Chapter 24: Among Ten Thousand Stars, Take Only One
The sky was filled with stars, infinite in their radiance, containing boundless energy within them, along with countless strands of subtle, faint, and mysterious fluctuations.
Was that what was called fate?
Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense drifted toward higher realms, passing by countless stars. Compared to the vast emptiness of the space around him and the immense energy contained within those stars, his spiritual sense was as tiny as a feather in a gale, a droplet of water on the verge of drying up in a desert. It seemed as if it would be torn apart or evaporated into nothingness at any moment. Yet, strangely, neither the stars nor their overwhelming energy caused any harm to his spiritual sense.
To the left front of his spiritual sense appeared a red star. Its surface was burning fiercely, spewing terrifying flames in all directions. He didn't know how far away that star was; he could only judge from the nearly solidified shapes of the flames that it was extremely distant. Yet, in his spiritual sense, this star felt so close that it could only mean the star was unimaginably vast, nearly filling the entire space his spiritual sense could perceive.
The burning red star spewed infinite energy into the void, giving off a terrifying impression—as if getting any closer would incinerate him into pure energy—but also evoking a longing to melt into it.
Chen Changsheng felt uneasy, not from fear, because he was certain that nothing in the sea of stars could harm a human's spiritual sense. This unease came more from his aversion to the star's form and temperament—in other words, he didn't like it.
So his spiritual sense continued to drift higher. After passing a cloud-like mass that seemed to be fragments of stardust, a blue star came into view. That star appeared exceptionally cold and aloof, its surface seemingly covered with a thin layer of frost, giving a strong impression that it rejected any approach. His spiritual sense lingered there for a moment before moving on further.
A cultivator's spiritual sense, when leaving the body, naturally has its limits. As one's cultivation realm and power grow, those limits gradually expand. But only during the initial act of igniting one's destiny star is the spiritual sense unrestricted in its upward spatial reach—another unsolved mystery.
Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense continued to drift upward, encountering all kinds of stars and scenery. It also passed by several stars that seemed particularly silent. When his spiritual sense tried to approach, it was pushed away by an invisible force, and he realized those must be other people's destiny stars.
The deeper he went into the starry void, the more stars there were, and many strange stars appeared that didn't conform to ordinary human concepts. These stars floated silently in the void, constantly spraying starlight. Some seemed to have countless spiral arms, like a child's toy; others had starlight condensed into bright wings, like some magical bird; and still others exuded a majestic, beast-like aura.
Throughout an entire night, his spiritual sense drifted through the sea of stars, slowly perceiving and giving rise to many indescribable stirrings. Those stirrings were related to the stars, but more came from within himself. This absolute freedom from the constraints of the physical body was itself one of the driving forces of cultivation.
A cultivator's spiritual sense piercing the night sky and drifting into the depths of the star sea was a common occurrence in the mortal world, especially in the capital, where hidden dragons and crouching tigers abounded. Every night, many people tried to ignite their destiny stars, so no one paid any attention to Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense.
Suddenly, at some point, his spiritual sense saw an extremely bright light. Unlike the light scattered by stars, this was more intense and profound. He felt an urge to see it more clearly, but a vague recollection surfaced, telling him it was time to return.
He opened his eyes and woke up, finding himself still sitting cross-legged in the National Academy's library. His spiritual sense had drifted for a long time to reach the depths of the star sea, but returning took only an instant. Turning to look, he saw the sky outside the window faintly turning white—dawn had arrived.
...
...
For the first time in fourteen years, Chen Changsheng's routine was disrupted. During the day, he caught up on sleep, and at dusk, he returned to the library to continue his journey through the star sea. On his second attempt at leaving his body with his spiritual sense, he was more experienced and more familiar with the starry sea of the night sky. He no longer carefully observed the scenery of the initial stretch of the star sea but instead drifted directly deeper, wanting to see how far he could go.
As dawn approached, that sudden bright light woke him again.
On the third night, he repeated the process. By the fourth and fifth nights, his spiritual sense traveled a little further each night than the one before, allowing him to see more stars. But still, he had no intention of stopping.
The path of cultivation was long and arduous; he thought he should always try to go as far as possible.
On the sixth night, his spiritual sense reached a place it had never been before. He didn't know that very few people's spiritual senses could come this far. On one hand, it might relate to the strength of the spiritual sense; on the other, it was because the star sea he had passed through earlier was already a great temptation for most cultivators. Few could suppress the urge to ignite a destiny star and immediately begin marrow cleansing. From this perspective, his ability to resist temptation was indeed strong.
—That was because he understood better than anyone what the true temptation of living in this world was.
But he soon confirmed that very few spiritual senses had indeed been here, because his spiritual sense drifted here for a long time without encountering any stars already ignited by others' spiritual senses, unlike the first five nights.
Everything was new—the space was new, the stars were new—waiting for him to pick one at will.
Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense still didn't stop, because he felt he could go even further and see more.
On the seventh night, his spiritual sense finally encountered an obstacle—or rather, a wall. It was an invisible, transparent wall that didn't even seem to exist, but he knew it was there. For the first time, he hesitated.
What lay on the other side of that invisible wall?
He didn't know that this invisible wall was the crystal barrier dividing space, nor did he know that only the most powerful beings, like golden dragons, could traverse it freely. But he could guess that this invisible wall would be very difficult to pass through.
Still, he wanted to try.
If this was a southern wall, he had already reached its base; he had to touch his head to it before he could be satisfied.
He wanted to try, so he did, without any hope. Yet... to his surprise, his spiritual sense passed through it effortlessly.
On the other side was still a sea of stars.
But compared to the star sea he had passed through earlier, his spiritual sense found this one more familiar, as if returning home.
His spiritual sense continued to drift upward, growing fainter and fainter. Even in a state of mindlessness and detachment, he knew that the connection between his spiritual sense and his physical body was growing weaker, and might break at any moment.
The light gradually dimmed, and the number of stars slowly decreased.
Chen Changsheng felt that this was the farthest he could go.
Further away, there was a faintly visible sea of stars, like the lights of ten thousand homes.
He looked at that place, feeling a bit regretful, but he knew it was time to make his choice.
His spiritual sense swept around, searching for the star that belonged to him.
Choosing a destiny star was a difficult problem for every cultivator, because the options were too vast, and there were no fixed rules. You could choose based on liking a star's color, or you could close your eyes and point at one randomly.
Chen Changsheng didn't face this problem, because when he wanted to choose, that star appeared before his eyes. He fell in love with it at first sight, and so he decided to make it his star.
It was a small red star. Compared to the one he had seen at the very beginning, it was clearly much smaller, and its surface lacked terrifying burning flames or starlight. All light and energy seemed to be gathered deep within the star.
That red star was very round, with an exceptionally smooth surface, looking very much like a small apple.
Very cute, very beautiful, very inviting, making one want to take a bite.
Thinking this, Chen Changsheng's spiritual sense drifted over.
...
...
In the National Academy's library, the night breeze gently stirred. The frogs outside the window had long since fallen silent; all was quiet.
Chen Changsheng sat cross-legged with his eyes closed on the clean floor, his expression calm.
Suddenly, he opened his mouth and then closed it, as if he had taken a bite of something.
A faint sound of his throat moving could be heard, as if he were swallowing.
Suddenly, sweat poured from him like a fountain, instantly soaking the floor beneath him.
At the far end of the starry sky, a red star suddenly blazed brightly.
He opened his eyes and gazed into the depths of the starry sky.
He couldn't see that star, but he could feel it.
Because it was his star.
...
...
As the demon race's great scholar Tongus had said, no one could see that thread.
So when Chen Changsheng successfully ignited his destiny star, no unusual phenomenon occurred in the National Academy. No sacred pillar of light appeared in the night sky of the capital. The continent remained as calm and peaceful as ever.
Moreover, his star was too far from the ground. Even though it had a moment of brightness, it couldn't be seen. Yes, that star was so far away that even the priests at the Star Observation Platform on the western outskirts of the capital didn't notice it.
But in the end, someone did see it.
Because Her Holiness the Empress was watching the stars tonight.
It was quite a coincidence.
Whenever the weather was suitable, Her Holiness the Empress would watch the stars on the Sweet Dew Terrace every night.
Tonight, there had been a light rain, so she came out a little later.
She happened to witness the process of that star being ignited.
But even she didn't know who had ignited that star.
Was that person in the capital or in the south?
Could it be Snow Old City?
Her Holiness the Empress gazed into the depths of the night sky, her ink-black brows slowly rising. Her voice was devoid of emotion.
"How interesting."