"If you have any questions, just ask. We're brothers, no need to be polite," Zhao Si Bai said, patting his chest with a resounding thud.

Qiao Wuqi also nodded reservedly, his attitude the same as Zhao Si Bai's.

"To be honest, I've barely entered the Neng realm. Now, sitting in the Neng realm and looking towards the Miao realm, I only know there's something about 'forming connections with all living beings,' but I don't know where to start," Ye Chu Xiao said.

Qiao Wuqi and Zhao Si Bai exchanged a glance.

Zhao Si Bai said, "Little Ye! What you're doing now is preparing to break through to the Miao realm."

"You don't think being an official is just for the sake of that little bit of salary, do you!"

Ye Chu Xiao was stunned by these words; he really hadn't considered the issue in such depth yet.

Indeed, being an official was definitely not just about the salary, but also about social status, power relationships, and some gray secrets that were not for outsiders to know. But there were always cultivators who didn't care about these things, preferring to hide in the deep mountains, untouched by the mortal world.

Now, within the entire Daheng, cultivators' emotions were intense, each with their own desires, which was not surprising.

What was strange was that the higher the strength of the Daheng cultivators in the past, the more indifferent they actually became. Under such indifference, what prompted a large number of cultivators to become officials?

From a purely logical point of view, it really didn't make much sense.

"I implore my two elder brothers to enlighten me!" Ye Chu Xiao said, cupping his fist.

Zhao Si Bai said, "The so-called forming connections with all living beings, to put it more bluntly, is 'Qi Luck.' Qi Luck is the key to entering the Miao realm, and it is also related to subsequent realms of cultivation such as the Hua realm and the Hui realm."

"Qi Luck is not the same as luck, let alone personal destiny. It is produced by the causal relationships of all living beings, regardless of good or bad."

"These words are not mine, but the views put forward by Lord Tang Su Dong at a debate back then. Before I entered the Miao realm, Sister Jin told me this, and I'm relaying it to you."

"Anyway, you don't need to worry. You're already a Silver Badge, and if you accomplish a few more major events, cultivating to the Miao realm will be a natural process."

After listening to Zhao Si Bai's explanation, Ye Chu Xiao felt a bit enlightened, but also felt like he hadn't understood.

His gaze shifted to Qiao Wuqi.

It seemed that the specific answer still depended on Qiao Wuqi.

Ye Chu Xiao could tell that Zhao Si Bai himself was also confused; it was a real mistake to ask him to teach.

Qiao Wuqi expressed it more directly. He plucked a slender leaf from a tree branch sticking out of the wall next to him, then placed it on a spider web in the corner of the wall, and rolled the leaf.

A large amount of spider web became entangled on the leaf, making the originally thin and slender spider web look thicker.

"People are like this leaf, and Qi Luck is like the spider web. If it's just stuck on the spider web, then the leaf is not much different from hanging on a treetop. But if it's rolled up, then even a small leaf will look thick."

"After a cultivator enters the Neng realm, they can use the power of heaven and earth to transform their body, becoming immune to all diseases and prolonging their life. But they can't truly break the limit of lifespan and live to two hundred, three hundred, or five hundred years. Why? Because of the soul. Our souls don't have protection when facing time. Time is like a knife, thinning the thickness of the soul again and again. Even if our bodies, under the transformation of heaven and earth energy, become incorruptible and immortal, our souls are still ordinary and mediocre, and will have an end. When the soul is extinguished, the so-called incorruptibility and immortality of the physical body will become empty talk."

"So, we need to wrap Qi Luck around the soul, and let Qi Luck replace the soul in bearing the damage from time." Qiao Wuqi's explanation was more in-depth and thorough, and Zhao Si Bai, who was on the side, also showed a look of realization.

"Since Qi Luck can be used to withstand the damage from time, then how to obtain more Qi Luck becomes the key to cultivation."

"Among them, the best way is to rely on the imperial court. As long as you become an official of the imperial court, you will naturally obtain a share of Qi Luck that matches your official position, because being an official itself is constantly generating direct or indirect connections with all living beings."

"If you can't become an official, then join a force, and work hard to climb up, so as to gain greater influence."

"When your little actions can have a direct or indirect impact on the lives of many people, then you are already blessed with Qi Luck."

"In its heyday, the length of life is amazing, but it is also like a illusory bubble. How many people can stay at the top without falling?" Qiao Wuqi couldn't help but sigh when he said the last sentence.

Qiao Wuqi's explanation completely cleared Ye Chu Xiao's doubts.

"Then if the Qi Luck is affected after entering the Miao realm..." Ye Chu Xiao said.

Qiao Wuqi nodded and said, "Naturally, the lifespan will be reduced. A high-ranking court official whose life has exceeded two hundred years will wither in a very short period of time if he is demoted to a commoner. I have also searched for withered bones in the residences of convicted officials."

"This is the punishment of time; imperial power is borrowing the hand of heaven."

Ye Chu Xiao understood in his heart that taking the official route was indeed a shortcut to obtaining Qi Luck.

But the Qi Luck that came this way was not reliable and could be taken away at any time, so if there were other paths, it would be best to find another way.

Simply put, it was to form connections directly with all living beings, to directly roll up thick 'spider silk,' instead of borrowing or dividing 'spider silk' from the influence of the imperial court or a certain force.

One must rely on oneself.

Of course, it was easier said than done.

For example, Ye Chu Xiao had set the policy of 'temporary residence permits' for Jin Sanniang. If this policy was successfully implemented, it would inevitably affect the pattern of the entire Daheng world.

In a sense, Ye Chu Xiao had already wielded the small power in his hand and rolled up the spider silk.

But this influence was pushed by relying on the Daheng imperial court and the power of the Six Doors.

It was not entirely guided by Ye Chu Xiao's own power, so it was not stable and could be plundered at any time.

"Writing and establishing doctrines, being the first in the world, is the broad path to the immortality of the soul."

"It's just a pity that, throughout history, there are only a few who can truly be talked about in thought, constantly learned and imitated, and affect countless people."

"Time will thin people's souls, and it will also thin people's influence," Qiao Wuqi sighed.

At this time, Ye Chu Xiao thought of the Ship of Fortune again.

The Yu Shen Cult Leader built the Ship of Fortune, traveling between the realms, making it convenient for countless cross-border travelers.

This may not be a behavior of gathering Qi Luck.

It's just that the purpose behind this behavior may be more numerous and more secretive.

"Qi Luck is the causal entanglement between cultivators and all living beings. Perhaps I can understand it this way. It doesn't matter whether it's good or bad, it just needs to exert a force, it just needs to be influenced by people who constantly chant its name."

"Establishing a religion, establishing a sect, establishing a country, these are all ways to earn Qi Luck. In fact, more advanced methods are not superior to writing books and establishing doctrines. After all, those who control the present can control the past. After thousands of years, how much of the so-called immortal chapters still retain their original flavor?" At this time, Ye Chu Xiao, though only seventeen or eighteen years old, inexplicably felt the difficulty of longevity.

Cultivation seemed ethereal, but in reality, those with ambition and desires were all fighting to cross.

At the end of the Great Dao River, does the other shore really exist?