Chapter 232: I Am You, and You Are Me
This novel is translated and hosted only on Bcatranslation
“Shui Qing Yue…” Master Qing Yan murmured the name softly.
In an instant, the Sea of Consciousness surged with storms, thunderclaps, and flashes of lightning, as if it were on the verge of collapsing.
The other “Master Qing Yan,” upon noticing this, struck him with a palm, forcibly pulling him out of the memories threatening to engulf him.
“Your Sea of Consciousness is still unstable; it is not wise to dwell too deeply.”
This other figure had painstakingly arrived in a world where Yu Zhao existed. He wasn’t about to let this divine opportunity slip away.
His eyes flickered momentarily as he retrieved the remaining half of the memories that had not yet been assimilated into Master Qing Yan.
“In short, Yu Zhao is pure and kind. All the troubles of the past were secretly caused by Ye Cong Xin. I want you to treat Yu Zhao kindly, restore her status as your direct disciple, and eliminate Ye Cong Xin.”
“Yu Zhao betrayed the sect. There is no room for reconciliation,” Master Qing Yan replied coldly, suppressing his rising anxiety.
“If it weren’t for your constant favoritism towards Ye Cong Xin, how could someone as gentle and kind as her have been driven to abandon the sect? You forced her out!”
“Gentle and kind?” Master Qing Yan couldn’t reconcile these words with his impression of Yu Zhao.
Defiant. Rebellious. Unyielding.
That was Yu Zhao.
“That is not the real Yu Zhao. You drove her onto the Path of Emotional Detachment, forcing her to sever all love and emotion. You owe her!”
“Ridiculous!” Master Qing Yan’s face turned icy.
“You want a cultivator of the Soul Transformation Stage to admit fault to a mere child? Absurd!” His expression turned sharp. “And compared to you, I have already shown restraint. If I owe her redemption, what then do you owe?”
The other “Master Qing Yan” looked devastated and was rendered speechless.
“Since we share the same origin, I will not pursue this matter further. Leave at once!”
Even though the other soul belonged to himself, Master Qing Yan couldn’t shake the feeling of having his privacy violated.
There was only room for his own soul within his Sea of Consciousness.
As for the Shui Qing Yue he had mentioned, Master Qing Yan would investigate the truth once his consciousness stabilized.
“I cannot leave!”
The other “Master Qing Yan” suddenly grew agitated. His black robe matched the brooding and obsessive expression on his face.
“In my last life, I failed Yu Zhao. In this life, I will make amends, showering her with every treasure!
“And Ye Cong Xin is a vile being who siphons luck from others. My loss in cultivation was entirely her doing. You must eliminate her before she grows too powerful!”
Master Qing Yan was stubborn and unyielding.
So was his counterpart from another world.
This other figure issued orders as if he were a sovereign, disregarding anyone else’s thoughts.
Naturally, Master Qing Yan wasn’t going to comply.
“I’ve said that since Yu Zhao is no longer a disciple of my sect, I will no longer concern myself with her life or death. As for this nonsense about luck-siphoning, it is utterly groundless.
“If you persist in staying, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Two tigers cannot share the same mountain.
Master Qing Yan would never tolerate a soul that contradicted him to remain in his Sea of Consciousness, meddling in his affairs.
The other “Master Qing Yan” let out a mocking laugh. “I am you, and you are me. If I am unwilling to leave, there is nothing you can do to expel me.”
A cold light flickered in Master Qing Yan’s eyes.
He stepped forward, reaching out to touch the other soul.
Before his fingers could make contact, the soul dissipated into a wisp of smoke, fading into nothingness.
“Qing Yan, I will always be watching you!”
“Always watching you!!!”
Master Qing Yan searched every corner of his Sea of Consciousness but failed to locate the presence of the other soul. It was as the soul had said—so long as it didn’t wish to leave, even Master Qing Yan himself had no way to expel it. Frustrated, he awoke from his meditative state.
Staring at the yellow clay ceiling above, he felt caught between dream and reality. His thoughts scattered until a pair of aged yet warm hands held his own.
“Grand Elder…” Master Qing Yan struggled to sit up, but the Grand Elder gently pushed him back down, tears glinting in her kind smile. “Stay still. I’ll call someone to examine you.”
“Alright,” Qing Yan agreed unusually meekly, surprising even himself. His submission astonished the Grand Elder too, though she quickly attributed it to his improved condition, the laugh lines around her eyes deepening in relief.
In truth, it wasn’t his own idea. The soul inhabiting his consciousness whispered urgently, “The Grand Elder doesn’t have much time left. Don’t anger her.” Hearing this, Master Qing Yan chose silence.
Soon, Sect Master Ji Yuan, Sect Master Wu Sang, and Hermit Bao Hua arrived. When the latter two saw Master Qing Yan, pale and seemingly at death’s door but alive, they were utterly dumbfounded. Hermit Bao Hua, disregarding propriety, began to examine him meticulously.
“This is impossible,” she murmured, her disbelief evident. “His Sea of Consciousness had collapsed entirely, and his soul was fragmented. How could he have awakened?”
Qing Yan, though annoyed by the Hermit’s intrusion, froze upon hearing her words. Even he had faintly felt, during his unconsciousness, that he might never wake again. Yet here he was, his Sea of Consciousness miraculously intact—and now, inexplicably housing another version of himself.
Determined to uncover the truth about this second soul and find a way to expel it, Master Qing Yan endured Hermit Bao Hua’s probing without resistance.
Meanwhile, the Grand Elder and Sect Master Ji Yuan were overwhelmed with joy, their relief almost bringing them to tears. Not only was Master Qing Yan awake, but he seemed calmer—perhaps a blessing in disguise.
“That’s Ji Yuan?” The voice in Qing Yan’s mind intruded again, its tone dripping with disdain. “He looks much younger. Oh, right, in this world Zhou Jin Yue hasn’t died yet, so he’s still the Sect Master.”
Qing Yan glanced at Ji Yuan. For a fleeting moment, a vision of a haggard, aged figure flashed through his mind, and his brows furrowed. What kind of mess had Ji Yuan gotten himself into for the sake of a disciple? Foolishness. But then again, Ji Yuan had always been prone to such foolishness—especially regarding Yu Zhao.
At the thought of Yu Zhao, Qing Yan froze. Before his illness worsened, he and Ji Yuan had quarreled over whether Yu Zhao should be accepted as Ji Yuan’s disciple. During his coma, had Ji Yuan defied his wishes and taken her in?
“No way!” The voice in his head screamed. “Yu Zhao can only have me as her Master!”
Qing Yan’s face darkened, realizing the soul could read his every thought. This confirmed it—they were entirely separate entities. Qing Yan, reserved and poised, could never share the other’s impetuous and abrasive nature. He resolved then and there that this soul must be purged.
“Qing Yan, demand to know Ji Yuan’s relationship with Yu Zhao!” the voice shrieked again, its calm veneer cracking.
Suppressing the noise, Qing Yan closed off his Sea of Consciousness, isolating himself from the soul’s incessant chatter while allowing Hermit Bao Hua and Sect Master Wu Sang to conduct their checks.
“Master Qing Yan, how many fingers am I holding up?” Sect Master Wu Sang cautiously raised two fingers before Qing Yan’s face, his expression grave.
The Grand Elder and Ji Yuan exchanged worried glances, their hearts sinking.
Qing Yan sighed, turning his head away in exasperation, unwilling to entertain such an idiotic test. His silence only deepened Sect Master Wu Sang’s seriousness.
“Grand Elder, Sect Master Ji Yuan, prepare yourselves,” Sect Master Wu Sang announced grimly. “While Master Qing Yan has awakened, he shows signs of severe Soul Fracture Syndrome. Simply put, it’s akin to dementia.”
Ji Yuan gasped audibly, staggering backward before collapsing outright.