Chapter 7: Information Mapping

Lu Yan’s thoughts were not without reason.

It had been over two months since he returned to the Urban Version. Aside from his cultivation, he had also begun studying something equally important: the mapping of information across different versions.

Take his experience in the Xianxia Version for example—being chosen by Shopkeeper Chu and taken to the Talisman Shop. Once he returned to the Urban Version, that three-month experience was translated into what the elderly neighbors described as him joining a major corporation and traveling to Myanmar to make a fortune.

Lu Yan had even taken the time to ask Grandma Xu about this so-called big company. But all she could provide were vague phrases like “I heard…” and “I think it was…”—not a single concrete detail.

It was as if Lu Yan’s time in the Talisman Shop had been transformed into background lore in the Urban Version—known in general by others, but no one could clearly explain what had happened.

This kind of phenomenon seemed to apply only to Lu Yan himself, and he could only attribute it to his unique identity as an Unchanging One.

Given this mapping effect, Lu Yan realized that killing Chu Hao in the Urban Version would inevitably reflect into the Xianxia Version. The demonic sect would surely come looking for him.

That was precisely why he wanted to eliminate the demonic cultivator now—before the next version update.

In the Urban Version, Lu Yan was the only cultivator. No matter how powerful someone might be in another version, they would be stripped of all cultivation here. This was his domain.

“Even if I’m the only cultivator here, I shouldn’t get arrogant just because of my spiritual power. I need to be even more careful.”

“Low-level cultivators have many supernatural techniques beyond mortal comprehension, but modern firearms are no joke.”

“Right now I’m only at the First Layer of Qi Refining. In a head-on clash, a squad of police officers with automatic rifles could probably take me down—let alone the military.”

“A cultivator’s advantage does not lie in direct confrontation.”

“Which means, while tracking down the demonic cultivator, I have to make as little noise as possible—to avoid future version mappings spawning unpredictable complications.”

“But before I begin searching… I should prepare some spells.”

With that, Lu Yan waved his hand and retrieved the Crimson Lotus Karma Scripture once again.

Normally, after reaching the Qi Refining Stage, a cultivator could begin learning low-grade spells.

Spells like Golden Light Technique, Invisibility, Spirit Fire, and Featherlight were commonly sold in Bamboo Grove Market. For just thirty Spirit Stones, one could buy a compendium titled Beginner Spell Compendium and learn all of them.

Lu Yan had the Spirit Stones—but no channels through which to make a purchase. As a result, he had no access to these common spells.

Fortunately, the Crimson Lotus Karma Scripture, being a High-Grade cultivation method, came with its own unique spells—ones that could only be learned after cultivating the scripture.

Just enough to fill in the gap in Lu Yan’s arsenal.

Since the manual only included the Qi Refining portion, he found only two spells recorded in it:

• Grade One High-Rank Spell: Karma Entanglement
• Grade One Supreme-Rank Spell: Crimson Lotus Karma Fire

“Supreme-rank spell?”

Lu Yan’s eyes widened in surprise, and a look of joy quickly surfaced on his face.

Until now, he had been entirely focused on cultivating and maintaining a calm mental state, so he hadn’t had the chance to explore the spell section of the scripture. This was his first time reading about the two spells—and one of them turned out to be Supreme-rank.

“Spells commonly circulated in the markets are usually low or mid-grade. High-grade spells are tightly held by sect disciples—that’s why cultivators from sects often outclass rogue cultivators.”

“As for Supreme-grade spells, only ancient sects with long histories are likely to possess them.”

The biggest strength of Supreme-grade spells was that they weren’t limited by cultivation stage. As the user’s cultivation grew, so too did the spell’s power.

At the Qi Refining Stage, it was a Grade One Supreme spell. By Foundation Establishment, it would become a Grade Two Supreme spell—far stronger than any ordinary technique at the same level.

Staring at the Crimson Lotus Karma Fire spell, Lu Yan began to realize the Crimson Lotus Karma Scripture was likely far more valuable than he had originally assumed.

At first, he thought the scripture was just a bait passed down by the demonic cultivator behind Chu Hao—meant to tempt him into helping forge the Soul Banner.

But now that he saw it included a Supreme-grade spell, that explanation no longer made sense.

Even if the demonic cultivator truly wanted to lure someone into crafting the Soul Banner, he wouldn’t casually give away a cultivation technique of this caliber as bait.

Shaking off the thought, Lu Yan continued reading the two spells.

Karma Entanglement was a curse-type spell. It could target enemies who had committed immense atrocities, drawing out their karmic burden and triggering its backlash.

Depending on the severity of the target’s sins, the curse could cause a range of effects—from spiritual energy disruption, talisman failure, and artifact collapse, to monster attacks, sudden disasters, or even invoking a heavenly tribulation.

This was a highly situational spell, but it had incredible utility against demonic cultivators. Unfortunately, it required late-stage Qi Refining to cast.

As for Crimson Lotus Karma Fire, it was a pure offensive spell.

Drawing on karmic energy as its fuel, the fire could burn through anything.

Even golden bodies of Buddhist monks and Daoist primordial souls couldn’t easily resist it.

There were no cultivation requirements to use it—Lu Yan could begin practicing it immediately, even at Qi Refining Stage One.

But there was a catch.

To cast Crimson Lotus Karma Fire, he needed Karmic Energy.

Be it through mass slaughter or causing chaos on a societal level—any action that brought disaster to others would accumulate karmic energy.

The Crimson Lotus Karma Scripture allowed cultivators to convert that karmic burden into their own power. The greater the burden, the more powerful the fire would become.

At its peak, a single thought could bring forth a hellish inferno of karmic flame.

But right now, the issue was—

“Where the hell do I get karmic energy?”

Lu Yan’s face twisted in frustration.

This cultivation method truly lived up to its demonic origins. The core spell—Crimson Lotus Karma Fire—was designed to encourage the accumulation of karma, urging the practitioner to commit slaughter and cause widespread suffering.

There was no denying it: anyone cultivating the Crimson Lotus Karma Scripture was destined to walk a path of blood.

But for Lu Yan, that was clearly a dead end.

Never mind that over a decade of moral education made it hard for him to casually kill—the Urban Version’s society was far too stable. Start murdering people today, and the army would be kicking down his door tomorrow.

There was a second option, of course—go to the other side of the ocean and support an idiot for president.

Maybe after he got elected, he’d wreak enough havoc to cause mass suffering and generate karmic energy.

…But that would take far too long. There would be several version updates before anything meaningful could happen. And who knew what kind of mess a version change would cause midway through?

Such a long-term gamble was far too risky.

If too much karmic information was mapped into future versions, it could end up backfiring catastrophically.

(End of Chapter)