harleyscars Chapter 341 What is death? What is life?
Chapter 341 What is death? What is life?
Chapter 341 What is death? What is life?
The sun was blazing, and there was no wind.
Despite the scorching heat of the sky and earth, enough to cause heatstroke, over 5000 people sat silently in the heart of the desert.
Actually, not everyone is so honest and quiet. It's just that once you get close to this place, everyone's heart becomes calm, and they start to think more and talk less, and do less and think more.
Today, a total of 3000 people were mysteriously summoned to this place, not one more and not one less.
But the mysterious summons also granted permission for participants to bring one or two companions.
As a result, more than 5000 people came to the scene.
Ye Yang, Ye Fujin, and Qin Youyin sat cross-legged in the crowd. Ye Yang, who was already a level 5 superhuman, exuded a slight chill, preventing Ye Fujin and Qin Youyin from getting heatstroke in the middle of the desert.
Of course, Ye Yang's special ability is not to manipulate temperature; he simply uses his power to compress air to create cooling.
"They're here." Ye Yang looked up at the sky and saw auspicious clouds suddenly gathering in the cloudless blue sky, with colorful rays of light falling from the clouds.
Of course, this is just a special effect, probably a way for the Taoist master to create an atmosphere during his lectures.
At almost the same moment, more than 5000 people looked up at the sky for some unknown reason. A blurry golden figure appeared and disappeared in the clouds, and behind the golden figure, purple light filled the sky, which was very mysterious.
"Bo Cheng Yi Xi Yi, Zhu Li Shi Dun Shi————" A certain indescribable mood appeared with this seemingly nonsensical voice, gradually immersing everyone in it.
Only Ye Yang, who had experienced this memory fragment multiple times, remained unmoved.
This is because this is only a fragment of the Dao Ancestor's teachings in the memory of the "Transcendent One," and judging from the performance of the other 5000-plus listeners, everyone heard the same thing, but the specific details were different.
Similarly, information is transmitted through matter.
What's different is the content of "feelings formed in consciousness".
Everyone can hear their own message in this sermon.
"Was the Dao Ancestor human? Or an intelligent being from some other advanced civilization? Why would he teach the Dao of Immortality to humans? This Dao of Immortality might even be compatible with all the heavens in the future, developing into the Dao of Immortality that spans all realms—"
Looking at the golden figure in the sky, Ye Yang knew that it was not the true form of the Dao Ancestor, but merely a tool for spreading the Dao to humanity.
He had countless questions in his mind, but this was only the perspective of the "Transcendent One's" memory, a one-sided view of the scene of the "Tao Ancestor" spreading his teachings.
Unable to answer Ye Yang's question.
However, one thing is certain: the Dao Ancestor is backed by a highly advanced civilization, otherwise, he would not have such a foundation!
"The 'Tao' of the transcendent begins to sprout from this moment."
Ye Yang sighed, but was then corrected by the world of memories, returning to his expression of attentive listening and immersion.
I don't know how much time passed, maybe just a few minutes, maybe half an hour, but in any case, the auspicious clouds dissipated and the golden figure disappeared.
More than 5000 people gradually regained their senses.
At this moment, many people broke out in a cold sweat, wondering how they could have been so bewitched as to come running over like idiots upon hearing the summons.
Fortunately, this was not a trap, but rather an opportunity.
"Hahahaha—I get it! I get it!"
"What superpower? It's not like that at all! Essentially, it's a substance that can be absorbed and utilized by the human body, but to truly control it, you must refine it."
"Yes! It's refining!"
Suddenly, a person took to the air and quickly radiated a powerful field never seen before. This field, which would later be called "pressure," forced everyone to feel a sense of suffocation.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the first Qi Refining Cultivation Method was born.
In addition, many of the 5000 people also experienced various changes, including Ye Fujin and Qin Youyin, who were initially confused, but now showed some spiritual energy reactions.
Amid the chaos, some quietly left, while others stepped forward to call for the formation of an organization.
The number of Level 5 superhumans, which previously numbered no more than 1000 worldwide, has rapidly exceeded 4000 here.
The first Level 6 superhuman also appeared here.
Of course, soon the term "superhuman" was changed to "psychic".
Before most people had even left, over a hundred seventh-generation fighter jets were already circling overhead, reconnaissance drones carrying loudspeakers were playing videos, and air-dropped armored units that had been urgently deployed were forming an encirclement.
The thousands of people who had just been preached to by the "Taoist Ancestor" were immediately taken away by the state apparatus.
Ye Yang and his two companions returned to their original university six months later.
I came to handle the transfer procedures and also to bring my family to live in the capital.
Because they had joined a highly classified research institute and secured a stable job.
Ye Yang's project is on "spiritual power," while Ye Fujin has joined the psionic equipment research and development department, and Qin Youyin has gone to the first generation of psionic cultivation textbook writing group.
According to Qin Youyin, psychic energy popularization education may be launched nationwide within ten years.
Humanity has now mastered controlled nuclear fusion technology, which can not only produce an endless supply of clean energy, but also produce byproducts such as "psychic energy".
Even compared to any habitable planet in the Milky Way millions of years from now, the current spiritual energy concentration on Earth is pitifully low, making it a land devoid of spiritual energy and a time of decline.
However, 10 years later, with the fusion power plants fully deployed, the spiritual energy produced was sufficient to support the entire population in cultivating to the early stage of Qi Refining.
The explosion of AI technology, the large-scale development of the moon, the breakthrough in controlled nuclear fusion technology, and the revival of spiritual energy—the 21st century in this world is a brilliant century.
In 2056, for the first time, someone comprehended the "Tao," reaching the first level of theoretical enlightenment.
However, due to the limitations of his cultivation level, the pressure of the "Dao Intent" on his spirit was too great, and this genius who was the first to enter the realm of enlightenment died young two and a half years later.
In 2061, starting from both spiritual energy and physical aspects, humanity successively created the first Qi Refining Foundation Building Method and the first Body Tempering Foundation Building Method.
With the emergence of Foundation Establishment cultivators, more and more geniuses comprehended the Dao and embarked on the cultivation system passed down by the Dao Ancestor, leading humanity towards the development of immortal civilization.
In 2087, the Golden Core Formation Method was created, and the first Golden Core cultivator in the solar system was born.
That year, Ye Yang was 59 years old, but as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he was still in his prime.
To be honest, due to complicated emotional entanglements—both Ye Fujin and Ye Yang like Qin Youyin, but Qin Youyin likes Ye Yang. However, Ye Yang values the relationship between the three of them and doesn't want to abandon his good brother Ye Fujin, so he deliberately avoids and delays—
In short, because of these reasons that make Ye Yang feel extremely nauseous, all three of them are still single.
Over the past 40 years, thanks to the unremitting efforts of humankind, the moon has now been developed into the largest industrial center and shipbuilding base of human civilization, with three megacities with populations of over 10 million and 38 satellite cities with populations of over 1 million.
In addition, the asteroid belt and Jupiter's moons have been explored to some extent.
As for Mars—although in the early days of the space age, humans had very strong ideas about terraforming the Martian environment and living on it.
However, with the development of technology and the popularization of Taoist cultivation, people discovered that instead of modifying the half-dead planetary environment of Mars, it would be better to start from scratch and build cities directly on an atmosphereless planet like the Moon.
At least there is no atmosphere, so cargo can be launched from the ground using electromagnetic rails. Without atmospheric drag, transportation to space is extremely inexpensive.
With advanced technology and the relatively tenacious vitality of human cultivators, artificial urban ecosystems can operate at a lower cost.
The time has come to 2123.
In addition to the thriving Earth-Moon economic zone, two other prosperous economic zones have emerged in the solar system: the Jupiter-asteroid belt and the Saturn rings.
Thanks to the guidance left by the Dao Ancestor, humanity has developed immortal cultivation techniques with extremely high efficiency and great benefits. Therefore, in recent years, apart from space exploration, humanity has focused the vast majority of its scientific research efforts on the development of immortal cultivation techniques.
Therefore, although it becomes increasingly difficult to study at higher levels, human scientists have still managed to touch the threshold of the "Nascent Soul stage" in cultivation.
But just when everything was thriving, the hand of the economic cycle once again picked up its sickle and swung it at humanity.
Because of the development extending to Saturn's rings, some of the most valuable regions in the solar system have already been explored.
Uranus, Neptune, and other distant objects in the outer solar system are not explored because they are too far away, have too little material, and have low commercial value.
Mars and Venus, on the other hand, are not habitable planets because they have atmospheres, making transportation between Earth and space expensive. They are at best tourist attractions.
Mercury — It's too close to the sun, has no atmosphere, and its surface temperature reaches over 400 degrees Celsius. Molten metal accumulates into lakes, making it a hellish planet comparable to Venus. Naturally, the cost of developing it is also very high.
It's like a high-speed train suddenly encountering a steep turn on the track; the faster it goes, the easier it is to lose control.
Even if the higher-ups in humanity intend to regulate and slow down the pace of development, it will be too late. The various contradictions that were masked by a century of explosive high-speed development will trigger a chain reaction as economic growth suddenly slows down and various risks are unleashed, causing one contradiction after another to surface.
The solar system has entered an era of continuous turmoil.
Because the Earth-Moon economic circle, which is the core of human civilization, has fallen into recession, its control over Jupiter and Saturn has weakened rapidly.
As a result, in 2151, during the six months when Jupiter and Saturn were relatively close to each other but also relatively far from Earth, the rebellion occurred.
First, the Jupiter fleet rebelled, seized control of the Jupiter economic zone, and then quickly occupied the Saturnian ring economic zone, before beginning the integration of Saturn and Jupiter.
The central human civilization that controls the Earth-Moon system knows that it will only take a few months for the two planets, Saturn and Jupiter, to complete their integration, and they cannot give the rebels that opportunity.
Therefore, an expeditionary fleet was organized to travel across half of the inner solar system. Although the rebellion was successfully suppressed, huge losses were also incurred, further exacerbating the already shrinking economy.
This expedition had an immeasurably profound impact on the future trajectory of human civilization.
In 2152, Ye Yang was 124 years old and one of the few hundred Nascent Soul stage cultivators in human civilization. He had broken through to the Nascent Soul stage six years prior.
Ye Fujin, however, went even further, having already achieved a breakthrough eight years ago.
Qin Youyin is still at the peak of the Golden Core stage.
In fact, almost all of the thousands of people who have been at the forefront of Taoist cultivation over the years were among the 5000 people who listened to the Taoist Ancestor's teachings back then.
Today, the sky over the small town is gloomy, and it's drizzling.
Ye Yang and Qin Youyin walked silently along the roadside, both carrying black umbrellas.
They were going to attend Ye Fujin's funeral.
Perhaps because he had lived for too long, Ye Fujin wanted to change his lifestyle and experience another kind of life after breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.
So he joined the army and, at the age of one hundred and with the cultivation of a Nascent Soul cultivator, became one of the top combatants in the first fleet of human civilization.
During last year's "Tumu Rebellion," he followed the fleet to suppress the rebellion, but died in battle, and his nascent soul was extracted and destroyed.
In the end, they only managed to retrieve one body.
"Sigh." Qin Youyin still looks young, even more beautiful than in college, but her eyes are full of vicissitudes.
She looked at Ye Fujin's frozen corpse and sighed, "At your age, instead of taking care of your psionic equipment, you went out looking for thrills. Now look what happened, you died from the thrill."
Qin Youyin could understand Ye Fujin's thoughts. Over the long years, most of his relatives and friends had not been able to cultivate to their level and had all passed away.
He felt increasingly lonely, and after doing the job for over a hundred years, he found it boring.
It's perfectly normal to want to change your lifestyle.
Qin Youyin is no longer at the forefront of pioneering the path of immortal cultivation. After retiring, she became a music teacher in a beautiful city in Yunnan and Guizhou, fulfilling her parents' hopes for her in her name. She went on to pursue music.
Ye Yang is the same. He was initially very enthusiastic about artificial intelligence, but later gradually turned to the study of the soul and consciousness. Now he is studying the biological evolution in the direction of psionic energy.
As one cultivates oneself and lives longer, one must do different things and seek novelty.
It's just that Ye Fujin's search for a new meaning in life unfortunately came to an end.
Fortunately, he sacrificed himself for the sake of human civilization as a whole, and future generations will remember him.
After silently mourning for half a minute, Qin Youyin offered a bouquet of flowers.
"Where did you go?" Qin Youyin asked in a slightly low voice when she saw Ye Yang, who had come over together but was late.
Ye Yang, however, posed a question: "In your opinion, at what point does a person truly die?"
Qin Youyin was taken aback, then said in a somewhat ethereal voice, "When everyone has forgotten him, when all traces of him have vanished from the world, won't they?"
Ye Yang sighed, "I don't think so. I think a person is truly dead when everyone accepts that he is dead, including himself. Because even if he were to be resurrected someday, he wouldn't be considered the same person he used to be."
Unfortunately, these words have no effect in the world of memories.
Qin Youyin, with a determined and persistent look in her eyes as she saw Ye Yang, said with a hint of pain and madness, "No, I don't think so."
"When a person can no longer think, pursue what they want, or do what they love..."
He will only truly die when he is happily chatting with his friends.
Qin Youyin looked at him with a puzzled expression: "What do you mean by all this?"
She couldn't figure out the real meaning Ye Yang was trying to express.
"I mean—"
Ye Yang said softly, "Fu Jin can still think, can still pursue his new life, and can still sit and chat with us while eating melon seeds."
"He can come back to life!"
"No! I will definitely bring him back to life!"
The pressure from the Nascent Soul stage enveloped the entire area, instantly immobilizing everyone.
Ye Yang deliberately chose this time when Ye Fujin's Nascent Soul stage comrades in the fleet had finished their mourning and left.
He was now the only Nascent Soul cultivator left in the entire arena, and no one could stop him from doing whatever he wanted!
"Fu Jin! I will definitely bring you back to life!"
His eyes were filled with madness as he rushed to the ice coffin and beheaded Ye Fujin's corpse.
"What are you doing?!"
"My God!"
"Stop right there!"
The crowd that came to mourn was first stunned, and then greatly shocked.
How could anyone disrupt a hero's funeral?
Qin Youyin was also out of her mind; her first thought was that Ye Yang had gone insane from excessive grief over Ye Fujin's death.
"Feel sorry."
Ye Yang's face was cold. He had made up his mind. He knew that what he was going to do was probably incomprehensible to most people.
But if he succeeds, perhaps those close to Ye Fujin will try to accept him?
boom!
Ye Yang soared into the sky, carrying Ye Fujin's frozen head directly into a psionic spaceship, and then escaped from Earth.
In less than half a day, this shocking and explosive news had spread throughout human civilization.
"He severed his best friend's head! What could have driven a Nascent Soul cultivator to such madness?"
"Desecrating the corpse of a hero! How could a lawless madman do such a thing—"
"A Nascent Soul cultivator has defected! At the memorial service for Ye Fujin, a hero who sacrificed his life in last year's suppression of the rebellion, 14 hours ago, a..."
Due to Ye Yang's incomprehensible behavior and his illegal departure from port to the outer solar system, the authorities immediately classified him as a suspected remnant of a rebellion.
Perhaps Ye Fujin's head holds some secret? That's why Ye Yang took his head to the outer solar system where there are still many remnants of rebellion.
In short, during this sensitive period, the unusual behavior of a Nascent Soul cultivator has attracted great attention.
"Ms. Qin, did Ye Yang say that was all he said at the time?"
The task force is currently interviewing Qin Youyin to understand the situation at the time.
"Yes, I remember everything, not a single word," Qin Youyin nodded and said.
"Um—" she couldn't help but ask, "Is Ye Fujin really completely dead?"
The task force member opposite was stunned for a moment, then shook his head: "He's dead. Ye Fujin's nascent soul was extracted and thrown into the psionic reaction core to be refined. This was something that the Yado people witnessed on the battlefield."
"After his body was recovered, several military doctors and forensic doctors determined that he was completely dead."
"There have been 7 cases of Nascent Soul cultivators dying from the destruction of their Nascent Souls. All of them died completely. Even if their brains were not destroyed, the spiritual energy structure in their brains would collapse along with the destruction of their Nascent Souls. In the end, none of them survived."
Qin Youyin nodded and sighed.
But he was filled with endless questions: What exactly was Ye Yang trying to comprehend? What made him say that Ye Fujin was still alive?
Why is Jue Wang able to revive Ye Fujin on his own?
These questions can perhaps only be answered by asking him directly.
Even six months later, the incident of Nascent Soul cultivator Ye Yang taking Ye Fujin's head and escaping remained unresolved.
After hearing the news of Ye Fujin's death last year, Ye Yang seemed to have been researching something called Dongchen. However, before he left, Ye Yang overwrote and deleted all the research data in his cloud storage and all the storage devices around him, so it could not be retrieved.
The task force could only come up with a somewhat unconvincing conclusion—that Yi Ye Yang was attempting to reconstruct Ye Fujin's brain neural network structure by dry-scanning the human brain, thereby reviving Ye Fujin in a digital form.
However, this idea might have existed in the Asia-Pacific market a century ago, but it is no longer mainstream today.
After all, once the Golden Core realm appeared, the method of seizing a body was also quickly developed. The essence of a person's spirit is carried on the soul, not the brain.
The soul can exist independently of the physical body, enter another person's body, and take over.
Over time, the soul and the new physical body will adapt to each other and achieve harmony.
—Although these are research topics that are explicitly prohibited by human civilization, many cultivators still set foot in these realms.
In the previous "Tumu Rebellion", why did those Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators in the rebel army, who already possessed extremely high status and position, still participate in the rebellion?
That's because most of them are unable to continue their research under the existing laws of human civilization, or they cannot tolerate various restrictions, so they have the idea of rebelling and wanting to establish themselves in the outer solar system.
They intend to establish a more "free" civilization of cultivators!
So some ambitious and greedy capitalists colluded to stage this rebellion.
Even now, Earth has only controlled the major planets; multiple rebel groups are still active in the asteroid belt and other parts of the solar system beyond Neptune.
After discussion, this argument was reluctantly accepted as the conclusion of the first sweep, the task force was disbanded, and the subsequent investigation and pursuit were merged into the human civilization's plan to eliminate the rebels.
Ye Yang was categorized as a "liberal rebel" and was wanted by the police.
Just then, Qin Youyin, who had been collecting evidence related to Ye Yang with doubts and resentment, suddenly received a mysterious letter.
"I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I hope you can come and help me."
It was just a short line of text, followed by a series of orbital coordinates, indicating that it was located deep within the Kuiper Belt.
"Did you really succeed?" Qin Youyin's emotions were complicated at this moment. It was hard to tell whether it was joy, confusion, or perhaps even a little fear.
In recent years, there have been many cases of people becoming possessed by demons during their spiritual practice due to excessive obsession.
But in any case, she decided she had to go through with it.