Revelation of the Way of Heaven

Chapter 245 Schrödinger's Cat

"I can understand cause and effect, but what does this have to do with the fog you mentioned?" Qin Xiaochuan was still puzzled.

"Have you heard of Schrödinger's cat?" the wise monk asked instead of answering.

Qin Xiaochuan was taken aback, not expecting the other party to suddenly ask this question, but he still nodded, as he had indeed looked into it before.

Schrödinger's cat involves placing a cat, a vial of poison, and a radioactive source with a 50% probability of releasing radiation in a sealed box. If a detector inside the box detects the radioactivity, the vial will break, releasing the poison and killing the cat. When people open the box, the cat will be either alive or dead. However, before the box is opened, due to the uncertainty of the radioactive source, the cat exists in a superposition of being both dead and alive.

The wise monk said, "Everything has a cause and an effect. In Schrödinger's cat, whether the radioactive source emits radiation is the cause, and whether the cat lives or dies is the effect. If the cause has not occurred, then the final effect is also chaotic and unknown."

Qin Xiaochuan suddenly realized and said excitedly, "I understand now. Your other hypothesis is that the cause that determines the future fate of mankind has not yet occurred, so the future fate of mankind remains chaotic and uncertain."

The wise monk nodded emphatically.

Qin Xiaochuan thought for a moment, then asked, "Then what determines the future fate of humanity?"

The wise monk shook his head and said, "I don't know either. This is also the reason why I have stayed here all these years. I hope to find the cause and maybe change the fate of mankind's destruction."

Qin Xiaochuan couldn't help but feel a deep respect for the old monk before him. To live a simple life alone in the vast, boundless snow-capped mountains, solely for the sake of exploring the fate of humanity, required immense willpower.

The wise monk continued, "Although I still haven't found the cause that can change the fate of mankind, all phenomena are empty, but cause and effect are not. Karma is powerful, and once it starts to operate, it is difficult to change. Therefore, we need to exert our efforts on key events in key positions."

Seeing Qin Xiaochuan's confused expression, the monk Hui explained, "It's like an out-of-control train. To change its course, you can only change the tracks at key points in its journey. Only in this way can you make the final destination far away from the original destination. We can call this key point the dividing line of fate."

"I understand," Qin Xiaochuan said with a sudden realization, "but these crucial locations are very difficult to find."

"I have made a vow to Buddha that no matter how long it takes, I will find it," the wise monk said without hesitation.

"Alright, I have conveyed all the relevant information. My mission is complete. Please feel free to ask any further questions." The monk clasped his hands together and softly chanted a Buddhist prayer.

"Thank you, Master." Qin Xiaochuan clasped his hands in greeting to the monk Hui, and then continued, "I do have one more thing I would like to ask you."

"Speak," the wise monk said, looking at him intently.

Qin Xiaochuan organized his thoughts and said, "I have a friend whose mother is an archaeologist. She came here to do archaeological work a while ago and suddenly disappeared. When we found her today, we discovered that she didn't even recognize her own daughter. She seemed to have amnesia. Not only that, but the other archaeologists who were with her were also like that. I don't know what caused this. I wonder if you know the secret behind it?"

"I do know the reason for this," the monk Hui nodded.

"Please enlighten me, Master," Qin Xiaochuan asked with delight.

"There is an ancient legend that there is a divine beast called Kaiming that guards the Heavenly Gate for the Queen Mother of the West in Kunlun Ruins. I wonder if you have seen it on this trip?" asked the wise monk.

"Kaiming? I have indeed seen it before." Qin Xiaochuan nodded. "I encountered it at the bronze gate leading into Kunlun Ruins. Could Aunt Jiang's amnesia be related to it?"

"That's right. Legend has it that Kunlun Ruins was originally a passage connecting heaven and earth. After the severing of the connection between heaven and earth, this passage was broken. The Queen Mother of the West was originally a goddess, so she naturally returned to heaven and severed ties with the human world. The gate of heaven was thus closed. When the Queen Mother of the West returned to heaven, she left Kaiming behind in the human world."

"You see, Kaiming was originally meant to guard the Heavenly Gate for the Queen Mother of the West, but now it can't find its way home. Over time, this has become an obsession in its heart. From some unknown time, it has been taking people back from the foot of the mountain from time to time and stealing their memories."

Trying to find the way home from those people's memories.

"After stealing the memories of too many people, it has forgotten who it is." After saying this, the monk sighed helplessly.

"So how can we help Aunt Jiang regain her memory?" Qin Xiaochuan asked.

The wise monk stroked his gray beard: "To restore the memories of someone whose memories have been stolen, we must first find the memories of the Enlightened Beast, help it find itself, and then make it return the stolen memories."

The wise monk paused for a moment and then continued, "As for how to find the memories of the Enlightened Beast, I am powerless to do so, but you can rely on the power of the Heavenly Stele." After saying that, he focused his gaze on the stone stele, which was more than two meters high, in the center of the temple.

"The Heavenly Stele?" Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the mysterious stone stele.

"Indeed, this Heavenly Stele seems to possess a magical power. It seems to allow one to communicate with heaven and earth. It was through it that Xiao Yan and I were able to witness the secrets of ancient times." As the monk Hui spoke, his eyes seemed to shine, filled with reverence for the Heavenly Stele. "This is also why I have insisted on staying here all these years."

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiaochuan became even more curious about the stone tablet in front of him. It looked ordinary, but he never expected it to contain such great energy.

Thinking of this, Qin Xiaochuan was already eager to try it out, and asked anxiously, "Master, how can we utilize the power of the Heavenly Stele?"

"As long as you feel it with your heart and connect with it, you will naturally understand, just like feeling the great Dao of heaven and earth. Amitabha." After saying this, the monk put his hands together and chanted a Buddhist mantra.

Qin Xiaochuan approached the Heavenly Stele and looked up. It was three or four meters tall, charred black, with a rough and uneven surface. The firelight flickered on the stele, making it difficult to tell what material it was made of. The stele was covered with ancient characters, resembling oracle bone script, but unfortunately, Qin Xiaochuan didn't recognize them. Apart from that, the Heavenly Stele seemed to have nothing special, but it contained a vast and profound Daoist charm that inspired a sense of awe.

Qin Xiaochuan turned to look at Han Kexin, who had already sat down under the Heavenly Stele as instructed by the monk Hui, so he sat down as well.

Following the method of meditation taught by Zhao Changyu, Qin Xiaochuan quickly entered a state of vast emptiness and near-existence.

He didn't know how long he remained in this state when an image suddenly appeared clearly in his mind.

It was a circular pattern with an unfamiliar traditional Chinese character in the center. Five different colored liquids swirled around the character, and then that fleeting spiritual world reappeared before him.

Qin Xiaochuan looked around at the mysterious space. Unlike the previous time when the entire spiritual world was shrouded in gray, this time the entire space was bathed in a pale blue light, and some light and shadow flickered within these lights.

Since first appearing in this spiritual space, Qin Xiaochuan has been learning how to practice spiritual energy from Xin Wanru of the academy. However, no matter how hard he tries, he is unable to reproduce this spiritual world and is instead tricked by Si Chennan with illusions.

But today, this spiritual space has somehow reappeared on its own. It really proves the old saying, "You can search high and low without finding it, but then it comes to you effortlessly." I wonder if it's because of the Heavenly Stele.

Qin Xiaochuan reached out his right hand and touched the light and shadow. His entire mental world changed instantly. He saw an endless flood surging in from the horizon.

"Holy crap!" Qin Xiaochuan's face changed color in horror. He instinctively wanted to run away, but it was obviously too late.

The floodwaters engulfed his body in the next moment, but unexpectedly, they passed right through him without causing him any harm.

"Phew! You scared me, it was just an illusion." Qin Xiaochuan laughed awkwardly, then looked at the illusion again.

A crack appeared in the bronze sky, and a gigantic monster with a human head and a snake's body raised its head from the depths of the abyss, causing the water level of the entire sea to drop by a third.

His serpentine body coiled above the towering waves, each scale glowing with a ghostly blue light, like countless bronze mirrors reflecting death. He wielded a meteorite trident and slammed it heavily into the sea, instantly unleashing another wave of monstrous waves.

"Could this be the legendary Gonggong?" Qin Xiaochuan's eyes widened. He finally understood what the monk Hui had said; this celestial stele really could allow people to see things from the past.