37 Imponderable Impasse
Some time had passed since Shura fought with the Five Star cultivator in front of his house at night. No one had come after him yet since, and he hadn't heard any news of anything significant happening.
Shura was now living in the untamed wilderness outside the city. Although it wasn't the perfect place to hide, it shouldn't be that easy for him to be found unless a Saint was actively looking for him.
At first, he thought that he wouldn't stay here for long. He'd take some time to collect himself and then plan what to do next. But day after day ended and he hadn't come up with any concrete plan of action yet.
He had tried, but he just couldn't think of the 'how'. He was going to find Claira, and after that, he was going to go to her.
How was he going to find Claira? He couldn't do it himself. He needed help. From a powerful organization with the capability of searching for someone in the vast Lower Realm or the Higher Realm. Or if it wasn't an organization with such an ability, then an individual cultivator with divination ability or prediction ability.
Or maybe one simply needed to have profound cultivation to be able to do it. Perhaps any Saint would be able to help him somehow? If it wasn't because of their cultivation, then surely they had connections and influences to find someone.
Shura's hope was all placed on a Saint's capability. And all the Saints that mattered were after the book in his possession. That was why he was going to use the book and have the Saint help him. But how would he do it? Casually going up to one and offering terms didn't seem like it would work at all.
Before long, these aimless days became the norm and Shura muddled along day after day. He knew what he had to do, yet he couldn't fathom how he could accomplish it at all. Was he just thinking too much that it had paralyzed him into inaction and indecision? He didn't know.
While he continued living like this, it was fortunate that Shura still cultivated every day. Although he didn't know what course of action he could take to further his goal, he still accumulated and increased his strength and cultivation, day by day.
Everything became complicated when one held the most valuable object in the world, especially when one was trying to strike a deal involving said object with people who were so much more powerful. Powerful in this sense was really 'powerful'.
This was a cruel world where violence and murder were commonplace. If Shura made one wrong move and went up against people far too powerful out in the open, he wouldn't last a move and everything would be over. Saints were such people, compared to the current him, a Saint was truly an all-powerfull and awe-inspiring existence.
Shura felt that the whole thing was way above his head. So above him that the phrase "higher than the distance between heaven and earth" didn't do it justice at all.
His mind once again wandered to power. If he was strong enough, brawn, that is, brute force and pure violence would've been able to solve his current situation. He wouldn't have to think too much and have headaches from just trying to come up with a plan.
Shura currently had a plan. This was a plan that involved him not planning at all. And since it was like that, he was still here living aimlessly day after day.
When he tried to think of a plan, a problem kept appearing. He had the Higher Realm's most sought after item in his possession, but he didn't know how to make use of it at all. It was ridiculous but he really couldn't. Of course, he wasn't interested in using it himself. He wasn't even a Saint yet.
The same questions kept occurring in his mind over and over as well. "How could he negotiate with a Saint? Should he just go up to one and tell them, 'Here, I'll give this book to you, please do something for me.'?"
What if the Saint just snatch the book and turned him into dust?
Shura just could not think of a way to solve this problem. The idea of a benevolent cultivator who was more than happy to help him out with his minor problem in exchange for the possibility of a path to Immortality never occurred to him. This world wasn't like that. But was this reality, or was it all in his head? It didn't matter which.
He had never doubted his intelligence before, but this setback was a severe blow to his self-esteem. It would seem that all the hard work that went into cultivation and increasing his personal strength hadn't enhanced his intelligence at all.
"Damn it!" "Damn it!" "Damn it!" Shura yelled.
The birds on the trees were startled and flew away in flocks.
If he knew that things would turn out like this, he would've tolerated the Old Man's existence. Without any new knowledge from the knowledge fragment or even the Old Man himself, Shura didn't have anything he could rely on to help him accomplish more than he was naturally capable of.
Would that boy give the old man back? Shura shook his head. Even if he wanted to ask for the Old Geezer back, he didn't even know where the boy lived. It was hopeless.
Then what about increasing his strength so he could solve his own problems?
Becoming stronger, becoming a Saint, it wasn't something that could be easily achieved immediately, it would take time and great effort.
He had spent far too long cultivating in order to do something. He was stronger than he had ever been in the past, yet he still couldn't find Shura. This was a vicious and endless cycle. What if he wasted another year, another five, or another ten years and still be unable to do a damn thing?
He needed to focus and prioritize what he was after.
All these conflicting and painful thoughts were not helpful to him at all. He had to make use of what he already possessed.
And what did he possess right now? A Three Star cultivation. Although his mind was in disarray from trying to fathom the unfathomable, he had proceeded with his cultivation constantly, it wouldn't be long before he became a Four Star cultivator.
Shura hoped that he should be able to deal with Six Star cultivators then.
Aside from the cultivation base he had… a peak Saint's knowledge, experience, and understanding of crafting and formation, both spells and large-scale.
He should be able to do something with those two fields of knowledge.
No, these things didn't matter either.
A great pressure came down from the sky. It was a great pressure because Shura felt that it was very heavy. His legs felt like they were going to kneel at any moment. No Six Star cultivator was this strong, it was surely a Saint.
He gritted his teeth and circulated his power. There were many things he was incapable of that were outside of his control, but his cultivation was his own and he was proud of it. Warding off a Saint's might would be difficult but he would do it!
"Hand over the book," a voice sounded in Shura's mind.
Shura didn't hesitate at all to take the book out from his spatial ring. All of this happened naturally, spontaneously without thought. It all occurred in a relaxed manner.
"Take your damn book. It's more trouble than it's worth," Shura said as he threw the book onto the ground in front of him.
He hadn't given up on finding Claira. But this book and the whole idea of messing with Saints was something beyond his ability. His gut feeling told him that this wasn't the right path. That's why he relaxed and let go of both this plan and the book.
Resisting wouldn't turn out pretty either. This was the right thing to do. As long as he was alive, there were countless means to employ and paths to walk.
Rather than feeling dejected because he had lost something, Shura felt relieved. He had gained instead of lost. The real loss would be for him to persist in such a stupid endeavor that he couldn't pull off. To back off was the real gain.
He'll find another way. He didn't need a Saint or anyone else to accomplish anything. He alone would be enough.
The book on the ground disappeared. The Saint must've picked it up somehow. Now that he got what he came for, was he also going to kill Shura?
Shura closed his eyes and stilled his heart. He waited for something to happen. After a long time of waiting Shura opened his eyes and looked around. The Saint didn't appear at all, but the book was gone. Did this mean the Saint let him go?
Shura let out a long breathe of sigh. It was over.
