Chapter 254: A Thousand Years in an Instant! A Mind Beyond the Flesh!
At first, Jiang Lin was actually a strong believer in the "Orthodox Theory of Spirit Tools." However, as his cultivation realm advanced and his perspective broadened, he began to encounter things beyond the sixth rank. Gradually, doubt started to grow in his heart regarding the legitimacy of the "Orthodox Theory of Spirit Tools."
Did spirit tools really start to possess autonomous growth at the seventh rank? Neighboring alchemists also began refining spiritual pills at this stage...
In an environment where the whole world believed that seventh-rank Dou Weapons should be spirit tools, every blacksmith who stepped onto the path beyond the sixth rank struggled with internal conflict. On one hand, they denied the meaning of their own advancement; on the other, they forced themselves to move forward inch by inch, bearing the weight of their doubts.
But—
Wasn't it possible...
That this world's technology tree... had branched the wrong way?
In the small courtyard, Jiang Lin leaned silently against a large tree, his expression unreadable as he gazed at the Green Lotus Core Flame within Xiao Yan's abdomen. His thoughts began to drift.
He had never thought like this before. It was only after refining the Green Lotus Flame that he felt as if his soul had shed a layer of shackles—becoming incredibly free and at ease. Then, doubts that had never occurred to him before started to sprout and spread within him.
The Flame Refining Art, the Soul Refining Art, the Green Lotus Flame... Jiang Lin felt as if he had just completed something vital—shattering the world's cognitive barrier, and thus gaining a whole new perspective.
"If Earth in my previous life suddenly experienced a spiritual energy resurgence, and countless supernormal technologies based on spiritual energy emerged over millions of years… then, when spiritual energy dried up again, and millions more years passed, would people still believe that fundamental physical science was correct?"
"Perhaps, in that era devoid of magic, everyone would instinctively think supernatural technology was the true path, while fundamental physics… served no real purpose—because the reappearance of spiritual energy would once again alter the physical rules, even if only slightly."
"This example may be a little inappropriate, but I can't seem to directly describe this world… so I can only rely on metaphors."
"No, wait... if spiritual energy had existed from the beginning, then why did the founder Dan Qizi still leave behind something as thoroughly orthodox as the Crystallized Demon Core Armor—a technological creation of Dou Qi? And from some of the remaining content and techniques found in that armor, it's clear that its design reflects both the deep-seated confidence and the subtle insecurity in Dan Qizi's heart."
The Crystallized Demon Core Armor's confidence was reflected in its boldness! But its insecurity was evident in the coarseness of its design philosophy! That technology was definitely an early draft Dan Qizi left behind, perhaps even before he made his name—something he used to make black-market trades with other blacksmiths!
"I could even boldly speculate that when Dan Qizi developed the Crystallized Demon Core Armor, there might have only been the concept of Xuan Tools at the time, and nothing like the seventh- or eighth-rank Dou Weapons created through higher-level Heaven-Earth forging. Those likely resembled Huo Huo's Heavy Xuan Ruler—simple and unadorned."
"If... if some kind of spiritual energy resurgence really occurred at that critical point... then the world's entire technological progression would've been skewed. No—perhaps not skewed, but using the convenience of spiritual energy, this civilization might've unexpectedly developed a type of technology it shouldn't have had access to at that stage."
In his past life, Jiang Lin used to slack off in the lab by playing sci-fi games—some of which started at 10 a.m. and ended at 9 a.m. the next day, involving time reversals. Whatever the case, Jiang Lin had always maintained a relatively macroscopic understanding of civilization.
"And once spiritual energy retreats like a tide... those who swam in the waves will be laid bare."
"But… why would spiritual energy recover in the first place?"
"Did it just happen out of nowhere?"
"Or was it because the world ascended in dimension? If so, then what is happening now? A dimensional descent?"
"And why am I even thinking about all this? Is it the spiritual clan's innate gift taking effect? Why are the Spirit Race often called lunatics? Did they discover something? Do they believe this world is fake? Or do they see the post-descent world as a prison that seals everyone away?"
In an instant, countless jumbled thoughts burst forth like a tidal wave, flooding through the breach in the dam of his soul and pouring down on Jiang Lin, who stood at the lowest depths of that soul. In just a flash, Jiang Lin felt his eyes remain open but his vision darken. His ears, too, went silent, as if muffled. He stared wide-eyed into the blurry darkness, into a silence so pure it was deafening. For a brief moment, even his thoughts came to a standstill—until the next instant, BOOM! A deafening explosion roared in his ears, and on the pitch-black horizon, a wisp of blue-green flame slowly lit up.
"...I want to make a deal with Hai Bodong. Accompany me to the Misty Cloud Sect. But first, I need to make a trip to Stone Desert City. My two older brothers are still there, and I have a few matters to finish."
Outside, Xiao Yan glanced at Jiang Lin, puzzled as to why he was staring at his abdomen, but said nothing. He just continued to explain his upcoming plans.
What Xiao Yan didn't know was that, despite his voice not being loud, it thundered like a storm in Jiang Lin's ears. For that brief moment, the world had fallen utterly silent for Jiang Lin. But as his senses returned, even the sound of leaves falling to the ground a hundred meters away struck his ears like booming war drums. Xiao Yan's voice nearby hit him even harder, sending waves through his dazed brain.
"..." Jiang Lin paused in confusion, then slowly came back to himself. His body returned under his control, though he couldn't help feeling a bit speechless.
That earlier state... really felt like hypoglycemia. Jiang Lin, whose physical fitness in his past life could take on a tank, actually experienced hypoglycemia?
"...Yeah, alright. Bringing an extra Dou Huang bodyguard isn't a bad idea." Jiang Lin, leaning against the tree, muttered softly before shifting his gaze away from the Green Lotus Flame in Xiao Yan's abdomen and looking toward the path Hai Bodong had just taken underground.
Right now, Jiang Lin felt deeply helpless. It was his first time experiencing an epiphany so intense that it made him... "epiphany into hypoglycemia." In that brief instant, his thinking speed and soul had reached a kind of resonance. "A thousand years in a moment" was a bit of an exaggeration, but two or three decades' worth of thought in a flash was very possible. But his brain, still made of flesh, lasted only a few seconds before it ran out of energy—forcing Jiang Lin to experience something as mundane as "hypoglycemia" for the first time in his life.
"There's ice-type energy fluctuations underground... mm, Hai Bodong's coming out," Jiang Lin said as he looked toward the underground tunnel. A few seconds later, a man with icy-blue wings flew out from it.
(END CHAPTER)
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