Chapter 165: Departure

"Yin-Yang Talisman Diagrams?"

Zheng Fa and Tang Lingwu glanced at each other, both seeing utter bewilderment on the other's face.

Wait, shouldn't the effects of your Great Dream Talisman have worn off by now, Elder?

Seeing their expressions, Bai Lao pursed his lips, sat down on a chair, spread his legs wide, and leaned back until only two legs touched the ground; he swayed in the chair, chin tilted toward the sky—

saying not a word, yet seeming to have already spoken every arrogant word there was to say.

"From now on, record clearly in our sect's classics: This True Person comprehended the Dao in a dream and realized the origin of Yin and Yang."

"... Grandpa Bai!"

Seeing him looking as if he wanted to keep them in suspense, Tang Lingwu coquettishly whispered in protest.

Bai Lao glanced at her, then beckoned to both of them.

"Want to know?"

"Mm!"

"Give me your hands."

With a slightly confused expression, Tang Lingwu obediently extended her right hand.

Bai Lao then looked at Zheng Fa and said, "Yours."

Zheng Fa, also somewhat puzzled, extended his right hand as well.

"Switch to your left hands."

Bai Lao pressed Zheng Fa's left hand against Tang Lingwu's right hand, palm to palm, finger to finger, leaving not a sliver of gap between them.

Tang Lingwu's face instantly flushed red, her earlobes seeming to burn.

But Zheng Fa appeared to have a sudden realization.

"This, is Yin and Yang."

Bai Lao spoke in a tone reminiscent of giving an acceptance speech on a podium in his dream.

"... Chirality?"

"Correct!"

Bai Lao released their hands, looked at Zheng Fa, and said, "The most distinct feature of Yin-Yang Talisman Diagrams is chirality."

Zheng Fa recalled the Yin-Yang Talisman Diagrams in his mind.

It really seemed so!

Bai Lao continued muttering, "Although I knew about this thing, I wasn't researching this field before... If I hadn't been holding those talisman diagrams in my dream, looking at them over and over until I saw my own hands, I never would have thought of this."

Zheng Fa nodded lightly.

Chirality isn't a particularly important concept in topology—or rather, Zheng Fa hadn't encountered it often, having only seen it in knot theory.

"Are Yin-Yang Talisman Diagrams really this simple?"

It was Tang Lingwu, standing aside, who voiced her doubt.

Zheng Fa understood why she called it simple—chirality was a very intuitive concept.

Simply put, while your left and right hands appear identical, in three-dimensional space, no matter how you translate or rotate your left hand, it can never become your right hand.

This kind of spatial configuration with similar properties is chirality.

Naturally, chirality can be divided into left-handedness and right-handedness.

Zheng Fa recalled; it seemed the Yang Talisman Diagram corresponded to left-handedness, while the Yin Talisman Diagram corresponded to right-handedness.

"Not simple," Zheng Fa shook his head. "This is merely the spatial relationship of the diagrams..."

Bai Lao smiled, nodding lightly. "Correct, this is just the surface appearance. Chirality isn't studied much in our mathematics; as far as I know, biology and chemistry research it the most."

"Chiral molecules exhibit different properties."

"I don't know if they have an explanation for this point, but what I do know is... we don't understand why Yin-Yang Talisman Diagrams exhibit different functions and properties due to chirality."

Zheng Fa agreed, "And there's another problem..."

He and Bai Lao exchanged glances and said in unison, "Yin and Yang generate each other."

Hearing this, Bai Lao grimaced, seeming somewhat troubled: "You see, chiral objects cannot superimpose in three-dimensional space, so one could say they are two completely different things, yet Yin and Yang generate each other... this implies they are connected..."

Xuanwei Realm.

Zheng Fa sat on his couch, directing his divine consciousness toward the Yang Yuanfu Dao Foundation within his body.

This Yang Yuanfu Dao Foundation still took the shape of two lotuses joined at their bases.

A chiral configuration.

Yin and Yang generating each other.

With a thought from Zheng Fa, the lotus platform with its stamen facing downward gently shattered and vanished.

Yet the next moment, golden threads slowly grew from the base of the remaining lotus platform, and soon after, the lotus platform began to reappear.

This was what Senior Sister Zhang had called Yin and Yang generating each other.

However, Zheng Fa widened his eyes, staring at the reappeared lotus platform.

Previously, he had thought these golden threads were the roots of the lotus platform.

But this time he saw clearly: these golden threads actually formed tiny arcs—more like ripples spreading out from the bottom of the lotus platform!

"Mirror images?"

A thought suddenly arose in Zheng Fa's mind.

The mirror image of a right hand in a mirror is actually a left hand.

Therefore, the mirror image of a Yang Talisman is a Yin Talisman.

The essence of Yin and Yang generating each other—is it actually being mirror images of each other?

Or perhaps the lotus throne below is actually the reflection of the lotus throne above?

……

Zheng Fa currently lacked the ability to verify this hypothesis—without Zhang Shijie, he truly had few methods to test it.

Thinking of Zhang Shijie, he picked up the Profound Thunder Stone again and began cultivating the Five Thunder Divine Body.

The bones in his body were now covered with a thin, pale-gold film, the mark of his Five Thunder Divine Body having fully mastered bone forging.

Now, he was cultivating the fourth layer of the Five Thunder Divine Body—Blood Replacement.

This was the final layer before Heavenly Thunder Body Tempering.

It was also his final preparation before entering Lei Chi.

Within the Profound Thunder Stone, Lei Guang flowed like water, slowly entering his body, soaking into his skin, penetrating his muscles, and finally drilling into his bones, churning the seas within his marrow.

Excruciating pain!

Zheng Fa had endured much hardship in his childhood.

He had fought with boys in the fields.

He had been cut by sickles and hoes.

He had even experienced near-death moments—

But never once had he felt such excruciating pain!

Perhaps because there were many nerves within the marrow, the agony was extremely distinct.

He curled into a ball, lying on the bed, his forehead covered in sweat droplets falling with his tremors.

This was not the first time he had attempted this sensation; before each time, he felt he had already grown accustomed to it.

Yet each time, he felt a despair as if standing on the brink of an abyss.

In his hand, the half-jade pendant was clenched so tightly it seemed about to shatter.

……

Before he was even two or three zhang away from Uncle Pang's hall, the shouting and screaming from inside drilled into Zheng Fa's ears.

"Master! Don't rush!"

"Save me, save me!" This was Uncle Pang's voice: "Who can give me a Blood-Stopping Talisman?"

"Master, surrender! Everyone around you is one of ours!"

"……"

Zheng Fa shook his head.

Uncle Pang was leading his disciples to play a match again.

He never expected that Jiushan Sect's number one internet addict, er, elderly person, was actually Uncle Pang.

As far as Zheng Fa knew, when Uncle Pang came to Lei Chi this time, he had specifically asked the Sect Master for many talisman arrays of the Great Dao Immortal Contest.

However, Uncle Pang did not bully people when playing games.

He always sealed his divine sense and spiritual power, playing with the various disciples using the cultivation of the Qi Refining stage.

He never cursed when he lost.

His temper was actually quite good.

But there was one problem—he was too reckless.

Zheng Fa now strongly suspected that his own master's script, "Saving Little Cultivator Pang Qian," truly had a real-life prototype.

Thinking of Uncle Pang's current teachings toward him—

Zheng Fa always felt Uncle Pang was searching for that youth of the past within the game...

Putting aside these miscellaneous thoughts, Zheng Fa lightly knocked on the hall door.

"Enter!"

As soon as Zheng Fa entered, Uncle Pang waved his hand, and the illusionary realm of the Great Dao Immortal Contest in the hall immediately vanished.

Several senior brothers exchanged glances, all appearing to pout.

Was this... throwing a tantrum because they couldn't handle losing?

"Ahem." Seeing Zheng Fa's look of sudden realization, Uncle Pang coughed lightly and said, "What do you need from me?"

"This junior nephew wishes to ask Uncle Pang for some information on Lei Chi."

"You are preparing to enter Lei Chi? Have you cultivated the fourth layer of the Five Thunder Divine Body?"

Uncle Pang paused, slowly sat up, and his gaze turned serious.

"Yes!"

"……" Uncle Pang looked at him for a long while, speaking not a word for a long time, as if pondering something.

"Uncle Pang?"

"Your master told me before he came." Uncle Pang suddenly brought up something else: "He said that for you to cultivate the fourth layer of the Five Thunder Divine Body, the biggest problem is not resources... it is endurance."

"……"

"He said that every time he replaced his blood, he had to wait ten days or half a month before performing the second blood replacement."

As Uncle Pang spoke, the senior brothers in the hall all turned their gaze toward Zheng Fa.

Their looks varied.

"He told me it was too painful, too bitter; each time felt like slicing oneself from the inside out piece by piece." Uncle Pang shook his head: "So, although he lacked no Profound Thunder Stones back then, cultivating the fourth layer of the Five Thunder Divine Body, the blood replacement, took a full half-year..."

"And you... you cultivated it in half a month. Why such urgency?"

Zheng Fa lowered his head and said, "Although Zhang Shijie's life is currently safe, she has been missing for a long time, so her situation can be imagined to be no better."

Uncle Pang fell silent again.

"……Junior nephew Zhang, I did not misjudge you." Uncle Pang shook his head, waved his hand, and several jade slips flew to Zheng Fa's front: "These are the news about Lei Chi from the market, along with some experiences of my Jiushan Sect disciples; take them."

Zheng Fa tucked away several jade slips, bowed to Uncle Pang, turned, and left the main hall.

Watching his figure slowly walk away, Uncle Pang's gaze grew distant, as if lost in thought.

"Master, shall we play some more?"

Seeing he remained silent for a long time, a disciple nearby asked in a low voice.

"Play, play, play! All you know how to do is play!" Unexpectedly, Uncle Pang exploded: "Look at Zheng Fa! He cultivates so diligently, yet all you know how to do is play?"

"..."

"He endured the agony of a needle piercing his heart for Senior Sister Zhang, cultivating with his life on the line. What about you? If your master were to go missing, could you do the same?"

"... This disciple would surely brave boiling water and scorching fire..."

The group of disciples spoke up in unison.

"Get lost! Don't I know you all too well?"

Uncle Pang snorted, lightly slapped his hand forward, and those few disciples were sent flying out of the hall.

Looking up again, the hall doors were shut tight.

The few disciples looked at each other, then at one another, too afraid to speak, and left together.

Once they had walked far enough away, one disciple voiced his confusion:

"Playing 'Great Dao Immortal Struggle'... wasn't that a setup by Master? We had no choice but to play!"

"Master is just jealous of Senior Sister Zhang."

A disciple's words made the others nod repeatedly.

"True, we can't compare to Junior Brother Zheng." One disciple said somewhat dejectedly.

"If we can't compare to Zheng Fa, can't Master compare to Senior Sister Zhang either?"

"Huh?"

This remark made the others a bit skeptical.

No matter how formidable Senior Sister Zhang was, their master was a Nascent Soul True Person.

"Just think: if Senior Sister Zhang had the face of our master, would Zheng Fa have rushed to save her so urgently?"

"..."

"Would you?"

"... Even though it is our master, Senior Sister Zhang and we didn't have a good relationship before..." A senior brother spoke up: "But that doesn't mean you should blaspheme Senior Sister Zhang like that."