Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

“Look me in the eyes!”

Right when Heiye Lan was shouting excitedly, probably more to hypnotize herself than to convince Li Yao, Li Yao suddenly raised his voice, and his sharp eyes darted into Heiye Lan’s pupils like two icy daggers!

Heiye Lan shudder hard. Surging tides were raised deep in her mind, and she was deeply intimidated by Li Yao’s immense soul.

“Fellow Cultivator Hei, we both have a high Cultivation, and this is not the first time that we have trained,” Li Yao said coldly, one word after another. “So, there is no need for you to talk about garbage such as who is the sure winner of a war.

“Just tell me honestly from the bottom of your heart. According to your observation of the territory, military power, national strength, and will of the Star Glory Federation, what do you think your chances of winning are in the war between the Black Wind Fleet and the Star Glory Federation?

“If you truly have faith in the true path of immortality and the Imperium of True Human Beings, there is no need for you to lie to me or to yourself. Your chances of winning are probably not one hundred percent, are they?”

Heiye Lan was rendered speechless.

It was true. Even if she could magically deceive Li Yao, who was multiple levels higher than her, it was impossible for her to convince herself, whose belief was shaking hard.

After calculating silently for a moment, she raised her head again and bit her lip. “I don’t know the exact strength of the Burning Prairie Fleet, but however unbelievable their strength is, the odds of winning for the Black Wind Fleet are well above eighty… ninety percent!”

“Okay.” Li Yao nodded and thoughtfully observed, “So, you are suggesting that there is at least a ten percent chance that you will fail, right?”

“It—it can’t be helped,” Heiye Lan said gloomily. “I don’t want to lie to you, Master Spiritual Vulture, but the Star Glory Federation’s development really far exceeds our anticipation. Specifically speaking, we did not expect that the Star Glory Federation would discover Kunlun, which allowed them to reach our level and even surpass us in the fields of certain techniques and magical equipment!

“Also, the technological development and the civilizational leap that they accomplished through Kunlun led to a chain reaction, helping them to locate and conquer four new Sectors. Their territory and national strength have been greatly improved!

“In any case, the result of a war between two civilizations of similar levels is always hard to predict. An eighty percent to ninety percent chance of winning is essentially no different from a sure winner.”

Li Yao shook his head. “The reasons are not important. All I need to know is that there is a ten percent chance that you will lose. That’s enough.

“Fellow Cultivator Hei, you have been indoctrinating me with the true path of immortality. You talked to me as if survival of the fittest is a natural logic of the universe. The weak should naturally obey the strong, and the losers deserve to be swallowed by the winners. Then, according to your own theory, if the ten percent probability becomes reality, and the Black Wind Fleet is truly defeated by the Star Glory Federation, it implies that you are the weak, and the federation is the strong. So, it will only be logical for you to submit to the federation, join the federation, and even turn to believe in the path of the Cultivators of the federation and put it into practice, right?”

Heiye Lan was dumbfounded. She blushed and stammered, “Of—of course not. It—it does not work that way. You can’t understand it in such a way!”

Li Yao slighted frowned and scratched his chin, as if he were greatly confused. “What? Is there something wrong with my understanding? Even you said yourself that there is a ten percent chance that you will lose. Then, is it not right that the strong should prey on the weak and the weak must obey the strong?”

“We…” Heiye Lan quickly said, “Even if I admit that the Black Wind Fleet has a ten percent likelihood of failure, it will only be a tactical defeat if it happens. We are only one fleet of the Imperium that has focused the strength of a handful of Sectors. But the Imperium of True Human Beings already controlled hundreds of Sectors a hundred years ago. We are just a drop in the ocean!

“If we fail this time, His Majesty will certainly send even more fleets and summon the strength of dozens of Sectors. The Star Glory Federation will surely be crushed. It is out of the question!”

Li Yao shook his head and solemnly said, “It doesn’t sound right if you put it that way. The Imperium of True Human Beings has hundreds of Sectors. If it goes all-in and attacks the seven Sectors of the federation with the sheer advantage in numbers, of course, it will be a sure winner. But such a victory does not seem justified to me. At the very least, it cannot prove the excellency of the true path of immortality!

“On the contrary, if the federation has hundreds of Sectors, and it attacks seven Sectors of the Imperium, it will definitely secure a victory, but can it prove that the path of the Cultivators is better than the true path of immortality? I don’t think so, right, Fellow Cultivator Hei?”

“Well… of course not.” Heiye Lan shook her head subconsciously.

“That’s right!” His hands behind his back, Li Yao paced in the suite for the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators unhurriedly. “I’ve given it a lot of thought. The war between the Black Wind Fleet and the Star Glory Federation appears relatively fair to me. We will be able to tell which of them is better, the path of the Cultivators or the true path of immortality!

“Look. The Star Glory Federation has seven Sectors, but it is at the edge of the cosmos and has insufficient resources.

“The Black Wind Fleet, in comparison, has gathered the forces of five prosperous worlds at the center of the cosmos, but your forces consist of a defeated army, and you have come here after a long, tiresome journey.

“The seven Sectors are small, remote, but well-prepared, and the five big Sectors, although prosperous, are only here after an expedition. Therefore, we may consider that the material strengths of the two parties are on par. Do you agree?”

Heiye Lan thought for a long time and struggled to nod. “I do.”

“Since the material strengths are basically the same, the decisive factors for the outcome of the war will be the system, regime, spirit, and will of the two parties.

“Therefore, if the Star Glory Federation wins the war, it will be proof that the path of the Cultivators has passed the test of war and is more advanced than the true path of immortality and better qualified to represent the future of mankind. Do you find any problem with the conclusion?”

Heiye Lan widened her eyes and thought for a long time. “I don’t think so.”

“If you truly believe in the principle of survival of the fittest, naturally, you are obliged to submit yourself to a path that is more powerful. It is only reasonable for you to change sides and join the path of the Cultivators if you lose the war, right?”

“I—I feel that I’m confused,” Heiye Lan said feebly. “Wait a moment. I need to think about it more carefully.”

“My head is not very clear, either, but it doesn’t matter. Let’s just talk to each other and study it more carefully. You help me sort things through, and I’ll do the same for you. This is the only way that we can find out the truth!”

Li Yao scratched his chin and said, “Fellow Cultivator Hei, after spending more than half a year with you, it has occurred to me that you are not one of the perverted Immortal Cultivators who are fond of savaging and torturing ordinary people.”

“Why do you say that, Master Spiritual Vulture?” Heiye Lan frowned. “The Immortal Cultivators generally wouldn’t torture the hominoids for no good reason. A real Immortal Cultivator, especially the well-educated nobles among them, treats the hominoids like a shepherd treats his lambs. It is one thing to cut the wool or kill the lambs for meat, but it is a whole different thing to torture and savage them!

“Even if we are truly going to butcher the lambs, we will always try to grant a quick and painless death to the lambs in the spirit of humanitarianism.

“As for the tiny proportion of immoral folks who find fun in playing and savaging the hominoids, we despite what they do, but it can’t be helped. There are always bad guys everywhere. Some of the Immortal Cultivators are bad, and some of the Cultivators are not decent. Aren’t a lot of felonies in the Star Glory Federation committed by the Cultivators? Isn’t the third division of the Secret Sword Bureau established for the purpose of dealing with the criminals who are Cultivators?”

“Very insightful, Fellow Cultivator Hei.” Li Yao nodded. “Therefore, at least personally, you wouldn’t torture hominoids for no good reason, and you do not object to a happier life for the hominoids. It’s just that you believe exploiting the hominoids is the only way to provide incessant fuel for the development of the civilization of mankind?”

“Yes,” Heiye Lan replied resolutely. “It is beyond any doubt!”

“No. There is indeed some doubt. At the very least, there is ten percent right now,” Li Yao said. “What if… what if a different path lies out there, where the wisdom and valor of the hominoids are triggered and their vision and responsibility are raised, so that the ‘hominoids’ can fight side by side with the ‘true human beings’ such as us, bringing forth greater strength that will push the civilization of mankind to a higher peak? You wouldn’t say no to such a path if it does exist, right?”

Heiye Lan blinked hard, not knowing how she should respond. Thinking for a long time, she asked, “Master Spiritual Vulture, do you support the path of the Cultivators?”

Li Yao shook his head and replied, “I am a believer of nothing. I’m just a guy who comes from the ancient times.

“The Immortal Cultivators such as you and the Cultivators of the Star Glory Federation have been immersed in your respective system since you were born. Naturally, you have a lot of preconceptions that gradually form your unshakeable belief.

“However, the ancient Cultivators from the Ancient Sages Sector such as us have never touched modern civilization before. We are purely neutral without any bias, which allows us to observe your different ideologies from a more objective perspective.

“In fact, we can’t thank you enough.

“Half a year ago, before you showed up, us ancient Cultivators were all doing things ignorantly and blindly with our natural instincts. Despite our enormous strength, were we any different from primitive dinosaurs?

“When you just showed up, you threatened us with the invincibility of the Imperium of True Human Beings, and we agreed to cooperate with you to keep ourselves alive.

“However, in the following half a year, thanks to you, I learned the true significance of training and the great purpose of a civilization. It was truly an eye-opener for a mountain villager such as myself!

“Yes. The ancient Cultivators like us shouldn’t selfishly be considering the safety of our own world. We should view the problems from a higher perspective, right?

“If the Imperium of True Human Beings stands for the future of mankind, naturally, we should help the Black Wind Fleet overturn the federation!

“But what if the odds of ten percent are true and the Star Glory Federation represents the future?

“Then, should the ‘real Immortal Cultivators’, who you claim are fighting for the future of mankind, join the federation’s side without hesitation to resist and even reform the Imperium?”