A Dialogue with Oneself
"Hey, why are you adding drama for yourself?"
Watching the villain bowing obsequiously, Xu Shulou fell silent for a mont before speaking: "Untie my junior sister. I’ll take her with . You can keep the other one."
"Of course, of course! No problem," the villain swiftly loosened Bai Roushuang’s bonds, dusted off her robes, and eagerly handed her over to Xu Shulou. "Safe travels."
Bai Roushuang looked bewildered. She stared at Xu Shulou’s outstretched hand, hesitating before finally placing her own in her senior sister’s palm.
She felt herself being pulled into Xu Shulou’s embrace as they stood before a vast lake. With a light step, Xu Shulou leaped onto the water’s surface, her toes barely skimming the rippling waves before soaring effortlessly into the air, carrying Bai Roushuang with her. In that fleeting mont, Bai Roushuang glimpsed the misty lake, the reeds swaying in the twilight, and their reflections shimring on the water’s surface…
The scene was so breathtakingly beautiful that she froze, montarily lost in its splendor. Then, abruptly, she rembered—Senior Brother Lu!
Lu Beichen could only watch helplessly as the two won he had intended to rescue flew away without him. Gagged and bound, he let out muffled protests. He had to admit, when he first saw them tied to the tree, waiting for him to choose whom to save, a sense of pride had swelled in his chest alongside his concern.
He wasn’t ashad of it—heroic impulses were natural. That feeling of holding others’ fates in his hands… it had felt good.
He liked to think he was fair. Choosing Bai Roushuang wasn’t entirely selfish—she was objectively weaker, more in need of protection.
But then the tables turned. In the blink of an eye, he beca the one awaiting rescue. And worse, the person who held his fate didn’t choose him. Bai Roushuang had even flown far into the distance before suddenly turning back with a horrified expression.
"Senior Sister, Senior Brother Lu—"
Xu Shulou cut her off. "I won’t save him. If you can’t bear it, go back yourself."
"But my cultivation—"
"Then train. If it takes you ten years, let him wait ten years. If it takes you a hundred or a thousand, let him wait a hundred or a thousand," Xu Shulou said, her gaze fixed ahead, not sparing her a glance. "When you’re strong enough, go save him yourself."
"……"
Noticing her distress, Xu Shulou chuckled. "What’s that look for? I’m joking. Go back and notify the Lingxiao Sect—they’ll rescue their precious head disciple themselves."
"……"
Xu Shoulou flew higher, ascending into the clouds. The sunset painted the sky in breathtaking hues, but Bai Roushuang’s mind was in turmoil. Fearful that her senior sister might suddenly drop her, she clutched tighter—yet gradually, the srizing scenery eased her anxiety.
She hadn’t yet learned to fly on a sword, and Lu Beichen, worried she’d be afraid, never took her too high or far. Now, surrounded by twilight clouds and birds darting past into the distant mountains, a line of poetry surfaced in her mind: "My bosom swells as layered clouds drift by; my eyes strain to follow homing birds."
In the brothel, she had mostly read flirtatious or romantic verses to please refined patrons, but occasionally, she’d stumbled upon other lines. This one, unexpectedly, fit perfectly.
The poet hadn’t lied—standing higher truly did grant a better view.
Bai Roushuang stole a glance at Xu Shulou’s profile. Her features weren’t sharp; the sunset softened her edges, lending her gaze a gentle yet unwavering determination.
Those two qualities didn’t contradict each other after all… Bai Roushuang couldn’t make sense of the day’s events. She wanted to ask, but sothing distracted her, leaving her to sigh silently instead.
———
Xu Shulou soon left that mont behind.
This ti, however, she didn’t hurry to the next door. At the end of the corridor stood a ghostly figure, clad in white robes so pale they seed translucent—elegant, ethereal, as if on the verge of dissolving into the darkness.
"Xu Shoulou."
The figure turned, revealing a face identical to her own.
They stood in silence, staring at one another across the endless corridor of ti, two versions of the sa soul locking eyes.
Finally, the ghost spoke first: "May I see your sword?"
Xu Shoulou nodded and handed it over.
"Quexie," the ghost murmured, recognizing it instantly. She traced the blade with reverence. "I’ve seen it before, but it never chose ."
"……"
Returning the sword, the ghost asked, "How did you let go?"
Xu Shoulou understood. "The day I left the Xiao Kingdom’s palace, it was raining heavily. A passing mortal offered an umbrella and walked with for a while."
The ghost’s silence held a clear question: That’s all?
Xu Shoulou smiled. "It’s hard to explain. There are monts in life when, in a flash, you just know—it’s ti to leave the past behind."
"Really?" The ghost considered this. "Since you entered this corridor, I’ve watched everything you’ve done."
Xu Shoulou grinned. "Enjoyed watching kill Lu Beichen? Want to do it a few more tis for you?"
The ghost ignored the jest. "So, you’re the ‘glimr of hope’ Pei Changyu spoke of."
"?" Xu Shoulou pondered. "Because I killed Lu Beichen? Does that count as hope?"
"What does he matter?" The ghost’s voice held more disdain than hatred for the man who had ruined her life. "You’re here to stop from ending the world. You want to save Bai Roushuang, save those girls, save everyone… but they don’t deserve your salvation."
"And you?"
The ghost paused. "? I don’t deserve it either."
Xu Shoulou didn’t argue. Instead, she asked softly, "May I hug you?"
"……" The ghost didn’t answer.
Taking silence as consent, Xu Shoulou embraced her, feeling the faint form gradually solidify in her arms.
"So this is what being held feels like," the ghost whispered. "It’s been so long, I’d forgotten the warmth of kin and friends."
Xu Shoulou held her tighter, but after a mont, the ghost pushed her away.
They faced each other again. The ghost studied Xu Shoulou’s face intently. "You must be happy. There’s a light in your eyes."
"I am," Xu Shoulou agreed. "Would you like to hear my story?"
The ghost shrugged. "Why not? It’s not like I have anything else to do here."
Leaning against a wooden door in the dim corridor, Xu Shoulou began to speak, while the ghost stood rigidly straight.
"Where to start…" Xu Shoulou mused. "How about the decades I spent wandering the mortal world?"
Her voice, soft yet steady, filled the space before fading into the darkness.
Ti held no aning here, but Xu Shoulou felt she had spoken for an eternity.
It was strange, recounting her life—a life that could have been the ghost’s—to this other version of herself.
The spectral figure seed to truly imrse herself in the journey, as if she had walked alongside Xu Shulou through those fad mountains and rivers, those perilous and wondrous landscapes. From ti to ti, she would pose questions like, "Is hotpot really that delicious?" or "Since when was Bai Roushuang this adorable?"
Occasionally, she would offer comntary, such as, "Having cultivation is still better—killing is so much more satisfying."
Chatting with oneself was a strangely pleasant experience. A glance, a subtle expression, an unfinished sentence—the other understood it all. The two of them were remarkably alike, sharing the sa little habits, the sa furrow of the brows when frowning. The only difference was that the ghostly figure's smile never quite reached her eyes.
"Your life is so vibrant," the specter murmured. "Unlike mine, where the best years were wasted revolving around Lu Beichen."
Xu Shulou gazed at her. "If only there were a chance to start over..."
The ghost shook her head. "I deliberately lured Luo Fusheng into taking the bla for . Back then, my plans weren’t complete—I couldn’t afford to be exposed."
Xu Shulou sighed. "I figured as much."
"And even knowing that, you still want to save ? Still wish for to have another chance?"
"It’s not about saving. I don’t have that kind of power," Xu Shulou paused. "It’s just... sorrow."
"You are . You should know I don’t need pity, much less soone else’s sorrow," the ghost retorted, raising an eyebrow. "Even if it’s a path to ruin, it’s still a path I carved myself."
"But I’m not 'soone else.' I’m you."
"......"
Seeing the ghost at a loss for words, Xu Shulou didn’t press further. She simply smiled. "If you ever get that second chance, try the hotpot. Co to think of it, neither of us ever had it back in the palace. Now that’s a real regret."
"...Alright."
"How much longer can I stay here with you?"
The ghost shook her head. "You should leave. A place like this was never ant for you."
With a flick of her sleeve, darkness swallowed Xu Shulou’s vision. She could only marvel at how decisively her other self acted—no matter which world she was from.
When Xu Shulou opened her eyes again, she was standing in her own bedroom on Bright Moon Peak of Dustless Island.
Before she could even dwell on her lancholy, she was t with a face even more woeful than her own.
Bai Roushuang sat at her small table, clutching the note she’d left behind, her expression downright mournful as she stared at Xu Shulou.
Feeling a pang of guilt, Xu Shulou studied her expression carefully. "Shii, you ca looking for ?"
"I made stead pork ribs and wanted to eat with you, but you weren’t here. Eating alone is no fun," Bai Roushuang sighed. "And here I find out you ran off to have your own adventure."
Xu Shulou showed her the chain ring on her wrist and briefly explained what had happened. "The two artifacts rged into one. I didn’t know what effects it might have, so I didn’t dare bring you along."
"But you dared to risk yourself..." Bai Roushuang eyed her wrist curiously, reaching out to touch it. "How did two artifacts even fuse? Were they originally from the sa source—"
A flash of icy blue light erupted the mont her fingers brushed the Suru Chain Ring. In the blink of an eye, Bai Roushuang vanished, the trailing notes of her sentence still hanging in the air. Even with Xu Shulou’s lightning reflexes, she couldn’t stop it.
She froze, staring at the empty room, then tentatively called out, "Shii?"
Xu Shulou frowned, praying that if Bai Roushuang had entered that corridor, she wouldn’t open any of the doors.
If her shii got dragged into that twisted world, who knew how long she’d last...
To make matters worse, the Suru Chain Ring remained securely on Xu Shulou’s wrist—aning Bai Roushuang had no way out.
With a resigned sigh, Xu Shulou abandoned her beloved stead pork ribs and imdiately activated the Suru Chain Ring to go after her even more beloved shii.
She could only hope the ghostly figure—who had just sent her away—wouldn’t find her too annoying.
Reviews
All reviews (0)