Chapter 433 - 193: Cultivation Must Keep Up with the Times, Fellow Daoist!
"Never mentioned, I’m a loose cultivator, always figuring things out on my own."
Lu Wenwu shrugged habitually, showing a look of regret.
"Since we can’t go back now, old pal, can you lend a hand? Aren’t you the Celestial Secret Daoist, the True Monarch of Destiny? Can you calculate where we should go to find the cause of this world-ending calamity?"
"It’s not that we can’t go back, it’s that you can’t go up... Forget it, just interpret it as you will, fellow Daoist."
The True Monarch of Destiny couldn’t be bothered to argue with Lu Wenwu on this matter, and just helplessly took out some small tools needed for divination from something similar to a Qiankun Ring.
"Regarding the world-ending calamity, I’m here in the Lower Realm for this very reason, naturally I’ll do my utmost. Fellow Daoist, may I borrow your phone?"
"Phone? You know how to use this?"
Lu Wenwu handed over the local phone, puzzled.
"Of course, I’ve helped so many believers fulfill their wishes in the Immortal Realm, monitoring the world with Immortal Thought for hundreds of years, what haven’t I seen? Moreover... before ascending, phones had already existed for a long time, alright?" The True Monarch of Destiny expressed dissatisfaction with Lu Wenwu’s skepticism.
Lu Wenwu: "...Sorry, forgot about that, instinctively thought of you as an old relic."
The True Monarch of Destiny didn’t say anything. Using the One Finger Zen technique often used by the elderly, he adeptly opened the app store on the phone, downloaded an app for calculating true solar time, and located the longitude and latitude.
Utterly baffled, Lu Wenwu asked, "Fellow Daoist Tianji, what are you doing? As a True Monarch in the Immortal Realm, why do you need a phone to calculate divinations? You’re acting like those ten-yuan fortune tellers on the street."
The True Monarch of Destiny replied matter-of-factly, "Firstly, in the Lower Realm, I can only maintain Near-God Level cultivation and means, unable to resonate with the Dao. If I exceed, I will immediately be detected by the Heavenly Dao, thus triggering the Ascension Thunder Tribulation to send me back to the Upper Realm."
"As for the second point... hehe, humanity has developed for so many years, and the power of technology is indeed very useful. Numerous satellites and cloud computing systems can easily complete the calculation process; why would I still use something as primitive as a sundial for timekeeping or rely solely on Immortal Soul calculations?"
"With my level of cultivation, personally calculating isn’t an issue, but when roaming the mortal world, you never know when a crisis might arise; maintaining peak condition at all times is an excellent quality every cultivator should have."
"If technological creations can assist and aid, of course, they should be used. Just like why mortals invented cars, planes, and high-speed trains even though they can walk themselves."
"Technology changes life, and it changes cultivation too, Fellow Daoist Violent Dragon."
Lu Wenwu: "..."
Alright, the old relic is actually myself.
"It seems you’re an ascetic cultivator, rarely venturing into the mortal world. Building a car behind closed doors isn’t good; you have to keep up with the times, Fellow Daoist Violent Dragon."
The True Monarch of Destiny said while computing the divination results, creating a rather special field around him from his own Immortal Yuan, filled with a profoundly mysterious feeling.
"Look, take Great Xia for instance. Their meteorological department worships different divine statues of Immortals like Thunder True Monarch, Water Control True Monarch, Wind and Rain True Monarch, and so on."
Lu Wenwu asked in confusion, "What do they worship these Immortal statues for at a meteorological station? Isn’t a weather station’s daily task to use scientific instruments to collect wind speed, humidity, air pressure data, combine it with meteorological satellites, and analyze backend data to create weather models, using big data to predict weather for the public?"
"Ah, what you’re talking about is old news. From what I know, including Great Xia, officials with their own cultivator teams now use more advanced ways to measure weather," the True Monarch of Destiny replied with a laugh.
"More advanced weather means...?"
"Oh, it means employing some cultivators at the meteorological station. These cultivators must be believers of Immortals, and when instruments detect unwanted bad weather, they communicate with the Immortal Gods they worship, using Immortal power to alter the weather."
"However, it seems that mortals’ creations now can also achieve large-scale weather alteration, requiring just a few cultivators to assist. Before, when I was listening to believers’ prayers, my Immortal Thought swept over the meteorological station and overheard a short spell."
"How did it go...? Oh right, I remember, it went like this - target five-hole cumulonimbus, binding direction two turns curve, height five turns, six rapid shots."
"Although I didn’t quite understand it, I must say, this Hail Exorcism Spell researched by mortals is much more effective and even saves effort compared to the ancestor’s methods."
Lu Wenwu: "..."
Thank you, I am truly shocked by this new age collaboration between immortals and mortals.
Is this what they call modern cultivation reformists?
The concept of the Cultivation World from online novels in my past life has completely shattered.
Seems like I’m the real relic now.
If possible, I’d still like to see the traditionalists.
While the True Monarch of Destiny was still calculating, Lu Wenwu asked a question he had wanted to ask an Immortal for a long time.
"Fellow Daoist Tianji, truthfully, I’ve been wanting to ask an Immortal this for a long time. Can you really enjoy the offerings we mortals give you like it’s recorded in the texts?"
"Of course we can. I’ve indeed enjoyed many offerings from the believers, each with its own wonder," the True Monarch of Destiny responded with a cheerful smile. "Like there was a little girl who once offered me something called... a KFC Portuguese egg tart? Crispy and sweet, very nice. If we’re passing by later, we can try some."