Fang Xuan woke up in a daze.
He opened his eyes and saw a gray-white stone wall. It wasn't the white walls of the rental apartment on Blue Star, nor was it the ceiling of the Upper Realm’s great hall; it looked like a cave.
He tried to move, but he couldn't lift his hands or his feet.
Looking down, he saw pale-golden chains wrapped around his wrists and ankles.
They were condensed from laws—the laws of time, no less?
How on earth did Senior Sister learn this...?
He gave a tug. The chains rattled loudly but didn't break.
He tugged again, but they still held firm.
However, he sensed that the chains weren't particularly strong. He should be able to break them, though it would take some effort.
He stopped and thought for a moment.
These chains weren't truly meant to imprison him. They were like something tied by someone who was afraid he would run away, yet also afraid of hurting him.
They were tied tightly, yet with a surprisingly gentle touch.
“Junior Brother...” someone called from behind him.
Fang Xuan turned his head.
The other Ning Xian stood beside him. He didn't know how long she had been there. She wore the plain white robes, her long hair hanging loose without a tie, framing her face.
She met his gaze, then reached out, her fingers lightly brushing his cheek.
“Junior Brother, you promised... we would be together forever...”
Fang Xuan turned his head away.
Her fingertips met empty air and froze. After a moment, she could only slowly withdraw her hand.
“He isn't me. You have the wrong person,” Fang Xuan said, staring at the ceiling.
He understood the situation now.
As for the origin of these laws of time, he suspected the other Fang Xuan had met a tragic end at the hands of a yandere.
He didn't know what that other Fang Xuan had done to end up in such a miserable state...
“Why won't you look at me?” Her voice began to tremble.
Fang Xuan closed his eyes.
He wouldn't look. He simply wouldn't.
He didn't know what he was being stubborn about, but he just didn't want to look at her.
To see that face that was identical to his Senior Sister's, that identical expression...
And that gaze that was exactly like hers, yet so different.
It gave him a strange sense of infidelity.
...
“Why must you keep lying to me?”
The other Ning Xian’s voice shook more and more, as if she were on the verge of a breakdown. “I went through so much to find you...”
Fang Xuan kept his eyes closed and remained silent.
All he wanted to do was escape. This version of Senior Sister seemed far too dangerous.
Moreover, he was afraid—afraid that she might kill his own silly Senior Sister.
If they met, his Senior Sister would definitely be no match for someone in the Dao Ancestor realm.
“He’s still thinking about her,” her voice suddenly turned calm. “But isn't she just me?”
Fang Xuan opened his eyes and looked at her. “You aren't her.”
His tone was flat—no accusation, no anger, just a statement of fact.
Her Junior Brother might be dead, but she couldn't just come looking for him. He wasn't that Fang Xuan.
Ning Xian looked at him, moisture pooling in her eyes. Her lashes grew damp, but she forced herself not to let the tears fall.
“Why... why does she get to look at you, and not me?” She bit her lower lip until it turned white.
“I can do it too. I’m exactly like her. I love you more than she does.”
By the time she reached the last few words, her voice had shattered into pieces.
Before her voice could fade, the space behind her vibrated violently.
A rift was forcibly torn open, and a white figure tumbled out, stumbling before leaning against the stone wall to steady herself.
It was the Ning Xian wearing the hoodie.
Her hair was a mess, her sleeves were rolled up to her elbows, and her face was pale from the recent strain of burning her cultivation.
She saw Fang Xuan, saw the chains on his wrists, and saw the other version of herself crouching beside him. Her gaze changed instantly.
A spatial killing move was ready in her hand, her sword intent condensed to the limit, and twelve crimson heavy pupils split open in her eyes.
But the white-robed Ning Xian merely glanced at her.
There was no movement, no killing blow, not even an expression—just a single look.
The hoodie-wearing Ning Xian was instantly frozen, unable to move a muscle, as if pinned down by an invisible hand from her shoulders to her ankles.
She gritted her teeth, trying to move, but she couldn't. She tried to speak, but no sound came out. Her eyes were red as she glared fixedly at her counterpart.
The white-robed Ning Xian withdrew her gaze and looked down at Fang Xuan. “Don't force me to kill her.”
Her tone was flat, as if she were speaking of something trivial.
Then she leaned down, bracing one hand beside Fang Xuan’s head. Her long hair fell, brushing against his face with a cool sensation.
Fang Xuan tried to dodge, but she followed him, her other hand pinning his shoulder to keep him still.
She lowered her head, intending to kiss him.
Indeed, she was going to kiss Fang Xuan right in front of the other Ning Xian on the ground.
Fang Xuan quickly turned his face away. Her lips landed on his neck—cool and slightly trembling.
Her voice was soft, but every word was crystal clear: “I’m going to force myself on Junior Brother right here. What can you possibly do about it?”
She raised her head, looking at the frozen version of herself in the corner.
“Without strength, you can achieve nothing.”
Fang Xuan felt her lips against his neck and her lashes brushing his jaw, tickling him.
Her hand was on his shoulder, her fingertips and her entire body were trembling.
She was waiting—waiting for him to say something.
But he said nothing.
She stopped and raised her head to look at his profile.
“Why won't you look at me?”
Fang Xuan didn't move, nor did he speak.
She lowered her head, burying her face in the crook of his neck.
Her hair spilled across his chest. She didn't cry, but she shook even more violently.
In the corner, the hoodie-wearing Ning Xian swallowed the blood in her mouth.
Her meridians were mostly ruptured, and her cultivation had plummeted to rock bottom, but she didn't care.
She gritted her teeth, pouring every last drop of spiritual energy into a forbidden technique. Her twelve heavy pupils dilated to their limit, and blood began to seep from the corners of her eyes.
The white-robed Ning Xian looked up, meeting Fang Xuan’s gaze. Her lips curved into a very faint, light smile.
“I just wanted to come and see you,” she whispered.
Yunchang had left its scabbard at some unknown point, its dark blade sinking into her chest and emerging from her back.
Fang Xuan gripped the hilt, remaining silent.
Even he hadn't expected that she wouldn't even try to dodge.
“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice now very faint.
“I lost you...”
She reached out, her fingertips touching his face. “But you aren't him.”
She knew. Her Junior Brother wouldn't let another Ning Xian replace her.
Just as now... Fang Xuan wouldn't let her replace the other Ning Xian.
But she just wanted to see him again, one last time.
She had known she would die before she even came here. By traveling back to this timeline, her body would collapse—from the inside out, bit by bit, crumbling into powder.
But she didn't care. She had been alone for too long, and she didn't want to live anymore.
She only wanted one last look at him, and that was enough.
Her fingers slid from his face, the tips becoming transparent, like ice melting in the sun.
The transparency began at her fingertips and started to spread upward.
Fang Xuan looked at her hand, watching her body begin to disappear. “You...”
He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what.
She looked at him and suddenly smiled. “The me of this world...” She glanced at the hoodie-wearing Ning Xian in the corner. “She’s quite silly.”
Fang Xuan was stunned.
“But she is good,” she whispered, her voice growing lighter and lighter. “Better than me...”
Her body began to shatter into pale-golden specks of light.
She looked down at her vanishing hands, then looked up at Fang Xuan.
“Junior Brother,” she called out, her voice barely a whisper.
“Yes.”
“In the next life, don't make me wait so long.”
She smiled, and then her entire being shattered into a cloud of golden light.
Fang Xuan stood where he was, watching the specks of light drift away and slowly disappear.
The wound in his chest was still leaking light, growing fainter and darker until nothing could be seen.
The cave returned to its gray-white silence, as if nothing had ever happened.
He stood for a long time, then turned around.
In the corner, his Senior Sister was still leaning against the wall.
Fang Xuan picked her up. “Senior Sister, are you okay...?”
“I’m fine. Did she... did she do anything to you...?”
Ning Xian’s tone was filled with anxious concern as her small hands frantically checked him over.
“I’m fine. Let’s go home.”
“Okay...”
...
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