A Bad Memory

October 24th. The day before entering the mystic realm, Su Yu still had not shown himself. Many people had been looking forward to Su Yu challenging Zhai Feng before entering the realm, but after waiting several days without seeing him appear, they could not help feeling somewhat disappointed. Had Su Yu gone into seclusion? Or was he afraid to challenge Zhai Feng? After all, Zhai Feng had returned this time bearing the renown of having slain a Tengkong cultivator. Although Su Yu was formidable, his physical body was only at the Qianjun Realm. Some felt that Su Yu likely realized he was no match for Zhai Feng and had chosen to back down. This was only natural; that was just the kind of person Su Yu was. Last time, when he felt outmatched by Zhai Feng, he had chosen to forfeit the challenge. Disappointment aside, the onlookers merely felt deprived of a good show and thought little more of it. As for the Single Divine Character Faction, some breathed a sigh of relief while others felt regret. There was much to regret! Some regretted that Zhai Feng had not gotten the chance to crush Su Yu and clear the name of the Single Divine Character Faction. Others regretted that the two had not fought and injured each other, leaving both still eligible to enter the mystic realm; had they clashed, they might have crippled one another, freeing up two spots. …… Su Yu no longer paid any mind to the tumult of the outside world. Inside Zhao Li's research institute. At this moment, on the massive model, one hundred and forty-four red dots were linked together into a single pathway. Zhao Li took a deep breath and said gravely, "This is only a theoretical possibility; it doesn't mean it's definitely correct! After all, we haven't actually linked them before, so there's no telling whether all four arts can be unified. It's just that after countless deductions, this method of connection proved to be the smoothest..." Looking at Su Yu, Zhao Li added in a deep voice, "You can start learning these arts first, keeping them as separate systems without completing the connection. Deducing cultivation methods is an extremely rigorous endeavor—the slightest mistake could cause problems in your sea of will!" After pondering for a moment, Zhao Li said, "Before reaching the Lingyun Realm, there's actually no need to force them to connect anyway. It will still take you quite a while to reach Lingyun." Su Yu's eyes were bloodshot; he hadn't slept for days. Zhao Li was the same. Over the past few days, the two had been completely absorbed in deducing how to unify the five-element cultural arts. Hearing Zhao Li's words, Su Yu nodded slightly. Indeed, there was no rush. Only upon reaching ninth-stage Tengkong and preparing to break through to the Lingyun Realm would he need to unify the methods to advance. Before then, being unable to unify the five-element arts would not hinder his cultivation progress, though his willpower's burst power would be slightly weaker. Zhao Li did some mental calculations and added, "Actually, once you open seventy-two divine apertures, you can try unifying two of the arts. If unifying two works, the feasibility of the rest will increase drastically!" Seventy-two divine apertures! Zhao Li made a comparison and chose two arts that shared little overlap with the Myriad Characters Scripture. Both required seventy-two divine apertures, but only eight overlapped, meaning he would need to open an additional sixty-four. Divine apertures are difficult to open, but since I already have seventy-two open, opening more shouldn't be too slow... Expending resources, I might be able to open one every five days, meaning I could open them all in about a year... Zhao Li calculated in his mind. Perhaps he could test it out first. He could open the apertures for two of the arts and attempt unification. If it worked, it would prove their deduced method was correct and viable. If not... then something was flawed in the deduction. After all, it was only a model! A year... Su Yu shouldn't advance to Lingyun within a year, right? Not that fast! At that thought, Zhao Li said again, "Keep practicing for now and memorize this new unified pathway. I'll continue deducing on my end, and if it proves viable, I'll let you know!" Exhausted, Su Yu didn't overthink it. He nodded and smiled. "Teacher, this is already great! At the very least, according to our theory, unifying them like this should form a new cycle. If all else fails, I can test it slowly later on." Su Yu wasn't too worried. If the arts conflicted, the backlash would strike the sea of will, throwing it into chaos or even causing it to collapse. However, inside his sea of will was the golden album. With that around, would his sea of will collapse easily? Impossible! He would only know once he tried! Zhao Li didn't say much more, exhaling softly before asking, "By the way, I'll try cultivating these arts myself. You don't mind, do you?" "Not at all!" Su Yu grinned. "If you need it, Teacher, I can provide the fifth art as well." "Forget it. That's too many divine apertures to open. Four are already more than enough trouble for me!" As Zhao Li spoke, he suddenly asked, "What date is it today?" Su Yu blinked, thought for a moment, and quickly replied, "The 24th. Right now, it's..." He checked the large clock on the wall—eleven o'clock! Looking out the window, it was night. Whew! Su Yu let out a sigh of relief. He had almost forgotten he had to enter the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm, and tomorrow was the 25th. There was also that fellow Chen Hao. After finishing his cultivation, he had sent a message saying he was heading back to the academy, and then vanished without a word. Who knew how his cultivation had turned out? "You have to enter the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm tomorrow, right?" Zhao Li remembered this as well and reminded him, "This is good enough for now. I'll test the deduction again later to see if it holds up. Go back and get some rest. It isn't easy for the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm to open, and since you need to open divine apertures right now, it will be of immense help to you!" Su Yu nodded. Over the past few days, he hadn't cultivated, but that didn't mean he hadn't gained anything. Deducing the divine aperture connection pathways alongside Zhao Li had at least deepened his knowledge of divine apertures. He now knew the opening order and locations of all one hundred and forty-four divine apertures like the back of his hand, and had gained deeper insights into the five-element arts. All of this would greatly aid his future cultivation. Zhao Li said no more. Once Su Yu had fully memorized the newly deduced pathway, a ball of flame appeared in Zhao Li's hand, incinerating the model completely! After burning the model, his divine character vibrated outward, pulverizing the remaining residue into dust. He then gathered up all the dust, remarking as he worked, "I'll dispose of this later. You be careful as well. Some experts possess very peculiar divine characters that can even trace back time! Don't leave behind a single trace. If an art like this ever leaks out, it will bring about a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions!" Su Yu nodded hastily. He was very cautious about this as well. He wouldn't dare leave traces behind lightly! "All right, you head back first!" Zhao Li paused as something came to mind, and a piece of golden crystal appeared in his hand. Tossing it to Su Yu, he said, "Integrate this into your sea of will. If anyone uses tracking, eavesdropping, or scrying divine characters to track or spy on you, this counter-reconnaissance cultural weapon will change color to warn you! It emits different colors depending on the tier. "White indicates a Tier-2 divine character, blue is Tier-3, red is Tier-4, and purple is Tier-5... "Tier-5 means a Sunmoon Realm cultivator is spying on you! "If it ever turns purple, don't think about anything and don't do anything, because even stray thoughts can be easily sensed by them." Curious, Su Yu fiddled with the object. It was exceedingly practical. And incredibly precious! It could even detect probes from the Sunmoon Realm! Something like this had to be worth a fortune. Su Yu even felt it wasn't inferior to high-tier Profound-rank or even Earth-rank cultural weapons. "Teacher, what rank is this cultural weapon?" "It's auxiliary in nature, so don't worry about ranks. It's called perception jade. It counts as a cultural weapon, though in truth it only has a sensory function..." Even though Zhao Li spoke lightly, Su Yu still understood that this single function alone was mind-blowing! "Teacher, can I also sense an expert's willpower probe with it?" "Yes!" Zhao Li nodded. "Its sole purpose is early warning, so of course it can sense that!" Su Yu was amazed! A truly magnificent treasure! Especially out in the wilderness, if someone were watching him from the shadows, he would be able to discover them immediately—a life-saving treasure. Otherwise, if an expert probed him, it would be almost impossible for Su Yu to notice unless their willpower was exceptionally weak or they deliberately revealed themselves. "Teacher, do you have any more of these?" Could this be Zhao Li's own life-saving treasure? "Nonsense, I forged it myself, so of course I can forge more!" Zhao Li couldn't be bothered to explain further and said impatiently, "All right, go back. Rest well tonight, adjust your condition, and absorb as much willpower as you can in the mystic realm tomorrow." Though Su Yu wanted to say a few more words, seeing Zhao Li's attitude, he refrained from acting overly modest. He drew the perception jade into his sea of will, where it smoothly integrated within. Zhao Li wasted no words and caused his divine character to fluctuate slightly. Instantly, the perception jade turned blue! Blue signified the Lingyun Realm. In the next moment, Zhao Li's willpower fluctuated. Su Yu didn't feel anyone probing him, yet the perception jade turned red. Red signified Tier-4, representing the Shanhai Realm! Su Yu understood. Zhao Li's divine character was Tier-3, but his willpower had reached the Shanhai Realm, hence the red warning. This meant a Shanhai Realm expert had their eyes on him! What a miraculous object! Such sharp acuity! Su Yu was inwardly astonished. He hadn't noticed anything unusual at all; if Zhao Li hadn't deliberately demonstrated it, he wouldn't have sensed Zhao Li probing him whatsoever. Yet the perception jade had detected it! "The perception jade doesn't tell the whole story..." Zhao Li suddenly warned, "Take divine characters, for instance. Aside from their main divine character, some experts have other divine characters that aren't very strong. Even if the jade only turns white—meaning the divine character monitoring you is Tier-2—don't assume the enemy in the shadows is merely in the Tengkong Realm! It could be a Shanhai or Sunmoon cultivator whose surveillance-type divine character just happens to be Tier-2. Do you understand?" Su Yu nodded! Realization dawned on him! He had almost overlooked that. It seemed that even if it were only white, he couldn't let down his guard. Who knew if it might be a Sunmoon expert whose surveillance character was merely Tier-2? White didn't necessarily mean Tengkong, but purple definitely meant Sunmoon! If one weren't in the Sunmoon Realm, one couldn't outline a Tier-5 divine character. Of course, there were exceptions to everything; in any case, when encountering such a situation, prioritizing survival was the only right answer. …… Emerging from Zhao Li's research institute, it was already late into the night. The night was deep and still. The Civilization Academy was quiet. Gripping his voice transmission talisman, Su Yu flipped through the message logs. Xia Huyou had left a few messages, nothing of great importance. Su Yu saw the news about Zhai Feng, but paid it no heed. He had slain a Tengkong cultivator and might enter the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm... What did that have to do with him? He was a low-profile guy! He had never planned on challenging Zhai Feng in the first place; it was utterly pointless. Not to mention he wasn't guaranteed to win, even if he did win and ended up injured, missing the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm would be the real loss. With someone like Zhai Feng, injuring him once was useless—he never learned his lesson. After being punished by the Court of Inspectors last time, he hadn't shown any signs of remembering the pain. As Principal Wan put it, either don't do it at all, or do it thoroughly and ruthlessly! Whether Principal Wan had actually said those exact words didn't matter; it was enough that Su Yu interpreted it that way. Aside from Xia Huyou's messages, others had sent transmissions as well. Su Yu had two voice transmission talismans: one used by members of the Mutual Aid Association, and another used for his alternate personas, specifically meant for duping people. On the Mutual Aid Association talisman, aside from Xia Huyou's messages—though Xia Huyou himself didn't know the Mutual Aid Association existed, his talisman belonged to its network—others had sent messages as well. "Complete List of Entrants for the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm..." This was sent by Lin Yao! Not only that, he had attached a warning, reminding Su Yu to be careful: someone might target him once inside the mystic realm by surrounding him and siphoning away willpower. Lin Yao urged Su Yu to contact people as soon as possible to resolve these troubles. Su Yu's expression shifted slightly. They could do that? The Single Divine Character Faction certainly came up with creative ideas. However, he had already opened forty-four divine apertures now. When it came to absorbing willpower, he wouldn't necessarily be slower than those Tengkong cultivators. Still, I can't make it too obvious... No matter! Many people would be entering. At worst, he could stick close to Xia Huyou and the others. Wan Mingze and his circle would be going in as well. Would they dare target descendants of the Wan family just to get at him? Or he could stay close to Xia Chan. What would they dare do then? A foolish scheme! Su Yu didn't take it to heart. Such a plan simply wouldn't work. He wasn't stupid enough to insist on fighting them head-on. If he stayed close to Xia Chan and the others, unless those people dared to stop Xia Chan from cultivating as well, weren't they afraid the Xia family would beat them to death? Lin Yao also mentioned something else: his senior brother, Yang Sha, was currently undergoing his evaluation and had not yet been brought into the Mutual Aid Association. Only if he passed would he be invited. "..." Su Yu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Suit yourself. That guy was really treating this like a matter of grave importance. As for the roster for the Sea of Consciousness Mystic Realm, Su Yu spotted many familiar names. However, among Zhai Feng's group, only Zhai Feng had obtained an entry slot; Huang Qifeng and Qiu Yun had not. Slaying a single Tengkong cultivator was not enough to offset the guilt of multiple people. After checking the Mutual Aid Association talisman, Su Yu turned to the Single-Elimination Association talisman. For the Single-Elimination Association, Su Yu had only handed out one talisman so far: the one belonging to Liu Hong. At this moment, the talisman displayed a message that had been posted not long ago: "Yellow Ninety-Nine: Newcomer reporting in. Do seniors have any pointers?" "Heaven Seven: Everyone is cultivating, no time for you!" "Heaven Two: Currently chatting with an elder, do not disturb!" "..." Apart from Yellow Ninety-Nine, the rest of these messages were automated replies using preset templates. Right now, with few members, it wasn't much of an issue. If there were more people, it would easily be exposed. With Liu Hong as the sole new recruit, Su Yu had configured several preset template responses, so it wasn't a big problem yet. "Yellow Ninety-Nine..." Su Yu was speechless. You sure chose a low-profile number. After some thought, he replied: "Earth Eight: No pointers, but here's a warning: do not provoke Principal Wan. He is a Sunmoon Realm powerhouse; be careful he doesn't choke you to death!" Moments later, a reply arrived. "Yellow Ninety-Nine: The Principal is at the Sunmoon Realm? The records say he's at the peak of Shanhai!" "Earth Eight: A true newcomer indeed, actually believing official records. How foolish!" "Earth Eight: The Principal broke through to Sunmoon long ago!" "Earth Twenty-Two: It's normal for a newcomer not to know. Since you don't even know the Principal broke through to Sunmoon, you're definitely not an expert. Little rookie, let me tell you a secret: have you cultivated divine characters of other races? If so, cripple them quickly. Human divine characters are the strongest!" "Earth Eight: Twenty-Two, he's just joined the association. Don't blabber nonsense!" "Earth Twenty-Two: This isn't even a secret to real experts. Peak Shanhai cultivators all have some inkling of it..." "..." As his alternate accounts conversed back and forth, Liu Hong—operating as Yellow Ninety-Nine—was utterly taken aback. What did that mean? He truly didn't know! Human divine characters were the strongest? You've got to be kidding! His heart stirred with turbulent waves. Liu Hong hurriedly asked, "Why?" "Earth Twenty-Two: Why? Once you reach Shanhai and get stuck at the peak, you'll know! Of course, you're likely a rookie who's still far from Shanhai. You might never reach peak Shanhai in your entire life. I'm just speaking off the cuff; it doesn't really matter anyway." "..." Liu Hong was at a loss for words, but his thoughts churned. What did that mean? Are you a peak Shanhai expert? Don't mess with me! In the entire academy, there were only a handful of peak Shanhai cultivators. The four principals were, Hong Tan was now as well, and a few deans of academies were at peak Shanhai. Could there really be peak-stage powerhouses in this chat? "Yellow Ninety-Nine: Seniors, I am a newcomer, please look after me. Aren't human divine characters the weakest? Why do you say they are the strongest? This newcomer doesn't quite understand." "Earth Twenty-Two: Call me Grandpa, and I'll enlighten you." "..." Liu Hong nearly blew his top. Call you Grandpa my ass! Yet curiosity clawed at his heart like a cat. Why? He didn't know the truth! Struggling internally, he thought, Forget it. Nobody knows who Yellow Ninety-Nine is anyway. Su Yu might know, but over the past few days Liu Hong had observed that he wasn't the only newcomer; several others had joined in previous days as well. Su Yu might not even know who he was! He had waited several days before daring to show his face. Grit your teeth. Since no one knew anyone else's identity, calling him that was no big deal. "Yellow Ninety-Nine: Grandpa, please bestow some guidance!" "..." Su Yu was dumbfounded! Holy shit! This was definitely Liu Hong, without a shadow of a doubt. The talisman had to still be in his hands. Damn, other than him in the Single Divine Character Faction, would Elder Sun stoop to calling someone Grandpa? Give me a break! As for human divine characters, Su Yu wasn't the only one who knew; many did. Hong Tan had mentioned it before, and someone had raised the issue at an Elder Council meeting earlier. Su Yu didn't dally and quickly replied: "Earth Twenty-Two: Good grandson! What a good boy! Grandpa will tell you: while god and demon divine characters are powerful right now, when you reach peak Shanhai and try to break through to Sunmoon, conflict and repulsion may arise, causing the advancement to fail!" Liu Hong was thoroughly shaken! Really? He genuinely had no idea! Did that mean the upper echelons of the academy already knew about this? Just as he wanted to ask more, the senior who had deigned to indulge him sent another message. "Earth Twenty-Two: Good grandson, Grandpa has to go out. Let's chat next time!" Liu Hong was frustrated. You're the grandson! Still, with the person gone and no one else responding, Liu Hong was left helpless. Forget it, he would look for another opportunity next time. He'd pop up when there were more people around and familiarize himself with the crowd. Who would have thought that speaking up for the first time would net him several crucial pieces of intelligence? First, the Principal was at the Sunmoon Realm. Second, breaking through from Shanhai to Sunmoon was affected by god and demon divine characters... Then why hadn't previous Sunmoon cultivators had this issue? Unfortunately, before he could ask, the other party had vanished, and no one else paid him any mind. "The Single-Elimination Association..." Inside his villa, Liu Hong's eyes flickered. He deleted several messages to prevent Elder Sun from discovering his humiliating history during a surprise inspection! …… "This guy... is truly shameless!" Su Yu was also speechless. The man had actually called him Grandpa. It just wasn't convenient to expose him right now; otherwise, if the truth were laid bare, would that fellow have the face to go on living? Probably. In any case, Liu Hong really was shameless! …… He paid Liu Hong no further heed; the Single-Elimination Association was merely something he had thrown together on a whim. Later, he could distribute more talismans at random to expand the scale, which might yield some results. Expecting to get top-secret intel or vital information out of Liu Hong right now was pure nonsense. Once the fellow took the bait and grew genuinely intrigued by the Single-Elimination Association, he might let something slip. Returning to the research center, he found that Hong Tan had actually returned. Seeing Su Yu walk in, Hong Tan didn't pry into details and quickly said, "Tomorrow, when you enter the mystic realm, I will be going as well. I'll be opening the realm alongside Zhou Mingren and the others to keep it open longer. In principle, interfering with others is forbidden inside the mystic realm, but once inside, those people might not follow the rules. Be careful!" "Understood. Thank you for the reminder, Grandteacher!" Su Yu added, "Grandteacher, once I enter the mystic realm, can I stay until the very end?" "You can!" Hong Tan nodded and quickly cautioned, "However, when the mystic realm opens, the willpower you can absorb is limited. The early stage enhances your willpower, while the later stage mainly nurtures willpower and divine characters. When you can no longer absorb more, do not force it, lest your sea of will burst!" "Mm, I understand!" Su Yu nodded hastily. Hong Tan continued, "By the time you emerge from the mystic realm, several days will have passed, and next month will be right around the corner. Your teacher and my senior brother will both be leaving the Great Xia Prefecture for the All-Heavens Battlefield..." As Hong Tan spoke, an emotional sigh escaped him. "I hope they'll be safe. Don't run around these next few days; find time to bid them farewell." Hearing those words, Su Yu felt a pang of sorrow. Going to the All-Heavens Battlefield meant nine deaths to one life, especially in the vanguard battalion! Six months ago, he had seen off his father. Six months later, both of his teachers were heading to the All-Heavens Battlefield. Su Yu couldn't help feeling a bitter pang. The people closest to him were all being sent to the All-Heavens Battlefield... If it were a normal conscription, that would be one thing, but this was not. They were being sent as punishment, which naturally left a bitter taste in Su Yu's mouth. This was all caused by the Single Divine Character Faction! Sooner or later, he would make them pay! Hong Tan fell silent as well. With his senior brother and his disciple both heading to the All-Heavens Battlefield, his heart ached. On this journey, life and death were uncertain! He had just returned from the All-Heavens Battlefield himself, and now they were heading off. Sigh... At that thought, something suddenly struck Hong Tan! Did I forget something? Right, I just returned from the All-Heavens Battlefield... so why did I go to the All-Heavens Battlefield in the first place? In the next instant, Hong Tan's expression turned bizarre! Holy crap! I actually forgot! That thing isn't dead, is it? If it's dead, I've taken a colossal loss!