Thorough Awakening Divine Ability

"Sight-Roaming was already profoundly mysterious. What use could this Thorough Awakening Divine Ability have?"

Chen Lingxi felt a stir of anticipation. His consciousness quietly settled upon the words "Thorough Awakening."

In an instant, he felt his mind abruptly enveloped by an invisible force. The scene before his eyes blurred, then became clear again.

His viewpoint rose without limit, as though his soul had left his body and now hovered above the nine heavens, looking down upon the Divine Chamber.

The Divine Chamber, whose boundaries he had once been able to sense, was now shrouded in layer upon layer of rolling mist.

"This Divine Chamber seems to have grown larger—boundlessly large. It is merely obscured by this mist."

Chen Lingxi gazed curiously at the dense fog.

The mist constantly shifted in color. Deep within it, specks of golden light flickered like fireflies, making the entire Divine Chamber seem unfathomably mysterious.

Chen Lingxi's mind was exceptionally clear.

"What sort of divine ability is this Thorough Awakening...?" The thought had barely formed in Chen Lingxi's mind when a sudden change occurred!

Within the Divine Chamber Marquis Estate, [Chen Lingxi], who had been sitting cross-legged in meditation, abruptly opened his eyes and began to chant:

"The Great Dao births pure qi; the Divine Chamber opens the Purple Palace.

Sun and moon hang as empty mirrors, reflecting me as in ancient days.

Ten days race side by side; heaven and earth suddenly become a wager.

A glimpse of the future's shape; the Candle Dragon bears a spark of fire."

The familiar voice recited the verse. The clouds around him were stirred, rumbling thunderously, yet the sound was grand and solemn, like great bells and bronze chimes.

Every word of the poem fell like a pearl, ringing crisply as it landed.

Chen Lingxi listened, utterly absorbed.

Until the verse neared its end, and the final word, "fire," was uttered.

"Boom!"

It was as though thunder exploded in Chen Lingxi's mind, as though a pillar supporting the heavens had snapped!

The world spun around him, light and shadow twisting into chaos.

His entire being seemed to be swept up, dragged, and hurled into the dense mist of the Divine Chamber by an irresistible, overwhelming force!

The Divine Chamber, once hidden by fog and impossible to perceive in full, was suddenly "drawn closer" in an instant!

Only when Chen Lingxi regained his senses did he discover that his consciousness had entered the body of [Chen Lingxi] within the Divine Chamber!

"What is going on?"

Chen Lingxi frowned instinctively, then abruptly understood.

He tried raising his left hand slightly and reached for the narcissus on the table before him.

The narcissus was immediately caught in his hand.

"I can control this body within the Divine Chamber?"

Chen Lingxi was greatly astonished.

He tried standing again and looked around.

"The world inside the Divine Chamber is far too real. It is almost no different from the true world outside."

As that thought crossed his mind, he suddenly looked up.

Then his expression froze, and shock appeared on his face.

In the originally gray, empty void, two dazzling circles of light now hung high overhead!

One was blazing gold, with flowing flames of light that radiated endless brightness and heat, like a great sun suspended in the sky.

The other was silver-white, its clear radiance bright and serene, cold and tranquil like a full moon overhead.

"What are those?"

Chen Lingxi looked closely. "Two mirrors?"

These two suns and moons truly were two mirrors.

The mirrors hung high above, reminding Chen Lingxi that this was indeed the Divine Chamber, not the real world outside.

"Apart from these two mirrors, this world within the Divine Chamber—even this body of mine—is completely no different from the real world."

He murmured inwardly, suppressing his shock before stepping out of the side room.

The courtyard outside had not changed in the slightest.

The peony he had transplanted into the courtyard an hour ago still grew beside the wall.

A gust of wind swept through, stirring the peony and the hem of Chen Lingxi's robes.

As though sensing something, Chen Lingxi stepped out into the courtyard.

Beyond the courtyard, several servants living in the west courtyard's side rooms waved at Chen Lingxi from afar.

One who was closer hurried over, smiling as he bent at the waist before Chen Lingxi. "Brother Chen, do you have any clothes that need washing? I happen to have a few myself. I can wash yours while I'm at it."

Ever since word spread that Chen Lingxi had begun studying martial arts under a guest retainer, the servants living in the west courtyard side rooms had become quite courteous toward him.

Chen Lingxi considered it, then smiled and exchanged a few polite words with him.

The man left.

Chen Lingxi stared at the servant's departing back for a long while, speechless.

The sun remained in the sky. A cloud drifted over and blocked the sunlight.

Chen Lingxi narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I am inside the Divine Chamber, yet it is not an inanimate thing. Time still moves forward, and these people within the Divine Chamber seem to be projections of the real world."

"The Great Dao births pure qi; the Divine Chamber opens the Purple Palace.

Sun and moon hang as empty mirrors, reflecting me as in ancient days.

Ten days race side by side; heaven and earth suddenly become a wager.

A glimpse of the future's shape; the Candle Dragon bears a spark of fire."

When Chen Lingxi recited those verses again,

the two bright mirrors in the sky seemed to cast down their light. It passed through the buildings and fell upon Chen Lingxi's head.

Countless pieces of information flooded into Chen Lingxi's mind in an instant.

"Ten days, heaven and earth, the future!"

"So this Thorough Awakening Divine Ability simulates the world outside. Even time itself is simulated by the Divine Chamber."

"While I am within this simulated Divine Chamber, time passes here, but outside it is only an instant.

"With this Thorough Awakening Divine Ability, with the passage of time in the Divine Chamber's space, I may be able to foresee what will happen over the next ten days!"

"After ten days pass in the Divine Chamber—or if 'I' die within it—I can return to the real world!"

Chen Lingxi found it unbelievable, yet he had no choice but to believe it.

He turned and returned to his room, then began arranging flowers.

He took out a small celadon vase that Steward Liu Que had ordered someone to deliver.

With his left hand, he plucked a branch of flowering peach from the pot and placed it in the vase, then took a short, sturdy apricot branch...

Half an hour later, the flower arrangement was complete.

Holding the arrangement in his hands, Chen Lingxi headed once more to the eastern hall of the west courtyard.

Today, Yunhe Commandery Princess had unusually not come to the Marquis Estate. Lin Longyue was practicing martial arts in the broad plaza before the eastern hall!

Her posture was graceful and extended. As her moves flowed one into another, cool moonlight seemed to spill around her, making her skin gleam softly.

She lightly thrust out a palm. Silver-white blood qi immediately surged from her palm. At the same time, a flash of silver emerged from deep within her bones and sinews, and her blood qi rushed and swelled. Yet it lacked the searing heat of the Copper-Red Realm, instead carrying a restrained, supple chill.

"The Silver-Bone Realm."

Chen Lingxi's heart jolted.

Only a few days ago, Lin Longyue had still been at the Copper-Red Realm. Now, she had already broken through to the Silver-Bone Realm!

Though inwardly astonished, he did not linger. He merely handed the flower arrangement to the waiting maid before returning to his room.

On the way back, he saw Liu Que, the west courtyard steward, reprimanding several servants. When Liu Que saw him pass by, a faint smile actually appeared on his face.

"Brother Chen, monthly stipends are being issued today. Go collect yours from the accounts office."

Chen Lingxi exchanged pleasantries with Liu Que, then went to the accounts office and collected ten taels of silver.

In the courtyard, Chen Lingxi looked up at the two mirrors and drew a deep breath.

He had left all these traces. Once he left the Divine Chamber, he would see whether what happened in the world outside matched what had occurred within it.

"With this Thorough Awakening Divine Ability, what can I do?"

"Ten days of time can be used to comprehend cultivation methods—for instance, to cultivate the Mountain-Crushing Force!

"Though it cannot strengthen my blood qi, it can allow me to clearly understand the profundities of the Mountain-Crushing Force."

"I can also learn what will happen over the next ten days and prepare accordingly."

Chen Lingxi's thoughts churned.

Then, all at once, inspiration flashed through his mind.

He suddenly recalled something!

"The Candle of Time!"

Chen Lingxi's eyes shone frighteningly bright, and he even rose to his feet in excitement.

"I once saw Lin Suri bury the Candle of Time in the Yuan River. I have long known its exact location."

"In the real world, with my current cultivation and status, daring to scheme for such a treasure would most likely alert Lin Suri."

"Should Lin Suri discover me, I would certainly die. There would not be the slightest other possibility."

"But within this Thorough Awakening Divine Ability..."

The more Chen Lingxi thought about it, the more excited he became. All kinds of thoughts emerged in his heart, each one calculating countless possibilities.

After a long while, Chen Lingxi took a deep breath and suppressed the excitement in his eyes.

"The Candle of Time is in the Yuan River, but with my current status, I am not permitted to leave the estate on my own. I cannot go to the riverbank."

"Only when I go report to the Duguan Office..."

Chen Lingxi was an official slave. Even though his slave registration had been transferred to the Baosu Marquis Residence, according to the Great Li Commentary on the Statutes, he still had to report to the Duguan Office once every two months.

Chen Lingxi counted the days on his fingers.

"Four days from now!"

"That will be enough."

"Four days from now, I'll find an opportunity to see the Venerable within that Candle of Time!"