Chapter 28

Outside the hall.

Ye Tianming sat cross-legged on the ground, studying his cultivation technique.

Filter.

How could he create such a filter?

He was at a loss because he had almost never seen other cultivation techniques, and even if he were to create one, it would be entirely based on his imagination.

Imagination!

Ye Tianming's eyes lit up. Why hadn't he thought of imagining a filter?

Think and act.

Ye Tianming suddenly said, "Ancestor Tower, why didn't you remind me about the cultivation technique filter?"

The small tower remained silent.

It knew nothing about the filter. It had always played at a high level, and it couldn't possibly know about such low-level matters.

Of course, it couldn't tell this little guy.

The small tower smiled, "I'm doing this for your own good."

Ye Tianming was puzzled.

The small tower continued, "Some setbacks and difficulties you must experience yourself. Only then can you grow and gain something. Understand?"

Ye Tianming: "......"

Without asking further, Ye Tianming began to focus on studying his cultivation technique.

After a long time, he suddenly realized that he needed to know what impurities were in the spiritual energy. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to filter them out. So, while absorbing spiritual energy, he began to carefully distinguish between the spiritual energy and the impurities. Through his careful observation and perception, he quickly discovered the impurities hidden in the spiritual energy.

It was a harmful substance attached to the spiritual energy, similar to dust on rice, almost invisible to the naked eye. But if absorbed in large quantities, it would accumulate in the body and eventually cause harm.

Having discovered the impurities, he now needed to find a way to filter them out.

Soon, Ye Tianming thought of a method: using his body as a filter. Since the spiritual energy had to pass through his body to enter, he could use his body to feel the impurities and then cover his body with a layer of spiritual energy using his cultivation technique...

At first, it wasn't easy, but he tried again and again.

He wasn't afraid of failure!

Thus, he practiced from night until morning.

In the morning, Mu Guanchen walked up to him and handed him a bowl of porridge, smiling, "Have some breakfast first."

Ye Tianming quickly got up and took the porridge with both hands, "Thank you, teacher."

Mu Guanchen patted his shoulder and smiled, "Sit and eat."

Saying this, he sat down as well.

Ye Tianming also sat down, and Mu Guanchen asked, "Any progress?"

Ye Tianming replied excitedly, "Yes, quite a bit."

Mu Guanchen smiled, "Good. Since you're my student now, I have to be responsible for you. From now on, you can't cultivate in the morning."

Ye Tianming was puzzled.

Mu Guanchen explained, "In the morning, you must read books. From noon to night, you can cultivate, but you must sleep for at least four hours."

Ye Tianming hesitated and then said, "Teacher, I don't need to sleep."

Mu Guanchen shook his head, "I know you want to improve your strength, but haste makes waste. Your eagerness to improve your strength is too urgent, and it will eventually cause problems. From now on, I'll read books with you in the morning. Reading can calm your mind, and a calm mind will naturally lead to a clear spirit, which is very beneficial for your cultivation."

Ye Tianming thought for a moment and then nodded, "Alright... Teacher, can I read the books in your hall?"

Mu Guanchen smiled, "Of course."

Ye Tianming said, "Alright."

From then on, Ye Tianming read books with Mu Guanchen every morning and cultivated from noon to night.

After three days of practice, his cultivation technique could now filter out some impurities in the spiritual energy. He also found that the filtered spiritual energy entering his body became purer. In less than five days, he advanced from the Lesser Tribulation stage to the Greater Tribulation stage, which made him extremely happy. However, when he continued to filter the spiritual energy, he found that he couldn't filter out all the impurities.

He had hit a bottleneck.

When he consulted Mu Guanchen, Mu Guanchen smiled and said, "There are indeed cultivation techniques that can filter out all impurities, but those are at least the highest-level techniques. Your technique is just newly created, and it can already filter out sixty percent of the impurities, which is quite remarkable."

Hearing this, Ye Tianming understood.

Mu Guanchen continued, "Cultivation is a path that cannot be rushed. Once you rush, your mind becomes chaotic. Of course, I understand your current situation, but you still need to control your anxiety and worry, as these negative emotions are of no help to you."

Ye Tianming nodded slightly, "Teacher, I understand this, but the Wanzhou Competition is less than half a year away, and I don't have much time."

Mu Guanchen asked, "Do you want to win first place?"

Ye Tianming nodded, "Yes, I want to meet the Guanxuan Sword Master... Teacher, this world is so unfair."

Mu Guanchen nodded, "You have the right to say that, and you should. This isn't your fault, but do you know the core reason and essence of this unfairness?"

Ye Tianming said, "I lack strength."

Mu Guanchen said, "Let's take a walk."

Saying this, he walked away.

Ye Tianming followed.

On the way, Mu Guanchen said, "Lack of strength is just one of the core reasons, but it's not the deepest essence."

Ye Tianming continued, "The Yang family."

Mu Guanchen turned to look at him and smiled, "The Yang family is the source of power in the Guanxuan Universe. Saying this isn't wrong, but it's still not the deepest essence."

Ye Tianming frowned, "The system?"

Mu Guanchen said, "Still not."

Ye Tianming said, "Please, teacher, enlighten me."

Mu Guanchen smiled, "The Dao."

Ye Tianming was puzzled.

Mu Guanchen continued, "Simply put, any cosmic civilization will have unfairness. If the Yang family were replaced by someone else to rule the Guanxuan Universe, would there be no unfairness?"

Ye Tianming frowned.

Mu Guanchen slowly said, "You must understand the core essence: unfairness will always exist. Even after millions of years, it will still exist because the world has always been unfair. For example, your birth—some are born into noble families, while others are born as beggars; some are born with extraordinary talents, while others have no talent or even intellectual disabilities; some are born in advanced civilizations, while others are born in war-torn worlds..."

Saying this, he turned to look at Ye Tianming, "Can anyone completely eliminate these unfairnesses?"

Ye Tianming remained silent.

Mu Guanchen continued, "No one can, and no one will be able to. Do you know why your situation hasn't been taken seriously by those in power?"

Ye Tianming said, "I have no value, and the Xiao family and the Qingzhou Academy are too powerful..."

He paused and then added, "There should be another reason: my situation is a minor issue for some high-ranking officials. They have the mindset you mentioned, thinking that unfairness is normal and not a big deal. They weigh the pros and cons..."

Mu Guanchen's eyes flashed with approval, "Yes, you must see this layer: your suffering, for those high-ranking officials, is a very insignificant matter. In their world, whether it's suffering or unfairness, it's supposed to exist. It's just that you, Ye Tianming, have bad luck and happened to encounter it. It's like accidentally stepping on an ant while walking; would we reflect on our mistakes? No, we would just think the ant had bad luck."

Ye Tianming clenched his fists and remained silent.

Mu Guanchen said, "No one can completely eliminate unfairness, not even the Guanxuan Sword Master. What we can do is try to reduce it. Now that you understand this essence, let's talk about your situation."

Ye Tianming looked at Mu Guanchen, who asked, "Do you think you were wrong?"

Ye Tianming replied firmly, "No, I wasn't."

Mu Guanchen said, "Of course not. Every person, every living being, has the right to pursue fairness. The unfairness you've encountered and the thoughts you have are justified. No one has the right to tell you to let go of your hatred. You should hate and resist because none of this is your fault."

Ye Tianming was moved, "Teacher..."

Mu Guanchen continued, "Similarly, if the Yang family believes you were treated unfairly and should resist, and if they recognize their mistakes, then our Guanxuan Universe has hope. But if the Yang family cannot understand the suffering and unfairness of the common people, then..."

Saying this, he stopped and said seriously, "Then we must 'dare to change the world.'"

The small tower: "......"

Ye Tianming was also stunned, "Teacher..."

Mu Guanchen smiled, "If the world is clear and peaceful, we can be inactive. But if the world is unfair and the future is bleak, then we must..."

Saying this, he suddenly stopped.

Ye Tianming looked at him, his hands clenched, waiting for the next words.

Mu Guanchen stared at him, "Rebel."

Ye Tianming: "......"

The small tower: "......"

Mu Guanchen blinked, "Are you afraid?"

Ye Tianming replied seriously, "Not afraid!"

Mu Guanchen laughed and said, "Rebellion requires strength. We need to improve our strength first. Let's talk about your cultivation technique. Your technique is special, and I think you can advance to the Dharmic Image stage earlier."

Ye Tianming was puzzled, "Dharmic Image?"

Mu Guanchen nodded, "Yes, the Dharmic Image stage. At this stage, you communicate with the energy of heaven and earth and, with the help of your spirit, form a hundred-foot Dharmic Image that can be gathered and dispersed, with great power. It can even contend with any spirit weapon or even a divine weapon. Your technique is special and can advance to the Dharmic Image stage earlier. Let me teach you a method, try it..."

After ten breaths, Ye Tianming suddenly stood up, raised his hands, and said, "Form."

Boom!

Instantly, a hundred-foot Dharmic Image condensed behind him.

The small tower: "......"

Mu Guanchen was also surprised, clearly not expecting Ye Tianming to succeed on his first try. He smiled, "Not bad, not bad. You succeeded on your first try, just a little slower than me."

The small tower: "???"

Ye Tianming said excitedly, "Teacher, it turns out that you can communicate with heaven and earth to form a Dharmic Image. Isn't this like borrowing power?"

"Borrowing power?"

Mu Guanchen nodded and smiled, "You used the right term. Forming a Dharmic Image is indeed like borrowing the power of heaven and earth. The higher you cultivate, the more you will need to 'borrow,' and eventually, even borrow the 'Dao.'"

Ye Tianming thought for a moment and then said, "Teacher, I have an idea."

Mu Guanchen said, "Go on!"

Ye Tianming looked at Mu Guanchen, "Since we can borrow the power of heaven and earth, can we borrow our own power?"

Mu Guanchen was puzzled, "Borrow your own power? What do you mean..."

Ye Tianming said, "Borrow my future power!"

The small tower: "......"

Mu Guanchen was slightly stunned and then smiled, "You mean borrow power from your future self?"

Ye Tianming nodded, "That's what I thought, but it seems unrealistic..."

"Very realistic!"

Mu Guanchen smiled, "Very realistic."

Ye Tianming was puzzled.

Mu Guanchen smiled, "This is actually like summoning your 'future true self' in legends."

Ye Tianming asked, "Teacher, what is a future true self?"

Mu Guanchen said, "This involves some great principles, such as the past, present, and future. Some top cultivators can travel back in time and reverse the flow of years to return to the past. Some cultivators are even more powerful and can summon their 'future true self,' which is summoning their future self. The future self is definitely stronger than the current self..."

Ye Tianming said excitedly, "Has anyone succeeded?"

Mu Guanchen smiled, "I'm not sure, but I think it's possible. Of course, it's definitely difficult. I estimate that in our universe, perhaps only the Guanxuan Sword Master could do it."

The Guanxuan Sword Master!

Ye Tianming was silent, thinking of that god-like figure.

Mu Guanchen suddenly said, "Do you want to try?"

Ye Tianming looked up at Mu Guanchen, surprised, "Teacher, can I...?"

Mu Guanchen smiled, "Since you've thought about it, why not try?"

Ye Tianming said, "But I'm so weak..."

Mu Guanchen shook his head, "Tianming, we are scholars. Scholars must not only establish the heart of the universe and bring peace to the world but also dare to think and act... Wait a moment."

Saying this, he took out an ancient book and handed it to Ye Tianming, "Coincidentally, I've been studying the past, present, and future Dao recently. This book, 'The Book of Time,' I won from a bookseller at the Great Dao Bookshop. Study it first."

Ye Tianming was surprised, "Teacher, you've been to the Great Dao Bookshop?"

Mu Guanchen asked, "Have you been there too?"

Ye Tianming nodded, "I've been reading there since I was young."

Mu Guanchen smiled, "That's a real connection. The bookseller is a remarkable person, probably planning something... But let's not talk about him. Study 'The Book of Time' first. If you have any ideas, come to me. Don't be afraid of failure; if you fail, we'll try again."

Ye Tianming nodded, "Alright!"

In the following days, Ye Tianming studied 'The Book of Time' in addition to his cultivation. After reading the book, he realized how shallow his understanding of the cultivation path in this world was. It turned out that cultivators could not only return to the past but also communicate with the future...

It was incredibly powerful.

Ten days passed quickly.

One day, Ye Tianming found Mu Guanchen.

Mu Guanchen, who was reading, put down the ancient book and smiled, "Any ideas?"

Ye Tianming nodded, "Teacher, there's a method in 'The Book of Time' called the Future Method. Using this method, one can sense the future... I want to try it."

Mu Guanchen said, "Good thing you asked me. If you tried it rashly, you might have died."

Ye Tianming was puzzled, "Why?"

Mu Guanchen smiled, "Rules. The Guan