I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times

Vol 2 Chapter 121: Borrowing the Ultimate Brain

Since the current Jiushan Ancestor was merely a fragmented soul, there was only so much he could know.

It seemed that even the original ancestor back then hadn't fully understood this Dao Body.

After chatting for a while and confirming that the ancestor didn't have any more useful information, Zheng Fa bid him farewell.

“You’re leaving already?” Jiushan Ancestor was momentarily stunned and turned to the three of them.

“Disciple's time is limited. I still need to further comprehend the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers. Does Ancestor have any other instructions?” Zheng Fa noticed his expression and asked in return.

“No, if you all have things to do, then go ahead.” Jiushan Ancestor sighed. “One by one, always busy.”

“……”

“I just wanted to hear more about what you’ve been up to outside.”

Thinking about it, it made sense. The ancestor was confined to Jiushan Sect, with no opportunities to leave apart from the once-a-decade Immortal Talent Conference.

On ordinary days, hardly anyone came to see him.

He truly seemed to embody solitude.

As they made their way up the mountain, Zheng Fa turned back to see Jiushan Ancestor still watching them from afar.

“…Has the ancestor always been this lonely?”

Zheng Fa turned to Senior Sister Zhang and asked.

“How many people in our sect can even set foot on the Ninth Peak?”

Zheng Fa suddenly realized—the Ninth Peak belonged to his master.

“The Sect Master dislikes going out, my master sits alone on the Seventh Peak, and Martial Uncle Pang is always busy with various matters…” Senior Sister Zhang continued, “Not to mention, the ancestor has the mind of a child. Most people don’t take him seriously.”

Zheng Fa nodded in understanding.

It seemed he and Senior Sister Zhang were valued by the ancestor mostly because they could "come up with ideas."

“What about the ancestor’s current strength…?”

“Within Jiushan Sect’s spiritual formations, he still possesses Nascent Soul-level power.”

Which meant that outside of Jiushan Sect, he wouldn’t have that strength.

“This version of him… is, after all, a fragmented soul. His intelligence is lacking, and his power is severely restricted.” Senior Sister Zhang glanced at Jiushan Ancestor and added, “He cannot cultivate, nor has his mind ever matured. There’s nothing we can do.”

Zheng Fa fell silent, deep in thought. Without another word, they arrived at the place where the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers resided.

Four golden, impossibly complex composite talisman diagrams hovered on the cliffside, dazzling to the eyes.

Zheng Fa knew that the original Jiushan Ancestor slumbered within, attempting to transform his very foundation.

He gazed quietly at the talisman diagrams, as if observing, yet also seemingly lost in thought.

Senior Sister Zhang remained silent beside him.

“What are you thinking about, Junior Brother?” Senior Sister Yuan finally lost patience and asked.

“Senior Sister Zhang, didn’t you tell me before—” Zheng Fa suddenly turned to her. “After reaching Nascent Soul, one's Dao Body becomes nourishment, and future cultivation primarily revolves around the Nascent Soul?”

“Yes.”

Senior Sister Zhang nodded.

“Do you remember what Sunset Sword Immortal said? That after Soul Formation, cultivation involves moving toward a ‘non-self,’ ultimately becoming someone else’s Dao Fruit?”

“I remember.”

“Then look at Jiushan Ancestor. He abandoned Jiushan’s spiritual veins and instead fused himself with the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers. Doesn't that resemble the process of Soul Formation? The ancestor discarded all non-spiritual matter, leaving behind only a talisman diagram formed purely of spiritual energy.”

Senior Sister Zhang was startled.

She looked up at the four golden composite talisman diagrams and murmured, “So this is… Dao Fruit?”

“Not entirely Dao Fruit. Or rather, I think the term ‘Dao Fruit’ is too vague.” Zheng Fa stared at the talisman diagrams and shook his head. “But if Soul Formation and beyond represents another form of life, then isn’t the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers itself… a form of life?”

“Life…” Senior Sister Zhang was silent for a long moment before suddenly chuckling. “Junior Brother Zheng, after all these years, you’re the first person to look at the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers from this perspective.”

“Yes.”

“This talisman has existed since before Jiushan Sect was founded, nearly eternal.”

“It can give birth to intelligence. The ancestor’s soul now slumbers within it.”

“Why can’t it be considered a form of life?” Senior Sister Zhang gazed at the talisman diagram with newfound reverence. “A lifeform composed entirely of spiritual energy…”

“I finally understand why you wanted to see this talisman, Junior Brother Zheng.”

A large part of Zheng Fa’s return to Jiushan Sect was indeed due to this talisman.

People in Xuanyi Realm were accustomed to non-human beings attaining the Dao, but to Zheng Fa—this thing was a non-carbon-based lifeform!

With the modern world and Xuanyi Realm now so closely connected, such an existence only became more perplexing.

The two of them studied the talisman in silence for a long time before Senior Sister Zhang finally spoke.

“What do you think of Sunset Sword Immortal’s words?”

Since the immortal left, she hadn’t brought up this topic again.

Whether she was giving Zheng Fa time to think or herself, he couldn’t say.

“Senior Sister, I intend to create a new cultivation method.”

Zheng Fa stated his decision bluntly.

Whether it was because he didn’t want to become someone else or because of his connection to modern science—this was his only choice.

Senior Sister Zhang nodded, but before she could respond—

Senior Sister Yuan blurted out, “Junior Brother is absolutely right! We must create a new method!”

Zheng Fa turned to look at her, only to find that she was gazing at him ingratiatingly, as if trying to make amends for her earlier blatant stare.

At this moment, Zheng Fa actually understood Senior Sister Yuan.

The Fusang Tree was of pure Yang energy, naturally compatible with the Qingluan’s attributes.

In modern mythology, it was even linked to the divine beast, the Golden Crow.

Her desire for him might well be an instinctive evolutionary response.

He smiled at her and nodded.

Senior Sister Yuan immediately perked up, her eyes shining.

Senior Sister Zhang glanced at them but said nothing, merely continuing, “Do you have a plan?”

“Senior Sister, before innovating a new method, I plan to take control of the Heavenly Monument Realm.”

Zheng Fa was nearly always forthright with Senior Sister Zhang. His cautious nature made him prepare for the worst.

“Although my new method is different from what that Tianhe Venerable established, the demonic sects' relentless pursuit of geniuses must not be ignored. The Heavenly Monument Realm can serve as a relatively safe foundation for us.”

Senior Sister Zhang nodded. “Indeed. If they’re targeting geniuses because of the so-called new method, there may be a deeper connection, and even the immortal sects may not be trustworthy.”

Hearing this, Zheng Fa pressed his lips together before saying,

“Senior Sister… this might bring Jiushan Sect to utter ruin.”

“This matter has nothing to do with me.” Senior Sister Zhang suddenly said, “Go ask the Sect Master yourself.”

“Mm.” Zheng Fa nodded.

“Oh, and tell him—Zhang Wuyi supports your decision.”

Senior Sister Zhang suddenly added.

“……”

“Right, my master should listen to me too.” Senior Sister Zhang suddenly added.

“……”

Jiushan Sect only had four Nascent Souls to begin with, and now Zheng Fa was bringing two of them straight to the Sect Master’s door.

Would his master think he was staging a coup?

“Junior Brother is absolutely right, I support this too!”

Senior Sister Yuan chimed in from the side.

Zheng Fa glanced at her, and she grinned smugly, as if she had finally figured out the key to pleasing him.

“If the Sect Master still refuses, go ask Martial Uncle Pang. See if he’d take you as his disciple.”

“……”

“Although Martial Uncle Pang values Jiushan Sect above all else, I’d say there’s a fifty percent chance he’d go for it if you put it that way.”

Senior Sister Zhang continued strategizing.

Zheng Fa looked down at his Daoist robe.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… just feels like my robe is getting a little yellow.”

……

“This matter… we’ll probably have to wait until the Heavenly Monument Realm truly recognizes its master before we can make it public.” Zheng Fa thought for a moment and said, “Otherwise, Jiushan Sect as a whole might suffer disaster.”

Senior Sister Zhang nodded approvingly.

“Using the Heavenly Monument Realm to secure our safety is a solid plan.” She then asked, “But the key issue is still the new cultivation method. Do you have any ideas?”

This was the crux of it all.

Creating a new method wasn’t something one could just declare and make happen.

For Zheng Fa to state outright that he intended to innovate cultivation—if Senior Sister Zhang hadn’t laughed at him, that was already an immense display of trust.

“Senior Sister, in the hundreds of thousands of years of Xuanyi Realm’s history, no one has surpassed Tianhe Venerable. I would never claim to be more talented than him.”

Zheng Fa looked at the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers, his voice soft as he spoke the thoughts that had occupied him for days:

“I want to harness collective intelligence.”

“Collective intelligence?” Senior Sister Zhang was intrigued but not fully grasping his meaning.

“There are billions upon billions of people in Xuanyi Realm, with countless geniuses among them.” Zheng Fa turned to her. “Tianhe Venerable tried to collect all the cultivation techniques under the heavens, but he failed. In my view, he failed because he underestimated the people of the world—both his enemies and his allies.”

“This time, I want the brightest minds in the world to study cultivation together, to improve it together, until we forge a new path forward.”

Senior Sister Zhang stared at Zheng Fa in stunned silence.

She listened as he continued:

“To achieve this, we must first popularize foundational cultivation techniques, starting with Jiushan Sect. We must abandon sectarian divisions and stop limiting knowledge to different lineages.”

“At the same time, we must establish a system that encourages research and innovation.”

“Starting with Jiushan Sect—the stronger Jiushan Sect becomes, the more talent we will attract… until we encompass the entire world.”

“We only need to spark a single flame—and then, there will always be people who carry the torch, lighting the way forward.”

Zheng Fa had thought this through clearly.

Perhaps, with his modern knowledge, he could achieve some breakthroughs.

But a true new cultivation system—that would require the collective effort of all people.

He called this idea the Ultimate Borrowed Brain Plan—

To borrow a single person’s brain, you learn from them.

To borrow an entire world’s brain, you educate them.

At this moment, the two people before him were the ones he trusted most in Xuanyi Realm.

After explaining his plan, Zheng Fa anxiously watched his two senior sisters, unsure of how they would react.

After all, this was unprecedented.

It went against hundreds of thousands of years of tradition in Xuanyi Realm.

Moreover, given the declining spiritual energy, this might even be a counter-current approach, one that defied the times.

If even Senior Sister Zhang and Senior Sister Yuan couldn’t accept it, then Zheng Fa would have to reconsider and take another approach.

“Junior Brother is absolutely right!”

Senior Sister Yuan suddenly shouted.

She paused, then added emphatically, “And this time, I mean it!”

But Senior Sister Zhang remained silent for a long time.

“…Senior Sister?”

Zheng Fa looked at her, unsure of what she was thinking.

“Junior Brother, I have always known you were extraordinary.”

Senior Sister Zhang finally spoke, looking directly at him.

“Ever since you joined Jiushan Sect, I have come to understand this over and over again.

I saw you as the most talented talisman master, Jiushan Sect’s greatest future Sect Master, and the one I could trust most on this path of cultivation…”

“Senior Sister…?”

“I underestimated you.”