Cultivating Immortality Starts with Rubbing a Computer

Chapter 36 Alien Species
Fang Jun, whose "God" was far superior to them, naturally knew about the discussions of the other monks in the blacksmith shop.

He just smiled and continued walking forward.

When passing by a pastry shop on the street, Fang Jun had an idea and stopped. He took out a few copper coins from his storage bag and bought a piece of osmanthus cake.

The owner of the pastry shop greeted with a smile, "Master Li, why are you here so early today?"

"Well, there's not much work today."

Fang Jun nodded, took the wrapped oil paper cloth, turned and left.

Turning into the alley, I saw the pomegranate tree in my yard sticking out of the wall from afar.

Under the tree, a small figure is looking around.

Seeing Fang Jun, the pigtails on her head immediately swayed as she moved: "Grandpa!"

Fang Jun took out the sweet-scented osmanthus cake from his cloth bag and said, "Run slowly, don't fall."

The little girl ran over and took the osmanthus cake: "Thank you, Grandpa! I want to hear the monk's story today."

Fang Jun smiled and patted her head: "Okay, today I will start by talking about what it means to be a cultivator."

The little girl blinked her eyes and said, "Aren't monks people who cultivate immortality?"

Fang Jun shook his head: "It's not that simple. A cultivator has the following characteristics."

"First, the monk consists of five parts: controller, arithmetic unit, memory, input device, and output device."

"Second, the five parts of the monk can self-iterate and upgrade."

"Third, the five parts of a monk will gradually merge into one during the iterative upgrade process."

The little girl tilted her head and asked, "Grandpa, what are these controllers and computing units you're talking about?"

Fang Jun smiled slightly: "The so-called controller is naturally your brain. For powerful cultivators, it can also be spiritual consciousness."

"To put it simply, just like when you speak now, does it require your brain to control your mouth to speak?"

The little girl nodded. "So what is an arithmetic unit?"

Fang Jun explained: "Your brain only tells you to speak, but the specific words you want to say require your brain to process them separately."

"For example, if you ask me 'So what is an arithmetic unit?' It's the result of your brain's processing. That process is the calculation, and your brain is the arithmetic unit."

The little girl's eyes widened. "Grandpa, in that case, the controller and the arithmetic unit are integrated, right?"

Fang Jun nodded approvingly. "Yes, so this integrated thing is called a central processing unit. Furthermore, the brain can store memories, so it also functions as a memory. These three together are called a host."

The little girl listened intently: "So what are input and output?"

Fang Jun smiled and continued to explain patiently: "If you couldn't hear what I said, you naturally wouldn't ask me these questions. But the fact that you can answer proves that you heard me."

"And the thing you use to hear me is called an ear. It's an input device. For a monk, all six senses are input devices."

The little girl's eyes lit up, and she answered first: "My mouth, which is speaking now, is called an output device? If I touch Grandpa, my hand is also called an output device?"

Fang Jun nodded in appreciation: "This child is teachable!"

Upon hearing this, the little girl puffed out her chest and said proudly, "Of course. My mother said I'm a genius with three spiritual roots and a high level of comprehension."

Fang Jun smiled and continued, "These five aspects can all be continuously improved for cultivators. This is reflected in the fact that the higher the cultivation level, the smarter the brain and the sharper the five senses."

"Even when one's cultivation reaches a certain level, these five parts can be replaced by spiritual consciousness, just like the brain has three parts that function as one." The little girl asked doubtfully, "But Grandpa, what's the point of this division?"

Fang Jun nodded: "Of course it makes sense. This division can guide the cultivation of cultivators."

"For example, if you know you can't multitask, you can improve your controller; if you know you think slowly, you can improve your arithmetic unit."

The little girl suddenly realized: "Isn't this the secret method? If you want to gain abilities other than the skills, you must practice the corresponding secret method."

Fang Jun nodded approvingly: "Yes, this is the secret method. In fact, many secret methods have the ability to assist in advancement."

"Essentially, in order to break through the foundation building stage, all five parts need to meet certain levels."

"However, these requirements cannot be achieved through ordinary practice."

The little girl asked in confusion, "Why? Isn't the purpose of cultivation techniques to improve realms? Why can't I do it?"

Fang Jun explained, "It's because of time. It's true that the more advanced the technique, the stronger the ability will be after practicing it, and the easier it will be to break through the realm."

"But don't overlook one thing: the more advanced the technique, the harder it is to practice."

"Without the corresponding qualifications, practicing overly advanced techniques will not lead to success even when one grows old and old."

"Then, our clever ancestors came up with a solution. Since practicing the entire method wouldn't work, could they practice a portion of it? Thus, the secret method was created."

The little girl opened her eyes wide in surprise: "This is how the secret method came about!"

Fang Jun nodded, then shook his head: "Not necessarily. Perhaps the secret techniques were invented early on, and then various secret techniques were integrated into more advanced techniques. Secret techniques may not necessarily be derived from advanced techniques."

The little girl pressed the issue, "Which came first, the secret technique or the advanced technique?"

Fang Jun smiled and said, "Both situations may exist simultaneously. This is because there are so many sources for the original techniques. Advanced techniques can be directly created by geniuses, or they can be the result of the iteration of various secret techniques."

At this point, Fang Jun suddenly sighed, "However, whether it's a technique or a secret technique, it all requires time to cultivate. But the invention of elixirs has changed everything. You can improve yourself without spending time."

The little girl said excitedly: "Yes, the invention of the elixir is really great!"

Fang Jun thought to himself, "That's really great! I'm sacrificing my own cultivation time to refine the elixir, and in the end, the lion's share goes to someone else."

"But objectively speaking, the invention of elixirs has improved productivity, and the benefits gained by alchemists are sufficient."

While thinking this in his heart, Fang Jun said gently on the surface, "Of course it's good. Not only the elixirs, but also the formations and spiritual plants can objectively assist the cultivators in their cultivation, allowing them to have more time to improve their cultivation and increase the chances of breaking through."

The little girl was fascinated and said, "Then the ancestors who first invented elixirs, formations, and spiritual plants must have been extremely great."

Fang Jun nodded. "Indeed. Unfortunately, the world of immortal cultivation has experienced several Dharma-ending periods, and the records of the original inventor have long been lost."

At this moment, a stern female voice came from a distance: "Keke, what are you doing? Have you finished your homework today? Come back quickly!"

The little girl Coco shuddered when she heard this and quickly responded, "Mom, I'll be right there!"

Then she said to Fang Jun, "I'm sorry, Grandpa, I have to go now. I haven't finished my homework for today."

Fang Jun waved his hand nonchalantly: "Go ahead, go ahead, there will be plenty of time later."

Coco held the osmanthus cake and stuffed it into her mouth in no time. Her white cheeks were filled with it, and she turned around and left, jumping.

Fang Jun looked at her back and said to himself, "The path to immortality is slow and long, but if I could plant a different species along this path, perhaps a unique flower would bloom one day."

(End of this chapter)