Absolute Destiny Game.

Chapter 571 Visualization Experiment
Upon hearing Xiao Jie's words, Su Zhiqing, the Mysterious Law Primordial Sovereign, had a sparkle in her eyes. Her usually aloof and refined face instantly lit up with intense interest, as if she had discovered something more interesting than studying ancient talismans.

"Oh?" A slight smile played on her lips. "The person you're talking about, isn't it that girl from yesterday who didn't become one of the three of us, but who received your special treatment and had secret techniques taught to her in private—An Ran?"

Xiao Jie was speechless. This Mysterious Law Primordial Lord usually seemed to be exceptionally wise and awe-inspiring, so why did she become so gossipy when it came to this kind of topic? Her image as an immortal was almost ruined!

"Ahem, this matter... is my private affair. Fellow Daoist Su, it would be best if you didn't concern yourself too much, and certainly not gossip about it." Xiao Jie tried to maintain his composure and politely declined.

Su Zhiqing immediately straightened her face, adopting a righteous and instructive demeanor: "Hey, Fellow Daoist Suifeng, you're mistaken! How can this be called gossip? This is a matter of great importance concerning the stability of your Dao heart and the harmony of your mind! The word 'love' is most likely to breed inner demons and shake your immortal foundation. Quickly tell your sister the reasons and intricacies involved. You must not go astray due to ignorance or improper handling, thus damaging your cultivation. I'm doing this all for your own good!"

Xiao Jie rolled his eyes, thinking to himself: You're clearly just blatantly gossiping! And you're making it sound so high-sounding!

Seeing his expression, Su Zhiqing changed to a painstaking and heartfelt expression and continued, "Besides, from the moment you achieved immortality and ascended to Guyun Prefecture, you have been one of us in the immortal realm. We immortals of Guyun have always been of one heart and mind, like brothers and sisters. Such a major life event as yours... oh no, your immortal life, is something I, as your older sister, naturally have to help you consider and oversee. How could I sit idly by and do nothing?"

These words... made it difficult for Xiao Jie to refuse outright. He then thought that discussing it wouldn't hurt; perhaps he could learn something from this "experienced person"?

“It was indeed her.” Xiao Jie nodded, admitting with a slight embarrassment, “Yesterday she was moved by a moment of passion and kissed me. Unfortunately, I was still in the body of an immortal at the time, and my emotions were indifferent. My reaction was quite cold. Looking back now, I was really too clueless about romance and I'm afraid I offended the beauty.”

"Hmm—" Su Zhiqing drawled, her eyes gleaming with inquiry, "So, the key question is—do you like her?"

Xiao Jie was taken aback by the direct question. After thinking for a moment, he answered uncertainly, "Of course... there are some I like, I guess? To be honest, before I became an immortal, I lived such a long life, busy with making a living and playing games, that I never really had a serious relationship. Since becoming an immortal, I've lost even more of my emotions and desires. Now that I've reshaped my physical body and returned to human form, I feel it's time to experience the taste of love."

"Experience it?!" Su Zhiqing's voice rose instantly, filled with disbelief and reproach. "You rascal, how utterly unromantic! Love between a man and a woman should be based on sincerity and naturalness. True love only comes when feelings run deep. How can you 'experience' it for the sake of 'experience'? If you truly wish to pursue her and forge a lasting bond, you should treat her with sincerity and care, letting things unfold naturally. You must not be frivolous and reckless, seeking only fleeting novelty, lest you hurt the girl's heart and tarnish your own Dao heart!"

Xiao Jie chuckled inwardly: This Fellow Daoist Su's mentality is really quite traditional. No wonder he is an old-fashioned immortal who has lived for countless years.

However, he said, "Fellow Daoist Su's words are not without reason. They are golden words, and Xiao Jie will remember them. But since we are immortals, we are above the rules and regulations of the mortal world. To a certain extent, we can do whatever we want, as long as we do not go against our conscience or harm the natural order. There is no need to be too bound by the moral framework of the world."

After saying that, he didn't wait for Su Zhiqing to offer any more "brilliant insights." He bowed respectfully, turned around, and rode away on a cloud, leaving Miaofa Yuanjun standing there, seemingly still pondering the deeper meaning of his words, "Do whatever you want." Her expression was quite disappointed.

Xiao Jie didn't rush to find An Ran immediately. Although he spoke so confidently, when it came to actually doing it, he was still somewhat apprehensive and unsure. Heaven help him, in both his lives combined, he was practically a complete novice when it came to dating. When he was a mortal, he was busy with his studies and work, focusing solely on making money and getting rich in games.

His initial plan was to start a business, establish a foothold, and then, with a solid financial foundation, finding a girlfriend would be a breeze. Unfortunately, his ideals were far from reality. His business venture was cut short by an economic downturn, causing his game studio's revenue to plummet, ultimately forcing him to disband. Only his best friend, Han Luo, remained by his side…

Now, by some twist of fate, I've become an immortal. Looking back, I'm almost thirty years old, and it's definitely time to seize the moment and seriously pursue a relationship.

Although immortals have near-infinite lifespans and plenty of time ahead, the youthful excitement, longing, and even clumsiness have an expiration date. Falling in love when you're an old monster will likely feel completely different.

He couldn't help but recall the moments when he first met An Ran in the game, remembering that she was wearing a black evening dress and black stockings that day, that somewhat ambiguous night... He felt a long-lost sense of youthful trepidation and anticipation rising in his heart.

He took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and scanned his surroundings. Since he still had some hesitation, he wasn't in a hurry to act impulsively. He had only just mastered the technique of "Contemplating All Things," so this was a good opportunity to test it out and practice it thoroughly.

Once everything is ready and I've calmed down, I'll make plans.

If I were to go back and contemplate those incredibly powerful divine beasts, I couldn't afford to make any mistakes. It's perfect to start in this beginner village by practicing with some of the most ordinary things, progressing gradually from simple to complex.

Xiao Jie's gaze swept around and finally landed on an inconspicuous bluish-gray stone on the ground—that was it.

He bent down and picked it up, holding it in his palm. As the saying goes, a tall building rises from the ground, so let's begin this path of contemplation with this simplest and most basic stone.

Concentrate your mind and perform the "Visualization of All Things" technique on the cold, rough bluestone in your hand.

His gaze became unusually focused as he carefully examined every detail of the stone: its rough, uneven surface texture, its varying shades of grayish-blue, its heavy, substantial weight in his hand, and the hard, slightly cool, and gritty texture that his fingertips felt...

At the same time, various data and information about this stone began to automatically surface and be summarized in his mind: main components (mainly silicon dioxide, containing a small amount of other minerals), density, approximate hardness, formation age...

Xiao Jie closed his eyes and began to construct a virtual form of the rock in his sea of ​​consciousness. This process was somewhat similar to the "character customization" process in an online game. What was amazing was that each object being visualized seemed to be able to undergo a certain degree of "appearance customization" based on the visualizer's understanding and wishes.

Take, for example, the flesh and blood body he is currently using. Of course, this kind of customization is not just wild imagination; it must be based on an understanding of the essence of things.

Xiao Jie didn't bother to "beautify" an ordinary rock; he simply sketched its outline, edges, and texture in his mind based on the actual object in his hand. Soon, a rough but realistic three-dimensional model of the rock stabilized in his mind.

System notification: Using the visualization technique, current visualization target [Blue Stone], visualization progress: 37%.

Only 37%? Xiao Jie was slightly taken aback. He had clearly seen and touched the stone inside and out, so what deeper secrets could a broken stone possibly hold that required "contemplation"?
He thought for a moment and decided to try to understand it more "deeper". He stuck out his tongue and carefully licked the surface of the stone.

An indescribable, raw taste of earth and minerals instantly filled the air, accompanied by an extremely rough, gritty sensation on the tongue, and a slight tug at the tongue.

"Tsk, the taste is really just so-so," Xiao Jie smacked his lips and commented.

He had only thought of it on a whim and wanted to try it out, but he didn't expect the system notification to sound immediately.

The visualization progress has increased to 55%.

Hey? It actually works! It seems that "tasting" is also part of cognition.

With a little effort, he broke off a small piece of debris from the edge of the stone, put it in his mouth, and chewed it carefully with his teeth.

Crunch...crunch...

The mouth is filled with a fine, granular texture, a pure, lifeless mineral taste. It's not exactly enjoyable, but it's an unprecedented and extremely direct experience.

The visualization progress has increased to 69%!

Seeing, smelling, licking, tasting... how can we "contemplate" more deeply?

Xiao Jie examined the blue stone in his hand, his eyes gleaming—listen?

With a slight thought, he summoned a wisp of extremely subtle breeze, controlling the airflow to blow swiftly and steadily across the uneven surface of the bluestone. He listened intently, and the immortal's keen hearing clearly detected the extremely faint yet unique hissing and friction sounds produced by the wind as it swept across the stone, completely different from the sound of the wind blowing through leaves and soil.

The visualization progress has increased to 78%!

Does it mean... we need to go further with "immersion" and "role-playing"?
After much thought, this seemed to be the only possibility. Xiao Jie simply walked to the old locust tree nearby, sat down on the ground, placed the bluestone in his palm, and clasped his hands together. He slowly closed his eyes, adjusted his breathing, and tried to calm his mind.

He began to imagine himself as this silent, ancient stone in his hand. Buried deep underground for millions of years, witnessing geological changes, finally washed out by rain and exposed in the wilderness, enduring sun and rain, wind and rain, standing silently through endless years, unnoticed by anyone, and needing no one's attention. A serene, solitary yet incredibly resilient "stone mentality" slowly emerged.

As he gradually entered this meditative state of complete absorption, his aura seemed to truly merge with the stone in his palm, becoming calm and ancient, as if he too had transformed into a stubborn rock under the tree, forgotten by the noisy world.

Ultimately, it was the system's voice that woke him from this strange state.

System notification: Visualization successful! You have fully grasped the form and essence of the [Blue Stone]. Your [Illustrated Catalogue of All Things] has been updated.

Xiao Jie slowly recovered from that peculiar meditative state, opened his eyes, and looked at the blue stone in his hand. For some reason, looking at this ordinary stone now, he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity and warmth.

"The stubborn rock transforms—it changes!"

With a thought, a soft "poof" sound rang out, and a cloud of white smoke suddenly burst open and quickly dissipated. Xiao Jie's figure had vanished from the spot, replaced by an ordinary-looking, unremarkable bluish-gray rock, identical to another blue stone next to it.

Xiao Jie silently checked his current status panel.

【Transformation of a Stubborn Rock】: It transforms into an ordinary, ubiquitous rock.

Skill 1: [Seclusion] (Passive). When you are in rock form, you will automatically emit an aura of "being ignored," greatly reducing the attention of intelligent beings around you, making them subconsciously unaware of your presence.

Skill 2: [Rock Solid] (Passive). Gain 60 points of natural armor, 30 points of all-elemental magic resistance, and immunity to critical hits.

Xiao Jie found it amusing. He hadn't expected that an ordinary stone, after transforming, could possess two rather useful passive skills. Although their individual uses might seem insignificant, the strength of the Myriad Transformations Immortal's transformation skills lay in the fact that the buffs from these transformations could be stacked on top of the user's base stats!

So it's not entirely useless; even the most ordinary stone has this use. It seems that this transformation technique is indeed very promising!

However, this visualization process, especially the step of fully immersing oneself in and comprehending the essence of the object, is somewhat mentally and physically demanding.

Next, Xiao Jie decided to take on a slightly more complex task—trees.

Trees are undoubtedly much more complex in structure than rocks. Rocks are inanimate objects with a relatively simple and stable structure; trees, on the other hand, are living organisms with life activities such as growth, metabolism, and sensory processing.

He walked up to a vigorous ancient pine tree and copied its shape.

He first carefully observed the overall shape of the pine tree: the upright trunk, the rough and cracked dark brown bark, the branches that twisted and stretched like a dragon, and the clusters of dark green and hard pine needles.

He reached out and touched the texture of the bark, feeling its resilience and vicissitudes; he plucked a pine needle, rubbed it between his fingertips, and smelled its unique pine scent; he even put his ear close to the trunk, listening to the extremely faint sound of life as the sap flowed slowly inside.

Then, he closed his eyes again, constructed a model of a pine tree in his mind, and tried to integrate his consciousness into it, imagining himself rooted in the earth, absorbing nutrients, welcoming the sunshine and rain, experiencing the cycle of the four seasons, and feeling that slow, peaceful yet full of vitality.

This process took a lot of effort, but fortunately, with the experience of visualizing the bluestone, it was completed smoothly.

System notification: Visualization successful! You have fully grasped the form and essence of the [Ancient Pine]. Your [Illustrated Catalogue of All Things] has been updated.

"The pine tree transforms—it changes!"

With a soft "poof," the white smoke dissipated, and Xiao Jie transformed into an ancient pine tree with strong and vigorous branches.

This pine tree transformation also granted it two skills.

Skill 1: [Evergreen Tree] (Passive). In this form, your lifespan consumption rate is reduced by 90%.

Skill 2: [Photosynthesis] (Passive). You can absorb water through your roots and perform photosynthesis through your branches and leaves, automatically gaining 5 experience points per minute and slowly restoring lost health and mana.

Um... these are two more supportive and cumulative skills. It seems that all plant-type transformations are like this.

Xiao Jie transformed back into human form.

Next, he decided to try something more complicated—animals.

Let's choose rabbits, which are found everywhere in the wild, as our target. Rabbits are typical small animals/passive creatures, and killing them usually only yields 1 to 2 experience points. They are one of the most common creatures in the starting village.

The visualization process involving the rabbit is clearly a step up in difficulty. Trees, though living things, are essentially still; rabbits, on the other hand, are lively animals with complex behavioral patterns.

Although humans are biologically classified as animals, Xiao Jie, being human himself, possesses a natural and unparalleled affinity and understanding for visualization, making it seem simple. However, for a creature as different as a rabbit, careful observation and understanding from the very beginning are necessary.

Xiao Jie has gradually figured out the key to "observing all things," which is to put himself in their shoes. He not only observes all their static characteristics (appearance, fur color, structure), but also observes their dynamic characteristics (movement patterns, behavioral habits, interaction with the environment), and even... he needs to try to simulate and experience their "lifestyle."

He quickly spotted a wild rabbit grazing in the grass. He concealed his presence, quietly approached, and observed it carefully.

He meticulously recorded the way the rabbit exerted force with each jump, its cushioning posture upon landing, the direction and frequency of its ear rotations, its constantly twitching nose as it sniffed, and the subtle movements of its three-lobed lips as it quickly nibbled at the grass.

He even carefully collected the grass leaves the rabbit had nibbled on, put them in his mouth and chewed them, savoring the light taste of the grass juice—much better than the taste of stones. Finally, he once again entered that "immersion" state, imagining himself as that rabbit, possessing keen hearing and smell, alert to every rustle of grass, always ready to leap away, experiencing the tension and agility of a small creature surviving in a world full of dangers.

What puzzled Xiao Jie most was that even with such dedication, his visualization progress was only 83% after completing the entire process.

What's missing? Xiao Jie racked his brains, but couldn't figure out what was missing.

Forget it, even 83% can change. Let me try it out first. Maybe I'll find the problem after trying it out.

Rabbit transforms—Transform!

Poof! A puff of white smoke dissipated, and Xiao Jie indeed transformed into a fluffy, gray-furred wild rabbit with erect ears and ruby-like eyes.

Xiao Jie's previous transformations were mostly into ferocious beasts like tigers, leopards, and bears, but transforming into a rabbit was a first for him. He curiously looked down at his furry paws, then tried hopping around a couple of times. He felt incredibly light, and his perspective seemed to drop, making everything around him appear magnified. It was quite a novel experience.

(End of this chapter)