Revealing the Reason

"Junior Brother, how much longer can you hold on?"

In the dead silence, the Longevity Sect Master spoke again.

"Not much longer."

Xu Lingtian shook his head. "This power is not merely eroding the divine soul and mind. It seems to be twisting the Original Self, shaping another me..."

"A me who possesses everything I have, yet is not me..."

"And the Original Self cannot stop this twisting at all. It can only seal itself away, completely closing off the mind, thereby preventing the Original Self from being obliterated..."

Having said this, Xu Lingtian paused for a moment. He glanced at Chu Mu and the other man standing nearby before looking toward the Longevity Sect Master and speaking slowly. "Even now, I have not detected the slightest sign of it. I do not even know when this power began to erode me. It was utterly seamless, without leaving any trace."

"My cultivation is only a stone's throw away from that of a Nascent Soul Great Cultivator. Moreover, I cultivate the sword, my state of mind is lucid and clear, untouched by dust or filth—yet it still happened so silently..."

As those words fell, the already frozen atmosphere became even more oppressive.

The Longevity Sect Master fell silent. His formerly composed expression had now darkened like still water.

Only after a long while did the Longevity Sect Master slowly speak. His voice was now somewhat hoarse. "How can it be identified?"

"It cannot be identified."

Xu Lingtian smiled bitterly. "If the Original Self is suppressed, or devoured and obliterated, then he is me..."

"He possesses everything I possess. Every word, every action, even emotions and memories—there can be no flaw whatsoever."

"Unless he loses control, or the Original Self detects his existence beforehand, there is simply no way to identify him,