Chapter 280 Asahi's "Return" 2
I first looked at the forest that had opened up in the distance, and then looked back at the route we had come from.
The white mist truly disappeared, though in a way quite different from ordinary fog. It didn't gradually vanish from the front; rather, as we walked a certain distance, the fog thinned simultaneously in all directions, eventually disappearing completely. Therefore, even looking back now, we can no longer see the fog that should have enveloped the path behind us.
That was likely not a physically existing fog, but a fog that appeared directly within the mind. Therefore, from the moment one witnessed the fog appear, one had already been substantially affected.
Under these circumstances, Asaha was actually able to bring me out...
"How did you do that?" I couldn't help but be amazed.
Ma thought for a moment before answering, "I think... it might be because I'm a blessed cultivator who has awakened the 'Power of Return,' so I'm very good at retracing my steps."
"is that so……"
I was initially a little confused, then it suddenly dawned on me: "...No, that's how it should be."
A witcher's special abilities or learned spells reflect the nature of their soul. In other words, if the soul does not possess the corresponding nature, it cannot acquire the corresponding special abilities or learn the corresponding spells.
Even special abilities or spells that have been acquired or learned may become unusable due to subsequent changes in the soul. An example is Lu Youxun in the past, who became unable to use the "Possibility Clone" spell that he had once mastered because he no longer believed in the possibilities of himself and the outside world.
However, I think that not all special abilities and spells are closely related to the user's personality. For example, I don't feel that my personality has a passionate side, nor do I think that Zhu Shi's "Buzhou Mountain" reflects that she likes to find loopholes in people's lives. Similarly, Ma Zao doesn't seem to have any elements related to the keyword "return" in her personality.
According to Ma Zao herself, her power seems to be the same as mine, both of which are awakened; while Zhu Shi, although she has not said it directly, judging from her previous remarks, she first possessed her own special ability before being named "Buzhou Mountain" by the old man Zhu, which is also likely an awakened power.
This power, which is closer to the innate realm, seems to reflect not the user's acquired personality, but perhaps something closer to their innate soul. And this innate talent is likely not just reflected in rigid skill functionality, but will genuinely affect all aspects of life, producing a variety of unfathomable mystical effects.
While spatial transfer based on the power of reversion may seem impressive, it is likely a more complex and advanced application; in contrast, the act of "walking back on one's own two feet" is a very simple and basic one.
Sometimes, the more complex and advanced a skill is, the easier it is to deviate from the main point; while simple and basic methods are not necessarily superficial, but rather mean that they are closer to the core and are the origin that supports everything.
The fact that the white mist could block Asahi's incredible spatial teleportation but couldn't stop him from using the most ordinary means of movement is proof of this.
Asaha looked at me with her eyes, asking what I should do next.
"Can you take me into the fog again?" I asked.
"I'll give it a try."
She first said something conservatively, then walked ahead and led me to move again.
This time, she wasn't retracing her steps; it seemed she was moving along the route she'd taken away from the white mist. I didn't question her. Perhaps she didn't even know why she was going this way; she was probably just following the direction guided by her innate, mysterious intuition.
Soon, a thin white mist reappeared around them.
She did it again. What I couldn't do with my own perception, she could. This was certainly because my "specialty" in the area of power was "out of sync," but you have to understand that this white mist was an extremely high-level power that could sever the connection between me and the "fireflies," a power that clearly possessed the quality of disorientation. Yet she found the correct path in a weakened state where she could at most exert a level of power, which shows how profound the nature of her power was.
If there were a third person here, I would definitely make sure to show off to Asao in front of them.
“Since we can find a way back… can we also turn it around and find a way to ‘approach the core’?” I asked.
"The core?" she asked.
“I think this strange phenomenon of white mist must have an origin,” I said. “It’s somewhat meaningless that this strange phenomenon simply traps us in it without doing anything. Of course, the appearance of a strange phenomenon does not necessarily have any meaning, but as a strange phenomenon that appears in Moonshadow Mountain… in a place with a complex causal relationship with the Silver Moon, it is hard to believe that it would be so ‘lazy’.”
“This fog can even interfere with my consciousness, and I suspect its source is the Silver Moon. The reason why nothing has happened yet is probably just because we are still on the edge of the fog.”
In other words, the journey ahead is likely to be truly dangerous.
"Ma Zao, if you can't use spatial teleportation to go outside the fog, can you teleport inside the fog?" I asked.
She tried it and succeeded, instantly retreating to a position more than a meter away.
“Everything is normal. However…” she said uncertainly, “asking me to find a way to get closer to the core from the opposite direction… while it’s not impossible, the accuracy will definitely be far worse than going back to the beginning.”
"It's alright, it's much better than having no method at all," I said. "Next, let me tell you what to do when you encounter the Silver Moon... As soon as you see the Silver Moon, or sense the approaching mana fluctuations of other Great Completion level or above, you must immediately teleport yourself to the edge of the misty area, then escape at full speed, and after escaping, you must activate spatial teleportation again to hide in an even more distant place."
"I'll buy you time to escape, and I'll take care of all the powerful enemies—is that alright?"
“No problem.” She nodded seriously. “I will definitely not overestimate my abilities or hold you back.”
"That's good."
What I fear most is that Mazao insists on staying and fighting alongside me. Although I know she wouldn't be foolish enough to do something so irrational, things often go wrong because of assumptions and a lack of prior communication.
Thinking of this, I realized that I had made another assumption—Mazao didn't seem to know what Gingetsu looked like.
After I mentioned this, Asaho said, "I know her physical characteristics. Whenever I see someone similar, I will leave immediately."
"Just in case, it's better if you know what she looks like first," I said. "I remember Lu Youxun gave you some transcribed photos when he was tracking down the Humanitarian Affairs Bureau before. Do you have any left?"
"some."
Ma Zao spread out his left hand, and a blank photo appeared on his palm.
I wonder where she stored it before. This ability to summon and dismiss items at will is so convenient.
I took the mind-writing photo and focused my attention, trying hard to recall Silver Moon's appearance. I had used mind-writing photos before during the intervals of invading the independent reality space, so I had some experience with it. Therefore, this time it was quite easy for me, and I quickly printed Silver Moon's appearance onto the photo and handed it to Asaho.
Mazao looked down and examined the photo closely. She seemed to frown at the unusually beautiful face that was beyond human limits and could trigger the uncanny valley effect. She then nodded to indicate that she had memorized it and put the photo into her pocket.
We then began to venture deeper into the white mist.
On the way, looking at the fog-shrouded mountains and forests, Mazao seemed to be thinking of something else, and said, "I heard you say before that in the virtual realm, it seemed to be shrouded in fog as well..."
“Yes. But the fog there is thicker and darker,” I replied. “And there, we can’t even tell each other’s faces because we are all like shadows.”
"Little Bowl must be terrified," she murmured.
I recalled the first time I talked to Xiaowan. She was quiet and uneasy, like a timid young animal. I nodded in agreement.
“But now that you’re here, perhaps she can feel more at ease,” Ma Zao said.
“I hope so,” I said. “But she also said that we don’t really know each other very well yet.”
Asaha asked curiously, "Why?"
“Because we don’t know each other’s faces yet,” I said. “We’re just communicating in a virtual world… in a dream, just like chatting online. It seems like we know each other inside and out, but if we don’t even know each other’s names and appearances, don’t we feel like something crucial is missing?”
"I did tell her my name at the end last time, but since we've never actually met, we can't really say we know each other..."
In the end, I felt like a lightning bolt had flashed through my mind.
Wait, it seems like I can see the small bowl's true form right away?
The key point isn't whether I can see it myself, but whether others can know about it. Once that's achieved, the chances of finding the person with the same amnesiac as the small bowl in the real world will increase dramatically.
The premise is that there really is such a person suffering from amnesia.
"Ma Zao, you should still remember what the small bowl looks like, right?" I asked to confirm.
“Of course I remember. I spent a long time with her, day and night. We were together until the very last moment of the apocalypse,” Asaho said firmly.
"So... can you print her picture on the photo reader now?" I asked.
Ma Zao's eyes lit up; it seemed she had the same idea as me.
“Okay!” she nodded.
(End of this chapter)
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