Zac was about to go mad . His consciousness couldn’t withstand the timeframes and concepts conveyed . His Daos were shuddering , his path bending under the strain . The talismans were even less capable of withstanding the onslaught , all turning to dust without dampening the roar . Orange splinters fell like rain from his back , and golden links failed . Only the Void Engine] was unscathed , but it was essentially drained , so he quickly put it away before it was damaged .
Without his treasures , he was as exposed as a candle in the wind and felt the Dharma breach the Void in his heart . A primal fury took hold in Zac’s heart and pushed it back . He could tell those were questions without answers , traps meant to destroy his path . He wouldn’t give in . He wouldn’t be broken by something like this .
I don’t care! - Zac roared as he unleashed his bloodline and opened the floodgates to his Void Energy .
Zac couldn’t tell whether it was the determination in his words or the outburst of energy that created a massive shockwave . It was both tangible and intangible , spreading out with him as an epicenter . Large cracks appeared on the Niō , and Zac could suddenly move . He was about to flee before he was caught again , but a flicker ahead threw those plans in disarray .
The insides of the ghost temple had become unstable , flickering back and forth between two vastly different scenes . One contained the endless halls and the enormous Buddha , while the other was much simpler . It showed a normal temple that consecrated a chest without any engravings . No deity was displayed , but Zac sensed a hair-raising aura from the box .
In front of the shrine were three unadorned wooden cups , each holding a different fruit . Zac didn’t know why , but it was as though a world hid in each of those fruits , and Zac’s body screamed with both hunger and fear upon smelling their aroma . Finally , there was a small tray on the ground in front of the three bowls , upon which a string of Buddhist beads lay . It didn’t look exactly like the prayer beads he’d seen in the vision upon first arriving at Mount Illumination , but it wasn’t far-off .
The temple represented a power far beyond what he could deal with , but he could not back down when his target was just five meters away . He gritted his teeth and shot forward when the gateway led to the simpler temple . The temple tried to resist his entry , but he activated Void Zone] to force a path .
The whole temple shook , and the constant hymns gained an aura of reproach that bore down on him like a mountain . It was just like when he first tried to cheat with his Bloodline Talent to cross the peak , and Zac realized his Void Energy wouldn’t last more than a second under this kind of suppression . But the restrictions no longer held him , and a lot could be done in a second .
Zac leapt forward and snatched the string of beads from its plate . The temple shook as reproach turned into righteous wrath , and Zac groaned as bloody tears appeared across his body . The temple was trying to switch back to those vast halls consecrated by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas , but the presence of Void Zone] acted like a lynchpin keeping the reality in place . Somehow , the damage was transferred through the Bloodline Talent to Zac himself .
The fruits and the chest still stood there , but Zac sighed as he jumped out of the temple gates . They looked like great treasures , but Zac could tell they were traps . Dealing with the Sangha was to dance on a tightrope . You had to know when to back down , or you’d eventually get consumed . The world shuddered , and Zac found himself standing at the gates of his manor , looking at the ghost temple across the peak .
The familiar view made Zac’s mind short-circuit . There were no statues , no wheels in the sky . All was calm and tranquil , with not so much as a ripple in the atmosphere . He’d been prepared to fight his way back across the peak , but it suddenly felt like he hadn’t even set out .
Had it all been a dream?
The odd disconnect only lasted a moment before the smarting tears across his body confirmed his experience had been all-too-real . It was further confirmed by the sound of glass shattering as the agate on his back shattered , turning into a fine dust that spread around his feet . Zac sighed as he looked down at the sand . The Mind Eye’s Agate] had been a silent companion for over a decade , always guarding his back when he cultivated his soul . Today , it had made the ultimate sacrifice to keep him sane .
Zac’s eyes turned to the string of beads in his right hand with mixed emotions . Hopefully , it’d be worth it .
45
LUCKY BEADS
Zac was curious about his haul , but one thing took precedence . He closed his eyes and started scanning his body for any wrongness . Occasionally , Zac activated Void Zone] and would even start the first stance of the third layer of Void Vajra Sublimation] .
He’d seen just how deadly the secrets kept within the ghost temples were , and Zac knew he’d cheated by the end . With how abruptly everything ended , Zac wondered if he’d been caught in a trap the moment he left the small temple . And even if he hadn’t , he had to stabilize his soul and mental state . Only an hour later did Zac feel fully confident he was really back in his manor and not caught in a Heart Illusion . Neither were his Hidden Nodes acting up , which hopefully meant he hadn’t been marked or cursed .
Null , did you see how I returned to the gates? - Zac asked .
No idea . I was suppressed the moment you began crossing the peak . -
Zac slowly nodded , glancing at the distant temple that still stood there like nothing had happened . Was that perhaps the point? Sending him back here was a way to sow a seed of doubt in his heart , where he’d feel uncertain about what was real and what was a dream . Something like that could gnaw at one’s psyche for years , eventually turning into a Heart Demon that’d leave him exposed to future attacks .
The energies on the peak had returned to normal , but Zac still felt that terrifying Buddha staring at him from within the ghost temple . Standing in the gateway left him exposed , so he hurried back into his manor before his gaze turned to the beads . The prayer band he’d seen in his vision only had eighteen beads , but his one had exactly fifty-four . It was much too long to make a bracelet , appearing to be something you’d wear around your neck .
Most of the beads looked the same as the ones in the vision , made of wood and alternating between natural dark brown and painted black . The original bracelet also had one red bead , whereas this one had three silver ones interspaced between every seventeenth-bead cycle . Most importantly , the beads emitted a mysterious aura of providence .
It wasn’t the Dao of Karma or Samsara , but more like the intangible feeling of fathering fate Zac had sometimes sensed since his effective Luck surpassed 1 , 000 . Thankfully , it didn’t contain a sense of danger like the ominous sensation he’d carried the past two weeks . The beads simply produced calm ripples that could only be sensed with one’s heart . Zac had never seen a Fate-augmenting treasure before , but the prayer beads looked just like he’d expected . He only hesitated a few seconds before he put them around his neck .
He’d risked his life to get his hands on this thing , so not using it wasn’t an option . Especially since it didn’t emit the slightest hint of Dharma . The beads gave off a soothing rattle as they settled , and a mysterious ripple entered his body . The mountain’s incessant drone disappeared for a moment , but Zac could tell that wasn’t the main use of the beads . The sense of danger had grown clearer . If it had felt like an indistinct looming cloud before , it was now a sword squarely pointed at his back .
Zac opened his Status Screen to make sure , but the row detailing his Luck hadn’t changed . Zac wasn’t surprised . It wasn’t like his other tools altered his Status Screen in any way . The exact effect of the beads was difficult to quantify , but Zac didn’t believe they acted like an increase to his effective Luck , at least not in the way he expected . He had gained significant boosts to his attributes before , and the experience wasn’t like this .