I don’t know how long I spent losing myself in the bustling of the modern city that surrounded me in the illusion, but when I came to, I was in another familiar, but different place.
A place that I never wished to see again.
‘Damn it! Xiang!! Did you let your memories consume you or something?’
‘I did no such thing! I am just as confused as you on why we are here of all places!!’
I felt like letting loose every curse I knew in every language I could speak, but I held back and sighed heavily.
The towering walls were decorated with opulence and vanity that could only be achieved by someone wealthy enough to rival nations, treasures put on display that would cause great turmoil if it were anywhere else on the continent. Beautiful maidservants who would each be considered pretty enough to cause the downfall of nations on their own. Clothing on my body that was woven from Heaven-grade materials and marked with defensive formations that were created by my own hands, a Grandmaster.
There was no doubt about it, this was the palace of the Heavenly Demon. A place that I was very much familiar with thanks to Xiang’s memories.
A place that I swore I would never claim as my own in this life.
‘David, look carefully. While everything has been recreated exactly in accordance with my memories, there are a few things that are off
‘I see it.’
Unlike what I remember from Xiang’s memories, the servants around me were not wearing fearful or horrified expressions when they saw me looking. Instead, they held joyful expressions as they worked in an even more exaggerated way, trying to attract my gaze even more with their indecently worn clothing.
I felt disgust build up within me at those actions, making me get up and start walking behind the throne which held a path that led straight to my room in this accursed place.
I remember very clearly how these maidservants were acquired by the original Heavenly Demon, Mo Yexuan before he was killed by Xiang in his timeline.
All of these maidservants were young mistresses of powerful Orthodox families, princesses of royal families that rose and fell frequently in the turbulent times after the collapse of the Yin Long and the Baihu empires, holy maidens of the various sects that similarly rose and fell on the continent after Xiang’s rampage across the continent during his younger years.
While Xiang was dealing with his loss, killing and destroying anything that had to do with the Orthodox path, Mo Yexuan moved around the continent and picked up these women as if they were spoils of war, trophies to be displayed, and was living a life of decadence in his palace.
Many believed that Mo Yexuan must be using all these women for his cultivation. As a demonic cultivator, he had no shortage of techniques that could use the vitality of another to further his own power.
However, Xiang and I knew the truth.
That bastard was a twisted pervert by nature. He did not ‘fall’ to the Demonic Path, he chose it explicitly when he began his cultivation as a child.
How do I know this? Because that monster admitted as much straight to Xiang’s face when he was on the verge of death, much to my older self’s disgust.
Mo Yexuan was a twisted monster. He derived pleasure from the suffering of others and himself. He feels joy when he is targeted by his enemies, he feels pleasure when he is harmed, and he feels bliss as he tortures others, taking what they value the most for himself.
And yet, despite all these twisted qualities, there was no denying his talent and abilities in the path of Cultivation.
Even as a peak Void Refinement realm expert, Xiang had to fight for three days and three nights continuously to overcome Mo Yexuan’s power and defeat him thoroughly.
Shaking my head to get rid of those unpleasant thoughts, I walked into the room that Xiang chose as his own when he was the Heavenly Demon, only to stop in utter shock.
For standing in front of me was a woman who should not be alive by this point in time according to my memories because she was one of the reasons why Xiang went on a decades-long conquest of the continent in the first place.
As I continued watching the smiling woman sitting on my bed who gave me a tender gaze, I finally managed to calm down my mind and push back the influence of the illusion.
With a deep breath, I started to speak.
“You are dead. You are not real.”
“Correct. But, I could be real, if you wish it, my beloved disciple.”
I felt Xiang’s emotions overwhelm me as my own mental strength started to deteriorate.
‘….David, please give me this last chance to fix things.’
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
‘What do you need?’
‘I need to take control of your body.’
‘….Very well. I declare to the heavens that I am willingly conceding my body to you temporarily’
It was a declaration that needed to be made due to the oath that Xiang took all those years ago when we first met. If I did not make that declaration, the Heavens would perceive Xiang’s attempt to control my body as violating his oath and strike him down the moment we stepped out of this illusion.
Did I feel comfortable passing over my body to someone else, even if that was my older self? No, I did not. However, over the years, I have witnessed Xiang’s change in person, and I am relatively confident that he will not overstep his boundaries.
Besides, this is a closure that he needs dearly.
I felt my consciousness recede into my soul as Xiang took over my body, allowing me to perceive the world around me in the same way that Xiang does all the time.
And it was an enlightening experience, informing me why Xiang was always so grumpy.
Having all of your senses dulled so much that they might as well not exist is a terrifying thing to witness.
Fortunately, my cultivation allows me to enhance my senses in my current form. Enough to perceive what was happening outside.
Although I must admit, it is extremely unnerving to watch yourself in the third-person view as if you were a game character.
Xiang moved closer to the bed and sat down beside the woman, allowing her to drape her body over him like a blanker.
Tears fell down his eyes as he embraced her, yet, his face still held the stoic look he adopted the moment he took control of my body.
“I know, that you are not real, my master. And, no matter how powerful this illusion and the one who made it was, they cannot hope to truly bring you back from the dead.”
The woman gave us an amused look as her lips touched our ear, her whispers held a playful tone while she spoke bewitching words that stirred Xiang’s emotions even further.
“You say I am not real, and you are right, my disciple. After all, how could I be when you killed me with your own hands? But, I don’t hold it against you.”
She leaned back and this time, pulled our body onto the bed with her.
“After all, I was the one that made you kill me so that I don’t fall into the Demonic Path thanks to the actions of that pathetic man that I call a father.”
“And yet, it does not change the fact that I killed you, Master. I killed the woman I loved with my own hands. How can I ever hope to face you again in this timeline? It is the reason why I have not requested my current self to go search for you.”
“I understand your reasoning, my beloved disciple. And as I said, I don’t blame you for it. Besides, the past is in the past, or rather, should I say the future is in the past? How confusing.”
Suddenly, I saw her smile change to a predatory one as her hand slowly reached for the Heavenly Reversal Bead, making me panic.
However, I did not take any action because I could still feel Xiang’s emotional turmoil and his thoughts, hence the action he was going to take.
“Forget about moving out into the world again, spend the rest of eternity with me here. Isn’t that what you always wanted? To take me as your Dao Companion and spend all our lives together, away from everyone and everything else on the continent?”
“Indeed. That was my dearest wish. It was that wish that drove me to cultivate so diligently. It was what made me a Void Refinement realm cultivator. And yet-“
Xiang moved so quickly that the illusion did not even have the time to react.
His hand burst through her chest, spraying illusionary blood across the floor and our body.
Her beautiful black hair that fell like a waterfall behind her back now sat in disarray. Her pale skin which shone with an unearthly glow now looked pale for a completely different reason.
Her beautiful black eyes which always held a tender gaze towards us now held pure hatred for us as her mouth set into a horrifying snarl.
“DAMN YOU!! DAMN YOU TO HELL!! HUXING XIANG!!. Why did you have to fall in love with me when my heart belonged to another?? Why did someone as useless as you become my disciple when you couldn’t even protect me from Mo Yexuan!? Why did I have to die and leave behind the man I loved when it could have been someone as useless as you who could have died instead!? Why!? Why!? Must I always suffer!?”
With every word and shout, I felt Xiang’s heart die little by little, and yet, instead of his emotional turmoil increasing as I expected, I felt his emotions start to stabilize.
“You are right, Mo Qingyin, my master. I never should have become your disciple. Perhaps, if you had never happened upon my dying form when I fled from the Heavenly Sword Sect after being exposed as a demonic cultivator, you would have lived a long and happy life with the man you loved. Perhaps, I really am a curse that brings nothing but misery to everyone around me. However, I have learned from my younger self that it does not do to dwell on the past.”
Xiang gave a bitter smile as he hugged Mo Qingyin, the daughter of the Heavenly Demon, Mo Yexuan, as she went still in his hands.
“It was my fault for falling in love with you, knowing that you belonged to another. It was my sin to harbor thoughts about when I already knew what you truly wanted. It was my mistake that led to Mo Yexuan discovering our hiding place. It was my weakness that allowed him to take me hostage and force you down the demonic path to save me. It was my hands that killed you when you fell to your heart demon, becoming someone that you never were, even if it was what you wanted.”
By this point, Mo Qingyin had stopped moving as Xiang continued pouring out all his regrets.
“And yet, despite knowing all of this, I must still move forward. Because if I want to make sure that the fate that befell us never falls on anyone else that I hold dear, If I want to make sure that the new family that my younger self has found for us is safe from the same tragedy that befell us, I cannot continue dwelling on the past and allow my inner demons to control my moves. I am a Demonic Cultivator with enough Blood Qi to make the very world recoil in fright, and yet, I am also Huxing Xiang, your beloved disciple. I will not fail again, that much, I promise you.”
By this point, I was ready to regain control from Xiang since it felt like he was about to lose himself in his emotions completely and do something that he would regret.
Yet, suddenly, Mo Qingyin moved.
Her hand raised and tenderly rubbed Xiang’s cheek even as blood poured down her mouth.
No words were spoken from her illusion before it broke apart along with the rest of the palace, revealing the familiar hallways of the ruins.
And yet, for some reason, I felt like something important within Xiang had been strengthened.
I felt my conscious being ejected from the bead as Xiang retreated back from my body transferring control back to me as he retreated into his original place.
I did not say anything as I continued walking down the hallways, knowing that this was not the time for idle chatter, but somehow, I knew that he would be okay soon enough.
After all, he is me, and I am nothing if not resilient.
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