[NR] Proper Immortality - Chapter 546

Then, without any fanfare, the next wave starts. Though it seems that the puppeteer last wave must have been a fluke. While certainly not an easy fight, the beasts simply charge forward without any sign of outside manipulation.

This actually made Courtney even more annoyed, since it pointed towards the puppeteer being seen as just another monster, instead of some special challenge. And the third wave doesn’t help as those are all normal beasts as well. So, with the day’s waves over, the group gathers around the campfire for an early dinner.

Courtney, “Why?”

Jason shrugs, “Eh, it looks like the Deep Wilds simply scoops up a bunch of monsters. That one was just unlucky.”

Courtney, “But shouldn’t there be some form of progression? Weak to strong?”

Jason shrugs again, “I’m sure that will be the case to some degree. After all, that puppeteer wasn’t really all that strong. If anything, it was weaker than the other beasts, at least physically. The ability to puppeteer other monsters was likely included when being picked. If I had to guess, the difficulty will grow by the day instead of by the wave.”

Rosha, “Are we going to see sapient enemies?”

Jason, “Why would I know? Though if I had to guess, we won’t. After all, the Deep Wilds seem to depend on the target literally just walking through a portal of sorts. Most residents likely know how to avoid it. Though I guess there is an equal chance, there are some looking for this kind of thing.”

Rosha, “You just seem to know everything at the moment.”

Jason holds up his hands, “I’ll never claim to know everything. We’re just dealing with stuff I have some knowledge of.”

Rosha, “So you don’t know everything about cultivation? Because it sure seems like you do.”

Jason can’t help but laugh, “Oh goodness gracious! I, in no way, know all there is to know about cultivation. No one even knows how high you can go, let alone a small-time character like me. I’m lucky to have a rough guide to the most basic form of what I consider proper immortality. Because, at least once you hit that step, you can spend all the time you need to go further.”

Rosha, “Proper immortality?”

Jason shrugs, “Immortality only means you won’t die, not that you can’t be killed. A fully baseline human except they don’t die of old age? Immortal. You can still starve them to death, they just won’t die from getting too old.

“Though I wouldn’t call that proper  immortality. You’re still too vulnerable. From my viewpoint, you need to be self-contained to a certain degree. Stuff like not needing air, water, or food. You also need a certain degree of toughness as well as I don’t really consider you all that immortal if a normal fall is enough to kill you.

“Now, there are a ton of ‘buts’ or ‘sortas’ involved with that. For instance, if someone cuts their hair, I don’t expect them to generate mass from nowhere and grow more of it. They’d need to eat and such to grow. The general line I draw to represent being properly immortal is being able to be stranded in space and survive till you make planet fall.

Rosha rolls her eyes, “Is that all? Being able to survive re-entry after an indeterminate amount of time in space?”

Jason, “Well, there are two other things related to that. First and honestly most important for any form of extended life is the immortal mindset. If you can survive for a million years, but go crazy after only a thousand, you didn’t really survive a million years, even if your body is still kicking at that point.

“The second thing isn’t really needed, but is super important to quality of life, especially if you do end up stuck in space. You’ll want some form of propulsion that doesn’t use up resources you can’t easily recover. It doesn’t even need to be enough to fly under gravity, though that is always nice. Being stuck in space is bad, but if you’re stuck in space and going nowhere fast? That sucks even more.”

Rosha, “And what about Courtney’s worry about mind control?”

Jason, “Unrelated? Well, I guess any proper method of cultivation will involve naturally reinforcing your mind. But that just comes with preparing your mind for what’s needed. If your method of gaining power and lifespan doesn’t account for living that long? Well, something is up or it hasn’t been developed enough.”

Courtney, “Wait, all methods develop mind defenses? What about a method based on the body? You don’t need a strong mind to get physically stronger.”

Jason shakes his head, “Reaching for any kind of personal power requires a certain amount of mental fortitude. Bodybuilders need to stick to a schedule and some follow strict diets to make sure they can gain and keep in the shape they want. And body cultivation? If anything, it requires even more mental fortitude than normal cultivation because it involves a lot of pain.

“Sure, every form of power will have people who seem to have taken a shortcut to it. Sometimes, that is even true. After all, the easiest way to become rich is to be born that way. However, even with those shortcuts, you find that either there are deficiencies that make up for it or there are hidden hardships involved. Though sometimes those hardships are paid by others.

“Which brings us to something that might as well be mentioned as a possible threat out here. Well, not directly, but the concept behind ‘demonic’ cultivators and their techniques should have an analog. After all, if someone isn’t watching for it, people eventually try to cheat their way to power.

“So, in the same way that the System stops mind control and true swarms while in NeoRealm proper, I’m sure it has other things as well. In particular, the classic ‘take it from others’ method of gathering power. Whether it is through ritual sacrifice, direct absorption, or someone who simply tried to get more experience for every kill.”