June 6, 2018

When Dean Wang Xiao’s heart-wrenching, silent howl echoed throughout the Sword Academy, sighs arose one after another in the surroundings.

This world is unfair.

The mortal world is like this, and the Immortal Cultivation Realm is the same, and even the so-called Immortal Realm, pursued by countless cultivators for life, is equally unfair within the bounds of logic.

The differences in birth, appearance, and talent inevitably lead to vastly different destinies among people. Dean Wang Xiao’s experiences are just an insignificant link in this unfair world.

Meanwhile, Xiao Bai lowered her head, lifted her eyes, and silently watched Wang Jiu, feeling a sense of reflection in her heart.

Turns out, I don’t hate being lectured.

I just hate being lectured by unsightly people.

Over the past decades, I don’t know how many times I’ve been nagged by my senior brothers about not squandering my talent, about wasting talent being a crime against the entire Immortal Cultivation Realm, about having my daily allowance cut off if I don’t work hard in my cultivation... it was bothersome and even infuriating.

Talent is one’s own, and how to use it is personal freedom. Why does it have to be criticized by others? I’m neither the dean nor a real authority elder; my daily work meets the lowest standards adequately, so what’s there to criticize? I joined the Sword Academy for free cultivation, not to bear the entire Xiangzhou Cultivation Realm. Besides, isn’t talent meant to achieve the same results at a lower cost? Therefore, working hard at cultivation is the real waste of talent...

All along, Xiao Bai used various reasons to resist the persuasive teachings of her senior brothers. However, the same reasoning, when spoken by Wang Jiu, had a strangely convincing power. Xiao Bai almost immediately realized her negligence in cultivation over the years and felt deeply regretful for the wasted years, feeling she had let down her life and the Xiangzhou Continent.

"If I start working hard now... is it still in time?"

As she spoke, Xiao Bai truly felt a little regretful.

Sure, her talent in the Sword Dao was unmatched in the world, but the unsteady years were passing quickly, and the golden years of cultivation were nearing their end. Her peers had transformed from annoying young men into annoying old men, while she still maintained the appearance and physique of her youth, with her Qi Blood and True Essence still at their peak. But the so-called peak, conversely, means a decline is imminent.

According to common calculations, her cultivation level would continue to advance in the next twenty years, but the speed would gradually slow, accumulating more in quantity with little qualitative breakthrough, defining the trajectory of her life.

Before meeting Wang Jiu, Xiao Bai had no high expectations for her life’s plan. As long as she could rely on her talent advantage to maintain a few more decades of cultivation inertia and live each day easily, it was enough; there wasn’t a need to aspire for too much.

But now looking back, Xiao Bai finally felt some regret.

For Xiao Bai’s sudden epiphany, Wang Jiu answered without hesitation: "In terms of personal achievements, you’ve already found it difficult to make any major breakthroughs. Your laziness in your youth and lack of sword dao theory make it impossible to fully utilize your talent."

"..." Xiao Bai was somewhat astonished. This wasn’t what the stories said at all! Wasn’t it that if a prodigal son turns back, miracles would happen immediately? As for someone like me who’s been lazy for decades and has a sudden epiphany, shouldn’t there be at least some positive motivation even if no miraculous phenomena occur? This kind of harsh truth feels a bit too much, doesn’t it!?

But Wang Jiu changed his tone and said: "However, humanity as a social species doesn’t have its value reflected entirely in personal achievements. Just like the dean of the Wuxiang Sword Academy isn’t the strongest sword cultivator in the academy, if you can make breakthroughs in social achievements, then personal achievements become insignificant."

Xiao Bai pondered for a moment and said: "You mean, I should overthrow Senior Brother Wang Xiao and become the dean of the Sword Academy?"

Outside, Wang Xiao was startled to the bone: "Stop daydreaming! Even if I am ground to dust, I won’t let you destroy the millennia of Wuxiang Sword Academy’s reputation!"

Wang Jiu said: "The position of dean in the Sword Academy isn’t sufficient to utilize your talent’s advantages."

Xiao Bai immediately laughed and said: "I like hearing that. Just the position of the Sword Academy’s dean indeed doesn’t match me."

"..." Wang Xiao felt his blood pressure fluctuate upon hearing this from outside.

Xiao Bai asked: "Then what do you think I should do now? If even the position of dean is beneath me... what’s left for me to do?"

In fact, this was also the remaining audience’s curiosity on the scene.

No matter how much Xiao Bai looked down on the Wuxiang Sword Academy, the academy was still one of the top three academies on the Xiangzhou Continent, and an absolute authority in the Sword Dao Domain. If even the dean is beneath her, should she aim to be the Sect Leader of the Saint Sect instead?

Thinking of this point, Xiao Bai suddenly had a flash of inspiration. A bit surprised and then slightly shy, she held her face: "You wouldn’t want me to be the next Sect Leader’s Wife, would you?"

Her words weren’t fully spoken when a chilling sensation swept through from outside, even the absolute barrier of the Sword Academy couldn’t block it.

But as a Sword Dao Genius of the contemporary world, Xiao Bai wouldn’t drop her persistence for these small matters. Instead, she provocatively stepped closer to Wang Jiu, asking: "I’m more than happy to be the Sect Leader’s Wife, but how can I utilize my talent through it?"

As she spoke, Xiao Bai tried to imitate the alluring harlots in books, doing something particularly feminine and provocative to stir the City Lord Golden Jade outside.

However, after racking her brains, she couldn’t find a practical plan. The books only mentioned these women carried a natural charm in every action, but it never explained how to operate specifically, what posture to use, what Divine Techniques the eyes should accompany, or the angle of a smile? The books never said!

At this moment, Xiao Bai was especially resentful of her lack of rich life experience, and these important pieces of knowledge could only be relied on books... If she had a little more excess energy in her decades-long life road for relationships, she wouldn’t be so clueless now! However, with the bow drawn, she reluctantly found a bit of clue in the fragments of her memory.

And just when she was about to unconsciously use her chest to touch the other party, Wang Jiu opened his mouth and said: "To fully utilize your talent, what you need to do is reproduction."

"..." In that instant, Xiao Bai felt her whole person—including her chest—freeze.

Wang Jiu continued to explain: "Human cultivation aptitude does have some heritable qualities. Although not as strong as other aspects, data over the thousands of years of human civilization shows that cultivators with excellent talent have descendants with better average cultivation aptitude, especially those with exceptional bloodlines have strong inheritance capabilities. This point is well demonstrated in the Seven Great Noble Families of the Xiangzhou Continent."

These words resonated with many. In a place like the Wuxiang Sword Academy, no one didn’t know the weight of the Seven Great Noble Families. Being born into these families was truly like being born a cut above; various extraordinary talents sought after by the mortal world were easily found within these noble families.

This is the power of bloodline inheritance - the better the talent of the cultivator, the more outstanding the offspring. When the sample size is large enough, evidence for this rule becomes overwhelmingly clear, to the point of despair for many ordinary people.

This inheritance capacity often causes social instability, creating class solidification and wealth disparity. But on the other hand, it is precisely because of this that human civilization can continually advance, and my current hope is for you to harness this inheritance ability to further the progress of Xiangzhou’s Immortal Dao."

Upon hearing Wang Jiu’s words, immediately the entire atmosphere of the venue shifted. Previously many were immersed in feelings of social injustice or turmoil in the Immortal Cultivation Realm. But suddenly it elevated to the grand level of human civilization’s overall progress, stirring excitement in everyone.

Xiao Bai subconsciously swallowed, asking: "How should I utilize my inheritance ability? Teach students?"

Wang Jiu shook his head, "Inheritance between teacher and student is limited to knowledge and skills, unrelated to bloodline or other innate attributes. To pass on talent, reproduction is the only way."

"..." Xiao Bai once again felt frozen, "So, you mean I should..."

Wang Jiu said, "Yes, you should aim to find suitable partners and reproduce as much as possible in your lifetime. Because the passing on of a cultivator’s bloodline is uncertain, according to my preliminary calculations, the probability of your offspring inheriting sufficient talent is about 10%, significantly higher than ordinary cultivators. But you need to give birth to at least twenty children to have a reliable chance to produce a Sword Dao Genius. A couple of talents contribute limitedly to civilization progress; at least ten are needed for a noticeable group effect. Therefore, you need to give birth approximately 150 times to achieve this. Considering your age and remaining eggs, a certain degree of physical modification is necessary..."

"..." At this moment, inside and outside the arena, everyone was shocked by Wang Jiu’s genius proposal.

Yet unaware of the atmosphere shift, Wang Jiu continued: "Of course, intensive and frequent reproduction is a severe burden even for cultivators. So, modifications must include adapting for reproduction, such as increasing pleasure inducements as positive feedback to naturally engage in reproductive activities. Based on my preliminary assessment of your physiology, an initial focus on the breasts is recommended..."

Gulp.

Before Wang Jiu finished his words, Xiao Bai had already fainted silently.