Chapter 285: Life Interpretation
At this moment, Teacher Ji quietly stood to the side, having remained silent since the Academy Head had spoken to her a moment ago.
Although she appeared calm externally, inside she was roiling with waves of shock. Was this something an Academy Head should discuss with a student?
The Academy Head was not the other person’s mother, and she could see the concern the Academy Head had for the other individual. This could only mean one thing: Yang Yuelan played a very important role in the layout of the Great Spellbook.
She never regretted deceiving Yang Yuelan into enrolling in the Witch Academy. Even though the initial appearance of Yang Yuelan at the higher levels of the Academy represented another significant meaning, the Academy Head’s seemingly unintentional action at this moment might add greater value. That is, it would allow those Extraordinary Witches who relied on true five senses to realize that even spirit vision at the Floating World level is still part of the Floating World.
At this moment, the Academy Head also seemed somewhat surprised by my question.
“Life… actually, I wanted to talk to you about this too. Since you’ve brought it up first, let’s discuss it now.”
“First, to answer your question about why dream creatures aren’t considered life: Life is defined by the entity holding absolute authority in the Void. Simply put, the Void does not acknowledge dream creatures as life, and therefore, in the Void, dream creatures are without meaning.”
“Can you imagine such a scenario? If dream creatures were considered life and the Void acknowledged this, it would mean that dream creatures possess an original spell sequence. Then, if you were to use this original spell to battle someone, your opponent might ask, ‘Where is your summon?’ Or say, ‘What have you transformed into?'”
“You would be forced to say that you summoned a dream creature, and in your dreams, this would be a joke. At least as it stands now, it’s a joke.”
Dream and reality are two existences that have an absolute boundary. Do you understand this?”
“Um… I think I understand…” I hesitated for a moment, nodding as I spoke.
“That’s good enough; you don’t need to fully comprehend it. Since you’ve chosen to walk this path, you must not establish an absolute cognitive concept for yourself. You have reason to doubt anything. According to my information, what I just told you may soon be rewritten—maybe in the next moment, maybe next year, or even a thousand or ten thousand years later. In any case, do not underestimate the development speed of the Extraordinary.”
“Mm.” I nodded, indicating that I understood. The world of the Extraordinary is also a developing world, much like the world of technology. Essentially, it involves the development and utilization of energy.
In terms of technology, there is ongoing exploration into the development of energy, and the use of energy represents technology—things like warships, technological creations, etc.
The Extraordinary is similar; the use of energy is artistry, alchemy, true editing, and so forth are the forms I currently encounter.
What the Academy Head was telling me now was akin to mathematical formulas and theorems. These formulas and theorems can also be overturned at any time.
“Now, let me talk to you about life. In your understanding, what is life? I don’t require you to answer correctly all at once; I just want to know your initial definition of life. At its essence, what is the expression of life?”
“Life… is… soul?” I hesitated as I spoke. In my previous life, I would have said that life is a combination of organic life forms and their metabolic activities. But now that I’ve transmigrated, I believe in the existence of the soul.
So, is the ultimate expression of life the soul, along with the physical body?
“Alright… at least that’s how it seems for now. However, the original Void did not think so. The interpretation of life has also evolved constantly, with each new definition of life accompanied by d*ath and rebirth.”
“I’ll briefly explain the development history of the Void’s definition of life. This is something your teacher should have told you.” As the Academy Head spoke, she looked over at the side, where Teacher Ji was listening intently.
Teacher Ji felt the Academy Head’s gaze but maintained her composure, internally complaining that she had already informed Xiao Han of too many things ahead of time. Furthermore, the content regarding the history of life’s development was not something the teacher should be discussing. Even if other teachers’ students graduated, many would still be unaware of this information.
Even Extraordinary Witches uninterested in history could not recount this phased history; they had no such concept.
Only the long-lived Extraordinary Witches, when bored, might whimsically look into history.
“The initial definition of life in the Void was life energy, a fundamental source energy constituting oneself. This was the first concept of life that negated the idea of life being merely organic metabolic activities. The existence of energy life further validated this viewpoint and denied that life actions were merely metabolic activities.”
“This was the first interpretation of life. However, the promotion of this viewpoint soon faced challenges. Numerous cases proved that this might be incorrect, and attempts were made to overturn it. Life energy alone was insufficient to define life.”
“The fatal blow to this argument came from the actions of a madman, who unleashed a vast cleansing of the Void called ‘Mechanical Calamity.’ Just from the name, you should have gathered it was about robots—not just robots. This madman used life energy as fuel, granting inorganic materials, metals, and stones the life they defined, invading the territories of the Void.”
“However, this behavior was deemed a desecration of life. No one wanted to liken themselves to such artificial constructs made of metals and stones. Ironically, this desecratory action against the old definitions of life had a positive stimulating effect on the entire Void and became a ritual, a new form of life interpretation that overthrew the old one, called the ‘Ritual of Life Desecration.’”
“Drawing lessons from the first desecration of life, a second interpretation emerged: memory.”
“The essence of life is memory. If memory does not perish, life does not d*e. This was the slogan shouted when this new interpretation arose.”
“However, upon closer examination, you will find this interpretation is actually a further development of the life energy explanation. The idea that memory constitutes life also encompasses life energy as part of it, leading to a definition of memory that sought to permanently exclude the programs, databases, and information of mechanical life from memory.”
“The first and second interpretations of life can be seen as a refinement of the definition of life. The continuity of memory means that life energy is irrelevant; if it exists, it can be considered life.”
“At this point, you should see the significance of these interpretations of life, especially regarding what is most important. That’s right, it’s the Resurrection Spell. Interpretations of life directly guided the development and prosperity of the Resurrection Spell. No one wishes to fear d*ath, and this is the same for the Child of Fortune, apart from those who have lived enough.”
“Back to the point, the third interpretation of life overthrew the previous two definitions. If the second proved that life energy is not an absolute necessity for life, then the third equally proved that memory is not an absolute necessity for life.”
“Before the third interpretation, there was also a significant life desecration ritual. You could say that the madmen in the Void are always enemies of the arrogant. The Bugs Calamity perfectly matched their definition of life.”
“The birth of those bugs was ugly and ignorant, yet they indeed represented life energy, possessing their own memories, even if those memories might differ from their one-sided perceptions.”
“At that time, some tried to deny the life-creating actions of others based on memory definitions, but they were quickly proven wrong. This is why I refer to them as arrogant; madmen and geniuses are only a thread apart. Their struggles only further undermined their interpretations of life.”
“They splintered into many factions, with some firmly believing in the correctness of this interpretation, while others sought to deny that those bugs were life. That period was arguably the darkest hour of the Void. Can you imagine relying on a Resurrection Spell that is not truly a Resurrection Spell? Would you dare to use it? It was also the time when the population of life in the entire Void diminished the fastest.”
“The abandonment of the Resurrection Spell and the overwhelming army of bugs were even more terrifying than the Mechanical Calamity. They devoured anything that could be called a resource, leaving behind a tasteless and regrettable wasteland in the Void.”
“I won’t elaborate further on the details; let’s directly start with the third interpretation of life: Soul Material.”
“This theory encompasses various forms of evidence, including but not limited to Earth Veins, World Consciousness, and analyses of how the world operates.”
“In the search for a true interpretation of life, this theory led to many worlds in the Void becoming analytical sacrifices, but in that dark period, deeper aspects of the essence of life were frequently discovered: Soul Material.”
“The concept of the soul is a new interpretation of life. Material represents both the form and essence of life. Soul Material as an interpretation of life has become the most widely accepted explanation over the longest period, even allowing the Void to gradually forget the exploration of life interpretations and the desecration ritual’s actions. These concepts have long since become history.”
“During this period, there was also something rather amusing: the bugs’ life underwent another leap, granting the essence of Soul Material. This was the obsession of madmen; the bug race was forced to acknowledge they were life. You could say the second interpretation of life was a mark of the group’s arrogant self-destruction, while the existence of the bugs created immense external pressure for the third interpretation of life, resulting in the birth of the Soul Material theory.”
“Soul Material…” I mulled over this term, which seems to be a widely recognized form of life in my current world. “So, the fourth interpretation of life is the soul, right?”
“Exactly, the fourth interpretation of life is the soul. You could say this time, it has a great connection to our Witch Race, or that it’s primarily promoted by the Witch Race, while the individual expounding this viewpoint has had their name erased. That person has already ascended to become a pillar of the Witch Race: the Truth Witch, codename: Soul.”
“Unofficial records once stated that this individual was named… Ling… but that doesn’t really matter. The significance of the Truth Witch’s codename is more important than their name. However, it is unfortunate that this Truth Witch is rumored to be a reclusive witch, casually selecting a Witch Academy on the boundary of the Void to conduct her eternal soul topic experiment, the interpretation of life as soul is now solely reliant on the efforts of the Primordial Witch, and the first beneficiaries are all Extraordinary Witches.”
“Soul? Topic?” Upon hearing these keywords, I immediately thought of what Sister Bai had said to me. Wasn’t Sister Bai’s topic about the soul?
“Yes, the concept of the soul has become a hot topic among various subjects and is gradually becoming a threshold for ascending to become an Extraordinary Witch.” Upon saying this, the Academy Head gave me a look that seemed to hold deeper meaning, then returned to her usual demeanor.
“Thus, we are currently in a period of transformation in the Void. Normally, the Resurrection Spell can be used properly. Even the Primordial Witch thinks this fourth interpretation of life is comparable to the second in history; it is an improvement upon the last one. However, Xiao Han, I hope you refrain from using the Resurrection Spell. Can you do that?”
“Mm! I’ll do my best.” I nodded, already planning in my mind. After all, I had also promised Sister Bai about this matter. I wouldn’t joke with my own life, and the Academy Head mentioning it made it even more suspicious.
After all, who knows if I am truly a soul, and the Resurrection Spell used by the Witch Academy is still the soul material version?
“Thus, the definition of life is nearly concluded. The life recognized by our Witch Race is the soul. If you want those Fool Dreams to become real life, researching the soul topic is essential. As for intelligence, inspiration, cognition, and memory, these have all been gradually perfected throughout the long development of life interpretation.”
“This means you must not only achieve Extraordinary Witch status, with life essence as the soul, but also make those Fool Dreams become life and acquire a soul.”
“Do note that Fool Dreams must emerge as souls. Creating life is no longer a difficult task for me, but creating a completely new form of life is the challenge. Otherwise, if you create a life that already exists, even one that is extinct, you cannot derive the original spell sequence from these lives. This involves the operations of the Void and deeper levels.”
“Mm…” I nodded, exhibiting the appearance of a serious and studious student. However, I still had some doubts. “Um… Academy Head, weren’t Fool Dreams also dream creatures? Can it truly become a new life recognized by the Void? Didn’t you say dream and reality are completely isolated existences?”
“Good question. Asking this question shows that you are thinking.” The Academy Head nodded in satisfaction at my inquiry before quickly providing an answer.
“Well, that brings us back to what I said earlier: nothing is absolute. Are dream and reality really completely isolated? This leads to the answer provided by the Truth Witch, codename Soul: not necessarily!”
“The contributions of the Truth Witch to the Witch Race and the Void are greater not from her interpretations of life, but from her exploration of the soul. She found the authority of dreams within the dream world and, relying on that authority, blurred the boundaries between dream and reality. You’ve used dream equipment, right? It can be so conveniently utilized and promoted, which owes a lot to that Truth Witch.”
“What is a dream? It’s an absurd and chaotic illusory world, comparable to the entire endless Void. Broadly speaking, people classify the dream world as part of the Void, but most of the time, the term ‘Void’ refers specifically to the real Void.”
“In the Void, opportunities to create new life do not fall to you. Only by taking an alternative path, riding on the road opened by that Truth Witch, which blurred the boundaries between reality and dreams, can dream creatures have the possibility of becoming true life.”
“This…” Upon hearing this explanation, I finally understood just how hellish the difficulty of this trial task set by the Academy Head really was!
It seemed like a new path, but in reality, it relies entirely on my own exploration, with no clear direction ahead!
This is simply a massive pit!
“What’s the matter? Regretting it?”
“N-no…” I could only grit my teeth and respond, as the Academy Head had not set a deadline for me. I could take my time~
Isn’t the lifespan of witches rather long?
Slowly, let’s assume—even if I truly succeed, with this experience, I can accumulate more knowledge and experience regarding dream creatures to create new life and obtain more original spell sequences. In any case, I’m not losing, am I?
After discussing life, the Academy Head recounted some subsequent trivial matters.
At this moment, I also understood that Fool Dreams don’t seem so easily separable from the category of dream creatures; it requires systematic planning.
Originally, I thought that after this trip, I would get to embrace a cute catgirl Fool Dream, but now I realize that’s still far off…
“That about sums it up. If there are any arrangements later, I will contact you directly. You can head back now; I’ve taken up quite a bit of your time.”
“Mm, goodbye, Academy Head.”
Mei Linde watched as Teacher Ji led me away until our figures disappeared.
She could see that Xiao Han’s essence was different from others in this world; that was a soul.
While this was surprising, the emergence of anomalies was also quite common. However, a soul combined with Innate Spirit Vision became the first existence in the Main World that did not go insane.
The other party also proved that high-level spirit vision held terrifying value. Thus, Mei Linde could not just watch as the other was consumed and wasted in the script; that would indeed be too wasteful.
At first, the Witch Academy did not place much emphasis on such existences, but Yang Yuelan’s appearance proved a possibility: the soul and the blessings of the Main World seem to have new potential when spirit vision overlaps; a soul seemingly can endure the shock of such blessings from spirit vision.
This could further enhance the value of the Main World’s script.
The Extraordinary Witches of the Witch Academy would have a longer-term perspective. The Child of Fortune who completed the script would ascend to become the Child of Destiny, becoming the beloved of the Main World’s World Consciousness.
By leveraging the hands of the Child of Destiny, rewriting the essence of life in the Main World as the soul, those Innate Spirit Vision Users in this world would no longer be viewed as afflicted but be truly recognized as geniuses!
Just thinking about Yang Yuelan at this moment, Mei Linde felt that if such a thing were accomplished, the value of this Main World would be immense!
Now the Academy faced a choice: for Yang Yuelan or for the script?
Even if Yang Yuelan demonstrated enormous value, it was still adding stakes to the script.
A genius and a continuously flowing stream of geniuses were distinctions they could still differentiate.
Since the Academy was already prepared to fully protect the script, showcasing Yang Yuelan’s strong interference capability with the script, removing her from the script would be the current max profit choice.
Investing in and protecting Yang Yuelan stemmed from Mei Linde’s personal interests because she did not know if other Innate Spirit Vision Users in the future would all be as terrifyingly unreasonable as Yang Yuelan.
