326 The True Meaning Within (2/2)

It seemed to glow in the darkness shrouded by black clouds. It was too beautiful to look at directly or touch. Rain and wind passed through it like illusions, unable to move it. It was so small but the entire world seemed illusory in comparison.

After staring for a long time, Sam said with uncertainty, ”Is it really…”

”Yes, it’s the Cereus.” Ye Qingxuan nodded. He reached out to feel the ‘sunflower’ but his fingers went through it as if it was air. In his vision, he saw his hand dissipate to fog before the flower and regroup after leaving it. The flower was the one that did not exist. However, before it, everything else turned into apparitions. It made no sense but it was real.

Ye Qingxuan sighed. ”One of the four living natural catastrophes, the Cereus.”

-

To musicians, the categories and names of natural catastrophes were a required course. Some natural catastrophes were kept secret for various reasons but most were not. This included the Cereus.

In reality, it was way at the bottom of the danger list, along with the Star Ring. The latter was an aether river in the sky; the former was a mysterious plant. They had no effect on mankind. Except for providing topics to discuss.

The true body of the Cereus did not exist in the material world. What they saw now was just a projection from the aether world, like an object’s shadow when sunlight fell upon it. Different from Hyakume, it had no influence other than the fact that it looked like a plant. It never reacted to interferences or interacted with other things. It even ignored the other natural catastrophes. Nothing could touch it either.

According to observational records, it appeared through pure coincidence. It would appear periodically anywhere that had an overly high density of aether and messy music theory. It would appear silently, bloom silently, wither silently, and disappear silently.

It would be categorized as a ‘phenomenon’ like the Silver White Tide rather than one of the four living things if not for its various botanical characteristics, such as growing toward the light.

”What a miracle.” After gaping for a long time, Sam nodded in satisfaction. ”Teacher was right. It always maintains distance between itself and the outer world. It looks like a hair’s breadth away, but no matter how you approach it, the distance will never disappear. It doesn’t want anything to do with anything.”

”Really?” Ye Qingxuan replied mechanically as he stared at the Cereus. He did not even know what Sam had said. The man seemed to say a lot before realizing that Ye Qingxuan was not listening. This ‘Indian’ youth sprawled in the mud and stared at the Cereus with fiery eyes as if it was a diamond. He murmured something and wild waves of aether rippled around him. He seemed to have received something. Enlightenment?

Sam was a little dazed. How could someone receive enlightenment from something like this? It was too weird.

Actually, it was totally worth it for most musicians to go thousands of miles to personally see the Cereus. However, it was just a rare sight for most. After all, not being able to interfer it meant not being able to research it. They could not even touch it. Without its appearance, it basically did not exist. And what value did nonexistent things have?

After thinking for a long time, Sam left without bothering Ye Qingxuan anymore.

Ye Qingxuan remained in the mud. He stared at the sunflower before him and mumbled something, deep in thought. Only the rain sounded in the silence.

As it pitter-pattered and the aether waves changed, the Cereus bloomed and slowly began to wilt. The petals withered, fell, and scattered in the wind. The flower bloomed and wilted.

Ye Qingxuan stared as the Cereus disappeared. The petals faded one by one as well. In the end, he could barely see the Cereus’s silhouette clearly. The final dreamy golden petal fell, withered, and floated in the wind.

Ye Qingxuan reached out mindlessly. His thumb and forefinger closed around the floating petal. He seemed to catch it but, at the same time, did not. The hallucinatory petal disappeared.

Ye Qingxuan remained in his position. He stared at his fingers blankly as if the nonexistent petal was still there. ”I see,” he whispered.

Boom! A thunderous sound shot out from his throat. The rain on him shook, turned around, and spread into the sky like fire! These were flames transformed from water vapor. Amidst the fire-like rain, the youth’s eyes lit up.

”This is how it is…this is the change of aether, interference of nature!” This was the core essence of the School of Abstinence! To this school, everything on this world was an image of aether. Therefore, there was no difference in nature. Everything could be constructed through music theory and could be changed through interference of nature. Therefore, by changing music theory, he could create fire and burn the rain.

The Cereus’s existence seemed to be still, but that was only to the ‘outer world.’ It was actually maintaining its independence by continuously changing its nature, stubbornly keeping distance from the world and breaking the connection of theory.

It was like a moat. It was on that side while everything else was on the other side. They could see each other but could not meet. What linked this process was the essence of ‘interference of nature.’

During his moment of enlightenment, the unclear understanding he had received during his days in the Naica Cave of the Crystals and his deepest confusion were linked together.

Ye Qingxuan had finally touched upon the core of the Seven Questions for Musicians—the true meaning behind the question of ‘abandon oneself.’

Since everything in mankind’s eyes was constructed by aether, then did this include himself? Did the concept of ‘self’ come from aether as well? He sank into deep thought.