Meng Hao paused and looked out into the void. Voice calm, he replied, “Neither that plant nor that hand can act of their own accord. Both are controlled by something else. I would want to become… the person who commanded that hand to alter the little plant!” With that, he turned and prepared to step through the door.
Suddenly, the ancient voice in the void laughed. It was a laughter filled with happiness and praise.
“To think that… the Fang Clan has produced someone like you. Delightful! How very delightful!” As the voice echoed out, the image of a middle-aged man suddenly appeared within the void. He looked over at Meng Hao.
“For years, none of the few people who managed to enter this place made a choice like yours.
“Your reward for reaching this ninth level is that I can answer a single question for you.”
Meng Hao’s eyes glittered.
“Is there a pinnacle of skill with plants and vegetation that exceeds that of creation?” he asked.
“That’s not an easy question to answer,” the middle-aged man said slowly. “First, you must be able to understand… what the Dao is!”
“The Dao?” Meng Hao gaped.
“Why is there life? Why is there death?” The ancient voiced echoed back and forth endlessly.
“Why is there reincarnation? It’s like a circle, with the head and the tail connected, but what exactly does that mean, and is reincarnation the only explanation?
“Why are there cultivators? Why are there cultivation Realms?
“Why is there Daoist magic? Why are there divine abilities?
“How does light shine? How does darkness descend?
“Metal. Wood. Water. Fire. Earth. What are the differences between these elements?
“Fire is fire, and yet, why are there different types of heat?
“What is heat? What is cold? What does it mean when something that can only survive in the ice can be burned to death by a single drop of water?”
The ancient voice spoke with increasing speed, causing Meng Hao’s mind to tremble. Questions piled up in his mind. Each one seemed possible to answer directly, but if he actually had to answer them, he would be left speechless.
“What is the Dao?” That was the final question uttered by the ancient voice, and it left Meng Hao’s mind rumbling.
“The Essence is the Dao, the basis of everything that defies Heaven!” A bright light shone in the middle-aged man’s eyes, and he suddenly seemed very serious.
“All such unknowns are Essence. Only when you seek out the Essence, can you comprehend Heaven and Earth, understand all living things, and control everything! When you understand all transformations of Heaven and Earth, when you have defied the Heavens, when you have sealed the Earth, then what could possibly be difficult to you?!” The middle-aged man waved his hand, and Meng Hao’s mind trembled. He couldn’t stop himself from stepping into the door, and then he vanished into the void.
After he disappeared, the middle-aged man shook his head and smiled, then stepped forward into the medicinal plant garden. He sat down cross-legged and gradually transformed into a tiny sprout.
He was… the final transformation of that little plant. A tiny sprout!