Exploring Immortality Cultivation

The basic principle of a Cultivator's Flying Escape is to use mana to directly manipulate the kinetic and potential energies of the body, requiring no other input; consuming Spiritual Energy is all that's needed to fly and perform work.

Whether it's the wind frame of the Liuyun Sect, the electromagnetic propulsion of the Thunder Pavilion, or Ai Changyuan's application of gravity, in essence, they are all auxiliary means—the fundamental part still lies in kinetic energy.

Wang Qi had been awestruck by Xiang Qi's entrance, bursting through the door by stepping on a small sword, so much so that she seemed to him a Heavenly Person for a moment. It was only after he too had reached Foundation Establishment that he realized this entrance method of his Senior Sister was not that brilliant—it only showed that she had a poor sense of balance by nature and had to rely on a reference object to maintain it.

In comparison, it was akin to the training wheels of a bicycle.

Of course, not every Cultivator who rides a Flying Sword needs training wheels to ride a bicycle; some Cultivators do it simply because they are accustomed to flying with Qi Cultivation and Foundation Establishment with artifacts. Others think that Flying Sword looks more stylish—similar to the sporty feel of flying on a skateboard, perhaps?

Beyond that, there is no other reason for Cultivators to ride on swords. After all, which fool would use their main weapon as a skateboard under their feet? Wouldn't it be inconvenient if they suddenly encountered an enemy? Does flying like this offer any enhancement to combat power?

However, the Zhenhai Navy's collective Sword Control is another matter entirely.

The Flying Artifacts equipped by the Zhenhai Navy were giant swords resembling door panels, seven feet long and three feet wide. Wielding such swords in battle, utilizing Martial Skills, is simply foolish. The large and clumsy blade restricts the execution of swordsmanship, and if one were to be approached by a short weapon at close range, they would undoubtedly die. Nevertheless, within the realm of Flying Swords, larger ones are not unheard of, and are not particularly rare. However, once the Zhenhai Navy formed a line and charged forward on their Flying Swords, these enormous blades became powerful weapons for breaking through enemy lines.

The scattered Sea Demons that first encountered the Zhenhai Navy didn't even require the navy's action and were harvested like wheat, cut down swath by swath!

But what the Zhenhai Navy possesses is not just the giant sword.

That's merely a means of transportation!

The Gunners were the first to engage. The mechanically-written talismans were rolled up like oversized toilet paper and rapidly unwound. Muzzles spewed flames, and countless talisman powers struck out like bullets. From the perspective of Wang Qi and Ai Changyuan, it was as if countless chains of light were sweeping through the Sea Demon horde.

The mechanically-written Talismans couldn't be too advanced. The Gunners used the most basic Sword Charms, equivalent to a casual strike from a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, with no special application of swordsmanship. Any Foundation Establishment Cultivator could easily intercept and dissipate them.

However, the firing rate of those firearms was three hundred shots per second!

There was no need to consider the limit on the number of bullets an individual could carry, nor worry about the gun barrel overheating. The mana needed to activate a talisman was so minute it was almost imperceptible to the average Cultivator. Moreover, the mana of the Zhenhai Navy came from the Heart Demon Network and Human Dao System behind them, which recovered even faster than a real Modern Cultivator.

Three hundred swords per second—without considering the technique, just the sheer speed of the Fast Sword is remarkably impressive. Practitioners like Wang Qi and Chen Youjia, who could expertly execute High Phase Sword Skill even at the Foundation Establishment Stage, are always a minority.

What's more, the Zhenhai Navy was an organized army.

A single Foundation Establishment strike may not be of concern, but what about a thousand strikes, or ten thousand?

The first Core Formation Demon Clan member to confront them was subjected to the firepower equivalent to a hundred thousand swords per second, who was unequivocally obliterated, their Protective Demon Qi shattered, and their Physical Body pulverized, with their Divine Soul unable to escape.

By then, the Spearmen had already halted their charge. With a horizontal Long Spear pointed towards the enemy, they protected the Gunners behind them. One-third of the Sword and Shield Hands were mixed into the Spearmen's formation for defense, while the other two-thirds formed a line in front of and below the Gunners to prevent Sea Demons from launching underwater surprise attacks.

"Arrgh!" A Core Formation Demon Clan transformed from a sea shark managed to circumvent the defensive line and charged straight into the Zhenhai Navy's formation. Opening its massive maw, it was resisted by six Sword Axe Hands. The strength of these Sword Axe Hands originated from one System, each Qi Mechanism connected, acting as one. Sharing the burden amongst themselves, they astonishingly withstood an attack from a Core Formation Demon Clan member. The six Sword Axe Hands suffered minor injuries from the rebounding Demon Energy and retreated. With their blockade, over ten more Sword and Shield Hands stepped forward, and the formation shifted seamlessly. After the second strike from the middle Demon, over ten sharp blades chopped out in unison. The Sword and Shield Hands' Long Swords carried Spirit Prohibition capable of breaking through Qi, laced with deadly poison, which tore through the Demon Beast's Protective Demon Power, inflicting severe wounds!

As one batch stepped back, another took its place. Those slightly wounded swiftly recovered under the protection of the Military Flag, ready to rejoin the battle. With the Heart Demon Network, these Cultivators were nearly united in Heart Intent during combat; and with united Spiritual Power, they were able to share each other's injuries to the greatest extent. Moreover, the armor forged by the Immortal Alliance was no ordinary material. Before long, that Core Formation Sea Demon was slain by a group of mere mortals possessed of only Foundation Establishment strength!

Nearly all the Sea Demons that broke through the Spearmen's formation were killed using the tactic of death by a thousand cuts!

The Gunners' barrage not only targeted the visible Sea Demon groups on the surface but also extended to the depths below. With the Technology that substituted Alien Power for Spirit Sense used en masse, a new scene unfolded. Let's not forget, their Heart Intents were interconnected, and their Spiritual Powers uniform. In the face of this army formation, nothing could escape the perception of these soldiers.

Moreover, Wang Qi suspected that the Human Dao System that their army relied on was also linked up with the "Divine Spirit" System. That "Divine Spirit" was the true mastermind behind the operations.

Soon, the charge of the Demon Beasts scattered, reduced to a disorganized mess.

Then, in this stage, the true terror of the Zhenhai Navy was fully revealed.

With communicators equipped to everyone, despite the enemy's individual combat strength still surpassing their own, the Zhenhai Navy launched charges in a skirmish line formation. Spearmen and Sword Axe Hands alternated covering each other. Under the premise of a united Heart Intent, their collective Combat Power suffered no diminishing. If they encountered an opponent that was hard to defeat, groups of fifty Spearmen would form a small formation to encircle and eliminate the enemy, or the Gunners would provide support.

"Really impressive," exclaimed Ai Changyuan, who had never seen such a battle before. The duels in Shenzhou were always a matter of individual cultivators' personal fights, an extension of brawls. Even when there was cooperation, it was merely between individuals. This kind of military formation combat was nothing but a mortal trick, usually disregarded by cultivators.

The reason for this was the pervading influence of the Universal Hierarchy. The higher a cultivator's cultivation, the greater their abilities, and the less they depended on others. On this basis, cultivators tended to become all-rounded. Like the Zhenhai Navy, completely abandoning certain abilities to rely on the cooperation of others, that was almost unheard of.

"What do you think your odds would be against them?"

Ai Changyuan closed his eyes, pondered for a moment, then said, "If there were only ten of them, I could crush them easily; a hundred, and I'd have to put in some effort to win; three hundred, it'd be fifty-fifty; five hundred, I could probably escape; a thousand, and I'd be undoubtedly dead."

"That's about right, fifty-fifty with three hundred. However, the Zhenhai Navy will continue to expand, and the cultivation will spread." Wang Qi watched the Zhenhai Navy with a smile, "This will be the first battle to break the Universal Hierarchy—even though it's just against a bunch of little demons."

When there were no outsiders, there was no need to be as cautious when talking to Ai Changyuan. Because of his research on celestial bodies, he too had come into contact with the "Eternal Class" and "The Battle between Immortals and Mortals."

Ai Changyuan shook his head, "Old Wang, you're too optimistic. You know the standard of the immortals as well as I do. Not to mention anything else, but if they were to use something like the Cave Heaven Comparison Ruler or other laws, these Zhenhai troops, even if expanded to a million strong, would be nothing more than a dish."

Wang Qi shook his head, "Haven't I told you? The greater the number of people in my Human Dao Law, the greater the strength. Coupled with the power of the Heart Demon Curse, hehe, if there really were millions, their individual strength might just reach the Golden Core level. By then, they'd have other divine skills as well. And my original plan was not to have these mortals fight, but to have them produce."

Ai Changyuan nodded, "If it's about production, that is indeed more practical."

"It's just a pity that there are too many fools in the Immortal Alliance who only talk about combat power; they don't realize that productivity is the source of progress, and progress is the foundation of combat power," lamented Wang Qi with a shake of his head. "Furthermore, the Zhenhai Navy has also proved one thing—the Eternal Class is not unbreakable, it's just that everyone hasn't thought about breaking it before, pursuing only independent self-transcendence."

Ai Changyuan shook his head, "It seems like all cultivation techniques in the world follow the path of independent self-transcendence."

"The path of all cultivation techniques in the world is indeed of independent self-transcendence, including our Modern Cultivators' cultivation practices. However, our 'substance' is that we are more efficient when united. Since this external path cannot match the essence, the results are naturally different," said Wang Qi. "Having seen this, Old Ai, you should truly understand our prospects now, right?"

"Don't worry, from tomorrow I will put aside what I am doing and join you in researching the creation of Artificial Golden Cores."

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September, golden autumn. Divine Capital

Wang Qi sat in his courtyard, circulating his mantra. However, his aura was somewhat odd—the magical seals and Spirit Prohibitions accumulated within him weren't increasing as his mana circulated, but were instead gradually being dissolved. This made it seem as though his "realm" was not improving but even falling.

Yet Wang Qi knew that his combat power was most definitely climbing.

Having skimmed through Ai Qinglan's notes, he had barely found a way to use the Heavenly Calculation Atlas to carry other cultivation techniques' Spirit Sense and to evolve other practices' characteristics. The path that the Zhenhai Navy had taken by using the Divine Plague Curse Technique to "program" cultivation practices also inspired him.

In just two months, he had preliminarily completed the Golden Core path.

Wang Qi slowly ended his practice and, after thinking for a moment, snapped his fingers. A silver arc of electricity instantly surrounded him. This Protective Gang Qi formed by the Heavenly Song could manipulate free electric charges and alter the magnetic moment of molecules, repelling all physical attacks.

Moreover, this layer of protective Gang Qi was not something he actively conjured up; rather, it was a "divine skill" intrinsic to the Heavenly Calculation Atlas, relying on Wang Qi's magic foundation's computing power, not his brainpower. Wang Qi felt as though he had pressed a button, activating something.

Not only that—imitating the eight accords Feng Luoyi had written in the Divine Capital, Wang Qi solved the issue of the synergy between Jarvis and his own mana. This divine skill could be sparked by him and equally by Jarvis.

In this way, as long as he surrounded himself with a ring of sensors for Jarvis to monitor himself, even if he slept, Jarvis could still activate divine skills to protect him.

"That should be about right."

Wang Qi shook his head, feeling a bit regretful. He was restrained by the prohibitions of Tianling Ridge and the Immortal Alliance from carrying out any experiments involving humans. This frustrated him. If it weren't for this prohibition, he could've written superpowers for the soldiers of Zhenhai Navy to use, and his progress would have far exceeded what it was now.

At that moment, Wang Qi suddenly felt a tremor beneath him.

"An earthquake? No, the Western Border isn't on an earthquake belt, at this time... it's the omen of a Golden Core breakthrough! The location is... next door!"

"Ai Changyuan's Artificial Golden Core, has it succeeded?"