Fusang Sword Heart Diagram

Chapter 297 Participating in Business
After passing the covered walkway, a lotus pond comes into view.

In the termite illusion, it should be early winter now. Withered branches and fallen leaves float on the water, and several servants of the mansion are dredging the withered lotus vines from the pond.

In the distance, a dark blue figure caught Ning Fusang's eye. It was the black-faced old woman, and judging from her hurried steps, she seemed to be rushing somewhere.

Ning Fusang followed without making a sound, and when they were alone, the short knife hidden in his sleeve revealed a sharp edge.

Mountains and seas remain forever, the sun and moon never cease. As long as the ocean in the outside world does not turn into mulberry fields, even in the illusion of termites, the binding force of the oath of the sea will not fail.

Therefore, Ning Fusang wanted to use this method to test the identity of the black-faced woman.

Just as she was about to make a move, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a shadowy figure appearing and disappearing behind the creeping vines on the wall.

Ning Fusang lowered his arm and slowly put the short knife into his sleeve.

Footsteps sounded behind her, and before she could turn around, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her away.

“It’s me, Bai Ni,” the girl said in a low voice.

There was no other way; Yaoling was too wary, so she had to reveal her identity directly, otherwise they couldn't cooperate.

Bai Ni could tell that Ning Fusang had just tried to stab the old woman in the dark blue dress in the back, probably to test whether the old woman was her by making a vow.

The two had already discussed this method before entering the termite illusion, so when Bai Ni saw the knife in her sleeve, she basically confirmed her identity.

As for her male appearance, Bai Ni was not surprised at all; she was also a man when she entered the termite illusion for the second time.

Anyway, each time I enter the termite illusion, my identity is different.

So even now, Bai Ni still doesn't understand what the termite illusion is all about.

She released Ning Fusang's wrist, looked in the direction the old woman had disappeared, and asked, "Why do you think that old woman was me?"

Ning Fusang, avoiding the main point, said, "In some ways, we are similar."

She lowered her gaze and asked calmly, "Have you left this mansion before? Is the termite illusion only this size, or is it much larger?"

The ease with which they encountered each other made Ning Fusang realize that the illusory world was a bit too small.

Bai Ni said, "I've been out once. As for how big the outside world is, I don't know, but it's certainly not small."

"By the way, Yaoling, when did you awaken your self-awareness?" she asked curiously.

Because Bai Ni herself had just woken up, she thought she would need to spend time slowly searching for Ning Fusang.

I woke up at sunrise.

As the warm sunlight shone on the threshold of the woodshed and fell upon her, Ning Fusang remembered everything.

She named herself Fusang to remind herself never to forget herself.

Bai Ni's eyes widened slightly; she hadn't expected Ning Fusang to wake up before her.

Having learned from her previous two experiences, this time she deliberately created a dream for herself before entering the illusion.

The termite illusion was a dream, and her dream was a dream within a dream. Bai Ni unraveled this dream within a dream, and thus awoke from the termite illusion.

This is thanks to her years of hard work and her mastery of the Dream Path. But Yao Ling has only just come into contact with the Dream Path. How could she have awakened her self-awareness earlier than her?
The two of them quietly sorted through the clues amidst the artificial hill.

Ning Fusang, with a clear mind, said, "Although this formation is called the Termite Remnant Formation, it is actually an illusion and a dream. Since it is a dream, it should have a dream master. You have been here twice. Have you found any figures that fit the description?"

Bai Ni shook her head: "I died very young both times." Her first identity was that of the daughter of a concubine in the mansion, but she died after only a few days. Her second identity was that of a servant in the mansion, who was beaten to death for offending a distinguished guest.

After listening to Bai Ni recount her experience in the illusion, Ning Fusang could only say that it was utterly devoid of substance and value.

She picked up a pebble and placed it in the center, symbolizing the master of dreams.

He then said, "You cultivate the Way of Dreams, so you should understand better than I do that dreams are illusions during sleep. They are essentially empty, intangible, and invisible; they only exist here..."

Ning Fusang tapped a pebble, saying, "If this pebble ceases to exist, the dream will also cease to exist."

This is the first method to break through the barrier.

However, it is clear that given Ning Fusang and Bai Ni's current situation, they are completely incapable of breaking the dream in this way.

Another way is to wake up the dream master.

If the Lord of Dreams could awaken, this termite illusion would not have existed for hundreds of years.

Ning Fusang continued, "The master of the dream is unwilling to wake up, either because the dream is too beautiful and he is unwilling to break it, so he continues the dream and gets deeper and deeper. Or, it is because his wish in the dream has not been fulfilled, and he has become obsessed with it, trapping himself in the dream."

Upon hearing this, Bai Ni seemed to be deep in thought, and said, "I think it's more likely the latter possibility. The overall tone of the Termite Illusion is melancholic."

"The key to interpreting dreams lies in first finding the dream's creator, fulfilling their long-cherished wish, and dispelling their obsession. But who could be the dream's creator?"

Bai Ni stared at the pebble for a long time, the few faces that flashed through her mind, but she rejected them all.

The termite illusion is not that simple; the obsessions of a small person cannot support such a vast dream.

No, she can't think like that.

If it really is some nobody who had a big dream, wouldn't turning that dream into reality be hellishly difficult?
Bai Ni thought for a long time and, based on her expertise in the art of dreams, made a deduction: "I have entered dreams three times, all in this mansion. I think we are not too far from the master of dreams."

"It's quite possible that it's the master of the manor."

Upon hearing Bai Ni's words, Ning Fusang also remembered someone. "My current identity is a servant in the manor, specifically responsible for boiling and delivering hot water for the young ladies of Luhua Pavilion."

The "reed flowers" in "blue flies compete for blood and reed flowers are broken" may also refer to the Reed Flower Pavilion, that is, that noble young lady.

Bai Ni knew that young lady, but had never met her.

If she had the chance, it would be great if she could be transferred to Luhua Pavilion.

After all, given Yao Ling's current identity, she certainly wouldn't be able to get in touch with this noble lady who is very likely the Lord of Dreams.

Bai Ni racked her brains for various solutions, but couldn't come up with any for the time being. Then she thought of another thing that she couldn't forget:

“Yao Ling, I haven’t had a chance to ask you yet, which star is being referred to in the ‘Li Xing’ in ‘Yi Guan Li Xing Ye Jiang Ming’?”

Ning Fusang picked up two pebbles, opened her palm, and said, "They are two stars."

“The star Orion rises at dusk and the star Sirius sets at dawn. Their positions in the sky and the times they appear are different, hence the saying that they will never meet, which is used as a metaphor for separation and distance.”

"Observing the stars from dusk until dawn" roughly means that he/she observes the stars alone from dusk until the stars disappear and the night is about to end.

This aligns well with Bai Ni's view that the overall tone of the illusion is melancholic.

"I'll find a way to sneak into Luhua Pavilion and get close to that young lady. Yaoling, when you go to deliver water, keep a close eye on her. She really might be the Lord of Dreams."