On this final day before the system’s deadline, Murphy was already fully prepared.
To be safe, he had sent Aurora away with the young Kaiden to take shelter.
He, however, chose to remain behind and stand guard in the great hall.
The hall was filled with various traps and chanisms he had ticulously designed over the years. With his familiarity of the terrain and these preparations, he was confident he could hold his own, even if a powerful enemy were to attack.
However, a full day passed, and all remained quiet both inside and outside the castle.
There were no unexpected visitors, no surprise attacks—not even the slightest hint of anything out of the ordinary.
It was as if his day of vigilance and anxiety had all been for nothing.
As night finally gave way to dawn, a new day arrived—the very anniversary of the morning he had officially beco Baron Duval twenty years ago.
A massive stream of information flooded the depths of his consciousness.
[Breathing and Guiding Technique "Slightly Accomplished"]!
Perhaps because Murphy had already broken through to the Qi Refining Realm, the infusion of knowledge brought no noticeable increase in his Spiritual Power or any leap in his physical conditioning.
But his Spiritual Power itself had undergone a subtle yet fundantal change.
If his perception of the Heaven and Earth Qi had previously been like viewing a landscape through a thin mist, that mist had now completely vanished.
He could clearly "see" the multicolored streams of Qi flowing through his surroundings.
Each stream varied in color and nature, circulating between heaven and earth with a unique rhythm.
The clear, ethereal, and ascending Taichu Pure Qi; the scorching, brilliant Taiyang Fla Qi; the abyssal, cold, and tranquil Taiyin Cold Qi; the gentle, life-giving Shaoyang Warm Qi; the cool, moistening, and retracting Shaoyin Cool Qi; and the balanced and impartial Central Peaceful Qi. These were the Six Celestial Qi.
There were also the heavy and dense Thick Earth Pure Qi; the sharp and solid tal and Stone Sharp Qi; the flowing and nourishing Flowing Water Moisture Qi; the vibrant Vitality of Plants and Trees; the explosive and volatile Fiery Drying Qi; and the gloomy, stagnant Wetland Moisture. These were the Six Earthly Qi.
Beyond those, there was the Four Seasons Qi that cycled with the seasons, the Five Elents Qi that operated according to the interactions of the Five Elents, the Eight Directions Qi that originated from the cardinal directions... The varieties were too nurous to list.
The greatest breakthrough, however, was that he had gained the ability to actively absorb specific types of this Heaven and Earth Qi.
With a re thought, Murphy tried to guide the Shaoyang Warm Qi and Central Peaceful Qi, which were most suited for him.
Instantly, the pale golden Shaoyang Warm Qi and the milky-white Central Peaceful Qi began to converge on him, seeping into his ridians as if drawn by an invisible gravitational pull.
Once inside his body, this pure Energy was rapidly converted into the "Qi" within his Dantian, at a rate that far surpassed the effects of the Black Light Energy.
Murphy made a quick ntal calculation. At this rate, if he continuously absorbed and refined the Qi, he estimated it would take him only sixty years to accumulate enough "Qi" to reach Qi Refining Realm Perfection.
This was much slower than the seventeen years it had taken him to reach Breathing Realm Perfection, the realm before Qi Refining where one expands all the body’s ridians to their limit.
However, it was still far faster than his previous Cultivation speed, which relied on the Knight’s Secret dicine and the Black Light Energy. With that thod, he had estimated he wouldn’t reach Qi Refining Perfection until the very end of his natural lifespan.
However, as the pure Heaven and Earth Qi continuously entered his Dantian, rging and refining with the "Qi" already inside him, a question involuntarily surfaced in Murphy’s mind.
’What exactly is this Heaven and Earth Qi?’
According to the system of knowledge explained by the [Breathing and Guiding Technique "Slightly Accomplished"], Heaven and Earth Qi was the Origin Energy from which all things in the world were ford, a tangible manifestation of Law, and the wellspring of life and power.
It perated the void, was hidden within all things, and operated according to so profound and mysterious order.
Cultivators used specific thods to draw it into themselves, combining it with their own Essence, Qi, and Spirit to gradually elevate their plane of existence and master Extraordinary Power.
But the Wizard knowledge he had obtained from Saren offered another perspective.
According to Wizard lore, the myriad planes of existence were not isolated. In the endless void and the depths of space, beyond the countless worlds, there existed infinite dinsions.
The Energy that Wizards relied on to wield their power was mostly drawn from these alternate dinsions.
The most common and fundantal of these were the Elental Energies of earth, water, fire, and air—the Four Major Elents—which originated from their own four respective Elental Dinsions.
Because they were relatively easy to perceive, stable, and simple to guide and convert, they ford the foundational Energy for most Wizard Magic.
’But are any of these answers correct?’
’If I try to place Heaven and Earth Qi within the scientific frawork of my past life, where does it fit?’
After all, Murphy had conducted nurous rigorous scientific experints in this world.
He had asured gravitational acceleration, verified the laws of electromagnetic induction, and even confird the existence of basic elents like hydrogen, oxygen, and iron through chemical reactions.
These physical constants and laws of Nature were astonishingly similar to those of the Earth he knew.
’So why, built upon that sa foundation, does a Supernatural Power like "Heaven and Earth Qi" exist here as if from nowhere?’
Of course, the scientific theories of his past life also had a place for such unknown energies.
Dark Energy and Dark Matter.
According to the physics of his past life, visible matter made up less than 5% of the universe, while Dark Matter accounted for about 27% and Dark Energy for about 68%.
These unknown entities did not participate in electromagnetic interactions, which naturally made them difficult to observe.
’What does it an to "not participate in electromagnetic interactions"?’
Simply put, it ant they couldn’t be perceived by the five conventional senses.
Sight, reliant on the reflection of photons, could not capture their presence.
Hearing, reliant on vibrations through a dium, could not detect their waves.
Sll, reliant on the diffusion of molecules, could not discern their aroma.
Taste, reliant on chemical reactions, could not sample their properties.
And touch, reliant on physical feedback, could not feel their substance.
The chanisms of all five senses, at their core, relied on electromagnetic interactions.
From photon reflection to nerve signal transmission, from molecular recognition to tactile feedback, every one of them was a manifestation of the electromagnetic force on a different level.
Even most of the detection instrunts from his past life—from optical microscopes to radio telescopes, from spectroters to particle detectors—operated on principles founded upon electromagnetic interaction.
Only instrunts like gravitational detectors could bypass the electromagnetic force to directly probe these "invisible" entities.
And whether it was the Heaven and Earth Qi of the Cultivation System or the Dinsional Power spoken of by Wizards, they were, just like Dark Energy and Dark Matter, imperceptible to the sight and touch of ordinary people.
But Dark Energy possessed a repulsive force, and Dark Matter possessed a gravitational one, aning they must be able to influence all things through gravitational effects.
’No, in the case of Cultivators or Wizards, the influence isn’t purely through gravitational effects.’
’When a Cultivator or a Wizard uses Heaven and Earth Qi or Dinsional Power, perhaps the very nature of that Energy undergoes a fundantal shift. It might transform from a state that doesn’t interact with the electromagnetic force to one that can.’
’This would allow it to affect matter that *does* interact with the electromagnetic force.’
By now, Murphy understood that both the Path of Cultivation and the Path of a Wizard required a specific aptitude.
If a Cultivator lacked the talent to perceive Heaven and Earth Qi, they would be stuck in the Breathing Realm for their entire life, unable to break through to the Qi Refining Realm on their own.
Even if they used dicinal aids to force a breakthrough to the Qi Refining Realm, their inability to sense Heaven and Earth Qi would prevent them from cultivating by absorbing it, forcing them to remain dependent on dicine.
The sa was true for Wizards. A Wizard Apprentice, no matter how weak their Spiritual Power, had to possess the spiritual aptitude to perceive the Four Major Elents. Otherwise, they wouldn’t even qualify to be an apprentice in the first place.
Murphy wasn’t sure why he possessed such an aptitude.
He didn’t know if he was born with it or if the system had modified his body, but he was certain the system had enhanced it.
This reward of [Breathing and Guiding Technique "Slightly Accomplished"], for instance, had made his perception of the Power of Heaven and Earth much clearer.
And so, Murphy ford a bold hypothesis.
’This "aptitude" is perhaps a kind of biological "gravitational detector" that beings are naturally born with.’
’And the growth of Spiritual Power, along with the ever-clearer perception of Heaven and Earth Qi and dinsional energies, might just be this "gravitational detector" being constantly enhanced.’
The reason Murphy made this connection stemd from a key thodological principle in scientific research.
"Entities should not be multiplied without necessity."
In the scientific history of his past life on Earth, there were countless precedents of different theories explaining the sa phenonon. The most classic example was the debate between the heliocentric and geocentric models.
The geocentric model wasn’t discarded because it couldn’t explain the laws of celestial motion, but because it was too complex. It had been patched to the point of becoming a convoluted nightmare.
In contrast, the heliocentric model’s explanation was far more concise and elegant, which is why it ultimately prevailed.
Now, three theoretical fraworks lay before Murphy.
First, the Cultivation theory, which treated Heaven and Earth Qi as the Origin Energy.
Second, the Wizard theory, which saw elental power as Energy from alternate dinsions.
Third, his own hypothesis, which attributed Supernatural Power to Dark Matter and Dark Energy.
Though each was expressed differently, they were all, to so extent, attempts to explain the sa natural phenonon.
Faced with this situation, Murphy naturally leaned on the principle of "entities should not be multiplied without necessity," attempting to unify these theories.
Within this unified frawork, "aptitude" was simply an individual’s innate sensitivity to gravitational fluctuations.
"Cultivation" was the process of enhancing this sensitivity through specific thods.
And "Qi Release" or "Casting" was the process of converting invisible Energy, which only possessed gravitational effects, into visible Energy that could interact electromagnetically.
The instant this idea crystallized in his mind, Murphy shot up from his seat, his right hand unconsciously slamming down hard on the oak long table before him.
BAM! A loud crack echoed as a noticeable chunk was blown out of the solid tabletop. Wood splinters flew, and cracks spiderwebbed out from the point of impact.
He paid no mind to his loss of control, completely imrsed in the ecstatic joy of his newly ford theory.
This level of excitent was sothing even publishing a first-author paper with an impact factor over 30 in *Nature* or *Science* in his past life couldn’t match.
A sliver of reason in Murphy’s mind sounded a warning.
It told him that this was rely an initial hypothesis, with a long road ahead before it could be proven.
It would require countless experints for verification and vast amounts of data for refinent. It could take decades, centuries, or even millennia to construct a complete theoretical frawork.
But that sa reason also told Murphy that unlike the scientists of his past life, who were limited by short lifespans and crude instrunts...
...he was now a Cultivator. He possessed a long lifespan, the treasure trove of the Wizard World, and the knowledge granted by the system.
This ant he had a very real chance of personally witnessing the verification of his hypothesis, and perhaps even completing this epoch-making theoretical frawork with his own hands.
[Seeker, wandering the mortal coil, destiny has manifested two distinct, transcendent Paths before you.]
[Option One: The Northern Desert Iron Cavalry rides south, and the Central Plains are in peril. The Court has dispatched Princess Zhaoyang and True Master Qing Yang to Lingyun Pavilion to discuss a strategy of resistance. You may reveal your true identity as the Pavilion Master of Lingyun to receive a title from the Court and lead the righteous warriors of the Jianghu against the foreign invaders.]
[Reward: Breathing and Guiding Technique "Entering the Hall"]
[Option Two: The Northern Desert Iron Cavalry rides south, and the Central Plains are in peril. The Court has dispatched Princess Zhaoyang and True Master Qing Yang to Lingyun Pavilion to discuss a strategy of resistance. You must guard your secret identity, maneuvering between the various factions without letting anyone discover that you have usurped this position.]
[Reward: Qi Absorption and Eating Mist "Initial Glimpse"]
Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!
’More knowledge to acquire! I’m one step closer to perfecting my unified theory!’
Moreover, the system’s prompt confird his prediction that a border war was about to erupt.
’A Princess and a True Master, though?’
’And what in the world is [Qi Absorption and Eating Mist]?’
’Could it be...’
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