Qiu Chuji was born in Xixia County, Shandong Province, in 1148. The young Qiu Chuji met the Taoist Sage Wang Zhe, the founder of the Quanzhen Sect of Taoism, and became one of his most prominent disciples. Wang Zhe, also known by his Daoist name Wang Chongyang, and the rest of high ranking Quazhen members like Qiu Chuji were invited to the Jin capital of Zhongdu (Beijing) to share their knowledge with the ailing emperor, Shizong of Jin. Although Emperor Shizong of Jin died the next year and Wang Chongyang died at 57, it did little to dispel the association of the Quazhen sect and longevity. Hearing of these longevity claims, Genghis Khan invited Master Changchun (Qiu Chuji’s Daoist Name) to his court to discuss matters of religion and health.
By allying with an influential religious leader like Qiu Chuji, the Mongols could request prayers for Heaven’s continued support and support from Qiu Chuji’s followers. Genghis Khan sent a letter to Qiu Chuji in 1219, asking Qiu Chuji to arrive at his court. Qiu Chuji accepted and, in February of 1220, began his journey from his home in Shandong to the court of the Mongols with several of his disciples (including Li Zhichang, the writer of Qiu Chuji’s Journey to the West).
By the start of winter of 1220, he arrived in Yen, modern-day Beijing, and waited there until spring. After traveling through the steppes of Northern China and Mongolia, he finally arrived in Genghis Khan’s Camp in Northern Afghanistan. Genghis Khan asked for the Portion of Immortality, but Master Changchun said that there were means to prolong the life, like following the teachings of the Dao but no portion of Immortality. For telling Genghis Khan the truth, he awarded the old teacher the title of Immortal Spirit.
After these meetings with the Great Khan, Qiu Chuji traveled home along the same route he took to get there with a slight deviation. Once He finally arrived back in Beijing, he created his Monastry with land that Genghis Khan had gifted him and showed his order the tax-exempt status their sect now enjoyed. He died a few years later.