The sun hung high in the sky, its rays beginning to cut through the cool morning air, slowly dissipating the lingering chill from the night. The warmth bathed Yan Zi's face, and as the golden beams touched his skin, he stirred. His eyes blinked open, squinting against the sudden brightness.
"Ahh, it's already day," Yan Zi muttered, stretching his arms out, his body sore but almost fully recovered. The sharp pain from his previous injuries had faded, leaving behind only a dull ache. He sat up slowly, looking around. The grassy field was bright and vibrant, the river flowing gently beside him, its calm surface reflecting the morning sky.
His gaze wandered, and his thoughts began to swirl. What should I do next?
"I can't cultivate... and I can't even refine a pill..." he muttered, rubbing his temples in frustration. He realized with a pang of regret that he hadn't had any herbs for a long while. His small stock of medicinal plants had long been used up, and the Fire Heart Jade his mother had given him—a rare and precious treasure—was completely exhausted, used up in an attempt to stabilize his injuries during his alchemy practice a while back. What a mess I am, he sighed internally.
"What should I do now?" He scratched his head, his mind completely blank. "I can't even grow a decent beard, let alone save myself from a situation like this. I'm really... useless."
Then, out of nowhere, a voice boomed in his mind, cutting through his thoughts.
"You brat, why is it that I always have to see you in such a miserable condition?"
Yan Zi froze. That voice. That mysterious, infuriating voice. He recognized it instantly.
Not this again...
"Ahhh, it's you..." Yan Zi groaned, looking around as if expecting to see some grand figure materialize from thin air. Of course, nothing happened. He looked skyward, speaking into the air, hoping to provoke some sort of response. "Even if I say 'show yourself,' you never do! Every time I ask a question, you just ignore me! Where are you, anyway? What do you want?!"
No reply.
Yan Zi let out an exaggerated sigh. "Ahhhh, I knew it. As soon as I say something, poof, you vanish! I knew this was a waste of time…"
Then, just as he was about to give up, the voice spoke again.
"Kid, why are you mumbling so much? I just finished my sleep."
Yan Zi's eyes widened, and his heart skipped a beat. "Huh?! You... replied?!" His face twisted in disbelief. "Wait a minute! You actually spoke?!"
He jumped to his feet, looking frantically around, as though expecting the mysterious voice to manifest in some physical form, but once again, there was nothing. Just the quiet rustling of the grass, the distant sound of the river, and... that familiar voice again.
"Calm down, kid. You'll get wrinkles if you keep making those faces."
Yan Zi blinked in confusion. "What do you mean, calm down?! I've been talking to the air for ages, asking for you to show yourself. And now, all of a sudden, you're answering me?"
"Who do you think I am? I'm not some kind of show-off," the voice responded lazily, as if it were the most normal thing in the world. "I was just taking a nap, alright? Who do you think I am—your personal alarm clock?"
"Wait a minute," Yan Zi said, now genuinely panicking. "Hold on, hold on! You're inside me?! What do you mean by that?!" His mind raced with a thousand questions, none of which seemed to make sense. "Are you some sort of parasite? Are you trying to take over my body?!" He threw his hands up in a flurry of confused gestures. "Am I possessed?!"
The voice sighed dramatically, as if Yan Zi's panic was a minor inconvenience. "Kid, I'm not a parasite, alright? You're the one who has me inside. Not the other way around. It's a mutual arrangement, a kind of... symbiosis, if you will."
The voice's tone became somewhat smug. "Stop mumbling again, kid. If I wasn't inside you, you'd be dead by now. Count yourself lucky."
Yan Zi furrowed his brow, his confusion deepening. "What do you mean?" He shook his head, his voice laced with disbelief. "How could I have been dead? I'm perfectly fine now."
The voice let out an exaggerated sigh. "Fine now? You're still walking around with half your bones shattered. Let me explain. The moment you jumped from that cliff and fell into the river, do you really think your battered body could handle that kind of pressure? Not to mention, the current would've torn you apart. And then, after that, you laid out in that grassy field all night, barely conscious. If I hadn't covered you with my aura, do you really think you'd still be alive?"
Yan Zi's eyes widened. "Wait, what? You're telling me that whole time, I wasn't even… fully conscious? But I remember everything!"
"Of course you remember," the voice said with a huff. "But I've been keeping you from dying, even when you were passed out cold. You were already in a beast's belly yesterday if it weren't for me."
Yan Zi's mouth went dry as he processed that. "A beast's belly? What do you mean? I... I don't remember that at all. I mean, I had some rough moments, but being in a beast's stomach?"
"Tsk," the voice clicked its tongue. "You don't remember? That's exactly what happened. One of the big, nasty ones you like to ignore, probably smelling like a rotting carcass, almost swallowed you whole. Lucky for you, I wasn't sleeping on the job."
Yan Zi gulped. "I... I can't believe this. So, what, you've been babysitting me this entire time?"
The voice sounded almost indignant. "Babysitting? Pft. I'm not your nanny, kid. But yes, I've been keeping you alive. You're welcome."
Yan Zi, still reeling from the revelation, began piecing things together. His face turned serious as a new question formed in his mind. "Wait, but what about the ginseng grass? I thought that was what kept the beasts away…"
The voice let out an almost mocking laugh. "Ginseng grass? You think that low-grade herb can stop high-tier monsters? Pffft, kid, you're really naive sometimes." The voice paused for effect before continuing, "If it wasn't for me, those beasts would have been all over you by now."
Yan Zi's eyes darted around as the realization sank in. "Oh... So, it wasn't the grass after all?" He scratched his head, still trying to wrap his mind around it. "I guess… I guess I owe you one, huh?"
The voice grunted. "Don't get all sentimental on me, brat. Just remember this moment next time you think about going headfirst into danger without thinking things through."
Yan Zi's expression softened slightly. "Right, right… thanks, I guess. But how are you even inside me? You never explained that part."
"Ah!" the voice exclaimed, as if it had been waiting for him to ask this very question. "Finally, after all this time, you've asked the right question. Took you long enough, didn't it?"
Yan Zi couldn't help but sigh, rubbing his temples. "I'm starting to feel like I'm in one of those old, confusing stories where the protagonist doesn't get any straight answers. Just tell me already!"
The voice chuckled, its tone now teasing. "Oh, patience, kid. All in good time. But since you finally asked so nicely... Fine, I'll tell you. But get comfortable. You're going to need it."
Yan Zi sighed deeply, bracing himself for whatever came next. "Alright, I'm listening. Just… make it good, alright? My mind's already all over the place after everything that's happened."
The voice paused for a moment, as if savoring the moment. Then, it spoke again, a little more seriously this time. "Alright, here's the deal..."
Yan Zi blinked rapidly, trying to adjust his senses to the strange surroundings of his mind. Everything around him was a hazy blur of colors, swirling like a tempest. Yet, there was something remarkably clear about the huge inscription, chained to the very core of his mind. Its glowing symbols pulsed with raw power, each stroke more ancient and mysterious than anything he'd ever encountered. His feet felt like they were sinking into the sea of his own consciousness as he tried to step closer.
"Where am I?" Yan Zi muttered, his voice sounding distant in the vastness of the place. It was almost like his words disappeared the moment they left his mouth.
The voice, that familiar presence now inside his mind, responded without hesitation. "This is your consciousness, kid. The place you've been too busy ignoring all your life."
Yan Zi's eyes narrowed as he glanced around, trying to make sense of it all. "You mean… my mind of sea?" His words echoed slightly, like they were bouncing off the endless walls of his own psyche.
The voice, ever patient, answered, "Exactly. Now, look closely at that inscription." Yan Zi followed the direction of the voice, and his gaze settled on the massive, glowing symbol at the center of his mind. "What is it doing here?"
The voice didn't immediately reply. Instead, there was a moment of silence before it spoke again, the tone grave. "It's an ancient inscription, boy. Holds more power than you can imagine. It's far beyond anything a normal human body could endure."
Yan Zi furrowed his brow, processing the information. "But… why is it here? And why do I have it inside me?"
The voice's response came with a trace of hesitation. "Sixteen years ago, the inscription lay dormant in a cave, forgotten by time. But one day, a woman with a child—your mother—came running into the cave, escaping a beast. The moment she entered the cave, the inscription... reacted. It was drawn to you. And that's when it entered your body."
Yan Zi's mind reeled. "Wait… what? My mother… and the inscription?"
The voice continued, the tone heavy with the weight of what it was about to reveal. "The power that surged into you that day was far too great for a child to handle. It tore through your meridians and destroyed your cultivation core. Your body was left shattered and broken, barely able to hold onto life. But… you were saved. Somehow, you survived."
Yan Zi's breath caught in his throat. The rage built slowly in his chest.The story which mother told was true"So that's it. That's why I was useless all these years. That's why I was humiliated... treated like trash! Because of that inscription!" His voice cracked with a bitter edge, the words biting at him.
He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms as the anger swirled within him. His eyes blazed, but before he could let it all out, the voice spoke again, this time with a sharp tsk, like it was scolding him.
"Tsk, tsk, kid. I get it, you're angry. But listen, being angry isn't going to get you anywhere. Your life's not over just because you've been dealt a bad hand.
Yan Zi stood there, his breath ragged, and slowly exhaled, trying to calm his racing heart. He closed his eyes for a moment, then took a deep breath. The anger inside him didn't vanish, but he managed to shove it aside for now. He had to think. He couldn't let his emotions cloud his judgment.
"Alright," Yan Zi muttered, his voice much calmer now. "So, who are you, really? What are you to me? And how are you a part of all this?"
At that exact moment, the air around him shifted, growing heavier. The temperature seemed to drop, and a cloud of white smoke began to swirl around him. Yan Zi instinctively took a step back, his senses sharpening as the fog thickened. The mist wrapped around him like a veil, making him feel as if something powerful was about to emerge.
A figure materialized from the fog, floating gracefully before him. The mist parted, revealing an old man with long, flowing silver hair and a neatly trimmed beard. His robes shimmered with an otherworldly glow, and he emanated an aura of immense power. Despite his age, there was something youthful about the way he held himself—elegant, calm, and commanding. His eyes, however, were the most striking feature. They glimmered with wisdom and knowledge far beyond anything Yan Zi could comprehend.
The man gave Yan Zi a slow, knowing nod, his gaze never leaving him. A soft smile curved the corners of his lips, though there was a touch of melancholy in his expression. The presence of the figure felt surreal, as if he were standing before something both ancient and eternal.