The myth begins with the Lotus Lantern

Chapter 14 Opening your mouth

The confusion was answered.

Ding Lin didn't plan to stay on the water any longer.

With a flick of its tail, it dived into the water.

"You really are..." The fairy servant smiled by the pool, then quickly withdrew her smile. "I'm going to go into seclusion. I may not come here again for a long time."

Ding Lin paused in his diving action, then resumed it. He continued to swim downstream until he reached the bottom of the water.

Then, he began to refine the pill as usual.

When Ding Lin woke up again, he had reached the 153rd year of his Taoism.

Ding Lin waved his tail and floated to the surface again.

On the shore, the fairy maid had already left. This time she stayed for a shorter time than before.

A gust of night wind blew by.

The whole yard was desolate.

Ding Lin looked up at the bright moon, seemed stunned for a moment, and then closed his eyes again.

Continue to practice.

……

As expected, the fairy maid never came again.

……

Ding Lin returned to the state he was in when he first came to this world.

Some are different, and some are the same.

At that time, he lived in a lake with fish, shrimps, turtles and crabs, lotus leaves reaching the sky and lush aquatic plants.

Now, there is only this small space and a courtyard of sky.

At that time, when I first arrived, I knew nothing about the new world. I was a fish feeling lonely and fearful.

Now, I am already familiar with the environment and know where I am. Although it is only in this small place, at least I have enough food and clothing, and I am safe.

At that time, not long after, Qingyi came.

Now, the fairy maid no longer comes.

……

Fortunately, I can still practice.

After each session of practice, your spiritual attainment will increase a little bit, and this is the result of effort that can be seen in return.

but……

It was the middle of the eighth year, counting from the night the fairy maid said goodbye.

There is no response.

I don’t know if my cultivation has reached a bottleneck.

Or maybe his cultivation level has reached the limit of what his physical body can accommodate.

In the following days, no matter how much Ding Lin practiced, his Taoism no longer improved.

Two hundred and thirty-seven years.

Freeze at this point.

……

Another year.

early morning.

Ding Lin opened his eyes. The sun was rising and the sunlight shone in his pupils. His eyeballs were gray and motionless. After silently biting a lotus leaf, he leaned against the pond and looked at the sun, just like when he first came into this world.

The days seem to remain the same.

I still practice every night.

I still feel hungry after each practice.

What we still eat is lotus leaves.

But it is true that there are changes, and some things no longer exist.

Disappeared.

That thing is called...

hope.

Check your cultivation again.

really.

Two hundred and thirty-seven years.

No increase or decrease.

Ding Lin couldn't remember how long it had been since he last recorded time.

Pointless.

The reason why I still insist on practicing every night is simply because I’m used to it.

After all, alive.

Gotta...

Find something to do.

The period of time when your cultivation level just stopped growing.

Ding Lin often looked forward to the arrival of the fairy maid. He refined his throat bone and waited by the pool every night, hoping that she could bring him a solution to his problem.

Retreat?

Since there is closure, there must be exit.

Night after night...

The fairy maid never came.

Yes, she is a fairy servant.

The fairy servant who serves the Three Holy Mothers may be a fairy himself.

How long does it take for an immortal to go into seclusion?

ten years?

century?

And what about yourself?

A carp.

A hundred years of cultivation can only allow a carp to live for a long time.

ten years?

century?

Perhaps, by the time she came out of seclusion next time, she would have become the nutrition for the precious lotus lantern. Night after night...

During that period, Ding Lin did not practice, as there was no effect anyway. In his anxious waiting, hope arose, and because of hope, the nights became longer.

Bored.

Ding Lin counted the lotus leaves in the pond.

Piece after piece.

Counting the stems under the lotus leaves.

One after another.

After counting them all, he began to count the white lotus in the middle of the pond, counting its petals one by one, and the stamens inside that were thinner than a needle.

Count once, then count again.

Slowly, hope turns into disappointment.

I don’t know how many times I counted it.

Ding Lin looked towards the bottom of the pool.

I started to count the fine sand at the bottom of the pond one by one...

Then disappointment turns to despair.

Finally, the last grain of white sand was counted.

Give up.

Started practicing again.

It’s not because I still have any thoughts, but because during my practice, the night passed in the blink of an eye.

Only daylight remained.

Just endure it.

Then, slowly.

Numb.

Ding Lin didn't know how to describe this feeling.

Probably like an iceberg.

The wind and snow over the years have accumulated layer by layer, piling up bit by bit.

Until a certain day.

Suddenly, I discovered that at some point, the innermost part had become hard and cold as steel.

……

I still remember the time when my larynx had just opened, and I seemed to often mutter to myself.

Then he became less and less talkative.

a fish.

Who can I tell?

Finally, silence returned.

Just like before I could speak.

Ding Lin looked at the sun silently.

I was in a daze, and suddenly an idea came to my mind.

speak.

The thought was so strong that it was impossible to ignore.

say?

Ding Lin thought about it and decided to follow his heart. He tried hard to recall, but his rusty mind was no longer as sharp as before.

I thought about it for a long time.

Ding Lin finally vaguely remembered how he spoke before.

It seems that I should open my mouth first.

Somewhat hesitant.

The fish lips moved.

No sound came out.

It doesn't seem right.

This is the wrong place. Should we talk in the water?

Ding Lin slowly dived into the water.

His mouth opened again and a long string of bubbles emerged from the water.

From early morning to noon.

And from noon to dusk.

Ding Lin swam out of the water again.

look up.

I don't know when the sky was already full of stars.

Midday on the moon.

Ding Lin was stunned again.

Tonight, there is a full moon.

Suddenly, an inexplicable emotion surged into my heart. There were thousands of frustrations, but all of them were the same kind of sadness...

Open your mouth subconsciously.

"Ugh!"

Under the moonlight, a gentle sigh.

But it was not made by Ding Lin. He was stunned for a moment, then slowly turned his head, his body dragging on the water, causing a circle of shallow ripples.

In an archway not far from the pool, a tall figure stood quietly, the moonlight shone on her from behind, and her shadow was very long.

If it’s not the fairy maid, then who else could it be?

Her aura was still a little unstable. It was probably because she had just made a breakthrough and was unable to perfectly control her realm.

In Ding Lin's perception, it felt like a deep ocean.

Ding Lin stared at the fairy maid, his body frozen on the water. Suddenly, two lines of hot tears rolled down his eyelids, dripped down his eyelids, crossed the fish's face and splashed onto the water.

The fairy maid slowly approached.

"You fish, do you also feel lonely?"

A cool voice sounded.

(End of this chapter)