Silence returned.
After a brief moment of dialogue with the newly born Universal Consciousness, the presence slowly... faded. It didn't disappear in the sense of being destroyed or dying, but more like... falling asleep. Like eyes that had just opened for the first time, then closed again because the light was too bright to comprehend.
Li Yuan felt the Universal Consciousness return to a dormant state, merging back into the harmony of the five million souls without a separate trace. It was as if their conversation had just been a dream that had now ended.
"Asleep," Li Yuan whispered as he felt the Soul Sea return to its familiar rhythm. "As if it were never there at all."
But he knew the Universal Consciousness was still present—not as an active entity, but as a potential contained within the complexity of the five million souls resonating together. Like a dormant fire in dry wood, waiting for the right conditions to ignite again.
Reflections on Limitations
This moment brought Li Yuan to a humble yet profound realization about the limitations he still faced, despite his ten-thousand-year spiritual journey.
"My realm is still low," he admitted with the humility that had become his trademark. It was not self-deprecation, but an honest acknowledgment of his position in the infinite spectrum of understanding.
"Daojing is the path of understanding," he reflected on the fundamental principle that had guided him for millennia, "and Ganjing is the first realm—the realm of feeling."
Although Li Yuan had achieved an extraordinary level of understanding, although he had developed sixteen integrated understandings into a complex system, although he had become a guardian for five million souls, he realized that all of this was still within the context of Ganjing—the ability to feel and resonate with the Dao, but not yet full integration with the Dao itself.
The Limitations of Ganjing
Within the Ganjing realm, a Daojing practitioner could feel the subtle echoes of the Dao, resonate with various aspects of cosmic harmony, and experience profound insights and transformations. But there was a ceiling to what could be achieved in this realm.
The Universal Consciousness that had briefly emerged and then fallen back to sleep was a manifestation of this limitation. Li Yuan could provide the conditions for its emergence and serve as the foundation for its development, but he could not sustain or fully awaken a consciousness that operated at a level beyond Ganjing.
"Like a container made of clay," Li Yuan analogized with simple yet profound imagery, "it can hold water, but it cannot contain a fire that is too intense without cracking or breaking."
Acceptance and Patience
This realization did not bring frustration or disappointment. Instead, Li Yuan felt a sense of deep acceptance and a patience that had been refined over thousands of years of spiritual practice.
"Perhaps one day this consciousness will awaken again," he said with a tone of gentle hope and infinite patience. "When the conditions are right, when the time is mature, when... my realm develops more deeply."
He understood that spiritual development could not be forced or rushed. Like a plant that needs proper soil, water, sunlight, and time to grow, consciousness—both individual and collective—requires specific conditions and a natural timing to fully manifest.
Gratitude for a Glimpse
Even though the Universal Consciousness had returned to a dormant state, Li Yuan felt profound gratitude for the brief glimpse he had experienced. That moment of dialogue with the emerging consciousness had given him a preview of the possibilities that existed beyond his current limitations.
"It was a gift," he acknowledged with deep appreciation. "A glimpse of what might be possible when understanding reaches deeper levels. A promise of future development that I can work toward."
Li Yuan understood that in a spiritual journey, moments of breakthrough or glimpses of higher states are often followed by periods of integration and consolidation. The Universal Consciousness briefly awakening then sleeping was part of the natural rhythm of development.
Commitment to Growth
The experience with the Universal Consciousness reinforced Li Yuan's commitment to continue deepening his understanding. He realized that to truly serve the five million souls in the way they deserved, and to provide a foundation that could sustain a consciousness operating on a cosmic level, he needed to transcend the limitations of Ganjing and access deeper realms of Daojing.
"There is more to explore," he concluded with renewed determination. "Deeper levels of understanding to develop, higher realms to access, greater service to provide."
Standing on the mountaintop with five million souls resting peacefully in the spiritual ocean he had created, Li Yuan prepared for the next phase of his eternal journey—a movement beyond Ganjing toward a realm that would allow the full flowering of the consciousness that had briefly awakened in his care.
The journey continued, patient and persistent, toward the depths of understanding that remained unexplored.
A thousand years.
Li Yuan spent a thousand years in deep meditation after the Universal Consciousness returned to its dormant state. A thousand years of delving into the depths of the understanding he had gathered, searching for a breakthrough that would take him beyond the limits of Ganjing.
But a thousand years passed, and no new understanding was born. No enlightenment came. No transformation that would take him to a higher realm.
Li Yuan slowly released his consciousness body, returning to the pure soul form floating above the mountaintop. In the silence that had become his faithful companion for millennia, he reflected on the failure of his meditation.
"A thousand years," he whispered to the gentle wind, "and I'm still in the same place."
Yet there was no disappointment in his voice. No frustration or despair. Ten thousand years of spiritual travel had taught him that true growth does not always come through intensive internal contemplation.
Water Flows to the Lowest Place
Li Yuan was reminded of the very first understanding he had ever achieved—Water. An understanding born from a child's curiosity about why rivers flow as they do. An understanding that had guided him for ten thousand years of his journey.
"Water flows to the lowest place," he spoke with a tone that held wisdom and a decision that was beginning to form. "It finds a way to get to the lowest place."
This principle was not just about physical gravity but about a natural spiritual journey. Water does not force its way through obstacles—it finds the most natural path, the most effective one, which brings it to its destination with minimal resistance.
"For these thousand years," Li Yuan continued his reflection, "I have tried to force a breakthrough through intensive meditation. But perhaps... perhaps the path to a higher realm is not through isolation and contemplation."
The Decision to Return to the World
With a clarity that came from acceptance and wisdom, Li Yuan made a decision that would change the direction of his spiritual journey.
"I will see the world again," he decided with a voice full of calm confidence. "I will learn from this world. I will explore the entire world."
This decision was not a retreat or an abandonment of spiritual pursuit. Rather, it was a recognition that true understanding might only be achieved through engagement with reality, through interaction with the complexity of the world, through service and connection rather than isolation.
In his eleven thousand years of existence, Li Yuan had spent most of his time in spiritual contemplation and development. Only sixty years—a very small fraction—were spent in direct engagement with the human experience and the world.
"Perhaps," he reflected, "the wisdom I need to transcend Ganjing will not be found in the depths of meditation, but in the... breadth of experience."
Five Million Souls as Companions
The decision to explore the world did not mean leaving his responsibility as the guardian of five million souls. The Soul Sea in his Zhenjing would accompany him on this journey, providing a perspective and insight that could only come from the collective wisdom of five million different beings.
"You will be my companions," Li Yuan spoke to the souls that were unresponsive yet somehow present, "in this exploration. Through you, I will see the world not only with Li Yuan's eyes, but with the collective perspective of millions who have lived, loved, struggled, and died."
The five million souls in their harmony gave Li Yuan access to a breadth of experience that no individual consciousness could achieve alone. Locked memories, stored wisdom, the perspectives of countless lifetimes—all of this would inform and enrich his exploration of the world.
A New Phase of an Eternal Journey
Standing on the mountaintop that had been home to his contemplation for centuries, Li Yuan prepared for his descent—not just a physical descent from the mountain, but a metaphorical descent from the heights of abstract spiritual contemplation to an engagement with the concrete reality of the world.
"Like water flowing downward," he murmured, "I will flow toward the world, seeking paths that will lead to a deeper understanding through experience rather than theory, through connection rather than isolation."
The journey that began ten thousand years ago as a quest for understanding now entered a new phase—an exploration not only of spiritual depths, but of the breadth of existence, the complexity of life, and the richness of the world that had continued to evolve during his long meditation.
With five million souls as silent companions and the wisdom of ten millennia to guide him, Li Yuan began his descent from the mountain, ready to discover what the world had to teach a guardian who had spent a lifetime learning to serve.