Star Odyssey

Chapter 3300: Shortcut

Chapter 3300: Shortcut

During every major battle, Xu Wuwei had always been the one to deal with Skydog, which was why Lord Xu was so deeply concerned about the beast. Not dealing with the dog felt like an insult to the Voidforce Universe.

Sovereign Dou Sheng was also present, and he similarly looked rather upset, as he had also failed to kill the dog.

Of course, the same was true of everyone. While the Aeternals were setting up a Ceaseless Impetus sourcebox array around the Ossis Ark, Skydog had stopped all of the human forces from interfering.

Progenitor Xi's eyes flickered. "I don’t know anything about that dog."

Lord Xu instantly glared at Progenitor Xi.

"A True God Guard Captain is far below what you were for Aeternus, and yet you claim to not know anything?"

Progenitor Xi turned to Lu Yin. "Lord Lu, you were also once a True God Guard Captain. Did I ever mention anything about Skydog?"

Lu Yin thought back, but it seemed that nothing had indeed ever been said. Progenitor Xi had almost completely ignored the dog.

Skydog really did behave like a dog. When Lu Yin had officially become a True God Guard Captain, the dog had even peed on him, which had been quite memorable.

"When I first joined Aeternus, Skydog was already there. He’s always been allowed to freely enter and leave the black Mother Tree, and it seems impossible to kill the beast. I thought that it had no natural enemy. I never considered…" She looked back at Lu Yin. "Lord Lu, you actually managed to find its nemesis."

Progenitor Xi was referring to the foul-smelling object whose stench even sequence particles could not block.

"Now that you mention it, I also want to ask about that. Lord Lu, just what is that thing?" the Voidlord asked curiously.

Everyone else was curious about the item, even Mister Mu.

Lu Yin shrugged. "Would you believe me if I told you that I don’t know?"

"I believe you. I can’t destroy that thing," Lord Xu replied. One time, after Xu Wuwei had used the foul-smelling object against Skydog, Lord Xu had tried to crush it, only to find that it was impossible.

"Alright, Progenitor Xi. We asked you to come here this time mostly so that we can learn more about the Spirit Nidus. Progenitor Chen encountered an item called the Rivers and Mountains Painting. Do you know anything about it?" Lu Yin asked.

Progenitor Xi was startled. "The Rivers and Mountains Painting? They brought that thing here?"

People exchanged glances. It was clear that the woman knew what Lu Yin was asking about, but she was the only one with that knowledge.

"I understand why you summoned me, Lord Lu. While I do know some information about the Spirit Nidus, it’s impossible to claim full understanding of that place. It was incredibly difficult for me just to follow them from their megaverse to yours. To minimize the chance of being discovered, I avoided contact with any creature from that megaverse, so my knowledge is limited," Progenitor Xi explained.

Lu Yin replied, "Then just tell us what you do know."

Progenitor Xi looked around at the gathered people and spoke slowly, "On a fundamental level, the Spirit Nidus is not much different from your Tianyuan Megaverse. I’ve been here for many years, and honestly, I sometimes feel like I’m in the Spirit Nidus. Both have large human populations, and all creatures have physical bodies that serve as vessels for their consciousness. The biggest differences between the two, which could also be said to be the Spirit Nidus’s advantages, are twofold.

"These are both differences and shortcuts.

"First, the Spirit Nidus’s cultivation starts with a process called Spirit Ignition. Regardless of whether a creature is a human or some other organism, this process implants a Spirit Ignition seed inside their body. No matter what power they subsequently cultivate, as they grow stronger, their Spirit Ignition seed will also gain power. Ultimately, the seed will initiate a transformation known as Spirit Rebirth, which is where the seed replaces the creature’s physical body.

"As this seed grows inside a creature’s body, it absorbs the purest energy, including the creature’s thoughts and consciousness, which eventually all merge with the seed. Once a cultivator undergoes Spirit Rebirth, they can choose to either retain their original biological form, or transform into another, depending on the path of cultivation they’ve chosen.

"This method ensures perfect harmony between the body and power, while also allowing a cultivator to shed their mortal body and achieve a state that they believe to be the most optimal for cultivation, which allows them to progress twice as quickly with half the effort."

Progenitor Xi’s words shocked Lu Yin and the others. Could this cultivation method be real?

"If a cultivator hasn’t undergone this Spirit Rebirth but ends up being gravely injured and is about to die, can they use Spirit Rebirth to be reborn?" Hongyan Mavis asked.

Progenitor Xi nodded. "Yes, they can."

The group exchanged stunned glances. This was truly extraordinary, and it far surpassed the starting point of cultivators in their own megaverse.

"Over the years, I’ve actually developed a shortcut for cultivators in your Tianyuan Megaverse as well. I shared this shortcut in the Origin Universe. Specifically, in the Fifth Mainland," Progenitor Xi said as she glanced at Lu Yin.

A connection appeared in his mind, and he blurted out, "Formcast models?"

Progenitor Xi nodded. "That’s right. The formcast models that the Fifth Mainland uses are an idea I developed from the Spirit Nidus’s Spirit Ignition seeds. Previously, the cultivators in your megaverse were able to advance quickly with the help of powerful cultivators, but that method was too restrictive, and it was also only available to powerful factions or families. On the other hand, formcast models can be widely used, and they can even be bought and sold, which resulted in the overall strength of your people rising."

Lu Yin had not expected to learn that Progenitor Xi was the one behind the development of formcast models. He had used his own formcast models to advance very quickly, especially after Enhancing them with his die. He had saved an incredible amount of time in that manner.

There were rumors in the Fifth Mainland that claimed that formcast models had been developed by an ancient civilization and then recently rediscovered. There were many myths surrounding the technology, but no one truly knew where they came from. Additionally, no other universe had formcast models. In fact, they did not even exist in the Perennial World or the Sixth Mainland.

"Formcast models improve a person’s overall strength, but that only saves time. They aren’t able to replicate the Spirit Nidus’s Spirit Rebirth ability. That’s why I didn’t pay much attention to the formcast models after I introduced them in the Fifth Mainland," Progenitor Xi recalled. "The Spirit Nidus is fully united, and because of that, they are able to spend time and resources to explore the best cultivation path, which is something that your Tianyuan Megaverse, and even our Consciousness Universe, have not been able to replicate. They are ahead of both of us."

"What’s the other difference?" Wu Tian asked curiously. He was highly intrigued by the Spirit Nidus’s cultivation methods, as he was a teacher.

"The second difference lies in the path of cultivation itself. In your megaverse, no one guides your path of cultivation. Even your masters merely allow you to cultivate on your own, as they do not lay out the entire road before you.

"The Spirit Nidus is different. Their unified cultivation structure allows them to map out their future path. There are eighty-eight sequence base techniques available to them, and people cultivate with those sequence particles, which is what allows them to create their sequence bases. That is something that you will struggle against.

"How can a megaverse where people have worked together to develop a single cultivation model over the course of countless years compare to your scattered methods?

"In particular, their sequence bases, which are made from the sequence particles of multiple sequence powerhouses, are very powerful. The Rivers and Mountains Painting, for example, was formed from the sequence particles of seventy-seven powerhouses who all comprehended the Law of Near and Far. Before dying, each of those people injected all of their sequence particles into the same object, which led to the creation of the sequence base."

Mister Mu grew serious. "How do they accomplish this?"

Progenitor Xi shook her head. "I don’t know. The Spirit Nidus has their own methods. They’ve produced Immortals before, so an Immortal might have developed the method of producing sequence bases."

Garan Zhiluo asked, "That Rivers and Mountains Painting ranks seventh. What else can you tell us about it?"

Progenitor Xi thought for a bit before replying. "The people of the Spirit Nidus primarily use the Law of Near and Far to make it difficult for enemies to attack by warping one’s perception of distance. Of the eighty-eight laws of the universe that the Spirit Nidus pursues, this law ranks thirty-fifth. It isn’t particularly high as it doesn’t provide much assistance in battle. However, its main advantage is that the law is easy to cultivate.

"For countless years, there have always been people in the Spirit Nidus who cultivate the Law of Near and Far, though very few ever manage to become sequence powerhouses. In that regard, they are quite similar to your Tianyuan Megaverse. It is difficult for their people to become peak powerhouses, let alone sequence powerhouses. On the other hand, their entire megaverse is unified, and they have established cultivation paths that allow them to plan for their future and prepare necessary resources, which means that there are a great number of things that their people don’t need to worry about.

"For countless years, they’ve slowly produced a large number of sequence powerhouses. Before these people die, they leave all of their sequence particles in the Rivers and Mountains Painting, which is what eventually formed the sequence base.

"The Law of Near and Far itself doesn’t grant very much power, but because it’s so easy to cultivate, seventy-seven people have mastered this exact law and helped create and strengthen the Rivers and Mountains Painting, which is why it ranks seventh. Whenever someone enters the painting, they will be overwhelmed by endless sequence particles, which makes it nearly impossible for anyone to fight back with their own sequence particles. Cultivators from the Spirit Nidus who are inside that painting are kept ‘miles’ away from their enemies. There’s no need for them to even take action, as the sequence particles alone are enough to bury their foes."

Progenitor Xi looked around again. "I’m quite surprised that Progenitor Chen managed to escape after entering the Rivers and Mountains Painting. In theory, before becoming an Ortuser, it should be impossible for anyone to get out."

When no one said anything, the woman continued explaining. "I’m not familiar with many of the Spirit Nidus’s sequence bases. The Rivers and Mountains Painting is one of them because it was used in the war against our Consciousness Megaverse. Another sequence base that I know of is called the Impression Realm, which was also used in my megaverse. That one ranks fifth, and it was created by 359 sequence powerhouses who all mastered the Law of Impression."

"359?" The group was stunned.

Progenitor Xi explained, "The more powerhouses that contribute to the sequence base, the weaker the law of the universe, but the easier it is to cultivate. The Law of Impression ranks seventy-ninth out of the eighty-eight laws, which places it near the bottom. It’s not very useful. In fact, it has almost no practical value. The only use the sequence particles have is to simulate the impression that the cultivator has of another creature.

"This is a law of the universe. When two creatures encounter each other, they will each form an impression of the other. If one feels that the other is strong, they might grow fearful. If they perceive the other as weak, they will gain confidence. The greatest use this law has is exactly that: boosting a cultivator’s self-confidence. People with strong wills have no need to cultivate such a law to achieve the same effect.

"The Law of Impression is easy to cultivate and has little effect in a battle, but its sequence base is an entirely different story. The Impression Realm was created by 359 sequence powerhouses, and that number of experts have pushed the law to the limit. It produced a reversal of perception, which means that an impression can replace an actual person."

Lu Yin's expression changed. "Replace?"

Progenitor Xi responded gravely, "Yes, replace. That’s the most terrifying ability of the Impression Realm. Once one is inside, the Spirit Nidus’s cultivators don’t even need to attack directly. They simply target the impression of their enemy, which will harm the person themselves. It’s a terrifying method that’s almost impossible to defend against. Some creatures from my Consciousness Megaverse who were capable of shape-shifting suffered badly because of the Impression Realm.

"Remember this: never enter the Impression Realm, or else your chances of survival will fall to one in a million."