The Cornflower Witch

Book 2: Chapter 42: Arrival at the Gate of the Distant Mountains

Vol 2 Chapter 42: Arrival at the Gate of the Distant Mountains

"What is a wizard?"

A long time ago, the person who guided him onto the extraordinary path had asked him this. Of course, at that time, the 12-year-old Karl didn't know the specific answer and could only give a vague response.

"Probably someone very powerful and somewhat mysterious."

"Correct."

The other party's affirmation surprised him;

he had thought he would be corrected and then told the real answer.

"Wizards originally referred to those who mastered abilities beyond ordinary comprehension, who possessed mysterious magical powers. That is the origin of wizards."

"Therefore, wizards always exist on the fringes of the conventional world. They know of darker and more bizarre knowledge from outside, and they also master these strange and obscure secret arts."

"Regarding the understanding of the world, wizards believe that not all things can be explained or understood through words and language. This is our greatest divergence from scholars and mages."

"Mages believe the world contains hidden truths;

as long as they are explored and understood, everything can be explained by them and used to plan and control all things.""Blind pursuit of knowledge is not necessarily a good thing. In fact, it is a kind of arrogance, believing that as long as something is explored and understood, it can be mastered and commanded. We must acknowledge that the vastness and unknowns of the world will always exist, and we must hold reverence for this."

"Wizards can disregard the conflicts between concepts of things, instead directly probing from phenomena, then mastering them according to their patterns. We don't need to deliberately understand their principles, nor can we know the completely true world."

[The completely objective real world is unknowable;

we can only ever perceive the experiential world processed by our senses and intellect.]

……

These were the words his instructor taught him in his early years. Even now, he still remembers them. In fact, in his later studies and life, he increasingly realized that so-called human hearts are also things difficult to truly know.

Therefore, he chose to follow his instructor's guidance, no longer attempting to explore the truly specific thoughts at the bottom of each person's heart. Such things might sometimes be too real, making people feel difficult to get close to.

From then on, he slowly maintained a certain boundary with others, neither excessively probing into others' private matters nor overly revealing his own emotions and thoughts. This led his teammates to always say he was cold and unsociable.

Fortunately, he met his current captain and Yan. The other two always liked to crack small jokes to liven up the atmosphere and wouldn't complain or think he was being deliberately cold just because he spoke that way.

'Everyone has their own temperament, isn't that normal?' Bad Apple had explained with a laugh back then.

'If I eat an apple, do I have to specifically check where that tree grew? If I know the farmer used something to water the tree, do I have to spit the apple out?'

Although this team occasionally had differences of opinion, no one would force others to obey, or use various reasons to ask why, trying to persuade and so on. This attitude of mutual respect, understanding, and helping each other was probably what made him feel no pressure and created a comfortable environment to get along in.

Thus, unusually, he stayed with this team long-term.

Although Bad Apple said he didn't care, Karl knew clearly that if Bad Apple wanted to advance, that 'Stone Mist Water' was almost indispensable. It was also a difficult-to-replace resource within the planned progression path he had mapped out, something he had been planning for for several years.

Not just him, Yan and Pona also knew. So when Bad Apple proposed coming to Bain Town this time, they almost all agreed. He had even specially thought of a reason to agree, saying his phantom cat also needed 'Ash Evil Fruit' to complete its advancement and strengthening.

……

"Karl, what are you thinking about?" After the few of them finished discussing tomorrow's plan, Bad Apple walked over.

"Nothing much, just reminiscing about some things from the past." Karl raised his hand, and a black cat crawled out from under his sleeve, stretched lazily, then curiously lay down on his knee, looking left and right.

"I've always wanted to ask, is this black cat one you raised before?" Bad Apple asked curiously.

"No." Karl rarely explained, lowering his head to stroke the phantom cat.

"I actually don't really like keeping animals."

"Its previous owner wasn't me;

it was just an acquaintance of mine."

"Later, when it was about to die, I happened to need experimental materials, so it was given to me."

"Sounds like there's a deep story there. Forget it, I'd better not ask." Bad Apple shrugged.

"In case you tell it, I won't be able to sleep tonight."

"Heh." The firelight reflected in Karl's eyes as he lowered his head and smiled, his gaze complex and profound.

"I'll tell you all later, after this adventure is over."

"Alright, it's settled then. Don't go back on it and not mention it later." Bad Apple pressed the advantage.

"I'll tell it." Karl's voice held unspoken emotion.

The night passed quietly once again.

……

Morning came, and the team set off, embarking on the final leg of the journey to the Distant Mountain Gate.

As they gradually approached the upper waist of the mountain range, the slope of the path became steeper. The few of them had no choice but to lead their horses, proceeding step by step through the forest.

Fortunately, as the altitude increased, the vegetation here became relatively sparse, so they didn't have to worry about stepping on stones or pits hidden in the grass.

However, as the altitude increased, the mist here actually grew thicker and thicker, and they all experienced varying degrees of discomfort.

"I feel a bit dizzy." Yan stopped walking, his complexion poor.

"Me too, somewhat." Karl gasped for breath.

"I'm slightly better, but I also feel the situation here isn't quite right." Bad Apple looked around.

"What about Tia?"

The girl at the rear of the team was also sitting under a tree resting at the moment.

"I'm still okay, but I also feel very damp and stuffy." Sylutia felt sticky all over, as if it were the humid, rainy season back in her previous life.

"We've come this far;

it's time to take out that thing and use it." Bad Apple thought for a moment, then retrieved a special torch from the baggage carried by the horse.

Sylutia watched as he lit the torch. A wave of hot wind immediately blew forth, gradually dispersing the mist among the trees, making everything she saw much clearer, as if suddenly in high definition.

"Is this the effect of the Dawn Wind Torch?" It was her first time seeing her teammate use it.

"Yes, specially purchased from an alchemist. This single one costs 3 gold coins and only burns for an hour."

Holding the torch high, the water vapor met the hot wind and immediately dissipated. Everything in the forest became a bit clearer.

"Let's go, we continue." After speaking, the group set off again.

Although the final straight-line distance was only 25 li, because most of it was slopes and they had to detour, they walked intermittently for nearly six hours before gradually arriving near their target.

"This should be the place. The map's markings end here." Bad Apple put down the map.

"Here?"

Sylutia, like the others, looked around in all directions. They were still in the seemingly endless mountain forest, unable to see the so-called 'stone archway'.

The mist-shrouded mountains were exceptionally quiet, with no birdsong to be heard, not even insects visible, only endless trees.

Seeing everyone was somewhat bewildered, Bad Apple turned around and spoke with keen interest.

"Have you all forgotten? 'Mist Shadow' is the Aspect most skilled in concealment and illusions."

He lit another Dawn Wind Torch. The orange-red flame flickered, hot wind overflowing, then he tossed it high into the air before leaping up himself.

A slender blade gleam cut rapidly through the air, tearing the torch into fragments. Countless glowing fragments and embers scattered, falling into this forest, burning simultaneously in various places, brimming with scorching Dawn Wind.

As if an invisible canvas was slowly being burned through, everything in their vision gradually shed its curtain, revealing the truth behind.

They were still standing on the mountainside, an area strewn with stones, surrounded by two towering, immense mountains. Between them, a stone-paved staircase wound its way upward, leading to the distant, narrow canyon end.

There, an ancient stone archway stood.