Chapter 693: Fallen Leaf
By using the energy he controlled to copy again and again, he could copy the Dao runes that he saw.
When the Dao runes were completely copied, by bringing it into his life, it would become his own Dao.
"The Dao Tree has been in existence for billions of years. It has made its body the Dao itself, while I have the Purple Crystal. Why don't I try making the Purple Crystal turn into a Dao Tree itself? When that happens, I will be Dao itself too. The Dao charms I produce could even be used for others to gain insight in… "
Yi Yun suddenly came up with this idea. This idea was extremely crazy. Even the Dao lords of the 12 Empyrean Heavens were in constant pursuit of this realm.
To have one's body be Dao itself was seemingly just a legend. Although countless numbers of people pursued it, in the entire history of the 12 Empyrean Heavens, no one had succeeded in doing so.
Yi Yun's cultivation level was still very low, yet he had suddenly came up with such an idea. And after that, he could no longer repress this idea, as it started to grow wildly like weeds.
If others were to know of his idea, they would mock him. However, with the Purple Crystal, Yi Yun could control all the energy in the Heavens and Earth, so that might not be an impossibility…
He controlled his own energies, slowly condensing Dao runes.
As he looked at the Dao Tree's leaves, again and again, Yi Yun immersed himself gradually.
He felt like he had become the leaves himself. And he sensed the lushness of the Dao Tree and the blowing breeze.
His thoughts slowly emptied out. Tree leaves sprouted in spring, and wilted in autumn. Their lifespans were as short as human. Tree leaves did not experience sadness or pain, they would just gently move along with the wind.
It was unknown how much time passed as Yi Yun sat silently under the tree. Other than the occasional breeze ruffling through his hair, he did not move one bit.
The Sword Spirit was still waiting in Dao Enlightenment Hall. He sat in meditation, occasionally opening his eyes to glance at Yi Yun. However, Yi Yun was sitting there like a statue, with nothing changing.
The white-dressed youth would come take a look at Yi Yun once in awhile. Seeing Yi Yun sitting there meditating without any signs of progress and there not being any phenomenon from the Dao Tree, he too was a bit disappointed.
Although he did not think highly of Yi Yun, Yi Yun was still considered to be the successor of the Pure Yang Sword Palace. He still wished Yi Yun would have some improvement, at least so that he would not embarrass his Master when Yi Yun went out into the world.
However, up to now, he did not know if Yi Yun had gained any insight, or how much was gained.
"It's already been three months. Although it's said that three days in Dao Enlightenment Hall is equivalent to a year, that means he has been seeking enlightenment for 30 years."
The white-dressed youth shook his head, while the gray-dressed Sword Spirit said with a smile, "You also know that that only by gaining some insight would it really be three days as a year. And in fact, no matter who sits below the Dao Tree, they would forever not attain the speed of three days as a year. Such high speed of gaining insight would be not bad if they can maintain it for ten days."
"Let's just watch and see what the situation is when he wakes up." The Sword Spirit was very optimistic, however, the youth did not not possess such a good mood. He said, "Without any phenomenon from the Dao Tree, so what if he wakes up?"
As the sun set and rose, the clouds gathered and dispersed. The grasslands that the Dao Tree grew on were just normal and ordinary life forms. Yi Yun saw the insects and worms in the grasslands spend their short lives, as new wild grass sprouted out from the soil, as the cycle of life persisted. In a state of no sorrow or joy, Yi Yun silently watched all of this.
He seemed to be a piece of leaf himself, living the life of a leaf. As Autumn came, the leaf turned yellow and with a gust of wind, he swayed and fell from the Dao Tree towards the ground.
In the process of separating from the Dao Tree, Yi Yun saw his body and the Dao Tree clearly. It seemed like he had instantly gained a lot of knowledge.
His mind was clearer than ever, as the vast Heaven and Earth suddenly seemed to expand. Yi Yun slowly regained consciousness during the falling process. He saw himself approaching the ground, and finally… he landed gently on the ground.
The feeling of being down-to-earth was also the end of Life. Hence, Yi Yun opened his eyes…
The world returned to Yi Yun's vision once again. It was still that grassland, and still that old tree with coiling dragon-like roots. However, in Yi Yun's eyes, everything was no longer the same...
"He has awoken!"
The Sword Spirit's eyes lit up. He had waited for a long while, and finally, he had waited to the day that Yi Yun awakened.
"He has finally awoken." The youth sighed. He immediately looked at the ancient Dao Tree behind Yi Yun, hoping to see some phenomenon from the Dao Tree. Although he knew that the chances were extremely slim, he still subconsciously took a look.
The ancient tree was as before, without any reactions. There was no halo formed from Great Dao, nor were there any Dao runes or chanting sounds.
Even the Dao Tree's leaves did not rustle despite the breeze.
There was no phenomenon...
Although he had expected it, such silence and calmness was quite depressing.
The youth kept his spirits up forcefully, hoping to ask Yi Yun what insights he had gained, but at this moment, his gaze suddenly froze.
He saw… under the gentle breeze, a leaf connected to the Dao Tree slowly fell like a falling leaf in Autumn.
It left the tree branch simply and like a green butterfly, it fluttered in the wind, and after a few spirals, it dropped towards Yi Yun.
Yi Yun did not lift his head, as if he already knew about the leaf.
He gently raised his hand, with his palm facing up. With that, the leaf gently landed in the middle of Yi Yun's palm.
This scene was similar to when he was seeking enlightenment, where Yi Yun's body was a leaf. At the final instant of his life, he had landed on the soil. It was light and silent. This was the falling leaf's return to its maker.
However, this simple scene stunned the white-dressed youth completely. And beside him, the Sword Spirit also stood up immediately.
The two of them remained motionless like sculptures, looking at the fallen leaf in Yi Yun's hand.
The Dao Tree shedded a leaf?
The Dao Tree had 3000 Dao Leaves, which had never changed in all these years. In fact, years ago, the Pure Yang Sword Palace owner had used the grassland where the Dao Tree grew as a blueprint to construct the Pure Yang Sword Palace. And back then, the Dao Tree already had 3000 Dao Leaves, all the way until now…
The Sword Spirit looked at the tree's crown, and he realized that on the tree branch, a tiny shoot had sprouted up to replace the fallen leaf.
The shedding of one Leaf was met with the birth of a sprout. This was something that he had never seen despite the endless years he had been guarding the Dao Tree.
But today, it had happened.
It was naturally not a coincidence that the fallen leaf fell into Yi Yun's palm.
Yi Yun's Dao-enlightenment seeking did not cause the Dao Tree to exhibit any phenomenon, except for the shedding of a leaf. Why did this happen?
Be it the Sword Spirit or Chibai, the Temple Spirit, they were not true lifeforms. Their understanding of Dao were established the moment they came into existence. It was the Dao insights that their creator gave to them.
They could not understand why the Dao Tree shedded a leaf.
At this moment, Yi Yun gently pinched the leaf's petiole, as the lead slowly swirled in Yi Yun's hand like a tiny fan.
Falling… Birth…
Yi Yun looked up to the bud on the tree branch and he gently held the leaf in his palm. Although it had withered, the leaf was still as green as ever...