Chapter 848 - 843: The Essence of Dao
"His Cultivation isn’t high, but his ambition certainly is!"
Lü Yang rubbed his chin, having no intention to refute. Instead, he listened carefully as the old professor explained the details of array artifacts, while pondering in his heart.
Admittedly, he couldn’t understand the content regarding Golden Core Level array artifacts.
But that didn’t matter. He could just let his Talent Skill handle this part freely. His main goal was to grasp the general direction—the core concept of array artifacts.
"To forge the [Sea of Suffering]?" he thought.
"Not to mention, the [Artifact Refining Secret Realm] at least shows signs of this. Even its environment is a Vast Ocean, which proves they are indeed doing exactly that.
"Come to think of it, the Four Great Star Constellations and the Twenty-Eight Star Map of the Star Palace can be considered man-made Fruits. They are likely linked to the [Artifact Refining Secret Realm] as well. Doesn’t this mimic the connection between the Fruits and the [Sea of Suffering]? These Array Treasure Masters have even built the models!"
At this thought, Lü Yang was incredibly amazed.
To be honest, with the Celestial Mansion as a precedent, he had always been somewhat dismissive of the Super Great Boundary Heavens outside the Immortal Pivot.
After all, the Celestial Mansion was half-dead.
To put it bluntly, the Celestial Mansion had already been reduced to a colony of the Immortal Pivot. Si Chou’s body was toyed with by the Stain Sect at will, and his consciousness was manipulated by the Bhagavat.
In comparison, the Star Palace didn’t seem much better off.
With equally half-dead stone carvings and Star Monarchs so weak they could only bully the Outer Dao, no matter how one looked at it, it lacked the presence a Super Great Boundary Heaven should have.
Now, however, his perspective had changed.
"The true foundation of the Star Palace doesn’t lie in the Cultivators on the surface, but in their cultivation concepts... The cultivation concepts of these people are actually quite advanced!" he realized.
True, the Star Monarchs were very weak, only slightly stronger than the Outer Dao.
From another angle, however, the fact that such weak Cultivators could break through to the Golden Core and even surpass the Outer Dao was actually quite absurd.
This was only because the Star Palace possessed just four Star Constellations and twenty-eight Star Maps. The number of Star Monarchs was limited by the Star Maps, which was why there were so few. If one day the Star Palace could overcome the technical difficulties of the Star Maps and mass-produce them... it would trigger an epic qualitative leap!
When that time came, Star Monarchs would likely be as common as dirt!
Coupled with the fact that Star Monarchs could utilize external aids like Dao Weapons to strengthen themselves, even if they couldn’t match an Immortal Pivot True Monarch in a one-on-one fight, they could simply swarm them ten to one!
"From this perspective, the Star Palace genuinely has potential and absolutely cannot be underestimated. Who knows, this place might experience a technological explosion one day."
Withdrawing his thoughts, Lü Yang looked toward the podium again.
The old professor on stage was still speaking with fervor. Although Lü Yang was already somewhat lost in the content, Progenitor Tingyou indicated that the pressure wasn’t too great.
"Everyone, what is the Dao?
"In our view, the so-called Dao is actually an interpretation of the phenomena of Heaven and Earth, a set of Supreme Laws that can unify all phenomena.
"And the [Sea of Suffering] is this exact Supreme Law. Thus, we Array Treasure Masters view it as the greatest array artifact and are committed to forging a replica of it. From another angle, all the array artifacts we create are actually by-products in the process of mimicking the [Sea of Suffering].
"The Star Map is a typical example."
Hearing this, Lü Yang immediately showed a look of curiosity.
"Finally getting to the good stuff," he thought. "What are the forging principles of the Star Map? The materials and Arrays? These are all crucial details..."
In the next second, the old professor scoffed.
"Basically, Array Treasure Masters without much talent will think that the Star Map is simply an array artifact, and the only things to pay attention to are the materials and Arrays.
"Such people should just go Cultivating the Dharma Body."
Lü Yang was speechless.
"It’s fine, I’m not angry," he told himself. "Being modest and eager to learn is a quality every Cultivator should possess on the path to seeking the Dao. Besides, I’m not a petty person."
Immediately after, the old professor said in a deep voice, "In reality, the essence of the Star Map isn’t the layer of Arrays wrapped around the outside, nor is it a pile of easily replaceable component materials. Those are all external items, deceptive illusions... A true Star Map is actually a formula of laws.
"If the [Sea of Suffering] is the Supreme Law, then the Star Map is a Secondary Law. It has no way to perfectly interpret All Phenomena of Heaven and Earth, but it can self-consistently explain a portion of the principles behind how Heaven and Earth operate.
"This is the true essence of the Star Map.
"Moreover, those external Arrays and stellar creations are nothing more than tools used to calculate the formula of laws of the Star Map, allowing it to display its Mighty Power in the Current World.
"In this regard, the Immortal Pivot also has a similar existence—the Fruit."
At this point, a fanatical expression reappeared on the old professor’s face. "That’s right, the Fruit... Like the Star Map, creations of Heaven and Earth are also Secondary Laws.
"The difference is that as a formula of laws, the content of the Star Map is extremely cumbersome. It’s something we deduce and verify step by step, from the microscopic to the macroscopic. Therefore, to make it display its Mighty Power, it must be equipped with countless star-scale Artifacts and Arrays. However, the Fruit is relatively much simpler.
"If the Star Map is a formula, then the Fruit is a theorem.
"Its content is extremely concise, yet it forms a self-contained cycle that is difficult to break. Because of this, they don’t need any external facilities to naturally display their Mighty Power.
"And when it comes to Fruits, the Immortal Pivot has the absolute best.
"The Fruits there are unique. Ordinary Fruits, namely the Outer Dao, are basically born by coincidence; they are one-in-a-billion miracles.
"However, the Immortal Pivot is different. The Fruits there are custom-made. They might even be specifically forged by Nascent Soul Daoist Lords far away on the Other Shore, using their own Cultivation and understanding of All Phenomena of Heaven and Earth. Otherwise, they couldn’t reach that level of precision. The Emperor Fruit, in particular, is exceptionally outrageous.
"Of course, the same goes for our Star Map.
"Although the external structures of the Star Map are forged by us Array Treasure Masters, it’s undeniable that the internal formula of laws received guidance from a great existence."
Hearing this, Lü Yang immediately understood.
"It’s the Star Palace Daoist Lord, the one of the Dao of Arcane Power," he deduced.
Yet, speaking of this, the old professor suddenly grew indignant again. "Although it’s a bit treasonous, I still need to emphasize a point here.
"And that is, in the realm of cultivation, Cultivators of the Path of the Three Foundations—Mana, Dharma Body, and Magic—are actually far inferior to those Immortal Core Demons.
"Immortal Core Demons cultivate Fruits via the Pocket World Technique, which has extremely high requirements for Cultivation. One must truly understand and comprehend the Fruit to improve their Cultivation.
"But what about us?
"Mana, Dharma Body, and Magic ultimately just amount to occupying that innate Great Dao. The path is laid out right in front of us; we can improve our Cultivation even without seeking a deep understanding."
At these words, Lü Yang immediately raised his eyebrows.
"That statement... isn’t actually wrong," he thought.
"At least, isn’t that exactly how cultivation of the Dao of Arcane Body works? Especially Si Chou’s Cultivation Technique—it directly and violently swallows the Fruit, then occupies a share of the Dao of Arcane Body, and his Cultivation naturally increases.
"In the end, Dharma Body, Mana, and Magic are all fundamentals for Cultivators. Essentially, there isn’t much that requires profound comprehension. At most, Magic has some variations... From this perspective, the Path of the Three Foundations indeed doesn’t demand high Cultivation insight. No wonder it was eventually phased out by the Pocket World Technique."
Knowledge was truly power!
Meanwhile, the old professor on stage was expressing the same view, albeit even more radically. "In my opinion, learning the Pocket World Technique is necessary.
"Why is it that, despite both being Secondary Laws, our Star Map is far inferior to the Immortal Pivot’s Fruit, and only slightly stronger than the indigenous Fruits of the Outer Dao?
"It’s precisely because we cultivate the Dao of Arcane Power.
"Because the great existence behind us clearly falls short of those four Masters of Dao in the Immortal Pivot when it comes to understanding All Phenomena of Heaven and Earth. They lack the ability to improve the quality of the Star Map. So strictly speaking, it’s not that we lost to the Immortal Core Demons, but that our Master of Dao lost to the Masters of Dao of the Immortal Pivot!"
Good heavens!
Lü Yang blinked. Freedom of speech in the Star Palace was a bit too wild, wasn’t it? He dared to say even this? Moreover, with that rhetoric... this old geezer really had the makings of someone from the Immortal Pivot!