PCJ – Chapter 737 A New Element

Kong Fangzhou devoted much of his energy to studying the ancient sword, and he gained quite a lot from it.

“We’ve named this element (Lu). I discovered that adding it can greatly increase the hardness of a sword billet. And this new element, we call it (Yu)—adding it enhances the billet’s affinity with spiritual energy. There’s also (Gu), another new element, which improves the sharpness of the sword billet. Unfortunately, we have too little of these elements on hand. Otherwise, we could conduct more experiments,” Kong Fangzhou said regretfully.

Zhang Jiaohua had just achieved a huge increase in power, but he did not attempt another breakthrough right away. Jumping from the mid-stage of Refining Qi into Spirit directly to its peak was already a leap, but it was fundamentally different from advancing from Refining Qi into Spirit to Returning Spirit to Void. Zhang decided first to stabilize his cultivation. Only after his mindset and realm were fully integrated would he try to assault the next boundary.

“Where can we find these three elements?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Recently, many cultivators joined us, and we obtained spirit tools similar to this ancient sword, mostly sword-type artifacts. But only a few contain these three elements. The refining method used on this ancient sword isn’t particularly advanced—it’s at least several levels below yours, Sect Master. If this sword had been refined by you, its grade and performance would have been vastly higher,” Kong Fangzhou said.

“No need to flatter me,” Zhang Jiaohua laughed.

“These three elements likely come from meteorites. I suspect their quantity on Earth is limited, and most are difficult to obtain. But there may be another way,” Kong Fangzhou said.

“What way?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Going to the moon. The moon should have many meteorites, and among them will definitely be those containing the three elements. In fact, I’ve already obtained the spectrographic signatures of these elements. In lunar probe data, the same spectrums have been found. So, they must exist on the moon,” Kong Fangzhou explained.

“Going to the moon? You sure know how to think big,” Zhang Jiaohua scratched his head.

“In fact, for us Meishan cultivators, reaching the moon isn’t that difficult. In the future, if we have enough of the Lu element, we could even explore farther. To cultivators, this is nothing extraordinary. A secret realm is basically a folded space. Spatially, it may be extremely distant, but because of its folded nature, it can be linked to us in unique ways. Our Daoist arts can connect different spaces. If we mastered spatial-folding technology, we could travel anywhere in the universe. For example, the Immortal Realm—it might be unimaginably far. With spaceships alone, humanity might never reach it. But if we fully master teleportation arrays and combine them with modern science, the entire paradigm could change,” Kong Fangzhou envisioned.

“You think combining cultivation with modern science could handle immortal beasts at the Returning Spirit to Void stage?” Zhang Jiaohua asked the more practical question. In truth, entering the Immortal Realm might be the simplest way to acquire those three elements. Given Meishan Sect’s momentum, reopening the gate wouldn’t take long—but entering would mean immediately facing powerful immortal beasts and countless threats.

Kong Fangzhou nodded firmly. “Yes! Absolutely! Once science reaches a certain level, human abilities grow exponentially. Our cultivation powers will also be vastly enhanced. For example, with those new elements, we could forge much stronger spiritual swords, and create sturdier, faster flying vessels. That would let us reach farther, obtain more rare elements, and raise our refining skills. It becomes a virtuous cycle. With each cycle, overall strength rises to a new tier.”

“If you’re sure it can give us that kind of improvement, then whatever you want to pursue, you’ll have my support,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

Xu Xiaoting had been at the Meishan Sect’s mountain abode for quite some time. She spent most of her days in the life sciences laboratory beneath the Giant Sword Tower, but chances to actually meet Zhang Jiaohua were few—especially since he had been in closed-door cultivation lately.

Xu Xiaoting was also very busy. Here, she came into contact with the true life sciences. She realized that Daoist arts were the highest form of life science, truly revealing the mysteries of life. Compared with Daoist methods, modern bioscience was just scratching the surface.

She and Mei Qing were a perfect match—both fanatics for laboratory research. If not for their desire to understand the relationship between Daoist arts and life more deeply, neither of them might have practiced cultivation at all. For them, sitting in meditation for hours, or having a sudden enlightenment that took a year or two, was pure torment—since they lived for every precious second of scientific research. Yet now, they had no choice but to cultivate regularly, because only with higher cultivation could their understanding of Daoist methods reach the necessary level to truly comprehend life’s mysteries.

“A cultivator at the Essence Refining into Qi stage already has a lifespan beyond two hundred years, even up to three hundred. At Refining Qi into Spirit, a cultivator’s lifespan can reach between five hundred and a thousand years. As for those at Returning Spirit to Void and Union with the Dao—no one really knows, because no one has lived long enough to record it. Cultivation can actually alter the genetic map,” Xu Xiaoting said.

Mei Qing nodded. “Yes. We used to think genes were fixed from birth. Who would’ve thought the genome could be changed? Spiritual energy can alter genetic structure. Identical gene sequences, with different structures, can yield completely different outcomes.”

“If we follow this path, I think it won’t be long before we develop a far more powerful gene-based medicine. Maybe even more remarkable than the cancer cure. That drug targeted cancer only, but this new medicine wouldn’t just treat illness—it could enhance the body’s strength itself,” Xu Xiaoting said excitedly.

“If our predictions are correct, perhaps even innate talent can be improved with such gene medicine. People who were born without talent for cultivation might gain it. Then, our Meishan Sect’s strength would grow endlessly,” Mei Qing said with a smile.