.

After the man disappeared, Zhu Rong found himself frozen within his sea of consciousness for a moment. He wondered what was happening outside, and the answer to that didn't take long to arrive.

As soon as his body was reconstructed, he found himself staring at the aftermath: from the complete loss of his cultivation base to the formation of that strange new core, and the massacre of the creature that, just moments ago, had caused chaos and terror within the secret realm, releasing an aura that even surpassed that of many Spirit Realm cultivators.

It didn't take a genius to realize that the creature was likely close to the peak of the Spirit Realm.

But that wasn't the shocking part, what truly astonished him was that the crimson mist he had used for all this time as a massive reserve of pure Qi had been converted and condensed to form the new core within his dantian, one that had already reached the fifth stage the instant it was born.

What followed was a scene of horror to most, but to his eyes it looked more like a fast forwarded reel showing what was happening.

Outside, time flowed swiftly, ten, perhaps fifteen minutes gone, yet within his sea of consciousness, only a handful of seconds had passed,

And in that brief span of time, he saw the being brutally tear apart the serpentine creature.

He wasn't entirely sure what that strange being had been, but he could tell it was the nascent soul of the new core that had just formed inside his dantian.

He even forgot the bitterness of losing the various elemental cores he had cultivated over the past months.

Finally, after all of it ended, the man returned, and Zhu Rong, who had overheard his last conversation with that woman, felt a strange premonition.

"Well then, it's about time we have a proper chat, you and I," the man said.

Soon after, the atmosphere shifted, two chairs and a table appeared, with two cups of what seemed to be steaming green tea resting on top.

Zhu Rong didn't take his cup. Instead, he stared at the man who resembled him so much, yet at the same time didn't.

He had never seen him before, and this was the first time something like this had ever happened, in both of his lifes,

Naturally, he was confused.

The man, on the other hand, didn't bother with any ceremony. He picked up his cup, took a calm sip, savoring it before saying,

"I have to say, it tastes just like I remember... well, maybe that's because it comes from one of my memories." He said mostly to himself, but Zhu Rong didn't respond, he simply looked at him, wearing the expression of someone waiting for an explanation.

Seeing that, the man set the cup down and said,

"You know, you're different from what I expected. Much more so than I ever could've imagined. I wonder if that's because of your past life." His thoughtful tone only deepened Zhu Rong's confusion.

"What do you want me to say? I don't even know what you're talking about. As far as I remember, I've always been like this, both before and now," Zhu Rong replied.

The man nodded slowly, as if confirming something, before saying,

"That's true. But that's exactly what I meant. You see, you might not remember it, but this isn't the first time you've been reincarnated. In fact, the total number of times you've done so is something even I've lost count of."

The words, as strange and absurd as they were, didn't seem to disturb Zhu Rong, who kept his calm demeanor.

"I see. So this isn't my first reincarnation. But I doubt it's like the last ones.

I remember everything perfectly, every memory of my past. Is it possible this has something to do with the divine weapon I created?" he asked after thinking for a moment.

Seeing that side of him, the man appeared thoughtful before replying,

"Yes and no. You see, what I'm talking about is different from what you experienced last time. That was more of a reversal of time within this mortal plane, something directly connected to the weapon you forged.

There's a reason the heavens decided to eliminate you at that tie… though, as usual, they failed miserably."

"As usual?" Zhu Rong asked, sensing from the man's tone that he was accustomed to provoking the wrath of the heavens.

"Believe me, the number of times the heavens have tried to erase you isn't small. But let's not dwell on that, you'll understand it all in time.

I assume you've already guessed who I am, and perhaps who you are as well. Don't you have any questions about it?" he asked.

"What is there to ask? That I used to be the first human emperor?

Why I was reincarnated?

To be honest, no. I really don't care to know." he said, his tone carrying a trace of frustration, as if dealing with it were a nuisance.

Hearing that, the man couldn't help but stare at him for a while with a neutral gaze before saying:

"Haaah… you really are quite different from me. But that part of you hasn't changed.

Believe me, even I didn't care much about recovering the memories of my past lives when I found out that it wasn't my first one.

But whether you like it or not, those memories have always been inside you.

And now that you've found the first fragment of yourself, you're destined to reunite with the others."

Hearing those words, finally, a different expression appeared on Zhu Rong's face.

"Fragments? What do you mean?"

" You see, both you and I are merely fragments of a single soul. To be precise, we're the same fragment, one of the many that make up our true self, a being that is neither you nor me.

I know, it sounds absurd, and I felt the same way back then, when I learned it.

In fact, I ignored it." the man said.

And for a moment, Zhu Rong thought he saw a strange flicker of emotion flash in the man's eyes, something that looked painfully familiar.

Regret?

"But you see, it's not something you can simply ignore. It's tied directly to our deepest self, and denying it only makes things worse.

For years, I ignored that feeling. I went on with my life. I became stronger, surpassing everyone of my era. I built the illusion of a peaceful life, one where things were finally going well…

Until the world itself decided to shatter that illusion."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.