"Can you let me out first?"
I smiled and asked, sitting on a stone as I watched the Chimera Beasts around me chatting and eating. Yujiang stared at me intensely, its beastly gaze unwavering.
I couldn't move more than a meter away from the stone, completely restrained by the Chimera Beasts. They were far stronger than I'd imagined. Not far from me, Mother Goddess Nuwa was also confined by them.
"Tell us, where did you take Ethan Zhang?"
Yujiang asked angrily. I shook my head.
"I am Ethan Zhang."
But as soon as I spoke, the Chimera Beasts all shook their heads. It seemed they had no intention of releasing me, planning instead to keep me imprisoned here. I had wanted to continue communicating with the will of the Illusory Realm, to delve deeper into this unbelievable world—a place that exists nowhere, yet somehow exists. It was truly bizarre. I desperately wanted to learn its origin; after all, such immense power, if harnessed for the coming war, would be an enormous advantage for me.
The Wraithlord had achieved his resurrection as he wished. Once he tidied up everything in the Living World, I would descend and destroy him directly. My plan was set. The Wraithlord didn’t know that he hadn’t intentionally restored Ethan Zhang’s memories to me; instead, I had tampered with the Hell Imprint I branded on him, completely altering his perspective. Without realizing it, he returned the memories of Ethan Zhang he had devoured back to me.
Everything seemed to fall into place, but I still couldn’t recover my memories yet. Only by consuming this memory could everything be restored. And only with human will could the Wraithlord be defeated—that’s what I hoped to see.
But now I needed to find a way to escape. Continuing like this was pointless. I smiled at Yujiang, its predatory eyes fixed on me.
"How about you let me go first?"
I asked, but Yujiang shook its head.
"If you want to spend the rest of your life here, you can just say nothing and do nothing."
After saying that, Yujiang left. Some Chimera Beasts brought food, and many who had shrunk their forms gathered around to eat—it was a dish I had taught them to make, a simple stir-fry using local herbs and wild meat. I glanced at Mother Goddess Nuwa not far away; she too was completely rejected and confined by the Chimera Beasts.
Mother Goddess Nuwa didn’t say a word, remaining silent. She was likely still thinking about how to remove the Hell Imprint from herself. She could have left already, but I kept her here.
"Since all this started because of you, at least wait until everything is settled before you leave. I want you to witness with your own eyes what the people you created have done!"
I said, and only then did Mother Goddess Nuwa look at me.
"Keeping me here is pointless."
Mother Goddess Nuwa said. I laughed and shook my head.
"It may be pointless to you, but to the Wraithlord, it means everything. When this is all over, I'll let you go."
I stared coldly at Mother Goddess Nuwa. A flicker of emotion crossed her face. Then I looked back at the Chimera Beasts nearby, pondering how I might escape this place.
I had already spoken with the will of the Illusory Realm; it should follow my wishes. After all, keeping me here wasn’t what it wanted either. So, if I wished, I could return to the Living World.
Although I wasn’t sure, Emperor God and the others had probably preserved my dead ghost body. The situation was still uncertain, so I decided not to rush and just wait a bit longer.
Just then, Blueflame Warden approached, staring at me coldly.
"What exactly did you do to Ethan Zhang?"
I sighed helplessly.
"I've already told you what I should. I am Ethan Zhang—I've just remembered everything from the past. Now I..."
"Your aura is completely different from Ethan Zhang's. You can't fool us. If you don't tell us where Ethan Zhang is, we might have to use special methods to make you talk."
I burst out laughing.
"I'm actually looking forward to that."
Blueflame Warden smiled coldly, a flicker of electricity passing through his eyes. I glanced curiously at a Chimera Beast that looked like a dragon but had the body of a fish, staring at us with a chilling gaze.
"We'll seal you in the Illusory Realm until you're willing to confess."
Blueflame Warden said, pointing to his own eyes as he continued.
"We've already seen through your power. For you humans, there's karma, but for us, there isn't!"
I smiled helplessly; it was true. Although I could use my own damaged karma to neutralize the power of the Chimera Beasts, karma had no effect on them. The force that trapped me was the power of one of the Chimera Beasts. I had tried using karma to break free, but it was useless.
It seemed the Chimera Beasts were serious. I sighed, gazing quietly into the distance. After a while, I stood up and raised a hand—a sphere of swirling purple and black appeared in my palm. Blueflame Warden's eyes widened, and the surrounding Chimera Beasts gathered, staring at me coldly.
"This contains everything of Ethan Zhang—and part of my past that was devoured by the Wraithlord. If you want to see Ethan Zhang, I can show you. But in the end, the one you meet may still be me, because I am myself, and also Ethan Zhang."
It seemed I couldn't wait any longer. At the very least, I needed to know everything from the past—to restore Ethan Zhang's original feeling and aura, so the Chimera Beasts would believe me.
"Enough talk."
At that moment, I noticed Jade May among the Chimera Beasts, looking at me with concern. I grinned wickedly, shook my head, opened my mouth, and began to absorb the swirling purple-black mass.
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With a buzzing sound, my mind grew hazy. I started to feel drowsy, gradually sinking into darkness, my body growing light and weightless.
Memories from the past surged up in streams. My eyes snapped open, and I burst out laughing. All around me, the scenery shifted, countless scenes swirling by—all of them memories of my past, from the beginning to my death. I laughed ecstatically.
Gradually, I stopped. It felt as if something in my mind was about to burst through my consciousness. I gazed quietly at a clear, pristine white pool below. Soft white light radiated from the water's surface. I slowly landed beside the pool, bent down, and pressed a hand to the water. A streak of black seeped from my hand, slowly darkening the pool.
A hand reached out and forcefully yanked my hand from the pool. I turned and burst out laughing.
"In this era, your existence is meaningless. You're nothing but a shadow I cast into the Living World, a figment that formed on its own. Let's become one—after all, I am you, and you are me, aren't we?"
As I spoke, my eyes widened—the pool's surface was now completely black. I glanced back at Ethan Zhang, who stood behind me, his expression calm. He simply shook his head.
"Even if it starts out black, after enough time, you get used to white—bathed in sunlight, it becomes white."
As he spoke, bubbles rose from the now-blackened pool, and the darkness began to fade. I stared at the pool in astonishment.
"Does struggling even matter? My will is far above yours."
As I spoke, Ethan Zhang yanked me away from the pool. I noticed a dazzling white light appear in the water, spreading in all directions in an instant. Suddenly, I was standing in a sea of flowers beneath a clear blue sky, with Ethan Zhang not far away.
"No matter what you do, it's useless. You should understand everything by now. You are me, and I am you."
I slowly walked over to Ethan Zhang. By now, my face had completely vanished, leaving only a pair of eyes like a starry sky, and streaks of red Hell Imprints across my cheeks.
Ethan Zhang shook his head again. I raised a hand, and instantly the sky darkened, thunder rumbling overhead. Heavy black raindrops poured down, and the lush field of flowers began to wither, the ground drying up. The withered remains turned to black dust. I laughed wildly as Ethan Zhang's figure blurred and slowly faded away, and my perspective shifted to his. My original form slowly turned to black smoke, merging into my body.
I tilted my head upward as the black rain poured down like a stream. In my mind, I thought of Rachel Lan, and a wave of bitterness welled up inside me. I shook my head helplessly.
"It's over. My journey as a human has actually been a pretty good experience, hasn't it?"
I asked myself, half-mocking. Now, all that remained before me was a hellish head, frozen and petrified.
"It looks like it will take some time to fully merge these two opposing wills."
At this moment, my body was half white and half black. I continued to wait, trying to completely devour and digest my human will.
But the process of devouring and digesting was extremely difficult, as if there were an irregular stone inside me constantly stabbing at my heart. Tears streamed from my left eye, and I smiled helplessly.
"Struggling is necessary, isn't it? Otherwise, my life would have no meaning at all."