Subsequent Cultivation Methods, Rank, and the Essence of the Transcendent

Zhang Mingqing looked at Wang An, who had spoken, and said,

"Scientists have already proposed hypotheses of that kind. So far, though, they haven't found any such substance or energy inside these enhanced organisms or in the air."

"Besides, these creatures still have normal physiological structures. Their bones have simply become denser, their bodies stronger, and their muscles larger. They haven't developed any mutations like special organs, either."

Daoist Priest Baoyuan said in surprise,

"Wouldn't that make them just like cultivators such as us? Could these creatures cultivate too?"

As the discussion grew more in-depth, everyone began to frown. Some thought the idea made sense, but others quickly found holes in it.

"Maybe it's the constantly strengthening magnetic fields in the sealed zones that are making these creatures stronger. After all, magnetic fields have had a tremendous impact on many places."

"But, but how do you explain the fact that, within the same sealed zone, creatures have grown stronger in some places, while in others they haven't grown stronger at all and have only become more active?"

"The stronger magnetic fields should only make the creatures more active. They wouldn't directly help them break through their physiological limits."

"It's also possible that the creatures ate something like the dragon qi from feng shui, and that made them stronger."

"That's even more ridiculous. We're all in the same circles here. Who doesn't know how feng shui works?

"If eating dragon qi could make you stronger, the perfected ones and celestial masters of the sects, and the eminent monks, would have occupied every place with dragon qi long ago."

"Wouldn't accounts of something like that have been passed down in the sects?"

"It's also possible that those creatures cultivated true qi somehow. After all, when we cultivate true qi ourselves, it gradually strengthens our bodies too."

"They might have cultivated some kind of demonic power, or true qi.

"After all, the true qi we cultivate can't be detected with current methods either. It can neither be seen nor touched."

"Right, that's possible too. Perhaps we need to go there and experience the situation for ourselves. If the place gives our cultivation a boost, then that's very likely the reason."

When Zhang Mingqing heard the discussion reach this point, he immediately extended an invitation to everyone present.

"Everyone, the state supports you in using whatever methods you choose to verify exactly how these creatures grew stronger. If we humans can do the same, perhaps it will be another new evolution."

"Anyone interested in taking part and experiencing these places firsthand can sign up with me. I'll organize a trip for everyone."

By the end of the discussion, all sides had decided that each sect would send one accomplished cultivator, at least at the Refining Essence into Qi stage, to these special areas.

After all, they were still mortals, and they still had aspirations in cultivation. If these special places could help them reach a higher level, presumably no one could refuse.

After everyone else left, Wang An and Daoist Priest Zhang Mingqing brought out the talisman inheritance and the information on assuming a position and exchanged them.

As for whether either side would forbid the other from passing this information on or teaching it to others after the exchange, neither mentioned it, in an unspoken understanding.

After all, if someone secretly passed it on in private, no one else would know, making it difficult to enforce such a restriction. So they merely stipulated that both sides should know who had used the information.

Most importantly, they agreed not to trade it to other factions. If someone approached either of them seeking a trade, they would refer that person to the other party.

This was a gentleman's agreement. If both sides honored it, both would benefit.

After the exchange, Wang An continued studying the Daoist canon and classics in the Special Administration Bureau's library, enriching his knowledge.

He continued refining the two cultivation methods, [Refining Essence into Qi] and [Refining Qi into Spirit], while also laying the groundwork for the subsequent [Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness].

As for [Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness], it required the unification of Spirit Qi, the attainment of the yang spirit, the refinement of attachment to the self, and entry into a state of "empty stillness."

Wang An found it all very vague. Take the two stages, "Moving the Spirit to the Upper Dantian" and "Refining the Form in True Emptiness," for example. The Daoist scriptures described them as follows:

Moving the Spirit to the Upper Dantian: Move Spirit Qi from the middle dantian to the upper dantian, then enter seclusion and face a wall to break the final attachment.

Refining the Form in True Emptiness: Keep form and spirit together, enter a state of tranquil concentration, and refine away the yin substance within the spirit, making the yang spirit purely yang, without a trace of yin.

It looked very simple put that way. One only had to follow those steps to "focus the primordial spirit and purify Spirit Qi; cleanse the primordial spirit and attain pure yang."

But after achieving this, the fruits of the cultivation were merely the attainment of the yang spirit, a transcendent state of mind, freedom from all hindrance, and becoming an "Earth Immortal."

Of these, what one could truly attain was a transcendent state of mind and freedom from all hindrance. It could be said that this was very much a method for cultivating one's inner nature.

Wang An speculated that perhaps, after some people in ancient times had gone through Refining Essence into Qi and Refining Qi into Spirit,

they found that improvements to their three-dimensional attributes were gradually stagnating, and that the world could not sustain life at a higher energy level, so they turned to pursuing transcendence of the mind.

The unification of Spirit Qi and the attainment of the yang spirit here were more descriptions of one's thoughts. Only by polishing a person's mental thoughts until they were pure and could not be disturbed by the outside world would there be a chance to refine away attachment to the self and transcend one's state of mind.

So there was even less to say about the fruits of the final step, [Refining Emptiness and Joining the Dao]: becoming one with the truth of the Dao, shattering the void, perfecting both form and spirit, having neither self nor things, and being free in Non-Action.

That was more like cultivating a single wisp of thought until it resonated with heaven and earth, then finally merging it into the great Dao of rules, attaining a state where "I am the great Dao, and the great Dao is me."

He did not know whether anyone had ever attained such a realm, though he supposed no one had. If anyone had reached that step, why had no one ever seen these immortals of [Refining Emptiness and Joining the Dao]?

After surveying many cultivation systems, Wang An ultimately concluded that, to cultivate to the level of a "Heavenly Immortal," one first had to cultivate oneself to be like a rule, only then could one resist the influence of the universe's rules.

In other words, one had to cultivate the small world of the human body into a genuine world and use it to oppose the greater world. Only then was there a chance of preliminarily transcending the influence of the rules and living for ages.

So in the end, it came back to the same point: only things of equal rank could oppose and affect one another.

Other things born under the influence of a higher rank were like physical laws and the material world. Even if the world were destroyed, another world would be born anew under those physical laws.

Understanding it this way, Wang An increasingly felt that the rule rune fragment was the key to opening the door to the transcendent, as well as the path ahead to ultimate evolution.

That was precisely why he had exhausted himself deducing the [Heavenly River Water] Dao foundation, which bore a transcendent rank.

If the countless laws of the entire universe were interwoven into one enormous internet, then a creature that forged a transcendent rank-the transcendent rule rune-and fused with a transcendent Dao foundation would possess a local network of its own.

Based on this theory, Wang An deduced a method that crudely imitated the universe.