Dawn tinged the sky with golden and gray hues. The mist that shrouded the ancient ruins slowly dissipated, revealing the valley surrounded by mountains that seemed to touch the heavens. The silence was absolute—no sound of demonic beast, no breath of wind.
Since completing the Heavenly Spiritual Division, Jun Tian had not rested. The technique, now etched into his soul, pulsed like a second breath within him.
Each heartbeat reverberated in spiritual echoes that multiplied in his consciousness.
Yue Lian watched him silently, hovering over a lake of spiritual Qi. Her silver eyes reflected the soft morning light.
"You haven't fully stabilized the technique yet, have you?" she asked calmly.
Jun Tian opened his eyes, a deep violet glow pulsing in them.
"No. She... seems alive. As if something inside her is trying to break free."
Yue Lian placed her feet in the water, forming small ripples. "Then it's dangerous to force it now. Soul energy is unstable after an incomplete fusion."
He smiled slightly. "But danger is also the path. If I don't test it, I'll never know the limit."
"The line between life and annihilation is too thin for a mortal," she replied, her tone cold and firm.
Jun Tian stood up, his expression calm. "Yue Lian, you yourself said that the Dao does not reward hesitation."
For a moment, silence reigned. Then, Yue Lian sighed. "Alright. But we'll do this under my supervision. If anything goes wrong, I'll forcibly interrupt."
He nodded.
In the center of the valley, he traced a circular formation of spiritual runes on the ground—the diagram of the Celestial Spiritual Division. Seven main lines connected to his body, and in the center, an ethereal fissure pulsed like an invisible heart.
Yue Lian floated behind him, forming hand seals.
"Focus on the essence of your soul, not your body. Feel the point where consciousness and energy become one."
Jun Tian closed his eyes. His breathing slowed.
Within his spiritual sea, blue flames rose—the Spiritual Mud of the Dao, the pure essence of the mind.
In the center of this flaming sea, his true soul floated—a translucent silhouette with eyes that reflected infinity.
He began the mental chanting of the technique.
The runes around him glowed, and threads of energy began to detach from his body. Tiny sparks of light—fragments of consciousness—floated like stardust.
The pain came soon after.
His mind seemed to shatter into a thousand pieces, each thought echoing in multiple directions.
It was like being divided in life.
Yue Lian looked up, worried. "Jun Tian! Stay focused!"
He clenched his teeth, blood trickling from the corner of his lips.
"I... am fine..."
But he wasn't.
The spiritual sea trembled violently, on the verge of collapse. The rune lines on the ground began to unravel, unable to contain the energy.
A second light burst into being at the center of his soul—a gray, infinite light, one that did not come from this world.
It moved slowly and quietly, engulphing the blue flames of the spirit.
Yue Lian's eyes widened. "That energy... again!"
The power of Infinite Chaos had awakened.
The spiritual pressure emanating from Jun Tian expanded like a destructive wave. The surrounding ruins trembled, and the spiritual lake rose like a column of water.
"Jun Tian! Stop now, or you will be swallowed whole!"
But he did not answer.
Within his mind, he saw his own body dissolving into fragments of light, while a second silhouette—identical to his—emerged from the spiritual sea.
The two stared at each other.
One was serene. The other, cold as death.
"I am you…"
"…and you are merely a reflection."
The two consciousnesses collided. The spiritual space trembled.
Yue Lian, outside, channeled all the Lotus energy to stabilize the formation. A silvery glow enveloped Jun Tian, holding back the eruption.
She gritted her teeth. "Damn it… you're trying to fuse chaos with the soul! That's suicide!"
The ground cracked, and a spiritual storm formed.
Jun Tian opened her eyes—one violet, the other gray.
Her voice was double, as if two beings were speaking in unison.
"Heavenly Spiritual Division… Second Stage: Reflection of the Self."
With a silent roar, the formation exploded in light.
When the glow ceased, the valley was covered in spiritual ash. The mist had vanished.
In the center, two figures stood.
Jun Tian—and another Jun Tian, made of pure spiritual energy, with a cold, distant gaze.
Yue Lian landed slowly, exhausted. "You... really did it."
The spiritual clone observed him and then looked at her.
His voice sounded calm, but devoid of emotion.
"Consciousness has been split. Part of my soul now exists separate from my physical body."
Jun Tian smiled, still panting. "It's imperfect. I feel... an imbalance."
Yue Lian nodded. "It's natural. The energy you used... it doesn't belong to this plane. Your spiritual clone carries an unstable essence—if injured, it could destroy the main body."
The clone looked at the two of them.
"Then I need to leave. This place won't support two identical presences for long."
Jun Tian stared at him. "Right. You will seek resources and information about this continent."
Yue Lian's eyes widened. "Are you going to leave him to wander alone?"
"He is a part of me," Jun Tian replied. "And I... trust myself."
The clone closed its eyes and dissolved into a beam of spiritual light, disappearing over the horizon.
After the silence returned, Yue Lian looked at Jun Tian with a grave expression.
"Did you realize what you did?"
"I created an independent existence," he replied. "And for a moment, I felt something... strange. As if the world were watching me."
Yue Lian became thoughtful.
"The Soul Dao is one of the most dangerous paths that exist. If you continue to tread it without limits, you will end up attracting unwanted attention..."
Jun Tian smiled. "Then let them come. Only the weak fear being seen."
She observed him for a moment, then looked away.
"You've changed, Jun Tian. Since we arrived at these ruins... something in you awakens more and more."
He didn't answer.
The wind blew gently, carrying away the spiritual dust. The sun rose, painting the valley gold.
Jun Tian gazed at the horizon, where his clone had vanished.
"Each step in cultivation is a division of the soul."
"But perhaps, one day... I will need to gather all the parts again."
Yue Lian smiled slightly. "When that day comes, perhaps the world will no longer be the same."
He nodded. "Then it's best that it prepares itself."
Silence returned. Only the glow of the ancient formations remained, as if the ruins resignedly accepted the birth of something new—a cultivator walking between order and chaos.
Far away, in the depths of the continent, an elder with golden eyes suddenly opened his eyes amidst meditation.
The space around him distorted for an instant.
"What strange energy..." he murmured, intrigued. "It's neither spiritual... nor demonic... as if the world itself rejects its presence..."
He frowned and closed his eyes again. "It doesn't matter. Whatever it is... it's best that it stays away." The sky calmed down. The fluctuations disappeared.
Jun Tian, oblivious to all this, sat on the ground, wiping the blood from his mouth and resuming his meditation.
His breathing regulated, and the runes at his sides softly glowed, almost in recognition.
She watched him then, both her concern and admiration plastered on her face.
"Even surrounded by destruction, you remain serene."
He smiled wryly. "Chaos is just another kind of balance."
First light enveloped him, and the valley was quiet once more.
There was only one sure thing now: Jun Tian's soul would never be the same again.