Xiang's steps slowly left Ying outside the room. Each step Xiang took filled his mind with thought after thought.
Xiang was overthinking events that were beyond his comprehension. Like iron corroding from its own rust. His thoughts and feelings made him too anxious.
"Am I actually dreaming? Or are all these strange events really happening to me?" Xiang said to himself.
Moments later, Xiang had entered his room and sat on a stack of cardboard boxes arranged to resemble a bed.
As Xiang sat, he held the pocket of his pants that contained a necklace and letters. He then took them out of his pocket.
"How can I explain this to Ying? I'm afraid that explaining this will ruin her happiness," Xiang said softly as he took the items out of his pocket.
Once the necklace and letters were out, he held and examined them in detail. Then Xiang said, "If you are truly alive, try speaking, and if you are messengers of your leader, tell him I want to talk to him about the child I found."
Suddenly, after Xiang said that, a familiar voice was heard again. The voice said, "Is there anything unclear? Try asking now!"
For a moment, Xiang remembered the voice he first heard when he found Yinxing under the tree, the voice he didn't pay much attention to at that time.
"Before I ask further, may I see you? Let's talk face to face," Xiang said to the familiar voice softly, afraid that Ying would hear him.
The voice replied, "Are you sure you want to meet me? And can you bear the pain that will come from our meeting?"
This answer only made Xiang more curious about Yinxing and the voice, prompting him to act boldly.
Xiang said, "Alright, I will bear any risk I may face, as long as I can see and talk to you directly."
"Very well, if you are sure of the risks. But before I take you to a distant dimension, you should lock the door first," the voice said.
Xiang's curiosity grew even more. "To another dimension? What does that mean? In my entire life, I've never heard of such a thing. Is it even possible?" Xiang thought to himself.
With determination, Xiang said to the voice, "Alright, for Yinxing... I will do it."
Xiang immediately stood up from where he was sitting and headed to his room's door. Just before closing the door, he glanced at Ying, who was cradling Yinxing.
"I will not let Ying's happiness be disrupted by this mystery. I will solve this problem myself without burdening Ying," Xiang said to himself.
After Xiang steeled his resolve, he slowly closed his bedroom door and locked it with a small piece of wood nailed in place but able to turn.
Xiang returned to his bed and began conversing with the voice again.
"Alright, I've locked the door. What should I do next to meet you, mysterious voice?" Xiang asked.
"Very well, but before I truly bring you to my dimension, I must ask you once more: Are you sure about this decision?" the mysterious voice asked Xiang again.
The more the voice questioned his resolve, the more curious and determined Xiang became to meet this mysterious entity.
"Because you keep questioning my resolve, my desire to meet you only grows stronger," Xiang said.
"This will cause you extraordinary pain. Are you still determined, even if it costs you your life?" the voice asked Xiang again.
"First, I thank you for your concern, but it will not shake my resolve. Let's begin the dimensional shift," Xiang responded to the voice.
"Very well, let us start the ritual. Please lie down on your bed and relax your entire body to make the process easier for you," said the mysterious voice.
"Alright, I hope I can endure all this pain with my unwavering determination," Xiang said as he lay down on the bed made of cardboard boxes.
After Xiang lay down, the mysterious voice started uttering strange words that Xiang couldn't understand. It seemed the entity was chanting or reciting a spell.
Sure enough, as soon as the mysterious entity finished chanting, Xiang was overcome with intense pain.
"The pain, what kind of pain is this? I must not scream, or Ying will hear me. I have to endure all this pain for Ying and Yinxing. But this pain is unbearable, I've never felt anything like this in my life... Aaaaaarrrrghhhhh," Xiang said to himself.
Indeed, the pain Xiang felt was like being pricked by needles in every muscle of his body, a pain no living human should ever experience.
After a while, Xiang suddenly felt a strange sensation, though his eyes remained closed.
The mysterious voice said, "You have endured the excruciating process, Xiang. Now you are right in front of me. You may open your eyes."
Xiang immediately opened his eyes and saw a faint figure before him.
The sound of rushing water made Xiang look around. In an instant, he realized he was inside a cave with an entrance covered by a waterfall.
The place where Xiang and the mysterious man stood was damp, with only a strange lantern providing light. The light it emitted was unlike any normal fire.
The flame had no usual base like a candle or torch. It burned in midair without any visible fuel, and the fire was blue.
"Is this not on the earth I know? Is this a world I've never known before? Wait, who are you?" Xiang asked in confusion.
The mysterious man sat calmly in a meditative position, like someone gathering natural energy.
With a faint smile, the mysterious man said to Xiang, "Calm your mind and feelings, Xiang. Nothing disrupts the situation more than our own thoughts and emotions."
Xiang tried to open his eyes wider, wanting to see the mysterious figure more clearly.
But strangely, the man's face was not clear, not very visible, like a reflection in a dull mirror. It was completely indistinct and vague.
The more Xiang tried to focus on the man, the blurrier his vision became.
The man sensed Xiang's desire to interact more closely with him.
"Regulate your breathing, Xiang, and sit there. Calm your emotions. Even turbulent water cannot reflect a person's image, so be as calm as clear water that can reflect someone's image like a mirror," said the mysterious man.