The Soul Splits

“Let’s go. Return to the royal capital.” Ancestor Xuanji gave the order.

The nine flood dragons immediately pulled the immortal carriage up into the high skies, vanishing from sight.

Ancestor Xuanji was a decisive man. He knew very well that if he hadn’t been able to find Ji Ning the first time, catching him would take a very long time. Although he was a Celestial Immortal ancestor, he was not omniscient. Mobilizing the power of his tribe and the forces of Heavenly Treasures Mountain would be far more effective in finding Ji Ning.

Within Ten Thousand Swords City.

Diancai Immortal raised his head, watching Ancestor Xuanji’s departure into the distance. Standing beside him were Ji Liuzhen, Ji Jiuhuo, and the two Loose Immortals of the demon race.

“Patriarch Ji,” Diancai Immortal spoke. “Ancestor Xuanji has left. He won’t remain here indefinitely, knowing he cannot find my disciple. After all, he is a Celestial Immortal—his status is noble. But I suspect he will arrange for people to monitor the Yan Mountain region. This is my disciple’s homeland; they will certainly keep watch over it. Your Ji Clan now possesses numerous demon Dao-soldiers… you should have nothing to fear. I will not linger.”

“Thank you, Immortal.” Ji Liuzhen and the others quickly expressed their gratitude.

They were deeply grateful that he had come at such a critical moment. Although he was Ji Ning’s master, during times of true danger, some masters fled faster than their disciples.

Diancai Immortal said no more. His figure shot into the sky. The inner city of Ten Thousand Swords City had been sealed by a restrictive formation, preventing teleportation.

“Whoosh.” After reaching the high skies, Diancai Immortal vanished.

“This Diancai Immortal is a man of true righteousness,” the demon Duohe Immortal sighed.

“Admirable, admirable.” Wu Sui Immortal also voiced his praise.

“Indeed. For Ning’er to have such a master is his fortune.” Ji Jiuhuo sighed.

Black-White College, Anchan City.

Diancai Immortal, with his black robes and black hair, sat opposite the short old man. Between them was a jug of immortal wine.

“Senior Disciple-Brother Wufeng,” Diancai Immortal said softly. “The arrival of Ancestor Xuanji filled me with a sense of powerlessness. Ji Ning is my disciple, my only disciple. Yet the Shaoyan clan wants to kill him, and I can do nothing! I cannot save my own disciple!” As he spoke, Diancai Immortal’s body trembled faintly.

“Disciple-Brother Diancai,” the short old man quickly said. “Do not be too attached to this. He is, after all, a Celestial Immortal.”

“So what if he is a Celestial Immortal? In the past, Senior Beixing, despite being a Loose Immortal, was able to match a Celestial Immortal!” Diancai Immortal said in a low voice. “I have made my decision. I will depart today, leave this major world, and wander out there to temper myself. I have long reached perfection at the Void stage and could undergo the tribulation at any time. But I have always suppressed it, because I have never been confident. My talent is inferior to my disciple’s. If I do not go mad, I am afraid I cannot avoid the fate of failing the tribulation and becoming a Loose Immortal. Once I become a Loose Immortal, even if I spend eons and reach Senior Beixing’s level, what then? In the end, I will still fall to the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations.”

The short old man fell silent. After a long pause, he said slowly, “It seems your disciple’s situation has greatly shaken you.”

“It is this master who has failed him. As a master, I am useless!” Diancai Immortal rose. “This Disciple-Brother will take his leave.”

“Be careful!” the short old man said with a stern expression.

To temper oneself was naturally to place oneself in dangerous situations. Walking the line between life and death could elevate one’s mental state and insights. But this type of tempering was also extremely dangerous. If one walked that line too often, they might truly die.

Diancai Immortal laughed, then shot into the skies and vanished without a trace.

Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.

Five figures appeared beside the short old man in succession, all of them Immortals of the Black-White College.

“How decisive,” a youth-like Immortal sighed.

“Compared to him,” a tall, muscular man wrapped in iron chains said in a low voice, “although I am a reincarnated Immortal, my Dao-heart is not as firm as his. True enough, the saying goes: if you cannot become a Celestial Immortal in one lifetime, you will not become one in ten or a hundred reincarnations either.”

“But some reincarnated Immortals have become Celestial Immortals,” the short old man said.

“How rare is that?” the youth-like Immortal sighed. “This time, Disciple-Brother Diancai has made a great resolution and shown great determination. In my opinion, his chances of becoming a Celestial Immortal have increased a few points. It is likely he truly has the best hope of becoming the second Celestial Immortal in the Black-White College’s endless history.”

“Indeed, he is the most promising,” a high, thin young man in blood-red robes nodded. “But the Heavenly Tribulation is difficult to cross!”

Everyone fell silent.

The Heavenly Tribulation?

It was a nightmare for all Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals. The most deadly aspect was that the power of each Heavenly Tribulation was different. It was not necessarily true that a powerful cultivator would always survive it!

“I hope Disciple-Brother Diancai returns safely, or else there will be no need to speak of the Heavenly Tribulation,” the short old man said, his eyes filled with hope. “I wonder if this old madman will live to see Disciple-Brother Diancai again.”

In another space, within the aquatic manor.

Ji Ning knew nothing of the events outside. His entire mind was focused on the ‘Second Primaltwin Technique’. Splitting his soul by cutting it in two required extreme caution.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged on a meditation mat.

Not far away, the yellow-furred bear and the black ox were both watching him.

“He won’t fail, will he?” the black ox murmured. The area around them was soundproofed so their voices wouldn’t affect Ji Ning.

“Ji Ning’s visualization technique is quite remarkable. Even if he fails, he will lose at most half his soul. There is no risk to his life,” the yellow-furred bear said.

“Losing half his soul…” the black ox muttered.

That was also serious.

If the Second Primaltwin Technique succeeded, the soul would be split in two, but both halves would survive. Although Ji Ning would be weakened for a short time, it was a minor matter; he would recover before long. But if one half of the soul was annihilated, Ji Ning might develop a personality defect, becoming neurotic, dark, or even mad.

Losing half a soul could indeed drastically change one’s personality.

“Breathe in, breathe out.”

Ji Ning’s breathing was long and deep. He was utterly calm. He had already recalled the Second Primaltwin Technique many times and deliberated over it repeatedly.

“Let’s begin.”

Ji Ning closed his eyes.

Within the sea of consciousness.

The soul Ji Ning stood there, his entire body radiating a misty sword-light. This was a sword-soul that had already evolved! The sword-soul was even more indestructible, making it even harder to split.

“Rustle, rustle, rustle…” A bright light began to appear at the brow area of the soul Ji Ning—a vertical line of light.

Ji Ning strained to execute the secret art, his divine sense gathering like a blade, cutting downward and upward from the brow.

The vertical line of light began to extend.

“Ah!” The pain—the agony of tearing one’s soul—was such that even Ji Ning’s willpower and Dao-heart trembled. However, those who dared to use the Second Primaltwin Technique were no ordinary people. This level of pain was tolerable.

The vertical line of light extended further, past the neck, chest, abdomen…

Soon, the vertical line of light completely ran through the center of the soul Ji Ning’s body, like a beam of light cleaving the soul in two. But this was not yet the most dangerous part. The next step was.

“Split!” Ji Ning’s soul suddenly separated.

Along the central vertical light, the soul split in two in an instant. One of the halves shot out of Ji Ning’s physical body like a bolt of lightning. The moment the soul fully separated, Ji Ning felt a wave of dizziness. The flying half of the soul also trembled. But Ji Ning’s Dao-heart was firm, and although he was dizzy and exhausted, he managed to hold on.

This step had to be fast, and he had to endure.

Otherwise, if that half of the soul failed to enter the ‘Primordial Unity Water Pearl’, it would be annihilated. Once the soul split, it could not be recombined.

“Enter.”

The half of the soul transformed into a stream of light and flew directly into the Primordial Unity Water Pearl.

The moment it entered the Primordial Unity Water Pearl, that part of the soul felt as if a child had returned to its mother’s embrace, like a small boat adrift finding its harbor at last. A feeling of safety and warmth completely filled the soul. Having a vessel made it comfortable.

“Whew.” Ji Ning finally relaxed.

“Visualize!”

Ji Ning did not immediately begin cultivating his second Primaltwin. Instead, both of his souls simultaneously began to execute the visualization technique.

Within the sea of consciousness.

The smaller soul Ji Ning sat cross-legged, while in the boundless void of the sea of consciousness, a massive statue of Nuwa appeared. The statue of Nuwa seemed to suppress the past and future, eternal and unchanging, stabilizing Ji Ning’s newly split soul.

The endless, warm divine light shone down upon Ji Ning’s soul, allowing his soul, which had just suffered severe damage, to begin recovering.

Within the Primordial Unity Water Pearl.

Another smaller soul also sat, visualizing the same Nuwa statue. The statue appeared, radiating light in all directions.

Both souls were in a wounded state and were rapidly growing and recovering. This recovery lasted for nearly three days, and both souls grew noticeably larger.

“Whew.” Ji Ning opened his eyes.

The Primordial Unity Water Pearl before him flew up and landed directly in his hand.

“How is it?” the yellow-furred bear asked hurriedly. “What is the state of your soul now?”

“Both have recovered to about seventy percent of their original strength,” Ji Ning said.

“Seventy percent?” the yellow-furred bear was shocked. “It seems you have a very powerful visualization technique.”

When a soul split in two, each half was roughly fifty percent of the original. With an ordinary visualization technique, simply stabilizing the soul would be considered a success, let alone allowing it to grow so rapidly. But Ji Ning had not only stabilized it but had also restored it to seventy percent.

“But this is only for this time. It was a fresh wound, so a significant amount could be recovered at once. It will be slower from now on. It will probably take a long time for these two souls of mine to recover to the point where my divine sense can reach a thousand li,” Ji Ning sighed.

“Don’t be ungrateful. You’ve managed to refine a second Primaltwin—that’s an extra life for you,” the yellow-furred bear sighed with emotion. “Your second Primaltwin can become an Earth Immortal, even a Celestial Immortal. Even if your original body dies, your second Primaltwin will still live.”

Ji Ning nodded with a smile.

The original body and the second Primaltwin shared memories, but in other respects, they were like independent individuals. It was indeed a second life.

“Hurry up and cultivate. Refine all the essence within this Primordial Unity Water Pearl,” the yellow-furred bear laughed.

“Mm.”

Ji Ning nodded. The second Primaltwin, the Primordial Unity Water Pearl, immediately began to cultivate.