Science, mysticism.
After his own brain fused with the AI System, it too became a union of science and mysticism.
Transcendents contained a great deal of science, yet could not cast off the elements of mysticism.
Nature Masters, though mostly rooted in mysticism, had also begun to merge with modern science.
Transcendents could never completely discard mysticism, but applying science could bring immense benefits...
As Chen Nan pondered this, he was actually seeking a path for his own future.
Even if President Li Nanchao had not come to speak with him, he had planned to take the entrance assessment for the Transcendent Academy next year.
The Preparatory Academy was merely a transition. If he lingered here too long, it would truly be a waste of time.
And the greatest issue he would face upon entering the Transcendent Academy was choosing a school.
At the Preparatory Academy, it was like a great chaotic crowd, learning and encountering everything.
But once he reached the Transcendent Academy, he would have to choose which branch to join.
Among Transcendents, there were four schools: Strength, Agility, Arts, and Methods. Each emphasized something different and was further divided into two minor branches.
Nature Masters were the fifth school, with no subdivisions.
If he wanted to enter the Transcendent Academy, he had to make clear which school he intended to join.
Logically, he should join either the Arts or Methods school. Yet Chen Nan felt that neither would offer much help toward his ultimate goal.
Of course, if he wanted to become extremely powerful in a short time, those two schools were still very suitable.
But here again, that saying held true: the end of science was mysticism.
If his goal was ultimate power, then relying entirely on science would be impossible.
But the problem was that if he entered the Nature Master school, the resources he could obtain in the early stages would surely be scarce.
A declining school was like an impoverished household. How could it cultivate talent? That poor families produced noble sons was merely the wishful thinking of the poor.
Caught in such a dilemma, Chen Nan sighed and decided to wait until the last minute to embrace Buddha's feet.
Thanks to the academy's special treatment, Chen Nan's classes afterward became vastly different. Li Nanchao arranged the most elite teachers to instruct him, and Lu Fangliang was assigned to teach him Nature Master studies.
This kind of one-on-one instruction was best for students, but unfortunately, it could not be widely implemented.
The two sat facing each other in a private classroom, and Lu Fangliang still did not speak first.
Chen Nan was somewhat curious, so he asked, "Teacher, aren't we having class?"
After looking at Chen Nan for a long while, Lu Fangliang said, "I heard that you applied to the principal for this Nature Master course. Otherwise, you would not have had this class at all."
Chen Nan nodded.
Lu Fangliang asked, "Why?"
Chen Nan said, "I want to know what Nature Masters have that can attract me."
Lu Fangliang stood and paced around the classroom for a moment before saying, "Nature Masters cultivate very slowly, compared with Transcendents. I am thirty-six this year. Someone of ordinary talent like mine should at least have reached the sixth rank, or even the seventh, by this age."
Chen Nan was stunned. Lu Fangliang's talent was incredibly high!
Even among geniuses, such a level was in the upper tier.
Lu Fangliang continued, "But since devoting myself to becoming a Nature Master, I have only reached the middle-to-late stage of Object Study.
"Another characteristic of Nature Master cultivation is its tremendous uncertainty. It lies in 'comprehending the Dao.'
"During cultivation, once one has 'comprehended the Dao,' advancement at that stage becomes like sailing downstream with a favorable wind, covering a thousand miles in a day.
"But if one cannot attain enlightenment, then years may pass without the slightest progress!
"As the world has become more diversified and Transcendent technology has blossomed in full force, enlightenment has become an extremely difficult matter for humanity.
"Thus, fewer and fewer people are willing to join the Nature Masters.
"Only those who seek no advancement and merely drift through life waiting to die are admitted into the Nature Masters. As a result, the school's condition has worsened with every passing day. If this continues, Nature Masters will exist in name only."
Chen Nan looked at Lu Fangliang and genuinely found him very interesting. He had already noticed that Lu Fangliang intended to recruit him, but was this really how one recruited people?
From beginning to end, Lu Fangliang had not mentioned the advantages or prospects of Nature Masters. He had spoken only of their shortcomings and bleak future. Who would be willing to join after hearing that?
Still, Chen Nan rather appreciated such self-deprecation.
After all, it was far better than boasting extravagantly before tricking someone into joining.
Yet there was one question he had to ask: "Why did you join the Nature Masters?"
Lu Fangliang looked at Chen Nan, thought for a moment, then said, "Because I want to enter the Great Dao!
"Although Transcendents have developed rapidly and grown powerful through technology, they are still bound by all kinds of restrictions.
"Their highest existences can live long lives, but they cannot live forever.
"Though they possess immense destructive power, they cannot transcend the rules of the universe. They believe they control their own fates, but in truth, they merely make use of more of the universe's rules.
"Those things are not the Great Dao."
Chen Nan asked yearningly, "Then what is the Great Dao?"
Gazing at the scenery beyond the window, Lu Fangliang said, "The Great Dao cannot be described. But those who grasp it transcend life and death, and no disaster can harm them. They might be called gods—perhaps even beings greater than gods."
After thinking for a moment, Chen Nan said, "All of that is too vague and illusory."
Lu Fangliang turned back to Chen Nan and smiled. "Yes. For you at present, it certainly is. It would be more important for me to teach you some Nature Master cultivation techniques right now."
As he spoke, Lu Fangliang tossed a Jade Slip to Chen Nan.
Chen Nan caught it. The Jade Slip felt exceptionally smooth and warm, and he immediately knew it was worth a great deal.
Lu Fangliang said, "You only need to let your divine sense—your mental fluctuations—touch the Jade Slip, and its contents will automatically project into your brain. Once they are reinforced, you will almost never forget the techniques within."
Upon hearing this, Chen Nan immediately took action.
His mental fluctuations swiftly entered the Jade Slip. Then, a faint electric current shot straight into his brain.
A passage titled "Clear Heart Incantation" immediately appeared in his consciousness.
Chen Nan immediately used the AI System to store the technique.
Once he was done, Chen Nan returned the Jade Slip to Lu Fangliang, who asked, "You have already memorized everything?"
Chen Nan nodded. Lu Fangliang exclaimed in admiration, "As expected of a genius. For ordinary people, it is uncertain whether they can even extract the contents from a Jade Slip. Even if they can, they should not dream of memorizing it all without around seven days.
"With comprehension like yours—"
At that point, he stopped speaking. Chen Nan naturally understood the rest, so he merely smiled and said nothing.
Lu Fangliang continued, "This 'Clear Heart Incantation' is the introductory cultivation method for Nature Masters, and it is the finest method for laying foundations. Cultivating it regularly will not only help improve your strength, but also temper your will. Its uses are endless.
"Practice it yourself. If there is anything you do not understand, you may consult me at any time." Chen Nan nodded in agreement. This class was more or less over.
Afterward, Chen Nan practiced Transcendent meditation on one hand and cultivated the "Clear Heart Incantation" on the other. Whenever he had spare time, he studied the "Thunderclap Art." Every day was packed to the brim.
And through this cultivation, he truly discovered the so-called wondrous uses of the "Clear Heart Incantation."
With prolonged cultivation, even with equipment to reduce the heat generated by his brain cells, the monotony inevitably left Chen Nan's state of mind unstable, often making him restless and distracted.
But after he began cultivating the "Clear Heart Incantation," this condition steadily improved. Whenever he felt troubled, he would circulate the Clear Heart Incantation and immediately regain a calm state of mind.
Not only that, Chen Nan vaguely sensed that because of cultivating the Clear Heart Incantation, his mental fluctuations had undergone an indescribable change.
The two most obvious effects were these: first, his ability to sense the surrounding electromagnetic field had strengthened; second, it had become far easier for his own brainwaves to influence the environmental wave field.
If he had to describe this change, the Meditation Method used scientific laws to forcibly draw in surrounding electromagnetic waves and then alter his own cells. Spellcasting, meanwhile, used his own electromagnetic waves to forcibly alter the electromagnetic waves in the environment, thereby completing a spell.
But cultivating the "Clear Heart Incantation" was not like that.
Whether the environmental electromagnetic field influenced him or he influenced the environmental electromagnetic field, it all seemed to happen as naturally as breathing.
Yet Chen Nan also discovered one of its shortcomings: if the "Clear Heart Incantation" was used for spellcasting, its power was somewhat weaker than that of Transcendent meditation.
And when it came to spellcasting, Chen Nan had also thoroughly studied the "Thunderclap Art" in his possession.
He had especially conducted layer upon layer of analysis on the principles and calculation formulas within it, finally determining how the incantation affected brainwaves.
After such analysis, Chen Nan felt that there was no longer any need for him to chant an incantation to trigger the spell.
After all, the effect of an incantation was similar to that of the Meditation Sound Awakening Art. But with the AI's assistance, as long as Chen Nan understood the specific brainwave patterns, he could use the AI System to accomplish the task with absolute precision.
Therefore, as long as Chen Nan understood the calculation rules of the spell model, he would have no need for the help of incantations.
Casting spells directly through brainwaves adjusted by the AI System was naturally faster and more convenient than using incantations. It would also provide a great deal of concealment.
However, all of this still required practical verification.
The academy was equipped with training rooms anyway, so he planned to see just how powerful the "Thunderclap Art" was.
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