I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 491Book 2: : Asking the Demon Ancestor about the Dao, Great Achievement in the Cultivation Method

Book 2: Chapter 491: Asking the Demon Ancestor about the Dao, Great Achievement in the Cultivation Method

Vol 2 Chapter 491 Asking the Demon Ancestor about the Dao, Great Achievement in the Cultivation Method

"Brother Bailian, what did those two founding masters from Leiyin Temple teach you?"

Even the Creation Daoist pressed the question.

Bailian, who had been frank earlier, now pressed his palms together and smiled without speaking. Everyone immediately understood: whatever he had gained from those two great powers was abundant, and he chose not to share it.

The Creation Daoist seemed unbothered and even smiled as he said, "This is also Brother Bailian's fate. We have moved one step closer to the Hongmeng Purple Qi."

He could appear so magnanimous, but the others did not mirror that expression.

Zheng Fa watched coldly at the side, noting their reactions with extraordinary clarity.

Even the Golden-Winged Great Peng, who had come with Bailian, now showed an odd expression—part envy, part jealousy.

The Gu God and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor wore faces of deep apprehension, a fear even stronger than what they had shown toward Zheng Fa earlier.

Regardless, Zheng Fa's displayed strength was far inferior to Bailian's. The Gu God could manipulate Zheng Fa through her Gu Insects, but she had no confidence she could control Bailian.

The only ones likely happier than the Creation Daoist were actually those Dharmakaya-level members of the Lu Clan.

For them, the best outcome would be obtaining the Hongmeng Purple Qi. But these people had slowly realized a painful fact—their cultivation, comprehension, and opportunities were insufficient compared to others, and their chance of getting the Hongmeng Purple Qi was slim.

So their secondary hope was that they themselves could not obtain Hongmeng Purple Qi, because if everyone else obtained it, Haori Mountain's situation would be beyond repair.

Everyone in the hall thought differently;conversation quickly fell flat and they dispersed after only a few words.

Zheng Fa, the Gu God, and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor still headed to the small courtyard under Mingyue's guidance. Halfway there, the Gu God suddenly spoke up: "Brother You has been here a long time. I regrettably have not had the chance to properly debate the Dao with you. Is there an opportunity today?"

Turning, she saw the White-Boned Demon Ancestor nodding as well, as if eager to make him a companion.

Zheng Fa nodded slightly, and the three of them arrived at the small courtyard where Zheng Fa was temporarily staying.

After Mingyue left, Zheng Fa sat in the main room and looked at the two before him, still puzzled: Why were these two so eager to meet him?

The Gu God and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor exchanged a glance, and the Gu God spoke first:

"Brother Shi, what do you think about Brother Bailian's opportunity?"

Zheng Fa fell silent for a moment before confessing his true feeling: "Envy."

"Do you realize, Brother Shi, that if this is so, then the rest of us will never obtain the Hongmeng Purple Qi—especially you."

That was the truth. After so long, these people had at least started to understand the ancient tongue;Zheng Fa's sole advantage was no longer so useful.

Meanwhile, his cultivation disadvantage was glaring.

Moreover, Bailian had the Merit Golden Wheel and two founding masters assisting him.

Not knowing exactly what their intentions were, Zheng Fa hedged, "None of us are certain of obtaining the Hongmeng Purple Qi. Brother Bailian's opportunity is also a good thing."

The Gu God and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor snorted, seeing through his hypocrisy: "I don't want him to get it."

Zheng Fa grew even more puzzled.

"Those Lu Clan people are hopeless..." The Gu God looked at Zheng Fa and voiced her thoughts. "Only I, Brother Baigu, and you, Brother Shi, have any hope."

"So Zhuang Xiong thinks..." Zheng Fa started.

"Hongmeng Zhuangxiong's best-case is one among the eight of you getting it."

Hearing that, Zheng Fa finally understood the Gu God's purpose.

They did not want Bailian to obtain the Hongmeng Purple Qi. Now Bailian had the Merit Golden Wheel and backing from founding masters;the two became desperate.

Bailian's strength, abundance of artifacts, and the backing of Leiyin Temple—and being Lu Mo's direct disciple—made him a hard nut to crack.

Zheng Fa was different. In the Gu God's eyes, if Hongmeng Purple Qi rested with Zheng Fa, it was essentially within her grasp as well.

As for the White-Boned Demon Ancestor, he always seemed to heed the Gu God's words.

"The two founding masters still have hope;this disciple..." Zheng Fa gave a bitter laugh, genuinely disheartened. "I only hope the two founding masters reach the treasure smoothly."

"Otherwise, this secret realm does not weigh cultivation so much. Merit, comprehension, perseverance have less correlation with cultivation here, and you did listen to the first lecture," the Gu God rebutted. "You have far more advantages than others... except Bailian."

Zheng Fa suddenly understood: "Those two founding masters taught Brother Bailian the content of the first lecture?"

"Perhaps my child did not hear it in full, but it is very possible," the Gu God nodded lightly. "Therefore the content of the first lecture might be important."

No wonder they had been pestering him—they wanted to know what was taught in the first lecture.

Zheng Fa hesitated when the Gu God continued, "We will not force you to reveal what was taught last time. We only want to help you."

Help... help me?

"If you have doubts about the first lecture, we can answer some of them for you."

Zheng Fa felt oddly moved—this was the Demon Ancestor! How could she be so kind?

Seeing his astonished look, the Gu God laughed lightly and stated frankly, "If the Hongmeng Purple Qi is in your hands, we still have some hope."

That reason was brutally honest and persuasive. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Zheng Fa also knew this was not the whole truth. Ultimately, the Gu God cared because there was a Gu insect inside him.

Once he understood their motive, Zheng Fa's heart did sway. He looked at the Gu God and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor—though their intentions were not pure, their knowledge was untainted.

"I have some doubts from the first lecture I'd like to ask Brother Baigu about."

"Me?"

The White-Boned Demon Ancestor pointed at himself with interest and asked, "Why me?"

"Because Brother Baigu's transformation techniques are peerless in the world."

Before entering Nine Luminaries Heaven, he had already investigated the three Demon Ancestors' methods.

According to the Nine Nether Emperor, the Creation Daoist was unfathomable, and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor excelled at transformations, to the degree the Tianhe Venerable had once been vexed.

"Transformation..." A fire flickered in the White-Boned Demon Ancestor's eyes;he sounded moved. "Did the first lecture speak of transformation?"

"It did."

In truth it did not. Zheng Fa's question was actually for another purpose—the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations!

In Zheng Fa's plan, the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations were the final text of the Yellow Court Scripture before Dao Fruit.

From Great Ascension to Dao Fruit, by Zheng Fa's current understanding, it was a process of merging spirit, body, and artifact into a single immortal form.

The final layer of the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations was to simulate various Dao Fruit descendants and even Dao Fruit embodiments themselves. In other words, it was experimenting with different immortal bodies to find the one most suitable for oneself.

But this was extremely difficult for two reasons:

First, the method required Zheng Fa to understand the structures of many Dao Fruits. Second, knowing alone was insufficient;Zheng Fa needed the ability to reconstruct his body according to those structures.

Yet with Nüwa's help, Zheng Fa had inexplicably taken a crucial first step:

He had obtained many ancient sacred body structures. They were not descendants of later Dao Fruit cultivators, but compared with most Dao Fruit practitioners, they were even more formidable.

Now Zheng Fa had to solve another problem: how to mold his body based on those structures.

Thus he hoped to draw inspiration from the White-Boned Demon Ancestor.

The White-Boned Demon Ancestor was slightly surprised, but then the Gu God interjected, "Your method cannot be cultivated by Shi Nandang."

He nodded and looked at Zheng Fa. "What do you not understand?"

Zheng Fa thought for a moment and then poured out his insights and doubts about his creation of the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations to the White-Boned Demon Ancestor in one go.

At first, the White-Boned Demon Ancestor appeared somewhat indifferent, casually answering Zheng Fa's questions.

As they spoke, the White-Boned Demon Ancestor's expression gradually became serious, and by the end his face wore a look of admiration and longing.

Finally he sighed and seemed lost in thought.

"Brother Baigu, what's wrong with you?"

The Gu God asked curiously.

"Brother Shi, did you hear these ideas in Purple Heaven Palace?"

"Yes."

Actually he hadn't.

Most of the questions Zheng Fa posed to Baigu came from the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations;some were inspired by what Nüwa had given him.

"Although only fragments..." The White-Boned Demon Ancestor shook his head, "this is an incredibly clever transformation art. It's a pity you didn't hear it in full."

It wasn't that Zheng Fa had not heard it all—the technique itself was never complete.

The Gu God listened even more puzzled and asked, "Then why the sigh?"

"From just Brother Shi's few words, I know this method is more ingenious than my own. Even incomplete it's marvelous. If I could see the complete method, it would naturally surpass my technique tenfold, a hundredfold!" The spiritual fire in his eyes nearly dimmed. "If I could behold the whole art, it would greatly benefit me!"

Now the Gu God could understand Baigu's regret. Missing out on a supreme method because of a language barrier—every cultivator could empathize with that pain.

"We can now understand the language here." Seeing Baigu still sullen, the Gu God comforted, "Maybe at the second lecture you will hear this method?"

Baigu perked up at that prospect and energizedly asked Zheng Fa, "Do you have any other doubts? Ask freely!"

He clearly wanted to extract as much information as possible from Zheng Fa to prepare for the second lecture.

Zheng Fa felt a bit guilty.

He did not know what Hongjun Daoist would lecture on the second time, but he knew it would never reveal his Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations.

The foundation of the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations actually lay in the Yellow Court Scripture—more specifically in the Talisman Foundation Establishment Technique and the Jiushan Golden Core Method.

One asked and one answered;both Zheng Fa and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor felt they had gained much. When they parted, the White-Boned Demon Ancestor lingered with his head down, muttering to himself as if he had indeed attained something.

Seeing them leave, Zheng Fa went to his study and collapsed into the chair, finally unable to contain his joy any longer, and laughed uproariously.

The White-Boned Demon Ancestor's method fit Zheng Fa's needs perfectly.

According to the White-Boned Demon Ancestor, his dharmakaya was named "Myriad-Transform Bones," and his method was naturally profound and complex, but the principle was not difficult:

"Myriad-Transform Bones," as the name suggests, centered on bone refinement.

But Baigu's bone refinement did not aim to make his bones tougher or sharper. His path was to absorb cells of others or other races into his bones, using the vigorous life within the bones to cultivate a flesh-and-blood body that could pass as genuine!

When weak, his bones could only absorb mortal cells and those of low-level cultivators.

But now he could even absorb cells from Dao Fruit descendants.

If Zheng Fa were to use a mundane analogy, the White-Boned Demon Ancestor was like a surgeon performing organ transplants: inserting others' cells into his bones, cultivating them, and eventually forming muscles, bones, and skin.

In some sense, the result was not counterfeit—rather, it became real.

For the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations, the Myriad-Transform Bones concept was priceless!

The greatest difficulty of the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations lay in complexity.

From the start it required memorizing countless material structures;later, as the Void-Piercing Spirit Eye improved, the requirements eased.

Later, the method could simulate other beings down to cellular or even genetic levels, and could mimic ordinary cultivators. But the bodies of Dao Fruits and their descendants were extraordinarily subtle and complex. With Zheng Fa's divine consciousness vision, making a one-to-one conversion of his entire body into another Dao Fruit descendant was impossible.

That was the toughest part of the final layer.

Now, having grasped Baigu's Myriad-Transform Bones approach, and reviewing the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations and the primordial life structures given by Nüwa, countless inspirations flooded Zheng Fa's mind.

Myriad-Transform Bones was excellent, but it had a single problem—reliance on others' cells or bodies;it could not autonomously transform.

However, the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations differ. From the beginning, this method starts from various inorganic substances, gradually moves through molecules, and eventually reaches complex life.

In other words, Zheng Fa could first create a cell himself!

For Zheng Fa, Baigu's Myriad-Transform Bones offered an extremely simplified solution:

He no longer needed to force an immediate full-scale transformation. Instead, he could exploit the self-replicating mechanism of cells—starting from a single cell, allowing himself to "grow" organically!

A normal human body contains hundreds of trillions of cells, and Dao Fruit descendants are even more complex. Starting from a single cell reduces the method's difficulty by countless orders of magnitude.

One could even say that, from this point on, the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations became a method most people could cultivate!

"Biology..." Zheng Fa murmured, realizing his previous thought had been flawed. "Living and nonliving are inherently different..."

He had once only seen biological complexity, not that such complexity produces a simple replication mechanism.

Zheng Fa sat in his study and began to contemplate silently.

The others in Five Organs Pavilion either descended the mountain to accumulate virtue, performed good deeds, or searched elsewhere for opportunities;few remained behind.

With Bailian's momentum rising, hardly anyone paid Zheng Fa much attention. Even the Gu God and the White-Boned Demon Ancestor assumed he was merely contemplating the first lecture's content.

Time slipped by without Zheng Fa noticing;years passed within Nine Luminaries Heaven.

One day Zheng Fa left his small courtyard and flew down the mountain.

Now that conflict between the Witches and the Yao clans had intensified and the world outside was bloodied, he did not wish to bring trouble upon himself. He wanted to see how familiar he still was with the East Sea, so he decisively headed east.

After flying for half a year, he finally saw the sea again. Nüwa was no longer there. Zheng Fa found a deserted island, landed, and then his entire person vanished.

In an instant a verdant true dragon appeared on the island. Its aura was pure, clearly signaling an extremely pristine bloodline.

That dragon was Zheng Fa. He now felt a faint connection to the East Sea—no doubt this was the innate divine ability Lord Shuyu Dragon had mentioned.

He lacked spiritual power, and the dragon's cultivation was only at the True Spirit Realm.

But this also meant the Heavenly and Earthly Fiend Transformations had finally reached full realization!