Chapter 2892: Feeling The Burden

เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 มี.ค. 2569 18:38

The moment Lin Mu stepped past the threshold, he felt it. A sudden pull.A weight far heavier than what pressed down outside. He paused mid-step.The gravity had increased—noticeably. If the monastery's exterior was oppressive, then its interior was like wading through thick, invisible sludge. With every movement, Lin Mu could feel his muscles tighten, his spiritual energy adapting. His brow rose slightly. "Triple the normal gravity," he muttered to himself. The monk walking ahead of him seemed to move with practiced slowness, his steps deliberate, each shift of his emaciated body executed with utmost care. "This pressure," Lin Mu said aloud, "why is it so dense here?" The monk looked over his shoulder, nodding solemnly. "There was an accident… years ago. You will understand once we reach the inner chamber." Lin Mu said no more, following in silence. As they passed through corridor after corridor, the air grew heavier with each turn. Fourfold. Fivefold. The gravity escalated at a steady rhythm, as if it responded not only to their depth within the monastery but to their very proximity to something. Lin Mu could feel the faint hum of formations layered into the walls, thousands of tiny interlocked patterns of suppression and control. These weren't defenses.They were containment. And they were strained. Lin Mu's eyes narrowed. He could feel minute cracks in the formation's flow—a sign of stress. Pressure. Pain, even. The monk ahead said nothing, simply leading him down through winding stairs carved from gray stone, their edges worn by time and footfall. Eventually, they came upon a wide antechamber. A great iron door stood at the far end, engraved with ancient sutras and radiant glyphs. At its base sat an altar. There, the monk paused. He reached into a small hidden compartment in the altar and retrieved two metal bracelets inscribed with old talismans. Without a word, he fastened one around his wrist. The air around him shimmered faintly, and Lin Mu could tell the pressure had lessened for him. He then turned, offering the second bracelet toward Lin Mu. But after a moment, he stopped. His gaze lingered on Lin Mu's posture, on the stillness of his expression. Lin Mu stood with his hands calmly folded behind his back, not a single bead of sweat upon his brow. His breathing hadn't changed since entering. His spiritual aura remained undisturbed, unaffected. "You… do not need it?" the monk asked slowly. Lin Mu offered a faint smile. "I've endured worse. This is manageable." The monk studied him for a breath longer before bowing his head slightly. "As expected of the one bearing the Ruyi. Then… follow me." He turned, pressing his palm against the center of the iron door. With a deep metallic groan, the great gates parted, revealing the final chamber. The moment Lin Mu stepped inside, he felt the difference. Tenfold gravity. His boots sank half an inch into the ancient stone floor from the sheer force bearing down. Normally this shouldn't happen as the stone was tough, making the monks surprised. Lin Mu didn't care about explaining his great weight to the man right now as there were more pressing things to deal with right now. The air became syrup, each breath thick and slow. Even time seemed to crawl. But Lin Mu remained calm. He walked without falter. Inside, the space opened into a vast circular hall lit by the faint glow of spirit lanterns embedded in the walls. And seated within—arranged in concentric circles around a dark central well—were hundreds of monks. They sat in meditation. Every one of them. Robes hanging loosely from bony shoulders. Eyes shut. Expressions serene… but pained. Their brows were faintly furrowed. Their auras strangely distorted. Not unstable—but strained, as though their very souls were under pressure. Some of them looked almost as old as dried husks, while others were still youthful in appearance. Yet the same undertone of suffering bound them all. Lin Mu's eyes narrowed as he scanned the chamber. This wasn't simple meditation. This was containment. "What is happening here?" Lin Mu asked, his voice cutting through the silence like a blade through mist. The monk beside him remained quiet for a few moments before speaking. "Years ago," he said slowly, "we attempted to deepen our comprehension of the Burden Path. The old masters—our predecessors—believed that suffering was not something to flee from, but to embrace. And so they constructed the Heart of Gravity… a formation meant to increase our endurance and temper our bodies by simulating the burdens of the mortal and spiritual realms alike." Lin Mu nodded. "But something went wrong." The monk closed his eyes. "Yes. The core of the Heart fractured. A seal broke. What was once controlled weight became a tide… and we could not stop it." He gestured to the central well. Lin Mu turned his gaze there. A dark pit lay at its center, sealed with hundreds of talismans and formation threads. Even from here, Lin Mu could feel something beneath it—a pull, as though the world itself sagged in its direction. "What's under there?" he asked. "We don't know," the monk whispered. "Something ancient. Something that was here long before we arrived at this monastery." he said making Lin Mu surprised. 'They weren't always at this monastery?' He wondered. Lin Mu's gaze lingered on the sealed well. The gravity that blanketed the room was emanating from there, like a sun made of pressure. "And the monks?" "They remain to keep the seal in check. Through pain and burden… they lend their strength. To leave would mean collapse." The monk spoke. "We cannot let this monastery collapse for it is our home... our legacy. To let that happen would be sacrilege." Lin Mu said nothing for a long time. He simply stood among the ranks of silent monks, beneath the weight of something unseen… and very old. He had a hundred thoughts going through his mind. The gravity, the monks, and their choice of staying here. Not letting their home be destroyed.

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