Chapter 39 The Wheel of Life
“All living things have a place that grows along and within them. Such a place also exists within the human body. It is where our vitality comes from, a place where the body’s very essence and Qi is stored. It is called the Life Source Wheel, or the Wheel of Life.” Senior Wu Qingfeng’s tone was as tranquil as ever.
“Where is the Wheel of Life?” Pang Bo asked.
“Under the navel.” Wu Qingfeng used his hand to point. “It is the line where the upper and lower body perfectly split.”
Ye Fan was surprised, immediately thinking of the human body’s golden ratio line. That place exactly matched up the line that would split a person’s upper body at a 0.618 ratio from the bottom of their feet to the top of their heads. It was called the human body’s golden ratio line, and the spot right under the navel was precisely on that line. A body structured with such a proportion was the most aesthetic.
In reality, the body could be split into many golden ratios, and these golden ratios were all found in the most important parts of the body. Comparatively speaking, the biggest split was under the navel, but it didn’t appear very important on the surface.
Hearing Wu Qingfeng say that it was the location of the Wheel of Life, the very root of the human body’s vitality, Ye Fan immediately felt a ray of light flash through his mind. The human body’s most important golden ratio line might really be the place life began.
The Wheel of Life was not a spot, but a region according to Wu Qingfeng. It was a sphere the size of a palm in the middle of the region under the navel.
Wu Qingfeng solemnly emphasized, “The Wheel of Life for mortals is the natural cycle of life and birth, but in us cultivators, the Wheel of Life gives birth to ourselves and is our very foundation.”
According to what Wu Qingfeng said, the Wheel of Life was the origin of divine energy, and all cultivators who wanted to step onto the immortal path all had to start with it.
“After mortals are born, their Wheels of Life wither as they age. Each year, another mark is left on it, just like a tree’s growth ring. When their time is up, their Wheel of Life will be completely covered by scars, and at that time, it will completely shatter.”
“Then how many marks are on our Wheels of Life?”
Ye Fan and Pang Bo were both originally over twenty years old, but their bodies received a shocking change and now appeared only eleven or twelve.
“Your Wheel of Life has eleven marks.”
Hearing this, Pang Bo’s mouth opened into a huge smile. Compared to his cla.s.smates who had all lost their youthful vitality, what happened to him was a truly a defiance of the heavens. He then pointed to Ye Fan and said, “What about him? He should be the same as me.”
Wu Qingfeng already knew about Ye Fan’s physique, but he still gave him a careful examination. What he found was the exact same as what the others had told him. Ye Fan’s Wheel of Life was completely silent, while his Sea of Bitterness was as firm as divine iron and as stable as a boulder, completely unshakable. There was no way for him to open up his physique to examine.
“His physique is very special and cannot be seen through. I couldn’t see clearly, but there might have been a couple of notches which I would a.s.sume do not differ from yours by much.” Here, Wu Qingfen’s expression became a bit strange. “His Qi and blood are extremely vigorous, practically as strong as a dragon. If he could cultivate…what a pity.”
Ye Fan and Pang Bo finally understood what the Wheel of Life was, but they still had many questions.
“The Wheel of Life is said to be the foundation of a cultivator. If one could reach the cultivation stage of the legends and keep the Wheel of Life sparkling without a single mark, as it was just after birth, then there would be hope of becoming an Immortal.”
“Is it difficult to become an Immortal?”
“The immortals that the ordinary mortals speak of are just cultivators capable of flying. But the Immortals of legends, their existence is still something hard to determine. In the past several thousand years, not even one Immortal has arisen within the whole Eastern Wastelands. Perhaps only those Sacred Lands or the ancient families from the Ancient Desolation, or maybe some ancient demons know the truth.”
“Senior, did you really have to destroy our hope? Just as we were looking forward to cultivating, you tell us that Immortals might not even exist. That’s just too depressing.”
“Spring flowers don’t survive the autumn, and the winter cicada cannot survive past the winter. The mortal lifetime is less than a hundred years. If they could survive for thousands of years, that could also be considered as breaking Heaven’s laws and they could also be considered immortal to a certain extent.”
Ye Fan and Pang Bo understood what the old man was trying to convey. Once cultivators stepped onto the path to immortality, from the very day they started, they would be superior to ordinary mortals. Strong cultivators could live thousands of years, breaking the edicts of Heaven and Earth. Even if they weren’t able to become an Immortal, their struggle would not have been in vain. After all, they had broken through Heaven’s laws, changing their own destiny.
“Actually, I didn’t completely deny the existence of Immortals. It may just be that we are not able to touch such a world.”
Following, Ye Fan and Pang Bo continued to ask questions, and the old man would patiently explain the answers to each of them.
“I keep hearing people talk about the Sea of Bitterness. Just what is it?”
“That is an endless ocean of torment that covers the Wheel of Life.”
“What does that mean?” Ye Fan and Pang Bo didn’t understand.
“Once cultivators reach a certain stage, if their Wheel of Life has reached the point that its interior is like a whole new heaven and earth, the Sea of Bitterness will naturally exist beside it.”
“Can you please explain it in more detail? The Wheel of Life and Sea of Bitterness seem to exist in the same place. What is their relations.h.i.+p?”
“The Sea of Bitterness coincides with the Wheel of Life, or it might be more accurate to say that it drowns it. The Wheel of Life is not only marked by the pa.s.sing of time, but also slowly eroded by the Sea of Bitterness.”
“Is that why people say you must cleanse the Sea of Bitterness?”
Wu Qingfeng nodded, “Correct. The Wheel of Life is the foundation of all cultivators. The goal of cultivation is to cleanse the Sea of Bitterness as much as possible.”
Ye Fan and Pang Bo were both very startled. “According to what you said, the Sea of Bitterness is endless and drowns the Wheel of Life. How is it possible to completely cleanse it?”
“Right, it’s impossible to cleanse it completely. Even those shockingly talented and powerful cultivators who can live thousands of years will still have a Sea of Bitterness that has not been perfectly cleansed.” Wu Qingfeng had a yearning expression as he said, “In the legends, each true Immortal had completely cleansed their Sea of Bitterness, turning it into a sweet spring of life. Just one drop of it was enough to revive a dead man’s bones.
“Tch, but that’s just the legends. We don’t even know if Immortals truly exist,” Pang Bo sighed. “Why don’t you talk more about realistic and actual existences.”
“The Sea of Bitterness is endless, but if cultivators wish to obtain a long life, they absolutely cannot get stranded within their Sea of Bitterness.” Wu Qingfeng’s eyes glowed with a clear divine light. “Give birth to a thriving life energy within the dull Sea of Bitterness, cultivate Divine Meridians, sacrifice them so they become the Heavenly Bridge, cross to the end of the Sea of Bitterness, and arrive at Paramita.”
Ye Fan pondered it for a short time but still didn’t understand. “If the Wheel of Life is submerged in the Sea of Bitterness, meaning the two are in the same place, once you cultivate Divine Meridians and reach Paramita, not only will you have cleansed the Sea of Bitterness, but you will also have separated from your Wheel of Life. Isn’t that the foundation of all cultivators? Can it be so easily cast away?”
Wu Qingfeng nodded his head in praise. “I have said that the Wheel of Life is a cultivator’s foundation. It is the root of their very existence. But I didn’t say there definitely weren’t others of its kind.”
Pang Bo eyes immediately opened wide. “What else is there?”
“If you wish to become an Immortal, just cultivating the Wheel of Life is definitely not enough. A Divine Bridge allows you to step across the Sea of Bitterness, connecting you to secret and important parts of your body…”
“Then are you saying it’s not just the Wheel of Life? There are other…or to be more precise, the human body contains many existences similar to the Wheel of Life?” Ye Fan asked in amazement.
“To become a strong person at the peak of this world, all that is required is that you cultivate your Wheel of Life to the utmost pinnacle. But if you wish to become an Immortal, just cultivating the Wheel of Life is far from enough.” Wu Qingfeng shook his head, because even he didn’t even know if Immortals truly existed. He continued, “Even if you were the top talent of your entire generation, it would be enough for you to just cultivate your Wheel of Life. Just that would bring you endless benefits. But if you wish to cultivate Divine Meridians, sacrifice them so they become the Heavenly Bridge, reach Paramita, and obtain a long life, it is not such a simple thing. Don’t bite off more than you can chew for now. Remember that creating a firm and substantial foundation is the most important thing for you right now!”