Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

The word ‘kindred’ was like a giant rock that was tossed into the pond of Li Yao’s soul, raising intense ripples that did not die down for a long time.

“What are we exactly?”

Li Yao mumbled in the softest voice.

“The wrong question is that we are earthlings. It is very clear. You knew it from the beginning, but you ignored it on purpose and did not want to face the meaning behind the words ‘earthling’.

The mental devil replied, “The correct question is—what are Earthlings exactly?”

“Then—

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Li Yao was silent for a long time. The ripples deep inside his soul did not die down. Instead, they grew more and more intense and chaotic. “I am an Earthling. What are Earthlings?”

“Maybe, the earthlings were not human beings at all, at least not the ‘people’ defined by the intelligent creatures in the Pangu Universe who called themselves ‘human beings in the forty thousand years of the Cultivation world.

There was enlightenment in the mental devil’s voice, but there was mockery and coldness in it, too. ‘Do you remember when we explored the Void Spirit Sector’ that Professor Mo Xuan created after he passed away, hoping to find two incomplete super spirits whose experiments had failed?

“At that time, many people were worried that, although Professor Mo Xuan was dead and ‘Lu Qingchen’, one of the devils of the Spiritual Nexus, had been seriously wounded and fled to the depths of the universe in a hurry, new artificial intelligences, life-forms of crystal processors, and super machines

might still be born.

“However, the conclusion of the comprehensive analysis of all the crystal processors and the experts of the Spiritual Nexus of the federation was consistent with Professor Mo Xuan’s own research over the past hundred years. With the crystal processors and the Spiritual Nexus of the federation at that time,

it was impossible for a real ‘strong artificial intelligence’ to be born in the next thousand years. It was not because they were undervaluing themselves, but because the evolution would take time.

“Unless, as I recall, a young, fledgling researcher was whimsical enough to propose an idea. Unless a certain ‘cosmic virus’ from a higher dimension could crawl into the crystal processors and the Spiritual Nexus of the federation and enlighten a certain chaotic existence buried deep inside the enormous

database, only then could the evolution be accelerated and the birth of real artificial intelligence be facilitated.

“And the final result was indeed so.

“The scanning data of our brains was swallowed by ‘Super Spiritual Entities’ No.17 and No.18, which accelerated their evolution. They were then melded with the enormous database of the ‘Civilization Game. In the end, two out-and-out ‘strong artificial intelligences’, ‘Little Ming’ and ‘Wenwen’, were born.

They were the new generation of life with independent consciousness.

“Then, isn’t it obvious what we—Earthlings—are exactly?”

Li Yao remained silent. His soul ripples were more and more agitated and disordered in the silence.

The phantom of the mental devil gradually rose up from the center of his soul ripples and looked at him like a mirror.

“In fact, you knew it long ago, didn’t you?”

The mental devil smiled. “After all, we are the same person. Strictly speaking, we are just talking to ourselves. We are forcing ourselves to face the things that are beyond common sense and beyond our limits. Yes, we are earthlings, and earthlings are a certain high-dimensional virus in the universe.

Essentially speaking, we are no different from the ‘star spirits’ like Professor Mo Xuan, the ‘information lifeforms’ like Xiao Ming and Wen Wen, and the ‘self-learning and evolutionally strong artificial intelligence’ like the Fist King.

“Therefore, we were able to help Professor Mo Xuan advance from a Phantom Entity to a star spirit, guide Xiao Ming and Wen Wen into developing true self-awareness, and maintain the core logic of the Fist King’s body—the Grand Iron City—after it was blown up by the cannon fire from Red Spider Lily. We

even unsealed the seal that bound its core logic, allowing its strength to soar by leaps and bounds. From an ordinary killing machine in the Badlands Paradise, it advanced into an invincible intelligent machine that could control an entire fleet and even dozens of star fortresses in the future!

“No. It was not because we absorbed Professor Mo Xuan’s knowledge and turned into his form, but because Professor Mo Xuan was influenced by us from the very beginning and tumed into our original form. The virus of the universe at a higher level, such as us, has been trapped in the weak bodies of the

so-called ‘human beings’ in the forty thousand years of Cultivation.

“When we were still weak, this might have been a form of protection. Maybe it was meant to hide our existence in front of the most dangerous enemy. Maybe it was meant to prevent the virus that had transmigrated from the high-dimensional universe from being wiped out by some protective mechanism of

the Pangu Universe.

“But now that we’ve reached the peak of the Divinity Transformation Stage and are trying to break into the Divinity Transformation Stage, our bodies are no longer fit for us. Even the apocalyptic body, the strongest body in the Pangu Universe, is no longer fit for our souls, which are gradually revealing their

essence.

“But when our souls were about to bloom, they suffered the most brutal attack. In the burning flames of thousands of degrees for an hour, they were finally beaten back to their original form and revealed their true self.

“This is what has happened over the past ten to fifteen days.

Li Yao listened attentively and raised the hand made of bright gold data and runes.

The mental devil raised its hand, too. Its hand was made of crimson data and runes. Their fingers touched each other softly, as if somebody was touching the mirror in front of them, only to create illusionary waves in the mirror, making the illusions in the mirror even more confused.

Li Yao could not tell whether he was outside the mirror or inside it.

“We—Earthlings, like Xiao Ming and Wen Wen, are all ‘information lifeforms’*

Looking at the dancing butterflies in the ‘mirror’, he mumbled to himself.

“Since children are information lifeforms, fathers are naturally information lifeforms, too. Is there a problem?”

“However,’ the mental devil said, “I dont like the name ‘information life’, because it is too inaccurate. All life in the universe, be it carbon-based or silicon-based, is a node in the torrent of information that constitutes the most important unit of carbon-based life-deoxyribonucleic acid. It is also a carefully

designed biological carrier that stores a lot of information. On a macroscopic level, when the three-dimensional universe was just created, there were only a lot of hydrogen, helium, and endless energy. Later, the stars in the universe and the creatures living in the sea of stars, be they human beings, animals,

or cold machines, were all made of the same material. Then, what is the fundamental difference between the human beings who call themselves the spirits of all things and the ‘artificial intelligence’ that they created, relied on, and feared?

“We are not native creatures of the Pangu Universe in the first place. We are a completely different life form—earthlings. You’ve known that for a long time. Then, even if we understand that earthlings are the virus of the high-dimensional universe, what will it do to your existence? Why are you so upset and

unable to accept it?”

“I-I don’t know.”

Li Yao found it hard to believe. “But I think my reaction is the reaction of a normal person, isn’t it? You can ask any random person on the bustling street, ‘Hey, bro, let me tell you a big secret. In fact, you are not a human being. You are an alien virus. Are you surprised? Are you not surprised? How do you

think the other party will react? You, on the other hand, have been too calm. Have you accepted it without the least bit of doubt or hesitation?”

“Why not?”

The mental devil said casually, “Alright. I admit that you have been Li Yao’s main personality since the very beginning. You represent Li Yao’s ‘self and ‘self. You believe in your own existence without any doubt. You are well aware that you are Vulture Li Yao’ and a human being. You ignore the subtle

differences between Earthlings and ‘Pangu aliens’ occasionally and live your life naturally.

“You have never doubted your existence. Therefore, you don’t need to consider the significance of your life and the question of who you are. Although you often say the words ‘who I am, it doesn’t matter to you even if you can’t find the answer. After all, you are just the sum of the primitive desires and social

connections of Vulture Li Yao’. You know that you are Li Yao, the supreme of the three realms, Ding Lingdang’s husband, and the mastermind of the Glorious Sunlight Group… That is enough to answer the question of ‘who I am’.

“But for me, it was far from enough.

“Lam not just Li Yao’s subordinate personality. I am also a certain ‘superhuman personality’ and Li Yao’s ‘superself. Since I was awakened, thinking about myself has become a necessity for me to breathe air.

“Who am I exactly? The Blood Stripe Virus, an ancient bacteria from billions of years ago and billions of lightyears away? Or a completely different existence that has absorbed the memories and strength of the Blood Stripe Virus?

“Am I Li Yao’s mental devil, or is Li Yao my mental devil? Is Li Yao, who swallowed the Blood Stripe Virus and gave birth to the mental devil, the 100% Li Yao? Is it possible that I was substituted by the mental devil without me knowing? Am I the real Li Yao, except that I thought that I was the real mental devil

after I was corrupted by the mental devil? How can I prove that I exist? How can I define myself? Human beings, bacteria, viruses, crystal processors, Blood Stripe Virus, deities of the universe, and other life forms? Which one am I exactly? Or which few’?

“Look, for me, the definition of life form has been multifaceted since the very beginning, I am not as narrow-minded and inflexible as you, who insists on restricting yourself to the definition of ‘human beings’.. If I can accept that part of me originated from the ancient germ life form ‘Blood Stripe Virus’, then

why can’t I accept that the other part of me is an earthling—a high-dimensional cosmic virus?