Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

Chapter 122: Chapter 88: Sudden Realization_1

Translator: 549690339

Whether the former or the latter, it didn’t matter much to Xu Yang at the moment.

It only confirmed one thing for him, that this world harbored transcendent powers, incredibly potent transcendent forces.

This was evident from the time flow in this world compared to the real world.

The time flow in this world was a hundred times slower than that of the real world.

A hundredfold time difference!

Although it was less than the tenfold difference of Black Water World, it was higher than the 365-fold difference of Great Zhou and Great Tang.

After numerous Dream Butterfly experiences, Xu Yang had speculated that the difference in time between dreams and reality might be related to the world’s level, at least it was one of the deciding factors.

The higher the level of the Dream World, the stronger the power, the smaller the time difference with the real world!

In the Black Water World, where gods and buddhas are ubiquitous, the time difference is only tenfold.

For the mundane Martial Path of Great Zhou and Great Tang, it’s 365-fold.

The hundredfold time difference of this world was enough to prove that its world level was higher than that of Great Zhou and Great Tang.

Let’s not speak of Great Zhou; in the world of Great Tang, there exists earthly

Yuan Qi, methods of martial training that allow one to enter five realms of the Martial Path.

Here, the Yuan Spirit is scarce, and the heavens and earth are lacking, yet its world level is actually higher than that of Great Tang?

Interesting, truly interesting!

Xu Yang had become quite interested in the cultivation methods of this world.

The methods of cultivation, regardless of their systems, all cannot avoid the fundamental principle of “provisions.”

Just like the foundation of technology is energy, every cultivation system needs provisions as its foundation.

For Cultivation Qi Cultivation, Yuan Spirit is needed. Martial Path Body Training also requires provisions.

An energy source is a necessity.

Therefore, what kind of energy source, what kind of provisions, does this world’s transcendent system rely on for its cultivation methods?

Heaven and earth Yuan Spirit, impossible, it’s too impoverished.

Flesh and blood provisions also need the support of Yuan Spirit; the resources are similarly scarce.

What could it be?

Xu Yang still didn’t know.

But you can infer the whole picture from a part of it; by examining the various phenomena of this world, one can discern some clues.

For instance, the Way of literature here is illogically prosperous.

Could it be that this is a “Confucian Tao” world where studying can cultivate overwhelming righteousness and writing alone has the power of divine skills?

Possible!

But…

Xu Yang stopped writing, glanced at the article he had personally penned, and slightly furrowed his brow.

With the accumulation of knowledge from two worlds, a scholar of Heaven and Earth, he was no longer the ordinary transmigrant but a Grandmaster who had mastered knowledge through the ages and practiced the Three Teaching Sect.

Although in Great Zhou and Great Tang he had twice destroyed temples, eradicated Buddhism and Taoism, suppressed Confucian Gate, and swept through Qiankun, that didn’t stop him from practicing the Three Teachings and delving into the profound mysteries of their scriptures, becoming an expert in Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism.

In worldly terms, his Taoism, Buddhist Law, and Confucian cultivation were all top-notch; even if Holy Monks and Great Scholars were to debate scriptures with him, he could argue them to the point of being utterly defeated. He had no trouble reading any rare Dao Zang texts, Buddhist scriptures fluently, and could craft exquisite articles and famed masterpieces with ease.

He also perused the original host’s collection of books and examined this world’s various classics and texts, which were quite sophisticated, but they were not the methods of the Immortal Gods. With his current Confucian cultivation, the poetry and articles he wrote were in no way inferior to those written by the Great Scholars.

Yet…

There was no response!

Absolutely no reaction!

Exquisite articles, bereft of any flair.

Famed masterpieces, without any phenomena.

These were his original pieces of writing.

And the previous articles and poems that he hadn’t bothered to think too deeply about, simply plagiarizing, also showed no anomalies, nor did they bring him any Cultural Qi benefits for cultivation, completely inconsistent with his understanding of the “Confucian Taoist Cultivation Skills.”

Was his method of writing incorrect, or was there some other reason?

Xu Yang frowned, crumpled the exceptional article fit for a top scholar into waste paper, and threw it into the furnace beside him.

Then, he picked up his brush to write again.

This time, he didn’t write poetry or articles, but rewrote Buddhist scriptures.

The Diamond Sutra, the Surangama Sutra, the Infinite Life Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, the Heart Sutra…

He couldn’t copy that much, but he chose famous chapters from Buddhist Tablets, classified as advanced scriptures in Buddhism, along with some Buddhist doctrines that he had understood and integrated.

Setting aside the fact that he had twice eradicated Buddhism, academically speaking, these were in no way inferior to the scriptures he had looked up in the past few days, and technically, they were much better.

But… still no response.

Xu Yang’s brow furrowed as he threw another sheet of paper into the furnace and began writing the Dao Zang scriptures.

Sorting through the original host’s memories and his discreet investigations these past few days, Xu Yang noted that though the Way of literature was prevalent in this world, it wasn’t the sole domain of the Confucianism; Taoism and Buddhism thrived as well, with the Three Teachings all enjoying a period of prosperity.

If indeed there was a mighty force behind the flourishing way of literature, then the Three Teachings of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism couldn’t be overlooked.

Now that the literary path was flourishing and the Three Teachings of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism were thriving like never before, if there truly were transcendent cultivation methods, they must be related to the Three Teachings.

However, why…

A Taoist Scripture was completed, yet still there was no response.

“So-called ‘Cultural Qi’ is not formed through scriptures alone!”

Xu Yang’s gaze sharpened as he put down his writing brush and threw the newly completed scripture into the furnace.

“All things have a source; nothing comes from nothing. Objects of literature and ink are merely vessels, not the root cause. Naturally, they cannot provide me with power!”

“If those magnificent writings, timeless masterpieces, and scriptures of Buddhism and Taoism possess extraordinary power, then something must have become their energy source, infusing them with power!”

“What could it be?”

“Excluding the most basic Heavenly Earth Prime Spirit, there is only one possibility left!”

“Incense, belief, the will of the masses, the power of the divine soul!”

“The cultivation sustenance of this world is the belief in incense, the power of the divine soul amassed by the masses!”

“The so-called Cultural Qi of Confucianism and Buddhism and Taoism all come from the belief in incense and the power of the divine soul gathered by the masses, turning falsehood into truth, transcending the mundane.”

“Therefore, a poem, an essay, a scripture of Buddhism or a Taoist canon, no matter how well-written, are meaningless unless they spread in the world, absorbing the public’s willpower. Only then can they turn decay into wonder, obtaining extraordinary power!”

“This is… the method of ‘cultivating the true through the false’!”

“Therefore, in this world where the Way of Literature thrives, the driving force behind it are the cultivators of the world, with the Three Teaching Sect working together to promote literature, harvesting the world’s incense and the public willpower as sustenance for their own cultivation.”

“All this talk of Cultural Qi of Confucian Tao and Buddhism and Taoism, when put plainly, are all methods of divine soul cultivation!”

One can see the whole by observing a part.

In an instant, Xu Yang connected all the information, all the clues, and came up with an answer.

Once this answer was deduced, the entire affair, all intricate doubts, were all thoroughly resolved.

In this world, where Yuan Qi is scarce, the only way to cultivate is to gather the power of all beings.

The ways to gather the mass are twofold, one is to collect their flesh and blood, and the other is to collect their souls.

But they cannot be taken directly, because that is eating human flesh and sucking human souls, undeniably the method of the Evil Path, unacceptable to the world, unsustainable in the long term.

To maintain a continuous flow like a slow stream, the only way is religious cultivation and incense offerings, refining the power of the divine soul of the masses to serve as sustenance for one’s own cultivation.

This is the Righteous Way of Cultivation in this world.

Therefore, the literary path in this world can prosper, and objects of literature and ink can be so common, because behind them the entire Cultivation Realm is the backing.

Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism all need the “Way of Literature” as a vessel to collect the belief of the masses, the incense of the people.

Beautiful writings and timeless masterpieces have no magic in themselves, but due to the Confucian Taoist Cultivation Skills, once they spread throughout the world and are studied by many, they can turn decay into wonder, gaining extraordinary transcendent power.

Cultivating the true through the false is precisely this.

Not only articles and poems, but other scriptures of Confucianism, as well as those Great Scholars, were all originally ordinary mortals. The reason they could transcend was that they practiced Confucianism and received the support of the divine soul empowered by the belief of the masses.

After understanding this core principle, many of Xu Yang’s doubts were immediately clarified.

Why are there legends of Ghost Foxes and Spirit Monsters in this world that like to seek out scholars to consort with?

Because scholars belong to the Confucian system, with the power of the gathered divine soul—the Cultural Qi—within them!

This is greatly beneficial to the cultivation of Spirit Monsters, which is why entities like Ghost Foxes love to enchant scholars.

Actually, not only scholars but also young Taoists and monks are their targets for enchantment and consumption.

The power of the souls of all beings is an extraordinary sustenance, already forming a system.

The Cultural Qi of Confucianism seeks fame, for with fame one can become a cultivator of Confucianism, thus being endowed with Cultural Qi, ascending above ordinary people.

In the clan records of the Ma Clan, among the few who lived past sixty, without exception, all were literati with official titles, and at least all of them held the title of Juren; the lower title of Xiuzi was not enough.

“So, the method of cultivation in this world is to study those timeless Confucian classics, to draw Cultural Qi from them, or to take the civil examinations to acquire an official title granted by the government. With this, one can also gather Cultural Qi.”

“Of course, releasing one’s works for the world to read can also accrue a significant amount of Cultural Qi.”

“But these require time, an extremely long accumulation of time to build a reputation known to the world and sincerely worshipped, only then can one gather enough Cultural Qi!”

“Although this is the Righteous Way of Cultivation, it is far too slow.”

“The most direct, fastest way is to consume humans; those Spirit Monsters and Evil Cultivators must very much like to eat those abounding in Cultural Qi, even consuming Great Scholars and Grand Cultivators, as well as the court’s appointed officials, and even the Dragon Qi of the Emperor, all of which can elevate one in a single step!”

Xu Yang sorted through the context, inching closer to the truth: “Was my original body coveted by a Spirit Monster, dead from having its Cultural Qi drained?”

“No, that’s not right. The original owner had not yet taken the official exams, not even passed the preliminary county level exam, not having achieved even the status of a child scholar—where would he get any Cultural Qi to attract a Spirit Monster?”

“Moreover, if a Spirit Monster were to drain the Cultural Qi, it would also drain life and Yuan Qi, thus the cause of death should have been due to exhaustion of vital essence, turning into a dried corpse, whereas the original host died from a severe injury to the soul…”

“Wait!”

“The soul?”

Xu Yang’s eyes focused, and he suddenly awoke: “Evil Cultivators!” His thoughts were still unsettled when suddenly…

“Strike this effigy’s head, let it burst open and collect the soul!” “Strike this effigy’s body, let it be torn apart and worry for its life!”

“Strike this effigy’s feet, let nails pierce them so it cannot walk!”

“Strike this effigy’s back, let it toil like an ox and horse without rest!”

In the depths of the darkness, with chant upon chant, a hoarse and shrill curse entered Xu Yang’s mind..

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