Chapter 385: The Truth Revealed

The monks stopped chanting the sutras and fell silent.

The thunder outside also faded away.

Seeing Master Chen in such a state, Shui Miao finally snapped back to reality. It was he who had caused Master Chen’s suffering!

“Master! Master!”

Shui Miao rushed over and supported the master, immediately attempting to channel the power of the Natural Way to help him.

But suddenly, the doors of the Arhat Hall swung open by themselves, and a middle-aged scholar in ancient white robes walked in. He snapped his folding fan shut, his voice rich and magnetic: “Shui Miao, don’t act recklessly. The Natural Way cannot save him. Let me handle this.”

The middle-aged scholar appeared again. In a flash, he reached Shui Miao’s side and pressed the fan against Master Chen’s crown. A surge of celestial energy poured down, instantly healing the master’s internal injuries. He looked refreshed, as if he had suddenly become decades younger.

Master Chen stood up, bowed deeply, and said gratefully, “Thank you, noble savior…”

“Ahhh, no need for formalities,” the scholar interrupted, waving his hand. “You helped my young brother, so saving you was only right. I didn’t have much to offer, so I’ll just return a few decades of youth to you all.” With a wave of his hand, three streams of celestial energy wrapped around the three monks, transforming them into the appearance of men in their twenties or thirties.

Before the three monks could even react, the scholar grabbed Shui Miao’s arm and in a blink, they were transported to Shui Miao’s shop.

“I didn’t expect that in just a few days, you’ve already grasped the power of two stone tablets,” the scholar sighed. “But you rushed too much, abused your celestial energy, and now you have none left. If I hadn’t appeared, how would you have saved Master Chen?”

He shook his head. “Ah! Fate is cruel. I really don’t know what to do with you! I’m trying my best to help you, yet you suspect me, even thinking I want to harm you?”

Shui Miao frowned, looking at the scholar calmly. “Then tell me—who exactly are you?”

“Hehehe…”

The scholar showed no surprise at all and merely smiled faintly.

Shui Miao continued, “Just now, when I and Master Chen entered the realm of transformation, we saw everything. There’s no need for you to hide from me anymore.”

“Then do you know why I’m hiding from you?” the scholar asked, raising his eyebrows.

Shui Miao turned to look outside the shop. “Of course I know. You’re afraid I’ll act recklessly, unable to control myself, and end up dying too soon. But you must understand—I hate being deceived, even if it’s by a clone or a soul fragment that looks exactly like me.”

“Haha! You’re truly naive!”

The scholar opened his folding fan and smiled helplessly.

Shui Miao turned sharply. “What do you mean? Did I say something wrong?”

“You certainly did,” the scholar replied seriously, snapping the fan shut. “You think those clones or soul fragments are your friends? They’re not. If you want to become stronger, you must consume them. Only by doing so can you grow stronger quickly. You’re not friends—you’re enemies, true enemies. As for me, I’ve already told you before—I admire your extraordinary talent, and I only want to help you, nothing more.”

The scholar’s words revealed a new perspective to Shui Miao.

But instinctively, Shui Miao refused to believe him, sensing that much of what he said wasn’t true.

A pawn!

I must still be a pawn!

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Shui Miao suddenly had an idea to test the scholar. He immediately said, “But in my meditative state, I saw you—you were the subordinate of that yellow-robed giant with a cold, jade-like face!”

This was a bold guess by Shui Miao, for he had actually seen no such thing.

“What!?”

The scholar was visibly startled.

Shui Miao pretended to be angry, hiding his true emotions. “Isn’t that right?”

“Hehehe… Hahahahaha!”

The scholar suddenly burst into loud laughter.

Then, suddenly, he transformed—into the yellow-robed, cold-faced jade figure.

“It’s you!”

Shui Miao was stunned beyond belief. He had guessed correctly—the middle-aged scholar was indeed suspicious, and he was none other than the terrifying figure who had killed him countless times across his past lives.

“That’s right. I am the Celestial and Divine Infinite Sovereign. Pity, pity! I had originally planned to nurture you, let you grow stronger, then have you consume your other clones, let you kill each other, and finally, I would consume you. But I didn’t expect that old monk to show you so much. I have no choice now. As a soul fragment of the Infinite Sovereign, I must kill you ahead of schedule. Blame your own intelligence—you know too much, so you die too soon!”

Suddenly, the scholar extended a giant hand and grabbed Shui Miao by the waist. “Hehe, does this feel familiar? Although I’m also a soul fragment, I’m far more powerful than you!”

“Wait… Let me ask a few questions, so I can die with peace of mind!” Shui Miao struggled, feeling as if he were suffocating.

The scholar gave a sinister smile. “Fine! I’ll grant you this small wish.”

“That thousand-year-old female ghost—who was she? Why was she after me? And where is she now?” Shui Miao didn’t want to die without understanding the truth.

“Haha! You mean her?” the scholar laughed, then sighed. “Actually, she was a pretty good ghost. Do you know why she tried to take you away? Why she was so harsh on you? It was to save you. She foresaw that I would come after you, so she deliberately took you away. But she underestimated my power—I found you easily anyway.”

“Then she went to the Celestial Realm. Did you do anything to her? And what about that dwarf, Bru? What happened to him?” Shui Miao really wanted to know why Bru had been avoiding him.

The scholar frowned impatiently. “You ask too many questions. And you really underestimate me. Do I look like I have the time to deal with that thousand-year-old hag? I’m busy enough as it is! I have to monitor you in this country, you in other countries, even your versions in the Underworld, the Realm of Rakshasas, and all those demon and monster realms! Do you think I have it easy? All because that meddling Buddha split your soul into eight parts! If it weren’t for him, would I be this busy?”

In his anger, the scholar revealed a lot of information.

But Shui Miao remained calm. “You still haven’t answered my question—why is Bru avoiding me?”

“Damn it! You’re about to die and you still care about others? I swear, I’m impressed. Out of all eight soul fragments, you’re giving me the most headaches. If one day you all reunite, will you drive me crazy for good?” The scholar grew increasingly agitated. As a soul fragment of the Infinite Sovereign, he didn’t seem to be living a happy life. The more he knew, the more complex his thoughts became, and the more tired he felt.

After all, he had to deal with eight of them!

Today, he was simply overwhelmed, so he couldn’t help but vent his frustration.

Shui Miao was already very weak, on the verge of suffocation. “But you still haven’t told me about Bru…”

“What…?”

“You still ask? You dare to ask again! I’ll kill you! Kill you!”

The scholar screamed in a frenzy, tightening his grip with all his might, wanting nothing more than to crush Shui Miao’s body and bring silence to his world.