Chapter 1305: Another Me

"Given your current situation, cultivating to perfection is not a problem. Take these remaining two volumes of the technique. When you achieve great completion and your soul is perfected, you will no longer need to fear madness. However, after cultivating all seven layers, your path to immortality through reincarnation in future lives will be cut off. Whether to continue cultivating or not, you must decide for yourself." The Reincarnation Palace Master glanced at him and said.

With that, he waved his hand casually, and a streak of light flashed toward Han Li.

When Han Li looked down, a white jade slip had appeared in his hand, containing the techniques for the last two layers of the Spirit Refining Art.

"In truth, there is only one path before me: to continue cultivating. As for future lives, if I were a mortal, living a mundane life, there might still be a chance for reincarnation. But for cultivators like us, once we set foot on the path of cultivation, if we one day fall, there may not be a next life." Han Li cupped his hands and sighed softly.

"You think clearly and act decisively. In this world, only those who see through this can achieve selflessness and attain the Dao Ancestor realm."

After saying this, the Reincarnation Palace Master stopped speaking, standing with his hands behind his back, looking at Han Li as if hesitating.

Han Li waited for a moment, and seeing the Reincarnation Palace Master remain silent, he spoke: "Senior, I have a doubt that has troubled me for days. Could you perhaps enlighten me?"

"Speak," said the Reincarnation Palace Master.

"That day in the Nine Yuan Temple, I saw a woman beside Fellow Daoist Jiao San who used reincarnation techniques. Her appearance and demeanor were very similar to an old acquaintance of mine. May I ask where that fellow daoist is now? Could I be allowed to meet her?" Han Li glanced at Jiao San and said.

Jiao San's eyes flickered slightly, and she involuntarily stepped back.

"You want to ask if that woman is your dao partner from the lower realm, Nan Gong Wan?" the Reincarnation Palace Master asked coldly.

Hearing this, Han Li's mind shook violently, but he maintained his composure. He had not expected the Reincarnation Palace Master to be so direct.

Jiao San took a deep breath and turned her gaze to Han Li.

"Yes, that is my question." As Han Li said this, he had already confirmed in his heart that the woman was indeed Nan Gong Wan; otherwise, the other would not have asked like that.

"The person you ask about is here, but she is not Nan Gong Wan. To be precise, she is not your Nan Gong Wan," the Reincarnation Palace Master said bluntly.

Han Li frowned deeply, and when he looked at the Reincarnation Palace Master, there was already a hint of hostility in his eyes.

Even though the other had seemed to bear no ill will from the start, had given him the last two layers of the Spirit Refining Art, and explained many things, if it involved Nan Gong Wan, it was different.

In this life, from the moment he set foot on the path of cultivation and established his ambition for immortality, he had given up much and owed much, but he still had a bottom line for certain things that could never be crossed.

If he lost even that bottom line, he would no longer be himself. No matter how high his cultivation, even if he coexisted with heaven and earth, what would it matter?

Nan Gong Wan was precisely his reverse scale, one of his bottom lines, and the softest part of his heart.

"Since that fellow daoist is here, why not let her come out and meet me? Whether she is my dao partner, I will discern for myself," Han Li said slowly, his gaze sharpening.

As his words fell, a figure emerged from behind the stone tablet inscribed with the word "Reincarnation" and walked gracefully over.

Han Li looked over and saw that the person wore a blue palace dress, with skin like凝脂, a face like a celestial being. The slightly pointed chin, the delicate nose, the clear and intoxicating eyes—all of this was so familiar to Han Li, so moving, and carried an indescribable warmth. Who else could it be but Nan Gong Wan?

But for some reason, Nan Gong Wan's aura had surged dramatically. Although it seemed somewhat unstable, it had clearly reached the Da Luo level. What struck Han Li as even stranger was her expression when she saw him.

There was confusion, doubt, guilt, regret... but no joy of reunion after life and death!

"What have you done to her?" Han Li turned abruptly and said coldly to the Reincarnation Palace Master.

"Han... Fellow Daoist Han, please don't be angry. The Palace Master, he... he only helped Mother recover her past life memories," Jiao San stepped forward and said.

"Mother? What mother?" Han Li was startled and asked in confusion.

As he spoke, he moved forward, intending to pull Nan Gong Wan back to his side.

The Reincarnation Palace Master made no move to stop him. Jiao San shifted her foot slightly but ultimately stayed where she was.

Just as Han Li was about to take Nan Gong Wan's delicate hand, she instinctively stepped back, furrowing her brows and glaring at Han Li.

Han Li's outstretched hand froze in place. He looked at Nan Gong Wan with disbelief and murmured:

"Wan'er..."

Hearing this call, Nan Gong Wan's eyes flickered slightly, as if suddenly remembering something. She looked up at Han Li, dazed, her beautiful eyes shimmering with a moist light, as if containing a thousand tender feelings and ten thousand twists and turns.

"Mother..." At that moment, Jiao San called out softly.

Nan Gong Wan, who had been walking toward Han Li in a daze, stopped and turned to look at Jiao San.

Jiao San raised her hand to stroke her cheek. A dark light flowed across her face, and a black mask was removed. Two talismans flew from behind her ears, revealing her true face for the first time without any concealment.

Seeing this, Nan Gong Wan came before Jiao San, examined her closely, and suddenly burst into tears.

"You are Jiu Zhen!" she said in surprise, looking at Jiao San's face, murmuring.

In the depths of her soul, she could feel the bond of blood between them.

Jiao San nodded heavily, tears rolling down her cheeks as she wept silently.

Han Li's heart felt as if struck by a boulder, sinking heavily. He turned his head with difficulty to look at the Reincarnation Palace Master and asked word by word:

"What exactly have you done to her?"

"Nothing. I just returned her lost memories and cultivation," the Reincarnation Palace Master said indifferently.

Jiao San had never seen such an expression on Han Li's face. Feeling a pang of pity, she said: "The Palace Master used the Six Paths Reincarnation Disk to restore her memories of her past life. She is my mother, Gan Rushuang."

"Gan Rushuang... what does that have to do with me? I only know she is my dao partner, my wife, my Nan Gong Wan!" Han Li roared angrily.

At the same time, golden light blazed from his body, and his Time Domain suddenly expanded. A golden wave surged outward, forcing Nan Gong Wan and Jiao San back a step.

But the Reincarnation Palace Master remained unmoved. He waved his hand casually, and a reincarnation light swept across. The Time Law power that Han Li had released rolled back, dissipating as it returned to Han Li's body.

Hearing this roar, Nan Gong Wan shuddered violently. The memories of two lives seemed to flood into her consciousness at once. Her expression twisted in pain, and she collapsed to the ground, clutching her head.

Seeing this, Han Li's heart tightened, and he immediately moved to go to her, but the Reincarnation Palace Master was faster, arriving behind Nan Gong Wan. He supported her back with one hand and gently brushed the other over her head.

With a flash of light, the pain on Nan Gong Wan's face gradually faded, and she slowly fell into a deep sleep.

"The memories of this life and the previous life are surfacing simultaneously. She has just recovered her original strength and cannot bear it yet," the Reincarnation Palace Master said, handing her to Jiao San's care and standing up.

"The past life is the past. What right do you have? What right do you have to restore her memories?" Han Li clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from rage.

"Because she is also my wife, my only dao partner," the Reincarnation Palace Master said coldly.

Han Li and Jiao San were both shocked by this.

"Jiu Zhen, haven't you asked me before who your father is and where he is?" The Reincarnation Palace Master turned to Jiao San, his eyes filled with affection, and said slowly.

As he spoke, he raised his hand to remove the black bamboo hat he always wore, dispelling the concealment technique, and revealed his true face.

At that moment, the Reincarnation Palace Master withdrew all his pressure.

The moment they saw the Reincarnation Palace Master's face, Han Li's and Jiao San's pupils dilated simultaneously, both struck as if by lightning.

Under the bamboo hat, the Reincarnation Palace Master had an ordinary, unremarkable face, with slightly deep-set eyes and pitch-black pupils. He was not as old as Jiao San had guessed; instead, he had a youthful face with a high nose bridge.

But that face was exactly the same as Han Li's!

"Who are you?" Han Li's Time Domain instantly expanded as he demanded.

Since beginning his cultivation, he had experienced countless strange and unbelievable things, but never had he been so shocked and bewildered as he was today.

His own wife had suddenly become someone else's wife, and that someone else looked exactly like him.

This was not a disguise or some other face-changing secret technique; it was truly identical to himself. No wonder he had always felt a familiar sense about the other.

If not for the completely different Law aura, Han Li would have thought the person standing opposite was one of his own avatars.

"I am me, you are you. I am Han Li, and you are also Han Li," the Reincarnation Palace Master sighed and said slowly.

"What is going on?" Jiao San felt as if all her strength had been drained. With a bewildered expression, holding Nan Gong Wan in her arms, she murmured.

"I am also Han Li, but one who reversed time, returned to the past, abandoned time, and cultivated reincarnation," the Reincarnation Palace Master said slowly.

Jiao San was filled with shock, but her eyes grew even more confused.

"You are Han Li, then... who am I?" Han Li couldn't help but step forward, pointing at the Reincarnation Palace Master, and asked slowly.

His mind was in turmoil, and he couldn't calm down to think about what this scene meant. But there was an inexplicable connection that made him believe, the moment he saw the Reincarnation Palace Master's true face, that this person was not an avatar, not a clone, not a corpse incarnation, but himself.

Even though the Law auras on the two were completely different, that indescribable connection could not be wrong.