of Huayin Mountain in Yingtian Prefecture, Nanjing. This master wore a blue headscarf, purple shoes, and a broad black sash around his waist. His robes were loose, and his entire body radiated a dazzling light that inspired awe. Yet when he spoke of the Dao of Heaven and revealed its hidden principles, he elucidated truths of past and present with unparalleled clarity—a depth of understanding I had never witnessed before. He then transmitted to me the fifteen Diagrams of Cultivating the True Origin, a set of lucid and invaluable esoteric texts on immortality practice."

According to The Original Biography, the Tang dynasty scholar Lu Guimeng was proud and aloof in his youth. After failing the imperial examinations, he retreated to seclusion in Puli, Songjiang. He often associated with Zhang Bo but disdained worldly company, refusing to receive visitors even when they came to his door. He never rode horses when traveling, preferring instead a small boat laden with a straw mat, books, tea utensils, writing brushes, an inkstone, and fishing gear—earning him the nickname "Wanderer of Rivers and Lakes" among his contemporaries.