The Truth in the False

“Cultivate the true?” Li Huowang felt as if struck by a bell, mulling over this word—both familiar and strange—in his mind.

He knew about so-called cultivation novels, but he was certain these two things were absolutely not the same!

The Zuowandao cultivated the false; and the Heart-Element cultivated the true? They were mortal enemies? Was that why they hated Heart-Elements so much? For a moment, Li Huowang felt like he understood a lot. And also like he understood nothing at all.

“No, that’s not right. Brother Zhuge, let me sort this out first.” Li Huowang closed his eyes, pressing his aching head, struggling to think.

Seeing his reaction, Zhuge Yuan wasn’t in a hurry. He moved the chessboard aside, set out various tea implements, and began to brew tea at a leisurely pace.

By the time Zhuge Yuan had finished steeping a new cup, Li Huowang spoke again.

“Brother Zhuge, I still think something’s off. Look, the Zuowandao cultivate the false, so they want to turn everything else into falsehoods. But if we Heart-Elements can cultivate the true, doesn’t that mean we have the power to create something from nothing? I clearly don’t have that ability!”

“Are you certain you don’t?”

“Absolutely not! Everything I’ve gotten from this Heart-Element identity—besides these inescapable hallucinations—has been nothing but displaced powers!” Li Huowang’s answer was firm. He knew his own body.

He had been in this strange world for over a year. He had been through many things, and likewise possessed many extremely strange abilities.

But he had never obtained any ability to ‘cultivate the true.’ If he really had such a powerful ability, why would he have suffered so much? Endured so many hardships?

This was a matter that concerned his entire life. He couldn’t just believe whatever others said. He had to question it carefully.

“Brother Zhuge, is this so-called method for Heart-Elements to cultivate the true reliable? Does such a method really exist?”

Hearing this, Zhuge Yuan thought it over carefully before speaking unhurriedly. “To be honest, I only saw it mentioned once in a miscellaneous text. I don’t know whether it’s real or not.”

“But based on my deductions from the Zuowandao’s actions, I think this cultivation method has at least an eighty percent chance of being real.”

“Besides, have you truly never gone through a process of cultivating the false into the true? That shouldn’t be right. As far as I know, nothing is strange when it comes to a Heart-Element’s body. Perhaps you’ve already done it, just without noticing?”

“The onlooker sees the game best, while the player is lost. Why don’t you tell me about your experiences? I’ll help you sort them out.”

Li Huowang looked at Zhuge Yuan before him, thought it over, and finally nodded.

Since Zhuge Yuan already knew he was a Heart-Element, there was no point hiding other secrets.

“Alright then, Brother Zhuge. I’ll start from the Qingfeng Temple. There was this evil cultivator named Danyangzi, an illiterate madman who got his hands on some godforsaken Heavenly Scripture and was obsessed with becoming an immortal…”

In the quiet, elegant bamboo lodge, with the breeze wafting through, Li Huowang recounted the story that had happened to him over a year ago.

Li Huowang had been through a lot. He originally thought his story would be very long, even preparing himself to talk through the night. But he was only partway through, at the Anci Nunnery, when Zhuge Yuan stopped him.

“Brother Li, take a look. Is this the elixir formula you gave your master, Danyangzi?” A sheet of Xuan paper covered in densely written characters was pushed in front of Li Huowang.

Though Li Huowang wasn’t well-versed in calligraphy, he could tell Zhuge Yuan’s handwriting was beautiful. On it was a neatly transcribed copy of the immortal elixir formula he had given Danyangzi, with the steps for circulating the inner and outer great cycles written in detail at the bottom.

Li Huowang glanced at it. “Yeah, that’s the one. What about it?”

Hearing Li Huowang’s question, Zhuge Yuan, who had been speaking with a gentle tone, raised his voice slightly. “What about it? This formula is just like your chess skills. Do you really think something like this could help your master become a demigod?”

“Right, I was wondering about that too. How did Danyangzi manage to become—” Li Huowang stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening. He suddenly understood what Zhuge Yuan was driving at.

“You’re saying… I used my Heart-Element ability to make Danyangzi an immortal? No, no! I hated Danyangzi to the bone. If I were to make anyone an immortal, it would never be him!” Li Huowang spoke with absolute certainty.

“But Danyangzi became one anyway. Brother Li, think carefully. What was inside your stomach at that time?”

“What was inside my stomach? Danyangzi’s half a face. How—” The words had barely left his mouth when Li Huowang suddenly understood.

Zhuge Yuan nodded, voicing what Li Huowang was thinking. “Exactly! Though it was only half a face, it was still alive! His flesh and blood existed inside your abdomen! It was his obsession with becoming an immortal that borrowed your Heart-Element ability and made himself an immortal.”

These words exploded in Li Huowang’s mind like thunder. All the things that hadn’t made sense before instantly fell into place. He had never imagined that the reason Danyangzi’s haphazard attempt at immortality had succeeded… was because of him.

Zhuge Yuan nodded in agreement. “You see? That’s why they say the onlooker sees the game best while the player is lost. Even though your master borrowed the Heart-Element’s power too crudely and became such a monstrous, neither-human-nor-ghost sight, it was still a demigod’s achievement.”

“Even if you understand nothing, someone else borrowing your body can make an ordinary mortal an immortal. Do you still think the Heart-Element lacks the power to cultivate the false into the true?”

With the facts laid out before him, Li Huowang could no longer argue. As a Heart-Element, he did indeed possess some kind of special ability. He just hadn’t known it when he’d used it in the past.

“Wait! Since I have this ability, besides making Danyangzi an immortal, have I used it anywhere else?”

Li Huowang thought hard. He had experienced so many things on this journey. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t clearly distinguish which things were real and which were realities he had created with his own ability.

“What is real, after all?”

While Li Huowang was still pondering this question, Zhuge Yuan waved his folding fan before Li Huowang’s eyes.

“So, Brother Li? Now do you understand that besides finding a solution from North Wind, you have another path to take?”

Li Huowang quickly pulled himself together and nodded gravely. “Thank you for showing me the way, Brother Zhuge! This gives me another option indeed. But may I ask, how is this so-called cultivation of the true method practiced? How do I use this innate qi within my body?”

“Well…” A hint of difficulty appeared on Zhuge Yuan’s pale face. “This is where my abilities fall short. I can’t really help you with this matter. I only happened to see this method mentioned once in a miscellaneous text and made a note of it. As for where to find the full method… I didn’t pay that much attention.”