Chapter Eight: A Generation of Immortal Masters

Chapter Eight: Immortal Master, Generation One

Today marked the fifteenth day since they had left the Divine Prison.

Aboard the spacecraft, the Celestial Extremity Perfected One entered a room holding a small round object, turning it over in his hand as he walked. This room was Tang Yi’s laboratory. Almost everyone aboard had come to look around at some point, but since nobody could understand much of what they saw, they gradually lost interest in returning.

Why? Because everything here consisted of materials Tang Yi had obtained through painstakingly converting omnipotent stones. He had used them to create computers, instruments, and all sorts of other things—none of which had ever been seen in the Immortal Realm.

At that moment, Tang Yi was standing before a table, arranging several objects upon it—small round objects identical to the one in the Celestial Extremity Perfected One’s hand.

“Fellow Daoist Tang, how exactly is this thing used? I spent the entire day trying to figure it out, but I still have no idea,” the Celestial Extremity Perfected One said.

“You can’t blame me for that. Yesterday, I hadn’t even finished explaining before you rushed off. The one in your hand is only a semifinished product; it hasn’t been fully processed yet. The ones on the table are the same. I call this the Immortal Master, Generation One. Strictly speaking, it could also be considered a finished product. The hardware is complete. It’s only missing the software.”

Tang Yi picked up one of the devices.

“Software? What do you mean by that?” the Celestial Extremity Perfected One asked, puzzled.

“Well, let’s use tea as an example. You may have all the teaware you need, but without tea leaves and water, you still can’t brew tea, right?” Tang Yi said after thinking for a moment.

“I see. The teaware required for brewing tea is the hardware, while the tea leaves and water are the software. In that case, where is the software for the Immortal Master, Generation One, and how do we install it?” The Celestial Extremity Perfected One nodded slightly.

“Come on. I’ll demonstrate it for you.”

Just as Tang Yi was speaking, the three brothers—Xiaofeng, Duan Yu, and Xu Zhu—walked in.

“Haha! We arrived at just the right time. There’s something interesting to see again!” Xiaofeng exclaimed loudly.

“That’s right. Arriving at the right moment is better than arriving early.” Duan Yu squeezed in beside Tang Yi.

“Heh. Then let’s take a look together.”

Tang Yi walked over to another table. A small instrument sat upon it, with a screen displaying various lines of text and data.

He pressed a switch on the square device. Its two side panels slid apart, revealing a circular holder in the middle. Tang Yi placed the Immortal Master, Generation One, onto the holder, where it fit perfectly. The panels closed again, and the display changed.

On the left was a circular diagram showing the internal structure of the Immortal Master, Generation One. On the right were lines of text and numerical data. Tang Yi used one finger to drag the data from the right side into the diagram on the left.

The screen continued changing. After roughly three seconds, the data transfer was complete.

“See that? The pale blue area beneath the diagram on the left represents the storage capacity occupied by the data we just transferred,” Tang Yi explained.

“Ah, it doesn’t even seem to occupy one percent. Is there really so little data?” Duan Yu asked.

“Third Brother, it’s zero point three percent. The total is three thousand terabytes. It’s written right there,” Xu Zhu corrected him.

“How much is three thousand terabytes?” the Celestial Extremity Perfected One asked.

“How should I put it? You’ve all watched the high-definition films in the entertainment hall, haven’t you? If we count each film as one gigabyte, then three thousand terabytes would equal the combined storage of three million films,” Tang Yi explained.

“Fellow Daoist Tang, I remember you once said that a single film of this sort would require roughly one standard jade slip from the Immortal Realm to store. By that calculation, zero point three percent of the Immortal Master, Generation One, can hold the contents of three million jade slips. If it were filled completely, wouldn’t it be able to hold ten billion jade slips’ worth of content? That’s far too astonishing!” Xiaofeng exclaimed.

“Heh. This is only the initial version. Its capacity will be even greater in the future.” Tang Yi continued, “I made more than a hundred of these, so I’ll give each of you one. Oh, right—the Immortal Master, Generation One has two types of interfaces. The first can be used with the computer I just demonstrated. The other is more convenient for you to use directly. However, you still can’t activate them because you’re unable to channel immortal essence. Once you can use immortal essence, simply input it into the Immortal Master, Generation One, and you’ll understand how to operate it.”

“Speaking of which, it really is strange. We have already traveled so far, yet this spatial confinement remains without the slightest sign of weakening,” the Celestial Extremity Perfected One said.

“This space is enormous. I make three spatial jumps every day. We can no longer see the spectacle of the ten suns accompanying the moon over the Divine Prison with the naked eye, but its influence hasn’t diminished in the slightest. There’s nothing we can do for now except take things one step at a time. By the way, how is the vegetable garden today?” Tang Yi asked Duan Yu.

“Haha! That’s exactly what I came here to report. The plants we transplanted from the Divine Prison are growing wonderfully, and they’re developing very quickly. Before long, they’ll be able to supply everyone aboard!” Duan Yu replied with a laugh.

“Oh? Let me take a look.”

Tang Yi snapped his fingers. A huge screen appeared before them. It displayed the current state of the vegetable garden, along with various data beside it—temperature, humidity, oxygen levels, and so on.

“Fellow Daoist Tang, there’s actually something I’ve wanted to ask you for a long time. What cultivation technique do you practice that allows you to possess such marvelous abilities? To be honest, everyone is curious to know.” At last, the Celestial Extremity Perfected One could not hold back his question.

It was understandable. After all, he had been trapped there for more than one million eight hundred thousand years. No outsider could possibly understand what that felt like. If not for the nature of the cultivation technique he practiced, anyone else might have ended his own life long ago.

“That’s not an easy question to answer. Let’s put it this way: it’s something innate. In fact, I’ve discovered that among the people aboard this spacecraft, there are several who possess innate extraordinary abilities. You, Celestial Extremity Perfected One, count as one of them. You simply never paid attention to your own unusual ability, so it remains sealed in its dormant state.”

Tang Yi had discovered that, within the Celestial Extremity Perfected One’s sea of consciousness, the landmass, the trapezoidal object, and the sphere were all dark gray.

“Moreover, I’ve found that anyone whose extraordinary ability has been awakened will certainly possess one talent that surpasses the others. For example, that Sword Immortal expert you mentioned—the one with the awakened ability. I still don’t know exactly what his power is, but judging from your descriptions, it should be the ability to control objects.”

“Oh? Fellow Daoist Tang, tell us exactly what these extraordinary abilities are all about. And do the three of us have them as well?” Duan Yu asked eagerly.

“All right. How about we go to the main hall, have some refreshments, and talk about it there? Let’s go.”

“Good, good. Or we could discuss it while we walk.”

“Fine. These extraordinary abilities can also be called supernatural powers, superpowers, or special talents. Generally speaking, I prefer to call them special abilities…”

Tang Yi and the others walked on, talking as they went.

Qijie Star—

“Master, Master, everything is ready. We can leave now,” Guan Zhiheng said to Zhang Sanfeng, who was reclining on a beach chair.

“The handover has been completed? Then let’s go.”

Zhang Sanfeng rose and nodded to Guan Zhiheng. He then turned and headed toward the teleportation point, with Guan Zhiheng and Xiaoyun following closely behind.

By then, Guan Zhiheng had already taken Zhang Sanfeng as his master. He had also sent word to his family, and they had dispatched people to complete the handover two days earlier.