Chapter 342: The Lake Of Memories And Dreams
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“What did the Heavenly Demon make you go through for training?”
As we walked amidst the clouds of her Inner Realm, the master asked me this very important question.
I think she was a bit worried he might have beaten me too much.
But the truth was, it was quite equal now… I did beat him more than he beat me.
“Well, he first taught me about pain; you saw that, right?” I asked.
“Yes, I did; it was a dreadful thing that I hope never happens again,” she sighed. “But that is how he teaches his dreadful techniques, born from hatred and fear, and above all, pain, which unifies all suffering into one.”
“Yeah, that’s right…” I nodded. “He taught me Pain, the final Demonic Cursed Seal. I had also obtained another one on my own previously thanks to your teachings, master. It was called Martyr.”
“Martyr, huh?” she muttered. “That is indeed a unique seal that he doesn’t have, born from its combination with Hope?”
“Yes,” I nodded. “It is quite good and has amazing synergy with the other techniques of Hope. I’ve used it to both help friends when they’re close to dying and also to gain a part of their power.”
“Amazing, so this form of pain, to become a martyr, to become the sacrificial lamb for others… I suppose you could indeed call it a form of Pain, yes….” She nodded. “Maybe… maybe our powers aren’t as different?”
“I believe they’re opposite sides of the same coin,” I explained. “The Power of Hope and the Power of the Cursed Seals go well together, surprisingly… And I’m fairly sure you noticed it too when you saw that fusion between you two, right?”
“Hmm…” she nodded. “I suppose that… The power of our Martial Spiritual Arts, and everything related to them, all comes down to emotions, doesn’t it? The Positive Emotions are what create my powers, while Negative Emotions are what empower his ability.”
“Although emotions can be very different from one another as clear opposites, there are always certain emotions that connect even the most opposite ones,” I explained. “It’s a whole spectrum that is tied together.”
“Indeed, to think that you would help me comprehend my abilities despite always believing I’ve reached my peak,” she giggled. “I suppose it is never too late to learn new tricks, as much of an old dog as I am now…”
“O-Old dog?!” I gasped. “Please don’t call yourself like that; you don’t even look old at all!”
“Fufu, thank you,” she giggled. “You’re a good daughter that praises her mother’s beauty… But that doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you now.”
“Ah! Did we finally reach it?” I asked.
“Yes, this is the place,” she said.
We stopped walking as we stopped in front of what resembled a huge translucent lake in the middle of a landscape made entirely out of fluffy white clouds.
“Once I reached the Level of a Venerable, my Inner Realm developed a replica of the Nine Heavens,” she said. “Although it is certainly not as big and colorful as it once was, my Nine Heavens possess many of their properties. Such as being able to walk through these semi-solid clouds. Although the Cloud Step technique at a high level is required to keep your footing without eventually falling.”
I nodded, listening to her.
She walked forward and gently kneeled in front of the lake, dipping her hands in it.
FLUOSH!
Then, images suddenly materialized out of thousands of sparkles of white and golden light, forming visions of… her memories?
“Among the many wonders that the Nine Heavens once had,” she said. “There is one I managed to replicate within mine. This is the Lake of Memories and Dreams. In this Lake, whoever touches them will see their own memories and dreams, mixing together. This will create completely new and strange illusions. Many ancient immortals had lost themselves in the original version of this lake. Ultimately too attached to these visions, they were swallowed by them.”
“Oh…” I muttered. “They died?”
“Yes, they died,” she nodded. “It is a bit sad, but it has its good uses. I’ve already set up a special Heavenly Formation around it. With this, we’ll be able to finally let you ascend and obtain the last ability I will teach you.”
“Nice!” I said. “So how do we do it?”
“You must face these dreams and memories mixed together, hundreds of “what ifs” that make you so happy, you wish they were real, and make you lose yourself in them,” she said. “You will fight them, you will destroy them, and you will shatter them, one after another.”
“E-Eh?!” I gasped. “But that’s…”
“Did you think that the power of the Heart of Hope was all about meditation and peace? You were mistaken, my dear daughter,” She stood up again as the visions dissipated. “The power of the Heart of Hope is about forging a brand-new future for those that have given you their Hope as power. You fight for them, you live for them, and you dedicate… your future and your happiness… to them.”
Her face seemed slightly weird; it was a combination of sorrow, regret, but also happiness and gentleness.
So many mixed emotions within her face…
It is as if she still feels slight sorrow for being unable to do whatever she wanted in her life.
But at the same time, she feels happiness because she has fulfilled the hopes and dreams of many before, saving so many and making this world a better place back then.
“Anna, to be able to perfect the Heart of Hope… you must abandon all selfish dreams that belong to or rotate around “you”. You must dedicate yourself thoroughly to the hopes and dreams of others,” she sighed. “This is the painful truth. I know you aren’t like that. You are different. Although you love to save and help others, you also possess a selfish side. One similar to him…”
She glanced into the distance, clearly referencing the Heavenly Demon.
“I know it’s painful, and I don’t want to force you to walk the same path I did,” she said. “I will… never regret what I did. I will never regret having made so many people happy. And even as ugly as it sounds, I don’t regret… giving less time to my son to dedicate myself to saving more people or helping them.”
“Master…”
She smiled bitterly as she looked into the lake’s reflection of her face.
“I’m pathetic, aren’t I? Instead of prioritizing the treasures of my life… instead of staying by the side of my love, and instead of spending more time raising and loving my son… I spent most of my time handling thousands of different matters within the Heavenly Court…” she sighed. “The world… was my responsibility, and this responsibility was my chains, my shackles.”
She looked back at me.
“This is not something I want you to do,” she said. “This is not a responsibility… nor a path I want you to walk through, Anna. It is painful, and at times… it’ll make you take terrible decisions over the benefit of many, even if it means sacrificing those you love.”
“Yeah, it’s horrible…” I nodded. “I don’t like it at all either…”
She nodded.
“But you’ve changed, Mom.”
“Huh?”
She looked at me with slight confusion.
“You accepted me as your disciple, then as your adoptive daughter…” I said. “All those acts were selfish; they were… You did whatever you wanted to do, didn’t you?”
“B-But that’s… I did it with the future of this world and its people in mind,” she said. “It was not… selfish!”
“Sometimes, both things can combine at the same time,” I said. “Sometimes the future of this world and its people might be secured by doing something selfish too; have you never thought about that?”
“Hm, I have but…” she muttered. “I… well… the world has changed. Pangea has sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Over 99% of the world’s population is gone. I suppose I was only able to free myself from such shackles when everyone died… What a horrible thing to say, but it’s true.”
“Yeah, I know it's dreadful and horrible…” I nodded, sighing. “But at the end of the day, this changed you anyway. You’ve become more selfish now that there are fewer people to take care of. Now that the world has reached such a terrible almost end… you can finally relax.”
“What… are you trying to say, Anna?” She wondered, confused.
“Ah, what I’m trying to say is that it’s fine to be a little selfish sometimes! I also want to help everyone and will not stop until I do… and that is not just out of goodwill; it’s also my own selfish desires,” I said. “Goodwill and selfishness aren’t complete opposites that cannot coexist. The contrary! They go hand in hand... and my path might be similar to yours, Master, but I will do it differently. My selfishness, my own dream, is to save everyone.”
Her eyes widened slightly, smiling.
“I see…” she smiled, giggling. “I’m sorry. Perhaps my grief and my sorrow blinded me from the truth of your words… Hahahah. Anna, you’re so unique… you’re so different compared to the people of this world. I sometimes find myself... simply shocked when I hear you. My daughter, you truly belong to another world. What wonders have you seen? What friends have you made? I can’t help but selfishly want to one day… meet them.”
“I’ll make it a reality, for sure!” I nodded. “That is also something I want after all.”
She quickly stood up and walked towards me, patting my shoulders.
“Very well then, Anna!” she nodded. “I accept that path you want to walk through. You’ve already absorbed the path of the demon, and now, you’re going for the path of the orthodox? It's utterly impossible for you to maximize both at the end… So from the very beginning, you intended to forge your own through the pillars made with ours, hm? What a cunning little treasure you are. You’ve tricked the two of us, fufu.”
“Did I?” I wondered. “I’m fairly sure that you knew from the very beginning… But you accepted me as your disciple anyways, even when you knew I would walk a different path than yours.”
“Yes… perhaps that was my own selfish desire,” she nodded. “To let you walk your own selfish path… now. I don’t even know if it’ll work, but you’re free to try. Go into the Lake, face the memories and dreams put together. And face all these “what ifs”. Show me that your path can awaken the Heart of Hope the same way my path of self-sacrifice did.”
“I will.” I nodded, walking into the lake. “I’ll come back by dinner!”
“I will watch you attentively, so don’t worry,” she said. “However… I will not save you if you’re about to die, as it is part of the ritual. Be careful.”
“Don’t worry, I got this,” I winked at her.
I ran into the lake and then jumped.
Let’s do this!
SPLASH!
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