Pikiran Xu Qing berputar, indranya runtuh. Segalanya menjadi gelap. Kehendak ilahinya memudar dari lokasi esensi immortal.
Benih dandelion itu bergetar, lalu mundur sedikit. Kemudian ia terus bergerak kembali ke arah dandelion. Namun, kali ini... ada tiga sosok di dalamnya, bukan dua! Sosok ketiga tampak kabur dan sesekali menghilang sepenuhnya, seolah-olah ia kesulitan untuk terbentuk secara utuh.
Tubuh asli Xu Qing berdiri di kuil kuno, di tengah lautan api, tepat di depan 'jendela' yang menuju ke esensi immortal. Matanya terpejam, dan ia tidak bergerak.
Di samping, penguasa istana menghela napas pelan.
Kupu-kupu kecil itu mendengarnya dan tahu apa artinya. “Xu Qing itu sangat serakah! Dia memilih benih kembali yang belum dimurnikan oleh esensi immortal, yang akan membuatnya jauh lebih sulit untuk mendapatkan pencerahan. Akan jauh lebih sederhana jika membiarkan esensi immortal memurnikannya.”
Kupu-kupu itu tampak puas dan bahkan senang. Di dalam hati, ia berpikir bahwa jika Xu Qing tidak membunuhnya berulang kali sebelumnya, ia mungkin sudah memberitahunya rahasia ini lebih awal.
“Master, Anda sudah memberinya sepuluh napas waktu yang biasanya tidak dia miliki. Namun, dia tidak tahu cara memanfaatkannya. Ini adalah peluang takdirnya, jadi Anda tidak perlu menghela napas. Jangan khawatir, kemampuan pemahamanku jelas lebih baik darinya, jadi aku tidak akan kesulitan melampauinya.
“Sosok yang ditinggalkan Xu Qing di dalam benih itu mungkin akan hilang dengan sendirinya, yang akan membuktikan bahwa dia gagal dalam pencerahan. Bahkan jika kemampuan pemahamannya setingkat dengan kemampuanku, dia hanya tidak punya cukup waktu.
“Lagipula, begitu benih itu kembali ke dandelion, sosok apa pun di dalamnya yang tidak permanen akan dimurnikan. Oleh karena itu, Master, Anda benar-benar tidak perlu menghela napas dengan penyesalan!”
Penguasa istana menggelengkan kepalanya. “Aku tidak menghela napas tentang Xu Qing. Yang kusesali adalah memilih murid terlalu cepat dan memilihmu.”
Tatapan penguasa istana tertuju pada benih dandelion yang dipilih Xu Qing untuk pencerahannya.
Kupu-kupu itu terpaku, dan awalnya tidak mengerti. Kemudian tatapannya mengikuti tatapan Masternya ke benih esensi immortal. Ia hendak meminta penjelasan ketika mata di sayapnya tiba-tiba melebar.
Benih yang dipilih Xu Qing sedang dalam perjalanan kembali ke dandelion esensi immortal. Jaraknya tidak terlalu jauh. Faktanya, sepertinya hanya butuh beberapa lusin napas waktu untuk mencapai tujuannya.
Namun kemudian, dalam perjalanan kembali, sosok ketiga di dalamnya tiba-tiba menjadi sangat jelas! Sosok itu menjadi semakin stabil, hingga pada akhirnya, dengan jelas menyerupai Xu Qing.
Kupu-kupu itu benar-benar tidak bisa memahami kecepatan pencerahan seperti itu. Semua benih yang ia gunakan untuk mencari pencerahan telah dimurnikan dan sedang dalam perjalanan kembali keluar. Akibatnya, ia selalu punya banyak waktu untuk bekerja. Secara normal, butuh satu atau dua hari untuk mencari tahu cara mengendalikannya. Itulah alasan mengapa ia mengatakan semua hal tadi. Berdasarkan kerangka acuannya sendiri, ia tidak melihat bagaimana Xu Qing bisa berhasil. Oleh karena itu, apa yang ia lihat sekarang membuatnya tercengang.
“Ini....”
Sementara itu, badai yang mencengangkan sedang meletus di lautan kesadaran Xu Qing.
Ia sedang menatap langit berbintang yang penuh dengan riak. Itu tampak seperti permukaan air. Dibandingkan dengan alam semesta secara keseluruhan, langit berbintang itu seperti sumur.
Ia tiba-tiba mendengar suara kuno berbicara. “Segalanya ada di dalam sumur. Semua kemampuan ilahi, harta magis, semua keadaan ada di dalam sumur....”
Xu Qing membenamkan dirinya dalam suara itu dan air sumur.
Sensasi yang ia alami di lokasi esensi immortal sudah lama hilang. Kehendak ilahinya sudah menghilang dari sana. Namun, kontak singkat itu menciptakan sensasi yang masih melekat di dalam dirinya.
Meskipun tidak banyak, sensasi itu ada. Dan tentu saja, Xu Qing memiliki kemampuan pemahaman luar biasa yang telah memukau Master Ketujuh dan Sang Pewaris pada beberapa kesempatan. Sedikit saja potongan sesuatu di lautan kesadarannya sudah cukup baginya.
Xu Qing menatap langit berbintang. Riak-riak itu memudar, dan segalanya menjadi tenang, menciptakan pantulan yang jauh lebih jelas dari apa yang ada di atas. Perlahan, Xu Qing bisa melihat dirinya sendiri di dalam langit berbintang yang terpantul di sumur.
Di dalam air, ia melihat semua keadaan dewanya, dao surgawi-nya, perangkat magisnya, dan segalanya dari masa Inti Emas-nya. Jari dewa. Gunung Kaisar Hantu. D-132. Cahaya fajar.... Tapi bukan itu saja. Semua teknik bela diri, teknik magis, dan kemampuan ilahi yang telah ia latih sejak awal perjalanan kultivasinya ada di sana. Burung Gagak Emas Mengasimilasi Myriad Spirits, Di Dalam Sembilan Mata Air, dan segalanya.... Adapun pantulannya, itu sangat jelas. Sekilas, mustahil untuk membedakan mana pantulan dan mana yang nyata!
Itu juga aku....
Xu Qing mengalami sensasi yang memadukan kedalaman dan realitas. Saat sensasi itu menguasainya, Xu Qing merasa seolah-olah ia kehilangan kemampuan untuk bergerak, seolah-olah ia terpaku di tempat, jiwanya terpaku oleh air. Yang paling patut diperhatikan... adalah bahwa pantulan di air tidak mengandung kristal violet! Penemuan itu menghantam Xu Qing hingga ke inti. Selanjutnya, ia mendengar suara kuno dan mendominasi yang sama berbicara kepadanya.
“Kemampuan ilahi-ku ini adalah... Memancing Bulan di Dalam Sumur!”
Saat kata-kata itu bergema, sesuatu seperti tangan raksasa yang kabur muncul di kehampaan. Tangan itu menjangkau ke dalam sumur, menyebabkan air, dan pantulan Xu Qing, beriak. Kemudian tangan itu memancing sesuatu keluar dari dalam.
“Cahaya bulan di dalam sumur itu indah, dan aku menginginkannya. Sekarang, aku memilikinya.”
Di dalam tangan ilusi itu terdapat gambar Xu Qing. Tangan itu meremas, memaksa gambar Xu Qing untuk tetap berada di telapak tangan.
“Dia adalah kau! Apakah kau menguasainya?”
Saat kata-kata itu bergema, tangan yang memegang Xu Qing terulur, memperlihatkan seluruh orang yang melekat padanya. Itu adalah pria paruh baya berwajah pucat yang mengenakan baju zirah abu-abu, dengan mata setenang air yang tenang! Baju zirah itu kejam, seolah-olah telah tumbuh dari daging pria itu, dan merupakan bagian darinya. Berdasarkan apa yang bisa dirasakan Xu Qing, baju itu dipenuhi dengan energi jahat. Di dalam energi jahat itu ada sesuatu yang sangat mendominasi. Keduanya bertentangan namun harmonis pada saat yang sama. Dan dia menatap langsung ke arah Xu Qing di telapak tangan.
Xu Qing tidak mampu bergerak, juga tidak bisa menggunakan teknik magis apa pun. Rupanya, bahkan keadaan dewanya telah diambil. Satu-satunya hal yang bisa ia lakukan adalah berpikir, dan itu berarti ia tidak kesulitan mencari pencerahan.
Jadi, nama kemampuan ilahi ini adalah Memancing Bulan di Dalam Sumur! Kemampuan ilahi yang luar biasa. Jika tidak ada bulan di dalam sumur, satu akan muncul, kecuali itu adalah pantulan bulan di langit. Namun di tangan orang ini, itu adalah sihir yang mengguncang langit dan menghancurkan bumi! Proses menggunakannya melibatkan pencarian celah antara realitas dan ilusi, kemudian menggunakan kekuatan waktu untuk menjangkau bayangan cermin dan menciptakan sesuatu dari ketiadaan! Ini tentang memiliki kepercayaan diri tertinggi, kehendak yang mendominasi, dan kemauan yang luar biasa.
Saat Xu Qing sampai pada pemahaman itu, gambarnya di dalam benih dandelion tumbuh semakin jelas, hingga hampir lengkap. Segera, akan ada keseimbangan kekuatan tripartit dengan dua sosok lainnya di sana. Pada saat ini, sudah pasti benar untuk mengatakan bahwa Xu Qing telah mendapatkan pencerahan tentang Memancing Bulan di Dalam Sumur.
Namun kemudian, hati Xu Qing bergejolak. “Tunggu. Tidak!”
Warisan esensi immortal tidak bisa sesederhana ini. Segalanya dari tadi mungkin hanya generalisasi. Pemikiranku sedikit terlalu sepihak. Sang Pewaris dan Putri Brightblossom pernah memberitahuku bahwa satu-satunya hal yang membatasi kemajuan seseorang adalah imajinasi.
Dengan kata lain, Memancing Bulan di Dalam Sumur mungkin tidak persis seperti yang baru saja kualami.... Mungkin jauh lebih dalam. Jauh lebih berguna! Hanya kurangnya persepsi dan kemampuanku yang mencegahku melihatnya dengan lebih jelas.
Saat pikiran-pikiran ini melintas di benak Xu Qing, gambar di dalam benih dandelion runtuh dan mulai memudar. Ketika kupu-kupu kecil itu menyadarinya, ia terpaku. Ia berasumsi bahwa Xu Qing sudah berhasil, yang merupakan pukulan telak baginya. Namun sekarang tampak seolah-olah gambarnya runtuh....
“Master, a-apa... apa yang terjadi?”
Penguasa istana menghela napas lagi, kali ini lebih dalam. “Sayang sekali aturan Istana Summer Immortal dengan jelas menyatakan bahwa istana hanya boleh memiliki satu penerus dalam satu waktu.”
Kupu-kupu itu benar-benar tercengang.
“Dia tidak puas dengan kemampuan ilahi itu,” jelas penguasa istana, “jadi dia memutuskan untuk mendalami substrukturnya.”
“Substruktur?” Mata kupu-kupu itu melebar.
Penguasa istana benar. Xu Qing sekarang sedang menyelidiki kemampuan itu pada tingkat substruktural. Ia mulai berpikir tentang bagaimana kontak awalnya dengan benih telah memicu reaksi dari bulan violet-nya. Mengingat hal itu, dan mempertimbangkan nama kemampuan ilahi tersebut, kemungkinan yang sangat keterlaluan telah muncul di benaknya.
Apa yang dipancing keluar dari sumur bukan hanya jiwa seseorang. Mungkin itu sekumpulan jiwa. Dan yang mengapung di dalam sumur bukan hanya hal-hal seperti kemampuan ilahi, teknik magis, dan perangkat magis. Hal-hal itu terlalu sederhana. Jika sumur memiliki bulan di dalamnya, bagaimana jika bulan itu bukan bulan yang sebenarnya di langit? Siapa bilang kemampuan ini harus digunakan pada musuh. Tampaknya sangat mungkin... untuk menggunakannya guna memancing bulan keluar dari hatiku sendiri!
Pikiran Xu Qing berputar saat ia sampai pada kesimpulan bahwa cara berpikir baru ini benar-benar tepat.
Aku mengerti sekarang! Itulah sebabnya kultivator berbaju zirah abu-abu itu mengatakan bulan itu indah, dan bahwa dia menginginkannya. Dia memperingatkanku! Terlebih lagi, dia bertanya apakah aku sudah menguasainya. Itu juga sebuah peringatan! Faktanya, ketika dia mengatakan 'dia adalah kau', dia mengeja semuanya untukku sejelas mungkin. Dia pada dasarnya bertanya apakah aku telah menguasai substruktur kemampuan itu!
Saat pemahaman ini memenuhi Xu Qing, dan konsepnya menjadi lebih jelas, sosok di telapak tangan pria paruh baya itu tiba-tiba meletus dengan cahaya violet yang menyilaukan. Saat cahaya menyebar, sosok itu menghilang, berubah menjadi... bulan violet yang tak terbatas! Bulan itu beristirahat di telapak tangan memancarkan keperkasaan yang mencengangkan. Kemudian telapak tangan itu mulai bergetar hingga runtuh. Pria berbaju zirah abu-abu itu juga hancur menjadi abu oleh cahaya violet. Seluruh sumur dipenuhi dengan bulan violet, perlahan naik ke atas. Bulan ini bukan ilusi. Itu benar dan nyata!
Itu bukan bulan yang diambil Li Zihua ke langit berbintang. Xu Qing yang menciptakannya. Itu adalah bulan violet kedua yang terbentuk di daratan Tetua Agung! Sumbernya sama dengan bulan violet Li Zihua, tetapi itu milik Xu Qing!
Xu Qing muncul di bulan violet dan menatap ke arah di mana kultivator berbaju zirah abu-abu itu menghilang. Di luar, benih itu hampir mencapai dandelion. Tepat sebelum benih itu bergabung ke dalamnya, dua sosok di dalamnya runtuh dan menghilang, digantikan oleh sosok unik lainnya.
Itu tidak lain adalah Xu Qing!
Xu Qing’s mind spun, and his senses collapsed. Everything went blank. His divine will faded from the location of the immortal essence.
The dandelion seed vibrated, then backed up slightly. Then it continued moving back in the direction of the dandelion. However, this time... it had three figures inside instead of two! The third figure was blurry, and occasionally disappeared entirely, as if it was having trouble forming fully.
Xu Qing’s true body stood in the ancient temple, amidst the sea of flames, right in front of the ‘window’ leading to the immortal essence. His eyes were closed, and he wasn’t moving.
Off to the side, the palace lord sighed softly.
The little butterfly heard it and knew what it meant. “That Xu Qing is so greedy! He picked a returning seed that the immortal essence hadn’t purified yet, which will make it a lot harder to gain enlightenment of. It would be much simpler to let the immortal essence purify it.”
The butterfly actually seemed pleased and even happy. Inside, she was thinking that if Xu Qing hadn’t killed her over and over again before, she might have told him this secret earlier.
“Master, you already gave him ten breaths of time that he normally wouldn’t have. Yet he just didn’t know how to take advantage of that. This is his destined opportunity, so there’s no need for you to sigh. Don’t worry, my powers of understanding are definitely better than his, so I won’t have trouble surpassing him.
“The figure Xu Qing left in the seed will probably just dissipate on its own, which will prove that he failed at enlightenment. Even if his powers of understanding were on the same level as my own, he just doesn’t have enough time.
“Besides, once that seed returns to the dandelion, any figures inside that aren’t there permanently will be purified away. Therefore, Master, you really don’t need to sigh with regret!”
The palace lord shook her head. “I wasn’t sighing about Xu Qing. What I regret is picking an apprentice too soon and choosing you.”
The palace lord’s gaze came to rest on the dandelion seed that Xu Qing had chosen for his enlightenment.
The butterfly was stunned, and initially didn’t understand. Then her gaze followed her Master’s to the immortal essence seed. She was about to ask for some clarification when the eyes on her wings suddenly widened.
The seed Xu Qing had picked was on its way back to the immortal essence dandelion. It wasn’t very far. In fact, it looked like it would only take a few dozen breaths of time to reach its destination.
But then, on the way back, the third figure inside suddenly began to become very clear! It became increasingly stable, until, in the end, it clearly resembled Xu Qing.
The butterfly simply couldn’t comprehend such enlightenment speed. All of the seeds she had sought enlightenment from had been purified and were on their way back out. As a result, she always had plenty of time to work with. Normally speaking, it would take a day or two to figure out how to take control of it. That was the reason why she’d said all the things she just had. Based on her own frame of reference, she didn’t see how Xu Qing could succeed. Therefore, what she was seeing now blew her mind.
“This....”
Meanwhile, an astonishing tempest was erupting in Xu Qing’s sea of consciousness.
He was looking at a starry sky full of ripples. It looked like the surface of some body of water. Compared to the universe as a whole, that starry sky was like a well.
He suddenly heard an ancient voice speaking. “Everything is inside the well. All divine abilities, magical treasure, all states exist in the well....”
Xu Qing immersed himself in the voice and the well water.
The sensations he had experienced in the location of the immortal essence were long gone. His divine will had already disappeared from there. But that brief contact created a sensation that still lingered within him.
Although there wasn’t a lot, it was there. And of course, Xu Qing had incredible powers of understanding that had amazed both Master Seventh and the Heir Apparent on multiple occasions. Just a little scrap of something in his sea of consciousness was enough for him.
Xu Qing looked at the starry sky. The ripples were fading, and everything was turning calm, creating a much clearer reflection of what was above. Gradually, Xu Qing was able to glimpse himself within the starry sky reflected in the well.
Within the water, he saw all of his god states, his heavenly dao, his magical devices, and everything from his Gold Core days. The god’s finger. The Ghost Emperor mountain. D-132. Daybreak light.... But that wasn’t it. All of the martial techniques, magical techniques, and divine abilities that he had practiced from the beginning of his cultivation journey were there. Golden Crow Assimilates Myriad Spirits, Within the Nine Springs, and everything else.... As for his reflection, it was incomparably clear. At a glance, it was impossible to tell which was the reflection and which was real!
That’s also me....
Xu Qing was experiencing a sensation that blended profundity and reality. As that sensation overtook him, Xu Qing felt like he had lost his ability to even move, as if he were fixed in place, his soul transfixed by the water. Most noteworthy of all... was that the reflections in the water did not contain the violet crystal! That discovery struck Xu Qing to the core. Next, he heard that same ancient and domineering voice speaking to him.
“This divine ability of mine is... Fishing the Moon in the Well!”
The moment the words rang out, something like an enormous, blurry hand appeared in the void. It reached down into the well, causing the water, and Xu Qing’s reflection, to ripple. Then the hand fished something out from inside.
“The moonlight in the well is beautiful, and I wanted some. Now, I have some.”
Within the illusory hand was an image of Xu Qing. The hand squeezed down, forcing the image of Xu Qing to remain in the palm.
“He is you! Did you master it?”
As the words echoed out, the hand which held Xu Qing extended, revealing an entire person attached to it. It was a pale-faced middle-aged man clad in a gray suit of armor, with eyes as peaceful as tranquil water! The armor was vicious, as if it had grown out of the man’s flesh, and was part of it. Based on what Xu Qing could sense, it abounded with nefarious energy. Within that nefarious energy was something very domineering. The two things conflicted and yet were harmonious at the same time. And he was looking directly at the Xu Qing in the palm.
Xu Qing wasn’t capable of moving, nor could he use any magical technique. Apparently, even his god states had been taken away. The only thing he could do was think, and that meant he had no trouble seeking enlightenment.
So, the name of this divine ability is Fishing the Moon in the Well! What an amazing divine ability. If there is no moon in the well, one will appear, except it’s a reflection of the moon in the sky. But in the hands of this person, it’s a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering magic! The process of using it involves finding the gaps between reality and illusion, then using the power of time to reach into the mirror image and create something from nothing! It’s about having supreme self-confidence, a domineering will, and superb willpower. [1]
As Xu Qing came to that understanding, his image in the dandelion seed grew even clearer, until it was almost complete. Soon, there would be a tripartite balance of power with the other two figures there. As of this moment, it was definitely correct to say that Xu Qing had gained enlightenment of Fishing the Moon in the Well.
But then, Xu Qing’s heart flip-flopped. “Wait. No!”
Immortal essence legacies can’t be this simple. Everything from just now was probably just a generalization. My thinking is a bit too one-sided. The Heir Apparent and Princess Brightblossom once told me that the only thing limiting a person’s advancement is imagination.
In other words, Fishing the Moon in the Well might not be exactly as I just experienced.... It’s probably a lot more profound. A lot more useful! It’s only my lack of perception and ability that prevents me from seeing it more clearly.
As these thoughts went through Xu Qing’s mind, the image in the dandelion seed collapsed and started fading away. When the little butterfly noticed that, she was stunned. She had assumed that Xu Qing already succeeded, which was quite a blow to her. But now it looked like his image was collapsing....
“Master, w-what’s... what’s going on?”
The palace lord sighed again, this time more deeply. “What a pity the rules of the Summer Immortal Palace clearly state that the palace can only have one successor at a time.”
The butterfly was completely astonished.
“He wasn’t happy with the divine ability,” the palace lord explained, “so he decided to delve into its substructure.”
“Substructure?” The butterfly’s eyes went wide.
The palace lord was right. Xu Qing was now probing the ability on a substructural level. He had started thinking about how his initial contact with the seed had provoked a reaction from his violet moon. Given that, and considering the name of the divine ability, a very outrageous possibility had occurred to him.
What’s being fished out of the well isn’t just a person’s soul. Perhaps it’s a whole bunch of souls. And floating within the well aren’t just things like divine abilities, magical techniques, and magical devices. Those things are too simplistic. If the well has a moon in it, what if that moon isn’t the actual moon in the sky? Who said that this ability has to be used on an enemy. It seems perfectly possible... to use it to fish the moon out of my own heart!
Xu Qing’s mind spun as he came to the conclusion that this new way of thinking was absolutely correct.
I get it now! That’s why the cultivator in the gray armor said the moon was beautiful, and that he wanted some. He was warning me! What’s more, he asked me if I’d mastered it. That was also a warning! In fact, when he said ‘he is you,’ he was spelling things out for me as clearly as could be. He was basically asking me if I had mastered the substructure of the ability!
As this understanding filled Xu Qing, and the concept became clearer, the figure within the palm of the middle-aged man suddenly erupted with blinding, violet light. As the light spread out, the figure vanished, turning into... a boundless violet moon! It rested in the palm emanating astonishing mightiness. Then the palm started vibrating until it collapsed. The man in the gray armor was also shredded into ash by the violet light. The entire well came to be filled with a violet moon, slowly rising up. This moon wasn’t illusory. It was true and real! [2]
It wasn’t the moon that Li Zihua had taken out into the starry sky. Xu Qing had created it. It was the second violet moon to form in the Revered Ancient mainland! The source was the same as Li Zihua’s violet moon, but it belonged to Xu Qing!
Xu Qing appeared on the violet moon and looked in the direction where the cultivator in the gray armor had disappeared. Outside, the seed was nearly at the dandelion. Just before it merged into it, the two figures inside collapsed and disappeared, to be replaced by another one-of-a-kind figure.
It was none other than Xu Qing!
1. Fishing the Moon in the Well is an ability from Renegade Immortal . In fact, that’s the title of chapter 1429 of that novel. In the Chinese comments on Qidian, someone actually shared a screenshot of that chapter. Many parts from this chapter of BTT are exactly the same as that chapter. For example, the line from above “Everything is inside the well...” and the things after that down to this line (and some of the subsequent lines) are largely the same. It seems to me the author probably copy and pasted a lot of it, then made tweaks and changes so everything made sense for Xu Qing’s unique experience. That said, there are many things that are exactly the same without any changes at all. Generally speaking, I avoid critiquing the work of other translators. For one thing, I wouldn’t like it if people went through my translation line-by-line and nitpicked it. However, there are some problems with the RI translation in this chapter. For one thing, the name of the ability is translated... not that well. The verb is to “fish out” or “pull out.” Really, it should be something more like Fishing the Moon from a Well or out of a Well. In English, if you’re specifically going fishing for something, you don’t say “fishing XYZ.” E.g. If I’m going fishing for tuna, I don’t say “I’m fishing tuna.” That’s not to mention that the point of this technique is not about “going fishing” but rather about “fishing something out” of the water. In any case, I’m keeping the same ability name from RI to maintain continuity. Beyond that, there are other poor translation choices. For example, the voice very clearly says that he likes the “moonlight” in the well. But the RI translation says that he likes the “moon” in the well. In other words, it would actually make more sense for the ability to be named Fishing Moonlight From a Well. All of that is not to mention issues of tense, grammar, etc. In any case, in Chinese, there are more similarities between the two chapters than you’ll see in English, mostly because I can’t stand to have clunky English and inaccurate translations if I can avoid it. ☜
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