Capítulo 26: The Sea of Consciousness (Part Two)
Master, you mentioned that I would encounter a calamity of bloodshed upon descending the mountain, but... but that calamity has already passed..."
Feeling the immense pull from the depths of the sea of consciousness, Fang Yi was on the verge of tears. At present, he possessed only the cultivation of refining essence into qi. Previously, he had struggled to probe the middle layers of the sea of consciousness, yet now he found himself abruptly drawn into its deeper realms, or perhaps even its very depths, leaving him with a sense of impending doom.
The force of attraction, however, was beyond Fang Yi's control. In an instant, his spiritual energy was pulled into the depths of the sea of consciousness, leaving him uncertain whether he had entered the deep layer or the bottom layer.
The existence of spiritual energy has remained an enigma throughout history, akin to the nature of human thought; without spiritual energy, one is but a lifeless shell.
As Fang Yi's spiritual energy was drawn into the sea of consciousness, his breath, which had been steady while seated in meditation, suddenly ceased, rendering him motionless like a statue, his chest no longer rising and falling.
"Hmm? What's peculiar about Xiao Fang's state of meditation?" Sun Lianda, who had been closely observing Fang Yi, furrowed his brow. Although he could not discern the changes in Fang Yi, he sensed a notable difference from before.
Unfamiliar with the intricacies of Daoist qi refinement, Sun Lianda assumed this was typical, unaware that Fang Yi was facing a grave crisis, akin to the perilous situations described in martial arts novels, where one could suffer severe injury or even death from losing control during cultivation.
"Great and Boundless Celestial Venerable, I have only been cultivating for a little over a decade; surely, I am not destined for ascension just yet?" As Fang Yi was pulled into the sea of consciousness, his thoughts swirled chaotically. He was certain that even his master, the old Daoist, might struggle to access the depths of the sea of consciousness.
"Is this the bottom layer of the sea of consciousness?"
Fang Yi felt a wave of dizziness as the force of attraction abruptly vanished. He found himself suspended above a space shrouded in white mist, akin to the sensation of his soul leaving his body when struck by a vehicle, gazing down at the boundless expanse of thick white fog below.
For reasons unknown, as he observed the mist below, an intense sense of danger surged within him. He was almost certain that if his spiritual energy were to make contact with the white fog, it would be utterly devoured, leaving no trace behind.
"Three Pure Ancestors, Great and Boundless Celestial Venerable, how am I to return from here?"
At that moment, Fang Yi felt akin to an ant on a hot stove, terrified that a moment's lapse in concentration would result in a fall, leading not merely to a loss of flesh but to the annihilation of his very soul. Even if there were a Pure Land for rebirth, he doubted he would be fortunate enough to partake in it.
"Weren't we told that entering the deep layers of the sea of consciousness would grant immense power? Why... why do I feel nothing at all?" As he gazed into the thick mist below, Fang Yi's mind raced with confusion.
"I must not succumb to panic; my master taught me that the more one is faced with adversity, the more one must remain calm..." He steeled himself, attempting to enter a meditative state.
"Embracing the spirit and holding onto the oneness, can one be separated? Cultivating qi to achieve softness, can one become like an infant?" The verses from the Daoist scriptures, which he had memorized since childhood, flowed naturally from his lips, reciting phrases that cultivated spiritual energy in this moment of uncertainty.
"Eh? What... what is happening?"
As Fang Yi recited the scriptures, he suddenly noticed that the thick mist beneath his spiritual energy began to churn. A nearly imperceptible wisp of white fog seeped into his consciousness.
Seeing this, Fang Yi was taken aback, but his thoughts felt as if they were half-constricted, rendering him unable to move. He could only watch in horror as the delicate strands of white mist infiltrated his consciousness.
"Hmm? There's no danger at all..."
Upon contact with the white fog, Fang Yi, who had been anxious, discovered that his spiritual energy was not consumed. On the contrary, he felt an immense, pure force—devoid of any consciousness—merging with his own.
Simultaneously, a vivid image appeared in Fang Yi's mind: in front of a dilapidated Daoist temple, a swaddled infant was crying loudly. Moments later, a tall figure appeared beside the child and picked him up.
"Master? Is... is that you?" As he beheld this scene, Fang Yi's spiritual energy surged with emotion; he had never anticipated witnessing the moment his master had taken him in.
When the old Daoist removed the talisman from around Fang Yi's neck, he was even more certain that this was a memory of his master adopting him, inexplicably replaying in his mind.
Not only that, but Fang Yi also witnessed the old Daoist preparing a pot of millet porridge after bringing him into the temple, carefully feeding him, only for the infant to embarrassingly urinate all over the old man.
Watching his master, who wore a wry smile as he hurriedly changed the swaddling, Fang Yi felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia and longing. He recalled how his master had raised him from such a tender age, through every trial and tribulation.
The scenes continued to unfold; as time passed, Fang Yi grew. He observed himself as a two- or three-year-old, obedient and attentive to his master's words. However, after meeting the chubby boy and his friends around the age of three or four, he began to exhibit more mischievous behavior.
By five, Fang Yi had dared to capture a venomous snake, removing its fangs, and surreptitiously placing the toothless serpent beneath his master's meditation mat, or dropping a frog into the basin where his master brushed his teeth. Each day was filled with playful antics.
Although none of these pranks succeeded in front of his master, Fang Yi found endless amusement in them until he reached the age of seven or eight, when his master finally allowed him to venture into the forest alone.
Scenes from Fang Yi's life flashed before his inner vision; everything he had personally experienced was vividly recalled, with no detail overlooked. Memories long forgotten resurfaced in his mind.
"What... what is happening here?" As time passed and he witnessed his growth, these memories felt more profound, yet he found himself helplessly reliving them.
"Wait, why are there no memories from before my master took me in?"
A sudden thought struck Fang Yi. Although he had never hoped to find his parents, he felt a pang of regret at the missed opportunity. The memories replaying in his mind began only with his master's embrace at the temple.
"Is it possible that only those moments I witnessed firsthand would be retained in memory?" As the pages of his past continued to turn before him, a flicker of understanding arose within him, yet confusion remained.
"Great and Boundless Celestial Venerable, this... this defies logic..." Observing the images did not hinder Fang Yi's contemplation. If consciousness had a face, he would surely be smiling wryly at this moment.
Fang Yi had perused a popular science book brought up the mountain by the chubby boy, which stated that humans have almost no memories from before the age of three, retaining only a few deeply ingrained fragments that might leave a faint impression in adulthood.
Yet, Fang Yi believed that regardless of how vivid his memories were, he could not have developed consciousness merely days after birth. The scenes before him seemed to rewind time, replaying his life over the past decade.
Even the incident of his soul leaving his body after being struck by the vehicle was depicted in those images. However, just at that moment, Fang Yi felt the wisp of white fog fully merge with his spiritual energy. The images abruptly halted, and darkness enveloped him as his consciousness was thrust out from the depths of the sea of consciousness.
"I... I'm not dead? And... I haven't lost my mind?" In an instant, Fang Yi perceived the existence of his body, igniting a wave of exhilaration within him. Had he been trapped in the depths of the sea of consciousness, it would have been a fate worse than death.
"Is my body unharmed?"
Regaining control over himself, Fang Yi hastily circulated his inner qi throughout his body. This time, he dared not traverse the great circuit through the sea of consciousness; instead, he opted for a smaller circuit, merely to assess his condition.
"Fortunately, the soreness in my body has improved somewhat, but it will likely take another two days for a complete recovery..."
After completing a small circuit, Fang Yi sighed in relief. Yet, deep within, he felt a twinge of disappointment. According to Daoist texts, those who could enter the depths of the sea of consciousness were said to gain significant abilities.
Regardless of how he circulated his inner qi, Fang Yi found no discernible changes in his body. Even the previously obstructed acupoints had not opened significantly, and the infusion of white mist into his spiritual energy had not resulted in any notable enhancement.
In other words, Fang Yi's journey into the depths of the sea of consciousness had yielded little more than a scare, akin to a fruitless expedition. However, if there were any gains, it was that he had experienced a free cinematic replay of his life over the past decade.
What Fang Yi did not realize was that there had indeed been changes. Once his spiritual energy returned to his body, the white mist that had merged with it silently seeped into him, though his current level of cultivation rendered him unable to perceive it.
"Should I take another stroll near the sea of consciousness, perhaps I can be drawn in once more?" A fleeting thought crossed Fang Yi's mind, a moment of foolishness born from forgetting the pain after healing. He refocused his awareness near the sea of consciousness.
"Can't go in?" Having prepared himself for another pull, Fang Yi was disappointed to find that the force of attraction was absent. Relieved, he realized he could now conduct his great circuit normally.
"Fang Yi, Fang Yi, wake up, you rascal..." Just as Fang Yi positioned his inner qi in his dantian and centered his consciousness, he heard the chubby boy's voice calling out to him. His eyelids fluttered before he opened his eyes.
"Hmm? What's happening? Chubby, why are you pulling the doctor?" As Fang Yi blinked awake, he saw the chubby boy gripping the doctor's arm, persistently calling his name.
"You've been sitting for over ten hours, and no matter how much I called, you wouldn't wake. The doctor wants to take you for an examination, but I wouldn't let him touch you..."
Having grown up alongside Fang Yi, the chubby boy understood that during Daoist qi refinement, one must not be disturbed. Thus, despite the doctor's insistence that Fang Yi's breathing was weak and required urgent care, the chubby boy stood firm at the bedside, refusing to let anyone move him.
"Over ten hours have passed?"
Fang Yi was startled by the chubby boy's words. Although he had traversed the memories of his life in his mind, it felt as though only a fleeting moment had passed. He had not anticipated that he had been meditating for over ten hours.
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder