Forty millenniums of cul.., p.565
Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 565
"Truth be told, my father and Elder Nether Spring are political rivals. They have been attacking each other openly and in secret for decades. Now, for the post of the commander-in-chief of the coalition army, they are almost engaged in an open fight.
"After I discovered the anomaly of Elder Nether Spring, I investigated and found out that Elder Nether Spring had a confidential laboratory in Bone Sand City that was compromised in the Riot of Bloody Blade. Something extremely precious was stolen by the Blade of Chaos."
Chapter 848: Hereditary Information |
"My purpose was simple. I planned to find the lost item and uncover Elder Nether Spring's secret so that the Gold Crow Kingdom would be in advantage in the competition with the Nether Spring Kingdom. Or, maybe I could trade the lost item with Elder Nether Spring for political benefits.
"However, Elder Nether Spring valued the item much more than I expected. He risked a war of the two kingdoms and ordered his subordinates to kill me!
"It seems that the elder of the Blade of Chaos was not exaggerating. The item might really change the fate of the Blood Demon Sector!
"Senior, with all due respect, that item is a ticking time bomb.
"If your purpose since the beginning has been the item, then I have nothing to say. You've got the item, and you can easily walk away after killing me to keep my mouth shut.
"However, if you are uninvolved in the incident and only retrieved the item by accident, you and I will be on the same side, senior, because Elder Nether Spring will hate us equally.
"Of course, I'm too incapable to be qualified to fight by your side. With your amazing skills, you must be fearless of a demon emperor. However, Elder Nether Spring governs all the Insect Clan in the world. They are best known for their harassment and persistence. If they follow and bother you all the time, it will certainly be a minor nuisance for you, senior.
"If you spare my life, senior, the Gold Crow King will be able to give you a hand and get rid of the nuisance for you. You will be saved a lot of trouble, won't you?
"Besides, my father is the commander-in-chief of the coalition army of the demon race, and he respects heroes the most. With a great war breaking out soon, you are going to make a huge difference if you go to the Gold Crow Kingdom!"
Jin Xinyue was quite bold. After she calmed herself down, she immediately started trying to manipulate Li Yao.
Li Yao smiled casually and said, "The item has been broken. Some sort of weird green liquid was stored inside it, but it leaked into your body and triggered tremendous changes.
"Do you feel that your body is stranger and your demonic energy is not functioning well? It is not because I imposed barriers on you but because of the effects of the green liquid."
Jin Xinyue was greatly shocked. She could not help but touch her back, only to find no feathers or wings at all.
She took a deep breath and sensed the demonic energy inside her body. She even tried to stimulate her cells to summon her original appearance, to no avail. Her body was empty, and the strength that she was born with had vanished into thin air!
Deep confusion beamed out of Jin Xinyue's eyes for the first time. She shivered and asked, "Senior, can I retrieve some devices from my Cosmos Ring to examine my cells?"
Li Yao blinked and asked back, "Cells? What is that?"
Jin Xinyue smiled bitterly. "Cells are the most basic structural and functional units that constitute a living entity. It is a new concept coined some twenty thousand years ago. Demons and human beings are all made of cells.
"But for demons, cells are more important. The study of cells is the foundation of our modern training."
Li Yao nodded and gestured for Jin Xinyue to do what she had to.
Jin Xinyue calmed herself down. She touched a silver Cosmos Ring that she was wearing on her little finger with her thumb, and she mumbled a series of spells to herself, retrieving five or so pieces of magical equipment.
Li Yao was particularly interested in the dark golden one that had a delicate badge on the pedestal that read 'Deep Sea'.
It was a piece of magical equipment produced by the Refining Department of Deep Sea University, which was known as the 'holy land for refiners' in the Heaven's Origin Sector!
Jin Xinyue managed to keep her shaking hands stable and opened the cover of the pedestal. She inserted a standard crystal into it and activated the magical equipment.
The seven crystal cameras at the top of the magical equipment immediately started revolving slowly.
"Senior, this magical equipment is named 'portable microscope'," Jin Xinyue explained. "It can magnify an object to eight hundred thousand times its normal size. A world of endless mysteries can be observed through it."
Li Yao raised his eyebrow, pretending that he was very curious but would not like to pursue it further in case it showed his ignorance.
Although Jin Xinyue's mind was in a mess, she was secretly amused by Li Yao's countenance. "Microscopes can be divided into two kinds, namely spiritual energy microscopes and biochemical microscopes. Human beings are better at the former while demons are adept at the latter.
"The spiritual energy microscope in my hand was made by the best refiners of the Heaven's Origin Sector. I'm going to analyze my own blood with it."
Jin Xinyue carefully picked out two glass slides, which were so thin that they were almost nonexistent. She then pierced her finger and squeezed out a drop of blood, which she dripped in the middle of the two glass slides. In the end, she inserted the glass slides into the slot of the microscope and observed for a long time.
Gradually, her face turned paler and paler until it was whiter than that of a dead person. Her sweat was pouring out, and she fell to the ground like a fish that had been tossed onto land, her eyes unfocused, as if somebody had taken her spine away.
"No wonder Elder Nether Spring wants the item back no matter what!"
Jin Xinyue breathed hard for a long time before she came back to herself. She sucked her finger and laughed more hideously than when one was crying. "He—he is running such horrible experiences and has even made breakthroughs. He—he can transform the demonized cells inside the body of a demon into regular cells!"
"Senior, I… I…"
Jin Xinyue considered for a long time and decided to tell the truth in the end.
Although the stranger did not even know what cells were, it did not mean that he could be fooled easily. Her reactions that bordered on losing control just now were indicative of many things already.
She was dealing with an old monster who could kill a demon king instantly just by moving his finger. Jin Xinyue knew that it would be a disaster if such an old monster caught her lying.
"I finally understand why Elder Nether Spring tried so hard to get back the item and did not even care about potential war.
"It was because that the item he lost was an extremely important drug that can infect demonized cells and turn them into regular ones!
"Or more straightforwardly speaking, the drug can turn demons into human beings!
"I seem to have been infected by the drug and… have turned into a human being!
"With your wisdom, senior, you must know what kind of consequences such a drug can bring. It must be clear to you, too, that you are not going to get away easily now that you have already become involved, whatever your original purpose was!
"The only solution right now, senior, is to go to Gold Crow City with me and ask for my father's opinion!"
Jin Xinyue talked as if she was being considerate of Li Yao, but Li Yao knew that the demon was merely trying to gain a free bodyguard. She was perhaps also planning to exploit a few secret techniques and ancient treasures out of him.
However, the demon was quite strong-willed. If Li Yao had turned into a demon from a human being suddenly, he did not think that he could be as calm.
"There's no need to underestimate yourself. You are quite calm, too."
The mental devil had crawled out at some point and was smiling. "You were infected by the Bloody Stripe Virus, and part of your cells are different from those of the normal human beings. Aren't you as calm as before, too?
"If we get to the bottom of it, Jin Xinyue is a pure human being right now, and of the two creatures here, you are more of a demon than her!"
Li Yao triggered a lightning bolt with his soul power, but the mental devil snuck to the depths of his brain before it was hit by the lightning, leaving a series of weird laughter.
Gloomy brightness blinked in Li Yao's eyes as he said solemnly, "You said just now that you had a lot of brand new methods of training for demons in your possession that were developed over the past few thousand years? What have you got? Show me!"
"As you wish, senior."
Jin Xinyue understood that whether or not she could be kept alive depended on the old monster's interest in the items that she was about to offer. Pondering for a moment, she scratched her hair and took off a Cosmos Ring that was hidden behind her ear. She then retrieved six jade chips and a mini crystal processor after a shake.
"Senior, these are modern jade chips. Different from the ancient jade chips, they have to be activated with a kind of special magical equipment named 'crystal processors'. Although the procedures can be annoying, the capacity of these jade chips is hundreds of times higher than that of ancient jade chips. Other than the simple text, images, videos, and sounds can be recorded, too!
"Please take a look, senior. Inside the six jade chips are the marvelous arts that the demon race developed in recent millenniums. They are the essence of the civilization of the demon race. Every discipline is extremely sophisticated and an unparalleled technique!
"And those techniques are merely a tiny proportion of the classics of the training methods for demons. Inside the library of the Gold Crow Kingdom, a lot of techniques that are more mysterious and advanced are waiting for you to study, senior!"
Li Yao's interest was greatly aroused. With the help of Jin Xinyue, he turned on the crystal processor and inserted the few jade chips. The names of the classics of the demon race were immediately displayed on the light beam.
Advanced Cell Biology!
Applied Microbiology
Virology!
Development of Carnivore Fungi!
Training Methods of Highly Differentiated Adenocarcinoma Cells!
Introduction to Genetics!
"…" Li Yao.
Jin Xinyue introduced the books to Li Yao humbly, but not without pride. "Senior, these are the classics that modern demons major in right now. They might not be as easy and straightforward and the training arts of the ancient demons, but once you get the hang of them and grasp the mysteries of cells and even genes, the techniques that you can perform will be hundreds of times more powerful than ancient techniques!"
"Huh?"
Li Yao grunted in dissatisfaction.
Jin Xinyue immediately lowered her head and pretended that she was nervous. "I was talking too much, senior. With your keen sight, you must be able to see the value of the classics after a quick look!"
Li Yao lowered his eyes and asked unhurriedly, "What are genes?"
"Genes are the amalgamation of the hereditary information contained deep inside our cells. They determine the growth and death of a creature. They are the source of life and everything for a life!" Jin Xinyue explained quickly.
"Hereditary information?" Li Yao raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. Hereditary information."
Dazzling sparks were shining in Jin Xinyue's eyes as she said, "The information that the thirteen ancient demon clans from the primeval era, and even the Pangu Clan, the Primeval Lord of Heaven, and the other deities in the universe before them, passed on to us!"
Chapter 849: Cell Infiltration |
There was mockery in Li Yao's eyes as he scoffed, "Are you selling the bullsh*t of the Pantheon of Demons again? How come I never learned of anything named the Pantheon of Demons forty thousand years ago?"
His words cast Jin Xinyue into a daze, too. She secretly stuck her tongue out in her heart and said even more humbly, "Your eyes are keen, and you are indeed insightful, senior. In fact, I don't believe in the 'glorious Pantheon of Demons', either. It is just a form of propaganda.
Li Yao was startled. He did not expect that Jin Xinyue's head was clear enough to call a spade a spade.
Jin Xinyue opened her hands and said, "I've read a lot of history books of the Demon Beast Empire in the royal library of the Gold Crow Kingdom and the collections of the Pantheon of Demons. I also browsed through the human beings' records of the events of the past. After I compared them, I discovered that, although many narrations were contradictory, the classifications of four levels and theories of the Pantheon of Demons including 'obliteration, rebirth, and immortality' were all gradually formulated over the past forty thousand years and not entirely settled until approximately ten thousand years ago. There's no doubt about that. It's perfectly normal that you haven't heard about it before."
Li Yao could not help but chuckle drily. He then demanded in a high-pitched voice, "So, you are aware that you've been lying?"
"It is a white lie," Jin Xinyue replied calmly. "Demons are different from human beings. The vastest difference for human beings is their skin color or hair color. Strong or weak, they all have one head that is on the top of two shoulders. Their appearance and habits are very similar. Therefore, it is natural for human beings to be united, and ideologies such as equality and democracy work better for them.
"But the difference among the individual demons is too huge. We are scattered throughout the entire world from the high sky to the deep ocean. The high-level demons are even smarter than human beings, but low-level demons possess wisdom equal to that of a child, not to mention that the latter are also driven by their instincts of slaughtering and know nothing but destruction.
"If I may ask, how can the thousands of species of demons, who vary greatly, be united and develop our world stably without a powerful system?
"At the early stage of the Demon Beast Empire, the system of the four classes and theories of the Pantheon of Demons were not perfected yet. At that time, the demons attacked each other all the time, and there was no peace.
"If I may be so bold to ask, you witnessed such a chaotic era in person, didn't you, senior?"
Li Yao lowered his head and sniffed, but he did not respond.
Jin Xinyue smiled. "Therefore, after the atrocities during the dynasty-changing wars of the Demon Beast Empire, the sages established the system of the four classes creatively, which was also known as 'Four Pillars'. They gradually perfected the legends of the Pantheon of Demons and enlighten the unwise, low-level demons with the tales to ensure the stability of our civilization.
"Otherwise, the internal strife between the different species of demons would already have been enough to cause the doom of our civilization. How can we expect to fight human beings?
"Let's be honest here. Of course, the legends that the Pantheon of Demons made up are exaggerated, but the clans such as Zhurong, Kuafu, Gonggong, and Nuwa are real things.
"You may understand them as the super experts, or the powerful sects, in the primeval era. They could also have been glorious species or civilizations. For example, the Zhurong civilization, the Kuafu civilization, and the Gonggong civilization, and so on.
"When the civilizations of the primeval era mixed together, countless brand-new lives flourished. They were our ancestors.
"Demons and human beings are the different branches of the primeval civilizations. However, when it comes to the utilization of spiritual energy, human beings choose to walk down the wrong path."
"The wrong path?"
Li Yao raised his eyebrow. He was rather curious about how the demons viewed the humans' methodology of training.
"Yes."
Jin Xinyue nodded and said, "The training of human beings is entirely focused on energy. They prefer energy to material. To quote their ancient classics, the bodies of human beings are just boats to pass through the sea of suffering. It is just a container that is not worth mentioning at all. Although they can build up their body by inhaling and exhaling the spiritual energy of the universe, the main purpose of such a practice is to absorb and utilize more spiritual energy.
"The bottom line is, human beings consider their bodies as a containers and energy as the ultimate goal. For the experts of human beings, the higher their Cultivation is, the more importance they attach to energy. When they advance into the Core Formation Stage and the Nascent Soul Stage, they even reconstruct some of their body parts, namely the cores and the 'Nascent Soul'.
"After the 'Nascent Soul' is born, the experts of human beings will walk further down the path of pure energy. The Divinity Transformation Stage, the Divinity Branching Stage, and the Void Refining Stage are all for the ultimate purpose of energization. In the end, they will 'ascend to the heavens'. It means that they will completely get rid of their body and blood and become creatures of pure energy."
Li Yao nodded, deep in thought. "This is quite a refreshing theory."
"Thanks for you compliment," Jin Xinyue said in a hurry. "Over the past forty thousand years, the training theories of both demons and mankind have developed quite fast. The wisdom of countless sages and geniuses during the period is not to be underestimated. I'm just copying the predecessors' theories and introducing them to you. I believe that your expertise will certainly be much higher than right now after you learn more about the new theories."
Li Yao laughed. "What's wrong about the path of pure energy? I've met a few Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators before. They were quite strong, and it was a headache to kill them."
Jin Xinyue shuddered and could not help but observe Li Yao's face in secret.
As a saintess of the Pantheon of Demons, she had her own secret arts of observation. She could easily tell that the stranger was not lying. It seemed that he had slain more than one Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator!
Jin Xinyue swallowed hard. Her heart, which had just calmed down, was racing again.
