Chapter 271: Wisdom Enlightenment, Fool... Dream...
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 271: Wisdom Enlightenment, Fool... Dream...
The final moment before dawn is always the darkest, followed by the first glimmer of the sun's afterglow.
Though this was merely a secret realm, it was a complete rainforest with a fully simulated weather system. Sunlight filtered through the trees, illuminating the morning mist and giving the light a tangible form.
During this time, Sister Bai accompanied me as we walked through every corner of Fool's Village. These were sights that even the Witch Academy did not possess.
Because of the nightmare attack that had occurred in the early hours, none of the Fool's Dreams in the village were in the mood for sleep. Of course, the main reason was the momentous event of the Village Chief entering the Ancestral Land to undergo her cycle. Although this was a common occurrence in Fool's Village, they all seemed to treat it with great solemnity.
Furthermore, they firmly believed the Village Chief would return once more, just as she had before. However, according to Yu Hu, this process carried a certain degree of danger.
After performing a final farewell ritual with the Fool's Dreams, we arrived at the Ancestral Land once again.
The Fool's Dreams seemed to care deeply about a "sense of ritual" in many things—be it the banquet to welcome guests or the mourning ceremony to see off a fellow Fool's Dream. When we were trapped in the dream earlier, a group of them had performed a mourning ritual in the Ancestral Land for Yu Xi’s molting, allowing her to return to the Ancestral Land, while the newborn Fool's Dreams had rituals prepared for them as well.
Even Yu Hu’s unique cycle as the Village Chief had its own corresponding farewell ritual.
There was bound to be some kind of revelation hidden within this. By now, I was developing a bit of a stress response to the keyword "ritual," but I had to admit that not every one of these ceremonies contained a revelation.
For instance, this farewell ritual was a spontaneous event formed by the Fool's Dreams for Yu Hu’s personal act. From what I could see, it wouldn't bring any revelations.
"The children are a bit too enthusiastic; please don't mind them." Yu Hu led us to the entrance of the Ancestral Land once more.
As we stepped inside, the blackened weeds stretched out in a continuous carpet.
"These weeds are different from the ones outside. Did they turn like this because of the nightmares?"
"Perhaps."
"When we were in the dream, these weeds weren't here."
"The dream? You knew that the place you were dragged into was a dream?" Yu Hu was the one shocked now.
"Naturally. Are you surprised? Or rather, did you know it was a dream as well?" I looked down at Yu Hu, my gaze searching.
"Actually, at this point, I have nothing left to hide. Just by mentioning the name of our race, I imagine you would have already associated us with the secret realm, wouldn't you?"
"Yes. You are dream creatures?"
"How... how did you know?"
"A guess. But your answer surprises me. Can life actually be born from dreams? I always thought that possibility was just a fairy tale for children."
"I've said something I shouldn't have again... I really can't keep a secret..."
"Why keep it a secret? Since you've cycled for so long, surely you understand the situation of the Fool's Dream clan?" I asked curiously.
If she was unwilling to speak before because she didn't want to trigger the nightmare symbiotic with her by recalling sealed memories, she was now on the verge of her cycle. Why was she still intent on keeping secrets?
"I understand, but this is something we do willingly. It is even the best outcome we could have fought for." At this point, Yu Hu seemed to recall an unpleasant memory, and the aura of a nightmare began to surface on her body again.
"No... this isn't good... another one so soon... Let's just begin. I might not have much time left," Yu Hu said.
"Okay." I nodded in agreement. "So, what do I need to do next?"
"Um... you need to reach out and press your hand against that giant stone in the center. Use that Meditation Art of yours. Then, through an indescribable process, we will meet in another way. When that happens, just follow my instructions."
"That simple?" I raised an eyebrow, finding it hard to believe. But now I had a question...
"Yes, it's very simple... that's how previous guests helped me." Yu Hu nodded.
"But there's a problem. Our original spellbooks have already been modified. The Meditation Art has evolved into the Primary Meditation Art."
"Wait... Primary Meditation Art?"
"You know about that too?" I asked, looking at the surprised Yu Hu. It seemed she knew quite a bit; even now, there were things she wouldn't mention unless I asked.
"That... I've only heard of it once. I've cycled too many times, and my memories have blurred. But because it was so unique, I remember it. That guest also used a special method to turn the Meditation Art into the Primary Meditation Art, but she only completed it after forming a hypothesis with the help of me and this giant stone in the Ancestral Land."
"As I thought..." I nodded. Previously, a Senior Sister had indeed reached this stage. So what happened next?
If they had already reached this point, why hadn't the secret of the Fool's Village Secret Realm been unraveled?
Were they afraid, unable, or simply incapable of doing it?
I would have to experience it for myself to find out.
"So, can the Primary Meditation Art help you complete your cycle?" I asked. After all, I had already modified the Meditation Art; changing it back would be a hassle, so I asked directly.
"It can. In fact, it's more effective than the standard Meditation Art. Usually, guests using the standard version seem to be unconscious, and it takes me a long time to wake them. But that guest who completed the Primary Meditation Art could communicate with me very easily... You are the most unique guest I have ever met."
"Thanks for the compliment. Let's begin then," I said. I turned back to look at Sister Bai. She was standing there with me, but for some reason, I felt as though I was constantly on the verge of overlooking her presence...
"Xiao Han, go ahead. I will be here to witness your success," Bai Yu said to me with a smile.
"Yeah. I was originally wondering if two people could do it together."
"Two people would be very troublesome, but not impossible," Yu Hu added from the side.
"Let's leave it at this, then." I looked back at Sister Bai one last time. This wasn't something to be forced; it was better to play it safe.
"Let's go."
As I stepped forward, Yu Hu followed. Whether it was an illusion or not, as Yu Hu approached the giant stone in the center of the Ancestral Land, her body became increasingly... decayed and withered.
Yes, withered. That was the only word I could think of to describe it. With every step she took, her physical form accelerated its disintegration, eventually becoming similar to what I had seen in the dream.
Then, Yu Hu’s body floated into the air, breaking free from the shackles of her material form. Gradually, her illusory figure began to dissipate.
However, I could still perceive her existence. She had already moved to another place: the dream.
I gently pushed aside the plants that birthed the flower elves and approached the giant stone, pressing my hand against it.
Instantly, a strange sensation collided with my thoughts, causing me to instinctively close my eyes and clear my mind.
Then, I felt as if my Primary Meditation Art was poised and ready to burst forth.
Following my instincts, I released the Primary Meditation Art and entered a meditative state.
In the next moment, I felt my consciousness being pulled by an invisible force, arriving in a wondrous "space."
Slightly dazed, I tried to get my bearings. This didn't seem to be the dream, but I felt something behind me. I spun around and saw Yu Hu, who had now taken on a formless state.
"Yu Hu, is that you?" I asked tentatively. I could see that the place she occupied seemed to be within the dream, while there was a barrier between us.
My hand could no longer touch her, even though she was right in front of me.
The distance between us was likely the gap between reality and dreams.
"I didn't expect you to realize it faster than I anticipated... Yes, I am Yu Hu. Next, I need you to break the boundary between meditation and the dream..."
"Yu Hu wouldn't talk to me like that." I tilted my head and countered, looking at this mass of blackness. "And even if you want me to break this boundary, I have no idea how."
"You... you useless brat! You $#&..." The entity was slightly provoked by my words and instantly became frenzied. Even its speech became incomprehensible to me.
"Wow, it really isn't Yu Hu..."
As my words further agitated the entity, the real Yu Hu appeared behind it.
"My apologies... it took a bit of time to return to my source. Fortunately, you didn't listen to the nightmare's words..."
"To be honest, even if I had, I really couldn't have done it. So, what am I supposed to do now?"
"Just don't let the nightmare interfere with you. Your current state, according to previous guests, should be your personal consciousness space. Can you still feel your Meditation Art?"
"I can..." I nodded. With a casual summons, my spellbook appeared in my hand. This was truly magical; my current state was brought about by the effect of the Meditation Art, yet I was using the spellbook again within this state. Wasn't this just nesting?
"Excellent... that saves a lot of trouble. Words are somewhat inadequate to describe this state. In the past, if I wanted to reach this step, I would need you to spend a long time experimenting and groping in the dark... The most dangerous time almost caused my cycle to fail... Sorry, I'm getting off track. I'll handle the rest."
"Okay."
I nodded and said nothing more. In truth, I had a question: how exactly did Yu Hu discover this method to maintain her cognition and memory through her cycles?
She couldn't have had the capital to do it through simple trial and error.
But before I could think too much, Yu Hu crossed the distance and dove into the Meditation Art spellbook.
In that instant, the spellbook in my hand became unstable. Just as I was beginning to worry, the spellbook disintegrated.
The process was incredibly rapid.
The outer shell of the spellbook vanished, and the other internal structures faded away, leaving only the most pure and primal runes.
Seeing this, I instinctively swallowed. Even though I wasn't in my physical body, I would have to be a fool not to understand what was happening.
The "using our Meditation Art to complete the cycle" that Yu Hu spoke of relied on this method!
This was even more concise and clear than me deconstructing the spellbook with Spirit Vision. If one were to complete the deconstruction of the Meditation Art here, combined with the revelations obtained and Yu Hu’s cooperation, it might actually be possible to derive the Primary Meditation Art right here!
Then, by obtaining the information left by the Academy Dean within the spellbook, the gap I had skipped would be filled.
However, I still had one unresolved issue: the information mentioned Intermediate Meditation Art and Advanced Meditation Art, and I still didn't know how to obtain them.
Was it just a joke, or a pretext to give us a goal to keep striving for?
If so, that was a massive prank...
And shouldn't I be more concerned about whether modifying the spellbook here would affect reality?
Or rather, was this place reality, and was the object before me the true spellbook?
While my mind raced to process the situation, the nightmare was constantly harassing me. Fortunately, we were separated by the distance between reality and dreams.
Meanwhile, Yu Hu transformed into a rune and merged with the Meditation Art spellbook, creating an even more wondrous effect.
Under this unknown effect, the "Fool's Dream" part of Yu Hu was becoming increasingly pure, while the "Nightmare" part of her was being sliced away like raw material until it reached a level she could endure.
Right now, she was like a primitive butcher, but she wasn't slaughtering a pig—she was carving away a part of herself.
Was this not Yu Hu toying with her own life? Treating herself as a moldable object just to achieve her goal.
Such decisiveness earned my admiration. However, even though the dissipating nightmare was separated from me by the dream and reality, the nightmare itself was a part of a Fool's Dream's cognition and memory. What drifted out from under Yu Hu’s hands as she carved the formless nightmare... were her memories.
And I was now passively receiving those memories.
Perhaps it was because the Meditation Art was inherently linked to me, and since this was my consciousness space, the memories were overlapping.
It was an absurd world. A blurry figure stood before "me."
A voice spoke: "Thank you for shaping these bodies for us, to serve as vessels for us to enjoy reality, and for stripping away... the nightmares..."
"It was a trivial matter, nothing more than a small favor." The figure spoke in a gentle female voice, sounding both comforting and distant.
"But regardless... we will not forget this kindness. I do not want to return to being a dream creature... we were truly terrifying back then..."
"That is precisely why I value you. You found it terrifying, which means you have recognized right from wrong. It also means you have a standard for life. This is the awakening of your own consciousness; I merely gave you a push from behind." The illusory figure looked down at the newly born Fool's Dreams.
"From now on, you shall live here. I will take you to the Main World. Carry my expectations and become true life—life recognized by the Void. Here, I grant your race a name: Fool's Dream... When you become true life, you shall truly inherit this name."
"Then... how exactly can we become true life?" The voice came from Yu Hu’s perspective; it seemed she was the one who had asked the question.
"You may face two problems. Fool... your consciousness is still chaotic and disordered. By stripping away the nightmare, you have lost the most important thing to life. You need Wisdom Enlightenment. Dream... you still need to resolve your nature as dream creatures. The shell of a flower elf is still just a shell, not a part of your life. You need to truly break away from the dream before it is possible to become true life. This is the life I expect you to become—the true Fool's Dream clan."
The images and sounds seemed to come to an abrupt halt. The nightmare appeared to have been "processed."
I looked at Yu Hu. After seeing that memory, I realized I had still underestimated her.
It seemed Yu Hu was slowly groping her way toward becoming a true "life" on her own.
To become life, her first step was to eliminate the "Fool" aspect; she needed a self-cognition and preserved memories.
Her symbiosis with the nightmare was the path she had discovered.
That illusory woman had helped her separate the Fool's Dream and the nightmare into two entities, but that was merely to prevent the Fool's Dream from being made chaotic and malicious by the nightmare. What Yu Hu was doing was searching for their way out from within that chaos.
It could be considered a process of extracting the essence and discarding the dregs of her own being.
This process was undoubtedly dangerous, perhaps even leading to eternal damnation.
One failure and everything would be lost—she would return to her original state, losing her memories and everything else.
But I believed Yu Hu must have a backup plan, such as... recording it in advance, turning the memories into stories.
So... the so-called Wisdom Enlightenment task was to help the Fool's Dreams achieve enlightenment?
Now, another question arose: what was the relationship between the Meditation Art and the Fool's Dreams?
That rune that every Fool's Dream possessed...
A terrifying thought suddenly took root in my heart. Did every one of those runes belonging to the Fool's Dreams become a part of the Meditation Art, just as Yu Hu’s had?
If I gathered the runes of all the Fool's Dreams into the Meditation Art... what would it become?
I almost didn't want to think further. If that were the case, it would require every Fool's Dream to undergo the cycle. Wouldn't that be a roundabout way of killing them all?
I knew I couldn't bring myself to do that...
Had the Senior Sisters who reached this step before also foreseen this result and ultimately given up?
I didn't know, and I wasn't sure. But I had one advantage those Senior Sisters didn't: I could modify the spellbook without relying on the Ancestral Land. I didn't need their "sacrifice" to obtain the runes.
Looking at it this way... it seemed there was still plenty of room to maneuver!