Chapter 423: Express Your Sincerity

Zu An smiled awkwardly. "Empress sister, I don't understand what you mean."

Mi Li glanced at him and said, "Back in the secret realm, I found it very strange. Logically, with your pathetic cultivation, I could have extinguished you with a mere breath. Yet, I couldn't kill you then."

"While your fighting will at the time genuinely surprised me, if success in this world depended solely on willpower, it would be far too easy."

"So I've always been curious about what you rely on. Now it seems it's what you call the 'system,' isn't it? A 'Pardon Hat'? That's certainly unusual."

Zu An was shocked. "You can see these things?"

Mi Li said with a half-smile, "When did I say I couldn't?"

"You previously..." Zu An instinctively started to speak but quickly realized.

"I just taught you that the prettier a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive," Mi Li said, pursing her lips in a smile. "The medicine you used to save Madam Chu was quite miraculous. It instantly restored her life, something even Xu Fu from ancient times might not have been able to refine. And this 'Pardon Hat' now, if its description isn't exaggerated, it truly is a wondrous artifact."

Zu An's expression changed multiple times. In that instant, countless thoughts flashed through his mind. It seemed this woman had suspected him for a long time. His bizarre actions during his daily draws had probably fallen into her sight, but she hadn't figured out what was going on, so she hadn't acted. Now, it looked like after several observations, she had almost completely uncovered everything, which was why she was laying her cards on the table.

"Oh my, you don't need to be so nervous. We're bound together for life and death now, so it's not like I would harm you." Seeing his expression change dramatically, Mi Li actually began to comfort him.

"You just taught me that the prettier a woman is, the more she'll deceive," Zu An snorted unhappily. "Who knows if your 'bound by life and death' vow is real or fake? What if you have a way to break the bond? Then I'd be counting money for you even after you've sold me out."

"Little brother, you learn quite fast," Mi Li couldn't help but look at him with a hint of admiration. "But on this matter, I truly haven't lied to you."

"I don't believe it," Zu An's gaze fell on her dress. "You can see right through me now, so unless you take off your clothes to show your sincerity?"

Mi Li's expression was unreadable.

Soon, pig-like squeals echoed from the room. "Empress sister, let's talk this through! I was just kidding!"

"Ow, you can hit anywhere else, just not my face! I rely on this face to make a living!"

***

After a long while, the room finally quieted down. Mi Li wiped the blood from her hands, a dangerous smile appearing on her face. "Sister will teach you another lesson: never court death when you shouldn't."

Zu An, bruised and swollen, lay slumped on the floor. "I truly couldn't think of anything to prove your words, so I just made a joke. Was it really necessary to hit so hard?"

Mi Li snorted. "This is me going easy on you. If someone dared to offend me like that in my time, their entire clan would have been annihilated."

Zu An's throat felt dry. All the women around him were ruthless, each more so than the last.

Mi Li quickly smiled. "Besides, I'm not hitting you; I'm clearly helping you cultivate! Who said your Phoenix Nirvana Scripture needs to be beaten to improve?"

Zu An simply scoffed.

"Alright, let's get serious," Mi Li sobered her expression. "Oaths of eternal love often prove unreliable. Ultimately, it comes down to whether both parties' interests align and whether the other is strong enough."

"Though you are weak now, you possess supreme innate talent, cultivate several divine arts and secret techniques, and now have this hidden trump card. Your future is full of potential for growth. You know, the more powerful a man is and the more hidden cards he holds, the more attractive he becomes. I find I'm growing to like you more and more." Mi Li smiled again. "So, you don't need to worry about what I might do to you."

Zu An looked resentful. "Oh, I thought after spending so much time together, affection had naturally grown between us. Turns out you only started liking me because of all these things. It was all business."

Mi Li scoffed. "Tsk, what did you think? Otherwise, why would I fancy a young brat like you who hasn't even fully matured?"

Zu An instantly bristled. "Are you sure I haven't matured?"

A scene from the secret realm, one she had witnessed within Chu Chuyan's body, involuntarily flashed through Mi Li's mind. A blush briefly appeared on her face, and she hastily changed the subject. "Ahem, let's talk about this trump card of yours. You call it a 'system'? Why such a strange name?"

"What else would I call it?" Zu An grunted irritably. Having his trump card exposed made him, a master of discretion, extremely uncomfortable.

Mi Li spoke seriously. "From my observations lately, your sys... system appears to be an extraordinarily powerful artifact. While its raw power might not rival some of the supreme treasures I know of, its creativity is superior. You see, in this world, destruction is always far simpler than creation, so from that perspective, your artifact is even more precious."

"Artifact?" Zu An was stunned. Having read too many web novels in his previous life where protagonists without a system were embarrassed to greet anyone, he had immediately accepted this premise without ever delving into its origins.

"Of course it's an artifact," Mi Li said. "It might even have been crafted by the most powerful and ingenious rune master in history. His understanding of space, his mastery of energy conversion, and his creative genius are far beyond anything I've seen from any peerless expert."

"Energy conversion?" Zu An remained confused. Why did this feel like a physics class from his previous life?

"Precisely," Mi Li said, her eyes alight with excitement and her tone filled with admiration. "Ordinary artifacts require primeval stones for energy. More potent and rare artifacts can generally replenish energy by absorbing the spiritual qi of heaven and earth. However, artifacts are not living beings, so their absorption rate is inherently limited. Your system, though, is different. It can not only absorb spiritual qi for replenishment but also draw upon soul power as an energy source."

"Soul power?" Zu An was startled. What was that?

"As the name suggests, it's naturally the power of the soul," Mi Li explained. "When the soul is intensely agitated, soul power typically overflows. For instance, when you intentionally provoke people to anger and earn 'rage points,' that's essentially a process of collecting soul power."

Zu An listened, dumbfounded. However, with her explanation, many of his lingering doubts were resolved. He couldn't help but stare at her. "Empress sister, you didn't happen to be a physics professor transmigrated from your previous life, did you?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Mi Li frowned. "I was once the empress who unified the world and have thoroughly read all the world's classics. How could your limited knowledge as a frog at the bottom of a well compare to mine?"

Nevertheless, the expression on his face was quite sincere. "Soul power can also be used?"

"Of course it can," Mi Li replied. "The universe is vast; what isn't possible? Cultivation doesn't necessarily have to rely on the spiritual qi of heaven and earth. Many other existing energies in the world can actually be used for cultivation. For example, your Primordial Chaos Scripture cultivates the Qi of Primordial Chaos."

"Furthermore, based on my research over the years, the spiritual qi of heaven and earth isn't necessarily just one type; it should be a collective term for various different energies. Many races I know of, while they also cultivate the spiritual qi of heaven and earth, their cultivation methods and the effects they produce are clearly vastly different from those of humans. Even within the human race, there are many branches of cultivation schools... It's just a pity that I haven't been able to specifically differentiate the various energies within the spiritual qi of heaven and earth."

Zu An suddenly understood. In his previous life, scientists discovered the four fundamental forces of the universe: strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force, electromagnetic force, and gravity, using different forces to create different things.

But the universe is so vast; there might not be only those few forces. For example, the spiritual qi of heaven and earth in this world, the Qi of Primordial Chaos, and the soul power just mentioned should be similar existences, except that humans on Earth couldn't perceive them before.

***

Regarding the content about the formation arrays among soldiers in previous chapters, some readers felt that the combat power was unbalanced, suggesting that even if one plus one is greater than one, it shouldn't be greater than ten.

Here's an explanation: If that reader had studied analog circuits in college, they would find that various operational amplifier circuits can amplify input voltage, current, or even power. Amplifying by thousands of times is a basic circuit, let alone 1+1 becoming 10.

The descriptions of formation arrays in this book are actually inspired by modern scientific integrated circuits, which achieve many miraculous effects through various complex, tiny, and precise circuits and components.