Kaidan and Anomalies, mystical phenomena.
Ghosts and Evil Spirits, Curses and exorcisms.
And, most importantly, Extraordinary Power.
Shao Qiming had once believed in all of this from the bottom of his heart, with the same conviction he held for classical mechanics.
Seeing is believing. For a clever person like himself who had personally experienced and proven something to be true, why get tangled up in doubt? Did he really need to verify it again and again with apprehension, performing one Secret Ceremony and Orbit after another? Did he have to wait until he'd conjured something beyond his control and was weeping with regret before he could finally admit it?
It was unnecessary. If being willing to believe what others considered abnormal was so-called 'chuuni,' then that definition was far too flattering.
However, not long ago, in the instant that the Holy Artifact Su Zhou called the 'True Cross Fragment' was pressed against his chest, Shao Qiming finally understood.
His past conviction had been just like classical mechanics: a system built on the conditions of 'macroscopic, low-speed motion, and non-extreme gravity.' It was merely a castle in the air, built upon a host of assumptions.
It was only because of his frail body that he couldn't choose hobbies like soccer or singing. So, with practically his only friend, he had resorted to playing the 'mystical game' of 'collecting Kaidan and Anomalies'—something that didn't require physical strength and was based on childhood memories that may or may not have been hallucinations.
It was a shallow belief, born of wishful thinking. A self-absorbed, self-satisfying conviction.
In essence, it was nothing more than self-deception.
"Azhou..."
Sighing softly, Shao Qiming spoke his friend's name, his face looking a bit desolate. "So, it turns out I never understood you at all."
'You're a true Superpower User, someone with one foot already in the world of the Extraordinary. In your eyes, you who have such Strong Conviction, my so-called belief must have seemed pathetically shallow.'
'But now... things are different.'
Shao Qiming raised a hand to his chest, where a small pouch held several wood fragments. An unmistakably real Hallucination even appeared in his mind: clear, warm light spilled from the pouch, flowing through his entire body.
'This is the truth—at least, right now, at this very moment, it is.'
'The Curse... Heh, it's a no-brainer. It must be my father's business rivals.'
Su Zhou's figure had already disappeared around the street corner. The intelligent young man sat back down in front of his computer, his gaze gradually darkening, taking on a ruthless glint. 'They can use a Curse to deal with my mother and me, but my father's businesses haven't been hindered. This means their public-facing strength isn't great. They're likely one of the rivals Father defeated years ago, someone who doesn't dare retaliate openly for fear of attracting the government's attention.'
'But even so, this is a secret society hiding within modern society, camouflaged with legitimate identities... What kind of mindset must they have had, to curse a woman and a child?'
—'A sense of superiority, venting their rage, a sinister sneer, and casually commanding a Ghost to torture or kill two living beings.'
Shao Qiming was a clever man; he figured this out easily.
That was why he felt humiliated and furious, along with an indescribable sense of sorrow and disgust.
Against the hidden Extraordinary, ordinary people were almost completely defenseless. A chance crossing of gazes on the street, a sudden whim to test something, a pleasant hobby, a casual attack—any of these could change a person's destiny forever.
But precisely because Shao Qiming was a clever man, he understood that this was not the time for messy outbursts or gritting his teeth. Anger stemmed from a sense of powerlessness; the weak were the most prone to rage. And from the very beginning, he knew exactly what he had to do, how to get his 'retribution'—or rather, his 'revenge.'
He had the means.
'Besides money and Azhou, I have nothing.'
'But that's enough—more than enough.'
Sitting at his computer desk and drawing up a plan, the young man's expression calmed, and a strange smile touched his lips. 'My brother is a powerful Transcendent, blessed by a 'Great Being'! No one would ever guess. All I have to do is support him with everything I have. That's all it will take.'
'After all, when it comes to courage and the ability to take action, I can't compare to Azhou.'
'Not afraid of snakes, bugs, heights, or even death. Not even afraid of Extraordinary Power... Someone with that kind of mindset could be called brave, or even fearless.'
'But true 'courage' is the ability to face a completely unknown, unpredictable future and still step forward without hesitation, and to bear the consequences and costs of every choice you make.'
'Though, perhaps it's a little late.'
'But I want to witness the light of that world, too.'
He opened a folder and pulled up a list. After a moment's thought, Shao Qiming chose a name he recognized and made the call.
"Hello? Is this Brother Da? It's me, Qiming. Don't call me that... okay... I need 1,500 grams of Silver right now. Yes, that's right. Keep it confidential."
"Hello, is that Uncle Jun? It's me, Qiming. I need 400 grams of Gold right now... Just for fun, I want to have some jewelry custom-made... Yes, a gift. Don't tell my parents, okay?"
"..."
Just as Shao Qiming was splitting up the material requisitions, using plausible excuses to commission different people—all to prepare for his friend, and in a way, for his own future as well...
Meanwhile, Su Zhou had returned home. He'd stopped by the Zhicheng Flower and Fruit Shop on his way and brought back the potted apple tree Brother Chen had prepared for him.
"If there's anything you're not sure about, just ask me."
The prematurely-aged owner, who was nearly thirty, said with a laugh, "I may not have much confidence in other things, but when it comes to cultivating potted fruit trees, I'm a master!"
Su Zhou believed him, of course. After all, the man's skills had even been praised by his own mother, a woman with exceptionally high standards. His craft just couldn't quite compare to the Snake Spirit's Dao of the Extraordinary!
"This man has a trace of Wood Spirit Qi about him," Yara commented impartially. "At least he's doing something he loves and is suited for. That's quite good."
"That's pretty enviable," Su Zhou remarked.
He said he was envious, but in truth, everyone knew... Su Zhou had no time for idle chatter. The moment he placed the potted apple tree on his windowsill, the Snake Spirit began rattling off a continuous stream of commands.
"First, go boil a pot of Holy Water—don't look at me with those doubtful eyes, you still remember how to make Holy Water, right?"
"Then, take out the bottle containing the Shelter Cross and take out the high-concentration Holy Water inside."
"'Take out'? You mean 'pour out,' right? Yara, your grasp of verbs is terrible."
Su Zhou was still wondering how one was supposed to 'take out' water, but when he opened the glass jar holding the Cross, he found that after a day of settling, the Holy Water inside had become just like...
"This stuff is also Holy 'Water'?!"
To put it in simple terms, it was like fish aspic, or maybe a light pudding. In any case, as Su Zhou poured out a jar of the springy, gelatinous Holy Water, he was flabbergasted. "I bet you could add some sugar to this and sell it as a dessert!"
"You don't actually think Holy Water desserts don't exist, do you? You probably have no idea that the highest purity Grade 0 Holy Water is actually a solid crystal, like rock sugar. Not only can it be used as a food ingredient, it can even be used as a material for weapons!"
With a laugh, Yara urged him on. "This is probably around the purity of Grade 4 Holy Water, about the same consistency as turtle jelly. If you wanted to precipitate Grade 0 Holy Water, which can bring the dead back to life and flesh out skeletons, you'd probably have to let it sit for over half a year. Still, for what we're doing now, this will have to be enough."
"Su Zhou, dig up the soil, mix this Holy Water gel with the Wisdom Tree Branch Wood Powder, and place it around the roots of the potted apple tree. Recite the names of the Saints, fill the soil back in as a Secret Ceremony, and finally, pour a pot of hot Holy Water over it from above. That should just about do it."
"'Turtle jelly'... Let's not get into why you know more about our local specialties than a Zhengguo native like me, but I have to ask... are you sure this isn't just fertilizing the plant?"
Despite his skeptical expression, Su Zhou did as he was told. He first refilled the jar for the Shelter Cross with Holy Water, then followed Yara's instructions to complete the Orbit, step by step.
Of course, though his hands were busy, his mouth couldn't stop. "Did you know, Yara, I planted a tree on Arbor Day once? My homeroom teacher even named me an 'Arbor Day Activist' back then..."
"Ugh, enough nonsense! You're from Zhengguo, fine, but can't I be a Zhengguo snake? Hurry up and get to it!"
"Okay. SPLASH..."
Making sound effects with his mouth, Su Zhou lifted the pot of boiling Holy Water and, without a second thought, poured it right over the poor, potted apple tree. The moment the boiling Holy Water touched its leaves and branches, a massive cloud of steam billowed out, glowing with a faint, milky-white light.
Su Zhou immediately caught a scent that was incredibly sweet and clear, a refreshing fragrance. It wasn't the smell of scalded plant matter, but a sweet aroma like milk and honey, yet it was also exceptionally ethereal and fresh.
"Open your Spiritual Vision," Yara instructed. But Su Zhou had already acted on instinct, opening his Spiritual Vision a moment before.
And so, he could see.
Beneath the small plant, ten rings of light were illuminating one by one. They spilled out from the little flowerpot, through the cracks in the soil, like rays of sunlight breaking through dark clouds.
—First, 'Kingdom,' then 'Foundation.'
The light ignited from the very bottom, a blazing, pure white. Its radiance could pierce through all matter, reflecting a sanctity from the deepest part of the Spirit Realm.
They gathered at the fruit tree's roots like a cluster of crystals, enabling it to grow into the Spirit Realm and take root in the domain of the Extraordinary.
—Next came 'Glory,' 'Victory,' 'Beauty,' 'Severity,' and 'Mercy.'
A series of sacred lights flashed like distant stars, appearing and vanishing around the tree, which was shrouded in the mist of Holy Water.
He could faintly hear a sudden roar from a distant place, like thunder descending from the Supreme Heaven. It brought gusts of warm wind that swept over the mundane fruit tree's trunk, carving a sacred emblem upon it.
—Following them were 'Understanding' and 'Wisdom.'
It was as if an Angel had ignited a Fire Sword. Sacred Spiritual Fire and pure white light transformed into a cloud-like mist, swirling around the treetop. Vaguely, overlapping phantoms drifted within, as if about to create a world of splendor.
From 'Matter' at the roots, to 'Formation' in the trunk and 'Creation' at the crown, a wavering halo of 'Archetype' finally coalesced at the very peak of the Mortal Wood. A flame of condensed Holy Light burned there, as if waiting for something.
Without needing a prompt from Yara, Su Zhou understood what he had to do the instant it appeared.
So he reached out and touched the flame. A faint stinging sensation pricked him, and Su Zhou felt a portion of his Spiritual Energy overflow. It transformed into specks of violet-cyan light that flew into the heart of the flame.
The moment that minuscule amount of Spiritual Energy sank into the flame, it erupted and expanded like a singularity!
—Finally, the 'Crown' was forged.
Here, a mundane thing was sublimated. A soulless branch of wood gave birth to an Essence Soul. In the Spirit Realm, a plane independent of the Material Realm, a tiny sapling of Spiritual Essence took root in the light above the 'Apple Wood,' sprouting and unfurling a tender leaf—
If any experts in related fields of Mysticism or any of the ancient Saints had witnessed this scene, their jaws would have surely dropped in astonishment.
For after the sprout emerged and a single, verdant leaf unfurled...
The Essence Soul nurtured by the entire 'potted apple tree' transformed in an instant into a sacred crown, seeming to represent the Authority over the entire world of light.
Then, trailing a faint stream of light, it plunged right into Su Zhou's Soul!