Chapter 203: The Time of Awakening (Part One)
Chapter 203: The Time of Awakening (Part One)
Such massive changes had occurred here, yet besides the nearby Divine Wind Academy outpost noticing something unusual, it hadn’t attracted the attention of any other factions or Cultivators.
As time passed, nearly all the Cultivators and factions had ventured into the deepest parts of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, into the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Mountain.
Regrettably, even though someone at the Divine Wind Academy outpost had noticed the anomaly, it similarly wasn’t taken seriously; they merely sent Tang Feng and a few others over to conduct a brief investigation.
Half an hour later, the thick, dark clouds in the sky finally began to disperse slowly, and that powerful will finally faded away.
“Argh!”
Yet, despite facing such terrifying annihilation, that Red Captain Wang managed to survive. The instant the dark clouds scattered, he let out a maddened roar and chased furiously in the direction Young Master Ma had departed.
…
Three hundred miles away, much closer to the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Mountain, above a giant amber spanning over ten miles, Young Master Ma stood in the air, hands clasped behind his back. A trace of excitement flickered across his pale face as he waited quietly.
“Red Worm, you’ve finally come!”
Though he hadn’t yet sensed Red Worm’s aura, Young Master Ma seemed to possess the power of foresight, muttering to himself.
“This time, even if you luckily escape death, your cultivation level will surely plummet!
No, you definitely won’t die, but your cultivation level will undoubtedly drop drastically. It should likely fall to Early-stage Golden Core, after all, plummeting an entire major realm seems improbable!
Even so, I know you’ll still come, because you’re unwilling to accept defeat!
Hmph, once I exploit this weak point of yours and discover your other vulnerabilities, swallowing you whole will be inevitable!
Afraid of the cold, is it?
If you dare come, I will shatter your will and plunge you into utter despair! Heh heh, for I’ve awaited this day far too long!”
Young Master Ma gazed quietly at the distant void. The wait for this day had indeed stretched endlessly—even his scheming against Tang Jinbiao was connected to it, though that was a separate matter altogether.
Unnoticed by Young Master Ma, Azure Dragon remained hidden nearby, concealing Tang Jinbiao and silently observing everything unfolding before them.
“Master, the aura emanating from that man is utterly terrifying. I fear he could rival a Nascent Soul Cultivator. Do we still need to remain hidden here?”
Azure Dragon, once the Demon Emperor, possessed senses far keener than Tang Jinbiao’s for detecting danger, making it easy for him to distinguish genuine threats from paper tigers.
Though he hadn’t witnessed Young Master Ma’s true power, instinct alone told Azure Dragon that Young Master Ma was the real deal—a true predator disguised as prey.
In Azure Dragon’s view, if one discounted Huang Biaozi, Tang Jinbiao was, at best, equivalent to a boar.
“Ah Huang, hold your silence and simply watch! Everything is under my control!”
Tang Jinbiao stared fixedly at Young Master Ma, a cold smile playing on his lips.
While they were escaping earlier, something within his Storage Pouch had reacted—an item he had long forgotten. If it hadn’t stirred just then, he would likely have remained oblivious forever.
“Even though I don’t know whose blood was on that Spirit Stone earlier, it definitely reacted intensely in that instant. If I hadn’t secretly suppressed the Storage Pouch, it would have flown straight out!”
Tang Jinbiao pressed a hand tightly against his Storage Pouch, worried the violently agitated Spirit Stone inside might escape. For some reason, when the dark clouds enveloped the sky moments before, the stone had seemed to gain life, becoming restless and animated.
Just as Azure Dragon suspected Huang Biaozi was Tang Jinbiao’s hidden ace, Tang Jinbiao harbored the same belief. Yet, Tang Jinbiao held no real certainty; he didn’t know if Huang Biaozi would truly manifest to save him in his hour of peril.
Though he hated entrusting his safety to another’s hands, Tang Jinbiao felt he had no alternative. Ever since Huang Biaozi imparted the Way of Deception to him, a nagging doubt had lingered in his mind. Particularly upon reflecting deeply on past experiences, a profound sense of dissonance grew stronger.
It felt as though he had lived this many times over—this cycle, this endless repetition.
He’d never sensed it before, but during his confrontation with the Red Captain Wang, a dormant sliver of memory was awakened deep within his mind.
This was not the first time he had encountered such Samsara.
“Tang Ni, if I’m not mistaken, what’s about to happen is Young Master Ma battling the Red Worm. Immediately after, someone I’ve never seen will appear alongside Tang Yilin. Yes, that person is Tang Ni, my brother, the existence known as the taboo of the Tang Family! In the past, I would argue with him and ultimately be killed by Tang Ni. Then Tang Ni would reverse space-time, making everything start over!”
Tang Jinbiao was also waiting, holding onto this sudden memory. He hadn’t even mentioned it to Azure Dragon.
Everything he had done earlier had been guided by an obscure instinct, including instructing Azure Dragon to lay down those prohibitions.
Yet this time, it differed slightly from the fragments in his memory. In his memory, those prohibitions he set were useful, meant to deal with Red Captain Wang. But now it was different; the difference lay in that sudden dark cloud forming in the sky.
“Whatever it is, I just need to wait quietly. As long as Tang Ni appears, all the mysteries will be unraveled! If this is truly the case, then the time I spent sleeping in that strange black desert, dreaming that I became a great power, returning to the universe, desperately seeking evidence of life’s existence… those weren’t dreams. They were real!”
Tang Jinbiao felt himself getting closer and closer to the truth. The inexplicable things that confused him before were slowly starting to make sense now.
A catalyst!
All that was needed now was a catalyst. As long as the present him understood everything, he had every reason to believe he would push open a new door.
“And also, those voices I heard before, the voices I heard when I was unconscious… What exactly were they?
If this is truly the case, then everything now is an illusion. No, all of this is a scheme laid by Huang Biaozi for me. Then what will happen when I wake up?
Right, it must be like this. When I wake up, I will surely see the masters of those voices!
No, if this is truly an illusion, then what is the meaning for me in this dream?
Could it be Huang Biaozi just wants me to dream this meaningless dream?
No, definitely not!
Wait, if this is truly a dream, then why did I think from the very beginning that I had crossed over?
Could I really be Wang Feng?
Does Wang Feng truly exist in this world?
Hold on, hold on, it’s messy, it’s all messed up. No, I must calm down, I must calm down!”
Azure Dragon was unaware of Tang Jinbiao’s thoughts, but Tang Jinbiao felt like his brain was about to explode.
“Ah Huang, I have a question for you. Just tell me whatever thoughts come to mind. Voice every thought you have to me!”
Tang Jinbiao felt his thoughts growing increasingly chaotic. Unbidden, he sent a soul transmission to Azure Dragon, hoping to seek an answer from it.
“Hmm? Master, please speak!”
Azure Dragon was confused, unsure what Tang Jinbiao was getting at. Especially since encountering Captain Wang, Tang Jinbiao had changed completely.
In just a few short hours, he had already become inscrutable to Azure Dragon. At times, the dragon even doubted whether the person riding on his back now was still the same Tang Jinbiao he once knew.
“Ah Huang, have you ever considered that the current you might not be the real you?”
Tang Jinbiao paused in thought for a moment before asking this.
“Huh? The current me isn’t the real me?”
Azure Dragon was momentarily stunned, even less clear about what Tang Jinbiao meant.
“Or to put it more simply: have you ever thought that our existence is merely within someone else’s dream!
Or let me ask you another question: have you ever pondered a question, say for example – just for example – when we sleep and dream of ourselves, is that self in the dream our past self?
Our present self?
Or our future self?
Or maybe that self in the dream isn’t ‘ourselves’ at all!”
Tang Jinbiao always felt he was edging closer to the truth, yet no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t grasp the core point. The closer he got, the more lost and confused he became.
“Ah?”
Tang Jinbiao’s question baffled Azure Dragon completely – past self, present self, future self, and oneself not being oneself.
“Dragon Emperor, time to forfeit your life!”
However, right at that moment, a red Escape Light/Beam shot fiercely towards Young Master Ma.
“Hehe, Red Worm, I’ve finally been waiting for you! I’ve waited too long for this day!”
Seeing the Escape Light/Beam charging towards him from afar, Young Master Ma’s pale face lit up with excitement. He instantly transformed into a white Escape Light/Beam and shot forward to meet it.
Boom boom boom!
Instantly, the two engaged in fierce combat, producing earth-shaking roars.
“Master, be careful!”
Sensing the overwhelming aura emanating from the clash, Azure Dragon immediately released an invisible Protective Spirit Light that enveloped and protected Tang Jinbiao.
“No, no, still not right. Something must be missing, something important that I’ve forgotten!”
Tang Jinbiao stared intently at the two battling figures, but his mind was consumed by the question concerning his own existence.
“Maybe it can be explained this way? Right from the very beginning, I was an existence that intruded into someone else’s dream, causing everything to shift slightly. And Huang Biaozi… he’s the dreamer, so that’s why he sought me out?
No, if Huang Biaozi truly is the dreamer, and I am within his dream, he should be able to control my actions, even my will. So why, no matter how much he begged me to learn the Way of Deception, did I refuse?
It doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense!”
Tang Jinbiao’s head ached more the harder he thought, growing only more bewildered the deeper he delved…