The sun rose into the sky, gradually illuminating the world with its brilliance.
"Auhh… my head…" Qin Hao groaned as he woke, clutching his temples.
The first thing he did was check his body.
"My legs… they're healed! How is this possible?"
He touched them repeatedly, but there wasn't a single trace of injury. It was as if nothing had ever happened. Even the horrifying wound on his chest had completely vanished. The only evidence of the previous night was his torn and shredded clothes.
"Everything feels like a dream… Was that really me?" Qin Hao muttered. "I was kind of cool, haha. But thankfully, the danger passed…"
He vaguely remembered doing something last night that he would never have dared to do before, gambling with his life. What shocked him the most was that such severe injuries had healed overnight.
The events of last night felt surreal. Rather than dwell on them, he decided to move.
"I don't recognize this place. Where am I?"
Qin Hao looked around and realized he was in unfamiliar territory. The familiar paths of the forest were nowhere to be seen. He climbed a nearby tree, one taller than the rest and quietly began observing his surroundings.
For a hunter, awareness of one's surroundings was essential. A moment of carelessness could mean being ambushed by a beast.
His gaze suddenly fixed on a treetop not far away. Qin Hao's eyes widened in disbelief. A massive black spider hung silently among the branches, almost perfectly camouflaged with its surroundings. It was larger than two humans combined.
Subconsciously, Qin Hao hurriedly scanned the tree he was currently on. After confirming there was no such monster nearby, he let out a sigh of relief.
Moments later, he noticed movement deeper in the forest. Narrowing his eyes, he focused intently. It was a strange creature. Its entire body was pitch black. It had four limbs structured like those of a spider. Its round head lacked eyes entirely, two horns protruded backward from where its eyes should have been. Its mouth was positioned on top of its head, making it seem as though its head was upside down. It looked less like a beast and more like a monster, instinctively evoking fear within Qin Hao.
"F*ck… why is it coming toward me? Did it detect me?!"
Panic surged through him as the creature slowly approached.
"This kind of monster shouldn't exist near the village. Did I cross the red line without realizing it?"
Just as his nerves reached their limit, the monster stopped five meters away, then abruptly turned and moved in another direction.
"It probably sensed the spider…" Qin Hao thought.
For the first time in his life, he felt grateful for that overgrown spider.
He remained hidden for another three hours, during which several unfamiliar monstrous creatures passed by, beasts he had never seen or even heard of before. Qin Hao struggled to decide whether he should climb down and attempt to find his way back or stay where he was. The fear of danger below outweighed his hunger and thirst but it's temporary.
After repeatedly glancing around, he finally made up his mind.
"I can't stay in a tree forever…"
Carefully, Qin Hao maneuvered through the forest, doing his best to avoid the dangerous creatures. Each time one passed nearby, he held his breath, afraid of being detected. It was truly nerve wracking.
Before long, he realized something was wrong.
"I'm going in circles again…"
Cautiously, he climbed another tree and began to think.
First time could be understood as coincidence but a second time was something to deliberate about. Suddenly an acute pain hit the back of his neck which caused him to groan and almost fall from the tree branch.
He reached back instinctively and felt something wriggling.
It was a worm, about half the length of his finger. Its mouth had burrowed deep into his flesh.
Qin Hao tried to pull it out, but the pain intensified tenfold. It felt as if the worm was directly connected to his brain.
"What… what is this?!"
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as terror gripped him. The pain was unbearable. The more he pulled, the deeper the worm dug in. Over eighty percent of its body had already entered his neck.
A sense of dread washed over him. What would happen if it fully entered his body?
And why did his head ache whenever he tried to remove it?
Suddenly, Qin Hao's body convulsed violently. He collapsed to the forest floor, completely motionless.
"This kid's body is weak! It can't even withstand one-tenth of a percent of my power. He fainted from just this? Tsk, tsk…"
A sinister chuckle followed.
"Good thing I used deception to keep him trapped in the forest… hehe…"
"Now, this body is mine!" The worm slithered deeper, heading straight for Qin Hao's brain, toward the illusory realm where consciousness resided.
With a light impact, the wall of his consciousness shattered, allowing the worm to invade with ease.
"So small?"
The worm grunted in displeasure.
Before it stood a miniature version of Qin Hao, staring at it with fear filled eyes.
"Who are you?!" Qin Hao's original consciousness shouted as he retreated.
The worm opened its mouth and laughed sinisterly.
"Kekeke! Who do you think I am? Of course, I'm here to take over your body, kid! Now hand it over, hahaha!"
The worm flicked its tail. A mysterious light shot forth, freezing Qin Hao's consciousness in place.
"Hehe, fear me, mortal! Rejoice, for I, a superior lifeform, am giving you the honor of surrendering your body!"
The more Qin Hao struggled, the tighter his movements became.
Just as the worm prepared to devour his consciousness, it abruptly froze.
"…Hm?"
One corner of the illusory realm had been engulfed in darkness. From within it, a hazy figure slowly emerged.
"Who are you?" The worm's voice rang out loud.
The figure, shrouded in chaotic black smoke resembling burning shadow flames, did not respond. It continued advancing.
"Humph!"
The worm snorted and unleashed its power. The two forces collided violently. The worm was sent rolling backward, equivalent to five steps in human terms. The shadowy figure staggered three steps back as well.
Half of the black smoke was blasted away, revealing the figure underneath. It looked exactly like Qin Hao albeit more sinister and evil.
"Double consciousness?" the worm muttered in shock. "One body sharing two consciousnesses? Impressive, kid. But how is the second one so strong?"
Qin Hao's first consciousness stared at the second in disbelief.
"Get out," the second consciousness said coldly.
"Kekeke! I'll devour you!" The worm's fat figure grew numerous wretched looking hands all over its body. Each hand containing the mysterious light far stronger than previously. The light struck the second consciousness like a divine hammer causing the illusory realm to tremble.
Instantly, chains of light bound the second consciousness, immobilizing him.
"Kekeke, now you'll become my nourishment!"
But nothing happened.
"Hmm?" The worm tried again, but its power gradually weakened.
The second consciousness spoke calmly, "You understand, don't you? Your power comes from fear, despair, and negative emotions of living beings. Unfortunately for you, it's ineffective against me."
"Or rather… it's not enough."
The worms face contorted in anger.
"How dare you lowly human!" It poured out all its strength, but the light felt like nothing more than a gentle breeze. Darkness surged relentlessly around the second consciousness. Cracks appeared in the chains.
In an instant, he broke free and appeared above the worm, gripping its head tightly.
"Release me! How dare you touch this supreme one? I'll kill you!" the worm screamed.
"For a mere worm, you sure talk a lot." the second consciousness sneered, tightening his grip.
"If I had my previous power… no, if I could use my other techniques, someone like you would have died countless times by now," the worm growled through clenched teeth.
"Is that so…"
The grip tightened further.
"Aaaah!"
Behind them, Qin Hao's first consciousness cautiously approached. He felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
"Are you really… a part of me?" he asked.
"A part?" the second consciousness replied flatly. "No. Unfortunately, it's us. I am you, and you are me. We are both us."
"How is that possible?" the first consciousness asked in disbelief.
"Everything is possible…huh.." The worm answered.
"Please explain?" First consciousness asked.
"Why should i?" The worm sneered.
"Aaaaa." Qin Hao's second consciousness gripped its head more tightly.
"Stop stop… I'll explain." After a moment of silence it spoke. "If my guess is correct, in the beginning both of you were the same. One mind and one body. But something probably happened midway which caused a part of your consciousness to separate itself and gain independence. During our years of research, we experimented on humans heavily, both mortals and Qi practitioners. Some developed split personality under certain extreme conditions."
"Split personality? You mean same as us?"
"Not quite. In our terms it means two or more distinct state of identity. Each identity may have different personality, memories, behaviour and more. We never found anyone among the test subjects with separate consciousness like yours."
"Is it harmful?" The first consciousness asked warily.
"Tsk." Second consciousness rolled his eyes.
"It's not harmful to oneself. In some cases it might be. It has good side and bad side as well." The worm paused before continuing. "Like yours, the first one gives the vibe of innocence and purity. But the second one…." It glanced at the second consciousness saying, "Second one gives off an utterly evil aura, devoid of emotion."
Both Qin Hao's consciousness tacitly understood what the worm meant. In fact they felt it themselves.
"Now then, what should i do with you?" The second consciousness smiled evilly.
"What do you want?!" The worm suppressed its anger and asked. Survival was its first priority.