The Means of Civilization Academy

"Teaching Assistant, Headmaster."

Upon entering the teaching assistant's office, Su Yu saw both Liu Wenyan and the Headmaster and quickly greeted them.

"Su Yu is here."

Liu Wenyan smiled, much more warmly than he had towards the Headmaster. He beamed and asked, "Your father went to the Battlefields of the Heavens. Have there been any inconveniences in your life recently?"

"No, everything's been fine."

Su Yu thanked him and then, with a hint of worry, asked, "Teaching Assistant, I heard that people from the Ten Thousand Races Cult might come to Nanyuan soon..."

"No matter!"

Liu Wenyan dismissed it with a casual smile. "Don't even mention if they might come. Even if they do, so what? If they dare to attack me, they should be prepared for heavy casualties. Trading the lives of a large group for this old man's life... it's hard to say who profits and who loses."

Liu Wenyan stood up and looked out the window, a slight smile on his face. "When facing major events, one must remain calm. The mind must not be disturbed! Su Yu, what I admire most about you these past few years is your ability to calm down and not panic when faced with adversity. This is the foundation of your strength compared to others."

"Don't let minor disturbances disrupt your state of mind."

After a few words, Liu Wenyan looked at the Headmaster and said, "You can leave first. Su Yu and I have something to discuss."

The Headmaster smiled and didn't insist this time. He quickly left the office.

After the Headmaster left, Liu Wenyan's smile vanished.

He gestured for Su Yu to sit down. Su Yu found it a bit strange but didn't ask further, sitting opposite Liu Wenyan.

"Su Yu, I heard you applied to the War Academy?"

"Mm."

"You want to go to the War Academy, don't you?"

Su Yu was slightly taken aback and explained, "No, it's just a backup plan..."

"Don't lie to me. Your teacher isn't that foolish. It's because your father went to the Battlefields of the Heavens that you want to go, isn't it?"

Su Yu fell silent.

Liu Wenyan chuckled lightly. "Foolish! Even if you went to the War Academy and cultivated to the point where you could protect your father, how long would that take?"

"..."

Su Yu remained silent. He had thought about this question, but he didn't want to dwell on it. Besides, with a book now in his mind, anything was possible.

"Do you know who the top human powerhouses are?"

"King Daxia, King Dazhou, the King of Great Ming..."

Liu Wenyan nodded slightly and then asked, "Do you know who the powerhouses that emerged after the Anping Era are?"

Before Su Yu could answer, Liu Wenyan smiled and said, "The most famous and well-known are probably the heads of each academy and the generals of the major war legions."

"And do you know that thirty percent of these people came from the Civilization Academy!"

Su Yu was stunned. Thirty percent from the Civilization Academy?

Didn't the Civilization Academy cultivate...

As if sensing his thoughts, Liu Wenyan chuckled. "You think people from the Civilization Academy should all be like your teacher, only knowing some languages of the myriad races, with weak combat power, collapsing at the slightest breeze?"

"Wrong!"

Liu Wenyan said seriously, "I didn't tell you before because you hadn't reached that level!"

"In reality, many powerhouses in the Civilization Academy, even some top powerhouses, are stronger than those in the War Academy!"

"We who study the civilizations of the heavens, how could we be so weak? If that were the case, how could we comprehend deeper cultivation techniques and secret realms?"

Liu Wenyan's eyes shone. "I am just an insignificant, failed student of the Civilization Academy, but do you think your teacher is truly frail and weak?"

"Hmm?"

Su Yu opened his mouth, wanting to say something but stopping himself. Teacher, can you stop being so proud?

You're only at the seventh level of Qianjun, that's really weak.

"You want to say that I'm only at the seventh level of Qianjun and too weak?"

"..."

Su Yu blinked, feeling as if his teacher had seen right through him.

"That's right, I can see some of what you're thinking."

Su Yu was shocked by this.

"Surprised?"

Liu Wenyan laughed. "You are too weak, so you have almost no defenses in front of me. Be careful in the future, and try to restrain your thoughts."

"Your teacher is telling you this because I hope you won't abandon the Civilization Academy to choose the War Academy, focusing on strengths while neglecting weaknesses."

Liu Wenyan said earnestly, "Originally, I intended to tell you these things after you entered the Civilization Academy, and you would naturally learn them. But now I need to tell you in advance to prevent you from going astray."

"There are thousands of paths in the world. Different races have different paths. Tracing them to their roots, they are all about absorbing and expelling vital energy, tempering oneself, and strengthening oneself!"

"Strengthen yourself in two aspects: the body and the will, or spirit!"

"Will is ethereal and difficult to strengthen, so ordinary people start by strengthening their bodies. Only after becoming strong do they begin to touch upon their will!"

"We are different..."

Liu Wenyan said with a smile, "We have come into contact with many myriad race civilizations, broadening our horizons and strengthening our will. Therefore, we do the opposite: strengthen the will first, then the body."

"Once your will is strong, strengthening your body becomes much simpler."

"Of course, it's difficult!"

Liu Wenyan said solemnly, "When the will becomes strong enough to solidify the body and absorb more vital energy without harm, it requires time and greater foundation. Some Civilization Masters in the academies, when their will becomes as bright as the sun, can advance from the Thousand Jun realm to the Soaring Realm in a single day, or even stronger!"

"All paths lead to the same destination. The ultimate path for both the Civilization Academy and the War Academy is to strengthen oneself and strengthen the entire human race!"

"The body is easy to cultivate, but the will is hard to obtain!"

"It is more difficult for the Civilization Academy to reach that stage, so few people mention it, to avoid those who overestimate themselves and take the wrong path."

Liu Wenyan looked at the stunned Su Yu and chuckled, "Surprised, aren't you? Actually, there's nothing to be surprised about. You've studied the myriad races of the heavens, though not extensively. You should know some things. For example, the Nightmare Clan, whose language you've mastered, is ethereal and their true form is almost invisible."

"They can invade your dreams at will. In reality, they aren't dreams, but rather worlds created by their will, causing your will to sink into them."

"This is the foundation of their strength. Strictly speaking, the cultivation of Civilization Masters is somewhat similar to them."

Su Yu felt his throat dry and said softly, "Teacher, are you saying that the path of civilization can also be very powerful..."

"Not 'can be,' but 'is faster!'"

Liu Wenyan smiled, "First forge the will, then forge the body. Some geniuses at the Civilization Academy can manifest their will and solidify their bodies in three to five years, advancing to the Soaring Realm in a single day! Their subsequent cultivation path is faster than that of the physical body path!"

"And how long does it take for the War Academy to cultivate to the Soaring Realm?"

"Even for geniuses, it takes many years of grinding!"

"Of course, our entry is more difficult, and there are fewer people. Despite this, thirty percent of the human race's top powerhouses come from the Civilization Academy. That speaks volumes!"

Su Yu absorbed and processed this information, then quickly asked, "Can the will be cultivated?"

"Yes."

"Ordinary people can't?"

"Correct. There are thresholds, higher thresholds than the physical body path. Will and spirit are equivalent. In the early stages, they are invisible and ungraspable. The extent to which one masters the languages of the myriad races is actually an assessment..."

Liu Wenyan chuckled, "Often, it's not that people aren't diligent, but that they don't have enough energy or a strong enough will to absorb and digest that knowledge. You can master 18 myriad race languages, why can't others?"

"Are they not diligent enough? No, some people are actually very diligent, perhaps not even worse than you, but they simply cannot learn. Overthinking can even cause them pain, like their brains are exploding, because their foundational will is not strong enough."

"Based on this, they can only first forge their bodies and strengthen themselves, and only then can they strengthen their will."

Su Yu exhaled a long breath, "So, does that mean my talent lies not in the path of the physical body, but in the path of the will?"

"You can understand it that way."

Liu Wenyan smiled, "This is precisely why the myriad races are wary of Civilization Masters, and why the Ten Thousand Races Cult wants to assassinate some Civilization Masters. When your will is insufficient to strengthen your body, your strength is still quite weak, making you the easiest to kill."

Su Yu found it hard to accept. This was the first time he had learned that being a Civilization Master was also a path of cultivation.

"If you hadn't come to me today, I would have sought you out. You want to go to the Battlefields of the Heavens to find your father, and I won't stop you; instead, I'm happy for you. This is humanity, this is the human heart, this is the foundation of humanity's invincibility!"

"But you cannot be reckless; you must calm down."

"The Civilization Academy selects fewer students each year than the War Academy. Ostensibly, there are no conditions, but the conditions are actually higher, subtly more difficult than the War Academy. Is it truly just a gathering place for bookworms?"

Liu Wenyan's smile could no longer be concealed, "Wrong. It's because we can not only study knowledge in the rear but also go to the front lines to kill enemies. And those who can go to the front lines are at least in the Soaring Realm! What they call 'crushing a thousand jun with one stone' is simply refining the body with vital energy, achievable in a single day!"

"..."

Su Yu's expression stiffened, and after a long pause, he asked, "Then, Teacher, are you in the Soaring Realm?"

"No."

Liu Wenyan said calmly.

"Then are you more powerful?"

"No!"

Liu Wenyan remained calm.

Su Yu was stunned. What did he mean?

"I said, only when the will is manifested can the body be strengthened. I haven't achieved the manifestation of my will yet."

Liu Wenyan spoke as if everything he had just said was bragging!

He... hadn't manifested his will, so he was truly in the Thousand Jun realm.

Su Yu looked up at his teacher, his face blank. How could you be so composed?

You're already seventy years old, and you haven't even achieved the manifestation of your will, yet you just told me it only takes three to five years?

This isn't how you brag!

"Don't look at me like that!"

Liu Wenyan said calmly, "I was the most failed student of the Civilization Academy back then, not a genius. After graduation, I drifted aimlessly for many years. It's normal that I haven't manifested my will. If it were that easy, thirty percent of the human race's top powerhouses wouldn't be from the Civilization Academy; it would be ninety percent."

"The path of cultivation is not easy, no matter which path you choose. However, compared to the path of the physical body, I think it's faster and more promising."

"If you want to become stronger in a short time, then you can only walk this path, the path of willpower!"

Su Yu fell into thought, and after a while, he asked, "Teacher, are there any cultivation methods for the path of willpower?"

"Yes..."

As Liu Wenyan spoke, he smiled. Just as he was about to continue, he quickly coughed and said, "There aren't any in Nanyuan. You'll find out once you go to the Civilization Academy!"

Of course, that's assuming willpower has manifested.

He didn't say it, otherwise, Su Yu would probably curse him.

"Actually, the process of learning the languages of the Myriad Races, including deciphering some cultivation techniques and secret realms, is all about tempering willpower, especially the original texts..."

This time, Liu Wenyan became much more serious. "You know, the things we come into contact with are not the original texts. Those original texts contain the power and even the spiritual will of some of the Myriad Races. After deciphering and translating them, you will gain a lot."

"Of course, there are also dangers, such as mental breakdown. Every year, some people in the Civilization Academy suffer mental breakdowns from deciphering these original texts. You need to be careful when you come into contact with them in the future. The more powerful the cultivation technique, the more important the literature, the stronger the mixed will, and the more likely it is to cause you to break down."

"So, the work of distinguishing the importance of the Myriad Races' literature is easy. If the mixed will is strong, then it must be very important!"

"You can go to the Xia Clan's trading company to look at those unknown cultivation techniques. Those that seem simple at first glance are all trash. In fact, these things have already been selected, and what's left are all safe, harmless... trash!"

Su Yu gave a wry smile. He knew it. Otherwise, they would have been snatched up long ago.

Seeing this, Liu Wenyan smiled again. "So, do you still want to take the entrance exam for the War Academy?"

"In the Civilization Academy, you can also cultivate the path of the physical body. But if you go to the War Academy, you might not have the chance to cultivate the path of willpower. At least, the original texts of those powerful Myriad Races' cultivation techniques are almost all in the Civilization Academy."

"As long as your strength becomes great, and you reach the Soaring Realm, you can go to the Battlefields of the Heavens anytime, can't you?"

"Why insist on going to the Battlefields of the Heavens at the Qianjun realm? You'll just be cannon fodder. What's the point?"

"Unless... you're not confident enough. If that's the case, then it doesn't matter where you go, because you won't be able to become strong at all!"

Liu Wenyan's words made Su Yu's already wavering thoughts even more uncertain.

Should he still take the entrance exam for the War Academy?

It seemed... he didn't have to?

So the Civilization Academy could also make him stronger!

"Civilization Academy... Myriad Races' original texts... spiritual will..."

As Su Yu walked out of the dean's office, he clutched the bottle in his hand. He would try it when he got back. If he could strengthen his willpower and his physical body at the same time, wouldn't that be even better?

If he activated the Essence Gathering Art, perhaps his physical body reinforcement could also be accelerated.

"Civilization Academy..."

At this moment, Su Yu made up his mind. Perhaps he should go to the Civilization Academy. This was his goal all along.

After Su Yu left, the dean entered and shook his head, "Old fellow, you've tricked someone again!"

"What do you mean?"

Liu Wenyan was displeased!

"Manifestation of willpower... You've been cultivating for fifty years, has it manifested yet?"

"Almost!"

Liu Wenyan said calmly, "When I manifest it, I'll be in the Soaring Realm. By then, you, a beginner in the Wanshi realm, won't be able to keep up!"

"You..."

The dean was exasperated. Fine, let him be. As for Su Yu, going to the Civilization Academy was indeed better. The War Academy was still too dangerous.

However, this old fellow always used the same argument. How many students had he fooled over the years? Every time a student's will wavered, they were swayed by this argument and ended up going to the Civilization Academy.

"The Daxia Civilization Academy should give you an award, otherwise they would lose a few students every year..."

Liu Wenyan was unfazed. "Although there's no award, the Daxia Civilization Academy gives me a bonus of 200,000 yuan every year. That's enough."

"..."

The dean was speechless and couldn't help but curse, "You're a spy for the Daxia Civilization Academy!"

"What are you talking about? I am one, a staff member of the Daxia Civilization Academy. How can I be called a spy?"

Liu Wenyan smiled, and the dean was completely speechless. That was right. Most of the instructors of the Myriad Races' languages were dispatched by the Daxia Civilization Academy. Even if they weren't, they soon would be. The main purpose was to prevent the loss of students to the War Academy.

After all, research wasn't as exciting as cultivation. Young people loved passion, so they had to keep an eye on them.