A Dead End and a Glimmer of Hope

The stern young man, Ye Chang, was so excited he could barely contain himself. He looked at the Qi Refining cultivator he held in his hand, his greed unconcealed.

Earlier, when he clashed with that Golden Core stage Myriad Dharma Sect cultivator, his personal artifact, which he always wore close to him, suddenly grew warm! This artifact was a replica of a half-Immortal Weapon held by his sect leader. Legend had it that this half-Immortal Weapon was seized by the Emperor-Grade Heaven-Splitting Dao founder from another sect thousands of years ago, and it was part of a complete set of treasures. The replica in his hand wasn't very powerful, but it could sense the whereabouts of other treasures.

A half-Immortal Weapon!

Unlike a natal artifact that could be continuously strengthened with one's cultivation, the power of a magical artifact was fixed and difficult to improve. Artifacts were divided into six levels: Talisman, Heavy Weapon, Treasure Weapon, True Weapon, Profound Weapon, and Immortal Weapon. Talismans were mostly used by Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators. A Golden Core stage cultivator possessing a Heavy Weapon was considered well-off, while a Treasure Weapon was enough to make a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator fight desperately for it. Only those in the Separation and Integration Body Cultivator stages could possess a True Weapon, and Mahayana cultivators could only obtain a Profound Weapon. As for Immortal Weapons? Those were things only immortals could possess after ascension. Ye Chang, as the foremost cultivator of the Ancient Method today and a direct disciple of the Emperor-Grade Heaven-Splitting Dao sect leader, only possessed a top-grade Treasure Weapon!

And now, he, Ye Chang, was about to obtain a half-Immortal Weapon!

Thinking of this, his gaze intensified. When he captured this Qi Refining little cultivator, he had already confirmed that although the latter had switched to the modern method, his body still bore traces of ancient spirit cultivation. Moreover, his cultivation technique was exactly the same as the one his master spoke of from the sect that was annihilated! And this kid had almost completely hidden himself from his spiritual sense. If not for the artifact's reaction, he wouldn't have even noticed this Qi Refining cultivator. This indicated that the other party's inheritance was also extremely outstanding!

Later, he would slowly torture this kid. Not only could he get clues to the Immortal Weapon, but he could also obtain an Ancient Method inheritance! Such luck was truly heaven-sent!

However, the immediate priority now was to shake off the disciple from the Myriad Dharma Sect behind him!

"Leave the person behind!"

Li Ziye chased relentlessly, his sword flashing. He was also secretly astonished. The modern method was comprehensively superior to the Ancient Method. A Golden Core stage cultivator of the modern method killing an Ancient Method Nascent Soul cultivator wouldn't even be considered a "tough fight." Yet, this Ancient Method Nascent Soul Cultivator could actually contend with him, who wielded the Heavenly Sword. He must be a core figure among Ancient Method cultivators. This kind of person being specifically captured by Wang Qi must be a monster!

Ye Chang's hand seals shifted, and several spells, shimmering with golden light, shot towards Li Ziye. But Li Ziye merely swayed his body, and the killing moves were all dodged.

"As expected of a Myriad Dharma Sect disciple, ordinary attacks can't hit." Ye Chang was secretly annoyed. The Myriad Dharma Sect was a major sect of the modern method. Its disciples were best at "one technique breaks ten thousand techniques" and "one technique derives ten thousand techniques." Even the simplest martial arts could produce incredible effects in their hands, and the most miraculous spells were riddled with flaws in their eyes. He suspected that the moment he made a move, Li Ziye had already seen through his techniques.

Li Ziye suddenly accelerated, his sword thrusting forward. Ye Chang gritted his teeth and activated three talismans. Three spells, arranged in a triangle, whistled towards Li Ziye. Li Ziye changed his thrust to a slash, exhaled, and shouted, "Break!" The Heavenly Sword emitted a dazzling golden light, accompanied by immense power, and slashed at the spells activated by the talismans. This strike landed precisely on the critical part of the spells' circulation, and Li Ziye actually managed to break them!

But this move also gave Ye Chang an opportunity to create a distance of about thirty feet.

At this moment, Wang Qi could only watch the confrontation between Ye and Li, unable to move his entire body. Every muscle and every meridian was restrained by Ye Chang's spell. Forget about finding a way to break free, he couldn't even blink. He was stiffly wrapped in Ye Chang's escaping light.

What in the world is going on? Wang Qi's heart felt as if it had been stuffed with several pounds of lead, sinking straight down.

No matter how he called out in his spiritual sense, Zhen Chanzi did not respond. This was the first time this had happened since Zhen Chanzi guided him onto the path of cultivation.

Damn it! Damn it! What is going on?

Wang Qi roared in his mind. He simply couldn't understand why he had been dragged into a conflict between high-level cultivators.

"Calm yourself. Anxiety will not help you escape."

Suddenly, Zhen Chanzi's calm voice appeared in Wang Qi's mind.

Wang Qi was furious. "Old man, explain!"

Zhen Chanzi got straight to the point: "This guy is after this ring. He is a true disciple of the Emperor-Grade Heaven-Splitting Dao, the very sect that annihilated my Mount Luofu Mystic Clarity Palace thousands of years ago. This ring is of great importance."

"Hey, hey, you never mentioned this part to me before." Wang Qi was almost amused to death—if he could still laugh.

Zhen Chanzi's voice carried no discernible emotion: "I originally intended to tell you after you had truly stepped onto the immortal path. Never mind that now. I am secretly extending a wisp of my soul into your body. This method consumes too much of my remnant soul. Enough nonsense. The Great Mystery Heaven-Splitting Dao and Mount Luofu Mystic Clarity Palace have been fighting for a thousand years, and they understand each other's techniques. I will now teach you a method to break through restrictions. Once mastered, you will be able to channel a wisp of Magical Power when this guy is unprepared."

"A wisp of Magical Power? What... you mean I should activate the talismans in my hand?"

Wang Qi's mind was sharp, and he immediately guessed Zhen Chanzi's intention.

"That's right. Li Ziye and this guy are locked in a stalemate. You just need to find an opportunity to activate the few talismans still clutched in your hand. However, the gap in strength between you and him is too great. Once he notices, even your secret method to break through restrictions will be useless. Also, I absolutely cannot let the Emperor-Grade Heaven-Splitting Dao discover my existence, so this time, I will not probe with my spiritual sense. You must seize the moment yourself."

"My strength is almost depleted. I will impart the technique to you! Although this spell is complex, it is your only chance of survival now. You must master it quickly!"

Before Wang Qi could react, he felt a sharp pain in his head, and a spell appeared directly in his mind.

However, upon seeing this spell, Wang Qi almost cursed out loud.

"This... this actually requires simultaneously controlling thirty-seven streams of Magical Power to circulate in the meridians in their own independent ways! Old man, **why don't you just tell me to die directly!"

Multitasking wasn't a particularly difficult skill for cultivators, but asking a Qi Refining cultivator to divide his attention into thirty-seven parts was indeed asking too much.

No, I can't learn this in such a short time. Even if I memorize the routes, I won't be able to make thirty-seven streams of Magical Power operate independently.

Unless... I can make the thirty-seven streams of Magical Power operate according to the same pattern!

But, these thirty-seven routes are too different... Wait a minute, if this problem is translated into a mathematical problem, it seems to be... describing a system composed of thirty-seven point masses...

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck his mind.

"That's it! Hilbert space! This spell doesn't involve any complex transformations. The only difficulty lies in the circulation of the thirty-seven streams of Magical Power! Using Hilbert space algorithms, I can summarize this system with a single function!"

Hilbert space is a generalization of Euclidean space, but it is not limited to three dimensions.

Simply put, if one wants to describe the trajectory of a point in three-dimensional space, three vectors are needed to establish a three-dimensional coordinate system. If one wants to treat two points as one, then six vectors are needed to establish a six-dimensional coordinate system. By extension, three points require nine dimensions, four points require twelve dimensions...

"Thirty-seven paths require a 111-dimensional Hilbert space! Don't be intimidated by the number of dimensions. In mathematics, describing a point in a 111-dimensional space is much simpler than describing a system composed of thirty-seven points in three-dimensional space!"

"Hilbert space is something I was very familiar with in my previous life. Moreover, in my previous life's quantum physics, describing a point required six vectors, and now it's only describing three dimensions. After the Nurturing Life cultivation, my soul is several times stronger than in my previous life, so my calculation power is naturally stronger!"

"Calculating a 111-dimensional Hilbert space in my mind is not impossible!"

Having made up his mind, Wang Qi calmed his mind and began to calculate.

"Let's start the calculation from the Dan Tian... no, the Zhongfu Acupoint as the origin..."

Just as Wang Qi began to calculate, Li Ziye launched another wave of attacks.

"No, I can't retreat any further! If I retreat again, the secret stronghold might be exposed." Ye Chang unleashed several layers of light barriers, but Li Ziye quickly broke through them one by one with his sword.

"This kid's one-sword-breaks-ten-thousand-techniques is too troublesome... I need to find a way!"

Ye Chang's heavy sword techniques struggled under Li Ziye's Heavenly Sword, barely holding on. Ye Chang had no choice but to pat his chest, spray a mouthful of vital energy onto his heavy sword, and force Li Ziye back with a sword qi that had greatly increased in power.

Li Ziye was about to charge forward again when Ye Chang suddenly stopped, gathered his energy, and pulled Wang Qi into his hand, shouting, "Don't come any closer! If you do, I'll crush this kid!"

Wang Qi's heart skipped a beat, his calculations halting.

What a joke! This situation was completely outside of his calculations!

Although he had come to admire Li Ziye's character over the past few days, he wasn't foolish enough to believe Li Ziye would sacrifice himself for a Qi Refining cultivator!

Li Ziye paused his assault and chuckled, "What, you think I'd let go of a big fish like you, a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, for some insignificant Qi Refining junior?"

Ye Chang sneered, "I know what you modern cultivators are like. Don't you know yourself? You're all brain-damaged from your cultivation, yet you believe in that hypocritical nonsense, even boasting about your 'heart to protect the world'."

Li Ziye shrugged, "Alright, you win."

Ye Chang grinned sinisterly, "Then, put down the Heavenly Sword in your hand."

Li Ziye gave a wry smile and tossed the Heavenly Sword upwards. It transformed into a silver ribbon and returned to its scabbard. Then, Li Ziye removed the sword scabbard he always wore and threw it to Ye Chang.

Is this guy an idiot?

Wang Qi was utterly shocked. He couldn't deny that selfless people existed in the world, but he also had to admit that such individuals were exceedingly rare in both his past and present lives. To encounter such a person as his first Golden Core cultivator? What were the odds of winning the lottery multiple times?

[Just a heads-up, I'll be traveling tomorrow, so the updates will be two chapters in the evening.]