Chapter 131: Threefold Self-Reflection by the River

If the Xuanhuang Qi surrounding Qian Yuan had previously resembled a river on the verge of running dry...

Then although the size of that river had not increased, it now carried the lively vitality of a fresh spring at its source. The danger of it drying up had vanished.

A flash of understanding crossed Li Shun's mind.

'Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth can only condense once the incense offerings and faith devoted to it reach a certain threshold. Likewise, if that faith falls below a certain limit, the Xuanhuang Qi may disperse overnight.'

'Qian Yuan had been standing right on that boundary. At any moment, he could have lost his Xuanhuang Qi entirely. That was why he had been so generous.'

'Not only did he overlook my taking it, he even tempted me with further benefits.'

Li Shun raised his eyes, his gaze passing through the drifting incense smoke before meeting the stone statue's eyes.

He had fulfilled his promise and preserved Qian Yuan's incense offerings.

And Qian Yuan had not gone back on his word.

Two slender streams of dark golden light quietly peeled away from the stone statue, spiraling gracefully toward Li Shun.

Suppressing the excitement surging within his chest, Li Shun spread out his divine sense like a fine net and carefully guided them into the Fangcun space.

At the same time, he instinctively looked toward the heavens above.

The sky remained vast and tranquil. Clouds drifted silently overhead.

Once again...

The heavenly lightning punishment did not descend.

'Because it was willingly given, did it avoid the judgment of heaven's laws?'

'If that's true, then the Directorate of Celestial Observation shouldn't notice anything either!'

Joy immediately welled up within Li Shun.

Just then, another stream of information flowed from Qian Yuan's statue.

This time, it concerned the Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth itself.

Li Shun's pupils contracted slightly as he carefully contemplated the revelation.

Only after a long while did he finally understand.

'Xuanhuang and Heaven and Earth are the primordial essence of creation, the very foundation of all existence. This qi does not originate solely from the beginning of the universe. It also gathers from the accumulated merit of countless generations. When sages govern the world and their virtue nourishes all living things, when their sincerity resonates with the will of heaven, only then does Xuanhuang descend...'

Li Shun recalled what the Great Siming had once said about the Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth.

'Sages establish virtue, drawing the favor of Xuanhuang. Once blessed by Xuanhuang, they inherit the endless power of creation.'

'Ge Linfeng and Qian Yuan both passed away over a century ago. Yet because they established immense merit during their lifetimes and attracted the descent of Xuanhuang Qi, they have achieved a form of immortality.'

'Strictly speaking, it is not their original consciousness that remains. Rather, they are projections formed jointly by this world and by the countless people who continue to remember them.'

'Although they appear to possess thoughts and emotions of their own, they are in reality nothing more than fixed personality templates.'

Li Shun quietly gazed at Qian Yuan's stone statue.

The divine radiance had completely faded, and the statue had returned to silence.

After gifting away three strands of Xuanhuang Qi in succession, even it had clearly paid a considerable price.

'As for why I wasn't punished by heaven this time...'

'It's because the status of Xuanhuang Qi truly stands above the Heaven and Earth of Great Qian!'

'Even Great Qian's Heavenly Dao cannot directly control it. Instead, it governs it indirectly through beings like Qian Yuan and Ge Linfeng.'

'Likewise, the Directorate of Celestial Observation monitors the various shrines throughout the realm in order to keep the Xuanhuang Qi under control.'

'The descent of Xuanhuang Qi was never permanent. It naturally diminishes over time. Flourishing incense offerings gather Xuanhuang Qi, while declining worship causes it to disperse.'

'Qian Yuan deliberately concealed the matter for me, treating the disappearance of the three strands as nothing more than ordinary depletion. That is why everything remained peaceful, without causing even the slightest disturbance.'

Li Shun stepped out of Qian Yuan Shrine, his robes fluttering gently in the breeze.

Almost imperceptibly, he lifted his head.

His gaze pierced through layers of clouds toward an unknowable height beyond the heavens.

'Otherworldly Celestial Demons... Xuanhuang Qi...'

'The thirteen provinces and one hundred and eight commanderies of Great Qian. The entire world resembles a colossal grand formation.'

'Then what lies beyond the heavens... beyond the formation itself?'

'Furthermore, since Xuanhuang Qi is so miraculous and precious, why doesn't the Great Qian court actively preserve the incense offerings of every region, or encourage more virtuous officials like Ge Linfeng to arise, thereby attracting even greater quantities of Xuanhuang Qi?'

'The attitude of the imperial court toward this matter is... rather intriguing.'

Questions continuously surfaced in Li Shun's mind.

Meanwhile, within the Fangcun space, the addition of two more strands of Xuanhuang Qi once again triggered earth-shaking changes.

Among the central core regions, Li Shun continued to devote most of his attention to the area containing the Threefold Self-Reflection stone statue.

Although the divine ability Heavenly Being Authored the Codex was incomparably powerful, the Sage's stone statue remained completely intact. Li Shun simply lacked the ability to wield it on his own.

Every use of Heavenly Codex brought about an overwhelming backlash.

The gains simply did not justify the cost.

By comparison, the drawbacks of [Threefold Self-Reflection] were far smaller.

'During the Greed for Wealth Corrupts the Seal Tribulation, had I not awakened the ability to rewind time multiple times in advance, I would have long since met an irreversible end.'

'But its shortcomings have become increasingly obvious as well. Being able to rewind only a single day is simply too limiting.'

'Tribulations encountered during the Celestial Phenomena realm are often laid out over the course of months, sometimes even years. By the time one realizes what is happening, it is already too late.'

'Even one additional day of rewinding would make an enormous difference.'

Wrapped within the Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth, Li Shun's divine sense surged toward the Threefold Self-Reflection stone statue like a mighty flood.

His understanding of the divine ability increased at a breathtaking pace every passing moment.

A single instant of enlightenment surpassed a hundred days of ordinary cultivation.

More astonishingly...

When the occupied area expanded from three percent to five percent, vague images actually began to appear within Li Shun's mind.

Yet at that very moment, as though enraged by Li Shun's reckless attempts to seize its power, the half-destroyed stone statue suddenly seemed to awaken.

Its once-blurred face instantly became crystal clear within Li Shun's spiritual perception.

His heart pounded violently.

It felt as though a pair of ancient eyes, having gazed across countless ages, had firmly locked onto him.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

His consciousness was struck again and again like endless heavenly lightning.

Li Shun's mind exploded with deafening roars, nearly becoming completely blank.

His advance came to an abrupt halt.

Five percent.

That was as far as he could go.

The two strands of Xuanhuang Qi were completely exhausted.

Li Shun shook his head.

Only after quite some time did the intense dizziness and violent trembling of his soul gradually subside.

The fierce resistance from the Threefold Self-Reflection stone statue had completely exceeded his expectations.

'Fortunately... it wasn't without rewards.'

Narrowing his eyes, Li Shun carefully recalled the fragments of knowledge that had poured into his mind during the collision.

'The Master stood by the river and said...'

'I examine myself thrice each day.'

In a hazy vision, Li Shun seemed to see an incomparably majestic figure standing above the endless River of Time.

Watching the waters flow on without pause, never ceasing day or night, the figure spoke those words with deep emotion.

'So it truly is possible to rewind even further!'

'Yet even a Sage's vision has its limits.'

'Under normal circumstances, one may rewind one day.'

'By exhausting every ounce of strength, one may rewind three days.'

'And by paying an enormous price, one may at most rewind seven days.'

'As for what that price actually is... I still don't know. I only know that even after rewinding time, the cost cannot be erased.'

Li Shun's gaze once again fell upon the Threefold Self-Reflection stone statue.

'It's a pity. The process of comprehension was interrupted by it. As things stand, I still cannot rewind beyond a single day.'

'If only I had a little more Xuanhuang Qi...'

Li Shun sighed inwardly, filled with regret.