98 A Little Golden Lotus and a Calling of Unrest 8 (1/2)
As the sun gradually upheld its daily burden of descending over the horizon, the study of the Flowing Wind Residence was peacefully quiet.
The swaying of the grass and plants accompanied the dull silence underneath the gentle breeze, a tranquil lull emanating from the wooden structure.
The respective courtyards of the Madams, Young Masters, and Young Misses were similarly subdued in their aura. Not a single servant could be spotted within the entirety of the Wei manor, and the doors were sealed shut.
The Sanctum, with its vast walls of sky-blue crystal, was silent as usual. The throne room, the numerous corridors leading to unknown destinations, all were still and untouched by the passage of time.
Well, not quite.
The Archives of Time was mired within an unceasing peal of giggles and laughter, its sole inhabitant radiating unceasing plumes of joy and delight.
The seventeenth platform of the Archives, though designed to peruse the bounds of cultivation and martial arts, had never experienced such rowdiness and unrestrained behavior.
”Hehe, stop, don't move!”
A young girl screamed at the top of her lungs, before erupting into peals of laughter.
Near the center of the crystalline platform stood a massive, comfortable bed, and the young girl rolled around on the sheets, clutching her stomach with both hands.
An Fei… had not become insane after exerting her consciousness to project a detailed visualization of her own physical body.
Rather, she was carefully inspecting that mental image, as well as… toying with the tiny strand of spiritual essence dancing within her chest.
”Just a simple thought, and it moves however I wish!” the girl exclaimed, tracing in the air with her index finger.
”This is too amazing – no, not there – is this why so many people are addicted to stepping on the path of cultivation? Not to mention that this is just the beginning, perhaps the later benefits will make this seem like a mere trifle!”
An Fei curled up with the cotton pillowcase clutched to her bosom, her mind whirling with unprecedented activity. As she quietly exclaimed her findings to herself, the young girl continued to reflect about the various concepts that she had unwittingly obtained from the Archives.
Only now, could she faintly understand with confidence regarding Wei Xuan and the others' excitement and incessant motivation for cultivation.
If this benefit wasn't extraordinarily enough to cajole a person into partaking in the unwalkable road, then what could?
To be frank, the spiritual essence confined with An Fei's body was hardly enough to be considered noteworthy at the slightest. The spiritual essence swimming around her heart was a mere centimeter in length and approximately a hair's width – a quantity that would receive Wei Xuan's wholehearted and utter disdain.
Nonetheless, the meagre amount was enough to reveal a new world before the girl.
The tiny thread of spiritual essence emitted a rhythmic pulse of warmth that tickled her heart, and was fully cognizant and obedient to her orders.
Furthermore, just by a single thought, An Fei could not only command the thread to displace itself to another region to her body, she could compress or expand its length, or even cause the warmth to invert and radiate a faint chill.
Though there were enough benefits, the deficits were certainly present.
The tiny thread could only expand to a maximum of five times its length, of which the width of the thread was too thin that the mere thought of further expansion brought forth the unsettling worry that it would snap, and dissipate and never return.
”Even so, this is amazing enough,” a wide smile broke across the girl's beautiful countenance.
”How much spiritual essence would I obtain at the Foundation Establishment Realm? And to think that within the perspective of the , even the unimaginable peak, the so-called Divine Ascension Realm is nothing…”
An Fei released a heartfelt sigh, realizing that a rather long road stretched before her. Grandfather had explicitly reminded her to diligently cultivate the upon her arrival – a process that wouldn't even begin for quite the long time.
How many years would pass before she could even take a step on that journey?
”Enough. There's better things to do!”
The young girl shouted, thrusting both of her arms into the air with a soulful cry. Disengaging the distracting thoughts from her mind, An Fei clambered out of the bed to sit down before the drawing table.
The drawing table sported a small stack of paper marred by a dark indigo ink, notes that An Fei had personally crafted regarding a particular subject. The top sheet displayed an intricate design of a lotus flower.
The flower consisted of eight layers of petals, each layers possessing eighteen distinct petals to form a grand total of a hundred and forty-four petals.