Demon Capital Slayer

Chapter 86 The Secrets of Cultivation (Part 2)

Gulu gulu...

The clear spring water in the kettle is boiling continuously on the induction cooker.

Over there, Suzune Tenyu was stumbling and wobbling as she manipulated the exoskeleton frame to 'imitate' the walking movements of a human infant, while Motoko Hideya was personally brewing tea for Mitsurugi.

But she used an induction cooker, which completely lacked the soul of traditional tea brewing.

Just kidding…

Before formally explaining what cultivation is, this woman inexplicably started brewing tea, and it's unclear what kind of esoteric talk she was engaging in.

"Do you see this pot of water?" Motoko Hideya looked up at Mitsuki.

"?" The young swordsman slowly typed out a question mark.

"This is spiritual practice."

"???"

“Okay, I don’t fully understand either, but this is an example given by a psychic master from the upper country when he was deconstructing his sermon.” Motoko Hideya rolled her eyes, instantly abandoning the atmosphere of philosophical discourse she had just been in.

"I think this is a very intuitive example."

"Ordinary people living in the present world are initially like a pot of water at room temperature."

"The power of the Netherworld is the heat transferred to the water from the outside. After absorbing enough heat, the water will boil and gain the power to push the lid of the kettle."

Motoko Hideya pointed to the furnace below.

"This is the power of the Netherworld."

"The process of water absorbing heat is a form of spiritual practice."

Steel House Motoko secretly wiped away a bead of sweat. The above are all reprints of that master's original words.

She couldn't explain it clearly even if we went into more detail.

"Similar to the evolution of aquatic organisms into terrestrial organisms?" Yu Jian suddenly said.

"Huh?" Now it was Motoko Hideya's turn to be puzzled.

She originally only intended to borrow the master's opening remarks to appear profound and mysterious, and then talk about various basic common sense of the inner world. Although these things are not top secret, they are things that ordinary people cannot usually access.

The young man in front of you may have an extraordinary background, but for some reason he doesn't understand the world of cultivators.

Therefore, these things should be very attractive to him.

Unexpectedly, Yu Jian, who was just an ordinary student, suddenly said something that even she, a true cultivator, couldn't understand.

It's like a tribal chief suddenly talking about nuclear fusion technology.

"I see."

Yu Jian stared intently at the kettle, or more precisely, at the boiling water inside.

"Heat, energy, water, the three states of matter, the netherworld, the present world, a coin has two sides."

"..." Motoko Hagane stared blankly at Mitsuki, who was muttering to himself.

Seriously? What's this?
I've only just begun.

Yu Jian closed his eyes and pondered for a moment.

When he opened his eyes again, they were filled with a sharp light.

"please continue."

"Uh, okay, let's get back to the training." Motoko Hideya tried to remain calm.

"The Netherworld is a world of spirits. Humans, as intelligent beings with high levels of intellect, may have been interacting with that dimension since the beginning of their existence. At some point, the first psychics appeared."

A few individuals among these humans have a clearer perception of the spiritual world. When they acquire the power of the Netherworld, either passively or actively, their own spirits can interfere with the external environment, producing various magical effects.

That was the original spell. "Motoko Hideya waved her hand, and the pale golden tea in the teacup in front of her quietly began to swirl.

"But the Netherworld is not safe. It contains all sorts of mysterious and dangerous beings that occasionally invade the mortal world due to the special phenomenon of the two worlds overlapping. Some of them have a natural hostility towards humans and even regard them as food."

"In order to fight against these monsters, psychics must have greater power. At that time, humans were still in the primitive era and had a common belief in nature and animism. The earliest concept of visualization was thus born."

"Initially, humans fantasized about becoming beasts and possessing their power, so their image in the Netherworld gradually changed, becoming half-human, half-beast or purely beast-like."

Later psychics referred to it as—the Primal Dharma Form.

Yu Jian's expression was focused, and his heart was beating faster. This was what he longed for and pursued!
"But animals have limited strength after all. Fortunately, humans have imagination, which is our greatest weapon."

Early psychics—well, let's call them practitioners, since humans had already begun actively training their psychic abilities by then.

Early practitioners endowed the primordial beasts they worshipped with various magical abilities through imagination. These beasts, possessing special abilities, were later known as monsters, divine beasts, spirit beasts, or auspicious beasts; the names may differ from place to place, but their essence remained similar.

"Gradually, wild monsters began to appear in the Netherworld. Now it is difficult to verify whether the visualization method came first or the monsters came first."

Some believe that monsters are actually wild animals that have gained power from the underworld, and that early cultivators initially drew inspiration from them.

Another theory suggests that human consciousness influenced the Netherworld, giving rise to new species resembling wild beasts.

"The evolution of mythology?" Yu Jian suddenly spoke up.

"Oh, you've already figured it out. What a clever young man," Motoko Hideya couldn't help but praise.

“Initially, they were ferocious beasts, then they combined with the power of nature to become monsters and divine beasts, and after further evolution, they became…” Motoko Hideya took a deep breath and uttered the word in a very solemn voice.

"God."

The air seemed to freeze, and Yu Jian involuntarily held his breath.

Then, Motoko Hideya continued, "The gods described in ancient myths often retain some characteristics of wild beasts, or even possess some kind of prototype. This is proof of the remnants left over from the evolution of mythology."

"Specific details may differ, but the quality of visualization methods can generally be seen from the type of object being visualized."

The highest level of visualization involves visualizing legendary deities, while lower levels focus on mythical beasts and monsters. In other words, it is precisely because of these visualization methods that mythology gradually evolved into its present form.

Only the most basic and primitive visualization methods involve visualizing various natural creatures.

Upon hearing this, Mitsurugi couldn't help but look at Motoko Hideya's wooden staff.

“That’s right. Although shamans are ancient, they are not powerful beings. Shamans who can summon and command animal spirits are more like communicators or mediators, and their abilities are quite limited.”

"Is that so..." Yu Jian's expression remained unchanged, but his heart skipped a beat.

He thought of "Birds and Beasts Playing".

So, it was actually a very ordinary visualization method?
If that's the case, how could "Birds and Beasts Playing" appear in the Asura's Dream? That place doesn't seem like an ordinary world at all.

It was even sealed beneath the statue of the Myo-wang, as if the Myo-wang were used to suppress it.

I have a feeling that the truth of the matter is not like that.

"Once you start practicing visualization, can you stop or switch to something else?" Yu Jian asked seemingly casually.

"As far as I know, it's unlikely. Perhaps the most powerful cultivation organizations have secret methods that can achieve this, but most people can't change it once they start cultivating, because different methods will influence each other."

Unless there is a lineage between the two, or the stronger concept forcefully absorbs the weaker one. But the former is too rare, and the latter may encounter unexpected changes.

Therefore, choosing a visualization method is something that requires utmost care. "Motoko Hideya said earnestly.

"I see." Yu Jian's mindset was surprisingly calm. As long as there was a solution, all that was left was to try his best to implement it.

"What is the imagery?" Yu Jian asked.

"Hmm, how do you think animals become mythical beasts? And how do mythical beasts become gods?" Motoko Hideya didn't answer his question immediately, but instead posed a new one.

“To grant… special abilities,” Yujian tentatively replied, based on what he had heard before.

"Humans cannot imagine things they have never encountered. Imagery is the cognition that humans develop after observing various phenomena in the world. It is also a mark left on the human soul after the interaction between external things and one's own experiences."

"The earliest understanding may have been of certain natural phenomena, such as burning flames, flowing springs, strong winds, and thunderclaps."

But as civilizations evolved, more metaphysical elements began to emerge in each civilization, and even a single story could become a completely new image.

"Mythical beasts and even gods are the ultimate products born from the combination of various powerful images."

“Those practitioners who have mastered the highest levels of visualization techniques possess power as great as that of gods.”

In other words, the essence of visualization is to transform all things in the world into one's own power, and practitioners who truly master visualization thus possess infinite possibilities.

In contrast, martial arts, which are limited by the physical body, are somewhat difficult to practice.

Yu Jian couldn't help but sigh, but he had no intention of giving up swordsmanship. Like 99% of men, he quite enjoyed the feeling of wielding swords and always harbored a dream of becoming a sword immortal.

After all, the first game I played as a child was "The Legend of Sword and Fairy O".

In addition, he doesn't think everyone else is right; he feels he has to try it himself, otherwise it wouldn't be youthful enough.

"How do you know all this?" Yu Jian frowned slightly.

The other party's attitude was very strange today, so he had to test the waters.

“This information is, to some extent, public information, and is only restricted to ordinary people who are not related to the cultivation world,” Motoko Hideya said frankly.

"The truly valuable knowledge is the method of visualization."

What methods can be used for visualization to obtain specific images? What images can be combined to successfully form a Dharma image? How should these combinations be adjusted? How can conflicts be avoided?

These technical details are the true foundation of each faction's strength. Often, it takes generations of research and accumulation, spanning millennia, for a single school or even a civilization to arrive at a relatively correct answer.

"Practitioners call this relatively correct answer 'Dharma Body'."

Yu Jian took a deep breath, silently sensing the power contained within the word.

"So, the older the civilization, the more advanced its cultivation techniques?" he then asked.

"Not entirely correct, but visualization techniques do require sufficient accumulation to reach higher levels. Occasionally, a peerless genius might have inspiration that transcends the times, but the probability of that is extremely small. Most later generations need to draw on the wisdom of their predecessors to make breakthroughs."

"Is there any other way to obtain the imagery besides visualization?" Yu Jian asked.

"Yes, an image is itself an experience, and many of the images in the oldest visualizations originate from this. Some powerful images that can endow their owners with special abilities are themselves the prototype of the Dharma body."

But this method is extremely dangerous. Can you become fire? Can you become water? Are you a legendary demigod hero?
If an ordinary person were to experience those crazy adventures in mythology that would be tantamount to suicide for mortals...

Aside from the chosen ones who constantly trigger miracles, how many can escape by sheer luck?

"The survival rate is just too low," Motoko Hideya said with a sigh.

"I see." Yu Jian did his best to keep his expression from giving himself away.

Yes, such people do exist.

Clad in armor and wielding a sharp sword, he single-handedly slew the world-destroying dragon.

So... I already possess the imagery I gained from my previous adventures? What exactly could it be?

"Compared to such risky behavior, the visualization methods summarized by our predecessors are much safer, but the practice process is not simple, because people cannot imagine things they have not experienced."

Just like playing through a Dragon Quest game, you might resonate with the protagonist, but that's not comparable to a hero who has actually experienced all the battles.

Therefore, most practitioners, after mastering some of the power, will enter the ordinary world or seek various experiences in the present world, thereby improving their understanding and perception of visualization methods.

As for the specific kind of experience needed, it is often related to the visualization methods of spiritual practice, which is also a kind of accumulation or foundation.

The reason why freelancers without a school or affiliation have limited development is mostly because they lack these things; even if they are very talented, they are still limited by them. "Speaking of this, Motoko Hideya couldn't help but show a listless expression.

"Is the end the divine?" Yu Jian suddenly asked.

“Gods are not a fixed concept.” Motoko Hideya shook her finger.

"Since you know that myths evolve with the development of civilization, you should also be aware that the image of the gods in legends will change. These are also things that cultivators are doing."

The views held by various forces are not static, but constantly changing with development.

A thousand years ago, a being with great strength, impervious to swords and spears, and immune to water and fire might have been enough to be called a god.

"But in today's world, does someone who doesn't have the power to burn mountains and boil seas deserve to be called a god? They should at least be able to defeat a battleship, right?" Motoko Hideya said half-jokingly.

In other words, high-level cultivators possess at least the comprehensive strength of a battleship?
Yu Jian sighed inwardly, then another question came to mind.

If there is an elephant in a room, it is impossible for the people living there not to be aware of its presence, even if someone can cover it up.

"If the gods are so powerful, why have we never heard anything about them before?"

“That’s too little,” Motoko Hideya said directly.

"There are very few people who are qualified, capable, and successful in practicing the Apocalyptic level visualization techniques, and among them, there is only one in a thousand years who can truly reach a level comparable to that of a god."

Visualization techniques aren't like skills in computer games, which you can learn instantly with a single click. Besides, even RPG skills need to be leveled up to reach their maximum power.

"I see." Yu Jian nodded; the analogy was easy to understand.

What does "Apocalyptic level" mean?

"There are differences between gods. The Apocalypse level is the official classification of strategic-level spiritual energy by the International Spiritual Energy Organization because its practitioners will possess power comparable to nuclear weapons in the later stages. Currently, it is firmly controlled by a few countries."

"Nuclear weapons..." Yu Jian pondered this simple and brutal comparison, yet it felt strangely reasonable.

"Even so, where have all those who achieved great success in their cultivation gone? They couldn't have simply died of old age, could they?"

"Of course not. The stronger the cultivator, the more they can break free from the constraints of the physical body, and their lifespan will also increase accordingly. In the end, they can even make their spirit exist independently of their physical body."

The reason why god-level powerhouses no longer appear is because…” Motoko Hideya drawled out her words.

"They've all gone to the depths of the Netherworld."

"Oh, we've landed." Yu Jian blurted out his dissatisfaction.

"What do you mean by 'landing'?" Motoko Hideya was clearly unaware of the new meaning that the term had acquired in later generations.

"It's nothing," Yu Jian shook his head.

Are there any real gods in this world?

"It is speculated that the so-called gods should be the most powerful cultivators in ancient times, and 99% of modern people have only heard about the related legends. According to rumors, the gods will live in the Netherworld for a long time, and in a sense, they are almost the same as the Netherworld."

For at least the past hundred years, there has been no record of a powerhouse of that level directly entering the mortal realm; in fact, even indirect intervention is rare.

Motoko Steel shrugged and made a casual joke.

"Perhaps the gods also have their own work to do."

Yu Jian nodded and then asked a question that would interest any Easterner.

"If there are gods, then are there immortals in this world?"

“Immortal…” Motoko Hideya’s tone was strange, and her gaze involuntarily drifted to the boy’s distinctive white hair in front of her.

"Yes, they are unique in the East Asian cultivation system. They are not gods, yet they are comparable to gods."

"Outsiders have no idea about the specific details. They have only heard that immortals are the freest practitioners, and that they have transcended the limitations of visualization in some sense."

Those who cultivate immortal arts will not transform into anything else in the end; their physical form and cultivation method will often manifest an appearance indistinguishable from that of a human. "Hagane Motoko sighed.

"According to the sayings circulating in the inner world, the cultivation of immortality is not about becoming a god, a Buddha, or a mythical beast, but about becoming a human."

"People of the mountains."

Miken's eyes almost shone.

"How can I cultivate immortal techniques?" These words slipped out, but he immediately realized he had said something foolish.

"If I had known, would I still be here?"

Motoko Hideya couldn't help but chuckle as she looked at Mitsurugi, but instead of mocking him, she showed a nostalgic expression.

There was a time when she too harbored such hopes and expectations.

Damn it, don't have that old woman's mentality!

Motoko Hideya cursed herself inwardly.

"In fact, the Upper Kingdom has tried to popularize immortal techniques several times, believing that this would help change the dangerous and unpredictable nature of the Netherworld, and even tried to promote it as early as a thousand years ago."

"The Daoist Canon of Open Source, the Treasure of Heavenly Palace, the Daoist Canon of Longevity, and the Daoist Canon of Orthodox Scripture have appeared in at least five publicly printed versions throughout history. Although they do not involve specific cultivation methods, they contain all the basic theories required for cultivating immortality."

"The result?" Yu Jian asked instinctively.

"We can't understand it at all. We barbarians can't understand it at all."

"Perhaps the superior nation isn't another country at all, but another civilization, a civilization that's hard to understand." Motoko Hideya's tone was calm yet tinged with a sigh.

This answer was truly unexpected.

PS: This chapter focuses on the setting, so it will not be divided into two chapters.

Two hundred and fifty thousand words have passed, and the protagonist is finally about to begin his formal cultivation! Hooray!
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(End of this chapter)