I became a god by treasure hunting after arriving 500 years early

This line of thought was strange.

Lu Yuan furrowed his brow.

The Extraordinary Life Materials he had on hand were indeed a few, such as the Fire Lizard, the horn of a One-horned Beast (which he had sneaked a taste of), the Ice Qilin Core, and so on.

He had eaten these things.

But he never felt the so-called "Qi"!

If it was so easy to gain "Martial Art," humans and the lizard men of the Rize Civilization should have discovered this method long ago.

"You probably need the presence of 'Spirit', that is, the soul of a monster," said Old Cat suddenly.

"Qi is the medium between the soul and the body. Once a living being dies, its Qi quickly disperses."

"That's right, we have a special profession called 'Pre-Spirit,' which can see souls and seal them."

"Initially, to acquire Martial Art, everyone obtained it through Spirit Devouring."

"Allowing a spirit to possess a human body would produce the sensation of 'Qi'," said Sha Kan'er. "But the 'Qi' of many monsters is often too violent, and the slightest surge turns a person into an idiot."

"Therefore, acquiring Martial Art is not simple. Nine out of ten attempts end in failure."

Lu Yuan nodded slightly, grasping the general idea.

That is to say, one must allow the soul of an animal to possess a human in order to learn "Martial Art".

"Isn't this allowing the souls of other animals to take over oneself?" Lu Yuan thought about it more and more and couldn't stand it.

This method, with a high mortality rate and somewhat perverse, it's normal that humans have not discovered it.

As for Lu Yuan's group, the only one who could see souls was Miss Conch.

Lu Yuan himself could not see them, nor could he affect the "Spirit"... though he could see souls in his soul out-of-body state, he did not possess the ability to seal a soul.

"So how do you obtain Martial Art, with such a high failure rate?"

Sha Kan'er spoke with a hint of huskiness, "The initial learning of Martial Art was indeed difficult, often resulting in a loss of intelligence and the onset of wildness."

"But it was later discovered that human souls after death could also assist in learning Martial Art..."

"And the success rate was higher, and they could even be used repeatedly... so the souls of ancestors are the foundation of a village."

Lu Yuan was shocked, swallowing hard.

This method, from the perspective of Earth People, seemed somewhat evil.

But to the people of the Sha Li Clan, it was a natural thing. After all, social environment dictates morality, and when everyone does it, there's nothing taboo about it.

Many elderly, before dying, allow 'Pre-spirit' to separate their soul, undergo a series of purification processes, and remove all memories.

Then they pass on their own "Martial Art" to future generations.

In this way, the number of "Martial Arts" would continue to grow.

This was the main reason why ancestor worship culture developed in that civilization—after all, all the strength came from the ancestors. How could they not be revered?

But Lu Yuan fell silent as never before.

He finally understood why this civilization did not develop technology.

Because once such a thing occurred, it was clear that plundering from the strong to the weak would happen. If murder allowed one to snatch "Martial Art," the enormous benefits would obviously tempt people to take risks.

This resulted in long-lasting internal strife in the civilization, making it very difficult for real technology to emerge.

"Your civilization has many wars, doesn't it?"

"Haha..." These few members of the Sha Li Clan laughed awkwardly.

"A very interesting method," murmured Old Cat from the side, "but there must be quite a few technical details in between. Old Lu, are you planning to learn both Shape Skill and Qi Skill now?"

"You are already full. If you learn another, wouldn't your soul solidify?"

Lu Yuan fell silent for a moment before asking, "Do you have occurrences of soul solidification over there?"

"What is... soul solidification?"

"It's when after learning a lot of Martial Arts, your strength suddenly increases by a large margin, and then you can't learn anymore."

"Yes, yes, yes! That's called an Innate Grandmaster!!"

Sha Kan'er slapped his forehead, speaking with some envy, "After learning about six to nine Martial Arts, there is a chance to become an Innate Grandmaster, and then the strength will increase all around!"

"After that, you can no longer learn."

He sighed again, "Alas, the difficulty of learning each Martial Art constantly increases, and even with the inheritance of ancestors, it is easy to be turned into an idiot by that burst of Qi."

"You must cultivate the 'Basic Body Refining Skill' to a certain extent before you can learn more Martial Art."

"For small tribes like ours, it's hard. We haven't had an Innate Powerhouse for hundreds of years. We have to learn whatever is available."

"While on the Empire's side, those with outstanding talent can plan out their Martial Art, maximizing their combat power and then breaking through to innate."

This conversation felt as if chickens were talking to ducks.

On Lu Yuan's side lies scientific rationalism, while the Rize Civilization was pure empiricism. Terms like "Innate" sounded ominous.

However, the overall information matched.

"What about after breaking through Innate, can you continue to learn?"

Sha Kan'er was unable to answer such a tricky question, frowning and pondering for a long time before shaking his head: "The number of Martial Arts one can learn is determined by the heavens; once you break through Innate, you can't learn anymore."

"I don't remember there being exceptions."

The answer corresponded with Lu Yuan's knowledge.

"Wait... well, not exactly!" He stammered, "There are some simple Martial Arts that can be simulated with Basic Body Refining Skill. But I've only heard of it, I don't know how it actually works."

Lu Yuan and Old Cat looked at each other.

According to the Sha Li People's description, the essence of Shape Skill and Qi Skill was the circulation of "Qi."

So, one could use a higher-level "Extraordinary Spark" for simulation—because the Extraordinary Spark is a rather advanced Qi Skill.

But this "simulation" might require a level that he is not currently capable of.

"This information is still pretty useful... Whatever the Extraordinary Spark can do, the Eternal Spark should also be able to accomplish," he mused.

Then he asked, "Can you demonstrate a martial art for me to see?"

The Militia Captain nodded and stood up, "Hardening!"

His entire muscles suddenly tensed, and his body became as solid as iron.

"Hardening" is a Shape Skill that can greatly enhance resistance to impact, including the internal organs.

Lu Yuan, lacking the ability of perspective, watched for a long time but couldn't discern anything specific.

"I can... I can barely see the flow of Qi," Miss Conch suddenly said, "but it's quite complex. I don't think you can simulate it right now. I'll draw you a diagram."

Lu Yuan couldn't help but complain inwardly, "Aren't you just too all-powerful?"

Turning his head, he inquired, "So, what's the deal with the Empire?"

"The Empire is a great nation with a thousand years of heritage, officially known as the Mavira Empire."

"There are only a few hundred thousand people in The Sha Li Clan. The Empire may have tens of millions, even over a hundred million people."

"It's home to numerous masters and an abundance of strong individuals."

"Most of the knowledge we have comes from scraps and pieces that originated from the Empire."

"Ah, I wonder what ranking it would hold on the Pangu Continent..."

After pondering for a while, Lu Yuan eventually chose not to reveal the truth...

It was better to leave them with something to yearn for.

After a few minutes of casual conversation, Sha Kan'er brought over an ancient-looking booklet, its pages inscribed with the language of an alien civilization and adorned with gold lettering, quite luxurious.

As he claimed, it was a prize won from the Arena of the Empire.

Speaking of it, his face beamed with pride, "I killed a Wolf Scorpion!" Continue reading on empire

"Even if I die, just this booklet alone is enough to be enshrined in the ancestral temple."

The pages were filled with illustrations including diagrams of human acupuncture points, some bizarre symbols, and even a picture of a small dot in the human brain shining like the sun.

This was undoubtedly an Extraordinary Spark!

Lu Yuan's heart began to race. All the searching without success, and now, as if effortlessly, he had found the cultivation method for the Extraordinary Spark?

He eagerly turned to the next page and, sure enough, there was the breakthrough method for the Extraordinary Spark!

Intelligent life always seeks the path of least resistance and the methods recorded in this booklet also sought to open a "Lower Qiankun."

When compared to the methods of the Meida Civilization, there were minor differences in the details.

But the overall approach was the same.

Lu Yuan's trembling hands turned to the next page.

Certainly, there was more content!!

It was covered with complex images and text as small as ants.

Was that... a method for further breakthrough?!

A way to break through from Level Three to Level Four!

Lu Yuan froze for a moment, feeling a touch of confusion and a faint bitterness deep inside.

Such is the unpredictability of fate.

From the Meida Civilization, to the Rize Civilization, then to the spaceship of the Rize Civilization.

And then to the Sky City of the Green Grass Civilization...

Despite his desperate search for a method of further breakthrough, it eluded him...

Sometimes, he did get impatient.

He had already reached Level Three by the thousandth day, and now, nearing six thousand days, he was still Level Three!

But impatience was useless; it just drained him emotionally.

And now, in this out-of-the-way corner, in the hands of a weak civilization yet to spawn the seeds of technology, he had obtained it without much effort!

Lu Yuan let out a long sigh, gazing at the clouds in the sky, feeling that his efforts seemed somewhat meaningless, and luck seemed more tangible...

He was only a hair's breadth away from becoming a "Crash Artist."

Fortunately, this information had not come too late.

For him, it was just in time.

With a heavy tone, he said, "This book is very important to me; I owe you a favor. I need to borrow it for a while."

"If there's anything I can help with, just command me."

Seeing Lu Yuan finally make that statement, the people of The Sha Li Clan also breathed a sigh of relief.

Aren't they providing so much just to secure a promise from this great expert?

Of course, a promise is just a promise, and being greedy would only backfire.

So they all were careful in their hearts, considering precisely what kind of help they should ask for from Lu Yuan.

Whether to ask him to defeat a monster or to find some water.

Or...some other kind of assistance?

...