Both the Star Glory Federation and the Imperium of True Human Beings had analyzed the differences between the 'medieval Cultivators' and the 'modern Cultivators' and the causes after getting a general picture of the age of the ancient Cultivators from the boundless ancient classics.
Li Yao's own experience was even more unusual. With Ou Yezi's memories, he had a deeper understanding of the congenital flaws of the ancient Cultivators' civilizations.
The difference between the ancient Cultivators and the modern Cultivators was essentially the difference between a self-sustaining feudal society and a modern, or even postmodern, information society with a sweeping industrial system.
The former was just the simple accumulation of personal experience. They knew what and how, but they did not know why. They knew that a certain spell could trigger a certain technique with a certain effect, but nothing more.