Applied Immortality

Wang Qi crouched, inspecting the rock he reduced to pebbles with a casual slap.

The place of contact didn’t even have a mark, yet a strange force entered it to cause it to break down like that.

He noticed how the biggest stone was the size of his palm. “This power is… unscientific.”

Blowing rocks with magical arts wouldn’t raise an eyebrow in this world. It was a cinch for Qi Refining cultivators to use a mini grenade-like magical art, but his action just now had no spiritual power behind it, just a simple hit. 

“Is this world enlightenment-themed, with my level going up after each session? No, that’s not right. I’m still in the Qi Refining Realm. Such an effect…” Wang Qi held up a stone. It was smooth—not to a mirror polish, just that it lacked the sharp edges from an explosive force.

“The result is similar to the Grand Ripple Enigma, and yet it isn’t.”

Zhen Chanzi pointed out, “Look inside you. You have so many mental arts that one of them might’ve advanced without notice. It’s normal for the sudden increase in strength to elude your control.”

Wang Qi followed his advice and closed his eyes. He opened them again soon after, bringing a hand before his eyes as a weird spiritual power twisted within. The spiritual power glowed golden, rippling out from his palm, feeling both real and not.

“What is that?” Zhen Chanzi asked, “It feels there and not at the same time. I didn’t know there’s such a mystical spiritual power around.”

Wang Qi opened his mouth just as the golden glow faded. “I see, Waveform Essence.”

“Among modern mental arts, that’s on the level of the Evolution Chart!”

“And its difficulty is among the top.” Wang Qi sighed, “I wondered why all the other cultivation methods have detailed descriptions, telling me their utility. Some went as far as adding martial arts or magical arts that fit it best, with only this sole cultivation method having none of that. Now that I think about it, the creator never thought a Qi Refining cultivator would ever train in Waveform Essence and never bothered with it.” 

Waveform Essence was an art Ripple Heavenly Lord Schrödinger deduced from Grand Ripple Enigma. In Wang Qi’s mind, the Schrödinger wave equation stood at the core of this cultivation method. In Earth’s scientific history, Schrödinger found inspiration in matter waves to discover the wave equation.

“A matter wave is a probability wave; however, the Grand Ripple Enigma has no probability elements at all.” Waveform Essence pondered, “Yet the Waveform Essence ended up developing this instability.”

Zhen Chanzi’s curious question broke Wang Qi out of his thoughts: “I’ve never seen you using it before. What’s going on?”

Wang Qi said, “This cultivation method is too difficult. Even when starting, I found it very hard to control. Its power is weak and consider it useless.”

Zhen Chanzi gasped, “You call the earlier display with the rock weak?”

Wang Qi scratched his head. “It only just improved, about to enter the second stage.”

[But why did it do that?]

[I just recalled my understanding of the Schrödinger wave equation from my life as a scientist on Earth and it just up and advanced?]

[You’re saying that by finding my resolve and profound clarity, the cultivation method I use is advanced?]

[Is it the observer effect?]

[Is this art that abstruse?]

Wang Qi found the ground shaking beneath his feet, bringing him out of his deep thoughts. He looked around and asked, “Is a giant beast coming for a drink?”

“I say it’s an earthquake.”

The shaking grew more intense, followed by a multicolored glow appearing above the trial area. It twisted and warped, on the brink of breaking.

Wang Qi sat on the ground and said, “Mommy! What the hell is going on?”

“The barrier broke!”

Wang Qi glanced back at the broken rock. “Please don’t tell me that rock just now was the barrier’s core.”

Zhen Chanzi said, “You’re overthinking it. You have bigger things to worry about right now.”

“Like what?”

“Running! The lakeside demons are stampeding!”

Atop Argent Mountain, the Immortal Alliance’s headquarters.

In the back palace, a reserved Myriad Arts Sect cultivator handed over a jade slip to Chen Jingyun who sat behind a desk.

Chen Jingyun had a long way to go before he reached the level of peak Myriad Arts Sect experts; he was still the strongest Myriad Arts Sect expert in the open at a time when all Unfettered went into hiding. On top of that, he was its running sect Leader as well.

Chen Jingyun scanned the jade slip and asked, “Did you give your memorials to Palace Lord Deng the same way you do now?”

The jade slip contained daily reports of the Immortal Alliance’s affairs, with the Divine Province calling it a memorial. This Myriad Arts Sect cultivator’s memorial was different this time. Most of its content was made of numbers, formulas, and statistics, with some words here and there.

The cultivator smiled and said, “How could I? I’m always thorough when submitting a memorial. But isn’t sir taking a temporary hold of his office? So I thought that since Sect Leader and I are both from Myriad Arts Sect, I’d write it like this.”

Chen Jingyun nodded. “It’s somewhat easier, but other sects will find it a pain.” 

The cultivator said, “Most offices handling statistics and accounting are handled by Myriad Arts Sect disciples. We all write them like this most of the time.”

Chen Jingyun was about to say something when a violent shaking broke their chatter.

The disciple widened. “Enemy attack?”

Argent Mountain had a stable foundation. Even in the case of an earthquake, Landscape Metropolis would at least give off a warning. The suddenness of this shaking pointed out that it was induced!

[Who would dare attack the Immortal Alliance’s headquarters?]

Chen Jingyun made signs and shouted, “Mirror, activate!”

A powerful and magical spiritual energy appeared in the room, and a three-dimensional topographic ink map of Argent Apex appeared before Chen Jingyun. 

It was a product of the All-immortal Realm, an ability of the All-immortal Mirror powerful enough to monitor the world in conjecture with it. The focus was on the Immortal Alliance’s grounds. 

The map showed the surroundings of Argent Apex and tagged any cultivator above Golden Core Realm as well as barriers. Many of the large-scale barriers faded like their ink was diluted. 

“The shaking damaged 21 large-scale barriers, including this underground area… It’s coming from underground.” 

Chen Jingyun assessed in a whisper, but the Eminence cultivator easily heard him.

[Underground?] The news brought to mind a few unsavory stories and rumors.

Argent Mountain was where the Sacred Soul Coven imprisoned the Mystical Star Temple Leader, and many people believed there was a secret prison beneath it. It might hold ancient Great Ascension cultivators, perhaps Unfettered traitors like Heisenberg, or maybe captured sea demons. And that they were all experimented on by cultivators with low morals…

Chen Jingyun smiled at his expression and said, “Don’t get ahead of yourself. It’s only a mishap.”

“Mishap?” The cultivator gasped.

Chen Jingyun shook his head. “It’s classified, so don’t ask. Anyway, it’s passed now, so there’s no need to worry about a Great Ascension coming out of nowhere to unleash slaughter.”