Chapter 144: A Different World
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
Fang Zhengzhi did not know what was happening above him. All he thought about was saving Yan Xiu. Having grown up in a village, he had much experience with rivers and lakes, so he took to water very well.
Furthermore, with the support and help of the Dao of All Creation, it was no exaggeration to say that Fang Zhengzhi was like a fish.
But where was Yan Xiu?
No more than 10 seconds had passed between Yan Xiu falling into the water and Fang Zhengzhi jumping in after him.
Fang Zhengzhi was suspicious and worried. Even though he and Yan Xiu had some distance between them, he should still be able to see Yan Xiu. But now, he could not see Yan Xiu.
He could not even see a shadow. All he saw was black, almost as if he was swimming in ink.
What was happening?
Where is Yan Xiu?
Could it be...
All of a sudden, Fang Zhengzhi stiffened. He did not actually see Yan Xiu fall into the water, all he heard was the splash of water. Then, he simply did not see Yan Xiu in the bush Yan Xiu was supposed to be hiding in.
As such, his first thought was, Yan Xiu had fallen in.
What was the truth though?
He had not actually seen Yan Xiu jumping/falling into the water.
What if something had simply fallen into the lake, and Yan Xiu had just happened to leave the bush to check something out...
The chances were slim, but it was not completely impossible.
The other possibility was that Yan Xiu was forcefully dragged to the bottom of the lake by some unknown power. He too may be in this complete darkness.
This was also possible. If Yan Xiu was being dragged to the bottom of the lake, then Yan Xiu's rate of descent would definitely be much faster than his.
But it should be sufficient to get to the bottom of the lake...
Fang Zhengzhi did not turn back immediately.
If it was the first case, then Yan Xiu was still on the shore and safe. Since he was safe, then Fang Zhengzhi need not be in a hurry to return to the surface.
But what if it was the second option?
That would mean Yan Xiu was in real danger.
As such, he must get to the bottom of this pitch black lake. It may be dangerous, but Fang Zhengzhi was willing to take the risk for Yan Xiu.
Yan Xiu was his friend.
...
Fang Zhengzhi did not know if he had entered the ink like part of the lake, he simply saw his surroundings darken like nightfall. He could not even see his fingers.
I guess I'm here.
He continued to go deeper, then, he felt increasingly suffocated. He had already spent quite sometime underwater, yet, he had not even reached the bottom. It was almost as if this lake was bottomless.
Why was it this way?
How deep was this lake? If Yan Xiu was at the bottom of the lake, there should be some movement in the water.
Something is not right...
Fang Zhengzhi felt that something was amiss. He should be reaching the bottom some time soon, after all, he had been diving for quite some time.
However, he got the feeling that he was actually swimming in circles.
He was even starting to lose his sense of direction...
"Go up!" Fang Zhengzhi finally decided to resurface. If Yan Xiu was really down here, there should be some movement in the water. Since there was none, it was highly likely that Yan Xiu was still on the shore.
Resurfacing was naturally easier than diving.
Before long, Fang Zhengzhi felt a ray of light just above him - he was about to reach the surface.
"Whoo!" The ability to breathe refreshed Fang Zhengzhi. He had already held hi breath for more than seven minutes. Even with the Dao of all Creation, this timing was about his limit.
The moment he resurfaced, he looked towards the shore.
But...
He was completely stunned.
What the hell is going on?
The lake was still the same. However, the scenery had changed. Gone was the lush, dense forest. In its place was an orchard, filled with flora and fruits.
There fruits on the trees were of various colors, red, green, yellow...
Where is this?
Fang Zhengzhi was stunned for a moment. Anyone else would have been unable to accept this fact. After all, he had only been in the water for about seven to eight minutes.
Why did the surroundings change after he resurfaced?
He was stunned for a full five minutes before he began to feel the water around him cooling.
From the blossoming gardens to the luscious, dense forest... then to the orchard filled with fruits?!
This was the four seasons!
But, why did it become autumn after he surfaced from the lake?
Could it be...
Fang Zhengzhi looked to the bottom of the lake. It was pitch black and bottomless, almost as if it was filled with black ink. However, Fang Zhengzhi found an even more apt description.
This was a passageway!
A passageway between summer and autumn.
"Woosh!"
At this point, a sound could be heard nearby. Then, a head popped out from under the lake.
They looked at each other.
"Why did you jump in?"
"Why did you drop into the lake?"
The two voices echoed out. They said different things, but they meant the same thing.
Then, the two of them looked at each other with confusion. They did not understand what the other person was saying.
"I thought you dropped into the water, so I jumped"
"I saw you jump, so I jumped too!"
The two of them were speechless. Even so, they felt a warmth in their hearts. This was true friendship. Only true friends would have such similar thoughts.
"Let's get to shore first!" Fang Zhengzhi pointed to the shore.
Yan Xiu nodded.
The two of them swam towards the shore. Before long, they were back on dry land. Fang Zhengzhi had some guess about what had happened, but, he could not be certain.
Then, they exchanged their views about what happened.
Fang Zhengzhi had thought that Yan Xiu had happened to leave the bush, but the truth was not what he thought.
"You heard me fall in, then, seeing that I wasn't in the bush, you decided to jump in?" Fang Zhengzhi frowned slightly.
"Yes, and you?" Yan Xiu nodded and asked.
"So you never left the bush? And never moved?" Fang Zhengzhi did not understand.
"Mm."
"Then our situations are identical! I also heard you fall in, that's why I jumped."
"Oh?" Yan Xiu was confused as well.
The two of them became silent once again, deep in contemplation.
"I understand now!"
"I think I understand too!"
Fang Zhengzhi's and Yan Xiu's voices rang out in quick succession. The two of them looked at each other in disbelief. The explanation was complicated and difficult to understand.
However, there was no other possible explanation.
That was...
When they were on the banks of the lake, they appeared to be together, but in actual fact, they were in two completely different spaces seeing two completely different sceneries.
The Heavenly Treasure Hall, a parallel dimension...
Fang Zhengzhi's mind began to twirl. If this was the case, then, they would naturally not be able to see each other's presence, but, how could the splash be explained?
Was it a hallucination?
Or was it caused by the difference in position as well as time?
Fang Zhengzhi looked at Yan Xiu, and Yan Xiu looked back at Fang Zhengzhi.
"I think that inside the Heavenly Treasure Hall, there are many different spaces!" Fang Zhengzhi's thoughts were still rooted in the view from the previous world.
"I guess you can use the explanation that this place is formed by many worlds..." Yan Xiu nodded, but, he was explaining it using the notion of the modern world.
"According to your explanation, a parallel dimension is made up of countless pocket dimensions?" Fang Zhengzhi tried to forge a guess from Yan Xiu's explanation.
"There is such a possibility. Inside the Law of Dao, it says that there are 3000 parallel dimensions and each one contains tens of thousands of items! Having different pocket dimensions in this parallel dimension is reasonable!"
"Then this lake is..."
"If my guess is correct, the bottom of this lake is the link between the previous world and this world!" Yan Xiu assured.
Fang Zhengzhi nodded, Yan Xiu's idea and his were the same.
Else, there was no way of explaining why they were greeted with a completely different surrounding when they resurfaced. This meant that during their time in the water, they had already moved from the previous world to the current one.
As such, when they surfaced, they naturally came here.
Fang Zhengzhi did not say anymore, unconsciously looking at the surface of the lake.
The surface of the lake looked calm as always. There was no lady dancing on the surface. The surface of the lake reflected the scenery around it, fruit trees and all.
.
It looked like a Mirror Lake.
"Mirage!" Fang Zhengzhi's eyes brightened, almost as if his brain had accessed something new, finding the door to another world.
But this feeling was still kind of fuzzy and he didn't quite comprehend it fully.
However, he had a strong feeling that this parallel dimension could provide the solution to a problem he had been facing.
"You thought of something?" Yan Xiu asked when he saw Fang Zhengzhi's expression.
"Not yet, but can you tell me the powers of the Heavenly Reflection State again?" Fang Zhengzhi shook his head slightly. He had to reconfirm his thoughts.
"Sure, Heavenly Reflection means that the things in your own pocket dimension are able to link up with those of the outside world. Then, you can take control of the energy of the things around you. However, the limitation is, your pocket dimension must have the Dao of all Creation for that item!" Yan Xiu was slightly confused at why Fang Zhengzhi would pose such a question. However, he still explained it to Fang Zhengzhi.
"Things in your pocket dimension can link up with the things in your surroundings. However, the items must be present both outside and in your pocket dimension..." Fang Zhengzhi contemplated this.
He felt that something mysterious about this.
Heavenly Reflection...
Pocket dimension and everything else?!
And, it must be present in the pocket dimension!