Chapter 93: White Bone Holding Up the Supreme Clarity Observatory!

Previously, Ye Qin's contemplation only stayed on the surface, unable to go deeper, so his contemplation failed.

The Supreme Clarity Observatory is different from other contemplation objects; it seems to have a deity yet also seems not to, and must be contemplated with a special method to work.

Merely looking at its appearance is not enough; one must deeply comprehend its underlying thought.

From outside to inside, using Daoist thought as an entry point, one can well understand this building, and furthermore combine it with the surrounding feng shui layout.

Now Ye Qin can achieve having no observatory in his eyes yet having it in his mind.

Even if he does not now look at the Supreme Clarity Observatory, its internal and external structure has already been clearly imprinted in Ye Qin's mind.

Originally it was only a rough outline and embryonic form; as he gradually entered a good state, an invisible pair of hands added bricks and tiles, and soon a complete Daoist temple appeared in his mind.

It felt as if he had built it himself with his own hands.

This feeling is completely different from before; after Ye Qin incorporated Daoist thought, he was quickly able to merge into it.

In his snake pupils there was a pure brightness, as if the final obstruction did not exist, as if that invisible barrier had finally been successfully broken through by him.

"Indeed, using the angle of Daoist thought as an entry point is correct; this approach might also be applicable to other contemplation objects."

"Since contemplation objects differ, the viewing angle also differs; therefore I must adapt to local conditions, act timely, and cannot remain unchanged."

Through this contemplation, Ye Qin gained much inspiration.

After all, for a Daoist temple as a contemplation object, it can be said ordinary, yet also extraordinary; the key is how to treat this existence.

If we call it a dead object, it adapts to local conditions, achieves harmony between heaven and humanity, the vital spirit qi surrounds it, continuously nourishing this building, bringing it much vitality.

Furthermore, being a feng shui treasure site, it forms a virtuous cycle.

Moreover, the surrounding environment has not been destroyed by development; although sparsely populated and remote, precisely because of this, everything still retains its original state.

If we say it is not a dead object, but the Daoist temple is merely a building, immovable, and not within the heavenly principle cycle, the constant seasonal reincarnation.

After a hundred years, if no one tends it, it will likewise decay and disappear.

Take White Bone for example: although it is a dead object, it once had life; the moon, clouds, and thunder also have not escaped the cycle, belonging to the seasonal turnover.

Therefore the Supreme Clarity Observatory differs from the previous ones.

But myriad changes do not depart from the essence; regardless of the contemplation object, the basic thought will not change.

After realizing this, Ye Qin's gaze suddenly became profound.

The Daoist temple in his mind gradually began to overlap with the real one.

In his snake pupils flashed golden threads, and it seemed as if purple lightning arcs streaked by, intertwining together and falling toward the distance, as if instantly piercing through the distance of time and space.

In a hazy way he seemed to see outside the observatory spring in full bloom, surrounding vegetation lush and thriving, representing the hope and vitality of spring.

In summer, the cicadas on the eaves cried hysterically, accompanied by the old Daoist's chanting of scriptures, together they endured the scorching summer.

In autumn, fiery red maple leaves fell into the observatory's courtyard; in winter, pure white snow covered the observatory in silver attire.

Spring, summer, autumn, winter—the four seasons change.

Although the Daoist temple did not directly participate in it, how could it not be another form of witness and participation?

At this moment Ye Qin's mind became enlightened; white mist slowly rose, swiftly spreading in all directions; in the mental illusion layer, a white bone more than half a person tall gradually coalesced, casting a human-shaped shadow on the real ground.

It sat cross-legged, like Ye Qin, with hollow eye sockets gazing toward the location of the observatory.

But upon closer look, the eye sockets seemed to have moonlight flowing within, and also appeared to have countless golden lights entwining.

These phenomena arose from Ye Qin's two previous contemplations; mortal eyes cannot perceive their marvelousness.

Ye Qin and the White Bone both gazed toward the observatory.

In the illusion, a mysterious force enveloped the observatory from above, then wrapped it entirely.

The entire observatory seemed as if it wanted to come alive; rumbling sounds continuously came from the earth, like a subterranean dragon turning over, or as if some slumbering giant beast had been awakened, responding to their summons.

That turned out to be an enormous turtle; the patterns on its shell were already ancient and worn, with some places even damaged.

Even so, its miraculous nature could not be concealed; throughout the long river of history it has been continually polished, and the shapes of mountains, rivers, sun, and moon have long been imprinted within it.

Arranged like stars scattered across a chessboard, orderly and clear, resembling a microcosm of the great thousand worlds, filled with endless mysteries and marvels.

The seasonal cycle is displayed on the turtle's body; each piece of its shell bears precious traces left by time.

The giant turtle looked at them, its eyes full of spirituality; it extended its neck, made strange movements, and appeared somewhat affectionate toward Ye Qin.

The sound is indescribable, yet one can hear that it carries some joy and excitement.

Although the turtle is famed for longevity, being able to live this long and attain such size is not common, and moreover its shell is full of the miraculous.

It seems as if truly there are the spirits of mountains and rivers, the essences of sun and moon, which have nurtured this place's spiritual qi, and thus the giant turtle was born therefrom.

Since ancient times people have used turtle shells to divine heaven and earth; it is said that thereby they communicate with all things and pray for favorable winds and rains, showing how miraculous this creature is.

Moreover, Xuanwu, one of the Four Symbols, is precisely the turtle's body.

The giant turtle slowly approached Ye Qin and the White Bone; its speed was very slow, and as it walked, countless green light dots scattered around, as if paving a road for it.

Its gaze was full of gentleness and auspiciousness, as if looking at an old friend long unseen.

Around, rumbling sounds continued; with each step the giant turtle took, the earth trembled, and countless soil and fragments of stone fell down.

Ye Qin looked at the giant turtle, and it was as if through the turtle he could see the entire observatory clearly, all its structures fully clear in his mind.

Its interior and exterior combined, complementing each other.

The giant turtle finally arrived at the place where Ye Qin was, nodding its head in a human-like manner, as if greeting him.

The White Bone slowly extended its hand; golden light clusters intertwined within it; the giant turtle seemed to sense something, its body gradually shrinking, slowly crawling into the White Bone's palm.

It seemed to have fulfilled its mission; its head slowly drooped, its form gradually dissipated, and all that vitality turned into countless points of light that poured into Ye Qin's body, nourishing his viscera.

Ye Qin could feel an extremely warm and heavy power wandering throughout his body; the power seemed weighty yet like water, without any sharpness, giving him a very comfortable sensation.

The highest good is like water; water benefits all things without contention.

The turtle's attribute is also water, and it can be said to perfectly match Ye Qin's attribute.

After the giant turtle's body dissipated, a faint outline gradually emerged in midair: first the signboard, then the pavilions and towers, followed by the main hall.

A Daoist temple appeared upon the White Bone's hand!

That Daoist temple is exquisitely crafted, a perfect one-to-one replica of the real-world temple; it could be said to be superb workmanship, with no difference even in the details.

Likewise, the wall paint is mottled, revealing gray concrete underneath, and even the tiles look as if a corner is missing, just like in reality.

Because of these damages and age, it looks all the more real.

But this does not affect its numinous quality; on the contrary, it adds a sense of ancient mystery. It is precisely these damages and imperfections that constitute the present Daoist temple, with a faint Daoist aura lingering within.

Looking through the temple's doorway into the interior, one can even see the scene inside, only much smaller, giving a feeling of a microscopic view; it is truly miraculous to the extreme.

It seems as if someone used a shrinking technique to reduce the real-world temple, evolving it into its present appearance.

However, the places where the deities are enshrined are somewhat blurred, as if shrouded in some kind of numinous force, making them impossible to investigate.

But upon reflection, this is quite normal, after all the statues are not ordinary; in some respects they themselves are a kind of numinous phenomenon.

Although Ye Qin contemplated the Daoist temple, this does not mean that those statues were also simultaneously absorbed into it.

Apart from the statues, everything else is lifelike and exactly the same as in reality, as if the entire temple had been moved over.

White Bone held the Daoist temple with his left hand, while his right hand's middle and ring fingers bent inward, and thumb, index, and little finger extended upward, forming the Daoist Three Pure Ones hand seal.

The entire White Bone figure looks extremely numinous, with golden lines swirling around its body, as if talismans were flowing and connecting into a strange pattern of symbols and writings.

A crescent moon flickered within its eye sockets, silver radiance sprinkling within, its eyes as deep and unfathomable as the universe, as if the lunar yin were nurturing within.

At the same time, lightning and thunder lingered, thunder booming, purple arcs of electricity enveloping it, making the Daoist temple in its hand appear all the more extraordinary.

Silver radiance and golden lines intertwined, forming a strange energy that was infused into the ancient, weathered Daoist temple; its originally dull colors gradually became bright, as if reproducing its former glory.

Only a small part of the Daoist temple was nourished, becoming brightly colored and extraordinarily numinous, while the larger half remained dim, but this does not affect anything.

"Contemplation successful!"

Time flew by; after three days, Ye Qin remained motionless and finally succeeded!

Looking at White Bone holding the Daoist temple, it was as if a Buddhist bodhisattva were holding a jade pure vase.

For a moment, even Ye Qin himself was stunned.

I never imagined that the Daoist temple would manifest in this way, becoming concrete upon the Origin Contemplation Object.

After all, whether it is the moon or lightning, they are only partial manifestations.

But now the Daoist temple has condensed an entire building into existence; although it is a miniature version, it is still enough to shock.

I don't know whether it can be expanded later.

As for himself, he has not yet noticed any obvious changes, nor has he discovered what ability he gained from this contemplation, but Ye Qin can feel a gentle force within his body; this should be the Daoist temple's nourishment in return.

……

In reality, nothing has changed; the Daoist temple remains a Daoist temple, with no appearance of any divine turtle, nor any scene of a divine turtle carrying the temple forward.

Everything still looks just as ordinary.

Because that is merely a materialization of a feng shui fantasy.

Outside, the sun shone brightly, cloudless for miles; sunlight fell upon the Daoist temple, gilding the entire structure with a layer of gold.

The old Daoist glanced at the weather: "Today's sunshine is nice; we can take out the scriptures to air them."

Because there is abundant vegetation nearby and it has been rainy lately, things get damp easily; to prevent the scriptures from being damaged or moldy, the master and disciple whenever they have a moment will move the scriptures out to air.

"Disciple, come lend a hand."

The old Daoist called to the young Daoist, and the master and disciple carefully carried out the scriptures.

Seeing the old Daoist clutching a stack of scriptures taller than a person, the young Daoist ran over, saying, "Master, take it easy, don't strain your back."

The old Daoist laughed heartily: "Don't underestimate your master."

Although he is old, he is spirited, his stance steady; after making several trips, his face shows no sign of fatigue.

This is also due to his long-term training; judging by his mental state, he doesn't even look like someone his age—one could say he is well maintained and has the art of preserving his youth.

On the contrary, the young Daoist broke out in a fine layer of sweat on his forehead; after wiping it, he couldn't help but say, "Master, your energy is also too great."

"If you usually practiced health cultivation with me more, you wouldn't refuse; otherwise you could be like me."

The young Daoist scratched his head: "I don't think I'm old enough yet to need it."

"You just don't understand; if you build a solid foundation now, you'll get twice the result with half the effort later. Your age is perfect for this; if you wait any longer, you might not be able to."

Upon hearing this, the young Daoist's eyes lit up instantly: "Then I'll start learning from Master tomorrow."

The old Daoist curled the corner of his mouth: "Good, tomorrow we'll get up an hour earlier."

The young Daoist's face immediately wrinkled like a bitter melon: "What! That would mean getting up at five o'clock."

The old Daoist gave him a sideways glance: "Of course, the day's plan lies in the morning; morning training and horse stance are most suitable."

Master and disciple chatted while moving all the scriptures and classics out.

Although the Daoist temple is not large, its collection of books is quite rich, passed down generation after generation; some even have a history of several decades.

One can see that the old Daoist cherishes and carefully maintains them; otherwise they would not be preserved so well.

After a while, master and disciple finally moved all the books out.

But the sky suddenly darkened; at first master and disciple didn't take it to heart, thinking it was just a passing cloud blocking the sun, which would clear up soon.

Who would have thought it would keep getting darker, until finally there was no light at all.

The young Daoist frowned and looked up: "What's going on? Just a moment ago it was still a big sun."

He wasn't reassured, so he checked the weather forecast again, which also indicated a big sun today.

The sky showed no signs; vast sheets of dark clouds gathered together, as if even the heavens could not bear such a burden, giving a feeling of being on the verge of collapse.

The old Daoist felt uneasy: "Maybe it's going to rain; let's hurry and put the scriptures away."

"What! We just took them out and now we have to put them back in!"

The young Daoist laughed through tears, but the old Daoist was insistent.

"Better safe than sorry; if these scriptures and classics were damaged, we would become sinners."

After master and disciple had put the books back, the sky remained gloomy, the clouds grew thicker, a cold wind blew, and both shivered involuntarily.

Although it is already autumn now, there has long been the saying of an 'autumn tiger'; after the start of autumn there is still a spell of hot weather.

This sudden chill really does not conform to common sense.

The sudden change in weather and temperature left the master and disciple puzzled.

The young Taoist was already cold enough to sneeze a few times, 'Master, what's going on? How did the temperature suddenly drop so low?'

The old Taoist also found it strange; having lived so long, he had never seen such weird weather.

When things go against the norm, there must be a demon; he suddenly felt inexplicably uneasy, wondering if something major was about to happen.

The young Taoist really couldn't bear it any longer, 'Master, it's too cold; I'll go back and put on more clothes.'

After the two of them went back and added a few layers of clothing, they finally felt much better.

They did not realize that, aside from the vicinity of the Taoist temple, everywhere else was perfectly normal—bright sunshine, cloudless skies—making this place seem like another world, a stark contrast.

Just because the two were immersed in the situation at the Taoist temple, while elsewhere people could see the direction of the temple, where a huge mass of dark clouds loomed overhead!

……

Within the urban area over twenty kilometers from the Supreme Clarity Temple, people bustled on the main street; the autumn wind swept a few green leaves from the landscaping strips, scattering them onto the mottled pavement, and even onto the hoods of passing vehicles.

The whole city had entered autumn, the summer heat was fading, the coolness growing stronger, but fortunately the leaves had not yet turned yellow, so it did not give a desolate, melancholy feeling.

'Huh, look quickly at that part of the sky.'

At that moment, someone on the street noticed the abnormality on the horizon.

The sky appeared split into two distinct sections, forming a clear-cut boundary like the Jing and Wei rivers or the Chu-Han frontier; one side basked in bright sunshine over the land, while the azure sky occasionally drifted with a few clouds, as beautiful as a painting.

The other side was overcast, with thick clouds gathering as if brewing a huge storm, making people inexplicably feel uneasy upon looking.

The two sides formed a stark contrast; such extreme weather is uncommon, hard not to attract attention, so many people stopped to watch and chattered about it.

'Strange, how did those clouds suddenly become thick over there? There were no prior signs.'

'I don't know; maybe it's just a local shower? The weather forecast didn't mention it either.'

"I think it doesn't really look like rain; it feels more like hail might be coming."

"This weather also looks a bit like it might snow."

"Brother, you must be joking—snow in September? How could that be possible?"

Some people paid no heed to this, while others were intensely curious.

One elderly gentleman glanced at the sky and the direction where the clouds were thick; his aged face showed a look of contemplation.

"If I'm not mistaken, there seems to be a Taoist temple over there? Earlier a little kid came asking me for directions."

If that were all, it wouldn't be worth their investigation, but what happened next exceeded everyone's expectations.

This also aroused great curiosity among many citizens, who wanted to go see the place where the weather had changed.

……

The temperature near the Taoist temple kept dropping.

The young Taoist was drawing water from the well when a white object suddenly landed on his face, bringing a slight chill; he instinctively lifted his head in bewilderment, only to see white fluff like willow catkins drifting down from the heavens.

The young Taoist's pupils contracted sharply, as if he had witnessed something utterly incredible, and his astonished voice echoed throughout the Taoist temple.

"Master! It's, it's snowing!"

The old Taoist heard the commotion, hurried out of the temple, and watched the snowflakes fluttering down, his face blank with bewilderment.

"Limitless Heavenly Venerable! It's really snowing!"

Snow flying in August and September has always occurred only in high-altitude regions or plateaus.

Having just entered autumn not long ago, it actually snowed—something utterly impossible in Wu Du; it can be said to be unprecedented, unheard of in history, completely beyond common sense.

As a southerner, the young Taoist rarely saw snow, and now he felt a bit excited.

On the contrary, the old Taoist vaguely sensed that something was amiss, his expression turning grave.

Snowing at this time, one does not know whether it is good or bad.

After all, the old saying goes, 'Snow in July foretells great disaster.'

Although it is now September, the principle is probably the same.

……

At the same time, not only them, but even Ye Qin, who was hiding outside the Taoist temple in a concealed spot while meditating, was somewhat startled.

"How could it suddenly start snowing?"

"Could it be—"

"This snow is falling because of me!"

Ye Qin extended his mental energy, carefully sensing, and soon detected a familiar aura within the snowflakes!

That aura resembled the previous Heavenly Tribulation, filled with an inexplicable menace!

It made him feel, in a daze, as if he had returned to the moment when his first Heavenly Tribulation descended.

The snowflakes landed on Ye Qin's body, melted, and released moisture that slowly seeped into his scales, as if penetrating every pore.

A piercing, bone‑chilling cold surged rapidly through his entire body!

Logically, given Ye Qin's current cultivation level, external temperature should hardly affect him.

Especially cold; as a Serpent Kind, he fears it the least.

Yet this cold actually penetrated from outside to inside, transmitted directly from his scales into his interior, even reaching his five viscera.

An indescribable cold spread from his very heart, even his blood congealing and freezing into ice at this moment.

Ye Qin could not help but shiver; under the low temperature, even the frequency of his serpent's tongue flickering slowed down.

Snowflakes harmless to ordinary people felt to him like a bone‑scraping steel blade—though seemingly weightless, their cold and pain already affected Ye Qin.

Even his thoughts grew sluggish; that bone‑deep icy chill was not only aimed at his serpent body, but seemed to target his soul as well.

The dense, myriad pains felt like ten thousand ants gnawing at his heart, making him almost unable to endure.

Ye Qin suspected he might freeze to death here today.

Soon, a thin layer of ice-blue crystals covered the whole snake body, masking the serpent scales' original color; those unaware would mistake it for an ice sculpture.

"My goodness, why is it so cold!"

Ye Qin remained completely still, even closing his eyes, making one suspect the snake had already frozen to death.

No one knew how long passed before a crack appeared on the ice-blue crystals, then spread rapidly like a spiderweb.

Faintly visible inside, golden light flowed and white gas intertwined, forming a protective membrane that enveloped Ye Qin's body.

Ye Qin shook his stiff snake body, "Good grief, I almost froze to death."

The Imperial Flowing Elixir and Heaven and Earth Qi kept circulating within his body, which gradually brought his temperature back to normal.

Although Ye Qin's condition was still not great, it was much better than before.

"Could this snowfall also be a kind of tribulation?"

Thinking about it, the possibility is still quite high.

Heavenly Tribulation is a type of heavenly tribulation, but heavenly tribulation isn't limited to just Heavenly Tribulation.

Besides that, there are other tribulations, such as wind tribulation and fire tribulation, even various heavenly disasters and the Five Defects of Heaven and Man, all belonging to heavenly tribulation.

In other words, heavenly tribulation is diverse, not fixed to only thunder and lightning.

Just like in Journey to the West, to obtain the true scriptures one must pass through the eighty-one tribulations.

Nowadays, the most widespread and well-known is the Heavenly Tribulation.

But as his cultivation level continues to expand and his realm rises, the tribulations also change accordingly.

Ye Qin couldn't help wondering if, because he had contemplated lightning during the last Heavenly Tribulation, this time a different tribulation was used to intimidate him.

Fortunately, Ye Qin could sense that this heavenly tribulation was merely intimidation, without any real punishment; otherwise it wouldn't be this simple.

"This intimidation is getting stronger; if a real heavenly tribulation ever falls, how will I survive?"

Ye Qin muttered, heart still pounding, wondering if the first heavenly tribulation might be related to his future transformation into a dragon.

Moreover, thinking of the itch on his body, Ye Qin couldn't help but worry more, feeling that this heavenly tribulation truly tormented people; even if it didn't come, it would still keep threatening him.

But from this one can be certain that later on, various kinds of heavenly tribulations may appear, and their power will only grow stronger, so he must prepare himself mentally in advance.

At the same time, while Ye Qin pondered the Heavenly Tribulation, Wu Du also caused quite a stir, and this secluded Daoist temple gradually became lively……

(End of chapter)