"Hehe! I hope you're telling the truth." Yuan Ruoshan looked at Chen Mo with a headache. This fellow was definitely doing it on purpose. Especially for a Martial Artist, doing something like that was all too easy. But it had little to do with her, so even if she judged that Chen Mo had done it deliberately, she would not object. Ji Hai had it coming, anyway!
"Ji Hai's relatives applied for judicial review, but it was rejected and the original verdict was upheld. In other words, once Ji Hai recovered from his injuries, he would face one year of criminal detention. The others who joined Ji Hai in attacking you would likewise face detention ranging from six months to one year," Yuan Ruoshan said.
"Isn't that sentence a little too light?" Chen Mo asked, somewhat dissatisfied.
"That's enough! The verdict was handed down according to our country's laws. It's not made heavier just because you say it's too light. Besides, what happened between you and them was merely fighting and brawling. You weren't injured at all, while they suffered some irreversible physical harm. Therefore, according to the law, intentionally inflicting bodily injury on another person is punishable by up to three years of fixed-term imprisonment, criminal detention, or public surveillance," Yuan Ruoshan said.
"But just because I wasn't hurt, they get such light sentences? Did I have to be seriously injured?" Chen Mo asked.
"That's right. If you had been seriously injured, they would have been charged with intentional injury. It would have been tried as a criminal case rather than a Public Security Case, and it would no longer have meant criminal detention. They could have received more than three years in prison." Yuan Ruoshan further explained the difference between criminal detention and fixed-term imprisonment to Chen Mo.
Chen Mo could only accept it. Besides, what else could he do if he did not? He had not been injured in the first place, and he had already put Ji Hai and the others through hell. If not for Yuan Ruoshan backing him up, the case could not possibly have been resolved so quickly. It was even possible that Chen Mo might have been falsely accused in return.
"Alright, let's stop talking about them. Let's talk about something else," Yuan Ruoshan said.
Chen Mo nodded as well. Since things had already turned out this way, there was nothing he could do. He might as well discuss something that interested him.
Through Yuan Ruoshan's explanation, Chen Mo finally learned some things about cultivation.
China and certain foreign countries actually possessed different inheritances. Ordinary people knew nothing about them, but they were well known at the national level.
China had possessed people of the martial arts world since ancient times, with sects and families serving as their lineages. They were collectively known as martial arts practitioners. All of them cultivated through cultivation methods, and every sect and family had its own inherited cultivation method. Cultivating such methods meant cultivating Internal Force, along with various Martial Arts techniques and moves.
Although the cultivation methods differed, their levels could still generally be categorized. By rank, they were apprentice, Houtian First Layer through Houtian Tenth Layer, Xiantian Initial Stage, Middle Stage, High Stage, Peak Stage, and finally Embracing Dan. All of these levels were called Martial Artists, though their titles differed somewhat, such as apprentice Martial Artist, Houtian Martial Artist, Xiantian Martial Artist, and so on.
Apprentices had no ranks. Anyone who learned a cultivation method was an apprentice. Once Qi Sensation from Internal Force arose in the body, one entered Houtian First Layer. Xiantian Realm was the advancement beyond Houtian Tenth Layer. At the Xiantian Realm, one's Ren and Du meridians were opened, allowing one to draw upon the qi of heaven and earth. At that point, a Martial Artist possessed an inexhaustible supply of Internal Force and could borrow Heaven and Earth Momentum in battle.
Embracing Dan was an advancement beyond Xiantian Realm, but very little was known about it. Not only did many people not know how to advance to Embracing Dan, but even the stages within the Embracing Dan Stage had been lost. They only knew that beyond Xiantian Realm lay the legendary realm of Embracing Dan.
The descriptions in old books of Martial Generals fighting, or duels between generals before opposing armies, could actually be considered real. They were simply manifestations of Martial Artists.
Not only China, but foreign countries also possessed similar inheritances. However, their inheritances differed from China's, including abilities and altered bodies. Abilities were represented by elements and could unleash natural forces such as Wind, Rain, Thunder, and Lightning. Altered bodies referred to physical transformations that turned someone into a special kind of being. Yuan Ruoshan did not know much about these, so she did not explain further.
After several thousand years of inheritance, very little remained. Although China still had some sects and families cultivating, Xiantian First Layer practitioners were rare throughout the country. A cultivation family that could produce even one Xiantian Realm expert was already considered a top-tier family. Plenty of Aristocratic Families or sects did not even have a single Xiantian First Layer practitioner. As for Embracing Dan, that level was purely legendary.
As for Yuan Ruoshan herself, she was already at Houtian Second Layer.
After hearing Yuan Ruoshan's explanation, Chen Mo understood much more. At the very least, he now knew something about China's martial arts world and understood what this type of cultivation was about. It was all a process of Body Cultivation. Master Ye Shang's Transmission Jade Talisman also described this form of cultivation, but did not recommend it. This method had arisen only because a planet lacked sufficient Spiritual Energy, or because its Spiritual Energy had become depleted, forcing people to seek evolution through this path.
Although both Houtian and Xiantian Realm could extend one's lifespan, the increase was not very great. Compared to Cultivation of Immortality, the difference was as vast as heaven and earth.
Furthermore, the advancement of Body Cultivation described in the Transmission Jade Talisman differed from Yuan Ruoshan's explanation. There were two higher levels beyond it, but that was all. Overall, Body Cultivation was a dead-end path. Though it could evolve one's life to a certain extent and increase one's lifespan, the best possible result was only a few hundred additional years.
According to what Chen Mo had seen in the Transmission Jade Talisman, a Body Cultivator at the equivalent of Yuan Ruoshan's Xiantian Realm would live for less than two hundred years. That was roughly comparable to a Cultivator of Immortality in the Qi Refining Realm. Once a Cultivator of Immortality entered Qi Refining Layer One, their lifespan could reach around one hundred and fifty years. Chen Mo was already like that now.
Once a Cultivator of Immortality reached the Foundation Establishment Realm, their lifespan would exceed five hundred years. It would grow ever longer afterward, and there was even another level of life after Tribulation Crossing, though the Transmission Jade Talisman did not explain it.
Chen Mo's current Qi Refining Layer One was fundamentally different from the martial cultivation of Body Cultivators. But if they truly had to be compared, then in terms of a cultivator's physical strength, speed, reaction, and agility alone, Body Cultivators held the advantage. They could easily suppress Cultivators of Immortality at the same Qi Refining Realm. Even when comparing Internal Force and True Essence, Body Cultivators basically crushed Cultivators of Immortality of the same level.
But then again, why would a Cultivator of Immortality compete with a Body Cultivator in strength and speed? Not using Talismans, spells, or formations would mean their brain was seriously broken! Once a Cultivator of Immortality used Talismans, spells, and other attack methods, they could still crush Houtian Martial Artists more than three levels above them. That was simply how it was. Long-range attacks were just that damn powerful!
If a Cultivator of Immortality in the Qi Refining Realm reached the High Stage, such as Layer Seven or above, they could defeat Xiantian Martial Artists and even crush them! High-stage Qi refiners had plenty of Talismans and spells. With enough Talismans prepared, even Xiantian Stage Body Cultivators would still be brought to their knees!
Body Cultivation and Cultivation of Immortality were two different cultivation paths, both using different methods to advance toward higher levels of life. The difference was that Body Cultivation ultimately led to a dead end, while Cultivation of Immortality possessed limitless possibilities.
"Chen Mo, since you aren't from the Chen Family of Cangzhou, where did your cultivation method come from?" Yuan Ruoshan asked.
"My cultivation method? When I was young, I found a very old, tattered book while rummaging through my grandfather's cabinet. The descriptions in it seemed interesting, so I tried cultivating. It wasn't until I went to university that I truly made a little bit of progress." Chen Mo smiled, concealing the unnatural expression caused by his lie. Fortunately, Yuan Ruoshan was not looking at his face and did not notice it.
"Oh! So you cultivated on your own?" Yuan Ruoshan asked.
"You could say that," Chen Mo said.
"Then that explains it. No wonder you don't understand some of the rules of the martial arts world." Yuan Ruoshan understood Chen Mo now. She then explained some of the rules and taboos of the martial arts world to him, while also introducing the people and events currently present in China's martial arts world.
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