Chapter 62: The Same World, Two Opposite People

Deep in the Consciousness Sea. A light rain drizzled.

A house, a chair, a fan, a cup of tea, and a man—that was all.

Yun Heng lay there comfortably, fanning himself, sipping tea, leaning against the railing to listen to the rain. How leisurely.

“Aside from being a bit lonely, I really do love this carefree life.”

After finally finishing the tea in his hand, Yun Heng sighed with heartfelt emotion.

Then, he turned his gaze to the translucent man bound by golden ropes formed from one ray of light after another, and sighed again.

“Just as I expected, you’re the first one to try to possess me…”

As a bearer of great fortune, Yun Heng had always been coveted by remnant souls of those great powers from the outside.

Whenever his body showed even a slight vulnerability, they would sneak into his Consciousness Sea, cackle with strange laughter, and attempt to possess him… and then be dispersed by Yun Heng’s overwhelmingly vast spiritual power.

In his previous life, Yun Heng had “hosted” countless similar individuals, but this was the first time in this life.

Fortunately, the person who came was exactly the same as in his previous life, which meant his own general fate trajectory hadn’t changed much.

“Get a better reincarnation next life. Don’t come wandering into my Consciousness Sea again, kid. You can’t handle that much fortune.”

Yun Heng waved his hand, dispersing the remnant soul of the man who was frantically shaking his head begging for forgiveness, then stretched.

‘It’s about time.’

Although this “Yin-Yang balance” insight made Yun Heng feel immensely refreshed, he was right outside the Demon Clan Stronghold.

The turtle shell artifact he had left behind could temporarily shield the threat and prevent Jiang Keke and the others from getting hurt, but he couldn’t afford to linger.

He checked the flow of spiritual energy in his body and was surprised to find that in less than two hours, his cultivation had already reached the middle stage of Foundation Establishment.

“This time the fortune content is so rich… It seems both Brother Wu Hen and Lady Lin are benefactors in my life.”

Yun Heng sighed, then closed his eyes and began to regain control of his body.

When he opened his eyes again, Yun Heng saw Jiang Keke and the others standing not far away, looking at him with worry.

Yun Heng smiled gently. “Sorry, I took a little longer.”

Yun Heng stood up, patting the head of A Xiang, who had rushed over to act spoiled, while looking at Jiang Keke and asking, “Was it Lady Lin who protected my meditation?”

Jiang Keke pouted and replied, “It was someone called Weiyang. She seemed to have come in with that Lady Lin or something.”

Although Yun Heng was puzzled by the sour tone in Jiang Keke’s voice, upon hearing the name “Weiyang,” he selectively ignored it and frowned in thought.

He had met Weiyang not long ago, but their relationship was far from what it had been in his previous life. Moreover, as far as Yun Heng knew, Weiyang was always responsible for guarding the Northeastern Border.

Although there were few demon races near there, it was the passage for every extra-terrestrial demon invasion, and it hid many demonic cultivators that hadn’t been wiped out. She should have been very busy.

How could she be involved with Lin Xiaoyue…? And, Weiyang even kindly brought Lin Xiaoyue to Mount Anqiu and even protected me?

Recalling the time in his previous life when he took that Squinty Eyes into battle and she scared the enemy away before the fight even started, Yun Heng shook his head and decided to put the matter aside for now.

He looked around, intending to thank Senior Weiyang, but didn’t see them anywhere.

The surroundings were littered with broken branches and withered leaves, as if a great battle had taken place—most likely an attack by the demon race.

“Lady Weiyang has left. As for Lin Xiaoyue, she already went into the hidden realm ahead of us,” Jiang Keke said, her tone still sullen.

“Lady Weiyang not only helped protect my meditation just now, but she is also a hero of our human race. Keke, how can you be so hostile toward her?”

Huh?

Yun Heng smiled wryly and flicked Jiang Keke’s forehead.

He couldn’t understand what was wrong with his little book boy today.

Jiang Keke felt so wronged—

‘The thing she wanted to say wasn’t that at all!’

Jiang Keke covered her forehead, pursed her lips, and looked like she was about to cry. “It’s all because of that woman who might be the future Young Madam…”

She thought, since she couldn’t tell the truth anyway, she might as well give up and just say what was on her mind… But just as she was about to spill her heart out, Jiang Keke was shocked to find that this sentence was actually true?!

She quickly covered her mouth, but it was too late.

Yun Heng frowned and said sternly, “Keke, that Lady Lin is the beloved of my close friend’s heart. She and I simply share the same interests, nothing more.”

“What’s with your little head always thinking such dirty things? When we get back, you’ll copy the Heart Purification Mantra twenty times as punishment.”

Jiang Keke bit her lip and accepted the reprimand obediently.

But inwardly, she was rolling her eyes, thinking, ‘Young Master, you have no idea. Not only did she steal your first kiss while you were cultivating, she also beat up her love rival right after.’

‘The way she looked at you was practically dripping with desire, she almost pushed you down… And you say she’s your friend’s beloved, you have to respect her… Young Master, your interpersonal relationships are such a tangled mess…’

“Young Master, I was wrong… Can I copy it ten times?”

‘Forget it, she might be the future Young Madam, so I won’t curse her in my mind, lest she bully me later.’

“Thirty times.”

“Young Master!”

“Fifty times.”

“…I’ll copy it, I’ll copy it! I’ll copy it, okay… Boohoo, Young Master, you always bully me…”

Meanwhile.

Shizi held Ling Yao’s hand and walked carefully for about three-quarters of an hour. Along the way, they didn’t encounter a single demon beast—whether by luck or the “peace” that Lin Xiaoyue had “bestowed.”

“Xiao Jiu, now we…”

Shizi was about to turn and ask Ling Yao about their next plan, but her words suddenly caught in her throat. She saw Ling Yao had stopped, staring unblinkingly at the hand that was gripping her arm.

“…Doesn’t it hurt?”

Ling Yao slowly released her grip and asked softly.

She saw the five ferocious red marks on Shizi’s arm, saw the pale fingertips that had been pressing on them just moments ago.

So all along, it was by this unconscious grip that she had kept herself from collapsing.

“I’m a stone spirit. My physical body is even tougher than ordinary demon beasts.”

Shizi replied with a smile, then repeated her earlier question to divert Ling Yao’s attention. “So, what’s our next plan?”

On the way there, Ling Yao had repeatedly asked her how to get along with Yun Heng when they met, what her first words should be, whether she had cleaned off the bloodstains, whether the rouge she bought on the road was too heavy, whether he would dislike her if she clung to him in the hidden realm… things like that.

Shizi thought Ling Yao was adorable like this, far from her usual lifeless and old-fashioned demeanor. This was what a proper sixteen-year-old girl should be like!

But all of that changed after Lin Xiaoyue’s kiss appeared.

Ling Yao returned to her previous silence, even more severe, like a stagnant pool of water. Even if more stones were thrown in, there was no reaction.

“…I don’t know.”

Seeing Xiao Jiu like this, Shizi felt a wave of pity.

Ling Yao didn’t know what Shizi was thinking. She only knew that her mind was very chaotic now.

Not exactly chaotic, but more accurately, “empty.”

Like a ruin from which a patch of earth had been gouged out, the wind howling through it, unable to carry any formed thoughts.

The Demon Immortal Origin had been crippled. This meant she had lost everything she relied on as a “Demon Immortal.” She was left with only memories and experience, but the core “key” had vanished.

Dragging a body that could be called a “mortal” in a sense, could she still return to the peak? Could she still protect Yun Heng? Could she… go back to how things were?

Lin Xiaoyue’s final words, “Who among us is more worthy to stand by his side?” echoed in her ears like a curse.

And if even a woman she had never met carried memories of a past life, then… what about Yun Heng? Did he have memories of a past life?

If Yun Heng also had them, how would he see her now? With hatred? Indifference? Or… pity?

Would he… forgive me?

The moment this thought appeared, it felt like a red-hot iron branded on her soul, making her whole body tremble.

No, I can’t think about it.

She couldn’t bear the answer to this question.

She would rather face ten thousand Lin Xiaoyues than dare to imagine Yun Heng’s eyes in her heart.

The girl’s gaze fell on her broken reflection in the stream. That pale, disheveled face was horribly unfamiliar.

This was not her.

This should not be her.

She should be the lofty Demon Immortal who made all things bow, the Dao companion who could watch the clouds roll by with him, the Peerless Genius who could make him stop, turn around, and say, “I’ll wait for you”…

Sourness and grievance broke the dam like a tsunami. Ling Yao suddenly bent over and dry-heaved, but nothing came out.

Shizi quickly stepped forward and patted her back with concern. She was also panicking.

She had only been awakened for the first time and had only lived with Ling Yao for such a short while. She had no idea how to comfort this wounded child.

Anger.

Ling Yao bit her tongue hard until the taste of rust spread. Only then did she manage to gain a moment of clarity through the pain. But at the same time, she felt even more…

‘Submit? Lick your wounds like a beaten dog? And then? Watch him be taken away by another woman? How is that different from losing him ten thousand years ago?!’

A voice sounded in the depths of her heart.

“No… Absolutely not…”

She whispered hoarsely, her nails digging deeply into her palms, leaving trails of red. As if she wanted to use physical pain to replace the cries in the depths of her soul that she could no longer bear.

Origin? That was stolen, blood-stained loot all along!

Without it, am I no longer me?

The ten thousand years of warfare, the experience of commanding the demon race, the will to survive countless desperate situations—were they all due to that stolen thing?

Ridiculous!

Qualifications? She, Ling Yao, reversed time and space, scattered her cultivation, and endured backlash to return here—wasn’t that proof of qualification in itself?! That obsession that could even reverse time and space—wasn’t it fiercer and crazier than any tepid vigilance?!

Those damned things should have been discarded long ago. This time, I will use the pure cultivation of this life to protect him, love him, and then stand before him with dignity and take him back!

“I must take him back…”

Ling Yao repeated, her eyes refocusing, igniting a nearly pathological flame.

This flame was no longer the majestic demeanor of the Immortal King shining like the sun, but the dim ghost fire struggling to survive in the abyss, fueled by obsession and regret.

Yes, starting from scratch.

I am still me. The Ling Yao who would stop at nothing to achieve her goals.

Only this time, the goal has changed from “the demon race” to “him.”

This thought suddenly gave Ling Yao a twisted sense of calm, even… a familiar excitement and clarity.

Fight, plunder, win. This was etched into her blood.

Ling Yao took one last look at her reflection in the water, raised her hand, and fiercely shattered the illusion on the surface.

“Let’s go. We’re going back. Continue into the hidden realm.”