Bai Ze Calculation and Lu Renjia Weighted Algorithm

The unified entrance trial of the Immortal Alliance, officially known as the Divine Continent Unified Entrance Trial of the Immortal Alliance's ordinary sects. Except for the special sect Sky Sword Palace, which monitors the world and guards the heavens in seclusion, all sects registered with the Immortal Alliance must recruit disciples through this channel.

Every January, branches of the Immortal Alliance across the land would dispatch low-level cultivators to impart introductory knowledge to aspiring immortals. By midsummer, the Immortal Alliance would assess all applicants, determining which sect each disciple would join and their initial standing based on trial results and personal aspirations.

However, there were exceptions. The children of mortal nobility and scattered cultivation families, having studied such knowledge from a young age, would face an unfair advantage if tested alongside ordinary people. Likewise, prodigies who stumbled upon ancient inheritances and cultivated to a significant level, or exceptionally gifted individuals favored by elder masters, learned faster than others and would waste time if made to study with common folk. Furthermore, young talents who had already broken through to the Tongtian realm had no need to relearn basic knowledge. These individuals naturally received different treatment.

According to Immortal Alliance regulations, newcomers falling under these five categories were to be sent to the Immortal Alliance headquarters or one of the nine major branch halls, such as Lüde or Leyang, for enrollment. After at least one year of training, they would join their respective sects with the next year's cohort.

When Wang Qi first heard about this system, he was overwhelmed with emotion—Damn it, they even had a system where top students were gathered in specific regions for a higher benchmark! This was so inhumane!

He had seriously considered asking Yan Heyi to place him in any branch hall. However, firstly, he fit two of the "five categories"—while "cultivating to a significant level through ancient methods" could be attributed to Zhen Chanzi's good teaching, his current Qi Refining stage cultivation was undeniable. Secondly, Xiang Qi soon brought up another point.

"Usually, the Immortal Alliance's Five Absolutes—namely Myriad Dharma Sect, Returning to One Alliance, Sky Spirit Ridge, Burning Gold Valley, and Misty Palace—only select true disciples from those who enroll at headquarters or the nine major branch halls. The top performer in a regular branch hall might only become an inner disciple of a second-tier sect like City of Mountains and Rivers or Liuyun Sect."

Having hastily familiarized himself with some common knowledge of the immortal path, Wang Qi now understood some of the current systems. Sect disciples were divided into four tiers: Menial Disciples, Outer Disciples, Inner Disciples, and True Disciples.

Menial Disciples handled a range of tasks from sweeping and cooking to clerical work. Sects would grant them basic Qi Refining techniques and spells used in their duties, with resources acquired from the sect equivalent to their wages. From an Earthling's perspective, this was akin to vocational or technical college.

Outer Disciples had fewer menial tasks. In addition to sect-provided resources, they could freely choose missions within the Immortal Alliance for rewards. In Wang Qi's view, this was equivalent to an undergraduate degree.

Inner Disciples held an advantage over Outer Disciples, as they could participate in research-oriented tasks. These tasks were not only relatively easier and more rewarding but also helped disciples comprehend the Dao of Heaven and Earth. This tier was comparable to a bachelor's and master's combined program.

As for True Disciples, who had no need to worry about resources and could conduct research under the guidance of tenured masters, Wang Qi dubbed them "a combined bachelor's and master's program with guaranteed placement in a research institution," something ordinary people could only envy.

Furthermore, sects themselves varied greatly in tier. Among the Five Absolutes, Myriad Dharma Sect, Returning to One Alliance, Sky Spirit Ridge, and Burning Gold Valley had built their foundations through struggles with ancient methods, their techniques and spells honed to perfection. Misty Palace was a gathering of numerous experts, at the forefront of the Immortal Alliance's exploration of cosmic laws. Second-tier sects like Qianji Pavilion, City of Mountains and Rivers, and Liuyun Sect also had techniques that directly led to a state of carefree existence. As for smaller sects, reaching the Grandmaster level was considered defying the heavens, and their true disciples might not even measure up to the outer disciples of the Five Absolutes.

In comparison, Wang Qi felt a flicker of excitement: "It's just the college entrance exam, what's there to fear!"

Although Xiang Qi found the term "college entrance exam" strange, she admired her junior disciple's spirit of not fearing challenges. Moreover, having shared hardships together, she patted her chest and promised to guide him.

Five days, neither long nor short. Xiang Qi gradually put away her sadness and began tutoring her junior disciple. Meanwhile, young disciple Wang consolidated his early Qi Refining cultivation on the ship—though he felt his greatest gain was finally getting used to throwing up.

Time quickly flew to the fifth day. Wang Qi sought out the senior sister for their routine sparring session.

Eight green flames swirled around Wang Qi. The young man's face was solemn: "Senior Sister, forgive me."

"Come on."

"I'm at late Qi Refining now... 'Illusionary Devil Hand'."

Xiang Qi grinned: "Too green. 'Illusionary Devil Hand' needs to land a solid hit. Look at this, 'Yang Flame Bodyguard'."

"Round end..."

"My turn. Draw two cards, then play two cultivation cards. This way, I have four cultivation cards on the field, breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm! Then, tap two cultivation cards and activate 'Heaven's Order First Heavenly Cycle'!"

Two of the dozen green flames swirling around Wang Qi suddenly extinguished. He frowned: "Seriously, do you have to be this intense..."

Xiang Qi shook her head and sighed: "What is the guy who beat me five times yesterday saying? Who started taking it seriously first?"

Yesterday, I just got excited about this cultivation-world version of Magic: The Gathering! And that's not the point, the point is why did the promised tutoring session turn into a tabletop game battle in the cultivation world!

Wang Qi grumbled inwardly, on the verge of tears.

Yesterday, after Wang Qi finished his day's lessons, Xiang Qi suggested some recreation. Wang Qi had expected the senior sister to play something elegant and refined like Go or backgammon. But he soon realized that on this Divine Continent, prioritizing aesthetics was a recipe for disaster.

"Wuding cards... Senior Sister, you're dressed so classically, pulling out a deck of cards from your person feels so out of place... And if you wanted to play Majiang or something, I'd be more inclined, but why Magic: The Gathering!"

The game Xiang Qi taught Wang Qi was called Wuding cards. The cards were similar in format to the paper cards used in Earth's card games, and the rules were akin to Magic: The Gathering.

Each player's deck had a maximum of eighty cards. Besides drawing five cards at the start of the game, players drew two cards during the draw phase each turn. Hand size was determined by cultivation level. Players would each place a cultivator card on the field, with an initial eight "life flames." Then, each turn, a player could place one or two cultivation cards on the field. Three or fewer cultivation cards represented the Qi Refining stage, four to six represented the Foundation Establishment Realm, and so on. Activating spells, martial skills, or magical artifacts required paying Magical Power—which meant tapping cultivation cards. Tapped cultivation cards would recover on the next turn. Life flame count increased with cultivation realm.

Wang Qi, a partial tabletop game enthusiast in his past life, was captivated by the novelty and couldn't stop. Xiang Qi was merely an enthusiast of the game, nowhere near the level of an Earthling who could turn tabletop games into an art form. She immediately felt the weight of Earth's entertainment culture. However, Xiang Qi was quite competitive. Seeing that even a beginner playing for the first time could defeat her in this area, she felt her pride wounded and was determined to regain her standing.

Wang Qi's tabletop game skills were indeed slightly better than Xiang Qi's, but it was only the level of an advanced enthusiast bullying a beginner, far from the skill of intentionally holding back without being noticed. As a result, Xiang Qi failed to regain her standing and could only agree to fight again tomorrow.

Then, after Wang Qi finished his lessons, they had been playing until now...

Defeated by Xiang Qi once again, Wang Qi figured the senior sister's mood should be much better, so he tentatively asked, "Senior Sister, there's a question I've wanted to ask for a long time..."

Xiang Qi shuffled the cards and nodded, saying, "Speak."

"Didn't you say yesterday that my time was precious and I needed to work hard?"

"Yes."

"Why has it turned into playing this now..."

Xiang Qi frowned: "Is that strange? This is also one of the mandatory courses for cultivators. It's a bonus item in the entrance trial."

"Ah?" Wang Qi was shocked—Good heavens, this world is so enlightened! Playing tabletop games well earns bonus points on the college entrance exam!

Zhen Chanzi suddenly asked Xiang Qi: "Is this because this game simulates combat between cultivators? To understand the strengths and weaknesses of spells and teach disciples to be meticulous with Magical Power during battles?"

Xiang Qi nodded: "That's one aspect. There's another consideration."

Wang Qi asked: "What aspect?"

Xiang Qi thought for a moment, put down the deck in her hand, and took out another set of cards from her storage bag: "The basic decks we just used don't contain any high-level techniques. In fact, all known immortal path techniques, including the ultimate skills of the Five Absolutes, have been made into cards in this game." As she spoke, she flipped through the deck she took out, then picked one: "Look, for example, this one, the supreme ultimate skill of Myriad Dharma Sect, with a rarity of seven."

Wang Qi: "Holy crap, they even came up with the concept of booster packs... This card is called 'Bai Ze Calculation', and its effect is to tap three cultivation cards, forcing the opponent to state their actions for the next three turns, which cannot be changed? Is there anything special about this card?"

Xiang Qi shook her head: "It's not the card that's special, but the 'Bai Ze Calculation' that the card represents. This is a tale from ancient times. Myriad Dharma Sect had a senior from the Free and Unfettered Stage who came from the northern frontier, named A Pu Na, known as the 'Reincarnated Bai Ze.' We generally respectfully call him True Monarch Bai Ze."

Wait... this name...

Xiang Qi continued: "True Monarch Bai Ze had a famous saying, 'If you know all the causes and effects of this moment, you will know the infinite past causes and the endless future effects.' He believed that the outcome of battles between cultivators was determined from the start, and every bit of a cultivator's Spiritual Power and every fraction of their cultivation could be quantified into numbers. In the end, everyone could just compare numbers to decide the winner without actually fighting..."

Are you kidding me...

This was Wang Qi's and Zhen Chanzi's first reaction. How many factors were involved in combat between cultivators? It couldn't possibly be summarized by just one or two numbers.

Seeing Wang Qi's expression, Xiang Qi guessed what he was thinking and explained, "If a Divine Lord at the Free and Unfettered Stage's cultivation level can instantly acquire and judge situations far beyond your imagination, determining victory or defeat in a single instance is not impossible. However, this isn't easily generalized. But the Divine Lord's research does help cultivators estimate their general combat power."

"Estimate combat power?"

Xiang Qi explained, "This is a weighted algorithm. Cultivation methods, spells, martial skills, magical artifacts, etc., are all assigned weights based on their power. The greater the power, the higher the weight. For example, a common Flame Bullet has a weight of zero. If mastered, its weight becomes one-half. My Heavenly Order Sword Disc is considered a decent sword art, with a weight of six, and can reach seven if fully mastered. Suppose there's a passerby rogue cultivator practicing common modern cultivation methods, with the most basic cultivation technique and preliminary mastery of two common spells, Flame Bullet and Palm Thunder. Then, he's just an ordinary cultivator with a weight of zero."

"A single point of weight can equalize a small stage. For instance, a cultivator with a weight of one in the early Qi Refining stage can defeat someone with a weight of zero in the mid Qi Refining stage. If challenging across stages, the excess weight needs to be divided by three. For example, a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivator with a weight of eight, when converted to Golden Core level combat power, would first have two points of weight deducted to be equivalent to an early Golden Core stage. Then, their remaining weight would be divided by three. This means this person is equivalent to an early Golden Core cultivator with a weight of two."

As she spoke, Xiang Qi seemed to recall something amusing and chuckled, "This weighted algorithm is called the Lu Renjia Weighted Algorithm, created to thank Mr. Lu Renjia, who has been defeated countless times in the imagination of myriad cultivators. Later, this algorithm was turned into a game by enthusiasts and eventually swept through the immortal path. There are also legends that Myriad Dharma Sect was behind it, and this game, combined with certain mathematical principles, is the entry-level for the Bai Ze Divine Calculation..."

Zhen Chanzi laughed, "It is indeed interesting... uh, very interesting. Girl, is it because I couldn't grasp the joke that I didn't laugh out loud?"

Xiang Qi's expression stiffened slightly, "I think... even if you grasped the joke, it wouldn't be like this..."

In front of them, Wang Qi was sprawled on the ground laughing uncontrollably, tears almost streaming from his eyes.

"Is it that funny?"

"Hahahaha, so even this kind of parody has its limits! Hahahaha!"

I've long been curious how the "Earth scientist and Divine Continent Great Cultivator one-to-one correspondence" relationship would translate Laplace demons into immortal cultivation elements. Knowing all information at a certain moment allows one to deduce Laplace demons of the past and present... Bai Ze... Ahahaha...

Just as Xiang Qi and Zhen Chanzi exchanged bewildered glances and Wang Qi was roaring with laughter, Yan Heyi's voice echoed.

"Prepare yourselves. We've arrived."

Sorry for the late update.

The end of the year is approaching, and there are more social engagements. My apologies.