Chapter 552: Ancient Buddhist and Taoist Teachings, Historical Mysteries (Combined)

A group had secretly completed the Ancient Temple dungeon and were quietly making their way back along the original path. Fortunately, the journey back was uneventful, though not without moments of alarm. On the ancient, golden land, mysterious trees stood rooted. Fortunately, the tree-like men and women patrolling in the distance sensed the group's "Qi" and, mistaking them for their own kind, did not approach.

"It's like Mission: Impossible," someone remarked, clearly shaken but feeling lucky. "This is pure stealth. It seems brute force isn't the way to clear this dungeon. The only method is to disguise ourselves as them and sneak past their patrols."

"You know," someone suddenly said, looking at the verdant, faintly glowing green trees, "could these be the legendary Bodhi trees? After all, it's said that Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment under a Bodhi tree, achieving Buddhahood and founding the Buddhist cultivation path..."

A shiver ran through everyone. It was indeed possible! These trees emitted significant radiation. Studying their structure might lead to the development of a 'radiation source system,' and perhaps even enlighten them on certain concepts. After all, Dao follows nature; the genesis of any system borrows from nature.

Baixiaojun also looked thoughtful. "That's right. I might need to meditate here and study the structure of these trees! To walk the path once trodden by the Venerable Gautama and achieve enlightenment for my own Buddhist path – this is my test! After all, Teacher Kṣitigarbha didn't teach me cultivation techniques; it's likely he wants me to forge my own way, not follow in others' footsteps!" When Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva passed away, he left behind many sariras, seemingly at least a dozen. Though Baixiaojun received the smallest one and could only manage that single small relic for now, he had no cultivation method. It was as if he had simply gained a potent energy source for cultivation, implying he was meant to figure things out for himself.

Nearby, someone else added, "And those strange tree-like men and women, absorbing this radiant glow, might be the ancient Bhikṣus and Bhikṣuṇīs, who were... no, *infected* by this radiation zone, this 'Buddha land'!" Everyone's hearts pounded even faster. It felt as if the entire environment of the ancient temple was unfurling perfectly before their eyes. Bodhi trees, Bhikṣus, Bhikṣuṇīs everywhere... This land was a terrifying radiation zone, a 'Buddha land' that seemed to have been illuminated for hundreds of millions of years.

As they slowly made their way out of the ancient ruins, they all felt a profound sense of relief, the gratitude of having survived a close call. It was an unforgettable experience exploring the ruins. At this point, the entire team deferred to Baixiaojun as their leader. His extraordinary intellect was evident, and it was clear he was destined for greatness, especially with such a significant opportunity. If he rose, their group would undoubtedly be "converted" and become his trusted circle of "Buddhas." Everyone would have a small sun above their heads, shining with multicolored light, hands clasped together. Wherever they went, golden light would shine, transforming everything into a Buddha land. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

"The 'Great Sun Tathagata' system was likely conceived by meditating on the sun!" someone else exclaimed. They were beside themselves with excitement. It was a classic case of one person achieving enlightenment and their entire entourage benefiting. This was exhilarating! They believed their group would definitely be among the top players in the future, inheriting the Buddhist legacy and becoming famous on the leaderboards!

Halfway back, Baixiaojun took a deep breath. "Brothers, we're almost there. First, we need to address our injuries. We can't die; if we do, everything will be for naught."

"Right!" Everyone nodded. After all, they had just emerged from a terrifying radiation zone. Although they seemed fine at the time, many types of radiation aren't instantly fatal. What felt like nothing initially could, hours later, lead to sudden collapse, convulsions, and pus-filled sores – that was the most frightening aspect. Radiation worked insidiously. Everyone quickly began to tend to their injuries, knowing that surviving this bout was the most crucial gain.

For the next few days, they rested and recuperated, intending to keep their findings secret. However, others began to evolve "Qi" and explored the ancient temple in a manner similar to Baixiaojun. Soon, those teams discovered anomalies: the plaque on the ancient temple bore the Chinese characters "Kṣitigarbha," and there were fresh, messy footprints of certain creatures inside the temple. This revealed they weren't the first to "tomb raid."

"Which big shot pulled a fast one? Speak up!" someone grumbled.

"Who was so sneaky?! Secretly picking peaches!"

"And what's with those ancient Chinese characters?"

The crowd was furious. Then, investigations began. They looked for anyone who had behaved unusually in the preceding days, strangely disappearing and returning with significant injuries, as it was impossible to traverse such a path without high radiation exposure. Seeing that they could no longer hide it and that their group would eventually be found out, Baixiaojun and his companions stepped forward and explained the entire sequence of events.

"I formed a small team," Baixiaojun began, narrating calmly. "Let me tell you what I saw!" Just as he had imagined, the moment he finished speaking and revealed the information, the entire forum erupted. Ancient Chinese characters, time dilation, Earth's heroes, Kṣitigarbha's ancient temple, an elder from the Tang Dynasty speaking Cantonese, seemingly millennia in the Tang era but actually having existed in this world for countless ancient ages before his demise... This terrifying worldview felt like watching an epic mythological drama.

"Does this mean many figures from ancient myths actually existed historically and ascended into this current online game world?"

"Our five-thousand-year history is short, but that's for mortals confined to the mundane world. For those ancient heroes who ascended, isn't it also immensely long?"

"A hundred years in heaven, a day on Earth?"

"So, Buddha was radiation?"

"Thinking about it that way, it does make a strange kind of sense."

The internet went wild, the forums went crazy, and players across the game cheered. This was incredibly thrilling! Just as Baixiaojun had predicted, it was only the third day since the game launched, yet the unfolding worldview was terrifyingly grand. This game was overturning everyone's perspectives in an unprecedented way.

In a university dormitory somewhere, "This worldview is completely self-consistent and logically connects with other worldviews without any loopholes," a group of enthusiastic students discussed in front of their computers. "Yeah, and the time-flow setting perfectly integrates with this world and reality... as if it were a plot device already set up in other wizarding or ancient tree worlds?" Such scenes were ubiquitous. Countless topics began to converge, and many people in real life were so excited they suffered from insomnia. The ancient history contained within was too mysterious, holding infinite possibilities.

Yuanqinghua: "Ahhh, I'm weeping! How could you not bring your husband, me, to such an explosive historical moment? Do you have new favorites now? Don't you care about our four children and the triplets you're expecting?!"

Baixiaojun rolled his eyes. With such an exciting adventure, of course he'd want to bring Yuanqinghua along for some mischief! After all, they were brothers who'd been through a lot together. "But you, the Celestial Emperor, are locked up as a breeding pig. Who could possibly take you out? The Celestials wouldn't let you escape."

At this moment, even prominent figures from various communities like CuteGirl and Akina Speed were looking solemn, taking deep breaths, their mouths agape in astonishment. That China had an ancient transcendent civilization was something they had speculated before, but now, the Six Paths of Reincarnation world turned out to be the fabled immortal realm where ancient people ascended. A high-time-flow world! And "Kṣitigarbha," a real historical figure from the Tang Dynasty, had appeared. Private groups of pro players exploded, all discussing in secret.

CuteGirl: "A radiation system? Sounds terrifying, definitely not inferior to the Incense system! And it has unprecedented infectivity, perfect for establishing a religion and assimilating believers... The preliminary principles of ancient Buddhist cultivation are revealed, confirming many things. It's terrifying; you'll have to grasp the specifics yourselves."

System Dispenser: "Esteemed big shots, so knowledgeable, I'm just quietly listening."

Alchemist Emperor: "Ahem, I never expected the truth to be so astonishing. So it all began in ancient times... But if you think about it, with that terrifying speed of a year per day, let alone a thousand years, even if a hundred years pass in reality, we'd have experienced countless ancient epochs inside, just like Kṣitigarbha." They felt the weight of destiny. This perfectly explained why modern archaeology never found any remnants of ancient mythical transcendent powers, as if they had never existed. It turned out they weren't the first; ancient people had already ascended. Although the criteria for ancient ascensions were unknown, their modern "ascension" criteria involved writing hardcore academic papers, an entry method fitting the contemporary era.

Akina Speed: "Based on my thinking and the information currently available, this 'Ancient Temple dungeon' has an even bigger super Easter egg, one that's no less significant than everything we now know about Buddhism!"

Another huge secret hidden? A secret no weaker than Buddhism itself? The group instantly fell silent, stunned. They knew Akina Speed was almost demonically intelligent, incredibly smart. Everyone usually admired him, as they all had their own talents and traits, and he was a master planner. But this statement was simply mind-boggling.

"No way?" someone said. "There's an even bigger secret hidden? I've thought about it carefully, but I can't imagine what it could be."

Akina Speed: "Just wait and see."

Meanwhile, major research institutes were also experiencing considerable upheaval. "Ancient Chinese Buddha, a radiation source system? Thinking about it that way, it's indeed very similar!" "We've only recently, in modern times, begun to encounter radiation... the most common being nuclear radiation. Who would have thought that in the distant past, within China's transcendent civilization, this energy application was already understood?" Many scientists in white coats stared blankly at the intense discussions on the forum, feeling their lifelong worldviews utterly shattered.

"And all of this – the inheritance of an ancient Chinese deity, a Buddha – was actually obtained by an ordinary player?" Everyone's breathing quickened. What did that even mean? That was a deity! An ancient Buddha's remains, bones hundreds of millions of years old, still radiating such terrifying power – and this ancient deity from Earth's primordial civilization was inherited by an ordinary modern person from the 21st century!?

"Investigate! Find out this player's real-world identity!" A blonde, high-nosed old man sat sternly, staring intently at the screen, a flicker of excitement and urgency in his eyes. "If the inheritor of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva's legacy comes to us, the implications are immense." At that moment, the entire laboratory fell silent. The internet completely exploded. The main storyline of this game was simply divine. It was already incredible before, but the unfolding of the Ancient Temple dungeon, perfectly connecting and merging with real-world ancient history, truly elevated it to legendary status!

Then, Akina Speed made his entrance. He immediately delivered even more explosive information, entirely igniting "Spore Evolution" from its current pedestal and elevating it to the ultimate supreme position! Akina Speed posted directly: "Do you think you know everything about this 'Ancient Temple dungeon'? You've overlooked the dungeon's most terrifying hidden Easter egg. You've only seen half the truth!"

"What?" The online community grew anxious. What had this guy obviously discovered *now*? But recalling the entire experience of the ancient temple, they felt Baixiaojun's deductions were already very thorough, leaving no further secrets to unearth, no lingering mysteries. After all, they had profoundly witnessed Baixiaojun's capabilities. He was a meticulous and observant person; that was the strongest impression he left. Moreover, the strategy Baixiaojun chose to clear the dungeon was something they could never have conceived. They couldn't have guessed the history, or that Buddha might represent a radiation system, making the dungeon seemingly impossible to strategize against.

But could it be that Baixiaojun had only seen half of it? Everyone was dumbfounded! Was this guy still driving that fast? How profound was his vision?

Akina Speed, however, remained calm, and immediately posed a question: "First, you assumed these dungeon monsters blocking your path – the tree-like men and women – follow a radiation source system, a Buddhist lineage, that they are Bhikṣuṇīs and Bhikṣus... But something is clearly wrong! Your analysis is mistaken!"

"What's wrong?" everyone eagerly asked.

"Within them... there's another system—'Qi'..." As Akina Speed's words fell, everyone finally realized. They had overlooked the most important, most obvious thing all along: Qi. Of course! The radiation had immediately captivated everyone's attention, causing them to completely overlook the initial, most obvious, mysterious unknown system: "Qi."

"What is Qi?" Akina Speed's expression was grave as he typed, "Based on our current common knowledge, we naturally can't find the principle! But now that we know about Buddha, what if we reverse-engineer it like Buddha, and combine it with Chinese history? Remember, in ancient history, there were ancient Qi Refiners who spoke of cultivating 'inner Qi.'"

Everyone's expressions began to change. Ancient Qi Refiners – no one could forget that period of history, especially prevalent during the pre-Qin era, when various schools of thought, Qi Refiners, and Alchemists were extremely renowned. Akina Speed continued to drop bombshells: "And as everyone knows, Daoists also speak of cultivating 'True Qi.' This is also a form of Qi. Is it a coincidence? What is the most fundamental theory in Daoism? It's 'Primordial One Qi (先天一炁).'"

"What is 'Qi' (炁)? Many modern people don't understand. In Daoism, '炁' means 'Qi,' the primordial Qi. In ancient Chinese Daoist cultivation, Qi is undoubtedly fundamental, and 'True Qi' is the source of energy for Daoist practitioners." Everyone's faces were now completely filled with shock, doubt, and concentration. Akina Speed spoke fluently, "Daoism also encompasses concepts like 'fetal breathing' and 'returning to primordial Qi'! All of these emphasize the importance of cultivating 'that breath' within the Daoist practitioner!"

Upon hearing this, combined with various ancient Daoist theories, a terrifying thought powerfully resurfaced in their minds: This was the fundamental principle of Daoist cultivation! First there was Buddha, and now... Dao!! They got goosebumps. The impact of a Buddhist radiation-source system was already terrifying! But now, a second shock of equal magnitude was hidden within the first, and they hadn't even noticed it before!

Baixiaojun's expression also shifted slightly. In that moment, he profoundly felt the gap between himself and these prominent players.

"Ahem, ahem." Akina Speed continued, "As you've probably guessed, ancient Daoist theories all state that... the primordial Qi, this vital Yang Qi, if it leaks, one's cultivation will be greatly diminished. Could these beings before us be the same?" "I don't care if you believe it or not," Akina Speed said, his expression grave. "It's too coincidental. China's five-thousand-year mythical history, seemingly short... is actually unfathomable. Perhaps there was an ancient civilization lasting hundreds of millions of years. Now Buddha has appeared... and perhaps Dao has too."

Having experienced the radiation-Buddha revelation, how could they not believe now? That "Qi" was clearly the legendary Dao! Buddha was a radiation source system. Dao was a primordial Qi system. "The myths of Chinese history, the ancient Daoist system... our true ancestral cultivation civilization!" Someone pursed their lips, their heart filled with incredibly complex emotions.

Now, as the game's main storyline advanced and touched upon original historical myths, perhaps the entire five-thousand-year history of China would be overturned? Or would the truth be unveiled? Perhaps, a spiritual revival? But could all this truly be brought back into reality? At this moment, many netizens in front of their computers felt their brain vessels surging, as if they were about to burst.