Chapter 554: Scared to Pee (Combined Two-in-One)

Honestly, Xu Zhi would have been quite surprised if a Chinese pantheon had truly emerged, along with viable Buddhist and Daoist cultivation methods.

After all, he grew up in this environment and harbored some youthful sentimentality and romanticism; which Chinese person wouldn't want the legends from their mythology to come to life?

The Chinese pantheon. A term that evokes both deep affection and lingering thoughts, containing honor and sentiment etched into the very bones.

"At that point, it truly would be a small step for humanity, a giant leap for Earth... The myths of Buddhism and Daoism would no longer be ancient people's fantasies but become reality?" Xu Zhi's face was filled with curiosity.

Xu Zhi's trip to Mercury was merely a vacation to build a power station, yet he never imagined such interesting things would happen. From Mercury's high concentration of radiation, a cultivation system had vaguely begun to develop.

"As for how to manage it, I still need to think." Xu Zhi sat down cross-legged.

The surprise came very suddenly. He began to ponder how to embrace this immense civilizational opportunity; if he couldn't assimilate it, it would instead become a problem!

"I estimate that this 'dungeon' will have to be open frequently from now on. The mysterious ancient path of the sun, the depths of Avici Hell... no, the resplendent Buddhist lands, are excellent ways to comprehend cultivation!"

"Unless, in the future, the system becomes so perfected that one can freely create a glorious Buddhist land!"

Honestly, it was a good thing he reacted quickly at that time. When Bai Xiaojun kept speculating about ancient history and deduced the existence of sarira, he immediately created one.

Its structure was also very simple. The five-colored halo of the ancient Buddha's remains was originally a concentrated mass of radioactive waste extracted from the ancient star trees, so the radiation level was naturally astonishing. And the sarira was, of course, a small portion of that waste, condensed into a spherical form.

"Therefore, quick adaptation is crucial. Whatever history they hypothesize, give them that history... If I hadn't immediately produced a sarira then, would this series of subsequent surprises have occurred?" Xu Zhi chuckled.

"However, this has, conversely, further completed the worldview, making Meng Mei, Qiu Mingshan Che Su, Alchemy Emperor, and others increasingly believe in the authenticity of their fortuitous encounters."

After all, people have a very strange psychological tendency. When a shocking serendipitous encounter happens to them inexplicably, they become suspicious and cautious. But when they realize they aren't the first, and that it also happened to ancients, then they will think... Oh, so that's how it is? Then it's not strange.

At this moment, the complete perfection of the entire Chinese worldview actually made Xu Zhi even more relieved, alleviating many concerns.

"And the Six Paths of Reincarnation world, being a place where ancient Chinese luminaries once arrived, will also evoke a strong sense of immersion, shifting their focus entirely to it." Xu Zhi sighed with emotion for a moment.

He felt the benefits of his hands-off approach. Many things should not be overly interfered with; letting nature take its course often yields the best results in alignment with the natural order. Left alone, players will analyze and complete the most fitting hypotheses, providing the most satisfying answers.

Soon, several months passed, calculated according to celestial time. Xu Zhi continued planting trees.

He walked on the barren Mercury, enduring the immense golden radiation, observing the progress of the "Mercury Power Station Project," and continuously improving and optimizing tree varieties. His nature was inherently very calm.

After all, the star trees were the key to this trip! As for those Qi sprites? They had great potential, but for now, they were left aside to fight and develop with the players; it wasn't the time to deal with them. The direct channels for improving cultivation realms were the fundamental core.

On the other side, the "players" he brought along for the trip walked on Mercury, completely treating this high-radiation environment as a training ground. In their eyes, as expected, they began to make up theories again.

At this point, it was clearly a main combat storyline, and a main quest progression had already appeared: a class change quest had emerged!

In the players' words, this was like reaching level ten and starting profession specialization, specifically "Daoist" and "Buddhist." Of course, many also complained.

"So, the main quest progression here, the ancient temple storyline, is for us to change classes? Just like regular online games!"

"Like regular games, my foot! This is too hardcore! The cultivation professions require us to deduce and revive ancient civilization based on ancient Chinese mythology and history?"

"Hahaha, this is so fun! It wants us to research it ourselves, creating something out of nothing?"

"Waaaah, the five-thousand-year secrets of antiquity, the glory of our ancestors, here I come!"

This "high-freedom" terrifying difficulty left everyone dumbfounded. Changing classes, and I have to be self-sufficient? Game developers, come out, let's have a chat?

However, despite the complaints, this brain-splitting, hellish difficulty was not new. Perhaps the harder it was, the more challenging it became, and countless players found it exciting because researching ancient Chinese cultivation systems and reviving ancient ruins felt like a childhood dream.

This was an archaeological project. They began their research, occasionally entering the "ancient temple" dungeon for samples and study, much like the harmonious atmosphere of a university library. They even started writing experimental records.

They also invited various influential figures from outside, such as Qiu Mingshan Che Su and Mother Earth Qing Teng, and even encouraged them to consult with some of the deities within the game to help deduce initial forms. Their support was strong, filled with the joy of learning.

The trending topics quickly rose to the top. The most realistic online game in history? Even cultivation class changes are self-derived by players!

The world watched in awe! Could they deduce the ancient Chinese cultivation methods? Pursue the path of ancient China? Seek the truth of history? The internet was closely monitoring.

After all, the scientific theories of "Buddha radiation" and "Daoist true qi," inferring ancient myths, were terrifyingly impactful.

In short, the topic had reached an explosive level of excitement domestically. Many people clenched their fists, filled with fighting spirit, to participate in this "war" concerning China's ancient glory: reviving ancient Chinese civilization! Exploring lost ancient ruins!

This was a major online game event, a rare and grand occasion!

Of course, this event inevitably caused significant side effects. Being a global village, many foreign netizens also completely focused on this, thoroughly shaken. A sense of glory and mission spurred them to loudly demand the opening of European and Japanese servers.

"We want to restore our mythological history too!""Dear Chinese friends, we also want to sacrifice our hairlines!""We want to play too, we want to reach level ten, then change to our own classes!"

They were even more melodramatic and envious. As for the truth of Chinese civilization's myths, fundamentally being "light" and "qi"—Buddhism being radiation, Daoism being cultivation through qi...

They felt their worldviews shattered! This was too scientific! Truly worthy of being the oldest cultural nation, the mysterious East.

The Chinese players immediately became smug. At this point, their pride became evident, stating: "Happiness comes so bald-ly; some things, you can't just go bald because you want to."

But these people instantly became unconvinced. In terms of knowledge and enthusiasm for learning, their educational environment was much better than China's exam-focused, rote-learning atmosphere. The educational environments of both sides were different: theirs didn't demand versatility but emphasized practical application, while China was said to make it difficult to get into good universities if one wasn't good at science... They generally had strong hands-on abilities and produced many brilliant, specialized scientists, with various international awards as proof.

Chinese players scoffed twice, "Don't you know times have changed? We are now super strong in practical application, yet still versatile!"

They began asking: "Then let us test you: Do you know about the implicit role of genetic bloodlines in a cultivation system?"

"Do you know the difference between a bloodline system and a mortal system?" They posted a human anatomical diagram. "Look at the meridians of this ancient human, is there anything wrong?"

Foreign netizens immediately exploded, feeling speechless. Testing them with in-game knowledge, what kind of skill was that? They had never encountered or studied this knowledge; they weren't in the same circle.

"Then we'll test you with real-world knowledge!""Do you know Darwin's theory of evolution, survival of the fittest? For plants to evolve and walk on two legs, what kind of living environment must be created for them?"

Foreign netizens: "???" Two legs? How on earth do you make plants grow two legs?! Their faces were filled with question marks. Some biology students also lost their composure. As teaching assistants, they had knowledge in this area, but they had certainly never studied such a novel biological topic.

"Hehehe, 'How to make plants grow legs through evolution' — almost all our players know about this biological research topic! They all study and delve deeply into it, and their knowledge is very profound." As this statement fell, the entire foreign forum erupted as if doused with cold water.

Such an obscure evolutionary topic, yet many people in China had been researching it!? They suddenly became flustered. At this very moment, they felt a sense of being fiercely surpassed, an uncomfortable urgency.

But what followed made them even more uncomfortable. "You call this obscure? Then let us ask another: Do you know how to evolve from cartilaginous reptiles to vertebrates?"

"Do you know what biological structures birds need to evolve to fly smoothly?"

"This is biology, now let's ask about pharmacology."Screenshot. A molecular image was displayed."When you use your self-made microscope to view this plant's complex molecular structure, what pharmacological effect would you deduce? Is it anti-inflammatory? Antibiotic? Or something else?"

Instantly, they were all dumbfounded again! Not to mention they didn't recognize the molecular structure, what on earth was a self-made microscope?! They didn't even know how to make a microscope themselves! And were they really that versatile?!

From smelting iron, making steel, producing glass, crafting research equipment, then step by step building their own research institute, and then starting their own scientific research? That's too much.

They continued: "Do you know what languages we've learned? We are all currently diligently learning more than two foreign languages! Our language learning skills and methods far surpass yours!"

"We also possess strong wilderness survival knowledge. Your 'Man vs. Wild' program, to be honest, is just average by our per capita standards."

The entire foreign netizen community was stunned, completely silenced, and somewhat shocked internally. Physics, evolution, chemistry, linguistics, wilderness survival – they were completely crushed in all aspects!

It really was a talent cultivation program for all-rounders. Who would have thought that, quietly, China's passion for learning and its overall improvement in national quality had reached this level? Goosebumps rose on their skin; they felt as if a terrifying mastermind was stirring things up, witnessing the rise of a super-strong nation, no longer what it used to be...

"These are the strong ones!!"

Soon, a screenshot was posted. The image showed a progressively receding hairline, giving a very impactful impression. Immediately, netizens from various countries also exploded, feeling completely unsettled! They began to question life itself!

"A bunch of clowns, making trouble for foreign netizens for fun." Xu Zhi, flying above Mercury, was utterly speechless at this scene.

After all, such a huge commotion and uproar were normal. But while they made their fuss, developing the prototype of the Chinese pantheon and enjoying their "online game," Xu Zhi's progress wasn't slow either. These days hadn't been wasted.

He flew over the golden, barren Mercury, gazing at the muddy meteorite craters rapidly being greened by trees. Ancient star trees were growing rapidly, constantly undergoing micro-evolutionary adjustments to improve their conversion efficiency.

"One hundred mu... This experimental plot is of moderate size. Once it's fully developed and the technology is mature, I'll expand it," he murmured softly.

Although watering was troublesome, he could definitely increase the planting area! He could handle watering ten thousand or even a hundred thousand mu. After all, he was a Celestial Emperor, a human sprinkler; while daily watering was tiring, advancing his cultivation realm was paramount, and compared to the cultivation costs paid by other Celestial Emperors, this was merely a drop in the bucket.

At this moment, Xu Zhi calculated a figure. "One hundred mu of land should reach maturity in about a hundred years. The realm of a single tree will be around Tier 4. The energy from the fruits is clearly inferior to directly harvesting the trees themselves... It seems like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, but by harvesting this way, every hundred years—which means every day [in celestial time]—it can provide me with the energy of ten Celestial Emperors."

One hundred mu, ten ordinary Celestial Emperors per day. Expanding further would yield a very substantial number. This "farming" approach might, for the first time, surpass the energy feedback from mass extinctions.

This was even considering that Mercury's environment wasn't very suitable, requiring extensive watering, which limited the planting area.

Furthermore, these ancient star trees, though seemingly tall, were truly only the size of wheat to Xu Zhi, so harvesting them wasn't troublesome. Although daily watering and harvesting were required.

"This should be the development trend for an Insecta Empress... I estimate that the previous Insecta Empress definitely also evolved a specific creature—an energy siphoner."

Xu Zhi could now imagine it; he didn't believe the previous profligate one couldn't have thought of it. After all, he had discovered that after breaking through to Celestial Emperor, relying solely on his own species' mass extinctions wouldn't keep up with his progress... This should be an inevitable development trend: establishing an Insecta power station to siphon energy.

"While she, after becoming powerful, wandered everywhere, waged wars, plundered resources, and ended up getting herself killed, I won't be that foolish..." Xu Zhi flew in mid-air, looking down at the green belts of trees, utterly satisfied. "I am very prudent."