You've only been cultivating for a few years, and you're already talking about cultivating

Qi Fei unfolded Zhu Yixin's "The Shadow God's Method" and found that the entire text was full of praise and worship, saying that the Shadow God was omnipotent and that everything had a shadow.

By worshipping with utmost sincerity, one can gain the ability to manipulate the shadows of all things, and thus control all things themselves.

His brows were furrowed.

What the hell is all this stuff?

This is completely different from the Shadow God Technique he practiced.

The Shadow God Technique he practiced was a cultivation method that expounded on "truth" and "shadow".

"Between heaven and earth, all things possess their inherent nature... They do not exist because people know them, nor do they perish because people are ignorant of them..."

"Everything has a body, and therefore its shadow... The shadow arises from the body, but is not the body itself; the shadow is revealed by consciousness, but is not the essence of the thing..."

The core of "Shadow God Technique" is that the world seen by the human eye and touched by the five senses is never the true appearance of the world, but rather the reflection of all things in human consciousness, just like the shadows cast by objects.

This may be difficult for the average person to understand.

However, Qi Fei was a philosophy enthusiast in his previous life.

The world that people see is not the world itself, but a projection of the world onto their own consciousness.

This is basic common sense in philosophy!

He immediately understood what the "Shadow God Technique" was talking about.

As for the Shadow God, the "Shadow God Law" states:

"...The Shadow God is formless, yet it bestows form upon all shadows; the Shadow God is nameless, yet it names all shadows; the Shadow God is still, yet it controls the movement of all shadows; the Shadow God is without birth, yet it transcends the birth and death of all shadows..."

"...When a shadow rises, the Shadow God is already within it; when a shadow disappears, the Shadow God has never left..."

The "Shadow God" mentioned in "The Shadow God Method" is not a god, but a metaphor for human "self-awareness".

It is precisely because of "self-awareness" that it can recognize all things, hence "the shadow god has no name, but names all shadows."

As a philosophy enthusiast, he already knew all this.

He never expected that the path of cultivation in this world of immortal cultivation would begin in this way!

That makes sense, though. These are questions that our ancestors in both Eastern and Western civilizations have considered. There's no reason why this world hasn't thought about them.

The cultivation method in the "Shadow God Method" is called "recognizing the spirit and discerning the shadow".

By discerning the "shadows" of the world, one can glimpse the "truth" of the world, and thus be able to distinguish the "spirit" from this turbid world.

"Spirit" can also be called "the spiritual energy of heaven and earth," which is the mist that Qi Fei has often seen since he transmigrated to this world.

There's fog in winter, and there's fog in summer; there's fog during the day, and there's fog at night. Sometimes the fog is thick, but more often it's just a thin, wispy mist.

In his eyes, spiritual energy was like mist.

It was because he understood the "Shadow God Technique" that he was able to absorb spiritual energy, embark on the path of immortality, and become a cultivator three years ago.

As he was pondering these things, he heard Zhu Yixin suddenly change color and blurt out:

"That's utter nonsense! What 'all you see are shadows,' what 'seeing shadows while looking for shadows'! It's blasphemy!"

He grew angrier as he spoke, and looking at the "Shadow God Technique" that Qi Fei had given him, he read aloud:

"The fools of the world do not understand this principle. They see only shadows and forget their true selves; they cling to illusions and lose sight of reality!"

"Even worse, some abandon the essential for the trivial, chasing shadows for shadows...like a madman's dream, like a blind man touching an elephant, they become insane and deranged, sinking into ruin, never to recover. How pitiful!"

The book "Shadow God Method" in his hand actually says that worshipping the Shadow God is "a fool's dream," "the blind men and the elephant," and "self-destruction!"

"I never imagined that the Holy Maiden would stray so far from the path of the Shadow God; she is utterly foolish!"

Zhu Yixin shook his head and sighed, "So be it, today wasn't a wasted trip. Seeing the Holy Maiden fall so low, I've given up!"

"In the end, we still have to rely on ourselves to revive the Shadow God Cult."

Seeing his expression, Qi Fei couldn't help but say, "But isn't it clearly stated in the 'Shadow God Technique'?"

"The 'concepts' of all things are merely reflections of real things in the mind, not the things themselves!"

He was asking questions about his spiritual practice.

If this "Shadow God Technique" is what Zhu Yixin claims it to be—worshipping and seeking divine intervention—then he has practiced it incorrectly.

"Nonsense!" Zhu Yixin interrupted coldly. "The truth is the truth, and the falsehood is the falsehood! What 'reflection in the mind'? That's all deceptive nonsense!"

"This..." Qi Fei pondered for a moment and gave an example:

"Imagine a group of prisoners in a cave. They have been there since childhood, bound by chains, unable to turn their heads, and can only see their shadows on the cave wall in front of them."

"Behind and above them was a fire, and a path ran through the cave. Along the path was a low wall, like a puppet show screen."

"There were certain people who carried various tools through the path behind the wall, and the firelight projected the tools through the wall onto the cave wall in front of the prisoners. These tools were models made based on real objects."

"The prisoner naturally assumed that the shadow was the only real thing."

"If a prisoner were to escape his shackles by chance and turn around to see the firelight and real objects, he would initially be blinded by the firelight. But once he gets used to it, he will gradually walk out of the cave and see the real world under the sunlight."

"Only then will he realize that his entire life had been nothing more than a small cave, and that everything he had thought was real was nothing more than an illusion created by light and shadow."

This is Plato's "Allegory of the Cave," used as a metaphor for the "world" one sees. It is similar in concept to the "Shadow God Method," both telling others to realize that the world they see is not the real "world."

After listening, Zhu Yixin looked at him like he was an idiot: "Ridiculous! You fools are just making trouble for yourselves. Where would you find such a place? Where would you find such fools?"

"I..." Qi Fei was about to argue when Zhu Yixin said, "How old are you? Just a young punk? How dare you criticize the 'Shadow God Technique'?"

"You've only been cultivating for a few years? When I was practicing the Shadow God Technique, you weren't even born yet!"

Qi Fei: "..."

Alright, alright, so you're starting to show off your seniority, huh!

If long cultivation makes you powerful, then the cultivation world must be full of turtle spirits, right?

Qi Fei didn't say anything more.

It's hard to persuade a fool with kind words.

That bastard can just spend his whole life blindly worshipping his god.

Suddenly, Qi Fei thought of a question.

How does he practice his spiritual cultivation when he worships gods?

"You...can you also see spiritual energy?" Qi Fei asked tentatively.

"Spiritual energy? You can see it?" Zhu Yixin stared at him strangely. "Spiritual energy is everywhere, invisible and intangible. How could you possibly 'see' it?"

Seeing Qi Fei's serious expression, he couldn't help but sigh, a look of pity appearing on his face:

"Your current condition is clearly due to practicing the Shadow God Technique incorrectly, causing you to develop hysteria."

He shook his head, his tone becoming increasingly earnest.

"If you come to your senses in time, return to the Shadow God's side, and sincerely feel the Shadow God's mercy, there may still be hope."

His expression and tone made it seem as if Qi Fei was someone who had gone mad and was practicing nonsense.