Shen Shihuang looked at the pink flames that had appeared in the other fellow's hand. Their aura was almost identical to that of his own Taisui Flame. The biggest difference was probably the color.
"Who exactly are you?"
Shen Shihuang didn't believe the other man's claim that they were one and the same. How could that be possible? If they were truly the same person, how could they have two separate consciousnesses?
Pink Shen Shihuang smiled faintly.
"I told you. We're one and the same."
"You've been asleep for far too long. After you woke up, didn't you feel that something was missing from you—or rather, from your consciousness?"
"Or maybe you've never released your negative emotions."
As he spoke, Pink Shen Shihuang pointed at the people in the city. "Kill them. Only after you've killed every last one of them will you truly be complete. Aren't you curious why your Taisui Flame advanced a rank, yet your strength didn't change at all?"
"Only by killing them will you truly grow stronger. Otherwise, you'll never get any further in this life."
Hearing Pink Shen Shihuang's words,
Shen Shihuang froze.
"What do you mean by that?"
Pink Shen Shihuang smiled as he replied, "I mean exactly what I said. If you don't kill every last one of them, then even if you advance your Taisui Flame countless times, your strength will remain just as it is now. You'll never make another inch of progress."
"Haven't you noticed? Ever since you advanced to Dou Zong, has your strength changed at all?"
Shen Shihuang's heart trembled.
Pink Shen Shihuang was right. At first, he'd thought it was because of the Taisui Flame and the Ten Thousand Year Technique. But even after the Taisui Flame advanced a rank, he was still a One-Star Dou Zong, so he'd figured the problem must lie with the Ten Thousand Year Technique.
But now...
"It's simple. There are only three thousand people here. With your strength as a Dou Zong, killing three thousand ordinary people shouldn't be a problem. It'll only take time."
"Kill them, and you'll gain power beyond your wildest imagination!"
"The power of the Heavenly Flames, the power of your cultivation technique. Only then will you have the right to truly reach the summit. As you are now, you have no such right."
Pink Shen Shihuang moved beside Shen Shihuang and whispered in his ear.
"Kill them?"
A fierce killing intent gradually appeared in Shen Shihuang's eyes. He'd crossed over into the Dou Qi Continent—how could he not want to grow stronger? Besides, what did the lives of people on the Dou Qi Continent have to do with him?
If he killed them, he could grow stronger.
And they...
They had nothing to do with him.
Even if he slaughtered every last one of them, what would be wrong with that?
"There's absolutely nothing wrong with it."
"They're no kin of yours. As long as you slaughter them all, you'll have the right to reach the summit. Think about it: a Dou Zun expert? Lord Shen? Or the Taisui Venerable?"
"A Dou Sheng expert? When others meet you, they'll respectfully call you the Taisui Saint?"
"Even the Dou Di, who hasn't appeared in tens of millions of years, might not be beyond your reach. By then, the entire Dou Qi Continent will lie prostrate beneath your feet."
"What glory that would be."
"And all that glory would be built on the lives of just three thousand ordinary people. Compared to such glory, they should feel honored to be killed." Pink Shen Shihuang continued whispering in Shen Shihuang's ear.
Huff, huff!!
Grow stronger!
The killing intent in Shen Shihuang's eyes grew fiercer.
"That's right!"
"That's the kind of killing intent you need, the resolve to slaughter! Might makes right. There's no need for reason or laws—your strength alone is all that matters!"
"It lets you decide who lives and dies!"
"Think about it. Once you're strong enough, who in this world will be able to defy your will?"
"Wealth and women will be yours for the taking."
As Pink Shen Shihuang spoke, the pink flames on his body slowly seeped into Shen Shihuang.
Shen Shihuang didn't notice a thing.
The beginnings of pink flames had already appeared in his eyes.
They were eerie and bewitching.
"Do it!"
"For the summit!"
"For ultimate strength!"
Pink Shen Shihuang patted Shen Shihuang's shoulder and said,
Pink flames nearly filled Shen Shihuang's eyes. He swiftly formed hand seals.
Powerful Dou Qi surged from Shen Shihuang's body, and a massive seal instantly took shape in the sky above him.
"Brahma Dragon-Subduing Seal!"
Pink Shen Shihuang saw this and smiled. "That's right, just like that! Kill every last one of them!"
"Kill!"
"Evil!"
"Those are just their labels! Hatred and resentment—those are the most useless emotions ordinary people can have!"
"I'll..."
"Kill every one of these characters in this game!!"
Shen Shihuang lowered his head.
Black Taisui Flame slowly surfaced over his body. "You're right. They do deserve to die!"
"Brahma Dragon-Subduing Seal!"
The Dragon Subduing Seal, as large as a small mountain, didn't fall toward the people in the city. Instead, it came crashing down directly on Pink Shen Shihuang.
Boom!!
The blow sent Pink Shen Shihuang flying. He stared at Shen Shihuang in disbelief. "How is this possible? What did you do?"
Shen Shihuang raised his eyes. The pink flames in them quickly vanished, replaced by black Taisui Flame.
"You know everything about me."
"Right?"
Thud!!
Pink Shen Shihuang rose from the ground and swiftly formed hand seals, just like Shen Shihuang. He formed the same Brahma Dragon-Subduing Seal. After it appeared, he looked at Shen Shihuang.
He said coldly, "I told you, I'm you, and you're me!"
"Of course I'm exactly like you in every way. Whatever you can do, I can do too!"
"Dragon Subduing Seal!!"
At this,
Shen Shihuang smiled faintly. "Is that so? Do you know about check-ins?"
Shen Shihuang was testing him.
He bet that the other man couldn't be exactly the same as him.
At least,
The other man could only be the same as him in the things he currently possessed.
Because
their Heavenly Flames were different. If Pink Shen Shihuang's claim that they were one and the same was true, then the Heavenly Flame in his hands should also have been the Taisui Flame.
"What check-in?"
Pink Shen Shihuang snapped angrily, "I can't believe you're so hopeless! As long as you kill them, you'll keep growing stronger. Otherwise, you'll be stuck at One-Star Dou Zong forever!!"
Shen Shihuang chuckled.
"I think I understand."
At that,
Pink Shen Shihuang froze. "What do you understand?"
"Just like you said: killing, evil, hatred, resentment..."
"That's what you are, isn't it?"
"Or perhaps those things are also a part of me. While I was asleep, I encountered more than just the Taisui Flame. I also encountered the pink Heavenly Flame in your hands. And it seems something went wrong with that pink flame, turning my negative emotions into you."
"Right?"
"I can't grow stronger, and neither can you."
"If I die, you'll disappear too."
"But you can't influence me. The only way is to make me act according to your way of thinking. Then my negative emotions might even grow back, and perhaps you'll become an independent being."
Because
after he entered,
the system's voice had sounded in Shen Shihuang's mind.
Special check-in locations have been refreshed. Note: special check-in locations do not conflict with regular check-in locations. Special check-in location: Time Realm. Check-in reward: Information about another identity of the host.