The figure descended from the broken heavens.
Slowly.
Almost gracefully.
Black robes moved in the windless air, and ten crimson petals floated behind him like a burning halo.
His face—
Was Lin Xue’s face.
Every feature was identical.
Yet looking at him felt like staring into a mirror that had forgotten how to reflect warmth.
The disciples of Qingyun Sect raised their weapons.
No one dared attack.
Bai Yue stood at the highest peak, her sword glowing with silver light.
“Do not approach him!”
Her warning echoed across the mountain.
The figure smiled.
“Still afraid, Bai Yue?”
Her expression hardened.
“You should have remained sealed.”
“Sealed?”
He laughed.
“You call this a seal?”
He lifted one finger.
The sky immediately darkened.
Hundreds of spiritual formations appeared above the mountain.
One after another—
They shattered.
The protective barrier around Qingyun Sect collapsed.
A wave of pressure swept through the sect.
Disciples fell to their knees.
Even the elders struggled to remain standing.
Lin Xue’s Soul Lotus responded.
Ten petals opened.
Golden light spread across the mountain.
The pressure immediately weakened.
The figure looked at him.
“There you are.”
Lin Xue stepped forward.
“You’re me.”
The figure smiled.
“Part of you.”
“Then why do you want the Soul Lotus?”
“Because you stole it.”
Lin Xue frowned.
“I stole it?”
“From me.”
The figure descended until his feet touched the ground.
“Do you remember the first time you created it?”
Lin Xue shook his head.
“No.”
“Of course.”
The figure walked closer.
“You divided your soul.”
“You created a vessel capable of surviving death.”
“You placed your memories inside it.”
“And then…”
His smile disappeared.
“…you forgot.”
Lin Xue’s chest tightened.
“Why would I do that?”
“Because you were dying.”
The figure’s voice became quiet.
“Heaven had discovered what you were.”
“A soul capable of escaping the cycle.”
“They wanted to destroy you.”
“So you divided yourself.”
“One part became the Soul Lotus.”
“One became me.”
“And one became the child who would eventually become you.”
Lin Xue stared at him.
“Then what are you?”
The figure looked toward the sky.
“I am the part that remembered.”
Silence.
“I remembered every death.”
“Every life.”
“Every time Mo Yuan found you.”
“Every time Heaven separated you.”
His eyes became cold.
“I remembered everything.”
Lin Xue’s gaze shifted toward Mo Yuan. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
“And he?”
The figure looked at Mo Yuan.
“He was always the variable.”
Mo Yuan stepped forward.
“What does that mean?”
“You were never supposed to exist.”
Mo Yuan’s expression hardened.
The figure continued.
“Your soul was created outside the Heavenly Dao.”
“That’s why the Oracle couldn’t predict you.”
“That’s why every prophecy surrounding Lin Xue eventually failed.”
“That’s why Heaven feared you.”
Mo Yuan’s sword lowered slightly.
“So you want me dead.”
“No.”
The figure smiled.
“I want you to remember.”
A strange black light appeared in his palm.
Mo Yuan’s eyes widened.
“Don’t.”
The figure released it.
The light struck Mo Yuan’s chest.
“Mo Yuan!”
Lin Xue rushed forward.
But the moment he touched Mo Yuan—
The world disappeared.
A battlefield.
Blood-red clouds.
Thousands of bodies scattered across a ruined plain.
Lin Xue stood in ancient armor.
Mo Yuan was beside him.
Both were covered in dust.
And in front of them stood the Creator.
But he wasn’t wearing black.
He was wearing white.
He looked younger.
Almost exactly like Lin Xue.
The ancient Lin Xue shouted,
“You promised!”
The Creator replied,
“I promised to save him.”
“You promised to save everyone!”
“I couldn’t.”
The ground shook.
Heavenly soldiers descended from the sky.
Mo Yuan grabbed Lin Xue’s arm.
“Run.”
“No.”
“Lin Xue!”
“I won’t leave them.”
The ancient Lin Xue turned toward the Creator.
“You said the Soul Lotus could break the cycle.”
“It can.”
“Then do it!”
“I need your soul.”
Silence.
Lin Xue understood.
“You want me to divide myself.”
“Yes.”
“And if I do?”
“You will forget.”
Lin Xue looked at Mo Yuan.
He knew what that meant.
If he divided his soul…
He might forget Mo Yuan.
He might forget his family.
He might forget every life they had shared.
But it was the only way to survive.
Ancient Lin Xue smiled sadly.
“Then I’ll do it.”
Mo Yuan grabbed his hand.
“No.”
Lin Xue looked at him.
“If you forget me…”
“And if you forget again?”
“I’ll find you again.”
Lin Xue’s eyes filled with tears.
“You promise?”
Mo Yuan pressed their foreheads together.
“I promise.”
The Soul Lotus appeared between them.
Ten petals.
Golden.
Brilliant.
Then Heaven descended.
Everything exploded.
Lin Xue gasped.
He was back in the present.
Mo Yuan was kneeling beside him.
His eyes were wide.
Tears stood in them.
“I remember.”
Lin Xue stared.
“What?”
Mo Yuan looked at him.
“Everything.”
His voice broke.
“Every life.”
“Every time I found you.”
“Every time I failed.”
Lin Xue’s eyes filled with tears.
“And the first?”
Mo Yuan nodded.
“You were the one who asked me to let you go.”
Lin Xue whispered,
“Why?”
“Because you knew you’d come back.”
Mo Yuan took his hand.
“And you were right.”
The Creator watched them.
His expression was unreadable.
Then he spoke.
“You remember now.”
Mo Yuan looked at him.
“Yes.”
“Then you understand why this must end.”
Mo Yuan shook his head.
“No.”
The Creator frowned.
“This cycle ends differently.”
Mo Yuan stood.
“Not by destroying Lin Xue.”
Lin Xue stepped beside him.
“Not by controlling him.”
“And not by taking his Soul Lotus.”
The Creator stared at them.
Then—
He laughed.
“Do you really believe you can defeat me?”
Lin Xue raised his hand.
The ten petals of the Soul Lotus began spinning.
“No.”
He looked at Mo Yuan.
“I don’t think we have to defeat you.”
The golden thread between their souls appeared.
The Creator’s smile vanished.
Lin Xue continued,
“We only have to choose.”
Mo Yuan’s hand closed around his.
Together, they stepped forward.
The Soul Lotus exploded into golden light.
The entire mountain shook.
And somewhere beyond Heaven—
A fifth seal opened.
The Creator looked upward.
For the first time…
He looked afraid.
“Impossible.”
Lin Xue whispered,
“The cycle ends with us.”
Then the sky shattered.