Immortal Fun Talk: One of the Eight Immortals, Li Xuan borrowed a corpse to return his soul

We mentioned earlier that we would tell the story of the Eight Immortals. Among the Eight Immortals, the oldest seniority and the earliest time to become an immortal are considered to be iron abductors. Legend has it that Li Xuan, whose original name was Li Xuan, was originally a tall reader with clear eyebrows and a clear eyebrow. He studied hard every day, hoping to get a good name in the exam. But who knew that the examination room was corrupt, and the examiner accepted bribes from others and deliberately did not let him pass the examination. Li Xuan was very discouraged, so he saw through the red dust and learned the Tao and asked for immortals.

Li Xuan found a secluded and remote cave, lived down, and immersed himself in cultivation every day, meditating and meditating. But years later, nothing has changed. The reason he felt he could not attain enlightenment was because he did not have the guidance of a teacher. Therefore, he decided to go to Mount Hua to visit Li Er, the old prince of Taishang.

Li Xuan waded all the way through the mountains and rivers, and after all the hardships, he finally arrived at Mount Hua. He stood on the top of the hill, looked around, did not find the place where Lao Tzu lived, and was disappointed when he suddenly saw two Daoist boys coming towards him. The two boys walked up to him and asked, "Are you Li Xuan?"

Li Xuan said, "Yeah, how will the two of you know my name?" Dao Tong said, "My master already knew that you would come to Mount Hua to find him, so he ordered me and the two of you to come and pick you up." "I wonder which one of your masters is?"

"It is the Taishang Laojun you are visiting."

Li Xuan listened and was very surprised, so he went with the two boys to the place where Taishang Laojun lived in seclusion.

When he arrived at the hall, Li Xuan saw a long-haired old man sitting in the middle of the dao bone fairy wind, and knowing that he was Taishang Laojun, he went forward to prostrate himself. Lao Jun listened to him and said to him, "Learning the Tao is to rely on one's own cultivation and understanding, it requires patience and perseverance, and the teacher's guidance is not of much use." If you just concentrate on cultivating, there will always be a successful day. ”

Li Xuan was taught, thanked Taishang Laojun, returned to his original cave, and continued to concentrate on cultivation. He often meditated, and often went to the top of the mountain to suck wind and drink dew, and spit out the old and the new. Gradually, his realm was greatly improved, and he could detach his spirit from his body and float far away.

One day, Li Xuan was practicing on the mountain, when he suddenly heard the immortal music fluttering in his ears, and when he looked up, there was a crane flying in the sky, and on the crane sat Taishang Laojun and Wanqiu, two immortals. Lao Jun said to Li Xuan, "I have heard that your Daoist skills have made great progress, and when I saw you today, it was true." Wanqiu and I are going to travel everywhere, and we want to order you to go with us, and after ten days, you will be in a hurry, and you must not break the covenant. After saying that, he drove away with the crane.

Ten days passed, Li Xuan wanted to go to Lao Jun's covenant, and before leaving, he instructed a disciple named Yang Zi: "Go to Lao Jun's covenant for the master, the spirit is gone, and the flesh remains here, you must take good care of it." If, after seven days, my spirit has not returned, you will incinerate my flesh again. After saying that, Li Xuan sat on the ground, silently reciting the incantation, and in the blink of an eye, the spirit had already left the body and drifted away.

Yang Zi obeyed the teacher's instructions, carefully guarded the teacher's body, and did not dare to leave a step. And so it went for six days. But on the sixth day, Yang Zi's brother suddenly came and told him that his mother was seriously ill and asked him to go back quickly. Yang Zi was sad and anxious, pointing to Master's flesh and saying to his brother, "Master's spirit has left the body to travel, and I must take care of it here and not leave." Yang Zi's brother said, "If anyone who dies for six days can survive, you should still burn your master's body and go with me." After saying that, he asked Yang Zi to bring firewood and grass together and incinerated Li Xuan's body.

Li Xuanyu returned and bid farewell to Taishang Laojun. Before leaving, Lao Jun said to him: "The valley is not cleared of wheat, and the car is also familiar with the light road." To get the old skeleton, it is the new face. Li Xuan did not understand the mystery, so he resigned and left. When I returned to the cave and saw that I didn't see my own flesh, I couldn't help but be surprised, and I saw the traces of fire on the hillside, and I realized that my flesh had been incinerated. When he was worried that his spirit would have no place to live, he suddenly found the corpse of a beggar not far in front of him, so he did not care to look closely and attached his soul to it. When I stood up and walked, I realized that the beggar was a cripple. When I went to the water's edge again, I saw that I was dressed in rags, unkempt, and had a black face and tendrils, which looked very ugly. When he was hanging his head in despair, he suddenly heard laughter in the air. Li Xuan looked back and saw that it was Taishang Laojun. Lao Jun said to him, "Do you remember the few words I sent you?" The true Tao should be sought outside the appearance, not just in appearance. As long as your merits are perfect, you will be a true immortal. Li Xuan suddenly realized. Lao Jun gave him a golden hoop and an iron crutch, and from then on, Li Xuan's merit was perfected and he became an immortal. Because of the iron crutch that Lao Jun gave him, people called him "Iron Crutch Lee".