Chapter 204 What is Sought
Eternal darkness enveloped Li Wen like a tide, and she instinctively tightened her grip on the rib bone in her hand, her knuckles turning white from the exertion. There was no light, no sound, not even the passage of time felt discernible.
The darkness in the void was not pure silence, but a viscous, tangible substance. Li Wen tried to move her fingers, only to find herself encased as if in solidified resin, her breathing becoming exceptionally difficult.
This was the void.
An uninformed person might perceive the void as a space as vast, silent, and devoid of anything as the universe. In reality, it was quite the opposite; the void was filled with an almost immeasurable amount of Aether energy. Ordinary people, even just by being in this place, would be instantly crushed and dissolved by such immense Aether energy. Only Transcendent individuals with a certain level of strength could briefly linger here.
As for someone like Li Wen, even moving freely within the void was impossible.
After an immeasurable amount of time, a faint ray of light pierced the darkness. Li Wen squinted, spotting scattered Golden Light Spots floating in the distance. Like fireflies, they slowly gathered, gradually outlining a Sea of Light. In the center of this sea of light, a Petite figure was suspended.
It was a White-haired Young Girl, around seven or eight years old, sitting curled up barefoot in the void. Her snow-white hair cascaded to her ankles, the tips immersed in the Sea of Light, creating fine ripples. She wore a White Robe of peculiar design, its hem embroidered with Twelve Interlocking Sun Emblems. She was currently bent over an ancient birch drawing board, depicting something. A silver chain wrapped around her slender wrist gently swayed with her movements.
Li Wen tried to move closer but found her body still constrained by the void, unable to budge. She opened her mouth to call out, but her voice dissolved into the nothingness.
The Young Girl seemed completely unaware of her presence, her pale fingertips continuing to glide over the drawing board, sketching patterns that Li Wen could not comprehend—they seemed neither text nor pictures, more like abstract concepts transcending cognition.
As the Young Girl drew, the Sea of Light began to surge. Li Wen suddenly realized that those “seas” were actually solidified time—she saw countless fragmented scenes floating within them: burning cities, collapsing mountains, giants impaled on Bronze pillars… each fragment carried a suffocating sense of oppression.
When the Young Girl finished the last stroke, the entire Sea of Light erupted.
Li Wen saw countless golden chains emerge from the void, coiling around the Young Girl’s slender body. She continued to draw quietly, as if accustomed to this restraint. As the chains tightened, the Young Girl finally raised her head, revealing a young face that matched her childlike appearance. Her Eyes were particularly captivating, their pale white-gold hue appearing uniquely transparent and pure in the radiant light.
That gaze felt familiar, yet Li Wen couldn’t recall its origin. When she tried to remember, all that surfaced in her mind was the scarlet crown atop the black Spire.
Li Wen suddenly understood. This little girl before her was the embodiment of the “Sun of Respiration,” or rather, the residual will of that fallen deity manifested. “Though the child of the old ones has fallen, its remains still breathe”—was that what this meant? Realizing this, she struggled desperately to attract the girl’s attention, but the latter’s gaze passed straight through her as she continued to lower her head, sketching a new picture.
At that moment, the rib bone in Li Wen’s hand suddenly grew hot. She looked down to find that tiny silver runes had appeared on the surface of the bone—the key given to her by “Impurities” was beginning to function.
The runes writhed like living creatures, gradually forming an ancient maxim:
【What is sought must first be given.】
Li Wen was slightly stunned. She had glimpsed this phrase in The Primordial Codex of Ending, implying that to obtain something, one must first pay an equivalent price. But in this void, in this phantom dream, what could she possibly give to this divine embodiment?
“You still haven’t given up?”
The divine embodiment, appearing as a Young Girl, finally spoke. Her voice was childish yet ancient, like the harmony of a million children’s voices. Li Wen looked up to see that the Young Girl had stopped drawing at some point and was now gazing at her. Her white-gold eyes reflected Li Wen’s figure, yet seemed to pierce through her, looking into a more distant time and space.
The immense Aether energy that had restrained Li Wen, making movement, speech, and even breathing difficult, had vanished. Having regained her freedom, Li Wen felt a lightness she had never known. However, that was not important. From the girl’s words, Li Wen received a clear piece of information—she had met her before, during the last Sunset Ritual.
“I…” Li Wen’s throat was so dry she couldn’t make a sound.
The Young Girl gently raised her hand, and the chains wrapped around her suddenly shattered, dissipating into flowing light. Her brilliant white hair moved as if by an unseen wind, and the Sea of solidified time at her hair tips began to boil.
“You want The Emerald Tablet.” This wasn’t a question, but a statement. Her voice echoed in the void. “But do you know what it signifies?”
Li Wen felt an invisible force lift her, pushing her towards the Young Girl’s location. As the distance shortened, she suddenly understood the content on the drawing board—it wasn’t an abstract pattern, but pages of text being written.
“It is creation, and it is destruction,” the Young Girl’s fingers traced the drawing board, and the words writhed like living beings. “All things flow within it, and truth incubates within.”
“I promised Hermes—if anyone comes seeking The Emerald Tablet, they must offer something of equivalent value.”
Her indifferent, transparent, pure, and empty pupils stared directly at Li Wen. At such close distance, Li Wen felt as if her very Soul were freezing. The suffocating coldness and fear were indescribable.
Fortunately, after a brief glance, the girl refocused on her drawing.
“I’ve been here before, but… why don’t I have that memory now?”
Realizing that this deceased deity presented a possibility for communication, Li Wen, after a moment of calm, asked directly.
After all, she was a Player. Interfering with her memory beyond the game’s framework was something only a deity could achieve. In this phantom dream of an old god, only it could accomplish this. Aside from that, no matter how miraculous the Sunset Ritual was or what mysteries it held, it could never have achieved this.
So, what reason would the deity have to erase Li Wen’s previous memory?
The Young Girl tilted her head, a childlike gesture that created an eerie contrast with the ancient vastness she represented.
“Because mortals cannot directly behold Divinity. Not long ago, you insisted on personally verifying the authenticity of The Emerald Tablet to ensure the fairness of the transaction—and the result is what you see. Now, have you found something equivalent to The Emerald Tablet, or do you intend to abandon all your unrealistic fantasies… or perhaps, do you wish to see The Emerald Tablet once more?”
