The Return of Stars to the Jianghu

Chapter 130 The Difference in Cultivation Levels Between the Two Worlds

Floating Continent, Western Shu Kingdom, Lanting County.

Time flies, and three days have passed in the blink of an eye. Today marks the tenth day of negotiations between the various delegations. No substantial progress has been made on the issue of who will rule the world and on territorial disputes between nations. Instead, the situation has become tense and fraught with conflict due to differing opinions.

However, the topic of today's negotiations has finally shifted, with the nations beginning to discuss how to address the common challenge of the Path to Immortality. After a period of intense debate and negotiation, the nations finally reached a preliminary agreement—martial artists below the seventh rank will be prohibited from approaching the Path to Immortality, and anyone who trespasses will be held responsible for the consequences, whether dead or alive.

To ensure the smooth implementation of the resolution, each delegation dispatched a master of the seventh rank or higher to the site of the ancient Lanting Pavilion—the current location of the teleportation altar—to guard and monitor the area. These masters were tasked with maintaining order and preventing any unforeseen events; they would remain stationed there until the matter of the Path to Immortality was completely resolved.

Luo Yifei, Shen Lixi, Qi Yuan, Bi Li, Dugu Xin, Chu Ji, He Shihui, and Ji Mi—these eight young talents had been busy for the past three days, traversing the streets and alleys of Lanting County, gathering intelligence on the Path to Immortality and the activities of various foreign delegations. They knew that this negotiation was crucial to the future of the Floating Life Continent, and therefore dared not slacken their efforts in the slightest.

To avoid leaking secrets, the eight young people did not exchange information in the lobby of Tongfu Inn, but instead chose a relatively secluded location—the woodshed where Ji Mi was staying. This woodshed was located in a corner of the inn, next to only the kitchen, and there were no other buildings around, so there was no need to worry about being overheard.

“I have carefully studied the cultivation systems of the Floating Life Continent and the Profound Heaven Continent,” Shen Lixi said first, breaking the silence in the room. His voice was deep and firm, revealing an undeniable confidence.

The others listened intently, waiting for Shen Lixi to explain further.

“After comparison and analysis, I found that although the cultivation systems of the two continents are similar, there are actually many differences,” Shen Lixi continued. “On the Floating Life Continent, martial artists and cultivators are divided by rank, but in reality, there is no essential difference between them. Martial artists focus on improving their martial power and honing their skills, while cultivators focus more on cultivation and mental cultivation. However, whether they are martial artists or cultivators, their cultivation path is limited by their rank.”

“We already knew about these things,” Bili interjected, “but have you made any special discoveries?”

Shen Lixi nodded and continued, "There have indeed been some special discoveries. First of all, the first to ninth grade martial artists and grandmasters of the Floating Life Continent are only equivalent to ten minor realms of the Body Refinement Realm in the cultivation system of the Profound Heaven Continent. This means that the top experts of the Floating Life Continent are only at the entry level in the Profound Heaven Continent."

"This is truly astonishing," He Shihui exclaimed. "Then what is the cultivation system like on the Xuan Tian Continent?"

Shen Lixi took a deep breath and continued, "The cultivation system of the Xuan Tian Continent focuses on magic, with physical cultivation being secondary. Beginners are called Body Refining Realm cultivators, and those who pass the initial stage reach the True Essence Realm. But what is most astonishing is that True Essence Realm experts can condense True Essence Seeds. These True Essence Seeds not only greatly enhance strength but also store True Essence, allowing cultivators to continuously release True Essence in battle without worrying about running out of it."

"Condensing a True Essence Seed?" Luo Yifei asked in surprise. "Doesn't that mean that a True Essence Realm expert is several times stronger than a True Essence Realm expert who hasn't condensed a True Essence Seed?"

“That’s right,” Shen Lixi replied affirmatively. “Moreover, condensing the True Essence Seed is no easy task; it requires some special opportunities and conditions. But once successfully condensed, the cultivator’s strength will experience a qualitative leap.”

The crowd listened intently, filled with curiosity and longing for the cultivation system of the Xuan Tian Continent. They knew that to remain undefeated on the path to immortality, they must understand and learn from the cultivation methods of the Xuan Tian Continent.

Shen Lixi continued his narration, explaining in detail the characteristics of each major realm and minor realm in the cultivation system of the Xuantian Continent.

"The cultivation system of the Xuan Tian Continent also has ten levels, which are divided into Body Refining Realm, True Essence Realm, Yuan Dan Realm, Yuan Shen Realm, Dharma Aspect Realm, Dao Integration Realm, Mahayana Realm, Tribulation Crossing Realm, Ascension Realm, and Immortal Realm. Each major realm is divided into ten minor realms."

The audience listened with great interest, occasionally letting out exclamations of amazement. They knew that this information sharing not only gave them a deeper understanding of the cultivation system of the Xuan Tian Continent, but also pointed them in the right direction for their future cultivation path.

Of course, the condensation of the True Essence Seed is by no means easy. It requires certain opportunities, which are often unpredictable and full of unknowns and variables.

"For most cultivators, obtaining such an opportunity is extremely difficult. However, the situation is different on the battlefield." Shen Lixi paused slightly, as if considering how to express her meaning more accurately.

"Battlefield? You mean the battle between the demon race and humans near the abyss in the Hundred Thousand Mountains?" Luo Yifei asked doubtfully.

“Exactly. I speculate that those demons' bodies contain some kind of special substance, which might be able to help us cultivators condense true essence seeds,” Shen Lixi explained.

"But how can we safely reach the battlefield and obtain this substance from those demons? After all, we don't have enough self-defense capabilities, and if we encounter powerful demons, we may not be able to escape unscathed," Chu Ji said worriedly.

"I've always had a question about the Path to Immortality," He Shihui suddenly interjected. "If the Path to Immortality is really just a tunnel connecting two worlds, then whether we go or not doesn't really matter much. After all, we already have our own world and life."

“You make a good point,” Shen Lixi nodded. “But what if we look at the path to immortality from a different perspective? Perhaps, the collection of these tunnels is the true path to immortality. They are not just bridges connecting two worlds, but also passages to higher realms.”

“Yes, I tend to agree with that view,” Luo Yifei echoed. “If the path to immortality is a staircase, then we might just be stuck on the first step right now. If we can find a way to reach a higher step, perhaps we can break through our current level and reach a higher realm.”

"But how do we find this method?" Chu Ji asked.

“I think we might need to rely on some external forces,” Shen Lixi said. “For example, the Xuanwu Shield we mentioned earlier.”

"The Xuanwu Shield?" Luo Yifei was taken aback for a moment, then said, "That's right, how could I forget about the Xuanwu Shield! It's one of the five divine artifacts, possessing powerful defensive capabilities. If we can use it to protect ourselves, perhaps we can safely reach the battlefield."

"But where is the Xuanwu Shield now?" Chu Ji asked.

"Ahem," Luo Yifei coughed awkwardly and said, "The Xuanwu Shield has always been with me. Before crossing the time tunnel, I packed up all those artifacts and brought them with me."