I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

For the next three months, Qin Yuan and Lin Qing'er explored every corner of the Misty City. They found the Eye of Eternity—a ray of eternal golden light hidden at the bottom of a well. They found the Soul of Nothingness—a wisp of gray mist drifting atop the city's tallest tower.

The moment the three items were gathered, a pillar of light appeared in the sky above the City of Mist. The pillar of light shot straight into the sky, piercing through the ever-changing colors, and disappeared into the endless void.

The Origin Saint Emperor appeared before them, looking at the three items in Qin Yuan's hands with eyes full of emotion. "Three thousand years. You are the first person to find them in just three months."

Qin Yuan was taken aback. "Three thousand years? We only used three months."

The Origin Saint Emperor smiled. "In the City of Mist, time flows ten thousand times faster than outside. What feels like three months has passed is actually three thousand years."

Qin Yuan turned to look at Lin Qing'er. Lin Qing'er's face showed no surprise, only calm. "I know," she said, "but I'm willing."

Qin Yuan held her hand without saying a word.

The Origin Saint Emperor took out a gray token from his robes and handed it to Qin Yuan. "This is the key to enter the Void. You are now qualified. Go, pass through that pillar of light, and you will reach the Void."

Qin Yuan took the token and looked at the pillar of light. "Senior, aren't you going?"

The Origin Saint Emperor shook his head. "I'm too old. I don't want to go."

Qin Yuan didn't try to persuade him any further. He led Lin Qing'er toward the pillar of light.

The moment Qin Yuan passed through the beam of light, he experienced a sensation he had never felt before. It wasn't weightlessness, nor dizziness, but a feeling of "non-existence." It was as if he himself was disappearing, becoming part of nothingness.

He held Lin Qing'er's hand tightly. Lin Qing'er's hand was cold, but very real.

When the dizziness subsided, they found themselves in a space where nothing existed. There was no sky, no earth, no light, no darkness, no sound, no silence. Only endless, absolute nothingness.

"It's so quiet here." Lin Qing'er's voice was very soft, but it sounded particularly loud in the silence.

Qin Yuan looked around. There was nothing there. He looked down at his feet; they were still there, but there was no ground beneath them. He reached out to touch them, but touched nothingness.

"Which way do we get there?" Lin Qing'er asked.

Qin Yuan thought for a moment. "Just walk. There's no direction here, so we can go wherever we want."

He closed his eyes and imagined a door in front of him. Then he stepped forward.

One step, two steps, three steps.

When he opened his eyes, there really was a door in front of him. The door was gray, without any patterns or decorations; it was just an ordinary door.

Qin Yuan reached out and pushed the door open. The door opened.

There was a person standing behind the door.

That person looks exactly like him.

"You've finally arrived." The other Qin Yuan spoke, his voice exactly the same as Qin Yuan's, but his tone was completely different. Qin Yuan's tone was calm, while the other Qin Yuan's tone was weathered, as if he had lived for countless years.

Qin Yuan looked at him. "Who are you?"

The other Qin Yuan smiled. "I am you. To be precise, I am the sum of all your possibilities. Every choice, every path, every direction you didn't take, has converged into me."

Qin Yuan was silent for a moment. "What do you want to do?"

Another Qin Yuan said, "I want to show you what would have happened if you had made a different choice."

He raised his hand, and a screen of light unfolded in the void. Within the screen of light, another world appeared.

In that world, Qin Yuan never left the Xuan Yuan Sect. He remained there, cultivating for hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of years. He became the sect leader of the Xuan Yuan Sect, married Lin Qing'er, had children, and lived a peaceful life. Then he grew old and died. His children continued cultivating, grew old, and died too. The Xuan Yuan Sect gradually declined and was eventually swallowed up by other sects.

The light curtain disappeared.

"This is the consequence of you staying in the Xuan Yuan Sect," another Qin Yuan said.

He raised his hand again, and a second light screen unfolded. In that world, Qin Yuan went to the Taiyi Sect, but did not participate in the Hundred Sects War. He cultivated within the Taiyi Sect for thousands, even tens of thousands of years, eventually becoming its leader. Then, the alien demons invaded, and he fought desperately, but his strength was insufficient, and he was killed by them. The Taiyi Sect was destroyed, and Qingzhou fell.

The light curtain disappeared.

The third light curtain. In that world, Qin Yuan went to Nanzhou but joined the Netherworld Sect. He became powerful, but also ruthless. He killed countless people and eventually became the leader of the Netherworld Sect. Then he encountered Lin Qing'er, who recognized him, but he no longer remembered her. He killed Lin Qing'er with his own hands, then regained consciousness, was in unbearable pain, and self-destructed to his death.

The light curtain disappeared.

Qin Yuan looked at his other self. "You're showing me this so I'll regret it?"

The other Qin Yuan shook his head. "No. I want you to know that the path you're on now is the best path. You haven't made the wrong choice."

He stepped forward and extended his hand. "I am all your regrets, all your remorse, all your 'what ifs.' I've come to tell you—let them go."

Qin Yuan stared at the hand, remaining silent for a long time. Then he grasped it.

In an instant, countless emotions surged into his heart. Regret, remorse, pain, resentment—all the emotions he had once suppressed erupted. His eyes reddened, his nose stung, and his heart ached as if being cut by a knife.

But he did not let go.

Because he knows that these emotions are also a part of him. Only by accepting them can he truly be whole.

After an unknown amount of time, his emotions gradually calmed down. The other Qin Yuan's figure began to fade.

"Thank you," the other Qin Yuan said. "Thank you for not giving up."

He disappeared.

Qin Yuan stood there, tears silently streaming down his face. Lin Qing'er hugged him from behind, saying nothing.

After a long while, Qin Yuan wiped away his tears, turned around and looked at her. "Let's go. It's time to go home."

Lin Qing'er nodded.

The two walked into the depths of nothingness. There, a light shone. The light was faint, but warm. It was the way home.

Above the Chaos Sacred Domain lies the Void Sacred Domain.

When Qin Yuan passed through the light curtain, he felt as if he had stepped into a place that did not exist. There was no sky, no earth, no light, no darkness, not even void—because "void" is at least a kind of existence, but here, there was nothing.

"Here..." She opened her mouth, but her voice seemed to be sucked away by something, and she could hardly hear it herself.

Qin Yuan stopped. He closed his eyes, refusing to see, hear, or feel. He withdrew his consciousness, suppressed his spiritual power, and shut down all perception of the outside world. Then he asked himself: Am I still here?

Lin Qing'er gripped his hand tightly. Her palms were sweating, not from fear, but because even the concept of "temperature" was disappearing here. If she couldn't still feel the warmth of Qin Yuan's palm, she even wondered if she would silently melt into nothingness.