Exploring Immortality Cultivation

In fact, the reason Wang Qi drove Du Bin away with his shockingly unconventional opinions was not just out of consideration for Mao Zimiao. His real reason, however, was based on judgments from knowledge in his previous life. "In today's Immortal Dao and Immortal Alliance, the essence is starkly different from the ancient Cultivation World and Sect Alliance." To most people, this statement sounded like nonsense. After abandoning the "stealing from Heaven and Earth" Practition and exploring the law of "borrowing from Heaven and Earth," Modern Cultivators successfully escaped the plight of resources and Spiritual Energy. Cultivators and the world they lived in thrived together; the more numerous and higher-level the cultivators, the stronger the world became. The limit on the number of disciples was no longer the amount of materials but the number of teachers, and disciples didn't have to learn from Ancient Method Practitioners, killing each other for resources. The path of "exploring the laws of Heaven and Earth" in the Modern Method determined that human resources were the most valuable in today's Immortal Dao. Once the concept of "people as the foundation" appeared, "harmony as the most precious" became the norm. From the perspective of Ancient Method Practitioners, the internal peace within today's Immortal Dao seemed somewhat abnormal. Disputes among Modern Cultivators rarely resulted in loss of life, and the Immortal Alliance laws strictly prohibited duels to the death. Positions such as "Security Guardian," which specifically maintained peace, would seem senseless to Ancient Method Practitioners. The existence of Hua Ruogeng, a Loose Cultivator who rose to the rank of Vice Master of Wanfa Sect, was even more of an anomaly. Throughout the eighty thousand years of Immortal Dao history, there have been major Sects that secluded themselves and passed down their teachings, a jianghu-esque Immortal Dao where Immortals and mortals lived side by side, and even Cultivation Dynasties that governed both Immortals and mortals across the entire Shenzhou Continent. These Dynasties consolidated all resources to enable the Imperial Family and court officials, both civil and military, to cultivate, thereby intertwining the Immortal Path with a career path. For Cultivation Dynasties, a stable social order was essential. As a result, many people believe that the Immortal Alliance system is similar to Cultivation Dynasties. However, Wang Qi had already seen through it all. "Today's Immortal Dao, what the hell is 'politicized Immortal Dao'! It is clearly a scientific community!" The concept of "scientific community" originated from Earth and did not exist in Shenzhou with an equivalent term. Simply put, a scientific community is a collective of professional scientists who have formed a consensus on discourse and evaluation systems over a long period of scientific activity, known as a paradigm. Those who accept this paradigm and use it to describe their research results can be considered members of the scientific community. Thanks to two thousand years of preaching and teaching in Modern Cultivation, basic theories like the "Heavenly Calculation Theory" and "Heavenly Order Table" have become common knowledge among all Shenzhou Cultivators. Those who cannot understand these concepts will not be able to make any progress in any Modern Heart Method. Those unable to accept the "paradigm" of Modern Cultivation and who are excluded by the community are the Ancient Method Practitioners. Indeed, the Immortal Alliance is the governing body of Shenzhou. But before it acts as a governing body, it is first and foremost a research institution! This is not Earth, where scientists are weak as chickens. Here, Cultivators exploring the Heavenly Dao hold absolute power. And the pursuit of Heavenly Dao is the foundation for the Cultivators' longevity and carefree existence; hence, research is the Immortal Alliance's top priority! Among Ancient Method Practitioners, those adept at socializing might be able to seek more opportunities and gather more resources. But in today's Immortal Dao, such people may not thrive. As the saying goes, "The laws of Heaven are constant, they exist not for saints, nor do they perish for demons." The "Dao" that all Modern Cultivators seek is the same "Dao." No one genuinely seeking the Dao could deny the achievements of another due to personal relationships. For Wang Qi, this place was simply an ivory tower that continued the ideals of his past life. And Du Bin's demeanor was no different from those he remembered from his past life's memory, those who lurked in scientific institutions without understanding research but were good at scheming and the layman giving orders to the insider. That's precisely what Wang Qi detested. Such people should roll as far away as possible. This was Wang Qi's attitude. After sending the Dobermann away, Wang Qi continued to review Xiong Mo's experiment plans. Zhen Chan said, "Hey, kid, it looks like you're not done yet?" Wang Qi curled his lip, "What do you take me for?" "Your gaze has been lingering on the final diagrams, okay!" Wang Qi stroked his chin, "I'm pondering an issue." Zhen Chan scoffed, "Don't try to give yourself an easy way out." Wang Qi ignored Zhen Chan and continued, "Tell me, why would a course on 'Basic Flying Sword Theory,' belonging to Liuyun Sect, be taught by a practitioner from Spirit Beast Mountain?" Zhen Chan couldn't help but take Wang Qi seriously, "Are you serious? Did you discover something?" "Inspiration." Wang Qi looked earnestly at the several experimental plans and reports, "The inspiration to resolve the issues with my Cultivation Technique." Beneath the main hall of the Immortal Alliance's Leiyang Branch, there was a huge copper mirror. An Immortal Artifact, the Ten Thousand Immortals True Mirror. It was one of the projects into which the Immortal Alliance was fully invested. The prototype for the Ten Thousand Immortals True Mirror was "Elder Ji" Turing's Lifebound Magical Treasure, the Bronze Immortal. Later when Wanfa Sect thrived carefree, "Master of Life" Feng Luoyi sought to refine a Magic Artifact to assist with calculations, borrowing the design of the Bronze Immortal, and blended the supreme mathematical methods to forge a new mirror. The performance of this Magical Treasure attracted the Immortal Alliance's attention. Subsequently, the Immortal Alliance invested countless resources and specifically drew a group of Cultivators from Wanfa Sect and Thousand Mechanism Pavilion, hoping to refine a Treasure Mirror that could help all Cultivators solve complex mathematical problems. The Ten Thousand Immortals Illusion Realm is an advanced application of Wanfa Sect's "One Law Evolves Ten Thousand Laws." The mathematical methods inscribed on the Ten Thousand Immortals True Mirror operate at full capacity, enough to simulate a world. Constructing a world based on mathematics within the mirror is a piece of cake. However, this was initially just a "side dish" toyed with by some low-level disciples from Wanfa Sect and Guiyi Alliance. After many years of development, it had gained the status of a "main course"—at least sometimes, even a Carefree Great Cultivator had to rely on it to solve some troubles. Chen Jingyun, with Deng Jiaxuan and Ma Juli, cautiously walked along a path in the Illusion Realm. In the eyes of those who enter the Illusion, this path appears to be a small trail in a bamboo forest, but its fundamental rules are entirely different from those in the real world. Its existence is based on mathematical reasoning, so those who do not understand mathematics cannot advance a single step on it. If one were to move carelessly, the surrounding bamboo would transform into deadly weapons. Although Ma Juli and Deng Jiaxuan were not ignorant of mathematical reasoning, they were no match for Chen Jingyun, the Half-step Leisure from Wanfa Sect, and thus could only follow him step by step. Ma Juli had a displeased look on her face, "Seriously, why must we take this path? A slight mishap could lead us to be attacked by the 'Boundary River' as if we were Outer Demons." Chen Jingyun answered succinctly, "It's the fastest." "Could you explain a bit?" "To break the Hongmeng Qi Qiao Array, the only way is to insert an additional Array Flag or Array Order at a critical moment when the great array is operating, transforming an unsolvable Seven Bridges problem into a solvable Seven or Eight Bridges. This set of arrays was given to me by my seniors in the Sect, and I am not adept at topology," said Chen with his usual impassive tone. Since it was his Primordial Spirit entering the illusion, Deng Jiaxuan did not have the worn and haggard appearance of his real-life self. He smiled wryly and shook his head, "If my memory serves me right, as a 'Strongman of Illusion,' traversing the Ten Thousand Immortals Illusion Realm through such shortcuts is a punishable offense. With Deng being the Palace Master of the Heavenly Sword Palace, whose day-to-day responsibilities include punishing law-violating Cultivators, it's ironic to find myself in this situation..." Chen Jingyun spoke, "If we can break out of the formation, this junior is willing to accept punishment. Brother Jiaxuan need not worry." Ma Juli covered her face, "Little Chen... stop talking like you're going to shoulder all the blame for this! It's all because of you!" Despite his peculiar behavior, Chen Jingyun's mastery of mathematical reasoning was not low. It didn't take long for the trio to leave the bamboo forest. As soon as they stepped out of the bamboo forest, both the forest and the path vanished without a trace. In their place, endless stars sparkled. There was no solid ground in this environment, only the flickering of the Endless Star Sea against the backdrop of space. However, unlike the starlight in the real world, here, all the stars followed the "Yin Yao" and "Yang Yao" of I-Ching. In the vast emptiness, some lines appeared, some vertical, some horizontal, crisscrossing as if hidden and revealed. If the Yin Yang Yao in this scene were replaced with the Arab numerals 0 and 1 on Earth, and shown to Wang Qi, he would be sure to exclaim, "This isn't right! A cyberpunk style in the Immortal Hero World?" This part of the Illusion Realm's "Illusion Spirit Contract" had been strengthened generation by generation by the Wanfa Sect, making it relatively stable—or in earthly terms, "its network protocol was quite comprehensive." Even ordinary people could freely make use of the various functionalities of the Illusion Realm. Ma Juli was the first to fly towards the predetermined location, followed closely by Chen Jingyun, while Deng Jiaxuan hesitated, "Brother Jingyun... forcibly breaking into the core of the Ten Thousand Immortals Illusion Realm doesn't seem quite right... Wait for me!" The trio arrived at a specific point within the illusion. Chen Jingyun made several intricate finger gestures, and countless windows popped into existence from nowhere. Ma Juli looked on with curiosity, "Is this the Spirit Core for connecting the Ten Thousand Immortals Mirror Terminals to various Daoist Fellows?" Chen Jingyun nodded, "Yes. Help me find the Spirit Core of the seniors from Wanfa Sect. Once the Spirit Core is stimulated with Mana, the Ten Thousand Immortals Mirror Terminal will call upon the owners of all the terminals." The three began searching. Ma Juli kept exclaiming in surprise, "Ah, here's the youngster Lang Zhiwan's terminal; can I click and take a look? Tsk, Schrodinger that guy has changed his profile picture again. This is his new..." Deng Jiaxuan gave a bitter laugh, "Mrs. Ma... Please be serious..." Chen Jingyun did not even look up as he set down a Spirit Core, "Senior Gao Si isn't responding. Let's try Senior Ouna..." "May I ask what the three of you are looking for?" The sudden voice startled the trio. The newcomer appeared to be in the prime of life, with a visage that in his youth must have made him a charming gentleman of troubled times. His countenance at a mature age not only did not diminish his looks but rather added to his mature and impressive aura. Feng Luoyi, "Carefree National Chess Master," one of the strongest in the Wanfa Sect, the creator of the Ten Thousand Immortals Illusion Realm, and the originator of the "Yitian Calculation." "The three honored Daoist Fellows, are you aware that this is against the law?" Ma Juli and Deng Jiaxuan jerked in fright. But Chen Jingyun greeted Feng with a calm and steady bow, "Elder Feng. I need to consult with some brothers in our Sect who are skilled in topology; moreover, I need to find Bao'er, Po Li and several other fellows from Mysterious Palace. I have matters to discuss." Although Chen Jingyun was the Sect Leader of the Wanfa Sect, this was only because all Carefree Practitioners had hidden themselves from the world. Feng Luoyi being one of the several individuals with the strongest mathematical aptitude and highest status in the Sect, deserved Chen Jingyun's respectful greeting. Hearing Chen Jingyun's words, Ma Juli said, "You didn't mention that last part before?" Deng Jiaxuan vaguely understood Chen Jingyun's intention, "Is it for the matter concerning that child?" ———————————————————————————————— PS1: Regarding the ranking of the experts within the Wanfa Sect. This is based on the level of Earth's mathematicians. My cousin works in the Math Department at Wuhan University doing research. According to the internationally recognized rankings he told me about, it's hard to say whether Hilbert or Pang Jialai should be considered first or second, but the Otherworldly Analogues of "Carefree National Chess Master" Feng Luoyi—Mr. Von Neumann—placing third is beyond dispute. PS2: Please ask for recommendation tickets—recommendation tickets—votes—tickets—