Pretending to be a genius starts with the civilization advancement assessment.

Chapter 264 I'm Sorry, Senior Sister (4.8K)

The transport ship "Morning Star" sailed smoothly on its pre-designed interstellar route. Outside the windows, the starlight was distorted and stretched, while inside the cabin, there was a tranquil atmosphere designed for long-term voyages.

In his private rest pod, Lin Yi was carrying out his daily cultivation routine. While further mastering the three-fold rule domain and striving to quickly grasp the ability to gather and disperse at will, he was also constantly accumulating spiritual energy to prepare for the next rule's impact.

Only two days into the voyage, the soft lights inside the cabin flickered slightly, and Xuanji's figure quietly appeared beside Lin Yi.

"Master, I have received a virtual network invitation from Third Senior Sister, Her Majesty Qianhuan, with the message: Junior Brother, would you like to have a chat?"

Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes, the light of rules flowing in his eyes subdued.

Third Senior Sister Qianhuan?
A thought flickered in his mind: the fact that she had come looking for him at this time meant that his senior brother, Zhenyu, had already informed her of his breakthrough.

Lin Yi dared not neglect this Eternal Senior Sister, who had a lively personality but had deeply inherited the true teachings of his master's Illusory Laws.

"Xuanji, reply to Senior Sister that I am available anytime and will accept the invitation."

"Okay, master."

The next moment, the scene inside the rest cabin spread out like a watercolor painting, quickly replaced by another spectacular sight.

Lin Yi found himself standing in a strange space composed of countless flowing dream colors and fragmented starlight.

Beneath my feet lies a road seemingly paved with frozen sunset clouds, stretching into an unknowable depth. All around me, blurry phantoms of the world rise and fall, and I seem to hear the whispers of billions of creatures, yet nothing is clearly audible.

"Junior brother, over here~"

A voice, tinged with a hint of laziness and mockery, rang out from ahead.

Lin Yi looked up and saw Qian Huan lying on her side on a cloud formed from pure light, one hand supporting her chin, her beautiful face radiant with a gentle smile, her flowing, iridescent skirt cascading down, perfectly blending with the bizarre and colorful surroundings.

"Third Senior Sister."

Lin Yi stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

"No need for formalities~" Qianhuan waved her hand casually, and auspicious clouds drifted closer. She curiously sized up Lin Yi, her beautiful eyes sparkling. "Tsk tsk, it hasn't been that long since we last met? Senior Brother told me that your spatial rules have reached perfection, and you've already reached the third level of the Domain. Amazing, truly amazing. Junior Brother, you won't become one of those characters in the drama, the youngest but the most powerful, will you?"

Lin Yi smiled at his senior's teasing but remained silent.

After teasing Lin Yi for a bit, Qian Huan sat up straight, her tone becoming slightly more formal:
"My eldest brother told me everything. Before Master went into seclusion, he specifically instructed my eldest brother and me to take good care of you, especially regarding your cultivation. My eldest brother is busy guarding the Prison of Sin, so the responsibility of teaching you will fall on me during this period, right? You don't have any objections, do you?"

"Junior brother, I couldn't be happier. Thank you, Third Senior Sister." Lin Yi was overjoyed and quickly replied.

The eldest brother specializes in the laws of space. Although his realm is there, he still has no problem guiding the rules. However, he is definitely not as useful as the senior sister, whose illusory laws can simulate other laws.

"Hmm, that's good."

Qianhuan nodded in satisfaction, then got to the point, "Since I'm taking over, then I have to ask you, Senior Sister. What are your thoughts on the next rule? Have you decided what to choose?"

Lin Yi had already given this issue considerable thought.

He answered without hesitation:

"Time rules".

Upon hearing this, Qianhuan did not show much surprise on her face; instead, she had an expression that said, "I knew it."

With a light tap of her jade-like finger, a wisp of spiritual light flew out from her fingertip, rapidly evolving in the air and transforming into a miniature starry sky in front of Lin Yi.

The birth, brilliance, and decay of stars are accelerated billions of times, vividly demonstrating the power of time.

Qianhuan nodded slightly: "I guessed you would choose this. If it were me, having comprehended the rules of space in such a short time, I would definitely be tempted to challenge this last and most mysterious superior rule. Spacetime and time are closely related, like two sides of the same coin. If one can master both, the potential is limitless."

But then, she changed the subject, her tone becoming serious. At the same time, several blurry phantom roads appeared beside the miniature starry sky. Some were wide and flat but ended low, while others were rugged and dangerous but led to a cloud-shrouded peak. There were also a few that were faintly visible in between the two.

"However, junior brother..."

Qianhuan stared into Lin Yi's eyes. Although he still had that unique dreamy quality, his gaze was much more serious.

"Although you must have learned about the importance of rule selection from various classic texts and even your senior brothers, as your senior sister, there are some things I must solemnly warn you about once again."

"Once the path of rules is chosen, it is fundamental and there is almost no turning back."

As she spoke, the illusory images of those roads began to change.

On that wide, flat road, many blurry figures appeared. They walked easily, but when they reached the end, they were faced with an insurmountable barrier. Some tried to turn back, but found that the way they came was blurred. They could only wander in front of the barrier until they died.

On that rugged and treacherous road, there were few people. Many had collapsed halfway up, turning into specks of light and disappearing. Only a very few, their figures gleaming with unwavering determination, continued to climb with great difficulty.

"In the vast universe, there is no shortage of exceptionally talented geniuses. When they are at the Star Domain level, they rely on their talents and underestimate the difficulty of cultivating certain higher or even superior rules. They blindly choose them simply because they are powerful."

Qianhuan's voice carried a hint of regret, "And the result? At the crucial moment when they needed to elevate the rules to laws, construct a divine kingdom, and strive for eternity, they were stuck halfway. In the end, they either had to abandon their initial ambitions and choose a weaker path of laws to eke out a living, their future ruined; or they exhausted the seemingly long but actually limited lifespan of the Realm-Evolving level, dying a sad end and turning into a wisp of dust in the sea of ​​stars, without even leaving a name behind."

Her gaze swept over the blurry road images, finally settling on the most treacherous one: "Rules are the bricks, laws are the blueprint, and the divine kingdom is the palace. The quality and type of the bricks determine the foundation and potential of the palace. Do you understand this principle?"

Lin Yi's expression was solemn as he glanced at the illusory yet profoundly meaningful images. He said in a deep voice, "I understand Senior Sister's admonition. Foundational rules form the basis of the world, advanced rules add changes, higher rules enhance the foundation, and superior rules determine whether the hall can reach the supreme dome."

"It's good that you can understand this level."

Qianhuan gave him an approving look, and the dreamlike scenery around him changed again. The phantoms of those roads merged and evolved into a vague process from the star field level to the derivative realm, and then to eternity.

"There are two core conditions for advancing from the Star Domain level to the Derivation Realm."

As he spoke, five light cores of different colors and extremely stable appeared in front of Qianhuan, representing the five fundamental rules of metal, wood, water, fire and earth.

"First, you must at least fully comprehend these five fundamental rules. These are the most indispensable framework for constructing the inner world; they are the foundation of the world."

Then, a brighter light, with a unique rhythm, appeared and merged into the five light cores, guiding them to build a simple yet stable three-dimensional structure.

"Second, comprehend a law. With this law as the core and the guiding principle, suppress and gather the power of all the laws that have been comprehended, only then can the final construction and stability of the inner world be completed, and truly step into the realm of evolution."

She paused, then pointed to the simple structure and explained, "So, in the purest theoretical sense, a Star Domain level being only needs to comprehend five fundamental rules, and then elevate one of them, such as the Rule of Metal, to the Law of Metal, to attempt to break through to the Derivation Realm." "But..."

"A world constructed in that way, because it only incorporates five of the most basic rules, has an overly simple structure, a weak energy cycle, and a sparse rule network, resulting in a pitifully low world strength."

With a wave of her hand, the simple structure shook violently under simulated pressure, cracked, and eventually collapsed and dissipated.

"Trying to use such a fragile world to support the soul and power of a Transcendent Realm level is almost guaranteed to fail. Even if the person survives, they will be severely injured."

"Moreover, there is a fatal hidden danger."

In the image, the golden light of the core law becomes dim and exclusive, causing the other faint points of light that try to approach to be repelled far away.

"Once you comprehend a rule into a law in advance, even if it is just the most basic foundational law, its powerful exclusivity and dominance will cause huge interference and obstacles to your subsequent comprehension of new rules, and the difficulty will increase exponentially! It is equivalent to cutting off your future potential."

Qianhuan looked at Lin Yi, and the surrounding scenery once again focused on the choices of those paths.

"Therefore, any Star Domain level individual with a bit of ambition and talent will, if conditions permit, choose to comprehend as many rules as possible before advancing to the Derivation Realm, until they reach the limit of the Star Domain level—the perfection of nine rules, constructing nine realms! This will lay the most solid foundation, providing the richest materials and the most stable structure for the future creation of a divine kingdom."

In the scene, on the rugged road leading to the summit, nine brightly lit, differently colored foundation stones appear beneath the climbers' feet.

Lin Yi nodded silently. This was the path he had taken, and also the choice of the vast majority of geniuses who aspired to reach the pinnacle.

"However, the problem lies here, and also in the more distant realm of eternity."

Qianhuan's tone became increasingly solemn, and the dreamlike colors around them seemed to settle down and become deeper.

The scene before her evolved once more, revealing a powerful being of the Transcendent Realm facing an endless path of laws that seemed to be composed of countless complex runes and mists over a long period of time.

"After reaching the next realm, you need to cultivate one of your chosen core laws to a state of perfection. Using this as the core engine, you can completely transform the small world within your body into a miniature universe containing a portion of the true essence of the universe—what we call the divine kingdom. Only in this way can you cross the insurmountable barrier and ascend to the position of an eternal god."

She stared intently at Lin Yi. Beside the image of the Path of Laws, several forks appeared, marked with phantom images of "Superior Laws," "Higher Laws," and "Foundation Laws," respectively. The length and fog density of each path were completely different.

"But, junior brother, have you considered this? Many prodigies, full of vigor at the Star Domain level, chose advanced rules, or even, like you, superior rules, as their core laws for breaking through to the Realm of Derivation. They successfully constructed powerful nine-fold domains and advanced to the Realm of Derivation with advanced or superior laws as their core. But when they reached the Realm of Derivation level and truly began to cultivate this law in depth, attempting to push it to perfection, they discovered that its difficulty far exceeded their imagination!"

"The higher laws, especially those concerning time and space that touch upon the very origin of the universe, are so profound and complex that they can make any genius despair."

Qianhuan's voice carried a hint of genuine sigh. In the image, on the path representing the "superior law," many figures were moving at an extremely slow pace, even coming to a complete stop at a certain point, their figures gradually fading away.

"Some people, halfway through their cultivation, find themselves with no way forward, or their progress is so slow it's appalling. Watching their lifespan at the Transcendent Realm level steadily dwindle, they are forced to abandon the core law they initially chose."

In the video, a stagnant figure struggles back to the crossroads and chooses the path marked "Higher Laws." However, this path is also quite long, and his figure seems to have dimmed somewhat due to his previous exertion.

"They then elevated another rule they had mastered—perhaps another higher rule, or even a foundational rule—to a law, and continued to cultivate around it, attempting to break through to eternity."

"This path is rugged and difficult. Not to mention the risks and decline in strength caused by changing the core laws along the way, the long time it takes is enough to wear down many people."

Qianhuan's tone carried a hint of cold reality.

"Some prodigies exhaust their lifespan at the Transcendent Realm level through this constant process of trying, failing, and trying again, ultimately failing to cultivate any law to perfection, dying with regret, without even having the chance to choose the foundational law to achieve the weakest eternity."

In the video, those figures who changed paths ultimately failed to reach their destination and vanished one after another as specks of light.

She threw the question directly at Lin Yi, her tone more serious than ever before, and the dreamlike scene around them seemed to freeze, as if awaiting his answer:

“Junior brother, it’s obvious that in your plan, besides the five essential foundational rules and the time rule that you’re determined to challenge, you must also be planning to choose higher rules like the life rule for the remaining three, rather than the easier advanced rules.”

"This means that your future choices of core rules will almost certainly be limited to higher-level or superior rules, leaving you with virtually no safer fallback option of advanced rules."

"Senior sister is asking you, have you ever seriously considered what if—and I mean just what if—after you advance to the Realm of Evolution based on the higher-level rules, you find during your long Realm-level journey that the difficulty of cultivating it to perfection is simply too great, your progress is far below expectations, and you even see the shadow of your lifespan running out?"

"What will you choose then?"

"Is it a matter of settling for second best, abandoning the higher laws, and choosing a higher law that you have mastered, such as the law of life, as the new core, and starting to accumulate from scratch?"

"If even the chosen higher laws seem hopeless in the end, then you can only downgrade again and ultimately use some kind of foundational law as the core to challenge eternity."

"If you really reach that point, putting aside the fact that eternity achieved through the foundational laws would be incredibly weak and at the bottom among the gods, would the lifespan consumed by each core transformation be enough to support you to reach that point?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yi fell silent.

He sensed the deep concern and subtle advice hidden in Qianhuan's words.

Clearly, it wasn't that his senior sister didn't think highly of his talent; rather, it was because she had witnessed the downfall of too many prodigies that she hoped he could have a relatively safe way out.

Among the remaining rules, choosing an "advanced rule" with decent potential and moderate difficulty as an alternative to the core law is indeed a "smart" approach that has proven effective throughout the long history of the Star Sea.

If one suffers a setback on the path to the highest position, at least there is a compromise option to preserve one's life and eternal status, preventing a complete defeat.

However, Lin Yi sighed softly in his heart.

"I'm sorry, senior sister. I know you mean well, but you know nothing about my talent."

Although his senior sister made it sound very serious, Lin Yi was well aware that his situation was completely different from those of the geniuses his senior sister knew, and there was no comparison between them at all.

Based on the amount of spiritual energy he consumed in comprehending rules of varying difficulty over this period, Lin Yi estimated that the amount of spiritual energy he needed to cultivate any law at the Derivation Realm level, whether it was the upper level, the advanced level, or the foundation level, was likely to be roughly the same.

Since the time cost is the same, the goal should naturally be set on the option with the greatest potential.

Therefore, there was nothing for him to consider at all.

In other words, there are only two superior rules; otherwise, he might even choose all of them.

Therefore, Lin Yi could only offer an apologetic smile and solemnly reply, "Thank you for your guidance and care, Senior Sister. However, I, your junior brother, am confident I can do it!"

He made no grand pronouncements or impassioned speeches, but those simple four words, "I'm confident I can," revealed his fearless determination to climb to the summit.

　It's so hard to get 10,000 words a day, it feels like another day of being bombarded with 10,000 words. But I finally got that badge for getting 10,000 words a day for a month. Please keep reading and give me monthly votes for some consolation...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)