Chapter 303: Secret Art of Laws, Immortality, and Time Reversal (II)

By the time the group returned to the hotel, it was already evening.

In the hotel restaurant, as they waited for the food to be served, the fox-eared girl across the table blinked her big eyes and curiously asked, "Chu Batian, how did you reach the Sixth Heavenly Realm in just seven months? It's not just that your cultivation level is high, but your combat strength is so mind-boggling. You're practically a monster."

The others immediately looked at Chen Chu with curiosity in their eyes.

He thought for a moment and said, "Actually, it was a bit difficult when I first started cultivating. For example, it took me over fifty minutes to complete my very first cycle of the Body Refining Art, making me the worst in the class.

"My progress in meditation was also slow initially, but as I continued to practice, it became much smoother. Even so, it still took me half a month to complete Foundation Building. After that, I started cultivating true martial arts. At that time, my cultivation progress was quite average.

"But at some point, I noticed that cultivating became increasingly smooth. The power of the Dragon Elephant Art also grew stronger, and then I realized that cultivation seemed... very easy.

"Then I signed up for the Kyrola trials and discovered that my cultivation speed increased even more during combat. By the time I returned to school, I was the first in my year to break through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm. After that, I entered the mutated beast battlefield..."

As Chen Chu shared his cultivation journey with everyone, Li Daoyi's eyes filled with envy. Once again, Chen Chu was showing off. However, what Li Daoyi envied was not that in and of itself, but the fact that he seemed to do it unintentionally, unlike those at the base who did it deliberately.

When Chen Chu finished recounting his six months of "ordinary" cultivation experiences, everyone was amazed. They hadn't expected such a humble beginning for someone like him. To be able to surpass all geniuses and suppress his peers step by step was entirely due to his own efforts.

After Chen Chu finished, Xu Xiaoqi couldn't help but express her envy, sighing with slightly parted lips. "I wish I had a talent for cultivation too."

Her experiences over the past period made her feel that being a secretary or assistant to the director paled in comparison to being a cultivator with transcendent power.

Yan Ruoyi comforted her. "Sister Xiaoqi, cultivation talent varies from person to person. There's no need to force it if you don't have it. As long as you live a fulfilling life, that's what matters.

"Sometimes, not being able to cultivate isn't necessarily a bad thing. For instance, if my brothers didn't have the talent for cultivation, they might already be married with children by now."

Bai Yunfeng also nodded. "That's true. Don't be fooled by the talents of someone like Young Master Qingqiu. The responsibilities they'll bear in the future are beyond what ordinary people can imagine.

"Someone once said, 'With great power comes great responsibility.' Although this saying might be somewhat biased, in this era, as a person's abilities grow and they enjoy more rights, they also have to shoulder more responsibilities.

"At that point, even if you don't want to move forward, the momentum will push you to keep going, to forge a path for your family and brothers through all obstacles."

It was clear that both women’s sentiments stemmed from Heavenly King Xuanwu, causing the atmosphere at the dining table to become somewhat heavy.

At that moment, Qingqiu Mingyue suddenly blinked her big eyes and looked at Yan Ruoyi. "Sister Ruoyi, do you have time tomorrow?"

Yan Ruoyi nodded. "I do. What's up?"

Her music and dance teams would only arrive the day after tomorrow, so she had nothing planned for the next two days.

Qingqiu Mingyue said excitedly, "Let's go to the Lingshan Nature Park together tomorrow! They have a mutated fox breeding base there, and they’ve gotten a lot of new fox beasts recently."

For some reason, this well-endowed girl seemed to have a strong liking for Yan Ruoyi. Those who didn’t know could have thought they were sisters.

"Sure," Yan Ruoyi agreed with a smile, not refusing the invitation.

After dinner, everyone returned to their rooms to wash up. However, before going to his own room, Chen Chu first entered Yan Ruoyi's elegantly decorated two-bedroom suite. His sharp eyes meticulously scanned every corner, and he even stood by the window to check the surroundings.

Although Qingqiu Minghui had assured him that their stay in Qingshan City would be absolutely safe with his presence, Chen Chu remained vigilant. After all, Yan Ruoyi was different from them; she was an ordinary person. A single sniper shot could take her life.

Of course, he was only being cautious. He believed Yan Ruoyi must have some powerful trump card up her sleeve. Being the daughter of Heavenly King Xuanwu meant that she might as well be the daughter of a mighty deity.

After confirming everything was in order, Chen Chu turned and nodded slightly to Yan Ruoyi. "Miss Yan, the room and the surroundings are secure."

Yan Ruoyi smiled. "I didn't expect that a student like you, Chu, would be so professional the first time you act as a bodyguard. One might think you came from a family of them."

Chen Chu coughed lightly. "Not at all. I just read some books about what bodyguards need to pay attention to before coming here and follow that."

"Taking every task seriously is why you've succeeded, Brother Chu," Yan Ruoyi said, somewhat wistfully, as she walked to the window and gazed at the night outside. Suddenly, she asked, "Chu, what do you think defines a human?"

"What do you mean, Miss Yan?" Chen Chu paused slightly.

Yan Ruoyi softly said, "I mean, if a person fundamentally transforms into another kind of being to gain power or immortality, is she still considered human?"

Chen Chu pondered for a moment. "I think defining a human should be based on their essence. If a being was never human to begin with, then naturally, it isn't human.

"But if a person transforms into a non-human being, as long as their thoughts and consciousness still consider themself human, then they are human. In this case, even if they become a monster or mutated beast, their self-definition won’t change, and their behavior and thought patterns will still follow human habits.

"However, if one day all traces of 'human' disappear from them, then they no longer have any connection to being human."

Chen Chu felt he had a strong perspective on this issue, given that half of him was a mutated colossal beast.

"Self-definition, huh..." Yan Ruoyi nodded.

This debate had always existed in North Lin, centering on those who fused with mutated beast genes to gain powerful strength, yet gradually became less and less human.

At that moment, Chen Chu curiously asked, "Miss Yan, you mentioned immortality earlier. Does immortality really exist in this world?"

"Of course it exists," Yan Ruoyi replied softly. "From the start of the New Era until now, fifty years have passed, and not a single high-level cultivator has died of old age; most have fallen in battle.

"Their lifeforce is extremely robust. Medical research suggests that high-level cultivators can live for at least three hundred years. And kings, when they ascend to the throne, both their physical body and soul undergo a transformation. The soul evolves into a divine soul, and the body merges with the laws to become a true form.

"The most frequently encountered king-level beings by humans are from the Purgatory Clan. It's said that many of their demon kings have lived for over a thousand years, not to mention even stronger beings."

"... Kings live for over a thousand years?" Chen Chu was a bit astonished. Although he had long felt that his lifeforce was extraordinary and that he could probably live for a long time, he hadn't expected that the lifespan of a king would be that long.

So, by continuing to cultivate, he too could become one of those immortals?

Chen Chu and Yan Ruoyi chatted for a while longer before he returned to his room. After washing up, he sat cross-legged on his bed with the black disk in hand.

Meanwhile, deep beneath the sea, the Thunder Fiery Colossal Beast, which was testing spatial passage runes with its body, also paused in its actions. With only three chances to comprehend a top-level secret art, Chen Chu intended to immerse himself fully to ensure he didn’t waste any opportunity.

Whoosh!

As Chen Chu's spiritual will merged with the black disk, his consciousness suddenly plunged into a vast, desolate world.

This kind of soul-will inheritance was similar to top-level secret scriptures, where a virtual space was constructed through willpower to fully elucidate the Dao. However, unlike those scriptures, this secret art was imprinted by the divine will of a king-level being, making the "world" appear even more complete.

In the vast land, a figure in white robes stood tall, and at the horizon, a colossal beast as enormous as a mountain loomed. The figure in white slowly began to speak, his will causing the void to tremble.

"What is summoning? It is essentially using a medium to reverse time, invert space, and temporarily overlap a powerful being from another location and time with the space you currently occupy. This process involves the powers of time and space, as well as causality.

"Years ago, by chance, I once touched upon the power of time. Using the resonance of the soul with the power of similar bloodlines, I made myself the focal point..."

Accompanied by the magnetic voice, strands of "time" flowed around the white figure, "space" manifested tangibly, and the act of summoning began.

Two hours later, Chen Chu slowly opened his eyes, a trace of excitement flashing in them.

Thanks to his innate double-pupil ability and innate spatial rune, he already had a deep understanding of space. Though understanding the time rune would be slower, he believed that with two more sessions, he could remember everything. Then, it would just be a matter of practicing until he mastered it.

As for the necessary colossal beast bloodline or essence, the soul resonance, and some part of the colossal beast's body, these weren’t issues for him.

Essence? His colossal beast avatar could condense a drop easily. Soul resonance? He already had a half-colossal beast soul. Body materials? He was the ideal candidate himself. With the long-term synchronization of evolutionary energy, his physical body served as the best coordinate for the Thunder Fiery Colossal Beast.

Once he mastered this summoning art, he could project the colossal beast or even summon the Thunder Beast's main body when facing powerful enemies, overwhelming them effortlessly.

However, despite his excitement, Chen Chu knew what his current priority was. His focus remained on constructing the spatial passage rune. He aimed to complete it within a few days, which would allow him to convert the Life Crystals on the other side into attribute points.

Then, in one swift move, he could enhance all of the Thunder Fiery Colossal Beast's abilities, providing a massive boost.