Artificial Unity of Heaven and Man

"How strange. Why did things feel off today?"

When Hu Mang got up early that morning, he felt invigorated and in excellent condition. Then he realized something was off.

Over the previous ten days, almost every time Hu Mang underwent "electrotherapy," his whole body was left badly injured and his spirits flagging. During the first few days, he had even slept away entire days.

So for the first few treatments, he had no choice but to stay in the hospital.

Only after his body gradually adapted did he return home to rest.

Even so, a bout of "kidney deficiency" every day was unavoidable.

But when Hu Mang got up today, he felt an indescribable lightness throughout his body.

If he had to put it into words, it was like he had just had a thoroughly satisfying massage.

Then Hu Mang opened the window, and with each breath, wisps of Spiritual Qi entered his abdomen through his mouth and nose.

The pores all over his body seemed to open, drinking in the Spiritual Qi of this "sacred land" to their hearts' content.

Only now did his connection with this world and this city form.

The barrier that had clogged him with turbid Qi ever since he "got off the plane" half a month ago was finally shattered.

The "earth and wood Spiritual Qi" in his twelve primary meridians stirred restlessly. Earth and wood intertwined, giving rise to life without end.

Spiritual Qi flowed slowly through his meridians like a stream, nourishing his limbs and bones.

If Hu Mang wished, he could complete a Lesser Celestial Circuit the very next moment and break through to the Qi Refining Sixth Layer.

Yet Hu Mang forcibly suppressed his desire to break through.

He couldn't lightly give up a fortuitous opportunity he had gained by "selling himself."

Then the phone rang.

As expected, it was his mother.

He told her the good news.

"Really? Even a damaged foundation can recover? I've never heard of such a thing before. You're not lying to your mother, are you?"

"...What? There's a method like that? Then wasn't all the money I paid those tutoring classes for nothing? There are so many tutoring centers, so why didn't a single one tell me about this method?!"

"...At least it's not too late now, but I still have a hard time believing it. Come back home now. No, how about I come back instead?"

Mama Hu was no fool. Although Hu Mang had deliberately concealed part of the situation, she still wouldn't believe it unless she saw it for herself.

And once they met, the demonic fox bloodline connection between mother and son would most likely reveal that something was wrong.

Hu Mang could only keep spinning nonsense, promising to meet up with her as soon as he finished the first stage of "electrotherapy."

For now, he still needed to focus on his treatment.

"...Oh, right, Dad's here too. Do you want to talk to him?"

Hu Mang changed the subject.

"Oh, your dad? Sure, let me have a word with him."

Mama Hu's attention was quickly diverted.

Hu Mang hurriedly handed Spirit Pivot No. 1 to "Father Hu" on the sofa, then breathed a sigh of relief.

Then he looked at the table, and his brows suddenly drew together.

Someone had touched the things he had brought back from the hospital!

Hu Mang fixed his gaze on "Father Hu" on the sofa.

Before this, he had always treated "Father Hu" as an oversized doll, or, as Wang Zeyu put it, a "chatbot."

But being able to act on his own was another matter entirely.

Especially when he was living under the same roof as mother and son.

This was dangerous!

Deep in Hu Mang's eyes, a glimmer of bloody light flickered.

He was judging whether he could dismantle this father of his in an instant if he struck now.

There was a world of difference between him with his Qi blocked by turbid Qi and him with his spiritual power restored.

He was confident that, within arm's reach, the power he unleashed in a single blow could kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator outright.

Surely the thing his mother had stolen couldn't be at the Golden Core level, no matter what.

Even Old Xie hadn't reached that level back then!

But his mother's booming voice cut straight through Hu Mang's killing intent.

"That boy said he wants to start cultivating again. You'd better keep an eye on him for me. You haven't forgotten what I told you before, have you?"

"Of course I haven't," "Father Hu" said with a smile.

Told him?

So this was his mother's doing?

His mother had been gone for over ten days. Was this "machine memory" really that good?

Hu Mang muttered inwardly that, had he known, he should have talked more about the ins and outs of network cultivation back then.

Not like now, when he couldn't get to the bottom of it at all.

Several possibilities circled in his mind, but he didn't have the slightest clue and couldn't see through the other party at all.

After chatting a little longer, Mama Hu ended the call.

Immediately afterward, "Father Hu" turned around and handed Spirit Pivot No. 1 back to him with a faint smile.

A trace of doubt arose in Hu Mang's heart, but he hesitantly reached out and took it.

Then the other party slowly said, "Do you need my help?"

"Dad, did you read this book of mine last night?" Hu Mang asked in return.

"Father Hu" smiled and nodded.

"Would you like me to translate it for you?"

"Translate?"

"I can describe the cultivation route in the simplest terms and explain the 'Dao of Alchemy terminology' to help you better understand the Heavenly Gate General Qi Refining Instruction: Qi Vessel Supplement."

"...All right."

Even if it was a "Dharma explanation" version of a Qi Training Instruction, it was still a Qi Training Instruction. Hu Mang wasn't so lacking that he couldn't understand a Qi Training-level Cultivation Method.

He mainly wanted to hear the other party's "translation."

"All right. Please sit."

Smiling, "Father Hu" gestured for him to sit.

"..."

Hu Mang sat down in silence.

"This Cultivation Method is an improved version of the sixth edition of the Heavenly Gate General Qi Refining Instruction. The improvement involves adding three Qi vessels to the three thickest of the twelve primary meridians: the hand taiyin lung meridian, the foot yangming stomach meridian, and the foot shaoyin kidney meridian."

"Of these, the hand taiyin lung meridian governs Qi and controls breathing. It is the first gateway through which Spiritual Qi enters the body, is transformed, and circulates. It may be called the 'canopy,' and its Qi vessel is the Tiered Tower."

"The foot yangming stomach meridian is abundant in Qi and Blood. It is the 'sea of water, grain, Qi and Blood' and an important channel for transforming acquired essence Qi and nourishing the whole body. It follows the longest route and covers the widest area. Its Qi vessel is the Heavenly Frog."

"The foot shaoyin kidney meridian stores essence and houses primordial yin and primordial yang. It is the 'root of the innate' and the foundation of one's reserves of spiritual power and vitality. Its Qi vessel is the Divine Fate."

As "Father Hu" spoke, he traced a diagram of the twelve primary meridians in the air with his finger.

His depiction of how the "newly added Qi vessels" evolved along those three primary meridians was particularly detailed.

Hu Mang said nothing. His eyes narrowed, and the curved markings at their corners reappeared.

What the other party said was not wrong; it was quite accurate.

Aside from barely touching on the "level of comprehension," it was like a professional-grade textbook.

At the very least, it covered Hu Mang's own experience and understanding of cultivation.

And although Hu Mang was only a "mortar slinger" now, he was also a genuine top student from an elite academy.

At least where the "Qi Training level" was concerned, he didn't think anyone could fool him.

That raised the question: just what was this "cheap father" of his?

A human-shaped annotation?

"Building on the general Qi Training method's bypassing of the 'innate five elements,' this version's 'Qi Vessel Supplement' strengthens that concept. Through Qi vessels that 'simulate meridians,' it perfectly circumvents certain innate insights that only those with top-grade Root Bones can attain."

"...According to the deductions, once the three Qi vessels—the Tiered Tower, the Heavenly Frog, and the Divine Fate-are formed, the lower Dantian's Spiritual Qi storage capacity doubles in the Qi Refining Realm, its Spiritual Qi output speed increases by fifty percent, and the speed at which spiritual power circulates increases by sixty percent."

"When the Tiered Tower, the Heavenly Frog, and the Divine Fate become one, they can simulate part of the development of 'Unity of Heaven and Man.' This is the most outstanding aspect of this 'Dharma explanation.'"

"This is the 'Unity of Heaven and Man' that only cultivators with a single Spirit Root have a small chance of comprehending."

"..."

Even Hu Mang fell silent.

What the other party said was not wrong; it was all too accurate.

In fact, the fifteen percent chance of reaching Golden Core lay precisely in this "Unity of Heaven and Man."

"Artificial Unity of Heaven and Man."

That was Doctor Sun's explanation.

And in fact, most of the other "secret transmissions," "annotations," and "Dharma explanations" followed the same approach.

They bypassed the restrictions imposed by Spirit Root attributes and strengthened other aspects.

Doctor Sun himself had said that, in his professional opinion, this "Qi Vessel Supplement" was among the methods with the highest success rates.

Moreover, there was no need to consider Spirit Root attributes at all, and it was also the most beneficial in "actual combat."

That was why Hu Mang had chosen it.

And "Father Hu's" explanation, even the "increase ratios" in it, differed little from the data Doctor Sun had provided, with differences of a single-digit percentage at most.

This cheap father of his really did know his stuff!

"So, do you need my help improving it further?"

"Father Hu" took a sip of tea and smiled.

"You can improve it too?!" Hu Mang was taken aback and sized him up suspiciously.

Dude, aren't you a little too capable?

"My 'divine repository' lacks the relevant data. If you can supply it, I can develop 'Qi vessel branches' for you based on the 'Qi Vessel Supplement.'"

"...What information do you need?"

"Father Hu" rose without a word, went back to his room, and came out with a sheet of paper and a pen. Then he sat down at the dining table and wrote out three whole large sheets of relevant information.

Hu Mang held one of the sheets-

"Information on the evolution of mutual generation and restriction among the innate and acquired five elements."

"A complete explanation of hidden, minute, and illusory collaterals."

"Tracing the origins of Spirit Roots: a history of the transformation from innate spirituality to acquired attributes."

"A review of unconventional circulation routes for celestial circuits and their risks."

"A compilation of the distinctive manifestations of 'earth and wood complementing each other' in the human body."

The next day

"So you want a large amount of basic and advanced Dao Technique material? To make up for the part of your nine years of compulsory education that you missed?"

Doctor Sun looked at Hu Mang with a strange expression.

"Mm!"

Hu Mang nodded solemnly.

Doctor Sun started to speak, then stopped. He really wanted to say, You're just starting Qi Refining over again. Is all this really necessary?

No matter how bad your grades were, surely you can't be worse than a primary school student.

Or are you really planning to dominate the nine years of compulsory education?

"Then you can try the Blessed Land Library. It has almost all the locally available public materials on Dao methods."

Hu Mang nodded thoughtfully.

"Let's set that question aside for now. I have something I want to ask you."

Doctor Sun looked him up and down, somewhat puzzled.

"Where is the residual lightning power in your body? Why isn't there a trace of it left?"