Chapter 428
Zheng Fa took the Shendlongxi and immediately understood why it was named so—Shendlong is a legendary divine beast known for its mastery of illusions, and this Shendlongxi in his hand was anything but still. It seemed alive, at times swirling into a misty white fog, at other times transforming into a fluffy white cloud, occasionally morphing into a clear spring, and sometimes solidifying into a block of ice.
Truly, it was a marvel of transformation.
"Is this also a spiritual material?"
Zheng Fa couldn't help but wonder, as this material's forms were far more varied than any he had encountered before.
Madam Xuanhua nodded, contemplating for a moment before saying delicately, "This spiritual material is naturally unpredictable. It is one of the most favored materials among cultivators who practice enchantment or illusion techniques, and it is extremely precious."
"Hmm... So, this means it's quite expensive, and it's normal that many people have never heard of it."
Zheng Fa pursed his lips.
He understood now; not knowing this material wasn't a reflection of its rarity, but rather of his own poverty.
"Then, Madam, why are you showing this to me...?"
Zheng Fa's mind began to form some hypotheses.
"I thought, if we are to refine spiritual materials, the rarer, the better. If the materials we produce in the Xuanwei Realm are plentiful and cheap..."
This was something Zheng Fa had considered before.
The greatest advantage of the Jiushan Sect being able to produce spiritual materials was, of course, the ability to be self-sufficient during the impending calamity.
But while the external situation remained stable, the immediate benefit was clear: earning spirit stones!
The advantage of refining spiritual materials was that no matter how rare they were, as long as they found the right method, they could always be produced!
In fact, the rarer the material, the greater its value when refined!
"So, Madam, you recommend this one?"
Madam Xuanhua nodded, saying, "I don't have many rare spiritual materials on hand, and the most valuable one is this Shendlongxi."
"As far as I know, many cultivators are searching for this material to refine treasures."
"They're offering a good price."
Hearing this, Zheng Fa felt a surge of emotion—was Madam Xuanhua already finding buyers for him?
Seeing her thorough consideration, Zheng Fa had no objections. He held the Shendlongxi in his hand, and as the five-colored divine light swept over it, his expression froze.
He seemed somewhat incredulous about the efficacy of the five-colored divine light, and he directed another beam of it towards the Shendlongxi.
Madam Xuanhua noticed his strange behavior and couldn't help but ask, "Master, is there a problem with the Shendlongxi?"
"No..." Zheng Fa suddenly looked up, "It's me who has the problem!"
"Huh?"
"No, wait, it's the theory of spiritual element cycles that has the problem!"
Madam Xuanhua blinked, puzzled. The theory of spiritual element cycles had a problem?
I just barely grasped this concept!
You say it has a problem?
Zheng Fa sensed a wave of hostility and turned to see Madam Xuanhua glaring at him, her expression clearly conveying a single thought—what do you, the inventor of the theory of spiritual element cycles, know about it?
Wait, are you perhaps a fervent fan of the theory of spiritual element cycles?
Indeed, at this moment, the person most supportive of the theory in the sect was none other than Madam Xuanhua!
The more one understood about refining, the more one realized the simplicity of the theory of spiritual element cycles!
However, Zheng Fa had no intention of explaining himself to Madam Xuanhua. Instead, he called over Uncle Pang and Sister Zhang.
Seeing him gather everyone, they all looked a bit confused.
"Earlier, I scanned the Shendlongxi with the five-colored divine light and discovered something..."
"What is it?"
"The particles in this Shendlongxi correspond to two sub-symbols for each atom!"
Zheng Fa's words immediately made Madam Xuanhua understand why he claimed the theory of spiritual element cycles had a problem—according to that theory, one atom corresponds to only one sub-symbol of the five elements!
"Two?"
"Yes, one corresponds to the earth element sub-symbol, and the other to the water element sub-symbol."
"In the clouds and mist, there are indeed water droplets, and sometimes solid forms like ice crystals."
"The water element sub-symbol and the earth element sub-symbol correspond perfectly to these two states."
As Zheng Fa elaborated on his thoughts, he added, "The issue is that I never knew an atom could correspond to multiple sub-symbols of the five elements."
"This also explains why the various spiritual materials we examined before were relatively less valuable."
Sister Zhang exchanged glances with the others, but they still felt puzzled.
While this discovery overturned part of the theory of spiritual element cycles, it only refined their understanding and didn't seem to warrant Zheng Fa's dramatic gathering.
"Sister, do you think... the Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Technique might be related to this?"
Zheng Fa's words suddenly left Sister Zhang in shock.
She looked up at him, her eyes filled with confusion, clearly unable to follow his line of thought.
How did he arrive at that conclusion?
"The Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Technique, no matter how profound, is still a golden elixir method, and it cannot escape the basic principles of the golden elixir." Zheng Fa continued, "In other words, it also involves the combination of spiritual energy and the sub-symbols of the five elements."
Sister Zhang slowly nodded.
"If a particle can combine with multiple sub-symbols, how many combinations could there be at most?"
"Five?"
Madam Xuanhua blurted out.
"No! Ten!" Sister Zhang's eyes lit up as if she had grasped something, "Five for yin and five for yang! They are actually different!"
"Exactly, ten!" Zheng Fa nodded vigorously, adding, "When we form the golden elixir, each particle in our bodies actually only combines with one sub-symbol. If we want to combine with ten sub-symbols, then..."
"We need nine more times!" Madam Xuanhua exclaimed, suddenly realizing, "So that's why it's called Nine Transformations?"
"Exactly, Nine Transformations," Zheng Fa nodded gently.
"Is it really just because it's nine times?" Uncle Pang shook his head from the side, "That seems a bit far-fetched."
"Actually, it's more than that." Zheng Fa shook his head, unsure how to explain further.
He certainly didn't arrive at this conclusion simply because nine plus one equals ten:
"This idea came from someone who preferred to remain anonymous. She said that the Tianhe Sword Dao is about deriving myriad laws, or in other words, endless transformations."
"Whether it's one sword deriving myriad laws or one sword giving birth to myriad laws, the essence is change."
Zheng Fa looked at the Shendlongxi in his hand and smiled, "Isn't this change?"
"Isn't this change derived from the sub-symbols of the five elements?"
The others stared at the ever-shifting clouds and mist, momentarily lost in thought, but they had to admit that this explanation was far more convincing than before.
Uncle Pang pondered for a moment and said, "I don't know if your idea is correct, but I just feel... even if I looked at this spiritual material a hundred times, I wouldn't have thought of that..."
Madam Xuanhua nodded vigorously.
She gazed at the Shendlongxi, a hint of despair in her eyes—she had held this thing for a century, yet why had she not grasped anything about the Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Technique?
Suddenly, she pulled out a communication talisman, her consciousness sinking into it, seemingly engaged in something...
Soon, Zheng Fa understood: someone in the forum had suddenly joined a heated argument, targeting Xie Qingxue, accusing her of being short-sighted and not understanding Zheng Fa's insight and talent. The Tianhe Venerable's concepts were things Zheng Fa could grasp with just a casual thought!
This person had confronted Xie Qingxue and then turned to Zheng Fa...
Zheng Fa shook his head gently. In truth, some things appeared to be a matter of insight, but ultimately, it came down to whether one had the right framework of thought.
He stood on the shoulders of giants, and the inspiration for understanding the Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Technique did not come from Xie Qingxue, but from the modern world.
In modern times, there is a discipline that specifically studies various keys, which correspond directly to the sub-symbols of the five elements.
In fact, the name of this discipline, as Zheng Fa interpreted it, was—The Study of Change!
(End of this chapter)
**Chapter 353: True and False Unity, Long and Short Spirit Bamboo**
Zheng Fa led the group as they strolled through the medicinal herb garden, continuing their discussion on the Nine Transformations Golden Elixir Technique.
He addressed everyone, "Of course, this theory is still just a hypothesis, as there isn't yet solid evidence."
His tone was less certain than before.
This wasn't due to self-doubt or seeking excuses for failure, but rather a realization after the forum incident—there seemed to be a tendency for blind faith in him among the Jiushan Realm.
There were too few who dared to question him.
If this continued, these disciples might end up waiting for him to feed them.
What use would he have for such a group?
In fact, he had anticipated this issue, which was why he had toppled those idols, hoping to reduce the blind faith of the common folk in Jiushan.
But it seemed the disciples of Jiushan Sect were no different.
He said this more in hopes that the few people beside him would offer some differing opinions.
Sister Zhang was the first to speak up, and she actually countered him:
"No, I think your argument makes a lot of sense."
Zheng Fa turned to look at Sister Zhang, who seemed to be recalling something, saying, "Earlier, you mentioned something about... the principle of first causes?"
"Huh?"
That term slipped from Sister Zhang's lips, leaving Zheng Fa momentarily stunned...
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