This Is the Meaning of My Existence

Tonight, as expected.

Lin Yuan, as usual, hid in the shadows.

Harry arrived.

But this time, something was different.

Lin Yuan's keen Divine Soul, behind Harry, captured a vast, warm, yet subtly sharp aura.

Like a deep starry sky.

[Energy Body Identification: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.]

[Energy Level: Extremely High. One of the pinnacles of individual combat power in this world.]

[Law Affinity: Transfiguration (Extremely High), Elements (Fire, Extremely High), Soul (High)...]

"So, you've finally arrived," Lin Yuan thought, his mind clear.

He knew that this "personal storyline" belonging to Harry Potter was about to reach its conclusion.

He suppressed all his aura, lowering his Divine Soul's fluctuations to the minimum, like a reef in the deep sea, quietly "observing."

He "heard" Dumbledore's voice, gentle and full of wisdom.

"...This mirror, it can neither teach us knowledge nor tell us truth. People waste their days in front of it, obsessed with the images within... It will drive you mad..."

"...What it shows is nothing else but our deepest, most urgent, and most intense desires..."

Lin Yuan, in the shadows, nodded silently.

"Accurate judgment, but the understanding... still remains superficial."

He "saw" Dumbledore looking at Harry and his parents in the mirror with a sad and understanding gaze.

"...Starting tomorrow, this mirror will be moved to a new location. Harry, don't look for it again. Indulging in illusory dreams and forgetting real life is utterly useless, remember that."

Harry nodded, cast one last look at his parents in the mirror, then turned and left the room with Dumbledore.

The corridor returned to silence.

But Lin Yuan knew Dumbledore hadn't gone far.

The old Headmaster had merely sent Harry back to his dormitory, while he himself returned, standing once again before the tapestry.

His intention was clearly to personally deal with this dangerous mirror.

Lin Yuan did not leave because of this.

Tonight was his last chance.

He wanted to conduct one last, and most in-depth, "Dao observation" before the mirror was moved.

He stepped out of the shadows and calmly walked towards the tapestry.

He no longer concealed his presence.

Because he knew that in front of a Wizard of Dumbledore's caliber, any physical concealment was meaningless.

As expected, when he walked past three times and the carved wooden door appeared, he could clearly feel a gentle yet powerful probing magic fall upon him.

Lin Yuan's expression remained unchanged as he pushed open the door.

Inside the room, Dumbledore stood before the Mirror of Erised, his silver-white hair and beard flowing like moonlight under the faint light emanating from the mirror.

He turned around, his blue eyes behind the half-moon spectacles holding a hint of surprise, a hint of understanding, and a deeper, more complex emotion that Lin Yuan couldn't immediately decipher as he looked at him.

"Good evening, Mr. Lin," Dumbledore's voice was as gentle as ever. "It seems the charm of the Mirror of Erised is not only effective on Mr. Potter."

He didn't question why Lin Yuan was here late at night, nor did he mention any school rules.

This old man, who had lived for over a century, had long seen through all corners of human nature. He knew that what drove a precocious and self-disciplined student like Lin Yuan was not a simple impulse for a late-night stroll.

"Good evening, Headmaster Dumbledore."

Lin Yuan's tone was as calm as if he were answering a question in class.

He showed no embarrassment at being caught, merely shifting his gaze past Dumbledore to the mirror he both loved and hated.

"It seems you've also discovered its secret," Dumbledore followed his gaze and sighed softly. "Then, allow me to ask presumptuously, what did you see in this mirror?"

He was very curious.

Harry saw the family he never had.

He himself... he closed his eyes, as if he could see the complete family in the mirror, free from tragedy, see his healthy sister, Ariana.

This mirror reflected the softest, most painful voids in one's heart.

So, what was the void of this mysterious and precocious boy from the East? Was it a longing for family like Harry's? Or a desire for supreme power like Voldemort's?

Lin Yuan remained silent for a moment.

He wasn't hesitating, but rather searching his sea of consciousness for the most fitting word that Dumbledore could understand.

"I saw... the Dao."

"Dao?" Dumbledore repeated the unfamiliar pronunciation, a flicker of confusion flashing across his half-moon spectacles. "What is that? A powerful Magic? A lost artifact? Or... a supreme power?"

This was the most reasonable guess he could make based on his own worldview.

"No," Lin Yuan shook his head. For the first time, his eyes revealed a weariness and fervor that transcended his age, almost like a "preacher."

"It is not any 'thing.' Mr. Headmaster, you are a powerful Wizard. You can control fire, distort space, and even perceive souls. In your eyes, these are 'Magic,' correct?"

"Perhaps," Dumbledore said with a smile.

"But in my eyes, these are merely the most superficial 'manifestations' of the Dao appearing at different levels and dimensions."

Lin Yuan extended a finger, pointing to the corner of the room.

"There is air, dust, light, and gravity. The stone walls of the castle follow the laws of 'solidity.' The flame charm on your robe follows the laws of 'energy conversion.' This mirror follows the laws of 'mental mapping.'"

His voice, though not loud, echoed clearly in the empty room. Every word seemed to carry a peculiar, thought-provoking power.

"And the 'Dao' is the source of all these 'laws.' It is the ultimate, singular 'prime law' that creates, drives, and ultimately defines all laws."

"It is not power; it is the definer of power. It is not eternal life; it is the master of time and life. It is not knowledge, because all knowledge is merely a trivial depiction of it."

Lin Yuan turned his head, his dark eyes meeting Dumbledore's deep blue ones.

"What I desire is not to 'possess' it. It is to 'understand' it, to 'analyze' it, and ultimately... to 'become' it."

"'Become one with the Dao.'"

For the first time, Dumbledore's face showed genuine, unconcealed shock.

He had lived for over a century and had met countless geniuses, madmen, heroes, and villains.

He had heard countless kinds of ambitions and desires.

Some desired eternal life, like his old friend Nicolas Flamel. Some desired power, like his former close friend Gellert Grindelwald. Some desired revenge and subversion, like Tom Riddle.

But this was the first time he had heard such... "unfathomable" a desire.

This was not a worldly desire.

This was an ultimate pursuit on a philosophical, even theological, level.

This eleven-year-old boy did not want to rule the world, nor did he want to live forever.

He wanted... to become the "underlying logic" of this world itself.

"Child..." Dumbledore took a long time to regain his voice, his tone carrying a dryness he himself hadn't noticed. "This is... a dream more grand and more dangerous than any ambition I have ever witnessed."

"I understand," Lin Yuan replied calmly. "Any exploration that attempts to touch the origin is accompanied by the risk of utter destruction. But that is precisely the meaning of my existence."