"What do you mean...?" I hurriedly asked. This concerned inquiry made Zhao Qian, Han Shanshan, and even Shang Wanyue, who was standing nearby, exchange glances. Xijun was the most direct of them all. Pouting, she said, "Brother is so concerned about this woman. Could it be that something happened to you over all these years?"
I looked at Xijun, who had completely blossomed into a graceful young woman, and smiled bitterly. "Your brother and she went through countless hardships together, repeatedly teetering on the brink of life and death. In the end, we became comrades. After interacting with her, you should have realized that she's different from before."
"Mm... Yes. Now I really don't know how we should arrange this... this women's army of ours." Han Shanshan spoke with an utterly serious expression, delivering an unmistakably sarcastic remark. Zhao Qian stopped her from continuing and said, "The Origin Return Art has side effects as well. It depends on how it's used—for example, whether it's used against a stronger enemy, and on the target's mental strength. After all, it forcefully controls the other party's power to return it to its origin, so what gets depleted are the pathways responsible for memory. The amount and strength of the pathways returned to their origin have an enormous impact. If it's used too often, its side effects can be called the most severe among the Three Great Dao Arts."
"This... then wouldn't Qingcheng..." My heart jolted. Such terrifying side effects were practically unheard of. If that was the case, wouldn't she eventually become an idiot?
If she kept using it beyond her level, or if she faced an opponent whose mind was absurdly powerful, wouldn't more of her memories be erased? That would be utterly tragic!
"If she were fighting someone at the same