Chương 161: Chapter 160: The Bead

He wanted to scream, but his voice failed him as an excruciating pressure erupted behind his eyes and deep within his skull. It mounted with each agonizing second, swelling as if it would burst through the bone entirely. He jerked back his head violently. The pain stopped. Opening his eyes, he found himself on the floor with his head cradled in Master's lap. Senior Sect Brother Xiao Zhan was kneeling beside him, one hand in Yang's hair while the other rested flat against his chest.

Yang attempted to rise, but felt the room tilt sideways. Master steadied him and helped him sit upright, sliding a cushion behind him to support his back, and pressed a pill between his lips. Yang swallowed it without thinking. The woozy feeling didn't entirely vanish, but it settled into something more manageable. Yang scanned the room, still a bit dazed. He possessed no memory of falling and ending up on the floor. One moment, he had been meeting his Master's gaze, and then there had been pain and pressure.

"How did I end up here?" Yang asked.

"It was only a minute."

"Disciple," Master muttered, his expression contrite.

"Yang. I apologize, but it was far longer. The ability to traverse different worlds is beyond the ken of this world's cultivators. Your claim posed dangers far too significant to ignore so I had to enter your sea of consciousness to look at what the bead actually was before it had a chance to conceal itself. I regret that the need for urgency led me to use such a crude method, causing you pain." He paused.

"I called Xiao Zhan here as a precautionary measure. He is a soul cultivator practicing the same technique as you, though yours has gone in a different direction due to the bead's interference. He would have been more helpful in stabilizing your soul had I needed to forcefully remove the bead." Yang wanted to be angry, but he was too depleted to hold on to it, and beneath the lingering discomfort, he understood where Master was coming from.

So far, he had been blindly accepting of his connection to the bead, but it was ridiculous to think that others would also feel the same. He was actually glad for the further assurance, and true to Yang's nature, his residual resentment scattered in the face of his curiosity. Yang took a careful breath.

"Did you find anything?"

"The bead did not hide itself," Master continued, "It showed me as much as it could."

"The bead is likely a remnant of some ancient entity or artifact, guiding you to different worlds to harvest energy for its own repair and healing. That, at least, is the impression I received; it can't exactly speak. Consequently, your soul absorbed this otherworld energy while you were there, and now alongside the qi we use for cultivation in this world, you have a different kind of energy as well." Yang was quiet, still watching his master with wariness that had not entirely faded.

Master seemed to sense the lingering hesitation.

"It's alright to be cautious. I regret that there even was a need for me to act thus with you, especially during our first time together as Master and Disciple." Yang was aware that this was an entirely different world, and here the master was the ultimate authority, whether right or wrong. And here was his master offering Yang an apology; it was unprecedented. Such a thing simply wasn't done. Senior Sect Brother Xiao Zhan spoke next, his tone measured, "Junior Brother, Master only worried for your safety.

I hope you will not hold this against him. The soul is the essence of a cultivator; bodies can be recreated, and we can even possess other beings and objects. But souls cannot be remade. Master acted because he was worried about you. Death ends one life cycle, but the destruction of a soul removes you from the cycle of reincarnation entirely. There is no coming back from that""I understand, Senior Sect Brother," Yang sighed. Senior Sect Brother looked faintly pained at the address.

"Call me Senior Brother Xiao Zhan. Junior Brother." He hesitated.

"I believe I owe you an apology myself." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Yang looked at him, startled.

"I watched you from a distance and concluded that you were possessed. I nearly brought the elders to investigate you, but Master prevented it""You did?" Yang looked at Master.

"But why? If you believe I was possessed, why prevent an investigation?"

"It was not the right time." Masters answered. Yang looked at him, and Master simply sighed. He reached for his right hand and removed a ring from his index finger, holding it out to Yang. It was a simple piece made up of white metal with a pale blue flat-cut stone set in the center of the band.

"Put this on," Master said.

"On the index finger." As Yang put on the ring, his master gripped his shoulders.

"Chan Yang. You must never take the ring off. Not until you are strong enough to shield your soul and protect your mind without it. Do you understand?" Yang nodded.

"And the matter of world travelling stays between the three of us. The words'world travel' must never leave your lips again." Yang nodded, shaken by his master's intensity. Senior Brother Xiao Zhan explained further.

"Junior Brother. Consider what ascendance is. It is nothing less than moving from this world into a higher one. If the cultivators of this world discovered your ability, you would be hunted to the corners of this world. Old monsters who have lost all hope of ascending would abandon every restraint and shred of morality in their efforts to extract your secret, even if it means refining your remains for centuries."

"I can protect you if those who seek to harm my disciples come with armies," Master said.

"But even with all my strength, I cannot protect you if the entire cultivation world turns against you. At that point, all I could do is die beside you, and even the sect, willing though it would be to sacrifice everything for one of its disciples, could not withstand the combined might of the cultivation world." He paused.

"However, it is not all doom and gloom. Danger and opportunity have gone hand in hand since the beginning of time. While this ability of yours carries immense risk, there is also a great reward, access to resources and knowledge that no cultivator here has ever encountered before. It will likely aid your advancement in ways we cannot yet fathom." Yang fell quiet, he had never truly processed the magnitude of the target on his back if his ability was to come out.

Seeing his Master express such dire warnings turned his blood to ice.

"Disciple," Master asked, his voice weary.

"Tell me, you haven't spoken of this to anyone else?"

"No," Yang said, though his voice trailed off in the end. Master's expression tightened slightly as he and Senior Brother Xiao Zhan exchanged a sharp glance. Yang took a steadying breath.

"I was growing Spirit Spiral plants outside my cave residence. It was Senior Sect Brother Lin Yi who noticed their oddity first, as he had been the one to provide me with the seeds. After some discussion, we concluded that my qi was different and causing a mutation in the Spirit Spiral Plant." Master's expression grew increasingly grim as Yang rushed to assure him.

"He believes I have a special physique. I didn't mention anything about world travel or rebirth." The master let out a slow breath.

"At least you exercised some caution."

"Today, Senior Brother Zhen Hao also noticed something when I was feeding my qi directly to the plants." Master did not look particularly worried at this. Senior Brother Xiao Zhan simply added.

"Junior Brother Zhen Hao knows what should and shouldn't be said." Yang nodded, "Yes. He suggested I keep the outer sect cave residence token until Senior Brother Fan Xiao could advise on whether the Spirit Spiral plants can be transplanted on the Soaring Cloud Peak."

"We cannot wait for Fan Xiao," Master said to Senior Brother Xiao Zhan.

"Send Luo Yun Xi to the outer sect peak and have him remove everything, and I mean everything."

"I will see to it." Senior Brother Xiao Zhan said. Master turned to Yang.

"Chen Yang. I am afraid we cannot wait for Disciple Fan Xiao to arrive. I do not want any trace of you outside the Soaring Cloud Peak. If your Senior Brother Luo Yun Xi can bring the plant here, he will. If not, it will be destroyed. You can grow as many plants as you want here. I will have Fan Xiao provide you with whatever seeds you want." Yang was disappointed, but the plants were hardly worth his safety.

"Disciple understands Master. Do as you think is best."

"Good." Master looked at him, pleased.

"Now. Is there anything else that may invite curiosity about you?" Another thing came to his mind, and he gave Master a sheepish smile. Master looked at him for a long moment as his face settled into a look of resignation before he returned to his seat in an unhurried manner. He gestured to Senior Brother Xiao Zhan to sit on his other side.

"Xiao Zhan, send Luo Yun Xi a sound seal. Tell him to deal with the cave situation. I have a feeling we will be here for some time." He turned to look back at Yang.

"You will forgo rest for now. We have far more pressing matters to discuss." He fixed Yang with an expectant stare.

"Tell me everything. Leave nothing out."