State of flow

The tips of his left fingers brushed against the rough, unfamiliar surface of the rock. Through the thin layer of anti-slip powder, he could faintly feel the moisture seeping out from the rock's surface. His right hand focused intently, slipping into the crevices between the rocks. These narrow crevices barely allowed his fingertips to fit in, and he adjusted the angle slightly to find the best position before tentatively inserting his fingers. His feet were pressed against a protrusion on the cliff, which, despite being called a protrusion, was only as wide as a finger. His toes pressed through the thin soles of his shoes, maintaining a stable center of gravity.

The scorching sun overhead unrestrainedly released its energy. The entire sky was rendered translucent, and the sweltering air seemed to thicken and grow hazy. The sweat on his back had soaked through his clothes completely, and the sweat from his forehead dripped into his eyes. However, there was no time to wipe it away. A gust of wind howled through the gorge, the narrow passage amplifying its force. Not only was he unaffected by the heat, but he could also feel a faint chill. Goosebumps formed on his arms.

Heat and cold, swaying and stability, sweat and shivers… Contradictions harmonized, blending into one another, as if he could hear the conversation between nature and his fingertips.

After taking a deep breath, he exerted force with his right fingertips, channeling strength from his forearm to his biceps and then his shoulders. His center of gravity sank, and he abruptly pushed off with the tips of his feet, leaping lightly. His left hand stretched diagonally upwards, grabbing a fist-sized protrusion. However, due to excessive force, his calculated positioning was slightly off, and his fingertips slipped across the rough rock surface. Before he could even feel the pain, his left hand firmly caught the protrusion. His feet pressed against the surface of the cliff below, and a few particles of sand fell. He sensed a slight slip beneath his feet, as if he couldn't find his balance.

In a critical moment, the strength of both hands erupted. He initiated a pull-up motion, pulling his falling body upwards. Then he lifted the soles of his feet, planting them directly onto the wall. The top of his knee narrowly missed colliding with his stomach, dodging it by the narrowest of margins thanks to his muscles' tautness. However, as expected, his feet didn't catch any support, and they started sliding downward. Yet, he had lifted them higher than planned. The friction from his feet sliding downwards slightly eased the descent. The thin shoe soles barely provided any sensation, and his toe calmly searched for a foothold. Finally, just before his body fully extended, the downward momentum ceased, and he managed to stabilize.

"Whew, whew…" He took two deep breaths, allowing the boiling blood to settle slightly.

The surge of adrenaline left his mind entirely blank. He had no time to think, only responding based on his body's instincts, intuition, and training. In a mere millisecond, every muscle in his body was operating at high speed. All distractions vanished completely. He was wholly absorbed in this cliff, this next protrusion and crevice, this body control, nothing more.

Looking down at the surface beneath his feet, he was now nearly fifty meters from the ground. That dizzying height transformed into an abyss within the swift water flow. It was as if an open maw of a shark, ready to devour all life at any moment. Yet, what he felt was the thrill and excitement coursing through his blood. In this moment, he had forgotten himself completely.

He didn't care about who he was, about exploring his acting, about grappling with nightmares. In this moment, everything was so real. Living was real, breathing was real, existence was real. Every detail—breathing, heartbeat, blood, sweat—was so vivid. Whether he was Renly or Paul, what did it matter? What mattered was that in this moment, he could distinctly feel the particles of the rock, sense the wildness of the wind, and breathe in the air tinged with moisture and moss.

A smile involuntarily curved his lips. He wanted to shout out loud, expelling the pent-up breath from his chest. Yet, as he lifted his head and saw the distance above, he realized he was less than twenty meters from the cliff's top. He could faintly make out the middle-aged man sitting with his legs dangling over the edge. The wind carried the intermittent hum of a folk song, a sound of contentment and leisure. It seemed as though the entire world lay at his feet.

Excitement surged back into his bloodstream. His focus tightened once again. He tightened his left hand's grip and reached into his waist pocket with his right hand to grab some anti-slip powder. The sweat on his palms and fingertips immediately disappeared. Along the same crevice as before, he started to explore upwards slowly, repeatedly attempting to find a suitable point to exert finger force.

This part of the cliff was relatively gentle, with almost no protruding rocks. Most of it was loose sand and gravel, lacking both footholds and stability. Fortunately, the crack on the side provided a point of leverage, but he still needed to be extremely cautious.

His right hand extended fully, elbow slightly bent to leave room for force. After confirming the position, he started to look for a point of leverage for his left hand. However, after multiple attempts, the smooth wall left him empty-handed. While there were plenty of small stone protrusions, even using his toes as leverage was incredibly difficult, let alone his fingers.

After patiently searching several times and finding no other alternatives, he took a deep breath, calming his restless emotions slightly. Clearly, he was still lacking experience. In the process of ascending, he had chosen an incorrect or rather perilous path. Yet, this was also part of the allure of free climbing. All unknowns awaited exploration. Only when encountered could one truly understand nature's essence.

Making a quick decision, he decided to continue climbing along this crevice. This demanded precise control of balance and center of gravity, but it was the only path leading to the top of the cliff.

His left hand began to replicate the work his right hand had done earlier. Carefully probing, he finally found a stable spot below his right hand. Since both hands were placed together, it demanded even more power to exert, so he couldn't be too greedy. Progressing step by step, he maintained a steady ascent.

Sweat appeared on his left hand, and he rubbed some anti-slip powder from his pocket onto it. Then he pressed his palm into the crevice. Once the force points of both hands were confirmed, he exerted sudden force, launching himself into the air again. This time, however, his feet didn't rush to leave the wall's surface. Instead, he climbed upward, inch by inch, pressing his feet onto the gravel. After a deep inhalation, his dantian filled with energy, and he sensed the lightness of a swallow. What had initially seemed impossible, he managed to progress once more.

There was no time for jubilation. His right hand dipped into his pocket again for more anti-slip powder, repeating the same actions. Although the process was monotonous, his nerves were tightly wound.

The raging wind whistled through his arms, chest, and legs, as if it could sweep him away at any moment, slamming him mercilessly onto the ground. Suspended in the space between earth and sky, reliant solely on the strength of his hands grasping a crevice, the sand and gravel beneath his feet continued to loosen and fall away. Amidst the roar of crashing waves and the shrill cries of eagles, the vast stillness of nature was highlighted. He knew there were companions above and below, but at this very moment, this was his solitary battle.

Tedious? Not at all. He had immersed himself completely in a state of selflessness. All the scattered thoughts were inconsequential, leaving only the mirror-smooth cliff face before him.

Inhale, lift the body, fly up.

Once again, he started climbing upward. However, just at that moment, the crevice he grasped with his left hand emitted a crisp sound. Before he could react, a piece of loose rock came off in his hand. Due to exerting maximum force with both hands, the inertia caused his left hand to fly backward. The immense impact was felt at the tips of his right hand's fingers. With a fierce force, he managed to momentarily halt his descending body. His shoulder experienced the intense pull of gravity. Hastily, he began to press his feet onto the wall's surface to utilize friction and halt his descent. But in an instant of change, his foot lost grip. His brain instantly realized he had miscalculated spatial awareness. A gust of wind blew, and he found himself less than a hair's breadth away from the wall. He pushed off with his foot, but the result was... a step into thin air.

Exhale.

He plummeted suddenly, and the powerful force of gravity could not be stopped. The tip of his right hand felt an enormous tearing pain. Despite this, he still couldn't hold on, as he'd lost the space to exert force. Thus, his entire body... descended.

The force of free fall caused his heart to surge upward, slamming into his chest, followed by the rope at his waist yanking forcefully, powerfully arresting his downward momentum. The surging force threatened to snap his body in half. His internal organs tumbled, his stomach constricted tightly, the churning acid nearly bringing up vomit.

The safety rope saved his life. But if this were true free climbing, he would've perished today. This was much worse than Paul's situation in "Buried". He barely had time to feel fear; everything had already ended. There was no room for regret, fear, dread, or despair. Whether Paul or Renly, at this moment, he should be thankful: he was alive, he still had the right to regret, challenge, and collide.

He hung in mid-air, limbs relaxed, not hurrying to regain control of his body. Gravity tugged his limbs downward, draining his strength as blood rushed to his brain. He found it a bit funny, so he laughed out loud.

"Hey, you alright?"

A concerned voice came from not too far away. Renly signaled "okay" with his hand. "I'm fine, I don't want to die just yet, so the safety measures are well in place."

His self-deprecating words drew a deep chuckle from the other person. Then, Renly grabbed the rope again with both hands, regaining control of his body. With a gentle swing, he hooked his toe on a protruding stone that seemed to be the same support he had grabbed with his hand before. Then, he steadied himself.

At this moment, he finally had time to survey the fellow climber nearby. However, it wasn't the middle-aged man from before; it was someone around Renly's age. "Hall?" the other person exclaimed in surprise.