Be Gentle, Immortal Master

I tried my best not to tremble, but I couldn't help it. I should've known … Blood for blood … Those scars on Bai Ye's chest … I should've known …

"We told him that we had no idea how long it would take," Luo Ji continued. "Could be years, decades, centuries. The ritual had to be performed every month, nonstop until the last bit of demonic power was cleansed from the blades. We didn't really believe that anyone would be able to follow this through, but judging from the fact that you are sitting right now in front of me, it looks like he has succeeded."

I nodded numbly. "It took him over two hundred years …" I said, my voice so tiny that I could barely hear it myself. "He brought me back twelve years ago, and he had spent all the prior years trying …"

"It was his willing choice." Luo Ji gave me a sympathetic look. "No need to feel guilty for it. But if you want to help, there might still be something you can do, because even with such a sacrifice, there is a limit to how much he can achieve."

I pulled my drifting mind back from the painful revelation and tried to focus on what Luo Ji was saying. A limit … "Is that why he has only managed to bring me back?" I asked. "While the rest of the souls are still trapped?"

Luo Ji nodded. "Two hundred and fifty years is a long time for a soul to stay inside a demonic sword. Even if he manages to bring them back, they won't be the same anymore. Take yourself for example. Have you not wondered why your personality is completely different from the sword spirit before?"

Of course I had. Ever since the first time I saw my previous self in the visions, I had been dazzled by her. Let alone the beauty and power, she was bold and sharp, all her emotions so straightforward and burning bright as fire. Yet I was timid, insecure, and everything opposite from her. I wasn't even half of the person I used to be. Please visit 𝒇𝘳ℯe𝙬e𝘣𝙣𝘰ѵ𝒆𝗹. c૦𝑚

"As the sword spirit," Luo Ji added, "your soul was as strong as an immortal's, but the effect was more than obvious on you already. What do you think would happen to the souls of those disciples who barely started their cultivation? They may not even be complete anymore after all these years. Even if we manage to save them and return them to the cycle of rebirth, they will only end up with poor health, slow wit … It's not necessarily mercy to bring them back that way."

"But there must be a way to fix it," I said, not willing to accept that Bai Ye's sacrifice was all for vain. "You said there's a solution to everything … We just need to find them."

Luo Ji looked at me. "The bottom line is simple, my child," he said after a while. "With enough power, there are always more possibilities. What started with the demonic sword will have to end with the demonic sword … But tread that path cautiously. Power is a dangerous thing. It comes with not only the ability to achieve, but also the ability to destroy."

I turned those words over in my head, trying to read into them and find a concrete answer. But Luo Ji had already stood up, signaling that my time with him was up. "Think about it carefully," he said as he walked me towards the door. "I understand how much you want to make things right, but remember not to step astray. There are good reasons why your master made certain decisions for you the way he did. Binding with those swords again, for example, might give you the power and choice to do things that you otherwise can't do, but it comes at great risk."

My steps halted. "Binding with Twin Stars?" I asked. "But I already have … He told me that they don't have the same power as before anymore."

The color drained from Luo Ji's face. "You've bound with those swords again?" he asked in astonishment. "How could he let you— I made it very clear to him that he can't risk this! The strength of the sword might have dwindled because of your previous death, but its demonic influence can still affect you all the same. Once bound again, it will only be a matter of time before you lose control and end up on the same path as before!"

I frowned a little. At this point, nothing would make me doubt Bai Ye's decisions again, and I wondered why Luo Ji reacted so dramatically. "But everything has been fine so far," I said. "I had been using those swords for a few months before I stopped recently."

Luo Ji didn't seem to believe a word of it. "Show me your power," he said hastily. "You might've been lucky. If the bonding isn't too deep yet, it will take some time before it affects you."

I hesitated for a moment but obeyed nonetheless. Raising a hand, I summoned my spiritual power. A bright white light glowed over my palm—a declaration of pure strength. But Luo Ji only looked at me with wide eyes. "This is not possible," he said. "This much power is way past the point where you should've gone berserk … Unless …"

When I returned him a blank stare, he shook his head. "Unless someone else is bearing the adverse effect of this power for you."

"Bearing the adverse effect for me?" I asked in bewilderment. "But … How? And why? What difference does it make if someone else goes berserk instead of me?"

"The demonic power won't influence anyone else the same way—" Luo Ji suddenly paused. "Where is your master?"

"He's on a long retreat—" I suddenly paused as well. "What do you mean this power won't influence anyone else the same way? How does it influence them instead?"

Luo Ji and I stared at each other, and my heart clenched. Word by word, I heard him say: "The power of a demonic sword is too strong for a soul that isn't bound to it. It will not cause them to lose control like you did.. It will kill them."