In the fresh-air valley, thick mist drifted, and sunlight filtering through the moisture refracted all kinds of mountain scenery. At the mountain peak, bathed in the sunlight, everything looked remarkably fresh, sunny, and full of vitality.
"Dad, I'm going out to play!"
"All right..." Jian Wei had just responded when Chen Jian's stream of admonitions poured out like pearls dropping onto a plate.
"Be careful, watch your step, mind you don't fall, don't get scratched..."
"I'm going, I'm going." Hearing this, Jian Xin resolutely ran off.
"You child, how come you never let me finish..."
"It's not that I'm complaining, Ajian, but how do you get more naggy by the day?"
"Surname Jian, what do you mean by that? If it weren't for that thing of yours, would Xiner have been hurt like this? She only woke up two days ago, how could I..."
"Sigh. Xiner, be careful, remember to come back early!"
"I'm talking to you!"
"Fine, fine, fine. Ajian, haven't you noticed that our daughter seems to have come back to us? Today she called me 'Dad' more times than in the past few months combined, and everything feels just like the old days. You have no idea how happy I am. Besides, Xiner's condition is really good; you checked her yourself, and her injuries are pretty much healed. What else do we have to worry about? Think about it—she can even beat me up when she's injured, so she shouldn't have any trouble out in these mountains when she's unhurt. Trust me, I would never harm Xiner."
Listening to Jian Wei's assurances, Chen Jian was still somewhat uneasy, but then a thought occurred to her. She pressed her temples and asked, "What on earth happened to us a few months ago? I only remember there was a huge, massive upheaval, and after that Xiner became distant from the two of us. But what actually happened?"
"It was a terribly brutal upheaval, that's what. Go back and prepare lunch," Jian Wei said, turning away.
"Then why have I forgotten it all so completely...?" Chen Jian felt utterly lost, but no one could give her an answer. What she failed to see was that behind her, Jian Wei's fists were clenched tight—so, so tight.
...
"Boom!"
The previously amiable sky changed its expression in an instant after a sudden clap of thunder. Dark clouds rapidly gathered from all directions, painting a gloomy, dark look over the old man's visage. In a corner of the mountain, Jian Xin, seeking shelter from the rain, casually snapped a yellow flower from the mouth of a cave, stepped inside, and sat down by a burned-out campfire. The fire must have just gone out, as it still retained a trace of warmth and a faint flicker of embers. She muttered to herself, "Whatever, I'll find a spot to finish reading what that old man gave me."
Once inside the cave, Jian Xin found a relatively clean spot to sit down and recalled what the old man had told her. But after sitting for a moment, she couldn't stay still. "Xiao Mo, aren't you going to come out and get some fresh air? You stay cooped up in that gloomy, tiny Consciousness Sea all day—aren't you bored?" Xiao Mo was the name Jian Xin had given to the other self inside her Consciousness Sea; because that self never spoke, she had given her this name.
"..." Mo seemed desperately eager to say something, roaring in a hoarse voice, but by the time it reached Jian Xin's ears, it was just a faint, faint whisper—so faint she couldn't hear it at all.
Thinking Mo was ignoring her, Jian Xin continued, "It's fine, really. I'll just go inside and practice properly."
"...Mo... move!" Just as Mo finished speaking, Jian Xin felt her body leaping up without her control. Just as she was about to gasp, "I—"
Before her voice even died away, the sound of a blade being drawn rang out. A fierce wind swept past—a wind that could not possibly exist inside this cave. The only explanation was that his speed was terrifyingly fast! "Ah!" Even though Jian Xin leaped up in time, a huge gash was still slashed across her arm. Barely managing to steady her footing and look closely, she saw a tattered, unsteady man holding a Broken Blade in a reverse grip. He was turning around to look at her, his eyes bloodshot and gleaming with a sharp, malevolent intent.
"Die!" He lunged forward with his blade once more.
"You..." Jian Xin hurriedly pulled a piece of wood from the campfire to try and parry, but even with all her focus concentrated, she couldn't catch sight of the man's blade. Gashes were continuously opened up across her body. Jian Xin had no choice but to use the wooden stick to protect her vital areas, such as her neck and heart, because nearly every single one of the man's strikes was aimed straight at those spots! She dodged this way and that just to save her life. The light-and-shadow figure inside her Consciousness Sea once again transformed into the man's shape, helping Jian Xin dissect his movements.
Meanwhile, Mo inside the Consciousness Sea felt utterly helpless. She was the master of this Consciousness Sea, but when she had just tried to seize control of Jian Xin's body, she found she couldn't do it. All she could do was attach her own abilities to Jian Xin and watch from within the Consciousness Sea, utterly powerless to act!
In the midst of parrying, Jian Xin gradually noticed that the man's speed and physical strength were no longer as abundant as they had been at first. She decided to provoke him: "Oh? Huff... out... out of steam?" She hoped to disrupt him, though her own condition was hardly any better than his. Slowly, the blood on her body was coming close to staining her clothes entirely red, and taking advantage of this opportunity, her eyes darted frantically about, searching for a way out.
"So much chatter!" Distracted by Jian Xin's words, the man seized the opportunity and closed in on her. Had Jian Xin not jumped aside, the blade in his hand would have nearly slit her throat. Yet he still missed, and suddenly his vision went completely black, as if he could no longer see anything at all. He stood there, trying to catch his breath. He was already heavily injured, with half his life gone; he couldn't hold on much longer. Besides... that ingrate was on his heels! If not for him, he wouldn't have—
After leaping back, Jian Xin patted her neck with lingering fear. Thank goodness, it was still warm. The moment she brushed past that blade just now, it felt as though she had stepped one foot into the gates of hell! She also realized the man seemed to be at his limit; that last move had been his final reserve of strength. She taunted, "You... you can't... you're done for!"
The man suddenly looked at Jian Xin and took a few steps toward the mouth of the cave. Jian Xin did not shrink from his gaze, standing her ground against him, completely unfearing of those vicious eyes.
Provoking him further, Jian Xin said, "Oh, what? Thinking of... running away?" Yet she was actually the one who wanted the man to leave the most. To her utter surprise, the moment her words fell, a dark shadow lunged swiftly from the cave entrance. Jian Xin dashed backward; she had a premonition that this time, the attack wasn't aimed at her!
"Boom!"
With a deafening crash, the cave collapsed, and the resulting shockwave hurled Jian Xin—who hadn't managed to run far enough—deep into the interior of the cave, burying her beneath the rubble. At the entrance, two figures locked eyes, and an overwhelmingly powerful aura instantly filled the entire cavern!