Cultivation is Just That Scientific

After replenishing the uninterrupted power supply(UPS) of the server room with his conscious, Li Shiming’s consciousness opened the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique (五行纳气诀) document stored in the large IBM z15 server.

Drawing from his accumulated knowledge of his predecessor, he was able to grasp some aspects of this Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique, not feeling completely lost.

This cultivation technique utilizes an energy known as spiritual qi (灵气) to form a spiritual qi vortex in the chest. A stable spiritual qi vortex signifies reaching the first level of Qi Refinement, the entry point to cultivation.

The Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique is a Qi Refinement-stage method that can be practiced until the peak of Qi Refinement, after which one must switch to a different cultivation technique.

Li Shiming attempted to sit on the ground and perceive the surrounding spiritual qi according to the method described in the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique.

To his disappointment, no matter how he tried, he could not perceive any spiritual qi.

What he didn’t know was that sensing spiritual qi for a mortal required being in a place with abundant spiritual qi. If one’s aptitude was poor, it would also require the aid of medicinal pills to pass this stage of sensing spiritual qi.

In the secular world, spiritual qi was inherently thin. Being in Nanling Prefecture, rather than a deep mountain forest where spiritual qi was relatively more concentrated, made it even harder to perceive spiritual qi.

Disheartened, Li Shiming used his consciousness to open the Introduction to Runes (符文入门) document. Runes were the script used to create talismans.

Introduction to Runes contained methods for making various basic talismans, but all basic talismans required the user to possess spiritual qi.

The more complex the talisman, the more spiritual qi was needed, and the stronger the practitioner had to be.

Through Introduction to Runes, he learned that the blue-glowing patterns on Xi Ming’s legs were the result of using a low level Lightness Talisman (轻身符).

The array of talismans with wondrous effects left him envious. In particular, there was a basic Electric Talisman (电光符) that could generate electricity. If he could make one, it might solve the power shortage problem.

He shook his head helplessly. Besides being unable to perceive spiritual qi, even if he could, he lacked the materials needed to make talismans.

Talisman materials had to be specially refined, most of which were cultivated by cultivators and contained spiritual qi. Such materials did not exist in the secular world.

At the end of Introduction to Runes, there were explanations of various cultivation items left by the ancestors of Chief Escort Wang to prevent descendants with cultivation potential from being lost upon entering the cultivation world.

From this, Li Shiming learned that the wooden sword was a high-grade magical artifact and the leather pouch he found was a Storage Bag (储物袋), a common spatial item used by cultivators.

Among spatial items, the Storage Bag was the lowest grade. Opening it was not difficult; one simply needed spiritual qi.

Again, the problem circled back to needing spiritual qi.

Li Shiming was not in a hurry. Although practicing the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique had no immediate effect, he still read the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique repeatedly each day.

To deepen his understanding, he utilized the IBM z15 server’s input capabilities to upload all the books in the mansion’s study into the server.

He also borrowed numerous Daoist texts from nearby temples through his father Li Wenyuan’s connections, uploading all of them into the server.

With this influx of knowledge, his understanding of the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique grew increasingly profound.

He was confident that as soon as he sensed spiritual qi, he could begin cultivating in earnest.

On the morning of the fourth day, he walked into the garden with a book in hand. The garden’s cleanup was nearly complete, except for the area near the rockery; everything else was tidied up.

The inspection work was also finished. According to the news from Mo Yan, the pit near the rockery would be filled within the next couple of days and replanted with flowers and grass.

With the busy officials gone, the garden was quiet once again, improving his mood.

He sat down in the pavilion, and Si Qin served him tea and pastries.

The serene and harmonious atmosphere, accompanied by a beautiful maid at his side, made the classics in his hands all the more engaging.

After learning about the existence of cultivators in the capital, he gained a new perspective on the upcoming Autumn Imperial Exam (秋闱), which he hadn’t previously prioritized.

If he passed the triennial Autumn Imperial Exam, he would participate in the Spring Imperial Exam (春闱) in the capital next year, allowing him to go there legitimately.

Once in the capital, perhaps he could solve his issue of being unable to perceive spiritual qi. At the very least, it was a glimmer of hope.

As long as there was a chance, he would strive for it.

Regarding passing the Autumn Imperial Exam, if someone like him, who had memorized the entire six-million-character Selected Classics (经义选) and all the books in the study, could not pass, he doubted anyone else could surpass his knowledge.

However, his peaceful reading session was soon interrupted by the sound of many footsteps. Li Shiming put down his book and looked in the direction of the noise.

This was the rear garden, a private area. Previously, the officials had only been allowed entry because of the explosion investigation.

Now that the investigation was over, the only person who could enter the garden was his father, Li Wenyuan.

Li Shiming glanced at the time. It was still morning, the busiest period for Li Wenyuan. According to his father’s principles, he would never visit the garden at this hour.

As he pondered this, he saw Li Wenyuan approaching with a young man and woman.

Li Shiming’s eyes narrowed. The two young people walked beside Li Wenyuan without falling behind by a step.

For Li Wenyuan to allow such proximity, the identities of these two were undoubtedly extraordinary.

Their expressions carried an aloofness that made Li Shiming distinctly uncomfortable—an attitude that regarded ordinary people as mere ants. This superiority was jarring to someone from a world of equality.

Li Shiming further confirmed their identities by noticing the leather pouches at their waists. Though different in design from his, the pouches bore similarly intricate patterns.

“Shiming, come and greet the two immortals!” Li Wenyuan said immediately upon seeing him, knowing his son’s calm nature but fearing he might inadvertently offend the two immortals. As a prefect, he had no authority over them.

Li Shiming stood up and saluted the two immortals in the style of a scholar.

The two immortals did not speak, merely nodding slightly before disregarding him.

“The two immortals are here to inspect the site. You focus on your studies!” Li Wenyuan instructed.

“Father, I was the first to discover that site. I’ll come with you!” Li Shiming suggested.

Li Wenyuan glanced at the male cultivator, who nodded upon hearing that Li Shiming was the first to witness the site.

Li Shiming gestured for Si Qin to return to her quarters, then followed behind Li Wenyuan.