Hidden moth

Chapter 201: In the Cave, Into the Painting

Hallucinations, from a psychological perspective, are incorrect sensory reactions, such as seeing an orange when it is clearly an apple, or hearing someone talking when there is clearly no sound.

When hallucinations occur, it is often difficult for people to tell whether they are hallucinations or not because they come from their own senses.

Illusions, unlike simple hallucinations, are not misjudgments of the senses, but things that do not exist and appear directly in the consciousness without the need for the senses, a bit like dreaming.

The difference between an illusion and a dream is that in an illusion, people are awake and aware of their awakeness. It is usually clear, complete, coherent, and even changes in accordance with its internal logic.

Practitioners are usually able to distinguish illusions because they clearly see things that do not exist in reality.

The state of concentration He Kao had attained at this moment is called the demonic realm. Some people refer to all the illusions that emerge during this state of concentration as "inner demons." The inner demons of the human heart always exist; in this case, they appear as illusions.

The devil's realm is a special kind of illusion. Its special feature is that practitioners cannot be affected by the illusion.

In the classics that have been publicly handed down, the descriptions of the demonic realm are mostly vague, and what is left are abstract words such as "beloved images, joking language, singing and dancing, evil views; terrifying things, binding, beating, whipping, torturing, chopping, stabbing and dissecting..."

Another type of description is very specific, often seen in strange notes and bizarre legends. The general content is that when someone enters a state of meditation, his inner demons emerge, and the scene is either very tempting or very terrifying.

This person failed to keep his composure and failed on the spot.

If you ask a true cultivator what kind of demonic realm he faced, those who have achieved success will be vague about it. It's not that they don't want to tell you, but they really can't explain it!
Because in their state of concentration, their consciousness is absolutely clear, but they do not respond to any illusions they see. They know everything they see, but they do not really remember it.

Memory is simply the trace left behind by the senses in response to various stimuli. Those who can recount very specific details about the magical realm are either fabricating it afterward or having their concentration broken on the spot.

The loss of concentration may mean that it will be difficult to re-enter the demonic realm for a long time in the future, and your cultivation will stagnate. You may even develop doubts about yourself, the spells, and your master.

But this is not the most serious situation. The real big problem is that we go from magic to illusion.

Practitioners know that what they see in the devil realm is an illusion, but they still interact with the people or things in it. This is called "entering the illusion from the devil", also known as "being possessed by the devil".

Many popular stories involve a man who encounters an enchanting goddess in a magical realm, and then can't help but engage in a passionate interaction with her, becoming addicted to the illusion...

This situation is actually very rare, and most of the time it is just the fantasy of the storyteller. With such cultivation, he is not so lacking in concentration or vigilance.

But if we change the above scenario slightly, what if the person we meet in the magic world is the lover who once loved deeply but unfortunately passed away?

What if the other person says that he or she has something very important to tell you? And you are still thinking about the things that you didn’t have time to say to each other!

In this situation, can you not respond? In that unconscious state, there is no concept of holding back or not holding back, and the moment you think about it, you may be possessed by the devil.

It is extremely dangerous to fall into the state of illusion. Some people have lost their minds, some have been seriously injured, and many people have had their concentration distorted and find it difficult to regain enlightenment... In short, the outcome is difficult to predict.

Therefore, when the master is instructing his disciples, he always emphasizes that it is better to break the state of concentration than to make any response to what they see in the demonic realm. The worst that can happen is that their cultivation will temporarily stagnate.

He Kao saw his father Zhou Du in a state of meditation. The face that had been a little blurry in his memory became exceptionally clear. His father must have said a lot to him, perhaps because he felt very relieved to see him grow up.

His father should have confessed to him his identity as a Hidden Moth and told him many of his experiences as a Hidden Moth. He might also have told him that he had left something in a secret place.

He Kao also met a woman who looked very young. Although her appearance was not clear, she seemed very beautiful and gentle. She told He Kao that she was his mother and probably asked He Kao if he wanted to know about her current situation.

He Kao's concentration was not broken, nor did he fall into delusion. He entered into meditation for about an hour, but after coming out of it he felt a little dazed, as if he had entered into meditation just a moment ago.

The tear marks on my face have dried, but I don’t know when I cried.

He seemed to be able to guess what he had experienced in the state of concentration, but he could not recall any specific details, nor did he need to. But at this moment, another feeling came over him, as if many things he had forgotten were coming back to him.

What he really remembered was not what he had seen in the Demon Realm, but something related to the Divine Mind Seal. Several elders had left him with Divine Mind Seals, and many of their contents were now finally decipherable.

He Kao casually took out something, which was Xue Guanghan.

With the chariot, horse, and cannon, he no longer needed to use Xue Guanghan as a hidden weapon, but he still carried the bead with him. He usually nurtured Xue Guanghan with his spiritual consciousness, and the bead's spiritual power also nourished his body and soul, helping him cultivate his icy muscles and jade bones.

Xue Guanghan itself is an almost natural magic weapon, and it only needs the last step to become a complete weapon. It does not require advanced and difficult refining techniques, but only needs to be combined with the body and spirit to sense and stimulate its magical effects.

The first time he activated the Snow Light Cold with the technique of controlling the weapon was the process of its completion, just like the consecration. At this moment, He Kao had broken through to the fourth level of cultivation, becoming a high-level sorcerer, or in other words, a cultivator.

He held the pearl in his palm, and it gradually began to shine brightly, like a small moon. He was sitting in the treetops, and if the light spread out, it would definitely be conspicuous, so he immediately clenched his palm.

The light was held in his hand, and it seemed to flow into his body. His entire fist was glowing faintly and became transparent, and his muscles and bones could be seen.

Not only his fists, if he takes off his clothes, you will find that his whole body has become transparent, exquisitely crystal clear with a faint glow.

The light gradually faded, and He Kao disappeared into the treetops. The next moment, he walked into the Gushan Secret Mansion from the cave next to him.

The incense had long since burned out, but the two white jade candles were still lit. After breaking through the fourth level of cultivation, He Kao suddenly understood a lot of things.

For example, he stumbled upon the Soul Locking Formation on a shelf—the four small flags—and immediately understood its profound principles. He knew how to sacrifice and refine the formation instruments and deploy the formation, but he still needed three other high-level cultivators to work with him. Setting up the Soul Locking Formation required four high-level cultivators, but the Earth Spirit Flags alone could also be used as magical instruments. Gu Chun had taught him the formula before, but he hadn't grasped it until now.

For example, the hidden moth veil given to him by Elder Li Xiuyuan. When He Kao wore it before, it could block other people's spiritual consciousness from perceiving his face and body shape. But now he could master its true use - to transform into the appearance of another person.

He Kao has a lot of good things here... But these are not the point. The point is that when he opened his eyes in the crown of the paulownia tree, he felt a sense of inspiration.

After a sorcerer breaks through to a high level of cultivation, they will be inspired by the heaven and earth, which will guide them to find the cave where the ancestral hall of each school of magic is located. The specific cave depends on which secret method they practiced to break through.

After a breakthrough in practicing Lingxi, he sensed the Jinghua Cave Heaven.

When practicing the body observation technique, he made a breakthrough and sensed the Pijing Cave Heaven.

After a breakthrough in practicing the subtle art, what he sensed was the cave of viewing books.

After a breakthrough in practicing the Heart Plate Technique, he sensed the Feather Realm Cave Heaven.

When practicing the art of alchemy, he made a breakthrough and sensed the fairy pot cave.

After a breakthrough in practicing the art of qi-gazing, one senses the Dengyun Cave Heaven.

When practicing the magic of Xingshen, he achieved a breakthrough and sensed the Fengyu Cave Heaven.

These seven secret caves are located in Fengwei Qiping, Fengwei Township, Shanping County, Hanning City.

So what about practicing the Hidden Moth Technique? He Kao is the first True Moth in 1,100 years and has practiced the Hidden Moth Technique to a high level.

He Kao also sensed the call. What was interesting was that the so-called secret cave realm that summoned him was the Hidden Moth Space, and the "key" that could open the portal to this secret cave realm was the beast claw pendant he wore with him.

The animal claw pendant he currently wore was the last of seven counterfeit pendants, crafted by Wu Yanjun's junior apprentice, Ye Yuxuan. During the ceremony in which Huang Xiaopang passed on his identity as Hidden Moth, it was this pendant that became Hidden Moth's possession.

Compared to others who have to travel through mountains and rivers to find the secret cave and can only enter it under the guidance of the deacon of the magic sect, He Kao can reach it directly in a moment.

If He Kao was not Yin Mo, nor did he possess anything related to Yin Mo, but was just an ordinary disciple of Yin Mo Sect, who had practiced Yin E technique and broke through to the fourth level, then what he was sensing at this moment was the location of the secret realm of Dong Tian.

It would be fine if it was a place he had never been to, but in fact it was not too far away from him, and it was a place he often went to - Gushan Secret Mansion!
The Gushan Secret Mansion was a secret stronghold he had built deep within the mountain. How could it possibly be the location of the Yin'e Sect's secret cave realm? To say it was a coincidence made no sense at all!
But when he appeared in the cave hall, he was a little dumbfounded, because the secret cave that guided him was the painting of "Tan Xian Holding a Cane" hanging in front of the altar.

He Kao inexplicably had a very clear feeling. It was not an illusion. He had just entered this picture and then came out of it.

In fact, the ability of the Hidden Moth is not to travel through space directly, but to transfer through the strange Hidden Moth Space. First enter the Hidden Moth Space, and then open another portal from the Hidden Moth Space to reach the place he has been to and can remember.

The hidden moth space does not consume real time, so it looks like teleportation, and that's how he came here just now.

He had long been accustomed to flashing by unintentionally, and it was the same just now, but the feeling was a little different. Before he could react, the person had already come out.

It seems that there is another mystery in the Hidden Moth Space, but his original cultivation level is still shallow and he is not yet able to explore it.

He came to the painting "Tan Xian Holding a Cane" and immediately noticed a difference from the previous ones. Before, under the gaze of the immortal Tan in the painting, he could not activate the power of the hidden moth.

At this moment, the power of the hidden moth can still be activated, but there is only one place, that is in that painting! Isn't this a painting? Are those mountains and fields real? Or is the so-called hidden moth space the world in the painting?

He Kao activated the power of the Hidden Moth and immediately entered the Hidden Moth space, but he was still in a special state where he had nothing and even had no concept of time and space.

But in this peculiar state, a person named He Kao "appeared", as if the spiritual platform created the universe and the heaven and earth appeared. The scene changed in the blink of an eye, and he found himself in the mountains.

What’s even more special is that this is not an illusion, but a real world!
As a fourth-rank cultivator, he could already discern illusions. He was standing where Immortal Tan stood in the painting, but facing the opposite direction, directly toward the mountains behind him.

There is no Immortal Tan in this world, only himself.

Looking closely at the surrounding mountains and fields, the season seems to be a little wrong. The painting shows a scene of falling snow, but the season in the mountains and fields should be the same as outside, roughly late summer or early autumn.

At this time of year, the colors in the mountains and fields are the richest. Some mountain flowers are still blooming, while some fruits are ripe, and the branches and leaves of grass and trees are also the most lush in the year.

He Kao's foothold was on a high flat slope, halfway up the mountain. In the distance in front of him was a long mountain ridge, with many parallel branches extending towards his direction.

Nearby in front of He Kao was the valley entrance formed by two branches, and under his feet there was a yellow mud road leading to the valley entrance.

The road is about ten feet wide, with no weeds growing on it. It is compacted very firmly and densely, and it seems that it will not become muddy due to rain, but it is not as hard as a cobblestone road.

It wasn't raining at the moment, so how did He Kao know it wouldn't become muddy? After all, he had learned the art of identifying objects from the subtle realm, which allowed him to perceive the physical properties of many things through his spiritual awareness.

He Kao did not walk along the mountain road, but stood still for a long time as if in a trance, then took a step and disappeared.

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(End of this chapter)