"Change my way of thinking?"
"Exactly. Look here... have you ever washed your face by a river?" Think asked, raising her hand to summon a curtain of water.
In this primitive world, mirrors didn't exist—not even polished obsidian ones, let alone the hazy bronze mirrors. Fortunately, magic was a convenient substitute. When a god or yokai needed to see their reflection, they simply used a spell to create a water screen.
Translucent ripples vibrated between Think palms before settling. The screen no longer showed Think body behind it; instead, it presented Yukari reflection as if she were looking into a windless lake.
Hands clutching her teacup, golden hair falling beside her thin face, the purple dress looking perfectly fitting... Yukari didn't understand Think point.
Was she supposed to admire her own reflection? She was already quite familiar with it.
"We've already tried the method of crossing the Silver River directly and concluded it's impossible. We didn't call you here for such a crude approach," Sū ěr said, signaling Think to lay the water screen flat. The image shifted to reflect their ceiling. "Though it isn't obvious to the eye, the other side of the Silver River is essentially 'outside the world'—a place where even my power cannot reach... well, probably. I can't say for sure since I haven't been there."
Sū ěr picked up an apple and placed it above the water screen. When he let go, the apple hovered in the air, seemingly pinning down Sir Isaac Newton's coffin lid.
"Outside the world?" Yukari was more interested in investigating Sū ěr power, but she knew he wouldn't reveal such secrets. She pivoted to another question. "Isn't that the moon?"
"It is the moon, but for some reason—perhaps the interference of the Silver River—my power cannot affect it. Forget that for a moment. Let's assume this apple is the moon—"
"Mhm, it's the moon." Yukari nodded blankly as Sū ěr solemnly pointed both palms at the fruit.
"Pfft... cough. Then, look. The moon has a reflection in the water. Even though it's an illusion, you still call that reflection the 'moon,' right?" Think laughed, momentarily struck by the absurdity, before explaining: "Even if the reflection vanishes when the water is gone, it truly established a connection with the moon."
"You mean...?" Yukari felt a spark of understanding, but she couldn't believe it. This line of reasoning was something she had never considered—a complete mental blind spot.
Can it really be done that way?
"It's quite easy to understand. It's like I've drawn two circles on opposite ends of this cloth... this line in the middle is what you call the Heavenly River... then, I fold the cloth in half, making the two circles overlap perfectly... Do you understand now?"
Sū ěr produced a piece of cloth he had prepared, sketching on it as he spoke. Finally, he folded the cloth and held it up between himself and Yukari. By "erasing" the overlapping circles, they could see each other through the resulting circular hole.
"I understand... but is that really possible?" Having a door to a new world kicked open, Yukari realized for the first time that her ability could be used this way. It was an extension she had never needed or considered, leaving her stunned, her hand half-covering her mouth.
"Why not? By the way, I call this plan 'Is It Okay to Just Skip the Silver River?'" Sū ěr said enthusiastically, only to be doused with cold water by Think in the next second.
"I disagree. I still object to that name."
"Objection noted!" Sū ěr waved a hand magnanimously before turning back to Yukari. "My power, in the end, can be summarized as the utilization of rules. But no matter how I use them, I must remain within what the rules allow. You, however, are different."
They all recalled the scene in the bamboo house when Yukari demonstrated her power—the teacup that was crushed and then restored to perfection.
"If I can only dance within the rules, you can extract or distort them, pasting entirely contradictory rules together. That is a power far beyond mine. As you said yourself—the creation and destruction of logic [对逻辑的创造与破坏]," Sū ěr poured out a stream of praise. The effect, however, was poor; Yukari didn't believe a word of it.
"Perfect! Powerful! Transcendent! Elegant! Mysterious! Ultimate!"
Sū ěr continued his barrage, but no matter how much he belittled himself, Yukari memory of that soaring earth dragon kept her head very cool.
"...I understand. Please be at ease; I will surely do my utmost to assist," Yukari said, raising a hand in surrender as she watched Sū ěr rack his brain for more... "praise." "But this matter of connecting the moon with its reflected phantom... um, can this little yokai truly achieve it?"
To be honest, she was getting goosebumps.
"As I said before, at the end of the day, I am merely a yokai. Even if my ability is special, there are many things I cannot do if I am pushed past my limit... Furthermore, if I become a purely conceptual existence, I will lose my will and be unable to serve you further." Yukari was desperately piling on "debuffs" to herself, fearing Sū ěr would push her to the point of structural collapse.
"Of course, of course. Rest assured, it won't come to that. In our estimation, all you are doing is deepening the existing connection between two linked things. You aren't touching the independent concept of the Silver River itself, so there is no need for worry." Sū ěr and Think exchanged another glance. "Besides, we aren't exactly unprepared..."
"Ha?"
"Specifically, Think. She will assist you when the time comes," Sū ěr pointed to the translucent soul beside him.
When Yukari looked over, Think gave her a slight smile.
"..."
What now?
Yukari felt her panic intensifying. In her memory, this female soul was almost never "friendly." I'm not going to end up as a sacrifice, am I?