The Desolate Dragnet Stellar Region was as empty and lifeless as one could expect, lacking a type of thriving quality that the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region had in spades, yet to a particular person, in a particular location, it felt as warm and comfortable as home itself.
In the Neo-Dawn Starfield's debris-filled location, a white slumbering beast floated effortlessly through the Dark Void. Its gargantuan size was heart-shaking, and with every soft breath of it, ravaging storms raged before its mouth. The beast was none other than the Star-Devourer by the name of Tiangou.
Far, far away from it, yet still slightly incapable of viewing the Tiangou in its entirety, a silver-colored Sky Palace pushed to the limits of beauty and elegance anchored soundlessly through the Dark Void. It was the Original Dawn Palace, Wei Wuyin's personally constructed and continuously refined palace that he'd cultivated since his ascension to the Realm World Phase, becoming a legitimate Realmlord. It housed his refined energies, granting it a superior type of aura that was unmatched amongst the Mortal Dao.
It was imbued throughout with the Divine Edge Suppression Spell, formulated by several supplementary formations for cultivation and comfort, that congregated into an array that he had named the Calamity Ascension Array. It was symbolic of his goals in life, and it protected the only place he had left that felt like a true home. Its formation flag was none other than the Myriad Yore Continent's Void Crystal which had been carefully refined.
The air and aura of the Myriad Yore Continent permeated throughout the Original Dawn Palace, and it was the only way for Wwi Wuyin to sleep while discarding all the unnecessary thoughts that plagued him, taking away his comfort and ease.
The Calamities of Hell.
The Bloodline of Sin.
The Heavenly Daos.
The Future…
All of it went away for the briefest of periods.
-----
Wei Wuyin sat lazily in a large wicker chair with a set of extremely comfortable padding that exuded gentle warmth. Before him was Wu Yu, whose expression was slightly unsightly, filled with some shame and discontent. He was Wei Wuyin's Alchemic Knight, yet he was forced into a stasis field unable to escape without Zhan Zheng's assistance. Due to this, he left Wei Wuyin unprotected for over a year.
Wei Wuyin was explaining what happened during this period, including the World Between the Fold, the Endless Voyage Realm's three cities, and their experts. The more Wu Yu heard about Wei Wuyin's experiences, the more thunderstruck he became. Moreover, he realized how perilous it was as Wei Wuyin didn't hide the existence of Worldly Saints and Liu Yinlan's intentions.
"So she…she wanted to?" Wu Yu was having trouble grasping it all, feeling it extremely absurd. Wei Wuyin had just explained to him Liu Yinlan's goals and his status as a True Destined Mirror. This was all information he had gained from his alternative version's memory, but he kept that part a secret.
Wei Wuyin's laziness intensified as he slumped a little deeper into the comfort of his cushions. "She wanted to replace my Essence Blood with hers, so the Endless Void Mirror wouldn't reject me during the refinement process." He explained with very little emotion, his eyes half-closed.
"Why? I don't get it. If you were already the True Destined Voyager, meant to become a successor eventually and take control of the Void Voyage Sect, then why did she want to place her blood into you?" Wu Yu was still a little baffled.
Wei Wuyin's half-closed eyes effused a dim, solemn light. The memories of his other self came flooding in.
-----
"Why? I've already sworn the oath! When I become an Earthly Saint, I'll take over."
"..."
"Yo-you don't have to do this!"
"...I do."
"STOP! STOP! ARGH!!"
The sensation of being pressed down helplessly by someone with unimaginable strength, unable to resist, as you begged and begged them to stop was as if Hell itself had risen to burn away your sense of safety and comfort.
What should've been a union of the flesh meant to celebrate unity and pleasure was distorted by fear, tears, and grunts. What made it worse was the person above, moaning in pleasure as they complimented how good your body felt.
"Mmmmmmmmh~! Ahh~ So, so deep. YOU'RE SO DEEP! Ahhhhh~"
The sensual sounds and feelings that could bring happiness to many men were instead replaced with the feeling of hellish dread, desperate frustration, agonizing pain, and deep-seated hatred!
"DON'T! PLEASE!! PLEASE!!!"
The worst was the sounds of painful draconic roars that emanated from his bleeding heart. It pounded fiercely as it resisted the changes to no avail. Before absolute strength, everything was futile. All the words of being free and unrestrained were stripped away from it, leaving nothing but fear and rage. There wasn't a hint of pride as he felt his bloodline aggressively change, and as his body began to reject his heart, he heard…
Kratos' dying wail as it gave its life up, assisted by its reluctant siblings.
"I won't let you all die! Do it!" Was its last words, lacking any sense of pride and nonsense it once had, but the truest love for its siblings and father.
That day, Wei Wuyin lost another child.
-----
Wei Wuyin's half-closed eyes completely shut as he hid away the roiling emotions within his pupils. While he hadn't suffered it himself, and it was almost as if he was watching a disconcerted projection, unlike the other memories he'd seen, it was increasingly difficult to segregate himself from those memories. It was him, after all.
Wu Yu could sense Wei Wuyin's mental state had changed, and his sense of shame grew as he believed it was the lingering trauma of narrowly escaping the fate of being enslaved by an unknown force. If he wasn't so weak, how could he allow his alchemist to suffer like that? Unfortunately, he couldn't fathom what Wei Wuyin experienced.
Eventually, he answered Wu Yu's question. "The Endless Void Mirror's refinement spell is bloodline-based, and it requires the Essence Blood of a Worldly Saint to properly use. However…"
Wu Yu's eyes lit with realization. From all the information that Wei Wuyin had told him, including how the King of Everlore had left, he instantly realized why Liu Yinlan was so desperate to merge her Bloodline with Wei Wuyin, finding a loophole in the Mythical Oaths and typical procedures, forcefully allowing Wei Wuyin to become master of the Endless Void Mirror long before the appropriate time.
"She feared you becoming a Worldly Saint Alchemist before you became a Worldly Saint?" Wu Yu said inquisitively, while certain of his guess, he didn't know for sure. After all, the King of Everlore had been allowed to freely leave the Sealed Regions because he was a Worldly Saint Alchemist.
Wei Wuyin nodded; Liu Yinlan's worries were largely reasonable and valid. If Wei Wuyin was given a choice, he would stay as an Earthly Saint and strive to become a Worldly Saint Alchemist, obtaining freedom and status without being tethered forever to the World Between the Fold, leaving for the World Beyond the Fold.
Considering two other True Destined Voyagers had failed before him, it made sense that she would find a way to ensure her own freedom—at any cost.
"I see…" Wu Yu could tell how perilous Wei Wuyin's situation was. "Young Lord, I-"
Wei Wuyin halted Wu Yu's words with a wave of his hand. "I know. You're not at fault and I need no apology. Just continue cultivating, and grow stronger, because your strength will be needed for the future."
"..." Wu Yu solemnly nodded. He wasn't so immature to make a vow, simply etched into his heart that he needed strength. After a little more conversation, he left as Wei Wuyin dismissed him.
Left alone, Wei Wuyin stayed in his comfortable position, resting with seemingly no care in the world. However, internally, his mind was actively delving into the fragmented memories of his alternative version.
Fragmented!
Wei Wuyin wasn't able to obtain all of his other version memories, losing portions that were of extreme significance. All those memories were related to a single word…
Magi.
Besides that, he had grasped everything else, from birth to the moments before the River of Time brought him away to face his alternative versions in a life-or-death battle. When the debonair Wei Wuyin was talking about the scarred Wei Wuyin's past, and how much he lost, he was telling the truth. They had exchanged experiences after the scarred Wei Wuyin had asked if Su Mei was alive while they floated in the Dark Void.
She wasn't.
While the two Wei Wuyins had taken different paths, they both had suffered catastrophic losses to everyone they respectively cared about. Su Mei was a common thread that linked them, her death being the same—that unknown power during her Astral Tribulation.
They were both unable to stop her from shattering, soul and all. The debonair Wei Wuyin helplessly watched as she strove for the Astral Core Realm, dying right in front of him. The scarred Wei Wuyin only learned about it after the fact, and it was while he was surrounded by naked, nation-toppling beauties and enjoying his life without the slightest care.
Unlike them, Wei Wuyin had become a Mortal Sovereign Alchemist and had the Everlore Ascension Pill. To put it simply…
He was lucky.
Extremely lucky.
Wei Wuyin's eyelids softly fluttered as he whispered from the depths of his soul, "I won't become like either of you; I won't lose anyone." When he finally opened his eyes, the silver brilliance revealed itself to the world, and the flames of unquestionable willpower and resolve burned strongly within.
Those versions of himself either sought comfort amidst despair(Scarred Wei Wuyin) or speed amidst desperation(Debonair Wei Wuyin), and he refused to follow either of their paths. He'll follow his own path, one where every step was fully exploited to the maximum extent so that when he faced any challenges, he wouldn't have any regrets even in death.
Because he tried…
Tried to take the best path he could…
As he thought of those other paths, he also thought of what happened shortly after the River of Time's tribulation ended. After he obtained all of Debonair Wei Wuyin's memories, succeeding in the trial after his death, Wei Wuyin was sent out and faced something he had felt once before—Paradoxical Correction!