It's time to improve the strength of the infinite world

Chapter 499 Demon God's Power: Phase Manipulation (Youth Version)? — Spirit Root Expansion MOD
"Fellow Daoist, there must be a procedure to follow before you become my disciple..."

The Qi cultivator neither confirmed nor denied this, but simply smiled and spoke, his air of otherworldly wisdom carrying a subtle hint of a HR professional discussing KPIs.

"You know what I mean?"

He drew out the last syllable meaningfully, gesturing with his finger in the air, “It’s that kind of… guarantee that you join an illegal group by promising loyalty through illegal acts.”

In layman's terms, it means that talking about anything else is useless; you need to offer a pledge of loyalty!
The Warlords

This term has quite a history, originating from the peculiar KPIs of a vibrant ancient community.

Legend has it that it was the hard currency used by the Liangshan heroes to join their gang, and it was later popularized by various Jianghu gangs.

Once you submit your petition, you're automatically enrolled in a lifetime membership package—making it arguably the most hardcore resume ever.

Simply put, if you want to be a gangster, you have to do something big first!

Robbery or arson are both acceptable, but it's best to leave some leverage in the boss's hands. Once this job is done, you'll be in the same boat forever.

From now on, you're one of the boss's men. Want to get off the ship? No way!

Emmmmm......

It does seem quite appropriate to put it here, since everyone knows that you, Yakumo Yukari, are on the Dragon God's side.

If you want to switch sides now, you need to offer a pledge of loyalty first, otherwise who will believe you are sincere?

Therefore, it is perfectly reasonable for Coca-Cola to comply.

"..."

"..."

A silence fell between them.

—Just as I expected…

—The other party didn't misunderstand me at all...

—Clearly, he sees right through her, yet he deliberately acts this way, as if observing a caged beast with unhurried composure…

Miss Yakumo lowered her eyes slightly to hide the turmoil in them, and sighed softly in her heart.

The folding fan spun unconsciously between her slender fingers.

This long-lost sense of helplessness, tinged with a subtle powerlessness, washed over me, mixed with an indescribable, strange ripple...

It seemed to be some kind of secret, inappropriate stirring of emotion...

Surprisingly, she found it somewhat novel...

Huh?! Wait a minute!
—Wait a minute! What am I thinking?!

—Isn't this absurd?

Realizing his emotions were amiss, the sage suddenly awoke, his folding fan snapped shut, and his fingertips tightened slightly.

She was secretly annoyed at herself for having such an absurd thought, and her composure, which she had always been proud of, vanished at that moment.

As a sage demon who has lived for over a thousand years, what he detests most is this feeling of being controlled by others, and he shouldn't have any feelings about such a situation...

—Any emotion similar to a fluttering heart.

That's right! I shouldn't have any Stockholm syndrome.

Sensing that things might not be going well, she gritted her teeth, casually glanced up, and her gaze swept over the tall, slender figure beside her.

But then the sunlight slanted down, casting a hazy halo around the figure.

The "person" was casually surveying the dilapidated shrine in front of him, the profile of his face particularly distinct in the interplay of light and shadow, a faint smile playing on his lips.

In an instant—

Zi Wei frowned slightly, her eyes showing a moment of confusion.

only……

"What's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything?" He suddenly turned his head, looking directly at him with a hint of inquiry.

"……nothing!"

The seventeen-year-old girl suddenly turned her face away, and her folding fan opened with a "whoosh," covering half of her face.

This habitual, elegant gesture now seems more like a cover-up.

She suddenly felt a little embarrassed and annoyed, and even secretly hoped that the other person had some kind of charm ability, but she just couldn't find it.

In this way, at least an excuse can be found for that inexplicable restlessness.

—But then again, maybe that's actually the case?
"..."

"..."

The golden-haired demon's gaze wandered aimlessly before finally settling on the decaying money box in front of the dilapidated shrine.

The cracks in the rotten wood suddenly became extremely interesting, at least much more interesting than the restless throbbing in my chest.

She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.

At the same time, eliminate unnecessary distracting thoughts and ideas from your mind, and forcibly ignore those strange ideas.

"must……"

She deliberately avoided the young man's probing gaze, and the sound behind her folding fan was as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

"...Does it have to be about helping you deal with the Dragon God? Can't we do something else?"

"..."

"..."

"Fine, seeing how conflicted you are, I won't make things difficult for you... Anyway, that little dragon probably can't escape my grasp."

The young man stared at her for a long time, then smiled nonchalantly.

Miss Yakumo's shoulders relaxed almost imperceptibly, but then tensed up again.

Because she heard the young man drawl:

"But you weren't tricked by Meryl, were you? Like, you think this job is too troublesome and don't want to do it anymore, so you were tricked into coming here to take her place or something..."

No need to doubt.

Mary has that kind of wicked nature; she's absolutely capable of doing something like that.

Of course, Miss Zi isn't bad in a certain sense either—

The wisdom and cunning honed by time have long been ingrained in his bones, and his rich life experience (?) is absolutely far superior to that of Merry.

If the two were to compete fairly, it's hard to say who would cheat whom.

As for now...

The main difference between the two sides was the information gap, which led to a significant disparity. Meryl's eyesight and the intelligence she possessed were truly a huge advantage.

—Under such circumstances.

—It is quite normal for Zi to fall into a disadvantageous position without realizing it.

"No."

Zi shook her head, the bow on her blonde hair swaying gently. "She didn't say anything to me, nor did she seem to be against what we were about to do..."

Or perhaps it's more accurate to say... that you're enjoying it?
After thinking about it for a moment, the seventeen-year-old girl felt that it seemed to be true.

"Well, it seems you do have a rare amount of patience." Xia Zhi nodded, calmly commenting, his gaze fixed on the demon before him with interest, as if trying to read her thoughts: "And you?"

"Me?" Zi Weiwei was taken aback.

"Yes, so why did you take the initiative to come to me?" The Qi cultivator blinked. "You must be the kind of lazy person who usually finds excuses to hibernate."

Damn it, who is ruining my reputation...?

The seventeen-year-old girl gritted her teeth, feeling extremely annoyed and somewhat unable to accept this statement that she would normally never pay attention to. Her fingertips tightened slightly, and the fan ribs made a faint "creaking" sound.

However, at this moment, there was no way to argue. Zi took a deep breath, suppressing her agitation, and carefully considered her words:
"I... Gensokyo is the culmination of my life's work, and I don't want it to be destroyed, so I can only turn to you."

She made a rough estimate—

I felt that lying to this "person" was pointless, so I might as well be honest.

Therefore, she chose to speak frankly about her true thoughts.

That is indeed the truth.

only……

"..."

"..."

Xia Zhi fell silent, his slender fingers gently stroking his chin, and thoughtful lines appeared between his brows.

Sunlight streamed through the eaves of the shrine, casting dappled patterns of light on his handsome profile.

“Eh, no…” He frowned slightly, his voice tinged with confusion, “I don’t quite understand what you mean. I don’t think I intended to destroy Gensokyo.” “…”

"..."

An eerie silence.

Yukari Yakumo narrowed her eyes slightly, her golden hair swaying gently in the breeze, and stared at the young man before her with a strange look.

That look seemed to be a silent question, "Do you even believe that yourself?"

That penetrating gaze, unique to demons, lingered on his face for a moment before finally turning into a barely audible sigh.

"Perhaps there isn't one right now..."

She spoke softly, her voice like the wind passing through a gap in the boundary—

"However, with the changes you bring, and with the arrival of the great era of spiritual energy, all of this will surely change..."

"Right now, I can still be confident in maintaining the status quo and persuading others..."

"But the future is uncertain."

The slanting sunlight was fragmented by the drifting clouds, and dappled light and shadow moved between the two people.

Just like the dreamscape woven by the barrier after the Hakurei Shrine, it seems to foreshadow that it cannot remain unchanged forever.

"That was a long time later."

Xia Zhi pondered for a moment, then shook her head: "Instead of worrying about a future moment when even the realm is difficult to maintain, it's better to focus on the present."

"But it will come eventually, and I will always need to know the place left for Gensokyo in this revolution you've started..."

Yakumo Yukari's voice suddenly became very soft, as if she was afraid of disturbing something.

She let out a long sigh, a gesture that made her look unusually tired. The folding fan in her hand had been folded away at some point and was now tightly clenched in her palm.

“I asked Mary if her eyes could see the future and tell me the answer, but she didn’t.”

No words.

In a sense, it's equivalent to saying something.

"..."

"..."

"So—the only way is to seek refuge with you."

Yukari Yakumo suddenly smiled, a smile that made her look like a true seventeen-year-old girl. Sunlight shone on her long golden hair, reflecting a dazzling light.

Perhaps because she had frankly expressed her true feelings, she seemed much more relieved, and even her shoulders relaxed and slumped down.

“I asked Meryl, and she said that only you can grant me a truly eternal dream of peace.”

"She really has a lot of faith in me..." the young man chuckled softly. "But the term 'truly eternal' is far too vague and unrealistic."

"At least……"

His gaze passed over the demon sage and looked up at the boundless sea of ​​stars in the sky.

Although it was daytime, he could see billions of stars twinkling there, each one telling a story of the vastness and ruthlessness on an astronomical scale.

"Compared to the boundless and vast laws of the universe, my 'knowledge' and 'ability' are still limited..."

It is said that his lifespan is as vast as heaven and earth, with no end in sight.

More often than not, it's just an adjective. According to the Qi cultivation system he created, the Qi cultivation stage and the foundation building stage can be described in this way.

But it's just a description—

Those cycles of time that transcend mortal comprehension are indeed equivalent to the future of a planet and the end of human reason. Incredibly long.

It was as if the entire planet, the entire world, had ended, and the cultivators at this stage would continue to exist eternally.

But this is ultimately only a relative concept of "eternity".

At least for now, the universe has an end, and even the heavens have their lifespan.

Xia Zhi gazed into the depths of the sky, where the birth and death of countless stars were reflected, yet he had not even been able to reach the end of this universe...

It is far from being truly eternal.

"If it's so far away that I can't even see the end, then there's no difference."

The golden-haired great demon didn't seem to mind this much.

So... what do you think? I wonder if I would be honored to have this opportunity?

"..."

"..."

"Obviously, I have no reason to refuse."

Xia Zhi finally smiled, "Since you're being so diligent, I'll arrange a job for you too, so that Mei Li won't be too busy..."

As he spoke, he extended his long, slender hand.

The next moment, his five fingers spread wide.

Five colors bloom within, subtly flowing and swirling.

"What's this?"

Yakumo Yukari's pupils suddenly contracted, her golden eyes reflecting the swirling five-colored light.

Green, yellow, red, black, and white—the five colors intertwine, like the chaotic differentiation at the beginning of heaven and earth, and also like the ultimate manifestation of the five elements' cycle.

As a demon who manipulates realms, she instinctively tried to analyze the light before her, but the realm power that had always been invincible was now like a mud ox sinking into the sea, failing to even stir up a ripple.

The "law" and "principle" contained within those five colors far exceeded her comprehension; their intent and purpose were far beyond her current comprehension.

"A few petty tricks, not worth mentioning..."

Xia Zhi said modestly, "But let's not worry about that for now. The important thing is to choose your spiritual root."

"Spiritual...spiritual root?"

"That's right, you can understand it as the affinity of living beings for my spiritual energy, or something more general—"

The Qi cultivator smiled slightly: "It's not unreasonable to call it a predestined affinity with immortals."

"What...what exactly is it used for?"

"Naturally, it allows people to better absorb the spiritual energy of the universe, sense the spiritual connection from beyond the heavens, and allocate the weight of spiritual energy according to the different attributes of their spiritual roots..."

He answered seriously, "Generally speaking, the more one focuses on a particular attribute of spiritual root, the more one will have an advantage in the spiritual energy of that attribute."

Whether it's spiritual practice.

Or perhaps it's a battle of wits.

This is a "setup" that Xia Zhi created to promote her Qi cultivation system, making it more systematic and easier for the general public to accept.

"This sounds like aptitude, talent, or ability, but aren't those things you're born with?"

Miss Yakumo frowned slightly.

In other words, anyone has the opportunity to come into contact with spiritual energy, but those with spiritual roots will have a corresponding advantage?
"From a basic definition, it is indeed something that is innate..."

"For example, spiritual energy has already appeared in the world, so any life born from now on has a chance of possessing spiritual roots..."

Xia Zhi blinked: "However, I can't tell you the probability; it's a company secret."

The sage of demons suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. Because the spiritual environment appeared, the spiritual root also appeared..."

"That's not it—"

The young man laughed heartily, "It's mainly because I've only just decided to assign a value to the concept of spiritual roots."

"Eh?"

The seventeen-year-old girl was slightly taken aback. What did this mean?

"This thing didn't exist before, and I myself don't have any spiritual roots to speak of."

The Nascent Soul cultivator said, "However, I am now preparing to make this concept a reality."

Matter and energy are both different forms of information encoding.

Advanced operators can directly access the underlying information architecture through the phenomenon layer.

He can now freely change the shape, properties, function, and even environment of matter, simply by altering the information attributes of the object.

Hardness, heat, magnetic field, friction, energy absorption...

That's how information is determined.

Xia Zhi didn't know if this was a youthful version of the Demon God's ability to manipulate phases, but he was making rapid progress on this path.

(End of this chapter)