Exploring Immortality Cultivation

The Demon Clan of the Charging Camp's twelfth battalion recently felt as if they had hit the jackpot. Their new superior, after tossing them two scrolls of cultivation techniques, had simply left them be. No matter who called for him, he paid no heed, showing no intention of managing his subordinates.

For the Demon Clan, who can't stand the constraints, there was nothing better than this. Moreover, the cultivation techniques that the newcomer had passed down were just as he claimed, extremely rudimentary. The demons who practiced them didn't even encounter any difficult problems.

And as they cultivated, another "system" was slowly being constructed by Wang Qi.

That was a Heart Demon System, based on these Demons. Wang Qi didn't plan to completely plunder them as he had done previously, but rather to use them as "computing units" and "backdoors."

On the other hand, Wang Qi was also orchestrating the clash between the Heart Demon System and the Dragon Clan Essence, iterating through the conflicts, and updating the system algorithm in this process. This wasn't done through Wang Qi's own programming capabilities, but rather by channeling the aura from his Heavenly Calculation Atlas into it, leveraging the Evolution Algorithm of the Heavenly Calculation Atlas to accomplish this.

As time passed, the power that Wang Qi controlled grew ever stronger.

The longer it took, the greater the advantage.

At the same time, his communication with Mi was also deepening.

While Wang Qi delved into studying his cultivation technique, Mi closely observed him, seemingly wanting to understand his thought process. It wasn't until nightfall that Wang Qi stopped his work and rubbed his forehead. Once again, he felt the constraints of his cultivation level. If he were a Primordial Spirit Cultivator, his brainpower would be comparable to a supercomputer and still have his own consciousness. At least he wouldn't exhaust his brain as easily as he did now.

To this, Wang Qi could only shake his head and sigh, "If only there was no time constraint on upgrading levels..."

He was actually capable of wielding higher-level powers, but he couldn't control the changes in thought that came with altering the essence of life.

"You could actually give it a try," said Mi, who had been quietly watching Wang Qi all day, suddenly speaking up.

Wang Qi chuckled, "Senior Sister, you can see that I'm constructing law gates to understand our cultivation, right?"

Mi nodded, "Your cultivation technique is very close to ours. By looking at you, you should be able to quickly find the common ground between us... I think I might even be faster than the others."

" 'The others'... The deal set by the Immortal Alliance and 'you'?"

Mi pointed at herself, "Be mindful, Junior Brother, that we are also part of the Immortal Alliance."

"Sorry, my mind isn't quite working right now," Wang Qi said, holding his forehead. "Senior Sister, you must not really understand our cultivation technique, or else you wouldn't say such a thing... The basic principle of our cultivation technique is to build a new circulatory system within the body using Spiritual Energy, changing the state of the life system, and turning it into an open system that always maintains negative entropy, thus sublimating one's life into an undying, eternal Immortal. The thought system is also part of this system. For us, too drastic a change results in the transformation of the mind and personality."

Mi blinked, "Actually, this is exactly what I wanted to discuss with you."

"What?"

"Is the change in personality really that important?"

Wang Qi looked at Mi in surprise, "Of course it's important. Personality is..."

Wang Qi suddenly stopped speaking. He remembered something from the limited information he had about Mi—it mentioned that she was "always in the Personality Formation Stage."

Mi's species, it just so happened, had no "personality," or rather, they did, but it was ever-changing.

Wang Qi laughed self-deprecatingly, "You definitely don't understand, Senior Sister... I can hardly discuss personality with a race that has no 'personality.' In this matter, we Humans and you have completely different value judgments."

Mi expressed her confusion, "This is something that has puzzled me for a long time. After childhood, humans' personalities do solidify, but they are not immutable. Why do you care so much about the changes in character caused by cultivation techniques?"

Wang Qi scratched his head, "This... life choices are free, but cultivation..."

"Isn't cultivation also a choice you make yourselves?" Mi seemed confused for a long time.

"This... The drastic changes in disposition caused by cultivation techniques either make us resemble the founders of those techniques or are random and uncontrollable," Wang Qi felt that it was really hard to explain. "We are different from you, Senior Sister. I guess your kind never suffers from knowledge barriers in your entire lives, but we do, and we fear them. If it's a barrier caused by knowledge, that's still acceptable. But if it's a barrier caused by cultivation techniques... that's truly frustrating."

Cultivation techniques can affect the mind and even the brain, which serves as the organ of thought, consequently affecting one's way of thinking.

Mi shook her head, "I still can't understand. This kind of change will always happen to you, and turning an abrupt change into a gradual one is just a matter of time..."

"But at least a gradual change allows us to grasp the process," Wang Qi said. "My fate is in my hands, not dictated by the heavens. To us, this is what freedom, what being carefree, means."

Mi paused for two seconds, then said, "I see... indeed, your answer is more interesting."

Wang Qi frowned, "How many people have you asked this question?"

"Just now, I asked thirty-six people including you," said Mi Dao, "However, most of them don't have the same level of access as you, so there are things that can't be discussed."

Wang Qi clicked his tongue. Mi was truly a worthy assistant chosen by Teacher Feng; she was a born calculator. Despite having encountered the Ten Thousand Immortals Illusion Realm only a short while ago, she was already navigating it with ease.

"That being said, Senior Sister, when you discuss our Human Clan's Cultivation with me, shouldn't you also share a bit about your own methods?" Wang Qi rubbed his thumb against his index finger, "I'm very curious about your Cultivation Techniques!"

Yes, the Dragon Clan's wide-ranging laws might appear "delicate" in your eyes. So what kind of grand approach do your abilities entail?

With a slight smile, Mi responded, "What I just shared with you is actually the fundamental difference in our Cultivation methods, right?"

Wang Qi was puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Touching her own small head, Mi said, "While my thinking organ isn't here, this gesture conveys a similar meaning."

"To me, consciousness is Cultivation, Cultivation is consciousness; every word and action is cultivation, and embracing multiple Cultivation Techniques is akin to accepting education and changing one's nature."

Wang Qi never expected such a wondrous thing. He was astonished, "Your Cultivation is your consciousness? So you don't have a systematic method of Cultivation after all?"

In this universe, the Immortal Dao Technology Tree is the only choice. But for Mi, Cultivation is consciousness. Would her teaching others her family's Cultivation not be equivalent to imprinting her own consciousness on others?

Is this transmitting methods or refining clones?

Or perhaps in their culture, "taking disciples" and "refining puppets" are one and the same?

Shaking her head, Mi took a while to think before she spoke, "It's not like that, our Cultivation System... probably shouldn't be called cultivation. An 'Education System'—that's a more appropriate term. Our education system is actually very mature; it might not encompass the myriad laws and phenomena like yours, but it's certainly not inferior."

His interest piqued, Wang Qi asked, "How so?"

"Our view of Cultivation Techniques is very different from yours. For us, 'Cultivation' roughly equates to 'Saint's Words'," Mi explained. "You learn to read and write; you must understand some Saint's Words, right? We do too. The Tribulation God Riddle, Dawn Spirit Riddle, Star Mystery, Life and Death Riddle... these are all our Cultivation Techniques, and they are also the foundation of our consciousness."

"So when you decide to convert to Modern methods..."

"It means accepting your Dao," Mi said. "If I were to cultivate the Heavenly Calculation Atlas, then it would be akin to accepting the understanding and Heart Intent of the Heavenly Selection God Monarch."

Wang Qi's first reaction was "This is impossible." In the past, when Wang Qi received the Jiyin Ancestor's thoughts, or when Ai Changyuan recently received the Yuanli Master's thoughts, it was always with great caution, using their own systems and knowledge to accommodate the other's understanding.

Because in scientific research, that is the most taboo thing.

But then he realized, Mi's race was not afraid of this at all.

They just wouldn't form Knowledge Barriers.

If new knowledge and existing personality or thought conflicted, then the personality and thought would be reorganized.

"Truly an impressive species..." Wang Qi marveled, "So then, Senior Sister, can you finally tell me what you are now?"

"Master said you can't be trusted, telling you too much might lead you to do some unpredictable things," Mi said earnestly. "So, there's a limited amount I can tell you."

"Firstly, our race is called the 'Sea God Type', similar to the Primordial Sea God Clan of this world."

Wang Qi immediately understood, "A microbial collective will!?"

No wonder, no wonder Senior Sister would consider the Dragon Clan's Absolute Skills "delicate." It's simply too simplistic for martial prowess; to have intelligence equivalent to a human's would undoubtedly require an incredibly massive body. A thousand miles in diameter might even be an understatement.

Mi nodded, "My body, or rather, my Body, in your language, is akin to a Divine Spirit, but not a Divine Spirit; hence the name Sea God Type."

Just this information alone was enough for Wang Qi to deduce a lot.

"Senior Sister, why do you name all the Cultivation Techniques 'Mystery'?"

Looking up, Mi replied, "Our race had no survival pressures from the very beginning, with not much of a fighting spirit. Although we might fight to the death amongst ourselves, it's not common. Our Cultivation is our thinking. And thinking about certain issues holds more value than thinking about others."

At this juncture, Mi smiled faintly and softly chanted, "In ancient times, who first taught the Dao? When Heaven and Earth were undefined, how could we inquire about them? In obscurity and clarity, who can know their limits? Symbols and images are all around, but how can we understand them? Bright and dark, what are the times for? When Yin and Yang combine, what is the origin and transformation? The circle has nine layers, who can construct it? What effort do we exert, and who first caused it? Where is the axis of the wheel, how does Heaven reach its extreme?"

"This poem of your Human Clan probably originates from the Cultivation of my race," Mi concluded. (To be continued. If you like this work, your votes and monthly support at Qidian (qidian.com) are greatly appreciated. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)