The Catastrophe (4)
The Catastrophe (4)
If Gu Xijiu was not mistaken, he had ascended to heaven and become a celestial being. However, Gu Xijiu was not given a chance to join him. She was desperate to ascend to heaven. She had no idea where the idea came from, but it had somehow become her obsession. Sadly, the way to heaven was nowhere to be found.
She had been anticipating the day when Long Siye finally became a celestial being. Unfortunately, she did not get what she was hoping for. The result was very disappointing.
Snow sluiced down over the earth as Gu Xijiu stood in the clouds contemplating what had happened. Suddenly, the Firmament Stone started talking to her. "Master, it is not impossible to ascend to heaven. I know how."
Gu Xijiu was obviously surprised. "How?"
"There is a pathway that connects the Lower Bound to heaven. If you find it, you can work your way up," the Firmament Stone continued.
"Where is the pathway?"
"At the most southern end of the earth, there is a tree, tall enough to reach the sky. It appears to be fiery red. If you climb it high enough, you will arrive at heaven," the Firmament Stone told her what it learned from the mysterious voice.
"There are too many uncertainties. Do you know the specific location?"
"About that… Master, that is all that I know."
…
The trunk was fiery red in color. Every piece of its leaves resembled the indentation of Buddha's handprint, making it look somewhat transcendental to the spiritual realm. It was a tall tree standing at a thousand feet. The top of the tree was lost amid the depths of the clouds.
At this very moment, Gu Xijiu was standing at the top of the tree. The Firmament Stone was very impressed, for she handled things quickly and dexterously.
First, she met up with the four messengers and gave them some instructions. Then, she departed immediately. The most southern part of the land was indeed a very vast area. Furthermore, every inch of the land was covered heavily in snow.
The Firmament Stone initially thought that it would not be challenging to look for the tree in a vastly white field. However, the search proved it otherwise.
Gu Xijiu flew south along with the Firmament Stone. They were now in the profound depths of the south polar circle, but the tall tree was nowhere to be seen.
Gu Xijiu had spent more than two weeks searching for the tree in the south. Just when the Firmament Stone started to think that the voice might have misled it about the existence of the tree, Gu Xijiu finally found it in the auroras.
Gu Xijiu teleported immediately towards the Aurora, but a wizardry barrier halted her way. Almost instantaneously, the auroras disappeared, along with the tree. The tree was nowhere to be seen in the hundred-mile radius where it used to stand.
Gu Xijiu decided to stay, waiting patiently for the auroras to reappear.
The wait lasted about two weeks. At the south pole, the frequency of the aurora emergence was rather high. The auroras graced the high altitudes dozens of times a day. However, the tree did not show up.
The Firmament Stone believed that it was merely an illusion and thought that she should not be spending too much time on something so surreal.
However, Gu Xijiu would not change her mind when she was determined to prove herself.
The Firmament Stone continued to bombard her with facts, hoping she would change her mind. Instead, Gu Xijiu answered firmly, "I believe that it is here!"
…
Gu Xijiu was about to ascend to heaven, what could she possibly find in the land above?