Side Story: Five People Cultivating Consciousness
At Wangshu Terrace, the night was clear and the soft moonlight shone on the smooth jade ground. All around was quiet, with only the soft rustling of the spiritual plants in the breeze.
Fang Li, Ye Wuyang, Shen Yunzhou, Ji Qianqiu, and Xie Chen gathered around an ancient stone table, and the atmosphere was initially somewhat subtle.
Ye Wuyang seemed somewhat absent-minded.
After a long pause, as if he had finally made up his mind, he stiffly took something out of his sleeve and gently placed it in the center of the stone table.
It was a jade slip with a warm, lustrous color, and its surface was engraved with runes that were difficult to understand.
"A chance find," he began, his voice as calm as ever, but a slight flicker in his eyes revealed a hint of unease. "A... perhaps interesting little trinket."
Fang Li was gazing at the moon with her chin propped up on her hand when she heard this. Curious, she turned her head, reached out and picked up the jade slip. Her fingertips felt a slight coolness. "What is it? A new sword manual or some strange formation?" She tried to probe it with her divine sense, but it felt complicated and she couldn't figure it out for the time being.
Xie Chen, who was nearby, reached out his hand upon seeing this: "Let me see." Fang Li handed over the jade slip. Xie Chen took it and immersed his consciousness into it. After a moment, his gentle face showed obvious surprise for the first time, even a hint of astonishment.
He looked up at Ye Wuyang, his gaze becoming very strange, filled with inquiry and disbelief: "Brother Wuyang, this...this method...is quite...unique." He carefully considered his words, seemingly unable to find a more suitable expression.
Impatient Ji Qianqiu immediately came over and shouted, "Hey Lao Xie, stop beating around the bush! What good stuff is it? Tell us quickly!"
Shen Yunzhou also probed with a wisp of his divine sense. Upon the brief contact, his brows furrowed slightly, and his cool voice carried a hint of doubt: "Shared perception? An unheard-of method."
Ye Wuyang pursed his thin lips, avoiding everyone's direct gaze, staring at the table, and offered a somewhat stiff explanation, as if trying to cover something up: "Ancient texts record... that it can supposedly allow the caster to temporarily communicate with each other. Perhaps... it will be helpful in improving teamwork when facing powerful enemies together in the future." This reason sounded high-sounding, but who among them couldn't hear the undercurrent of ulterior motives? His true intention was probably to use this opportunity to bring everyone's hearts closer together.
Fang Li blinked, looked at the jade slip, then at the group of people with different expressions, feeling a strange curiosity mixed with an inexplicable premonition.
With Xie Chen's detailed explanation and Ye Wuyang's slightly tense guidance, the five decided to give it a try.
Following the instructions on the jade slip, they formed a circle, palms touching, or connected by lightly touching the jade slip in the center with their fingertips.
The moment the last connection is established, the spell is activated!
Buzz!
A strange, tremor-like sensation swept through everyone's mind.
Fang Li was the first to be hit, feeling as if someone had suddenly ripped open her skull, instantly exposing all the complaints that she usually kept hidden and that occasionally popped up in her head!
"Those bastards really made me furious during our last argument!"
"I didn't sleep well last night because Shen Yunzhou's sword practice was too noisy!"
"Is the meat Ji Qianqiu grilled too salty again?"... These questions flooded the other four people's minds.
Her cheeks flushed bright red, and she wished she could disappear into the ground: "Ah! You... don't think such things! That wasn't what I really meant!"
Almost simultaneously, Ji Qianqiu's simple and direct thought rushed into everyone's minds like a torrent: "Catching that golden porcupine tonight and roasting it will definitely be delicious! The hind leg meat is the most tender, and the foreleg is chewy...hehe..." He even subconsciously smacked his lips.
Everyone: "..."
Beneath the cold exterior that Shen Yunzhou had always tried so hard to maintain, a thought he had never shown to anyone was magnified and exposed: "If I could just stay by her side quietly like this, watching her smile, that would be enough..." This thought flashed by, yet it was crystal clear.
Shen Yunzhou's ears instantly turned bright red. He tried to pull his hand back, but found that his palm was slightly attracted by the power of the formation and he couldn't break free for a moment. He could only mutter, "...Nonsense!"
The scene was even more lively on Xie Chen's side.
His habitually activated deduction mode had now transformed into an extremely complex array of symbols.
The dense barrage bombarded everyone's consciousness, leaving others dizzy and disoriented.
Meanwhile, the instigator, Ye Wuyang, is desperately trying to build a defensive line with his cold will in an attempt to maintain appearances.
But the faint hope in his heart was keenly captured.
His face stiffened as he tried to forcibly sever the connection, which only drew the attention of the other four consciousnesses, making him even more "curious" and leaving him nowhere to hide.
“…A mistake.” He practically spat out the two words through clenched teeth.
Little Liuli, who was watching the commotion from a distance while perched on a cloud platform, took it all in. She covered her mouth and laughed so hard that her fur trembled all over: "Wow! What a complete disaster! Host, your face is as red as a ripe spiritual fruit! Hahaha!"
On the Sendai, the scene was chaotic and awkward, with various thoughts clashing and intertwining.
Fang Li was filled with shame and indignation, Ji Qianqiu was completely bewildered, Shen Yunzhou was extremely embarrassed, Xie Chen was busy dealing with his spiritual consciousness, and Ye Wuyang was on the verge of social death.
"Don't panic!" Fang Li finally took a deep breath, suppressing her embarrassment, and tried to calm her voice. "Resisting will only make things more chaotic! Calm down! Just think of it as... just think of it as soaking in a warm spring, feeling each other's presence, and don't chase after those messy thoughts!"
Her words had an effect.
People began to relax and stop trying so hard to hide or reject things.
As your guard gradually lowers, the initial confusion and awkwardness begin to fade, replaced by a wonderful sense of tranquility.
The jumble of thoughts receded, leaving behind a deeper, unspoken understanding flowing in the heart.
They could vaguely sense each other's secure presence; an invisible bond connected the five of them.
They could more clearly feel a shared determination.
Protect this "home", protect each other, protect Fang Li and Ling'er.
Furthermore, when Shen Yunzhou has a flash of inspiration and gains a new understanding of a certain sword move, that inspiration can be transmitted to others more clearly and directly; Xie Chen's subtle understanding of formations is also more easily understood by everyone.
This was an unprecedented experience, as if five separate individuals had briefly merged into a more powerful whole at the level of consciousness.
Fang Li felt the four auras around her gradually calm down from their initial violent fluctuations. An indescribable warm current surged in her heart, dispelling all the awkwardness and leaving only a sense of peace.
Ye Wuyang's tense body relaxed unconsciously, and warmth quietly enveloped his long-frozen heart.
Shen Yunzhou discovered that the desire for "long-term companionship" was not unique to him, and this resonance brought him a strange sense of comfort.
Ji Qianqiu chuckled foolishly, feeling a warm glow in his heart, even more comforting than eating a roasted spirit beast leg.
Xie Chen smiled, abandoning all deductions, and felt this wonderful connection, thinking that this might far exceed the results that any deduction could yield.
After an unknown amount of time, the effects of the spell gradually faded.
The five people withdrew their hands one after another, their fingertips separating, and the strange connection gradually faded. They slowly opened their eyes.
Silence reigned on the altar. (Moon)
The light remained gentle, yet it shone on faces with unnatural expressions and lingering blushes.
Their eyes occasionally met, then quickly looked away as if startled.
The air was thick with an awkwardness that seemed impossible to dispel, and a hint of... indescribable ambiguity.
Fang Li coughed lightly, breaking the silence first, and tried to make her tone sound normal: "...Well, this method...is alright. It's just..." Her eyes darted around, "...Next time you use it...keep your head in check and don't overthink it." Her words lacked confidence.
Ji Qianqiu scratched his head, looking completely honest: "I wasn't thinking about anything... Oh, except for the roast meat..." He was still thinking about the golden-striped porcupine he had imagined.
Shen Yunzhou suddenly stood up, his clothes fluttering in the breeze: "...I'm going to practice my sword." Before he finished speaking, he had already turned around and disappeared into the moonlight with slightly more hurried steps than usual.
Xie Chen's hand, which was waving the fan, was no longer so steady as he tried to cover up his embarrassment: "This method... does have its unique aspects, and it is quite inspiring for collaboration... uh..." But his slightly red ear tips betrayed him.
Ye Wuyang's gaze fell on Fang Li: "...Next time, it will be better."
Xiao Liuli then hopped over, her eyes sparkling: "It's over? How was it? Did you feel like all your little secrets were exposed?" Before she could finish speaking, Fang Li, embarrassed and angry, covered her mouth and forcibly dragged her away.
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