Chapter 91: After the Sun Goes Out, It is the Moon

Before Lan Ting arranged the spirit-gathering array, the three of them had practiced individually, constantly consolidating and improving their Foundation Establishment cultivation. Once the array was on the second floor, the four of them gathered to practice, sharing their insights during leisure time, yielding fruitful rewards.

For instance, Lu Yang learned that Mangu would not recite the "Words of the Sage" while holding a horse stance, considering it disrespectful to the sage, but Mangu would hold a horse stance while reciting the "Words of the Sage."

For instance, Mangu learned that to train his mental strength, Meng Jingzhou often frequented brothels during the day, only listening to songs and doing nothing else, which was truly admirable.

For instance, Meng Jingzhou learned that when Lu Yang got food stuck in his teeth, he would use his ox-hair sword qi to pick it out, which was an entirely new method of cultivation.

For instance, Lan Ting learned that the Central Continent had once been refined from the stars.

"To think such a thing happened." Lan Ting stared blankly, deeply shocked, as this piece of information also resolved some of her confusions.

"What confusions?"

Lan Ting thought about it and felt it was nothing that could not be said: "As you know, the name of our Laurel Immortal Palace has a dual meaning. One is that the palace is filled with laurel trees, and the other is that the palace believes the moon holds a certain special significance."

The Laurel Immortal Palace was built atop a snowy mountain precisely to be close to the moon, showing the moon's status in the palace.

"When I joined the Laurel Immortal Palace, I asked Master why the moon held a special significance, what about the sun, and what about the other stars? Could we draw power from the stars, like the Big Dipper?"

"Master said the moon and the sun are fundamentally one entity. As for the other stars, she merely smiled with deep meaning at the time and said nothing."

"However, Master always smiles like that when facing things she doesn't understand, so I didn't pay it any mind."

"Hearing you say this, I think she probably knew the truth about the stars."

Lu Yang frowned: "The moon and the sun are one entity?"

Lan Ting nodded: "Originally I didn't know what that meant either. Later, after a class ended, two senior sisters were talking and one said, 'The moon is what remains after the sun burns out.'"

"The moon is what remains after the sun burns out?" Lu Yang was surprised, as this was a concept he had never heard of before.

Could it be that the stars across the sky are mere illusions, while the sun and moon truly exist, acting as two sides of the same coin?

Burning by day is the sun, and extinguishing by night is the moon?

The energy of the sun is terrifyingly immense. One theory holds that the sun is the source of all life, and to this day, people utilize the sun for cultivation, whether through visualization or comprehension.

If the sun is indeed the moon, where did all that energy go after it extinguished? That would have to be an unimaginably vast amount of energy!

Did the sun restrain this power at night, hiding it within its body to become the moon?

"Speaking of which, why did the Ancient Anonymous refine the stars across the sky, yet leave the sun untouched?" Lu Yang murmured softly to himself.

Losing the sun would plunge heaven and earth into darkness, causing all living things to wither and countless creatures to die. According to Cult Leader Chu, the Ancient Anonymous viewed human life as grass, so he likely would not have spared the sun out of mercy.

Meng Jingzhou suddenly asked: "Do you know of the Yaoyang Sect?"

"The Yaoyang Sect, one of the four great demonic sects?" Lu Yang knew very little about it.

"Yes, the Yaoyang Sect worships the sun, believing it possesses a certain miraculous power. When the sun awakens, all things will perish. They advocate self-destruction before the sun awakens to journey to the Paradise of Ultimate Bliss."

Meng Jingzhou said: "I mean no offense to the Immortal Palace. If the sun and moon are one, then the views of the Yaoyang Sect share common ground with the Immortal Palace, both believing the sun and moon hold a special existential meaning and possess terrifying power."

Lan Ting shook her her head, not thinking Meng Jingzhou was being offensive. Such views existed within the Immortal Palace as well, along with even more radical ones.

Meng Jingzhou offered a guess: "It's possible the Ancient Anonymous is hidden within the sun. The sun has hung in the sky since antiquity, and no one suspects it; it's a blind spot in our thinking."

Lu Yang offered another guess: "It could also be that the sun contains some immense power that even the Ancient Anonymous was unwilling to touch."

Whichever possibility it was, the sun and the moon were by no means as peaceful as they appeared.

"Forget it, let's not think about it. It's rare to encounter the Spring Gathering Festival, let's go out and enjoy ourselves." Meng Jingzhou gave up thinking and called on everyone to relax.

Rather than overthinking things here, it would be better to go home and ask the clan elders.

That bunch certainly knew more than he did.

Just like how they knew he possessed a single spiritual root yet stubbornly refused to tell him, saying he would find out what kind of spiritual root he had once he reached the Dao Sect.

As the Spring Gathering Festival drew near, the atmosphere grew increasingly lively. Various shops launched activities to welcome a massive wave of customers, and the barbecue shop entered its warm-up phase, giving away tofu masks with orders of grilled skewers, which were highly favored by children.

Colorful little flags could be seen everywhere on the streets, a tradition of Yanjiang County organized with government funding, said to mimic the colors of spring to welcome the season.

It was said that Governor Li had specifically instructed that the flags be put up quickly so as not to disturb the normal lives of the citizens, mobilizing many people for this purpose.

In truth, the speed of putting up flags would not affect the citizens' lives; it was merely Governor Li putting on a show for the public.

"Once these little flags are up, it really brings out the festive atmosphere," Meng Jingzhou smiled, noting that even the entrance of the barbecue shop had a small red flag planted outside.

"Come take a look, come take a look! These are books rarely seen on ordinary days!" An old man with yellow teeth called out by the roadside, piquing the interest of the four.

"What kind of books are you selling?"

"Martial arts secrets and out-of-print cultivation methods, everything you could want," the yellow-toothed old man smiled.

Meng Jingzhou flipped through them casually, his eyes suddenly lighting up as he found a manual: "Lu Yang, look, this book is absolutely perfect for you. If you're willing to practice it, I guarantee you'll reach the highest level."

Lu Yang looked at the cover: Toad Gong.

"Get lost!"

Soon, Lu Yang also found a martial arts manual and suggested Meng Jingzhou practice it: "This martial arts manual is practically tailored for you. If you're willing to practice it, becoming a Martial Immortal in the future is by no means impossible!"

Meng Jingzhou looked at the cover: The Sunflower Bible.

The two exchanged a look, chuckled, and kindly bought the manuals for each other.

Mangu, seeing the line "To practice this art, one must first castrate oneself" written on the first page of the Sunflower Bible, fell into deep thought: "Could it be that women cannot practice this martial art?"

Lan Ting did not hear Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou mocking each other; she was absorbed in reading a chapter-based novel.

It told the story of a famous courtesan who, seeking to redeem her freedom and reform her life in pursuit of true love, entrusted her life to a scholar. However, the scholar was weak and selfish. Though he truly loved the courtesan, he was ashamed to take a courtesan as his wife. Compounded by the instigation of his friends, he ultimately betrayed her, leading to the tragedy of the courtesan sinking her treasure box and throwing herself into the river.

Lan Ting wept as she read, feeling the courtesan was deeply pitiable.

Seeing Lan Ting immersed in it, Lu Yang craned his neck to read along, finding the story truly vivid and touching.

Leaning to the side, he caught sight of the title.

"Dream of the Green Bower"

Lu Yang: "..."

He felt the title gave off an exceptionally absurd sensation.