Chapter Twenty-Three: Spatial Connection

The old immortal carefully examined the Violet Spirit Pearl in his hand. “This is a rare treasure for raising spiritual power, something one can only come across by chance. Though the earth fish isn’t a high-level beast, the fact that it takes over seventy years to form such a pearl, coupled with its frighteningly low yield, makes most people shrink back in fear.”

“But the earth fish is only at the third tier of the earth rank. For those above the second tier, searching for one shouldn’t take more than half an hour. Why is it still so rare?” Qin Xiaomo counted the time on her fingers.

“At that point, it’s not about ability anymore, but luck and patience. Who wouldn’t get bored fighting the same battle every day? Besides, those who have reached the fifth tier of the earth rank find the spiritual power boost from the Violet Spirit Pearl to be meager, as tasteless as chicken ribs. Unless they’re helping someone else or want to sell it, few high-level cultivators are willing to waste time searching for these pearls.”

The old immortal spoke the truth; after all, there weren’t many people like Qin Xiaomo who needed to rapidly increase their spiritual power.

“Go ahead and eat the Violet Spirit Pearl.”

“But immortal elder, my meridians are blocked. Wouldn’t using the Violet Spirit Pearl be a waste?”

“If you hadn’t drunk the earth fish broth, it would indeed be wasted. The broth brings out the pearl’s full effect—they complement each other. Few have tried it, though, since not many know how to make earth fish broth, so no one knows for sure what might happen.” The old immortal had always been surrounded by immortals of the emperor and venerable ranks; few had ever started cultivating from scratch, and if any had, it was tens of thousands of years ago—who would still remember?

“So… I’ll eat it?”

“Yes.” The old immortal nodded in assent.

Qin Xiaomo was just about to pop the Violet Spirit Pearl into her mouth when she paused and asked, “Um, immortal elder, do you have any water? I’m afraid this thing will get stuck in my throat.”

“No need. When the Violet Spirit Pearl meets saliva, it will change its form, becoming delightfully sweet. Don’t use water, or it will weaken its effect.”

Holding the pearl, which was about the size of a quail egg and as hard as crystal, Qin Xiaomo imagined it breaking her teeth. Tentatively, she brought it to her lips and licked it. “Hm?” The pearl, when touched by her tongue, became as soft and bouncy as jelly, and a sweet, refreshing fragrance instantly filled her mouth, leaving a lingering aftertaste.

Looking down, she saw a clear bite mark on the pearl, so she popped the rest into her mouth, letting it dissolve and slide smoothly down her throat. After licking her lips, she thought she might try to catch another one sometime.

“One mustn’t eat more than one Violet Spirit Pearl a year, or it’s easy to fall into demonic deviation,” the old immortal warned, motioning for Qin Xiaomo to sit back on the black stone.

He raised his hand, and a golden light appeared. “Close your eyes. Take nine deep breaths. Gather the surrounding energy into your core. Visualize and sense whether your meridians are clear. Then, as you observe your core, note what color the energy contains.” He placed his middle and index fingers on her brow. This time, the golden light was not instantly absorbed as before but gradually followed her own breath, slowly merging into her body. Her skin emitted a faint glow, its color indistinguishable.

“Immortal elder, how will I know if my meridians are clear?” Qin Xiaomo asked, eyes closed. She couldn’t tell what color she was seeing—perhaps a faint, translucent white.

“When you visualize energy flowing from the crown of your head through your limbs, down to your perineum, and back up to your head without your mind wandering, that is correct. Each time the energy passes through a point, you’ll feel a pulse there. When you hear the sound of stoppers being pulled all around your body, that means your fourteen key meridians and thirty-six acupoints have all been opened. You’ll feel light, unburdened, and all your senses will be hundreds of times sharper.” The old immortal used his own fiery energy to help her refine the Violet Spirit Pearl and integrate it with her own.

This time, everything seemed to go smoothly. Qin Xiaomo heard stopper after stopper pop open, and her meridians were now clear, flexible, and resilient—both soft and strong. Yet somewhere in the intricately sealed pathways, something seemed hidden deeper within her body. A faint, translucent white light began to seep from within, lingering on her skin.

“Miss! Miss…” The old immortal tried to rouse her, wanting to ask about her origins—whether someone had once sealed her powers.

Qin Xiaomo heard him calling and was about to respond when she suddenly heard another voice: “Xiaomo! Qin Xiaomo! Little Mo, wake up!” It was unmistakably Jidou’s voice.

She opened her eyes to see Jidou’s large face hovering before her. The bright light was blinding, and she was momentarily unaccustomed to it. Instinctively, she raised her left hand to shield her eyes from the sun. Her ears were assaulted by noise; downstairs, the breakfast vendor’s cries grew clearer and clearer. She made a mental note to tell the vendor to keep it down someday.

“Did you travel to another world?” Jidou squatted by the bed like a frog, waiting for her answer.

“I think so… maybe!” Qin Xiaomo was no longer sure, as there were scenes she didn’t recognize from the game itself.

“I kept calling you just now, but like last night, you wouldn’t wake up. So, like before, I turned on your computer, and you woke up.”

“What time is it?” Qin Xiaomo looked around, bewildered, like someone returning from a long journey, suddenly feeling a little unfamiliar with her own room.

“It’s seven in the morning. I bought fried dough sticks. Go brush your teeth, and let’s eat and talk.” Jidou went to fetch her laptop and set it on the dining table.

Qin Xiaomo sat at the table. The greasy, familiar aroma of the fried dough sticks was almost otherworldly now. After all, she’d just killed an earth fish, obtained a Violet Spirit Pearl, slain hornets, acquired the Blackgold Snake Bracelet… and tasted the earth fish soup cooked by Qian Mubai. She looked at her left wrist—empty. A sense of disappointment and hollowness welled up inside her.

“Hey! What are you daydreaming about?” Jidou waved a hand in front of her eyes.

“Go ahead. I’m listening.”

“I still don’t really believe you traveled to another world, but I do think you might have entered a parallel reality. So I summarized everything that happened to you while you slept,” Jidou said, opening her laptop.

Qin Xiaomo took a bite of the fried dough stick—crisp and oily, but there was a faint, unknown sweetness in her mouth that made the dough stick seem coarse and unpalatable by comparison.

“First, when you fall asleep, you enter another world. But to wake up, you have to open the game, which lets you return. Second, I noticed your game is different from mine: strange new data appeared in your game’s background, which kept increasing until the moment you woke up. That means there’s definitely something wrong with your game, and if you’re not inside the game, then your game world is running on its own…” Jidou continued her analysis.

Qin Xiaomo barely heard a word, still not recovered from the shock. Absentmindedly, she glanced up at the local morning news, which reported a sinkhole in the city that had appeared at dawn. “Early this morning, a sinkhole appeared in the center of Jingshan Road commercial street in City Z. As it happened during low traffic hours, there have been no reports of casualties. The sinkhole is approximately three meters wide and over twenty meters deep…”

At this, Qin Xiaomo’s heart leapt into her throat, her mouth agape with astonishment.

“What’s wrong? Sinkholes like that happen all over the country. We live near the coast; some areas are built on reclaimed land, so a soft foundation is bound to cave in sooner or later,” Jidou said, puzzled.

“Stop eating. Come with me.” With that, she grabbed Jidou and hurried out the door.

“Why are we going?” Jidou asked.

“Tell me—how long did I sleep from midnight until I woke up?”

“Let me see… Four hours, I think!” Jidou replied, counting on her fingers as she started the car.

“Exactly. I spent four days in the game world. Doesn’t that mean an hour here equals a day there?”

“What are you getting at?”

“The day before yesterday, I did a quest in the game world. Do you remember the Violet Spirit Pearl from the earth fish in the Desert City?” Qin Xiaomo’s tone was grave.

“Yeah, I designed that pearl after a quail egg.”

“When I fought the earth fish king, it burst out from underground, leaving behind a hole about three meters wide—the same as the sinkhole. And the time of the sinkhole coincides exactly with when I did the quest…” Qin Xiaomo finished, and Jidou shivered involuntarily.

“So you’re saying… you didn’t just enter a parallel game world. The real world has somehow become connected to that world?” Jidou cried in disbelief.

“Exactly. That’s why I need to go to the sinkhole and see for myself.”