Dawn barely showed itself, the first ray of sunlight piercing through the clouds, bathing the mist-shrouded clearing among the mountains. LaUhta awoke from light slumber, immediately sensing a change in the cave's atmosphere—Nuwa's presence was gone. A touch of unease rose in his heart as he followed the faint light outside.

  In the distance, Nuwa stood upon a rock by the stream, her fme-red dress floating gently in the morning breeze, like a blooming red lotus. She had already prepared her simple traveling pack, her gaze directed toward the distance, her expression containing such resolve and determination that LaUhta's heart tightened.

  "You're leaving?" LaUhta's voice carried surprise, his footsteps involuntarily quickening.

  Nuwa turned slowly, the glory of the rising sun reflected in her amber eyes. Her face showed a calm and gentle smile, a smile like the spring breeze, smoothing the ripples in LaUhta's heart. "I have received a message from Torht, requiring my swift return to report."

  "Is it because of my bck 'One'?" LaUhta's brow furrowed slightly, his eyes revealing unease.

  Nuwa's expression grew solemn as her slender finger rose, pointing toward LaUhta's chest. "Indeed it is. The manifestation of your bck 'One' is a phenomenon unseen for a thousand years, and Torht is greatly concerned." The dual beauty marks beneath her eyes moved slightly with her expression, like two points of lively starlight. "He has learned of your ability to infuse the 'One' into stone with remarkable effect, which has greatly astonished Torht, who commands my swift return to provide a detailed account."

  LaUhta looked down at his palm, feeling the flow of the "One" within, indeed much smoother than when first known, like a mountain stream—though not yet a surging river, it had found its own path and strength. But the road ahead was unclear; how would he explore it alone?

  "When might I become a true Tao?" he asked, his brow bearing a touch of anxiety, his voice containing both urgency and a hidden fear of the unknown.

  "When the time comes, you must participate in the Heaven-Connecting Ceremony," Nuwa's eyes sparkled with wisdom as her voice grew deep and solemn, as though recounting an ancient legend. "The Heaven-Connecting Ceremony is the most sacred trial on the path to becoming a Tao. For a thousand years, only a few have passed the scrutiny of the Three Siblings of Causality. They reside at the White Jade Altar, able to unfurl time like a scroll, perceiving every choice a participant has made in the past, every thought in their present mind, and even foreseeing their possible future paths."

  She sighed lightly, her tone carrying a touch of reverence. "It is said that even Torht once presented himself before the Three Siblings of Causality. At that time, heaven and earth changed color, the stars trembled, and the trial sted three days and nights. Eventually, Torht passed the test through incomprehensible means and established the Heaven's Path. In the thousand years since, no one has caused such a phenomenon."

  LaUhta listened intently, longing and reverence gleaming in his eyes. The Heaven-Connecting Ceremony was so mysterious and solemn that he could not help but imagine himself standing on the White Jade Altar one day.

  Nuwa walked with cat-like grace to a ft rock by the stream. From her traveling pack, she took out an exquisite scroll. The scroll's material was neither silk nor ordinary cloth, feeling smooth as jade to the touch, faintly emitting a weak blue-green light, as if containing the mysteries of heaven and earth.

  "This is a complete map of the continent of Mu, created by Torht's own hand, infused with the 'One,' unchanging for a thousand years," Nuwa solemnly unrolled the scroll, upon which mountains and rivers moved and changed like living things, cities and settlements appeared in fine detail, a sight that inspired awe.

  LaUhta absorbed every detail without blinking, never having seen such a complete view of the continent of Mu. Mountain ranges coiled like great dragons, rivers flowed like silver serpents, so clear they seemed within reach. The flourishing cities and remote settlements, cattle and sheep roaming the pins, fierce beasts hiding in forests—everything appeared so lifelike, as if about to leap from the page.

  "This is the marvel of the 'One,'" Nuwa said softly, "able to give lifeless objects a spirit-like quality, making the imaginary take true form." Her fingertip lightly touched the map's surface, a faint red light spreading from the contact point, rippling outward. "But the bck 'One' you possess far surpasses the ordinary, containing deeper levels of mystery."

  "What makes the bck 'One' so special?" LaUhta finally could not resist asking the question in his heart.

  Nuwa's expression became unprecedentedly grave, her amber eyes deep as ancient wells. "The bck 'One' is the most primal force in heaven and earth, containing the dual mysteries of creation and destruction. In ancient times, before chaos separated, heaven and earth were one, darkness and light undivided. Its power originates from the primordial chaos at the universe's beginning, said to be capable of destroying all things, yet also of creating myriad phenomena."

  LaUhta's heart jolted, a nameless shock and awe welling up. He suddenly recalled his battle with fear in the Inner Realm, the terrifying power unleashed by that bck force, indeed like a primordial might capable of destroying everything. Looking down at his palm, he seemed to see countless bck particles flowing through his blood vessels, vast and mysterious as the stars.

  Nuwa extended her slender finger, lightly touching the map. "Here is Fuxi, Torht's homend, located on the western side of the continent, the greatest settlement in Mu." Her voice carried a note of respect.

  LaUhta gazed at Fuxi's location on the map, marked with a bck and white circur symbol that seemed to pulse, like a living heartbeat. He could feel the powerful energy contained in that mark, like a distant summons.

  Nuwa's finger moved as lightly as a butterfly toward the southeast, pointing to a basin surrounded by mountains, marked with a totem resembling neither dragon nor serpent. "This is Hyht, my homend. Though our people are fewer than Fuxi, we still number in the hundreds." Speaking of her home, Nuwa's eyes fshed with gentle nostalgia.

  Nuwa's finger finally nded on the lower right corner of the map, where light pulsed like breath, marking a slightly smaller area surrounded by unduting mountains and winding rivers. "This is Lagu, your home," she said softly, her tone carrying a touch of gentleness.

  LaUhta's attention was drawn to certain unusual terrains and symbols on the map, pces entirely different from the common mountains and rivers, dispying a twisted and strange appearance, some even emitting an eerie bck light, like scars upon the continent.

  "What are those pces?" LaUhta pointed to these strange locations, curiosity gleaming in his eyes.

  Nuwa noticed his gaze, her expression suddenly grave. "Those are the dwelling pces of Tao-Enlightened Creatures, among which there are powerful beings," her voice became low and serious. "Some creatures have existed for over a thousand years, with wisdom no less than humans and strength exceeding ordinary people. Torht once said the Tao-Enlightened Creatures might be descendants of ancient divine beasts, with mysterious connections to the bck 'One.' Your current strength is still shallow; you must not rashly venture into such pces."

  LaUhta nodded solemnly, taking this warning to heart. Looking at those distorted areas on the map, he could not help but imagine what dangers and wonders might await there. But he knew that with his current abilities, he should indeed not venture to such pces rashly.

  "Your current task is to fully master the flow of the 'One' within you through the Inner Realm. You must cultivate in the Inner Realm, allowing the 'One' to unite with every part of your body, extending its essence to every hair and inch of skin, reaching a state of perfect naturalness," Nuwa's tone grew serious and solemn, clearly imparting extremely important principles.

  Nuwa's expression became dignified as she took from her travel pack an object tied with a fine bck cord. She approached LaUhta, her steps light, her garments barely stirring. She solemnly handed him the object, expectation gleaming in her eyes. "This is a parting gift."

  It was a bck stone tablet the size of a palm, cold to the touch, like jade that had known a thousand winters. The tablet's surface was inscribed with strange symbols LaUhta had never seen, the lines flowing and mysterious, gleaming with a dark blue luster in the sunlight, like the reflection of stars. More amazingly, this bck tablet had an ineffable resonance with the "One" within LaUhta, as if the two were originally one, now reunited, producing a wondrous response.

  "This object is called a Resonance Stone, created by Torht and distributed to the major settlements a thousand years ago," Nuwa expined solemnly. "It is no ordinary item, containing the Heaven's Path's prohibitions, able to sense the holder's degree of mastery over the 'One.' Legend says this jade tablet was forged from ancient meteorites, personally infused with the 'One' by Torht, imperishable after a thousand years, one of the most precious items in the Heaven's Path."

  Her fingers lightly brushed the symbols on the tablet's surface, which glowed faintly at her touch, emitting a soft halo. "When you can fully merge the 'One' with your body in the Inner Realm, this stone tablet will emit light. At that time, an emissary from the Heaven's Path will come to guide you to the White Jade Altar for the Heaven-Connecting Ceremony."

  LaUhta accepted the tablet, carefully cradling it in his hands, examining it closely. The tablet felt solid, its symbols ancient and mysterious, each stroke seeming to contain a thousand years of wisdom. He could sense the faint pulse of the "One" within the tablet, creating a curious resonance with the "One" in his body, like two streams meeting at some point, responding to each other.

  "I look forward to your performance at the Heaven-Connecting Ceremony," Nuwa finally said, expectation gleaming in her eyes. "Perhaps you will become, after Torht, another key figure who changes the destiny of Mu."

  The morning breeze passed between them, carrying the fresh scent of distant mountains and the fragrance of dew. LaUhta gripped the tablet, stepped forward, and bowed deeply, expressing the gratitude and respect from the depths of his heart. "I will heed your teachings and not disappoint your expectations," his voice was deep and firm, determination gleaming in his eyes.

  Nuwa smiled with satisfaction, the dual beauty marks at the corners of her eyes becoming especially animated with her expression. "The mountains are high and the road is long; take good care of yourself." Her tone shifted, revealing a rare pyfulness, mischief sparkling in her eyes. "When I find leisure, I shall return, and by then, you must have grilled fish prepared."

  LaUhta's smile finally bloomed at these words, bright as the rising sun, dispelling the shadows in his heart. He nodded in agreement, deep emotion welling in his eyes.

  Having spoken, Nuwa did not linger. She turned to leave, her red figure like a fme merging into the morning mist, following the mountain path, gradually disappearing. Her steps were light yet determined, without a trace of hesitation, finally vanishing around a bend in the road.

  LaUhta stood for a long time, gazing in the direction Nuwa had departed. The morning wind stirred his garments as he looked up at the clear sky, high and cloudless, boundless for ten thousand miles. He lightly touched the bck tablet at his chest, feeling the rhythmic energy within, his heart filled with both reluctance at the parting and anticipation for the road ahead.

  In this quiet pce embraced by mountains, he had completed the first stage of his journey in cultivation. Now, with Nuwa's departure, he must set foot on his own path. LaUhta closed his eyes, feeling the flow of the "One" within him, no longer as difficult to control as before, but like a well-trained steed, following his guidance.

  He opened his eyes, determination gleaming in his gaze. It was time to return to the Lagu settlement, to report his progress to Canglian, and to prepare for the long separation that would soon come. After this period of cultivation, he was no longer the confused youth of before, but a practitioner beginning to understand the true essence of the Tao.

  As the sun fully rose, LaUhta gathered his simple belongings, took a final look at the cave where he had cultivated, then turned and set forth down the mountain. His figure was as straight as a mountain pine, his steps steady and firm, his silhouette radiating an unyielding strength.

  A new journey thus began.