Chapter 137 - Words Are Light, Experience Is Heavy
Chapter 137: Chapter 137 - Words Are Light, Experience Is Heavy
Yue Cangyu raised his hand.
The murmurs in Moon-Reflection Garden gradually faded.
Yue Cangyu waited until the garden became completely silent.
Only then did he speak.
"I know some of you are dissatisfied."
No one answered.
Yue Cangyu’s gaze swept across them.
"That is natural. You came for a gathering, yet you were thrown into danger without warning. You believed you had been dragged into the Fallen-Star Sanctuary. You fought. You bled. You feared."
His voice was calm.
"Then you returned and learned it was a trial."
Several young cultivators lowered their eyes.
Yue Cangyu continued, "If I had told you beforehand, would you have taken it seriously?"
No one spoke.
That silence was the answer.
"If I had advised you to cooperate, some of you would have nodded politely. Some would have forgotten before the tea cooled. Some would have remembered only when it benefited your own sect."
The words were not harsh, but they landed heavily.
Yue Cangyu said, "Words are light. Experience is heavy."
The garden grew quieter.
"Advice often enters through the ear and leaves through the wind. Only what the body has endured will remain in the bones."
Several young cultivators’ expressions changed slightly.
They still felt wronged. But they could not deny what he said.
If Yue Cangyu had simply lectured them about cooperation, many of them would have listened respectfully and dismissed it afterward.
After all, they were geniuses.
Geniuses always believed they understood more than they did.
Yue Cangyu’s expression softened slightly. But the weight in his eyes did not disappear.
"The trial was not meant to humiliate you," he said. "It was meant to show you a small fragment of what the Fallen-Star Sanctuary may demand."
He raised one finger.
"First, sometimes you must rely on others."
His gaze moved toward the young generation.
"The person who saves you may not wear the same robe. The hand that pulls you up may belong to someone you mocked yesterday. The one who sees the path may not be the one with the highest cultivation."
Yan Lie’s face stiffened slightly.
Chen Feng looked away.
Lin Weiyang remained calm.
Zhuge Jing smiled faintly.
Yue Cangyu raised a second finger.
"Second, following instructions at the right time is not weakness."
Some proud disciples lowered their heads.
"In the bridge trial, many of you survived because you listened to Lin Weiyang. In the battlefield, many of you survived because you accepted Zhuge Jing’s adjustments. Pride that refuses guidance is not dignity. It is a polished blade pointed at your own throat."
Lin Weiyang’s bronze mechanism clicked softly.
Zhuge Jing lowered his fan slightly.
Yue Cangyu raised a third finger.
"Third..."
His voice became slower.
"Protect the Boundary Pillars."
The garden stilled.
This sentence was different.
The first two lessons sounded like general advice.
This one did not.
It sounded specific. Too specific.
Yue Cangyu looked across the younger generation.
"If you see a Boundary Pillar inside the Fallen-Star Sanctuary, do not treat it as decoration. Do not strike it out of curiosity. Do not ignore it because a treasure shines nearby."
His expression deepened.
"A route can be lost. A safe region can become unsafe. A mist tide can change direction. Sometimes, one standing pillar is the reason an entire area has not collapsed."
The young cultivators exchanged glances.
Some were confused.
Some became serious.
Zhuge Jing’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Su Bai also looked at Yue Cangyu.
Boundary Pillars.
So the pillar in the trial had not been chosen casually.
Yue Cangyu turned and waved his sleeve.
A map of light unfolded above the lake.
The image showed a large broken region surrounded by mist. Several faint routes curved through the outer areas, branching and breaking like old veins.
"This is the outer chart of the Fallen-Star Sanctuary based on previous openings."
The young cultivators immediately focused.
Yue Cangyu said, "Remember this clearly. It is useful, but it is not trustworthy."
That sentence made several people pause.
A disciple could not help asking, "Senior, if it is not trustworthy, why show it to us?"
Yue Cangyu smiled faintly.
"Because a flawed map is still better than walking blind, so long as you remember it is flawed."
The disciple lowered his head.
Yue Cangyu pointed toward several outer regions.
"The Fallen-Star Sanctuary does not open like an ordinary secret realm. Once you enter, you will not necessarily appear beside your sect members. Spatial currents will scatter you. Some may land near broken roads. Some near ruined medicine fields. Some near old watchtowers. Some in miasma valleys."
His finger paused over a darker red zone.
"And some may be unlucky."
No one asked what that meant.
The answer was obvious enough.
Yue Cangyu continued, "Do not rely only on entry teams. Entry teams are wishes. The Sanctuary decides whether wishes are respected."
The line made several disciples’ faces turn solemn.
"After entering, first confirm your surroundings. Second, check your body for miasma intrusion. Third, find a landmark. Fourth, if you see a Boundary Pillar, inspect whether it is intact. Fifth, do not chase treasures before you know whether the ground beneath your feet is still stable."
His tone remained gentle. But every word felt like it had been carved from experience.
"Opportunities exist inside. Spirit herbs, old artifacts, inheritance marks, and ancient remnants may all appear."
Some eyes brightened.
Yue Cangyu noticed.
His voice became colder by a degree.
"But do not let opportunity blind you."
The bright eyes dimmed slightly.
"Fighting for fortune is not wrong. Cultivation itself is a struggle for fortune. But dead cultivators do not enjoy treasures. Alive, you may still find another opportunity. Dead, even the best inheritance becomes something others discuss over wine."
Han Yuelin silently nodded.
That was the most reasonable sentence he had heard today.
Su Bai also agreed.
Being alive did make future opportunities easier to obtain.
This was not profound. It was simply often forgotten.
Yue Cangyu let the map hover over the lake.
"Now, if you have questions, ask."
For a moment, no one moved.
Then Zhuge Jing stepped forward.
He cupped his hands respectfully.
"Senior Yue, this junior has one question regarding the trial earlier."
Yue Cangyu looked at him.
"Ask."
Zhuge Jing’s feather fan closed in his hand.
"The scene we entered carried the shape of illusion, yet the pressure had weight. The space had layers, yet the path responded as if it possessed real boundary logic. The mist’s corrosion was not empty. May this junior ask..."
He paused.
"Was that trial merely an illusion, or was it something closer to a reflected domain?"
Several young cultivators looked at him.
Some did not fully understand.
But Su Bai did.
Zhuge Jing was asking whether his failure to calculate clearly was due to his own lack of skill or because the trial itself had not been a simple illusion.
Yue Cangyu smiled.
"Yes and no."
Zhuge Jing’s eyes brightened slightly.
Yue Cangyu said, "If it were merely an illusion, you would have seen through too much too quickly."
Zhuge Jing lowered his head slightly.
"This junior does not dare claim so."
"You were already close," Yue Cangyu said calmly. "Therefore, I specifically created the trial to avoid even the Zhuge Clan’s ordinary calculations."
The garden stirred slightly.
Even Zhuge Jing paused.
Yue Cangyu continued, "It was not a simple illusion. It was a reflection. Moon-Reflection Garden borrowed the shape of the Sanctuary, reflected danger through the array, and gave it enough weight that your bodies could not dismiss it as false."
He looked toward the lake.
"If you knew from the beginning that you were in a trial, would it not have been boring?"
Several young cultivators were speechless.
Boring?
They had nearly believed they were going to die.
Zhuge Jing, however, smiled.
The tension in his eyes eased.
"This junior understands. Many thanks, Senior, for resolving my confusion."
His calculations had not completely failed because he was incompetent.
The trial itself had been designed to sit between false and real.
That answer was acceptable.
After Zhuge Jing, several others asked questions.
Some were useful.
A disciple from a smaller sect asked how to identify miasma-safe caves.
Yue Cangyu answered patiently.
A Tang Clan disciple asked whether poison could slow Ashen-Blood Miasma.
Yue Cangyu said it could sometimes redirect minor contamination, but relying on poison against miasma was like using smoke to stop fog.
A Glass-Lotus disciple asked whether holy barriers should be spread wide or kept close.
Yue Cangyu said, "Wide protection saves many at first. Narrow protection saves longer."
Bai Zhi lowered her gaze and remembered it.
A Scorching Sun Valley disciple asked whether flame could burn miasma directly.
Yue Cangyu glanced at Yan Lie.
"Flame can clear a path. It can also push miasma into someone else’s face. Control matters more than heat."
Yan Lie pretended not to hear the second half.
Lin Weiyang asked about unstable terrain.
Yue Cangyu explained that some stone roads inside the Sanctuary responded to weight, Qi type, and rhythm. Her expression became even more focused.
Liu Meng asked about old medicine fields.
Yue Cangyu told her that not all herbs inside should be picked immediately. Some grew in miasma and would rot the moment they left their soil unless properly sealed.
Liu Meng quickly took out a jade slip and began recording.
Then more people began asking questions.
Some questions became less sincere.
Some were clearly meant to gain Yue Cangyu’s favor.
"Senior Yue, if this junior encounters danger, may this junior shout your name to strengthen courage?"
Yue Cangyu looked at the speaker.
"You may."
The young cultivator brightened.
Yue Cangyu continued, "The danger will not care."
The garden became quiet.
Another disciple asked, "Senior, if one follows your teachings perfectly, can one surely survive?"
Yue Cangyu smiled gently.
"No."
The disciple froze.
Yue Cangyu said, "But if you ignore them, you may die more efficiently."
No one asked that kind of question again.
After answering for a while, Yue Cangyu finally lowered his hand.
"That is enough for now."
The younger generation straightened.
Yue Cangyu’s gaze swept across them again.
"The gathering may continue. Eat, drink, speak to one another, and remember the faces of those who fought beside you. When the Sanctuary opens, familiarity may save more time than pride."
He paused slightly.
"Be at ease. This time, the tea is only tea."
Several people stiffened.
Then, unsure whether to laugh, they remained silent.
Yue Cangyu turned to leave.
Before departing, Lu Canghai looked toward the Radiant Sky Sect disciples.
His usual careless smile returned faintly.
"Since the City Lord has spoken, get to know the others."
His gaze moved from Su Bai to Liu Meng, then to Ji Ruyue, Qin Baoshan, and Han Yuelin.
"Make friends if you can. If you cannot, at least learn who not to stand beside when they panic."
Han Yuelin immediately looked around.
"That sounds useful."
Lu Canghai nodded.
"It is."
Then he followed Yue Cangyu out of Moon-Reflection Garden.
The atmosphere in the garden slowly loosened.