World's No. 1 Swordsman-Chapter 398: We Are All of the Same World. What Sets You Apart?
Chasing after Spiritless through the Small Immortal Realm, Wang Sheng passed towering ancient palaces, each one radiating a faint and majestic pressure.
Every great palace here was an art piece of immeasurable worth. Even the carvings at the very edge of the eaves revealed dozens of different styles that Wang Sheng had already identified.
A thousand unique palaces for a thousand immortals. Celestial mountains stretched for hundreds of li, flourishing in every season.
"Why are the palaces of immortals spaced so far apart?" Wang Sheng muttered to himself.
"Do you really think you'll still be flying this slowly once you ascend?" Yaoyun retorted teasingly and casually, her mood unusually good.
Her answer reminded him of the years that he had been sealed away in the Earth Qi Seal. His banters with Yaoyun allowed him to survive and prevented solitude from driving him insane.
"How much time do I have to spend on the Platform of Immortal Dreams?" he asked.
"It depends on your fate," Yaoyun replied calmly. "No one can predict it. Some immortals dream for a hundred years, while others awaken after just three days. How long you stay in the Dream Realm does not determine how much you can benefit from it. Everything depends on your fate."
Remaining composed, Wang Sheng nodded. "If I pass the trial and enter the Dream Realm, remember to leave my senior sister a message, Yaoyun. She'll get worried if I'm not around when she emerges from seclusion."
"Mm," Yaoyun agreed softly. She then turned to him to study his face.
"What?" Wang Sheng asked.
Yaoyun smiled faintly. "You have many flaws, but I don't dislike your excessive care for Hua Qing. Still, as the reincarnation of a Heavenly Court deity, she has excellent aptitude, comprehension, and insight. She's not a child."
"Senior Sister is still oblivious to a lot of things, but fine." Wang Sheng simply sighed instead of bothering to argue.
He couldn't be blamed either. His senior sister had always been too pure and innocent, while the world and the hearts of men were so complicated.
To shift the subject, Wang Sheng asked a few questions about the Small Immortal Realm. Yaoyun patiently answered them all.
Every palace here had its own extraordinary spirit. As manifestations of the palaces, they couldn't cultivate on their own. The spirit of a palace that an immortal used daily for cultivation might only be responsible for sweeping away dust. Meanwhile, the spirit of the great palace where his senior sister was monitored the condition of the cultivator secluded in it.
Flying from one end of the Small Immortal Realm's inner layer to the other, they finally entered the Platform of Immortal Dreams, a blessed land surrounded by clouds and mist.
The square stone platform slowly rotated amid drifting clouds. Though it was just a simple structure, it had an indescribable and profound charm. It had stairs on each of its four sides, and anyone who wanted to attempt the trial could ascend them. Stepping on them started the test.
"Grand Dao Golden Immortal created the Platform of Immortal Dreams. It's technically a spiritual treasure, but since it's useless in battle, we just left it here." Yaoyun raised her chin slightly. "Go on. Let's see how many attempts it will take you to clear three trials and reach the platform."
"I'll clear them all in three tries at most," Wang Sheng replied calmly.
"Hmph. We'll see."
Though behaving casually, Wang Sheng had already prepared himself for a long struggle. After all, he was a mere Nascent Soul Realm cultivator at the home of immortals. Simply reaching the Platform of Immortal Dreams would already be a victory. No matter how difficult the journey, he was ready to accept it.
Sensing his approach, the stone platform stopped rotating. Strands of immortal light wove themselves into a rainbow-colored bridge that was connected to the first step of the platform.
With empty hands and only his sword scabbard on his back, Wang Sheng stood before it. As his eyes focused, he felt two gentle pressures settle on his shoulders, preventing him from leaping or flying.
He conscientiously stepped forward. Upon reaching the base of the staircase, he set his foot on the first step without any issue.
The scenery around him changed. He now stood on the smooth surface of a lake, as reflective as a mirror. Blue sky and drifting clouds hung above, while gentle ripples swayed under his feet.
Can't back down now, he randomly thought, making chills crawl up his spine. Nevertheless, he still stepped forward and then stood still for a moment.
What an extraordinary immortal art...
The trial wouldn't take his life. After all, it was safe enough for the immortals to put it in the Small Immortal Realm.
With his worries fading, Wang Sheng stepped forward again.
Plop.
What seemed like a droplet hitting water echoed in his ears. It filled him with comfort, opened his pores, cleared his spirit, and enlightened him.
Three meters ahead, a bald, bone-thin phantasm gradually took shape. Donning a Daoist robe and holding a fly-whisk, he sat on a lotus platform—half like a Buddha, half like an immortal. He seemed part monk and part Daoist.
That has to be the Platform of Immortal Dreams' spirit.
The old man fixed his murky eyes on Wang Sheng. Slowly and heavily, he asked, "Who are you?"
"Wang Sheng."
"Where are you heading?"
Wang Sheng paused, then answered, "The Platform of Immortal Dreams."
The old figure nodded faintly and waved his hand. A curtain of water rose before Wang Sheng, while three swords shimmering with immortal light emerged slowly from the lake under him.
"This is the first trial. Break the curtain of water."
Wang Sheng leaned over and reached for one of the swords. He then stopped in realization.
Earlier, Yaoyun had reminded him, "Every challenger faces a different trial. The platform tailors its tests to determine whether one has the qualifications to stand upon it."
If the trials were fitted to the challenger, then his first trial had to be a test related to the Dao of the Sword.
Break the water curtain? Cut water with a sword?
Any cultivator of the modern age who had finished their basic studies would know the old saying, "Draw your sword to cut water, yet the water flows still."
He was strong enough to easily destroy the curtain with sword phantasms empowered by his enchanted power. Nevertheless, he suspected that doing so would be deemed as failing the test.
Though it appeared to be a trial of swordsmanship, it was really a test of philosophy.
Wang Sheng decided to take a risk. Keeping his sword sheathed, he stepped forward and crossed the curtain with ease.
"Why did you not attack it?" the old man asked.
Wang Sheng came up with two answers. First, I have already passed through, which proves the curtain is broken. Second, if one can pass with or without attacking it, then why attack at all?
Knowing the temperament of immortals, Wang Sheng reasoned that the more philosophical answer, the cooler one, would serve him better. After all, when it came to style, the actual meaning didn't really matter.
Hence, he chose the second answer.
"Good."
The old man's eyes glimmered faintly as he sized Wang Sheng up for a moment. With a wave of his hand, two immortal swords appeared before Wang Sheng.
The sword on the left was wreathed in flames, while the blade of the one on the right shimmered with rippling waves. They repelled each other.
Is this a Dual-Polarity Sword Intent test?
"Choose one. If you choose correctly, you may pass the second trial."
What?
Wang Sheng furrowed his brow and sank into thought.
The simpler the question appeared, the more complicated it usually was. Since the age of seven in his previous life, he had faced all kinds of exams of varying difficulties and had survived them all. At that moment, though, he treated the trial as though confronting a formidable enemy.
The two swords—water and fire—floated before him. Since he had the Dual-Polarity Sword Intent, neither seemed more compatible with him than the other. Combining water and fire was also a form of dual polarity.
Closing his eyes, Wang Sheng fell into deep contemplation.
Not far behind him, Spiritless floated quietly in front of the Platform of Immortal Dreams.
Surprise had filled Yaoyun's eyes. She could not see the old man or the immortal swords before Wang Sheng. Still, he had passed the first trial so quickly that it startled her. Since she could hear Wang Sheng, she inferred the gist of his conversation with the Platform of Immortal Dreams' spirit.
Currently, Wang Sheng was standing with his hands clasped behind his back, eyes closed in thought. Yaoyun began to wonder how long he would need to clear the trial.
It'll probably take him at least several days and nights, she thought. At the same instant, Wang Sheng extended his right hand, closed his palm around empty air, and took a step forward.
Within the illusion, Wang Sheng watched as the water sword in his hand vanished. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
The old man asked, "Why choose that sword?"
"I'm right-handed," Wang Sheng answered calmly. "This trial is not about which sword I choose, but about how long I take to make a decision. The heart of a swordsman should never hesitate or waver. Otherwise, I would never achieve anything in the Dao of the Sword. On the other hand, grabbing one thoughtlessly would be rash, not decisive. Had I done that, you would have certainly sent me down from the steps, Senior."
"Good," the phantasm slowly replied. His smile then widened. "The third trial is a question. If you can give me an answer that satisfies me, I will let you pass."
By now, Wang Sheng already knew that the old man enjoyed nothing more than these lofty, abstruse exchanges.
What is there to fear? Talking nonsense is my specialty.
The old man pointed a hand to the sky and the other to the lake. Though his gaze was as sharp as lightning, he did not impose any pressure on Wang Sheng.
"This heaven and earth, why was it born?"
The answer nearly leaped from Wang Sheng's lips. The most fitting reply here should be, "It was born for no one."
All living beings were but part of the myriad things of heaven and earth. Nevertheless, cultivators often fell into the misconception that everything in existence revolved around themselves.
With or without cultivators, the Great Dao remained the Great Dao. With or without living beings, heaven and earth were still heaven and earth. The world's vitality and colors would simply be diminished.
The Venerable Immortal of Morality had long since given the answer in the Dao De Jing.
Heaven and earth are not benevolent; they treat all things as straw dogs[1]. Neither kind nor cruel, they embrace and create everything, treating all things equally.
However, the Platform of Immortal Dreams was in the Small Immortal Realm. Wang Sheng was sure that this wasn't the first time this question had been asked; countless immortals had to have already given the standard answer.
Since he had chosen to walk the path of "lofty bearing," he decided to push through with it to the end.
From the old man's eyes, Wang Sheng could clearly sense the elder waiting for him to provide an answer opposite to the "standard."
Wang Sheng took a breath. In modern Hua tongue, he said seven words, each one as heavy as stone.
"Heaven and earth were born for me."
Immortal light flared all around. The Platform of Immortal Dreams began to tremble violently.
The old man leaned forward. Eyes sharp and piercing, he demanded, "Explain yourself."
Remaining composed, Wang Sheng replied, "Only what I see is reflected in my heart, and only then do I know it exists. Thus, what I do not see does not exist for me. All I see is heaven and earth. If heaven and earth observe me, then what of it?
"If I dwell within heaven and earth, then I exist within them. If I step beyond them, then I no longer exist within them. Therefore, to heaven and earth, I was not born for them. But to me, they exist for me alone."
The old man threw back his head and laughed. Before Wang Sheng could take another step forward, immortal light pulled him onward.
Beside the Platform of Immortal Dreams, the almond eyes of the tiny fairy standing on Spiritless's blade widened in disbelief.
Those words just now...
With a thunderous boom, Wang Sheng vanished from the steps. Under the Platform of Immortal Dreams, a giant lotus emerged. Its petals closed and enveloped the platform entirely.
1. Straw dogs or grass dogs are dog figurines made out of straw. In ancient China, they were ceremonial objects used as a substitute for the sacrifice of living dogs. ☜
