Clarity of mind, a clear head—at this moment, James Carter suddenly understood something: his true transformation happened after being reborn into this body, influenced by that moment he spent inside the computer. Because before that, when he tried to absorb the original James Carter's memories, he found it extremely slow and painful, with splitting headaches. But after that one minute, he instantly absorbed everything, and his mind became clearer than ever before.

Even in the great hall, when he managed to leave the elders speechless and unable to argue with just a few words, it was because he could clearly summarize certain information in his mind.

The Mingyu Dynasty has been established for over a thousand years, but it is not truly an ancient nation, because history is vast beyond measure—recorded history alone stretches back ten thousand years. And before those ten thousand years, it was known as the pre-Yu era. That period of history is scattered and incomplete, as it went through over a thousand years of chaos, with much lost. All that is known is that there was a legendary dynasty in that era, the most powerful of all, and even now, countless ruins are related to that dynasty.

During the 1,700 years since the founding of the Mingyu Dynasty, although its history is not long, the five great families' ancestors were extremely powerful, and at one point the Li family produced a mighty emperor. In the past twenty years, John Carter has expanded the territory threefold, making the Mingyu Dynasty extremely powerful today. Among the dozen or so neighboring countries, only the Snowfield Tribal Alliance and the Tianhai Empire can stand against it directly; the other small nations serve as buffers or third-party stepping stones among these three major powers.

Cultivation—are there really immortals? According to these records, it actually seems that immortals do exist.

The path of cultivation is divided into the Body Refining Realm, which tempers the body and strengthens the physique. There are nine levels, and above the ninth is Great Perfection. Once Great Perfection is achieved, one can generate true qi and enter the True Qi Realm.

The True Qi Realm is the real beginning of cultivation, with a great increase in combat power. After reaching the sixth level of the True Qi Realm, one is considered a skilled expert. If one can reach the ninth level or even Great Perfection, in a small region, they could dominate.

Above the True Qi Realm is the Divine Ability Realm, where true qi and the body are perfectly fused, granting divine abilities—these are the true powerhouses! Because upon entering the Divine Ability Realm, one can cast spells.

Above the Divine Ability Realm are the Yin-Yang Realm and the Taiji Realm. Ordinary books do not describe the Yin-Yang and Taiji Realms in detail, as those are the domains of truly powerful cultivators.

It is only mentioned that once one steps into the Yin-Yang Realm and refines the Yin Soul, their lifespan begins to increase—by a hundred years.

If one can refine the Yang Soul, their lifespan increases by another hundred years. If one can reach the Taiji Realm, their lifespan can reach five hundred years.

Ordinary people in the Mingyu Dynasty generally live to seventy or eighty, but with good care and reaching the Divine Ability Realm, living to a hundred is normal. If a hundred is the base, refining the Yin Soul in the Yin-Yang Realm means living to two hundred; refining the Yang Soul means three hundred; the Taiji Realm is even more terrifying—five hundred years!

James Carter suddenly recalled a saying from his time on Earth: “Once wealthy, one seeks longevity; once emperor, one seeks immortality.” Ordinary people worry about food and drink, but lifespan is never enough—for the sake of living, people will do anything. And here, one can truly extend life through cultivation. Although he has yet to see the so-called legends of immortals living forever, it seems his own father, John Carter, reached the Yin-Yang Realm long ago.

In other words, this is a real method of longevity right at hand—anyone who claims not to be tempted after seeing this is definitely lying.

But precisely because he now understood all this, James Carter felt rather miserable. With such a great environment, and as the head of the family, the original James Carter was only at the fifth level of the Body Refining Realm—what was this guy thinking?

Never mind longevity for now. According to James Carter's understanding, this world clearly values strength above all. No wonder, after inheriting the position of family head, the elders acted so brazenly, and others showed little respect. He was even bullied at school—how pathetic.

Being a wastrel is fun, but you need the strength to back it up. After all, the only reason things are still holding together is because of the lingering prestige of John Carter. James Carter couldn't help but recall what John Carter said before leaving. Glancing at the ring on his hand, he remembered that John Carter had told him he could unlock the ring after reaching the True Qi Realm, and inside were things left for him.

Thinking of all the information John Carter hurriedly passed on when he returned to the family to hand over the position, James Carter, who was buried in a pile of books, also remembered. He took out a flat jade box from his chest. This jade box was very special. It was also something John Carter had left behind, said to have been discovered by chance in some ruins. It was a cultivation technique found in the ruins of that legendary dynasty recorded in history, the one that unified the world and was said to rival immortals. Unfortunately, this technique could only be cultivated by those below the Divine Ability Realm.

“Crack... ka...” As soon as he took out the jade box, James Carter immediately noticed it began to crack, so he hurriedly placed it on the table.