The youth Yunhai hesitated, then braced himself and walked forward, somewhat reluctant.
Daoist Yuqing took note of this and inquired, "Do you not wish to unlock your past-life memories?"
The youth Yunhai replied, "If I unlock my past-life memories, I will become who I was in my past life, and who I am in this life will die."
Daoist Yuqing asked, "Who told you that?"
The youth Yunhai cast a glance at Xu Ying.
Daoist Yuqing sized Xu Ying up and laughed. "He is different from you. His first life has not died, but is merely sealed away. Once the seal on his first life is undone, he will be supplanted by it. But you are different. Your past life is already dead. Even if your past-life memories revive, they are only memories and will not usurp your place."
Hearing this, the youth Yunhai felt relieved and glared fiercely at Xu Ying.
Ever since Xu Ying had frightened him by claiming that awakening past-life memories might turn him into a mere fraction of his past self, he had been plagued by anxiety. Even Daoist Yuan's Dao-voice reprimand had failed to free him completely from that dread.
Yet Xu Ying's heart skipped a beat at those words. He quickly smiled and asked, "Dao Brother, if I undo the seal and awaken the memories of my first life, will I truly be supplanted?"
Daoist Yuqing chuckled. "I never said any such thing. Do not slander a well-meaning man, Fellow Daoist."
Xu Ying grew anxious. "You just said it moments ago!"
Daoist Yuqing replied, "Those words just now were not meant for you, but for that other fellow Daoist within your body. If that fellow Daoist awakens in the future and takes me to task over what I said, reproaching me for nearly ruining him, would that not incur karma for me? Thus, there are certain things I cannot say. Even if I say them, I cannot admit to them."
A chill ran down Xu Ying's spine, and he asked hastily, "Once he awakens, where will I be?"
Daoist Yuqing did not answer. He focused on helping the youth Yunhai unravel his past-life memories. After a brief moment, he discovered that beyond the obscurity of rebirth, Yunhai's past-life memories were suppressed by a bizarre Immortal Dao seal.
Daoist Yuqing frowned slightly and murmured in contemplation, "This is rather thorny. Yunhai was once forced to drink the Soup of Meng Po—swigging it straight from a bucket, I suspect. The Soup of Meng Po is one thing, but unravelling this Immortal Dao seal is quite troublesome. The sealing techniques are mixed and tangled, wrought with the methods of the Immortal Dao. I can unravel the Shangqing portion, but as for the rest..."
He was merely the Xuanhuang Realm Heaven and Earth Primordial Spirit of the Yuqing Dao Ancestor. When matters exceeded his capabilities, he was powerless to help.
Xu Ying smiled and said, "What a coincidence. Prolonged illness has made a doctor of me; I excel at unravelling seals."
Daoist Yuqing's gaze settled upon him.
Xu Ying did not budge an inch, showing not the slightest intention of helping Yunhai unseal his past-life memories.
Daoist Yuqing caught his meaning and said with deep significance, "Once you unravel the seal of your first life, all torrents will return to the great ocean."
Xu Ying pressed, "And what about me? Where will I be?"
Daoist Yuqing hesitated for a moment, then said, "Fellow Daoist, why dwell so much upon yourself? You are merely a segment of memory belonging to that fellow Daoist within you, an illusory dream, a bubble. When the dream ends, the bubble bursts. You ought to be more generous."
A chilling cold settled in Xu Ying's heart. He murmured, "I am merely a segment of memory, an illusory dream of Xu Ying."
He could not help feeling somewhat despondent.
This had been his deepest fear all along.
He had actually realized long ago that he was no different from all those Xu Yings who had cycled through the myriad reincarnations over the past forty thousand years. They were all built upon a foundation of false memories, not the central trunk of remembrance.
The Xu Ying of the first life slept beneath the seals, and he, just like all those other Xu Yings, was merely a dream dreamt during that first life's slumber. Once the first life awakened, the dream would shatter accordingly.
"Fellow Daoist Xu, in bygone days, after Emperor Haotian became the Immortal Emperor, he repeatedly shed his immortal state to become mortal, reincarnating to cultivate anew from the beginning in order to reach the supreme pinnacle. In each reincarnation, he cultivated in the Earth Immortal Realm, experiencing all manner of his own loves, hatreds, and passions."
Daoist Yuqing recounted the legendary tale of Emperor Haotian in an unhurried cadence, saying, "Whenever he cultivated to a certain level, he would awaken the memories of his past life. In that singular instant, he would awake from the illusory dream. He remained Emperor Haotian, and his reincarnated self became merely a portion of his vast sea of memories. Cultivating life after life in this manner across thousands of incarnations, he ultimately achieved the wondrous realm of Daluo."
Xu Ying remained silent for a moment, then asked, "After Emperor Haotian awakened, did the experiences of his reincarnated self, his friends, his enemies, and the convictions he once held still matter?"
This was his final conviction.
Daoist Yuqing smiled. "To his reincarnated self, they mattered. But to Emperor Haotian, they did not. He reincarnated through thousands of lives and cultivated for myriad lifetimes; if every single life were that important, he would not be worthy of being the singular emperor through the ages. Those versions of him did not vanish; they merely turned into memories."
Xu Ying shook his head. "If those convictions, those friends, those enemies, and those experiences no longer matter, then the very moment Emperor Haotian awoke, those reincarnated selves of his were already dead."
Daoist Yuqing tilted his head in thought, then laughed. "I am merely a Heaven and Earth Primordial Spirit within a bodhimanda, not a living person. I do not understand your reservations, Fellow Daoist. You ought to be more magnanimous. It is not as if you will cease to exist; you will simply become a memory."
Xu Ying steadied his mind. Daoist Yuqing lacked the mindset of a mortal human and naturally could not fathom what life meant to him.
He was not so magnanimous.
Someone on the seashore once saw a child throwing small fish washed ashore back into the sea one by one, and asked why he bothered, as no one cared whether these little fish lived or died.
The child picked up a small fish, cast it into the sea, and said, "This little fish cares. And this one cares too. And this one, and this one..."
Xu Ying was that little fish who cared about his own life.
His life was like a tiny flame in the wind—fragile, yet longing never to be extinguished.
Though Daoist Yuqing believed that restoring the memories of his first life would mean he remained himself, Xu Ying believed that that person would not be him. By then, he would already be dead.
Xu Ying collected himself, yet still honored his promise to help the youth Yunhai resolve the memory seal of his past life.
Prolonged illness had made him a doctor, turning him into a grandmaster of seals. Suddenly, his Undying Primordial Spirit emerged behind him, and he extended a finger, tapping directly between the youth Yunhai's brows.
The youth Yunhai shuddered violently, feeling as though everything before his eyes was rushing backward at immense speed.
Around him, countless versions of himself unexpectedly appeared: some cultivating, some conversing with others, some fleeing in panic from pursuers, and some inside Daoist Taiqing's Tushita Palace. It was utterly bizarre.
"Do not glance about aimlessly; these are your past memories,"
Daoist Yuqing told him. "Fellow Daoist Xu's strike has stirred your memories awake. Right now, we are retracing your memories, preparing to return to your past life!"
The youth Yunhai was seized with astonishment and murmured, "There exists such a divine power?"
Robes billowing, the group retraced time through Yunhai's memories, returning to the very instant of his death.
Suddenly, the way ahead turned into a patch of dim, murky chaos. From within the chaos came wave upon wave of immortal melodies, and amidst the chaos, colossal Immortal Dao runes vaguely appeared, spelling out words like 'Imprison,' 'Seal,' 'Trap,' 'Confine,' and 'Jail'!
These Immortal Dao runes sealed and suppressed Yunhai's past-life memories, preventing anyone from peering inside, such that even Yunhai himself could not recall the slightest bit.
These Immortal Dao runes did not belong to the same system as the Dao patterns Daoist Yuqing was familiar with, but to Xu Ying, they were far from foreign.
"They are remarkably similar to the runes the Imperial Monarch used to seal me."
Xu Ying examined them, thoroughly astonished.
The Immortal Dao runes sealing Yunhai could even be said to share the exact same lineage as the runes that sealed him!
"The Imperial Monarch's runes were likely inherited from the runes that sealed Yunhai. Could it be that the Imperial Monarch and the person who sealed Yunhai shared a master-disciple relationship?"
At this thought, he suddenly vaulted into the air and plunged into the chaos.
Daoist Yuqing, Daoist Yuan, and the youth Yunhai waited outside. Within moments, they watched the chaos gradually disperse.
They walked forward and entered a segment of memory.
The Daoist Yunhai plummeted rapidly from the sky, slamming onto the ground with a resounding crash. Coughing up mouthfuls of blood, he staggered to his feet.
"Junior Brother, why refuse to reveal the whereabouts of the Shangqing Cave Abyss?"
A middle-aged Daoist walked toward him with a genial smile and said, "Do you know how many fellow disciples I have killed to obtain the Shangqing Great Cavern Abyss? Did you think that because you and I shared the closest bond back then, I would spare you?"
The Daoist Yunhai surged with qi, and a Yellow Court palace manifested behind him as he prepared to fight to the bitter end.
"It is futile, Junior Brother. Your mastery of the Yellow Court Scripture is indeed exceptionally high, even surpassing mine. But in the years since I left the Shangqing Dao Sect, I have comprehended something even better."
The middle-aged Daoist charged at him. At that moment, the magnificent sights of six great cave-heavens emerged in the sky—six bizarre, dazzling visions of the Great Void, including the two qis of Xuanhuang, the Sea of Chaos, and the Undying True Spirit!
"Senior Brother Qingxuan!" The Daoist Yunhai fell beneath his seal strike and looked up, crying out.
The middle-aged Daoist was on the verge of slaying him, but upon hearing that call, he suddenly hesitated and stayed his lethal hand.
At that moment, towering, mighty silhouettes materialized in the sky, encircling them.
"Qingxuanzi!"
A voice boomed from the sky. "Kill him! Our whereabouts and purpose must not be leaked! We still have to deal with the Immortal Court, the Ancestral God, and the Demon Ancestor. We cannot ruin our grand undertaking over a moment of pity!"
The middle-aged Daoist hesitated, gazing at the youth who had once been his fellow disciple.
"Junior Brother Yunhai, since you refuse to speak, then never speak of it. Do not blame your elder brother; I am doing this for the sake of all living beings. This corrupt world can no longer be sustained."
The middle-aged Daoist invoked an Immortal Dao seal to suppress the Daoist Yunhai's Primordial Spirit, speaking in a low voice, "After the Dao weeping, the Heaven and Earth Great Dao of the Ancestral Court completely collapsed, leaving mortals unable to survive. Yet these ancestral courts still hoard wealth, while the Immortal Court clings to power. I intend to join with like-minded fellow Daoists to accomplish a monumental deed—an undertaking that will overturn heaven and earth. Once this deed is done, I will undo your seal. You will surely understand me..."
Having sealed the Daoist Yunhai, he soared into the air, joining the imposing figures in the sky.
Right then, a palm print descended from the sky, shattering the Daoist Yunhai's body into dust!
The middle-aged Daoist flew into a rage, stepping forward to shield Yunhai's Primordial Spirit, and barked, "Fellow Daoists, I have already sealed his memories. Why must you ruthlessly exterminate him?"
"Qingxuanzi, sparing his life will only bring ruin upon us!"
A voice snarled grimly amidst the rolling thunder in the sky. "Even though Immortal Emperor Haocang was weakened by the Dao weeping, his might remains no trifling matter. If any trace is left behind..."
"I shall bear the responsibility myself!"
Xu Ying examined the crucial portions of Yunhai's past-life memories, then looked up at Daoist Yuqing with an inquiring gaze.
Daoist Yuqing said, "Qingxuan was a disciple of our Shangqing Dao Sect, an exceptionally gifted young man. In a mere hundred years, he attained Yellow Court Dao comprehension and achieved Yellow Court Shangqing. He was a singular genius who grasped anything upon being taught, understood everything at the slightest hint, and mastered anything through contemplation. Only later did he depart the Shangqing Dao Sect, his whereabouts unknown."
With an odd look in his eyes, he continued, "I never expected him to associate with a band of brigands. Those brigands were likely the very people who destroyed the Ancestral Court back then."
Xu Ying furrowed his brows slightly, sensing something amiss.
"Since he was a disciple of the Dao Sect, why would he coerce Yunhai to reveal the Shangqing Cave Abyss's whereabouts?" Xu Ying inquired.
Daoist Yuqing replied, "At that time, I feared the Dao weeping would strike once more, so I sealed the Shangqing Cave Abyss and strictly forbade anyone from entering it to cultivate. Even I stayed far away from the Shangqing Cave Abyss to guard against a second Dao weeping."
Xu Ying raised an eyebrow. "Qingxuan said that after the Dao weeping, the Heaven and Earth Great Dao collapsed, leaving mortals unable to survive. What was that about?"
Daoist Yuqing said, "Back then, the Heaven and Earth Great Dao collapsed, the Heavenly Dao disintegrated, and natural disasters raged year after year. Mortals indeed found it difficult to survive."
Xu Ying frowned slightly, feeling there might be other matters involved that Daoist Yuqing had left unsaid.
"However, this Daoist Qingxuan employed the six secret depositories, and this ancestral method of the six secret depositories was extraordinarily ancient, utterly overbearing in execution. Even though both were at the Heavenly Monarch realm, defeating Yunhai was far too easy for him."
Xu Ying pondered, "This man must be the creator of the ancestral method of the six secret depositories. Could the Taiyi Inborn Technique also have been left to the Xu family by him? Could it be that he joined forces with another group of experts to overthrow the Immortal Court, slay Emperor Ai, eliminate the Demon Ancestor and the Ancestral God, and destroy the Ancestral Court? If so, who were those other experts?"
Chapter 505