A Scroll of Infinite Glory

Chapter 296 Today's Technology, Today's Cultivation

Guan Luoyang waited in the tea room and watched TV for a while. The TV was reporting on some crystallization virus attack case. He turned his head and noticed a measuring instrument in the corner of the tea room.

The device looked somewhat like a large, floor-standing air conditioner, about two meters tall, a rectangular box standing upright with a screen on the front.

After interrogating the captured Arhat, Guan Luoyang was able to recognize that it was an instrument for detecting spiritual energy levels.

It is said that at the end of the 20th century, when psionic technology was just emerging, different countries had different standards for judging the intensity of psionic energy, making it difficult to reach a consensus.

It wasn't until the early 22nd century that humanity discovered an inert gas in the air that could exhibit completely different waveforms at different stages due to psychic stimulation of varying intensities, making it perfect for classifying psychic energy into different levels.

From then on, humanity had a unified system of psionic power levels.

Legend has it that the strongest psionic energy fluctuations ever seen in human history could cause this inert gas to exhibit a ninth waveform, which was then defined as level nine psionic energy.

To date, the psionic hierarchy remains at level one (lowest) and level nine (highest), and there are no known cases of exceeding this limit.

"Mr. Guan, are you interested in the psychic energy testing device?"

Jiang Zisheng walked in from outside and pressed his palm on the screen of the spiritual energy testing device. Soon, a red number "6" popped up in the upper right corner of the screen.

"In addition to displaying psionic levels, our testing device can also indicate the tier of a psionicist within that level based on the color of the numbers."

"If you only barely reach this level, the number will be displayed as light pink. The stronger the ability, the darker the color. If you can reach deep red, it means that you have reached the peak of this level and are about to reach a higher level."

He withdrew his hand, smiled, and said, "My bright red Level 6 is only mediocre among Level 6 psionicists."

"Mr. Guan, would you be interested in taking the test?"

Guan Luoyang didn't stand on ceremony; he walked closer and reached out to try it.

The psionic level on the testing device soared all the way to level seven, but it was only pink.

At this point, Guan Luoyang had basically mobilized all nine stances of his mind, as well as his sword and fist intents. He paused for a moment and then channeled a trace of the Heavenly Demon Art's internal energy.

The psionic level displayed on the screen did not change in the slightest, nor did the color tone.

He then tried circulating the power of the Heavenly River, but there were still no new changes. Finally, he tried the power of the Void God, but there were still no changes.

It seems that this psychic ability test has considerable limitations.

Guan Luoyang slowly withdrew his mental energy, watching the numbers on the measuring instrument gradually decrease.

During this process, he mentally assessed the range between different levels of psionic energy.

If we apply the classification standard for reincarnators, these three levels of spiritual energy roughly correspond to the first to third levels of reincarnators.

However, the fourth and fifth levels of psionic power combined only correspond to the fourth star level of a reincarnator.

The sixth and seventh levels of psionic energy roughly correspond to the five-star level of a reincarnator.

Based on this reasoning, level eight psychic energy should correspond to a six-star Reincarnator.

However, the six-star range is too large, and it's difficult to estimate the upper limit of level eight and level nine psionic energy.

Unless Guan Luoyang encounters a psychic of that level and tests his skills.

Guan Luoyang withdrew his hand and took two steps back.

"I never imagined that Mr. Guan was actually a level seven psychic."

Jiang Zisheng spoke with great admiration, but deep down he felt a little regretful.

Level 7 psychics are extremely rare.

Jiang Zisheng, who is over a hundred years old, has received assistance from the most advanced psionic technology of almost every era, yet he has not yet reached level seven.

However, if the Mr. Guan in front of him is really the first president of the company three hundred years ago, then the fact that he only shows this level of spiritual energy, which can barely be considered level seven, makes it seem... somewhat unworthy of the image that Jiang Zisheng had heard his grandfather talk about since he was a child.

Perhaps, Grandpa simply idealized that elder in his memory.

Jiang Zisheng thought to himself, 'Actually, thinking about it carefully, Grandpa didn't have much contact with that first president. Besides, three hundred years ago was just the nascent stage of psionic technology. Countless talented people from that era were gradually eliminated later.'

"The fact that the first president could stay relevant for three hundred years and reach level seven is already quite extraordinary. It's strange, really; we never heard from him during the various high-tech research and development phases. If he had access to the most cutting-edge psionic technology, he might have advanced even further in four or five years."

Thinking this way, Jiang Zisheng became somewhat excited.

As long as the original president's character remains unchanged, his joining the coalition government would be a great blessing for the entire coalition's 600 million population.

In this era, although it is an era of technology, it is also an era of the strong.

If there are only strong individuals but the technology cannot keep up, then the progress of the strong individuals will eventually be slowed down.

If we only have technology but not enough talent to grow into a strong force, then we can only become the party whose technology is plundered.

For more than three centuries, both before and after the Great Cataclysm, only organizations where strength and technology complement each other have been able to thrive.

Guan Luoyang asked, "I've heard that the most powerful spiritual energy fluctuation in history was at level nine. I wonder how many such experts the united regime currently possesses?"

"There is no record of someone reaching level nine on their own."

Jiang Zisheng laughed and said, "The difference between the seventh level of spiritual energy and the eighth level is like an insurmountable chasm. To use a slightly superstitious phrase, it's like the difference between immortals and mortals."

"In the more than three centuries of psionic technology, the number of people who have ever reached the eighth level of psionic power, whether alive or dead, can be counted on the table, no more than ten."

"Our united regime currently only has three individuals at level eight."

"However, humans are adept at using technology. By relying on the psionic resonance of base stations and satellites, or by using the amplification of certain technological instruments, the existing level 8 psionicists all have ways to temporarily reach the strength of level 9 during combat."

Guan Luoyang nodded.

This is, after all, a technologically advanced world. Even the Heavenly Ear Arhat can gain a surge in strength on the spot with the help of a satellite. It is not surprising that those who have reached the top level of strength can use technological means and have higher levels of support.

"I have some understanding of the technology of the Eight Leaves."

Guan Luoyang said, "So, the technological level of the united regime is roughly the same as that of the Eight Leaves?"

Jiang Zisheng shook his head and said, "That's not quite right. Psionic technology is a broad category with many branches. When psionic technology first appeared, it spurred technological progress in almost all areas of humankind, thus adding many research directions to psionic technology."

"As far as I know, the technology of the Eight Leaves focuses on the research of bionic prosthetics, while we are more proficient in psionic technology related to human genes."

Guan Luoyang hesitated slightly: "So, it involves using drugs or similar methods to perform biochemical modifications and gene mutations? That sounds extremely uncontrollable and dangerous!"

Jiang Zisheng laughed: "Of course it's not something as crude as giving people injections or feeding them medicine. That's an old practice from before the advent of psionic energy."

He didn't realize that, during the conversation, he had unknowingly come to regard Guan Luoyang as someone with whom he could speak freely.

This was certainly because Guan Luoyang's potential as the first president made him slightly less vigilant.

More importantly, Guan Luoyang's words and actions possess an invisible, infectious quality, gentle yet sincere.

"Our coalition's psionic technology gene branch, once it reaches a high level, will be combined with spiritual practice."

"Our research, in addition to cultivating blank gene organs that can adapt to any disabled or sick patient, also includes countless intricate technological methods to help psionicists explore their own deeper genetic information, so that everyone can walk more smoothly on the path of psionic cultivation."

Jiang Zisheng, now intrigued, said, "You can hardly grasp the depth of meaning just from words. Why don't we have a friendly exchange, and I'll show you the advanced capabilities of our coalition's psionicists after incorporating genetic psionic technology?"

Guan Luoyang was curious, so there was no reason for him to refuse.

Seeing that the tea room was too small, they were led by Jiang Zisheng to exit through the back door of the hospital.

The back gate of this hospital was actually a desolate wasteland with many building wrecks inside.

These are likely houses destroyed during a major cataclysm, as the area is near the edge of the city and has not yet been developed or rebuilt.

In the vast wilderness, there was only one tall iron tower, which looked as clean and new as ever.

Guan Luoyang could sense profound spiritual energy fluctuations from inside the tower, which should be a signal tower used to manipulate spiritual energy signals.

"This used to be a large school, and the surrounding area was very prosperous. However, after the cataclysm, the terrain changed, and when we replanned the urban area, this place became the edge of the city. So we only renovated a part of it to temporarily accommodate the migrant population."

As Jiang Zisheng spoke, the two of them had already passed the location of the signal tower and ventured further into the wilderness, circling around to the back of the tilted and dilapidated half of the teaching building.

The two stood in the shadow of the teaching building. The ground was covered with gravel, but there were still many tenacious weeds growing, green and with slightly yellow leaves, swaying in the wind.

"Take this!"

Jiang Zisheng suddenly moved, seemingly delivering a chop from below.

But in Guan Luoyang's eyes, he suddenly disappeared, losing his thickness and human features, leaving only a thin gray-black line cutting towards him from mid-air.

This blade's edge is incredibly hidden, almost imperceptible.

Guan Luoyang's current mental perception ability is so powerful that even without using his full strength, he can clearly sense the movement of molecules in the air with just a little concentration.

Let alone a living person, even a pollen molecule can be accurately located by him if it wants to drift past him.

However, Jiang Zisheng's move almost blurred this sense, making his location uncertain within a small area.

Even though it was only "almost," it still greatly surprised Guan Luoyang.

He reached out and pressed down, and a powerful electromagnetic field twisted into a colorful light that pressed down on him.

The blade's edge collided with the colored light, and the two forces canceled each other out.

The blade trail paused in mid-air, rippled and twisted like water, then revealed Jiang Zisheng's form, a smiling face: "How was it?"

Guan Luoyang thought for a moment and said, "You're using a method specifically designed to block mental perception?"

Jiang Zisheng was surprised: "You figured it out in just one glance?"

Guan Luoyang shook his head and said, "I don't see how you did it."

Jiang Zisheng explained, "Human perception of the outside world—sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch—is very limited. However, after acquiring spiritual energy, the ability to sense things has great potential to be developed."

"but……"

He held up a finger and shook it. "Human spiritual power, to put it simply, is mainly electromagnetic waves mixed with some things that science cannot yet clearly explain. Although it is stronger than pure electromagnetic wave detection, it cannot be called truly all-pervasive. The means of preventing this kind of detection in technology are endless."

Guan Luoyang said, "When you block out external senses, you isolate yourself from the outside world, and your own six senses are suppressed. How can you determine the opponent's location and methods in battle, and then react accordingly?"

"This is the brilliance of combining gene technology with psychic cultivation."

Jiang Zisheng got to the point, "Even on Earth, there are many animals whose genes allow them to perceive the outside world in ways completely different from humans. These include some snakes in the desert, certain types of ants on the grasslands, and deep-sea fish and parasites in the ocean trenches."

"You should know that all life on Earth actually comes from the same source. If we trace human genes and dig deeper into the information, we can feel how humans had connections with the special genes of other organisms in the direction of evolution in ancient times."

Jiang Zisheng spoke eloquently, "There are no creatures on Earth that can compare with advanced psionicists in terms of strength, but their existence still conforms to a certain truth of the natural world, a 'principle' that humans themselves do not possess. When humans regain their grasp of these principles based on advanced psionic abilities, those seemingly insignificant talents will transform from worthless to extraordinary."

Guan Luoyang pondered: "In this process, human genes are the absolutely constant theme. You don't directly study the genes of other organisms, because that would only yield superficial results. Instead, you are psionic beings who sense your own genes and use technology to discover and connect with other genetic information. In this way, the premise is always human genes, and the resulting evolution is the safest for humanity, minimizing the possibility of uncontrolled mutations."

Jiang Zisheng's eyes shone brightly: "That's right. Yan Zhen, the oldest member of the United Regime and a pioneer in the path of gene-based spiritual energy cultivation, once said that the way of Heaven is to take from those who have more than enough to make up for those who have less than enough. We are trying to make up for ourselves, so we must never abandon the fundamental and pursue the trivial, giving up the foundation that is human genes."

"The human body has limited mass, limited heat, and limited energy, but the amount of information contained in the human genome is vast, boundless, profound, and mysterious the more you study it."

"Let alone the whole human body, even studying certain human organs individually, the genetic information contained within them can become a profound skill."

Jiang Zisheng twirled his fingers, and several faint black needles could be seen extending from the gap between his thumb, index finger, and middle finger.

"Within our united regime, there is a semi-public psychic cultivation method. As long as an internal member reaches level four psychic power or above, they can receive instruction and begin cultivation."

"The scientific name of this technique is 'Information Impact of the Evolution of Five Internal Organ Genes in Ancient Humans'."

"However, we usually call it..."

He flicked his finger, and black needles shot out with a flash.

"The Primordial Five Elements Qi Weapon!"

Kidney information, black water needle for all poisons.

The kidneys evolve to filter and neutralize countless toxins, but the Black Water Needle does the opposite, extracting the most potent toxins that target human genes.

From ancient primitive humans to modern humans, through biochemical modification, semi-mechanical modification, and spiritual transformation to cleanse the marrow and blood, as long as a trace of human genetic patterns remains, once touched by this myriad poison black water needle, their genes will collapse on the spot, turning into a pool of blood within two or three seconds.

Although it was to demonstrate his skills, he also knew that the other party's soul level was much higher than his own.

Jiang Zisheng was still somewhat hesitant to shoot the thing at Guan Luoyang, so he only shot it at the grass on the ground.

In the blink of an eye, all the weeds in the entire wilderness, centered on the spot where the needle had struck, collapsed and turned into green liquid.

Going back in time to the earliest part of Earth's evolutionary history, even the genes of wild grasses share similarities with human genes.

Seeing how potent the black needles were, Guan Luoyang was tempted to unleash his fighting spirit and secretly provoke Jiang Zisheng to test his skills. He first channeled a burst of energy from his feet, creating a colorless and formless protective shield around him to isolate the inside from the outside and prevent the aftershocks from disturbing the patients in the hospital.

A surge of fighting spirit suddenly welled up in Jiang Zisheng's heart, and his enthusiasm soared. For some reason, he made a grabbing motion in the air, causing the black needles to burst out of the ground and disappear back into his palm.

He flipped his hand, his five fingers loosely clenched, and spiritual energy emanated from his palm, transforming into a large, crimson, round-headed hammer. The hammerhead was ferocious and covered in sharp spikes. With a whoosh, he smashed it towards Guan Luoyang.

Guan Luoyang slapped his palm back, and with immense force, the hammer only rose a few inches before crashing down again.

Heart information, heat source: Red Star Hammer.

The crimson hammer, controlled by temperature and pulsating with power, seemed to have a heart beating inside with each collision, causing the temperature to rise sharply.

All the kinetic energy emitted by the enemy will be converted into heat energy by the hammer and counterattacked.

This heat source, the Crimson Star Hammer, was once used by a Level 5 psionicist to block a tungsten rod shot down from the thin atmosphere by a space-based weapon satellite.

That's a level 5 psionic shield, a space-based weapon that is theoretically impossible to withstand.

The formidable power of the Primordial Five Elements Qi Weapons is evident.

Guan Luoyang struck three times in succession, each strike increasing in power by a level. The third strike had barely reached the level of seventh-level spiritual energy.

Jiang Zisheng then began to show signs of losing control, his hammer now resembling a mass of magma about to explode.

He deliberately dispersed his spiritual energy, and the heat surged into the sky. With a wave of his hands, another platinum axe came crashing down from his palms.

Lung information, Heavenly Gold Qi-Breaking Axe.

The lungs, which govern respiration, play a vital role in maintaining the rhythm of breathing in and out of the body, making them the guardian of this microcosm of the human body.

Everything in the world has its ups and downs. This move in the Primordial Five Elements Qi Weaponry is specifically designed to disrupt rhythm, with its ups and downs being inconsistent.

Not only does it have a remarkable effect on living organisms, but even purely mechanical creations will have their internal energy disrupted and explode on the spot if hit by this axe.

Guan Luoyang raised his hand and gripped the axe blade. Electric current surged through his right arm for a moment, and his internal energy became slightly disordered. He tasted the power of it and couldn't help but laugh, "This is the skill of gene-based psionic energy. Good, let's try again."

He pushed his palm forward.

Jiang Zisheng lost his footing and staggered back a few steps, the platinum axe in his hand falling away.

"There's also the liver information, the Liver and Gallbladder Blood Spear, and the spleen information, the Evil Balance Shield. I haven't mastered these two skills yet."

Jiang Zisheng's face was flushed, and a little white steam rose from his forehead. He took two deep breaths before gradually calming down his excitement.

The demonstration of his techniques was fine at the beginning, but when he revealed the two types of qi weapons later, he unknowingly used his full strength. Although he couldn't shake his opponent, it was still quite satisfying.

"The Primordial Five Elements Qi Weapon is just one of the highest combat technologies of our united regime."

Jiang Zisheng said, "We have an open-minded atmosphere here. With your abilities, Mr. Guan, if you are willing to formally join our united regime, you can definitely apply for the most advanced psionic technology gene team, with a full set of equipment, to assist you in your cultivation, as long as you do a few practical things."

Guan Luoyang thought that three hundred years had passed, and this place was now a place of psionic technology, scientific warfare, beauty in precision, standard in calmness, use of machinery, and ruthlessness.

However, after this discussion on gene technology, the final demonstration of the method actually revealed a martial arts realm of endless battle and the ability to seize the creation of heaven and earth.

With the masterpiece "Primordial Five Elements Qi Weapon" before him, he couldn't help but look forward to the other martial arts of the united regime, and chuckled: "You just mentioned Yan Zhen, is that the Yan Zhen who was already famous three hundred years ago?"

Jiang Zisheng nodded and said, "That's right."

"Three hundred years..."

Guan Luoyang asked, "Do you have a way to contact him?"

Jiang Zisheng was almost certain of Guan Luoyang's identity and replied directly, "I called a friend over. If Mr. Guan is willing to wait and meet with her, she should be able to contact Elder Yan directly."

"good!"

Guan Luoyang was about to turn back when he suddenly stopped, his gaze seemingly piercing through the dilapidated school building in front of him, and said, "I saw some news on TV earlier, reporting on the crystallization virus attack."

"It seems that the recent crystallization virus attacks have been able to spread the virus to a small area via cell towers?"

Jiang Zisheng asked, puzzled, "Why bring this up all of a sudden...?"

He snapped out of his daze, leaped onto the roof of the dilapidated teaching building, and looked toward the signal tower.

(End of this chapter)