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He gathered these thoughts, insights, and knowledge like firewood, and then... used his unwavering "will" as a spark to try to "ignite" them!
There were no energy fluctuations, and no outward radiance.

But deep within Chen Ye's heart, a faint yet tenacious "spark" was ignited. It wasn't light in the physical sense, but rather a kind of "awakening" and "clarity" on a spiritual level. This spark dispelled some of the confusion brought on by drowsiness, allowing his self-awareness to maintain a clear boundary.

Just as this "light of true nature" was ignited, the ancient bronze lamp in his arms suddenly trembled slightly!
The dried gray wax residue in the lamp, as if scorched by an invisible flame, rose up in a wisp of extremely fine, almost invisible transparent smoke! The smoke curled upwards and disappeared into Chen Ye's brow.

A cool, clear feeling spread from between my eyebrows, like a sudden enlightenment!

Chen Ye felt his thinking become clearer and more agile, and his perception of his surroundings underwent a strange change. He "saw" it—the pale purple mist enveloping him was not just ordinary mist, but a strange energy flow composed of countless tiny, flowing fragments of dreams and projections of mental images!
The glowing mushroom path was no longer a physical path, but a passage formed by relatively stable "dream laws," leading to the depths of this dream energy flow.

The old lamp... worked! It seemed to enhance his perception and understanding of the nature of dreams!

"Oh? Interesting... It can actually ignite the 'heart lamp'..." The Star Speaker's voice carried a hint of surprise, then became even more ethereal. "Then, come in, let me see... what color your dream is."

The mist enveloping Chen Ye suddenly contracted inward, completely "inhaling" him.

The world spins and the light and shadow shift.

When Chen Ye "opened his eyes" again, he found himself standing under a familiar yet unfamiliar starry sky.

It feels familiar because this starry sky overlaps with certain fragments of his memory; it feels strange because the arrangement of the stars and the colors of their light have an unreal, almost painterly quality.

Beneath his feet lay a soft, shimmering meadow. Around him grew many strangely shaped and colorful plants, some of which even reflected different starry skies on their leaves.

This place seems to be a projection of the "Lost Garden" in a dream, but it is more fantastical and more...unrestrained than the garden in reality.

"Welcome to my dream." The Star Speaker's voice came from all directions, but no figure could be seen. "Here, everything is possible, and everything is also an illusion. I define the boundary between reality and falsehood."

"Now, tell me, Chen Ye, what do you seek here?"

Chen Ye looked around and said loudly, "What I ask for is a fragment of the Heart of the Holy Spirit, so that I may complete my mission."

"Mission? What kind of mission would make you intrude into someone else's dream and demand precious fragments?" The Star Speaker's voice carried a hint of amusement.

"Reboot the Holy Spirit's Radiance, repair the Eternal Star Array, fight against the Dark Abyss, protect the starry sky, and continue the flame of the Holy Spirit Clan's civilization," Chen Ye answered without hesitation.

“It’s magnificent, but also…empty.” The Star Speaker chuckled. “Every inheritor who enters here says similar things. But words like ‘protect’ and ‘continue’ are too broad. I need to see something more concrete, to see the ‘truth’ in your heart.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding scenery suddenly began to change drastically!
The grassland twisted and turned into a burning battlefield—the very ancient battlefield that Chen Ye had experienced during the Trial of Loyalty! Countless Holy Spirit warriors clashed with dark creatures in a brutal and tragic battle.

"This is the war you remember," the Star Speaker's voice narrated. "Tell me, when you saw your comrades fall, your homes destroyed, and your civilization on the verge of extinction, what were your thoughts? Anger? Sadness? Despair? Or... something else?"

Looking at the familiar, horrific scene before him, Chen Ye felt a surge of emotions. But he quickly calmed down and said slowly, "There is anger, resentment, and sorrow. But more than anything... there is 'unwillingness.' Unwilling to see everything worth protecting disappear like this, unwilling for future generations to only mourn the glory in ruins, unwilling... this is the end."

"So, you want to change the ending?" the Star Speaker pressed, "Even at the cost of everything?"

"If it's worth it, I'm willing." Chen Ye's answer was exactly the same as in the Trial of Loyalty.

What is worthwhile?

"Where the heart leads, there the Way lies." Chen Ye's tone was even more resolute. Having undergone the baptism of the trial of loyalty, his answer to this question had become ingrained in his very bones.

The battlefield scene vanished as if erased by an eraser, replaced by a deep, dark void that seemed capable of swallowing everything. In the void, Chen Ye stood alone, his feet resting on the shattered remains of stars.

"Then, what if the road ahead is destined to be lonely?" The Star Speaker's voice became desolate. "If all your companions are gone, if your home has long since turned to dust, if you are the only 'spark' left in your civilization... will you still continue on? For a 'mission' that may never be fulfilled?"

A sense of loneliness washed over him like a cold tide. Chen Ye felt as if he were truly in an endless, dark void, with no one to look around and no way to turn back.

He was silent for a moment.

“Yes,” he finally said. “Even if I’m the only one left, I will keep going. Because mission is not only a responsibility, but also my own choice. Because I believe that as long as there is a glimmer of light, darkness cannot last forever. Because… the act of continuing is the meaning itself.”

"Even if... your 'path' is ultimately proven wrong? Or illusory?" The Star Speaker's voice carried a sharp, interrogative tone.

Chen Ye recalled the countless possible futures he had seen in the Di Xing Di Feng Shui, and his own answer to the "Dao".

“There is no right or wrong in the path, only choices and responsibilities,” he said calmly. “If it is truly a wrong path, I am willing to bear the consequences and correct my direction. If it is an illusion, then I will break through the illusion and seek the truth. The path is under my feet, not fixed on one side.”

The dark void shattered like a mirror.

Chen Ye found himself back in that dreamlike meadow, only now surrounded by many floating, translucent bubbles. Inside each bubble, a different scene was reflected: him fighting alongside Jiu Feng, him pondering before the Star Codex, him receiving the Holy Blood Baptism, him paying respects at his ancestral tomb…

Those were fragments of his memories from his journey.

“A very good answer, at least… it sounds sincere.” The Star Speaker’s figure finally slowly emerged next to the largest bubble.

She was a girl who looked only seventeen or eighteen years old, wearing a pale purple dress that seemed to be woven from starlight and mist, and floating barefoot in the air. Her face was so exquisitely beautiful that it seemed unreal, her long silver-white hair cascading down like a waterfall, and her pupils were a deep purple, as if stars were rising and falling within them. In her hand, she held a slender silver staff with a gem at the top that constantly changed color.

She looked at Chen Ye with curiosity, her gaze lingering for a moment, especially on the star crown on his head and the ring on his finger.

“Holy Blood, Star Crown, Ring of Watchfulness…and the aura of the Star Codex, and…a 'Heart Lamp' that has been lit.” The Star Speaker tilted his head. “Your 'equipment' is quite complete. It seems those old guys have high hopes for you.” “You flatter me, Senior.” Chen Ye bowed.

“Just call me ‘Vera,’ that’s the name from my dreams.” Vera, the Star Speaker, waved her hand. “Getting back to the point. If you want the fragment of the Holy Spirit’s Heart, you need to pass my test. My test is both simple and difficult.”

With a gentle tap of her short staff, the floating bubbles of memories around her flew toward Chen Ye and swirled around him.

"My ability is to glimpse the 'mental landscape' and weave 'dreams'. I can see the deepest and most authentic parts of your memories, as well as the fears, desires, and contradictions hidden in your subconscious."

"The test is to enter the 'deep dream' woven from your memories and mental images, find the 'seed of truth' hidden within it that represents your 'core self,' and bring it out of the dream."

"In this process, you may encounter the replay of memories, the illusions of inner demons, the paradoxes of logic, and even... the distortion and attack of the dream itself. If you get lost in the dream, cannot find the 'seed of truth', or are devoured by inner demons, then your consciousness will remain here forever, becoming a 'flower of dreams' in my garden."

"Of course, you can use your power, your wisdom, and the gadgets those old guys gave you. But remember, in dreams, all external power can be distorted, weakened, or even backfired. The most reliable thing is your own 'heart'."

"So, are you ready to accept?"

Chen Ye looked at the bubbles around him that reflected his past experiences, feeling the joys, sorrows, struggles, and choices they contained.

Find the "seed of truth" that represents the "core of one's true self"?
This sounds like a soul-searching interrogation, far more dangerous than a simple logical puzzle or a battle test.

But he had no other choice.

"Junior, accept the test," Chen Ye said in a deep voice.

“Very good.” Vera smiled slightly, pointing her short cane again. “Well then, good luck, Chen Ye. I hope your ‘truth’ is dazzling enough, interesting enough.”

The gem at the tip of the short staff burst forth with dazzling light, swallowing all the memory bubbles along with Chen Ye!
Chen Ye felt as if he had fallen into a bottomless vortex, with countless images, sounds, and emotions flooding into his consciousness like a burst dam:
The life-or-death struggle in Starfall Valley... the soul-corroding storm in Black Wind Ridge... the three trials of the Three Stars Star-Drawing Array... the Fire Lizard Dragon in Dragon Burial Abyss... the blood and fire of the ancient battlefield... the solemnity and wisdom of the ancestral mausoleum...

These memories are not played in sequence, but are fragmented, interwoven, and overlapping, forming a bizarre and illogical picture.

One moment he felt like a Holy Spirit warrior fighting on the battlefield, the next he was back to Chen Ye exploring the ruins; one moment he was in a star-studded temple, the next he was plunged into a dark and cold abyss.

Even more terrifying, some thoughts he had never had before, or those that had been deeply suppressed, began to surface uncontrollably:

"Would things have been easier if we hadn't chosen this path?"

"Am I really capable of shouldering such a heavy responsibility?"

"If we fail, how many people will be implicated?"

"Power... I want even greater power, the power to control everything!"

"Loneliness...is truly terrifying..."

These distracting thoughts, like venomous snakes, kept gnawing at his mind, trying to drag him into an abyss of self-doubt and paranoia.

"Stay awake...find the 'seed of truth'..." Chen Ye gritted his teeth, trying to maintain a semblance of himself amidst the chaotic torrent of memories and thoughts.

He recalled the feeling when he lit the "lamp of the heart," and reflected on his answers to "loyalty," "the Way," and "mission."

Gradually, some relatively stable "islands" emerged from the chaotic torrent.

That was the moment he made a crucial choice: stepping into the Three Stars Star-Drawing Array, receiving the baptism of holy blood, choosing the trial of loyalty, and making a promise in the ancestral mausoleum...

Every choice he made represented his truest desires and convictions at the time.

He ventured toward these "islands of choice," seeking clues to the "seed of truth."

Just as he approached a memory fragment representing "receiving the baptism of holy blood," a sudden change occurred!

That memory suddenly twisted and expanded, transforming into a massive, dark red vortex exuding an aura of violence and greed! At the center of the vortex, a blurry figure emerged, bearing a seven or eight-tenths resemblance to Chen Ye, but with cold eyes and filled with desire!

"Give me the power!" the figure roared as it lunged at Chen Ye. "The Holy Blood is mine! The Star Crown is mine! Everything is mine! With power, I can control everything, and I will never have to be afraid again, never have to rely on anyone else!"

The illusion of inner demons! It stems from his deep-seated desire for power and his fear of weakness!
Chen Ye threw a punch to meet the attack, but here, his Holy Blood Power and Star Crown Power became extremely weak, and the attack he launched was like a gentle breeze.

The illusion of his inner demons easily tore through his defenses and sent him flying.

"See that? This is the real you! Cowardly! Greedy! Craving power yet afraid to admit it!" The inner demon illusion laughed wildly. "Accept me! Merge with me, and we will gain invincible power!"

Chen Ye crashed heavily to the ground, his consciousness beginning to blur. The words of his inner demon were like demonic chants, relentlessly eroding his will.

"No...that's not the real me..." Chen Ye struggled to his feet, wiping away non-existent blood from the corner of his mouth. "It's not wrong to crave power, but I pursue power to protect and to explore, not to control and plunder! It's not wrong to be afraid, but it's precisely because I'm afraid of losing that I must face it bravely!"

He no longer tried to fight back with his feeble strength, but stared directly at the illusion of his inner demons, saying each word clearly: "You are a part of me, but not all of me. My 'truth' includes fear and desire, but even more so, it includes the courage and choice to overcome them!" (End of Chapter)