Chapter 297: Research [PART 2]
“So that’s what I felt was missing,” Xiang Yu thought as insights from his new researcher profession flowed into his mind.
The knowledge felt both foreign and familiar.
As this happened, he thought to himself that researching all those things himself and through his clones, especially the light clone, had led him to unlock the true path of the teacher profession.
Long ago, this profession was actually known as the researcher profession.
These ancient practitioners were the true pioneers, carrying out groundbreaking research and becoming the first people to pave the way of cultivation itself. One could say that the researchers were what made cultivation what it is today.
“So cultivation wasn’t always the way of life but was actually discovered,” he thought. He wondered if that meant there might be more paths of advancement apart from what has been discovered so far.
He shook his head and dismissed the idea. These were established systems that had been tested and refined over billions of years. Trying to go in blind and form your own path would be a reckless thing to do without any point of reference. The risks far outweighed any potential benefits. No wonder cultivation has remained relatively unchanged over billions of years.
Still, the research profession was truly powerful – it could even be seen as the mother of all other professions. Every advancement in cultivation, every technique, every breakthrough could trace its origins back to these dedicated researchers.
Sadly, as time went on and knowledge accumulated, more and more things were discovered until there was simply nothing more to discover, thus no need to continue researching anymore.
After all, if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it.
Instead of continuing the art of research, people gradually focused more on passing existing knowledge to the younger generation. This shift continued until the research profession died down completely.
He was now actually the only researcher in all of existence.
Xiang Yu felt a little sad after receiving all these memories. Other professions were often called “lost,” but they still had scattered practitioners here and there keeping the traditions barely alive. This one, however, was actually lost for real.
The art was really abandoned just like that after paving the path for everything else that came after.
Still, it made sense when he thought about it. The cultivation path already seemed perfect and complete – what more was there to research about? Every major question appeared to have been answered.
Well, he was going to pick up the role of the researcher now. He couldn’t promise to pave the path for an entirely new generation or revolutionize cultivation, but he would try his best to honor this forgotten legacy.
The research profession came with many more benefits than the teaching profession, though it was more focused on personal investigation and discovery than sharing knowledge with others. It gave him a huge boost in enlightenment – a boost he could actually feel despite already having divine level enlightenment.
It also allowed him to more easily grasp concepts that had previously troubled him. With this, Xiang Yu felt that he finally had a decent chance of figuring out the domain problem that had been bugging him. Though he suspected he might still need his enlightenment level to advance a level.
Once all the insights had finally settled, he turned his attention back to the system screen. Just like before, he chose the fusion function.
…
Xiang Yu didn’t feel anything during the upgrade process, and the system function enhancement was instant. If not for the new memories that had suddenly appeared in his mind, he would’ve thought nothing had happened at all.
He quickly went through the new memories he had received, eager to see what new changes the fusion function upgrade had brought. As he processed the information, his face brightened – this was indeed a major upgrade.
Although the fusion function didn’t give him the ability to merge opposing things as he had originally hoped, it had granted him something just as useful if not better. He could now perform fission.
Now not only could he merge things together, he could also split them apart.
At first glance, this new capability seemed a little useless. After all, why would anyone want to split something apart when it was clearly better when fused together? But that was the wrong way of looking at it.
The main reason Xiang Yu had hoped the compatibility limit in fusion would be lifted was so he could eventually fuse his dragon and phoenix bloodlines into a divine level or above bloodline. However, he didn’t want to attempt this now, but rather wait until both bloodlines reached their maximum stage and couldn’t evolve any further through stimulation.
Even so, he had discovered so many practical uses for the ongoing bloodline stimulation that he wasn’t sure if fusion was even a good idea anymore. After all, he really didn’t want to lose out on that constant stream of body refining exp and other benefits that the battle between his two bloodlines provided.
Another option he had considered was fusing other compatible bloodlines into both the dragon and the phoenix bloodlines separately to upgrade them to divine level. But Xiang Yu wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about this approach either.
First was the obvious problem – not many bloodlines could be found that were truly compatible with these two. And even if he did manage to locate suitable candidates, he couldn’t be completely certain whether the blood feud between the dragon and phoenix wouldn’t be diluted by the introduction of other bloodlines. This dilution might eliminate the very feature he most wanted to preserve.
But with this new fission feature, he might be able to achieve the bloodline upgrade without compromising his experience farm at all.
He could use his void flame to isolate a portion of his body, creating a controlled environment where he could safely take in other bloodlines for experimentation. Within this isolated space, he could then experiment on various bloodlines, studying their unique traits.
Once he had thoroughly analyzed them, he could then split apart their most beneficial traits specifically, extracting only the desired characteristics without taking the entire bloodline. This would allow him to merge only the most useful and powerful features into either the phoenix or dragon bloodlines according to their individual compatibility.
By doing this, he would not only be evolving both bloodlines, but the process could also potentially accelerate their conflict. As each bloodline developed new capabilities and continued using them in their endless battle, the conflict might intensify, providing him with even greater benefits.
…
In an incomprehensibly far away place, a woman sat in meditation on a massive block of ice. The area surrounding her was pure white as far as the eye could see, an endless expanse filled with snow and ice that stretched infinitely in every direction.
The woman was extraordinarily beautiful and possessed an otherworldly aura.
Her pale skin resembled the snow around her so closely she could’ve passed for part of the environment if not for her golden robes.
Her eyes slowly fluttered open.
“Failed?” she spoke, her tone completely flat and devoid of emotion.
“That’s unexpected. Is the little empress stronger than I predicted?” she wondered aloud. There was no frustration or surprise in her tone.
“Hmm, she does indeed seem stronger than I predicted. How did this happen?”
“I can’t see through Li Yao’s cultivation level because of the protection from the heavenly dao, but it shouldn’t be that high. Probably around golden core according to my predictions, so how is this happening?” she continued speaking to herself.
“Let’s see, how did the demon god die…” she spoke while making several hand signs.
Suddenly she found herself standing in the battlefield between Xiang Yu and the demon god.
“Who’s that?” she asked aloud.
As she watched the battle unfold, Xiang Yu suddenly turned and looked directly at her. Their eyes met, and the illusion immediately froze before shattering into countless pieces.
In an instant, she was once again seated on the ice, alone in her frozen domain.
“Someone outside of causality?” she spoke, and for the first time her voice carried slight emotion, though she still maintained her nonchalance. Then she smiled.
“The heavenly dao is really unfair. You even brought a little knight in shining armor for your little daughter,” she spoke in amusement.
“Well, *OUR daughter that is”
Daily (1/2)