Chapter 483: The Concept of Life Levels
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 483: The Concept of Life Levels
"That’s right! Xiao Han, you didn't even know that? Well... do you want me to tell you? Are you looking to learn about Life Levels... or the pressure they exert?"
"Both," I said without hesitation.
"Eh? So greedy?"
"Aren't they just a concept and its derivative application? If you explain clearly what a Life Level is, you've essentially explained what the so-called Life Level pressure is," I replied. At least for me, if I understand a concept, I’m confident I can derive the corresponding techniques from it.
"True enough~ But Xiao Han, you know knowledge has value. What do you plan to trade for this information?"
"I respect the value of knowledge. But if you plan to use it as a way to squeeze a profit out of me, I’ll just choose my own way to get it for free."
"Aiya~ I’m joking, just joking! How could I let something like this damage our friendship? This is basic knowledge—any student serious about promoting to a Transcendent Witch would have this covered as part of their general education," Lifaeya said, quickly laughing off her previous words as nonsense.
"Then I’ll have to trouble Senior Sister to explain it to me. After all, you did say... if you knew, you’d definitely tell me." I didn't mind her teasing; it was exactly the kind of thing Lifaeya would do.
If I really had to wait until the joint exam ended to ask Sister Bai, it would be a bit of a hassle. My curiosity about the concept of Life Levels would definitely weigh on my mind.
"Right! I did say that," Lifaeya said with a serious face. "So... back to the original question. Xiao Han, how much do you actually know about the concept of Life Levels?"
"I've only heard of it. I know it's the key to promoting to a Transcendent Witch, but other than that, I’m in the dark. Oh, and it seems a Mana Source can subtly promote the elevation of one's Life Level." I searched my memory for anything related to Life Levels and found only those vague descriptions.
"Oh? You actually know quite a bit."
"Wait, that counts as knowing a lot?" I asked, puzzled.
"Yeah. Did you want to research the deeper mysteries of the Life Level concept? That’s not something we should be poking into. We just need to know that a Mana Source can raise our Life Level and allow our life to undergo a metamorphosis. That’s enough, really. Understanding its function is just to give us the opportunity to promote to Transcendent. Oh, I almost forgot—there’s also the potential for the Life Soul Essence to evolve the soul. Xiao Han, do you know the concept of the soul?"
"I do." I nodded. I had apparently already been certified by the Academy Dean as having a Soul Essence, so I didn't need to worry about that at all.
"You actually know? Have you looked into the Great Soul Subject?" Lifaeya asked in surprise.
"Something like that..." I nodded, not denying it, since I had indeed looked into the Great Soul Subject a little.
"That’s fine then. I won't talk about the soul. Let's stick to Life Levels since that’s what you wanted to know. To put it bluntly, Life Level is just a measure of how 'alive' you are."
"?"
Hearing Lifaeya's explanation, I mentally drew a question mark.
"Don't look at me like that... I’m explaining it the way I understand it. Isn't a Life Level just dividing the degree of life into many stages? But life can't really be described with numerical values, so this is just an abstract metaphor. As long as you get the gist of it, it's fine. If you still don't understand, there's not much else I can do..."
"Alright then, continue. But before that, I’m curious—what are the different stages of Life Levels?" I asked, not dwelling too much on the semantics. After all, things at the Transcendent level were inherently complex.
"I asked my mentor that same question. She told me that Life Levels are only divided into two stages: Transcendent and non-Transcendent. It sounded like a load of nonsense. However, there’s a set of informal rankings passed down through the generations by senior sisters in the academy. These rankings roughly divide the non-Transcendent stage. Because the transitions in Life Levels during this process don't have very obvious characteristics, they’re only used for reference."
"Experience summarized over generations? Interesting. Can you tell me about them?" I had no objections to this. In fact, it felt "right"—wasn't the grading of spellbooks in the Witch Academy done the exact same way?
"Of course." Lifaeya, riding her broom over the pitch-black sea with nothing else to do, figured she might as well educate her junior.
"The division of Life Levels is based on the external characteristics of life. For example: activity, energy, physical strength, resistance, adaptability, and death resistance. These are all external manifestations of one's Life Level."
"The first Life Level is called 'Ordinary Person.' You have a general idea of an ordinary person's energy, strength, and resistance, right?"
"Yes, I know those. So, does an increase in Life Level mean these abilities also increase?" I asked.
"Naturally. After crossing the first level of an ordinary person, you reach the Beyonder-level, which is the second level."
"The description of the second level is quite broad. Because individual differences make precise numerical definitions meaningless, the Beyonder-level is described as a significant increase in physical energy, strength, and resistance. Specifically, you’ll have abundant energy—you can stay up for days without an issue. You’ll be very strong and able to lift heavy objects. Basic illnesses will almost vanish from your life. Unless there’s interference from a spell effect, a life at the Beyonder-level almost never gets minor sicknesses."
"Oh..." I nodded. I understood this. I was currently at roughly this level. I could stay up for days, I never got sick, and as for strength... I hadn't paid much attention to that since I was also a Body Cultivation practitioner, so it wasn't a great reference point.
"Then what are the so-called adaptability and death resistance? Especially death resistance."
"Adaptability is simple—it's environmental adaptability. Life needs many things to survive: food, water, trace elements, air, and so on. These are necessities. Adaptability doesn't mean you don't need these external things; it refers to the methods of obtaining them."
"Externally, it manifests as generally not needing to ingest much to maintain bodily functions. At the Beyonder-level, our demand for these things doesn't change much, but we can endure heat and cold better, hold our breath for a long time, and stay active for a while even without food or water."
"And death resistance?" I asked, focusing on the part I cared about most.
"It’s exactly what it sounds like. The increase in Life Level means that a wound that would have been fatal to an ordinary person is only a 'serious injury' to a Beyonder. It mainly refers to the improvement of the body's self-healing capabilities and its ability to function under duress. Simply put, you become harder to kill. Your survival probability increases."
"Oh..." I nodded. People always said witches loved courting disaster, and it seemed there was a reason for it. All Transcendent Witches started at the Transcendent level, so as a whole, they seemed to love reckless behavior and weren't afraid of death.
I was just curious why other Transcendent races didn't have the same reputation for being "death-seekers."
If they already started developing a resistance to death at the Beyonder-level, before even reaching Transcendent, then the Transcendent level must be beyond anything we could comprehend.
"An increase in Life Level is an all-around enhancement. I’m just pointing out a few obvious traits for your reference." Having said this, Lifaeya organized her thoughts and continued her explanation. "The levels after the Beyonder-level are named after the typical characteristics of that stage. For example, after Beyonder is the Aura Level, which is what you called 'pressure.' This Life Level is a long process of accumulation. During this time, you continue to improve in all aspects, including physical fitness and even mental power. You gradually turn this aura into an instinct. With a single thought, you can suppress anyone whose Life Level is lower than yours."
"Eh? That’s the so-called application? You just use it as an instinct?" I asked, somewhat incredulous. It was that simple? That... natural?
It seemed almost too convenient to be true!
"Of course. What else did you expect?" Lifaeya asked crossly. "Don't question stuff like this. It’s like asking why meteorites always land in craters. I don't know how to explain something so self-evident to you."
"Sorry, my understanding just hasn't caught up yet. What comes after the Aura Level?" I quickly gathered my thoughts and continued the topic.
"After the Aura Level is the Undying Level."
"Ah? Wait, why such a big jump?"
"I just told you~ The Aura Level is a long process of accumulation. During that time, no single ability undergoes a clear qualitative change. We can't exactly create a new rank just because your strength got a bit higher or your healing got a bit better, right? That would be too much trouble and ultimately meaningless."
"Fair point. Please continue."
"The Undying Level doesn't mean you're truly immortal; it just means you're close to it. I heard that a senior sister once had a mentor use a Resurrection Spell as a safety net to test the limits of the Undying Level. Because it was too bloody, the academy supposedly stepped in and stopped it. But that senior sister hadn't actually been killed to the point of needing the Resurrection Spell by the time they stopped her."
"That... that’s really taking 'courting disaster' to the extreme..."
"It’s called a lack of reverence for life!" Lifaeya corrected her sternly. "Anyway, I wouldn't dare do that. You just need to know that a Life Level at that stage is roughly that freakish."
"Mm..." I nodded. This reminded me of Ninglan Qiuyu, whom I had encountered in Ninglan New City. After receiving the Abyssal Blessing... he was unkillable. I suppose reaching the Undying Level would be something like that...
But can life really reach that point?
Once you reach that point, can you even still be called "life"?
Thinking of this, I shook my head slightly to dismiss the thought. After all, I had studied the history of Life Interpretation in the Void. I shouldn't limit my definition of life to my past experiences or the fixed mindset of my previous life.
"As for the final stage, that’s the Pseudo-Transcendent Level. This level is quite interesting, and even the academy has adopted the name. At the Pseudo-Transcendent Level, you truly begin to touch upon the Transcendent. It’s hard for me to describe the specifics. You just need to know the stage exists. Oh, by the way, do you know about Real Time?"
"I do."
"You even know that concept? Hmm... those bright lights ahead should be the island where the Witch Academy is located. I won't ramble on too much more. In short, this Life Level is likely related to Real Time. If you want to know more, you can ask your mentor. She definitely knows much more than I do."
Finally, seeing that they were almost at their destination, Lifaeya brought her explanation to a timely end.
In truth, she didn't know much about the Pseudo-Transcendent Level herself. Most teaching assistants were still exploring that stage. If they had figured it out completely, why would they still be teaching assistants?
At that point, they would be ready to dive into their own subjects and apply for promotion to Transcendent.
"Thank you. Even knowing this much is enough for me," I said, offering my thanks.
After all, I only wanted to satisfy my curiosity. Now that it was satisfied, I could discuss the matter with Sister Bai later. The prospect of promoting to a Transcendent Witch was a huge draw for me.
* * *
"Oho~ Look at that. My main body just synced a bunch of information to me. Mm~ How explosive! I think this will be very helpful for you to understand the current situation."
By now, a faint light had begun to appear on the horizon. The darkest part of the night had passed. Tan Han, naturally, had not slept; even now, she didn't feel much fatigue.
She was currently integrating the information she had gathered to plan for the various difficulties they might encounter, preparing to officially launch an attack on the Main Island tomorrow.
She suddenly realized that having a "subconscious me" clone to help her solve problems was actually a very good feeling.
But now, this clone had suddenly become less serious, saying strange things in a playful tone.
This change made her daze for a moment, but she quickly realized—Xiao Han was back!
After a flash of joy, she realized she couldn't show any outward signs of it and simply continued her work in silence.
However, the joy in her heart was impossible to hide. She was also curious to see what Xiao Han would think of her preliminary plan for the joint exam. It wasn't that Tan Han believed she was less capable than Xiao Han, but she clearly recognized that sometimes information was far more valuable than a clever mind. An information advantage could completely overturn the efforts of even the smartest person.
At this moment, Tan Han chose to stand up. She needed to discuss the invasion plan she had formulated with the others.
To an outsider, it looked like Tan Han was discussing the feasibility of the plan with her friends, but she knew she was only using this format to consult with Xiao Han. After all, if you're going to put on a show, you have to do it right.
"Sister Tan Han, is the new plan finished? Which parts were changed?" Seeing Tan Han emerge from the tent, several people who were staying up to keep watch immediately came over.
"Minian, you're not asleep yet?" Tan Han greeted her. "Perfect timing. Help me review the plan."
As Tan Han spoke, the Ley Line Operating System on her person projected a 3D sand table map of the Bobapus Archipelago.
She had already put away the paper maps she used for drafting and emergencies. Taking advantage of the ample time during the night, she had used the Ley Line Operating System she brought to construct a 3D map model and sand table. It was much more intuitive this way.
"Sister Tan Han, you even brought this? This is so convenient!"
"It’s just a tool. Before the sun fully rises, let's go over the plan one more time," Tan Han said.