Chapter 107: What Is the Truth?

On the second floor of the Tide-Watching Inn, in a guest room, Senior Brother Cheng Xiaoshan of the Refining Sect tossed and turned, unable to find restful sleep. Outside, the sea wind wailed mournfully, its sound piercing and sorrowful—at times like the cries of ghosts, at others like a woman softly sobbing in the night breeze.

At the thought of the strange tales about the inn that Shangguan Chuci had recounted, a chill ran down Cheng Xiaoshan’s spine. He sighed deeply, then sat up on the stiff wooden bed. Under the scant, dim moonlight filtering through the window, he rolled up his sleeve and examined the few lingering marks of spiritual corruption on his arm.

His skin was taut with knotted muscles, flesh writhing as if some living thing struggled beneath, eager to break free. Distracted and uneasy, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching along the corridor above. His heart leapt into his throat.

Cheng Xiaoshan dared not remain seated. He quietly rose without even putting on his shoes and tiptoed to the door. From his bosom, he retrieved a small carving knife and carefully poked a tiny hole in the old door. Pressing an eye to the aperture, he peered out—and was stunned.

Outside in the corridor was no ghoul or specter, but the young female envoy of the Demon Suppression Department, Lin Jianyan. “Hadn’t she already returned to her room to rest? Why is she out again in the dead of night?” Cheng Xiaoshan wondered in surprise.

His curiosity deepened as he watched her odd behavior. She stealthily ascended from the stairwell, a lingering blush still on her cheeks, and damp strands of hair stuck to her temples as if moistened by fragrant sweat, lending her an indescribable allure. She glanced around anxiously, darting her head left and right, like a thief fearful of being caught.

Where had she come from? Cheng Xiaoshan’s gaze followed the staircase downward, and his heart sank. “She came up from downstairs? The Tide-Watching Inn is large; aside from the main hall on the first floor, there is only the backyard and Shopkeeper Lu’s firewood shed... Could it be that she was just in the backyard?”

An utterly absurd thought flashed through his mind. “This seemingly pure young envoy, could she have that kind of relationship with that capricious young demon lord?”

Cheng Xiaoshan gasped coldly. He quickly turned away, leaning against the door and refusing to look again. Though frightened by the notion, when he calmed down and thought it through, it seemed only too plausible.

“Lin Jianyan had defended Shopkeeper Lu before, and Lu had come to her aid... Moreover, that demon lord needed only to say a word for her to change her mind and leave my senior disciples trapped in this den of beasts. Who would believe there’s no private relationship between them?”

“That demon lord is so powerful—why would he help others out of kindness? Unless Lin Jianyan was already one of his people!”

The more he thought, the more alarmed he became. He recalled the young envoy once said she had sparred with Shopkeeper Lu, though she never revealed when or where. Now, it seemed she had lost more than the match—perhaps even her innocence.

“Alas,” Cheng Xiaoshan sighed inwardly, feeling the world was darker than he imagined. He had thought evil spirits ran rampant, but never expected that even the Demon Suppression Department, sworn to slay demons, had become so corrupt as to be entangled with the most depraved Lampbearers of the heretical cult.

...

Inside the firewood shed, Shangguan Chuci was momentarily stunned. She had only intended to awaken the youth with her words, never expecting him to respond with such a startling revelation.

“A Sinful Immortal? One sword severing the heavens?”

The origin was beyond her wildest imagination, touching upon the very essence of the world’s foundation. Gazing at Lu Chenyuan’s serious expression and recalling Situ’s unfathomable power, she found this seemingly absurd tale not entirely impossible.

If true, it meant that the current shattered immortal path and the rampant spiritual corruption in the world were the result of one sword wielded by this youth three thousand years ago.

Shangguan Chuci paused for a long while to digest this storm of information. Her heart, weary from depleted true essence, now beat wildly at this profound secret. She had thought her identity as a transmigrator was a unique marvel, but next to this boy, she seemed like a mere novice.

“Brother Lu...” Shangguan Chuci felt parched, and asked, “How do you know all this?”

“I have dreams,” Lu Chenyuan said slowly. “Since childhood, I have often had strange dreams. One dream recurs repeatedly.”

“In it, I am but a single sword, severing the Glazed Celestial Gate, leaving behind a celestial abyss that has not healed in three thousand years.”

Shangguan Chuci’s heart stirred. “What did your master say?”

“She said I was indeed an immortal emperor in a past life, but her words were muddled nonsense, so I did not take them seriously.”

“Until a few days ago, here at the inn, I overheard disciples from Mount Wanren discussing the cause of the immortal path’s severance, and heard mention of the Sinful Immortal. Have you ever heard of this, Lord Chu?”

Shangguan Chuci glanced toward the door, aware that Uncle Shen was guarding outside. Such earth-shattering secrets were best known by as few as possible.

She shook her head slowly. “I’ve never heard of the Sinful Immortal... but the scar of the celestial abyss truly exists. The Astronomical Bureau’s star watchers have the solemn duty to observe it day and night, reporting immediately to the Empress if any changes occur.”

“What?!” Lu Chenyuan’s eyes sharpened. “The scar of the celestial abyss is real?”

He had never imagined that this seemingly fantastical dream, supported by one piece of evidence after another, was gradually becoming tangible, no longer so distant.

Seeing his expression, Shangguan Chuci sensed how deeply the matter affected him. After a moment’s thought, she said, “I think the idea that you were an immortal emperor or a Sinful Immortal in a past life is quite possible. But even if so, what does that have to do with the monster inside you?”

Lu Chenyuan showed a trace of confusion and shook his head. “I don’t know. I only know this monster is a curse I was born with. It grows harder to control as I age. If not for meeting my master in time, who taught me an unnamed mantra and breathing technique to suppress spiritual corruption, I would have long since become a mindless killing beast.”

“So that secret technique and breathing method came from her...” Shangguan Chuci mused silently but did not press further, instead saying thoughtfully, “It seems the problem of spiritual corruption among cultivators began only after the celestial abyss was severed three thousand years ago.”

“If you truly were the Sinful Immortal who severed the heavens, then why did you do it?” She met Lu Chenyuan’s gaze, and in their eyes flickered a shared understanding.

The answer Situ had long ago given: “Cultivation is a deception,” Lu Chenyuan whispered. “It does not lead to eternal life but to becoming a heartless immortal.”

“So your past self,” Shangguan Chuci continued, “had to sever the heavens.”

“Is that the truth?” Lu Chenyuan murmured, still with a hint of bewilderment. “But a heartless immortal is not the same as a mad immortal. Where then does the spiritual corruption come from?”