Kapitel 29: Chapter 29

Da Zihan sat in his room all day and into the night, breathing in the tiniest essence around him. By now, he had ignited a few grains in his string. His eyes suddenly snapped open as he had an idea. Da Zihan came out of his room and strode towards Meiling's, knocking hopefully that she was in.

"Who?" Her voice came from within.

"Who else can it be?" Da Zihan replied.

He heard a soft derision from inside. Shortly after, Meiling came out.

"What do you want?" she asked, trying to drape a gown over her body, her figure halfway through the door.

For a moment, Da Zihan saw her supple skin and was slightly mesmerized, but he soon got over it and said, "I want you to take me out."

Meiling's eyes flickered in anger. Da Zihan noticed this and realized she had gotten the wrong impression. He quickly corrected himself, "I want to see the palace bridge," he said, slightly scratching his head. "If you wouldn't mind taking me."

"This night..?" She was incredulous.

"Is it inconvenient?"

"Tch! You are unbelievable," she grunted. By this time, she had fully worn her gown properly. She came out fully, closed the door behind her without another word, and started moving towards a certain direction.

Da Zihan smiled and shook his head slightly. Despite her disdain for him, she always honored his requests. He followed her into the shadows of the night, partly illuminated, until they reached an area where the light was dense. It was the bridge—his first time seeing it since coming into the palace.

Fascinated, he scoffed, shocked beyond words. He stopped with Meiling a distance from the bridge, just staring into the horizon where it spanned over a lake.

Meiling broke the quietness. "I have brought you here, you have seen the bridge, and now I will bring you back."

Da Zihan smiled at her. "No need to bring me back, I want to admire this more. You can leave without me," he said.

Meiling grunted in dissatisfaction. "We came together, we will obviously leave together. Hurry up and admire what you want to admire." She saw a fine shed a short distance away and made her way there, sitting alone like a silent widow of the night.

Da Zihan sighed with a sluggish shrug and made his way towards the bridge. As he moved closer, he felt a strong essence emanating from it. He was right—this bridge was a source of essence, likely a treasure that had fallen from the immortal realm and formed a bridge over the lake. He continued to press forward, each step becoming more difficult as the essence began to gush into him wildly.

A mortal might have walked over the bridge without feeling an ounce of it, but Da Zihan, feeling the essence, saw the grains in his string light up as he absorbed it at a rapid pace. He reached the boundary of the bridge with some difficulty and took a step onto it. As he did, the strangest thing happened—the bridge, which had stood for ages, vanished, and darkness descended upon the whole palace. It was unprecedented.

Meiling stood abruptly, not knowing what had happened. From where she was, her eyes pried into the shadows of the descending darkness and saw Da Zihan's silhouette slumped on the ground. She sprinted from her spot, reached Da Zihan, and hurriedly brought him away.

She did so quickly, ensuring no one had noticed them. Although the disappearance of the mysterious bridge couldn't be linked to them—with no witnesses—Meiling's mind was not at ease. She looked at the little boy in her arms and silently thought to herself, "Could he be the source of this trouble?" Nevertheless, she just had to get away swiftly, blending into the night that had fully fallen.

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"Aaaaargh…!" Da Zihan continued to scream inside Meiling's room as she sat beside him, worry etched on her face. She had not felt worry for anyone in a long time, especially not for someone she held in such disdain. She clenched her teeth and gripped the sleeve of her gown, watching the small silhouette on her bed writhing in pain. Sweat painted his body. She silently blamed herself for ever agreeing to bring him to the bridge. If she had just ignored his request... But it was too late; he was unconscious now.

Meanwhile, Da Zihan found himself forcefully pulled into his spiritual bead, exhausted from the pain. Inside, he moved around, recalling his time at the palace bridge. He hadn't willed his spirit to enter his spiritual bead, yet here he was. What had happened? He wondered, continuing his journey towards his universe's foundation—the Tree of Life.

Suddenly, before he reached the Tree of Life, a strange manifestation appeared in the sky of his universe. A bright, clear rainbow appeared, casting a unique glow over his entire universe.

This... Da Zihan thought, examining the rainbow. He felt a connection to it, as though it was something he had encountered before. But how could he have any connection to this rainbow? He hadn't created it—it just appeared out of nowhere.

His thoughts were interrupted as a torrent of essence started to rain from the sky, falling over every creation in his universe. He was simultaneously confused and elated, feeling each of his creations evolving.

But what left him most speechless was the scene at the center of the Tree of Life, where two wombs lay. The cub embryo was starting to form into a perfect cub. This scene was unprecedented, captivating him with its beauty. As the perfect cub formed, the womb burst, releasing a small flood that safely deposited the lion cub onto a flower of the Tree of Life. The flower then came to life, assuming its duty as it sprouted forth from its stem, extending gently towards the ground where the lion cub lay.

"Prrh…" The gentle growl of the cub was heard, filling Da Zihan with overjoyed elation. He sprang towards the cub and held it in his hands. The cub's shut eyes opened, seeing light for the first time, and yawned.

In that moment, all the pain, confusion, and fear dissipated, replaced by a sense of completeness and joy. Da Zihan could feel the profound bond between him and the cub, a symbol of the new life and potential that was unfolding within his universe.

"Hello, first creation," Da Zihan called out excitedly. As soon as he said that, another manifestation occurred, originating from the small arc on the tree where his first string was located. He suddenly sensed it: the first string, with all its grains fully lit. So fast, he thought, realizing that he was on the verge of breaking through to the second level of creation. He now fully understood the principle—enough essence had fueled the birth of his first living creature and the completion of the grains inside the first string, allowing him to witness the formation of the second string.

As he watched, a resplendent light glowed from the arc on the Tree of Life. A perfect string condensed from the first, attaching itself swiftly.

"Yep!" Da Zihan shouted excitedly, the small cub in his hands mimicking his excitement with a soft growl.

The second string fully formed, and the continuous essence from the rainbow began to be absorbed into it. Eventually, everything settled down. Da Zihan's happiness was evident on his face as his eyes darted around in absolute satisfaction, brushing the soft fur of the little cub in his hand.

Deciding it was time to leave his universe, he first built a housing for the little cub. He swiftly arranged and nailed wood together until the housing was done. Laying the cub inside, he smiled, satisfied to see the cub content in its new home.

Then, he willed his spirit back to his body, slowly opening his eyes. It was morning, and the brightness of the day reflected through the open window. He looked around, realizing this was not his room. Perplexed, he noticed someone by the side of the bed. It was Meiling, and this was her room. Da Zihan was amazed. Clearly, she had taken care of him throughout the night and had fallen asleep beside him in the process. He saw the cloth that had dropped from her hand to the ground and the bowl of water beside her. He felt a sense of gratitude towards her.

He sat up, feeling the immense increase in essence within his body. He closed his eyes and meditated, directing the essence through every part of his body.

Just then, Meiling woke up and saw Da Zihan in a state of meditation. She sneered, her expression of relief flipping to anger.

"Stop playing around!" Assuming he was only acting, she jolted him with a sharp pinch.

"Ouch!" Da Zihan snapped out of his meditation.

"What happened yesterday?" she demanded.

"Happened?" Da Zihan asked, confused.

"Don't play dumb. You approached the bridge yesterday, and afterward, it disappeared."

"Disappeared?" Da Zihan was even more confused.

"Don't tell me you're not aware of this," Meiling pressed.

"I don't know what you're talking about. How can the bridge disappear…?" He trailed off, suddenly recalling the rainbow in his spiritual bead. Could that be related to the bridge?

Meiling noticed his expression. "You know something. You did something yesterday."

Da Zihan awkwardly looked away. "What are you talking about? I really don't know anything."

"Do not reveal we went to the bridge, or we will be held accountable," Meiling warned.

"Of course, I wouldn't go telling anyone. Don't forget, I'm the emperor."

"Tch! Whatever!" she huffed.

Da Zihan nodded, though inside he couldn't shake off the feeling that he had indeed altered something significant. His next steps would have to be cautious.