Chapter 1381: The Textless Celestial Tome
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Entering through the mysterious golden doors, Xia Fan saw the blind old man, as well as a series of majestic sculptures.
These sculptures were carved from pure white jade, but their eyes were all made of gold. They were all very life-like, their gazes piercing. There were tens of thousands of them, and it was almost as if each and every one of them was staring right at everyone.
Right in the center of this mysterious room was an altar, though this one was a lot smaller than the other, somewhere between seven to eight meters wide.
Similarly, twelve of the sacred sculptures with the golden eyes were all around the altar. A Grade Nine energy crystal was slotted between the eyes of each one, and in that way, the twelve sculptures and twelve pairs of golden eyes formed an array.
Could this be a formation array?! Xia Fan was immediately shocked when he saw this scene!
!!
“Blind grandpa, where is this place?” Xia Fan asked the blind old man with a smile, his heart filled with curiosity.
The blind old man did not answer him. Instead, he pointed to the altar in the center and said, “Good boy! First, I want you to stand up there, and then I’ll tell you everything.”
Xia Fan promptly got up the altar and stood there, while the blind old man addressed the scoundrels behind him, “Bring me everything.”
The scoundrels handed over Xia Fan’s luggage, as well as all the gifts they had prepared for him, to the old blind man.
As the blind old man took them one by one, he flicked his right wrist and rubbed the golden ring on his hand lightly. Each and every item mysteriously disappeared, almost as if it was being sent into the ring.
Xia Fan watched this, wide-eyed. It was such a tiny ring, and he found it far too amazing that it was actually able to fit so many things.
Lastly, the blind old man took a book from his bosom, a thick and ancient tome bound with animal leather, and placed it into the ring as well. It must have been the gift the blind old man was giving to Xia Fan.
After everything was done, the blind old man took off the golden ring he wore on his right pinky and strode up to the altar, grabbing Xia Fan’s right hand and personally helping him put it on.
Xia Fan could clearly feel that the blind old man’s hands were trembling as he did that.
“Blind grandpa…” Xia Fan could not help but blurt out. He really wanted to make sense of what was going on.
Suddenly, something he was not expecting happened!
The blind old man thrust out both of his hands while Xia Fan was not paying attention to himself and grabbed Xia Fan’s head. He forced open Xia Fan’s eyes to meet his already blind eyes.
As their eyes aligned, the blind old man opened his eyes!
He had peculiar golden eyes; the glaring light that shone forth carried with it a powerful energy pulse at the same time!
“Twin Golden Pupils, open!” the blind old man exhorted, and his eyes shot forth two beams of golden light. This dazzling light penetrated through Xia Fan’s own eyes and went straight into his head, then to his brain. It rapidly gathered in his body, becoming an unstoppable torrent of energy!
This energy torrent was akin to a river bursting its embankment. It rushed through Xia Fan’s body, and surged right for Xia Fan’s brain!
In an instant, Xia Fan could feel as if a wall in his brain had been washed away by force, forming a small and special region inside his brain.
This feeling was indescribable. It was like the blind old man had helped Xia Fan open a door to a whole new world!
The years of grueling training on top of the nearly limitless amount of energy crystals had given him this st.u.r.dy foundation, allowing Xia Fan to gain a physique that was far superior to the average human. But at this time, what he was feeling was a pain similar to that of being tortured in Gell!
He wanted to scream in agony, yet he was unable to make a sound…
…
When Xia Fan next opened his eyes, he discovered he was sprawled on the altar. The blind old man had already stepped away with the help of the scoundrels. He was seated on a chair that had been prepared prior, appearing to be very tired.
Xia Fan was shocked to find that the blind old man was looking right at him with a kindly gaze!
He was not blind at all! All these years, he had been lying about that the entire time!
But for some unknown reason, the blind man’s eyes had already returned back to their original color: white eyeb.a.l.l.s with black pupils. He looked no different from the others, though Xia Fan could distinctly recall that his eyes had been golden just now. They had even shone brightly!
“Blind grandpa!” Xia Fan shouted.
He dashed toward the blind old man, but it was like he ran into a formless wall; the repelling force from it sent him tumbling back onto the altar.
He looked around and saw that the Grade Nine energy crystals fit onto the twelve holy sculptures were all s.h.i.+ning. Furthermore, as time pa.s.sed, the glow from the crystals was growing even more glaring; he had no idea when the formation had become active, trapping him inside the small altar area.
The blind old man saw that Xia Fan was awake and he smiled, “Truly you’re a child who had been fed energy crystals growing up; to think you’d wake up so fast after receiving my Golden Divine Talent.
“Blind grandpa, everyone. Just what exactly is going on?” Xia Fan asked anxiously. “Why am I trapped in this Formation Array? And why are all of you looking so sad?”
The scoundrels were hesitant to speak. They all turned to the blind old man, who looked around and softly answered, “These sculptures are the ancestors from my clan, the Twin Golden Pupils. This here is my clan’s ancestral hall, and I am the last living descendant from my clan.”
With that said, the blind old man chuckled bitterly, “It’s just a pity, that from today onward, the Twin Golden Pupil Clan will be eradicated. I’ve already used my Golden Divine Talent to create a seventh brain region for you, and I no longer have the power.
“Indeed, you heard me correctly. I created one! I managed to create a seventh brain region for you, someone who did not have it! In this way, from here on out, you’ll be just like us, becoming an ability user, and will become a true ability warrior.”
“I really wish I could see just what your ability will be and accompany you as you grow up, but alas, that isn’t something I can do. My nemesis will not allow me to leave.”
As the blind old man said this, everyone could hear a clap of thunder, and the entire ancient tomb began to shudder and rumble.
During this last week, lightning had been striking constantly, but now, the force from the lightning seemed to have been strengthened. Despite being in the deepest floor of the ancient tomb, everyone was still able to hear it loud and clear, and feel just how fearsome that power was.
The blind old man pointed upward, “Look, speak of the devil. Perhaps he has already sensed that I’ve lost my Golden Divine Talent and will no longer be a match for him, which is why he no longer hesitates to launch his attack.”
The scoundrels were all in shock, “The enemy’s here? Then what shall we do?!”
“The transportation array has only just been activated, Xia Fan has yet to leave!”
“We’ll stop them even if we have to put our lives at stake! At the very least we must hold them until Xia Fan can safely leave!
The blind old man waved his hand lightly at them. “No need to worry. Believe me, there’s no way he can stop this transportation formation.”
Xia Fan panicked, “No! I don’t want to leave! I want to stay with everyone!”
The blind old man shook his head and said in a morose tone, “Remember, you must live well from here on out. If you have the time, read that book I gave you, but make sure never to mention its existence to anyone.
“Go on, my child. What must come will come in the end, and those who ought to depart will do the same. There’s no such thing as a banquet that does not end, and I hope there will come a day when you will find your biological parents, the clan known as Skywing. But it’s really too bad that none of us have ever heard about just where that clan is.
“While I’m unwilling, it seems like the fate we share ends here today…”
Xia Fan watched as the blind old man slowly shut his eyes as he said his final words. After exhausting his lifelong cultivation to help Xia Fan create a seventh brain region, as well as send him away from the Holy Tomb planet, it seemed like he had finally run out of fuel.
The scoundrels hugged each other, tears flowing freely as they bade Xia Fan farewell.
“Remember, don’t be like us in the future. You must be a good person!”
“If you ever miss us, just hear the voices the machinist has recorded of us!”
“You’ll forever be our child! Our only child!”
Sentimental emotions rapidly swept up those in the final tomb of the Twin Golden Pupil Clan, as the Formation Array gathered in strength. In a blink of an eye, Xia Fan could no longer see the blind old man or the scoundrels; the white light surrounding him was like a wall that separated Xia Fan from them, and he was no longer able to see or hear any of their voices.
After a short while, this spatial barrier made of white light turned golden.
Finally, the light reached its peak and the s.p.a.ce began to change. An endless channel opened up, and Xia Fan was drawn into it.
At the very last moment, XIa Fan seemed to make out a strange voice that was filled with resentment echoing, “Undying old man, hand over the Law of Gold!”
…
——-
Planet Brenia, belonging to one of the three major federations in the Ashen Moon Universe, Starcloud Union…
Here on this night that was destined to be recorded in the annals of history, by the sh.o.r.e of a lake that was far away from a city, a weak glimmer of light flashed past.
After that glimmer of light dissipated, a young teenager appeared. He had a thin yet powerful physique, and with a slight curl of his lips, he looked like he was smiling even when he was not.
This teenager was none other than Xia Fan.
Sitting down in a daze by the lakeside, Xia Fan did not cry. He was never one who cried to begin with, as he was used to facing everything in life with a smile.
Whether it was tough training, or learning obscure scientific principles, Xia Fei would face them all with a smile. Even today, when he had to say goodbye to the scoundrels that had watched him grow up on the Holy Tomb planet, he was still smiling.
This was not because Xia Fan was callous, but rather that it was how he was born. All he knew was bottling up the pain inside him, and showing to the world the best side of him, no matter what.
After spending some time, Xia Fan finally figured out that the ring the old blind man had given him was a spatial ring, with an astoundingly large storage s.p.a.ce inside that measured one thousand cubic meters.
He took out the woolen blanket that had his name embroidered on it and wrapped it around himself. This was the only remnant he had that identified who he was, something he had kept underneath his pillow, which he had a habit of holding when he was falling asleep.
Xia Fan next took out the robot that the machinist had given him. It was a very small thing, no bigger than his palm. All it could do was perform countless simple motions, but it could imitate the voices of everyone from the ancient tomb. Hearing their voices was like having the scoundrels that he had spent his days and nights getting along with still by his side.
In the middle of the night, Xia Fan took out the book that the blind old man had given him. He opened it, only to find that not only were the pages in front of him devoid of words, it was an entire wordless tome.
How strange. This was clearly a tome that did not have a single word on it, so why would this be the parting gift the blind old man gave him, with an additional reminder to Xia Fan to read it often?
Xia Fan thought of that voice of his nemesis, asking for the blind man a book called the Law of Gold. Xia Fan had no idea if this was the very same, but he remembered clearly how the blind old man solemnly instructed him to not mention a word about the book to anyone else.
Laughing to himself, Xia Fan stored the wordless tome away and laid down on the gra.s.s with his eyes shut.
He felt very sad and depressed. The familiar faces were forever etched in his memories one by one. Those scoundrels had told Xia Fan to forget about the ancient tomb and everyone in it, but how could Xia Fan just do that!?
Though Xia Fan was well aware that there was no good person living under the dome. Be it the chef or the doctor; each and every one of them was notorious across the Ashen Moon Universe as culprits who had committed unforgivable crimes, but in Xia Fan’s heart, each and every one of them were nothing more than his loved ones!
Hate!
Xia Fan hated that he did not have the power to protect his loved ones!
—
As sleep took him, he found himself waking up again and again during the night from the nightmares that haunted him.
Xia Fan felt that if he could cry, perhaps it would alleviate the hurt he felt, but no matter how hard he tried, tears simply would not come out.
For three whole nights, Xia Fan did not eat or drink. He struggled with his pain and memories, like an injured beast, hiding by the lake as he licked his wounds.
Leaving the ancient tomb and losing his loved ones, Xia Fan felt that his life was bleak. He had no idea where he was, nor what would his future bring.
The only thing he could call fortunate was that he could feel a mysterious energy in his brain, stored at the place called the seventh brain region.
The energy there ought to be a special ability, a precious gift that the blind old man had helped create in exchange for his life. As Xia Fan grew stronger, the width of his seventh brain region should increase, and the rank of his special ability should also grow higher and higher.
“What sort of special ability do I have?” Xia Fan could not help but wonder as he curled up.