Chapter 27: Covered in Flags

After consuming some root extracts, Xiong Yan crushed a spirit crystal. A vast amount of spiritual energy, manifesting as a mist, swirled around him. As he practiced his breathing techniques, the spiritual fog seemed to come alive, constantly shifting and flowing.

Chu Xuan sat nearby, beginning his own slow breathing exercises—what could be called "leeching" spiritual energy.

In the world today, Xiong Yan was the only one luxurious enough to inhale and exhale spiritual energy daily. Others, even if they stumbled upon a rare opportunity, would only ever find a single spirit crystal or a small handful; they could never reach Xiong Yan’s level of consumption.

A moment later, Chu Xuan opened his eyes, feeling refreshed. Since the appearance of the "Daytime Star," Chu Xuan had not slept properly. Every single night, he was either pulling all-nighters or preparing for the next one. Fortunately, he was still young, but even so, he was mentally exhausted. Thus, whenever Xiong Yan practiced, he would come over to absorb some residual energy whenever he had the chance.

"How is your body feeling?"

"It feels much better!"

With that, Xiong Yan began to perform internal observation. This was not the true development of mental power, which would allow one to scan every organ and tissue within the body. In Xiong Yan’s current state of internal observation, his five internal organs appeared in five colors—red, yellow, cyan, white, and black—corresponding to the Five Elements of Fire, Earth, Wood, Metal, and Water. To gauge the health of his organs, he simply had to look at the distribution and vibrancy of these colors. It was less of a true internal scan and more of a special hallucination generated by his brain based on the state of his organs. In Xiong Yan's view, true internal observation could only occur once one had developed mental power to scan their own cells and organs.

A moment later, Xiong Yan nodded with satisfaction, a genuine smile appearing on his face. "My kidneys have improved, and the other organs and tissues have also shown significant recovery."

"I spent a month cultivating in the Void Realm. In a constant state, my internal energy circulated automatically, keeping me in a continuous state of cultivation. Back then, one day of practice was equivalent to ten days for others."

"Furthermore, I ate three pounds of meat, two fish, five pounds of rice, and two pounds of vegetables a day. All that food was eventually converted into internal energy. After a month, my true energy had completed the circulation of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, one of the twelve main meridians."

"Now, that meager amount of internal cultivation has transformed into pure essence, nourishing my body."

"Seven days ago, I was near death, experiencing a final burst of clarity. A strong gust of wind or a bit of strenuous exercise would have been enough to end me."

"But at this moment, my body has basically returned to normal. My organs have shifted from a state of failure to mere aging, and my eight major systems are working properly. I can even clearly feel my lifespan—I have at least another month to live!"

As he said this, Xiong Yan happily held up a single index finger.

"Only a month?" Chu Xuan asked.

"You don't understand. You are a complete layman when it comes to cultivation. These are two completely different states."

"When I was in that final burst of clarity, facing death at any moment, I didn't dare to breathe deeply, eat heartily, or perform vigorous breathing exercises, even with the spiritual energy available."

"Back then, I could only use the most basic breathing techniques to absorb energy; I didn't dare to use it to directly nourish my internal organs, let alone employ high-efficiency cultivation methods."

"But now, my state is similar to that of a normal elderly person. Although I only have a month left to live, my organs are healthy, and my internal systemic circulation is normal."

Xiong Yan pondered for a moment and added, "Right now, I am like those elderly people who are nearing the end of their natural lifespan and pass away without illness. My body is normal; even without spiritual energy to sustain me, I can walk, sit, lie down, eat, sleep, and even work normally."

Chu Xuan nodded after a moment of thought. He was now more certain of his hypothesis: Xiong Yan had not been reborn, but had awakened a time-related talent. He had inadvertently glimpsed the future, and the immense cost had left him in a near-death state upon waking. Everything since then had simply been a slow recovery. Even with the resurgence of spiritual energy, this world still operated on science!

"Then, are the extraordinary power systems in different Void Realms the same? If they aren't..."

Hearing Chu Xuan's question, Xiong Yan shook his head firmly. "Of course they aren't!"

"Void Realms differ from one another. While the cultivation systems generally fall into several broad categories, the details often vary, unless they are part of a series—like the *Liaozhai* series or the *Journey to the West* series, where the cultivation systems are consistent."

"However, most Void Realms have different power systems. Even so, any cultivation system that exists in reality can be made effective within the Void Realms."

"That is why the official power systems have always focused on the reality of the physical world. This is also why Senior Changkong, Peng Bing, and Lin Er are known as the three great grandmasters."

Before the resurgence of spiritual energy, those three had already begun researching immortality and the extraordinary, achieving significant success. Most importantly, the paths they pioneered were replicable. Those who came after could simply follow in their footsteps.

Peng Bing's path of blood and vitality was best suited for the current generation, whose average aptitude was the lowest, representing the present. Changkong's path of refining energy was best suited for the new generation born from this moment onward, representing the future. As for Lin Er's path of refining the spirit, it was best suited for geniuses and those with high intelligence.

"Furthermore, some Void Realms are inherently flawed. They don't follow the laws of conservation of energy or mass, or even the third law of thermodynamics. Guess what happens to the power systems of such realms when they are brought into reality?"

The same spell that could summon wind and rain in a Void Realm—capable of easily flooding the entire world—might only manage to flood a single school or building in reality. That was considered a good outcome, as at least it had an effect, even if it was significantly diminished. But many other spells and divine abilities simply ceased to function entirely!

After reflecting for a moment, Chu Xuan asked seriously, "So, even in the future, the real world still adheres to the laws of conservation of mass and energy, and the third law of thermodynamics?"

"Of course!"

Hearing this, Chu Xuan let out a sigh of relief and picked up a washed grape from the table, eating it one by one. The grape provided moisture, and his spirits lifted. "Good! That's good!"

"This spiritual resurgence isn't all that terrifying after all!"

"The vastness of the universe, the power of physical laws, and the solidity of science—how could a small resurgence of spiritual energy shake them?"

Watching Chu Xuan "planting flags" (making bold, optimistic assumptions), Xiong Yan did not want to interrupt him. Theoretically, Chu Xuan was correct. But no matter how bright the future might be, they lived in the present, not in some distant moment in time. Many problems remained, and many techniques and abilities, judged by current scientific standards, were nothing more than massive black boxes whose principles were completely unfathomable. Researching them was truly a struggle.