Twin Souls

Spirit City, Pope's Palace, secret chamber.

Bibi Dong suddenly sat up in bed.

"Xiao Xue..."

Then she froze, raising a hand to gently press her forehead.

"Was it a dream? Such a real dream."

She found it hard to believe.

With the strength of her divine soul, she had not dreamed in nearly twenty years.

So-called sleep was merely another form of meditation and cultivation.

What was more, the torment inflicted on one's will by the Rakshasa God Test was simply terrifying. She could not sleep peacefully at all.

Yet in that dream just now, she had lived through more than a decade.

Although many details had become blurry, several scenes felt as though she had personally experienced them.

"Qian Renxue... Angel God..."

Bibi Dong looked toward the Worship Hall, her expression dark and uncertain.

And most crucially, there was that central figure who had appeared in every dream.

Bibi Dong rose and left the secret chamber, summoning Chrysanthemum Douluo to the Pope's Palace.

"Yue Guan, have you heard of someone named Su Cheng? He is... twenty or thirty years old, his martial soul is a sword, and he seems to have some connection to Sword Douluo."

"Su Cheng?" Yue Guan was slightly taken aback. For some reason, the name felt somewhat familiar.

After pondering for a moment, he shook his head. "Never heard of him."

"Is there someone like that in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

"I'm not too sure about that."

Nodding, Bibi Dong said nothing more. As she waved him away, she added, "Go investigate. If there is no such person, then forget it."

After Yue Guan left, her expression became somewhat dazed.

"Xiao Gang... Xiao Gang..."

She could not understand why she had dreamed such a thing.

Had she already stopped believing in Xiao Gang's abilities?

Yu Xiaogang was a weak and incompetent fraud who craved vanity and stole others' reputations?

"How foolish. You would rather believe a weak, incompetent fraud whom even his own clan refused to accept than believe in the Spirit Hall that pulled you from the abyss and raised you... When both your parents were dead and you were digging through garbage heaps for leftovers, that eldest young master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, living in silk and feasting on fine food, must surely have been able to empathize with you, right?"

The mocking voice of that person from the dream echoed in her ears.

"No. It was not Spirit Hall that redeemed me. Spirit Hall destroyed me!"

The faintly savage expression on Bibi Dong's face gradually calmed. With a sweep of her sleeve, she returned to her bedchamber.

But once the seed of self-doubt had been planted, could it truly wither so easily in the soil?

Heaven Dou Imperial City, prince's bedchamber.

The First Prince, Xue Qinghe—no, Qian Renxue—opened her eyes with a bewildered expression.

Her face felt wet. She raised a hand and gently wiped it.

"Teacher... why..."

At some point, tears had already streamed down her face.

Within the glimmering tears, faint shadows seemed to drift as well.

Qian Renxue rose and looked around, discovering that she was still in the prince's bedchamber. Nor was she some Angel God.

She was merely a Soul Ancestor who had yet to reach rank 50.

But compared to Bibi Dong, her memories of the dream were much clearer.

The decade or so she had experienced in the dream felt even longer than her memories of reality.

And there was that figure who had run through it all.

It had not felt like a dream at all. It was more like another life.

Though the ending had been tragic and laughable, the journey had been countless times happier than her life now.

Qian Renxue raised a finger and lightly brushed her forehead. That sword shadow which had pierced her divine soul seemed to still linger before her eyes.

That strike had shattered more than just a godhood. It had shattered her dream as well.

"It was only a dream. This was only a dream."

Qian Renxue muttered to herself.

"Hehe, only a dream? What a joke!"

Another voice sounded by her ear. It was very similar to her own, only far colder, carrying a slick, clinging quality. Like a venomous snake flicking out its tongue to lightly lick the edge of one's ear, it gave an unusual thrill.

"Who?!"

Qian Renxue suddenly jolted awake and looked around.

"I am you, and you are me."

A pair of pitch-black eyes emerged within her heart, silently meeting her gaze.

"You?!"

A chill ran through Qian Renxue's body, before she relaxed again. "So that's how it is..."

"Why not try the Severing Meridians and Continuing Qi Method he taught you? You still remember how to use it, don't you?"

The other voice spoke again, its tone full of temptation.

"I forgot." Qian Renxue said coldly.

"No, you didn't forget. You're just afraid."

This time, the voice carried a trace of mockery, seemingly very dissatisfied with her answer.

"If you do not dare face it, then I will."

As the words fell.

A shadow emerged from beneath Qian Renxue's feet, then rapidly spread upward. In an instant, it dyed her white robes pitch-black.

The entire process was extremely fast. Qian Renxue had no way to resist—or perhaps, deep down, she was not especially opposed to it.

This was her other side.

She had always known of the shadows lurking within her heart.

From childhood, Qian Renxue had already learned how to wear a mask, how to conceal pain, and how to dispel loneliness.

But such deception might fool others, yet it could not fool herself.

All her negative emotions had been locked away deep inside like discarded trash, gradually piling up until this day.

The black-clad Qian Renxue raised an arm. Her palm moved swiftly through the air like the wind, too fast for the eye to follow.

"Look, this is the Severing Meridians and Continuing Qi Method. What a genius idea. What do you think?"

"..."

The golden eyes within her heart stared blankly at the scene, filled with a complex blend of sorrow and joy.

"For the next while, you should rest first."

As she spoke, Qian Renxue stepped toward the door. "I will find him."

"Young Master, what is this...?"

In the study, Snake Lance Douluo and Pufferfish Douluo stared in astonishment at Qian Renxue, dressed all in black.

"Is there a problem?"

The corners of Qian Renxue's lips curved upward as she smiled at them.

Qian Renxue rarely smiled, but at this moment, the two Titled Douluo would rather she did not.

Seeing her upturned lips while her eyes remained cold and calm, both of them could not help feeling a faint chill in their hearts.

"Mobilize all resources for me and investigate someone. His martial soul is a sword, and his name is Su Cheng. Appearance, martial soul, name—if any two match, report to me."

As she spoke, Qian Renxue picked up a portrait from the table and handed it to them.

Snake Lance Douluo reached out to accept it, his expression somewhat hesitant.

"What? You can't do it?"

Spirit Hall's influence covered the entire continent. All soul masters registered with the various branch halls, so investigating someone was not difficult.

"As for Your Majesty the Pope..."

"Hehe, since when did Spirit Hall let her call the shots? I still have a score to settle with her."

The two exchanged a glance and did not dare say anything further.

It felt as though the Young Master before them had become an entirely different person.

In a village in a remote southwestern region of the Heaven Dou Empire, Su Cheng also withdrew from the Simulator and opened his eyes.

He still did not know that Bibi Dong, Qian Renxue, and the others had all gained, to varying degrees, fragments of memories from the Simulated World.

Even the darkness deep within Qian Renxue's heart had awakened because of it.

Thanks to WLL for the 100-coin reward, thanks to Lei Jihang for the 100-coin reward, and thanks everyone for the Monthly Tickets and recommendation tickets. Thank you for your support~