Chapter 266: Enlightenment of Wisdom, the Disaster Brought by Outsiders
As I stepped into the “gateway” of the village, everything suddenly unfolded before my eyes. The rolling highlands, the woven “houses,” and the rainforest merged into one, resembling a secret garden within the vast rainforest.
In the center was a small inner lake, where a building, partially woven and sculpted from stone, rose up. Lush green vines coexisted with the structure, showing signs of the efforts of past academy seniors from the outside world. The woven components attempted to replicate the original structure of the building, though their shapes appeared somewhat strange. Still, it was evident that the house owner had approached the project with a serious attitude.
Here, many plants I had never seen before were growing, and I even spotted leaves similar in texture to the clothing of Yu Miao.
It’s indeed impressive that such large leaves could be crafted into clothing.
“This is Fool Village~ According to your words, this is where we reside. I’ll take you to meet Lord Fool Lake~” After entering, Yu Miao waved directly at me, and Sister Bai and I followed her in.
Here, I saw more Fool Dreams, living carefree lives. Perhaps they could live so worry-free because they had not been exposed to more temptations.
I felt both envy and sadness—envy for their carefree nature and sadness that they could only remain here permanently.
Upon seeing us, who were so different from them, they cast curious glances our way, though some were indifferent, knowing this was a secret realm where outsiders occasionally visited; it was just that the number of visitors had decreased recently.
However, the arrival of outsiders still brought them many novel experiences.
After meeting the Yu Miao who led us, several Fool Dreams came over, and from their words, they seemed to be Yu Miao’s “friends.”
Many of them looked quite similar; the only distinguishing features were likely hair color, eye color, and the styles of their clothing. Even their voices had a soft and mellow quality to them.
The Yu Miao leading us had long, lush green hair flowing behind her. This voluminous hair was enough to make many young girls envious.
At that moment, Yu Miao was introducing our presence to her friends, all of whom had names starting with “Yu.” They did not seem to have the concept of surnames, merely naming themselves after “Yu.”
It was a primitive way of naming, but… it was indeed hard to remember.
We arrived at the center of the village, where the inner lake was very clear. However, there were no fish or shrimp in it, though I could see the water plants swaying beneath the surface, and lotus-like plants grew underwater, with thick, sturdy leaves floating on top.
This was the only path leading from the shore to the center.
“Come up~ It’s okay, don’t worry about falling; it’s very sturdy!” Yu Miao skillfully jumped onto one of the leaves and bounced around to demonstrate its strength.
“It’s fine~ Previous guests had no trouble getting across like this~ Over there is Lord Village Head, called Yu Lake.”
“Mm.”
I nodded gently. Honestly, I could infer without Yu Miao’s explanation that this was an extraordinary plant. The extraordinary power concentrated in the leaves could support heavy weights, relying not just on the buoyancy of water.
The abilities of this plant seemed somewhat specialized, like a specially cultivated plant. Surely it belonged to some senior’s handiwork.
“Be careful, Xiao Han.”
Sister Bai held my hand as we stepped onto the leaf together. Though the buoyancy was significant, it didn’t mean it wouldn’t wobble, and Yu Miao, who lived here, seemed to have grown accustomed to it.
Knock, knock, knock.
Yu Miao happily arrived at the building and knocked on the door.
Logically speaking, Fool Dreams are quite small. Looking around from the center at the buildings in the village, the doors were just the right size for them to enter and exit, but that wouldn’t work for us.
However, the home of the Yu Lake Village Head was different; the door was clearly designed for our size, with two handles—one above and one below.
“Village Head~ We have visitors in the village!” Yu Miao shouted loudly from outside.
After waiting for a long time, even Sister Bai and I reached the door before a voice slowly came from within.
“Coming.”
The voice didn’t sound particularly old. As the door opened, a Fool Dream who resembled Yu Miao stepped out. She was about our height, with hair the color of lake water, and a pair of indifferent pale blue eyes looking up at us as if it were a common occurrence.
“Oh, guests, you’re here for the trial too?”
“Trial?”
Quickly, my mind recalled the strategy I had seen before, regarding the content of the trial.
“Yes, may I ask if you are here for the trial? If not, we won’t force you; you will still be our guests.”
The so-called trial was something Sister Bai and I had seen before. With our arrival as outsiders, some changes would occur. Some mischievous Fool Dreams would cause trouble in the village, meaning that without outsiders like us, they would not face such misfortunes.
But when asking them why they welcomed outsiders despite this, their answer was straightforward.
“They firmly believe that outsiders are heroes summoned to sense the arrival of these troublemakers, but the problem lies in Fool Village. They don’t have the right to demand that guests must pay for their troubles.”
Such simple and naive little ones, even when past seniors tried to correct them, they would in turn correct the outsiders. This was something they firmly believed.
This reflected what was described in the information and strategy, indeed offering us a lot of conveniences and saving us from trying to ask these little cuties, who might end up scolding us.
Just picture these little cuties with their hands on their hips saying: “This is definitely not your fault; don’t take such misfortune onto yourselves!”
They must be really adorable when saying such things, right?
“Of course, we are here to undergo the trial. If there are any troubles here, please let me know. Now that we’re here, it would be our honor to help.” I said.
“Thank you! Thank you for being willing to help us in Fool Village; your deeds will be known by all Fool Dreams! Sorry, now that you promised to help us, I still don’t know your names.”
“Village Head~ Let me introduce them! This is Xiao Han, and this is Bai Yu!” Yu Miao volunteered to speak at this moment.
“Xiao Han… Bai Yu… Thank you both for your help. Today, we will host a dinner for the two of you; please don’t decline.”
“Dinner? That shouldn’t be necessary, right?”
“Hehe… just consider it our request; the people in the village haven’t welcomed guests for many days, and the food they prepared for you has spoiled; however, please rest assured, the food we’ll use to host you will be the best batch! I truly miss the past… back then, it was much livelier than now…”
“It’s okay; maybe it will come true?”
I comforted her, as I saw in the eyes of this village head called Yu Lake a sense of nostalgia for the past. If possible, I would like to help these adorable beings, but unfortunately, I currently lacked the ability to make guarantees for them.
“Thank you for your blessing, guests. Please enjoy this environment in the village. Previous guests have said they really liked this atmosphere, but it seems none have returned since…”
“Mm…”
From this village head, I sensed an aged aura akin to dusk. She looked just like Yu Miao, yet she lacked much of the vitality and always seemed to reminisce about the past.
Liking to recall happy memories is probably something many people enjoy, right?
There weren’t many recreational toys or games here; perhaps the celebratory feast was their only large social activity.
Perhaps this was one reason they were so eager to host guests for their feasts.
“By the way, Village Head, do you know anything about the Meditation Technique?” At this moment, after a brief pause with Yu Lake, I began to inquire. After all, we had come to see the village head to ask many things, not purely for casual conversation.
“Meditation Technique… I have some impression of it. I’ve heard your guests mention it; you gain your abilities after coming here, right?”
“Mm.”
I nodded, but what Yu Lake said was somewhat off. She was relaying what she had heard from us outsiders, suggesting that the Meditation Technique likely had little to do with the Fool Dream clan. Could it have been a special addition by the Academy Head?
Did she believe that this method could unveil the secrets of the Fool Dream clan?
That was quite possible, so it was even more necessary to ask.
“I’m sorry, but my understanding of the so-called Meditation Technique is entirely based on what you guests have shared with me. If you want to hear, I wouldn’t mind telling you.”
When Yu Lake began explaining, she brought over a small stool and started to elaborate for us. She even handed us a small booklet, seemingly made from dried leaves through a special process, inscribed with somewhat awkward text using unknown ink.
The book itself was small; it might be just right for the Fool Dreams but felt a bit small for us, like a tiny booklet, and we had to get close to read and guess the words.
After getting a rough understanding, I fell silent. Since the Meditation Technique was unrelated to the Fool Dream clan, past seniors inquiring would have likely only mentioned it in passing, certainly not elaborating it for Yu Lake.
Compared to this, I still wanted to try it myself before saying anything.
“Um—Village Head, I’ll take my leave first—I need to notify everyone about tonight’s dinner. Xiao Han, Bai Yu, I’m leaving now!”
“Mm, Yu Miao, see you later.” I smiled and bid her farewell.
After chatting with the village head for a while longer, we left.
The intelligence we could gather here was mostly limited, making progress slow.
“Xiao Han, what are your plans?” Bai Yu turned to me and asked. Bai Yu initially thought Xiao Han had invited her to the secret realm for a trial where she could rely on her trials to protect Xiao Han. However, she did not expect the trial to be like this, effectively nullifying her biggest support.
But her earlier strategies had also allowed her to gain considerable power even without a spellbook, especially with the alchemical items and other protective items they had.
“Well… let’s find a place to settle down first and then study the Meditation Technique. After all, we have plenty of time. By the way, Sister Bai, don’t you have anything to do?” I asked curiously. “It’s the last year until graduation; if you don’t seize the time, you won’t be able to graduate on time and can only end up departing!”
“Isn’t graduating bad? After that, I could stay behind, and we could have plenty of time to spend together slowly.”
“Eh? Isn’t that unnecessary? Everything still revolves around becoming an extraordinary witch first.” I shook my head, still trying to dissuade Bai Yu from having such a short-sighted view.
“Alright, then I’ll listen to Xiao Han.”
At that moment, Bai Yu took out a tent from her storage equipment. With the help of several enthusiastic Fool Dreams, we quickly selected a spot to set it up.
The houses woven by the Fool Dreams were not suitable for us to sleep in at night, and those previous buildings were even less so for sleeping, so we really needed the tent.
The Fool Dreams recommended places based on what previous guests commonly chose. After selecting, we shared some of the food we brought with them.
“This… the taste is so wonderful! I’ll save it to share with my friends tonight!”
“Um… this one’s quite strange… I’ll go back and process it a bit first~”
The crowd of Fool Dreams constantly praised or commented on the food we offered. Watching them, I started to worry about the food situation for tonight.
The food was either processed or prepared beforehand; they insisted on going back to process it further. I hoped they wouldn’t end up creating some culinary disasters.
Soon, with the help of these little cuties, the tent was set up quickly. Although it looked somewhat out of place here at the moment, at least it would be a place to spend the night. We also took out some sleeping items, chairs, and outdoor supplies.
With our things left here, there was no fear of theft, as so many Fool Dreams passed by, and they didn’t seem like the type to steal. Even if they did, it was unlikely to be something particularly valuable.
However, if something did get stolen, it wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing.
The little cuties of the Fool Dream clan felt too dreamlike, reminiscent of the little sprites from fairy tales, making everything feel somewhat surreal.
If they really had the thought of stealing, it showed they, too, possessed human-like weaknesses.
“Ah~ sitting like this is really comfortable.” I plopped down on the camping blanket; the green grass here could be just as nice, but it seemed many people had passed through, turning it into a bare patch where no grass grew.
“Yeah, I really want to stay here forever.” Bai Yu also lay down, gazing directly at the sky.
This place felt like a small world, with blue skies, white clouds, and the sun. Yet, under my Spirit Vision, I could see that these were all effects of magic; the size and height of the secret realm were limited.
“But that’s impossible; time is a luxury.”
“Time is extravagant… but that’s for us. If we become extraordinary witches, we’ll have long lifespans, right?”
“That’s still very extravagant, isn’t it?”
“Right…” Bai Yu nodded gently. Sharing time with Xiao Han is indeed a luxury; after this time, when will the next opportunity arise?
If everything could remain as carefree as this secret realm, that would be Bai Yu’s most innocent wish.
At this moment, neither of us spoke. Bai Yu turned her head and found me playing with a small light orb.
“What is this?”
“It’s that spellbook we borrowed using all our other spellbooks, right? The Meditation Technique spellbook.” I replied.
“Oh? Have you already got an idea?” Bai Yu asked curiously. She knew my Spirit Vision level was very high, Floating World, a level beyond what a normal person should possess, something she had witnessed firsthand.
“No, no clues whatsoever. Just a very ordinary spellbook, its internal structure seems normal, and the runes show no signs of problems.” I shook my head, then took out the Earth Vein System I carried with me. Surprisingly, I discovered that the Earth Vein System could be opened here!
“Shall I try it for you?” Bai Yu actually seemed a bit interested in this Meditation Technique.
Last night, she had directly contacted her instructor to inquire about this secret realm; otherwise, how could she gather so much information in such a short time?
Likewise, she had received guidance from her instructor, advising that if possible, to practice using the Meditation Technique more in the secret realm. If she felt she could not unlock the task of Wisdom Enlightenment, then she should cultivate the Meditation Technique until she couldn’t bear it any longer and had to leave.
“Okay, I’ll trouble you, Sister Bai. I also want to attempt to reconstruct the earth vein information for this spellbook.” I nodded. After losing the other spellbooks, trying the Meditation Technique was essentially my only option. After deconstructing this spellbook, I also planned to experiment to personally experience the differences between the Witch Meditation Method and this Meditation Technique.
