Chapter 348: Me and Myself
When this "Chen Junnan" walked in through the door, everyone's expressions changed.
He didn't appear injured, and his entire demeanor was excellent. Seeing everyone staring at him, even he felt a little embarrassed.
"What's up?" he asked. "All staring at little ol' me? Am I that handsome?"
The injured Chen Junnan slowly widened his eyes, his face completely drained of color, but he quickly understood. "It's 'Transformation'...? Xiao Chu... you're resorting to such a shabby trick against me?"
Chen Junnan at the door was taken aback by the voice. He turned his head to look at the injured Chen Junnan.
"Huh...?"
When their eyes met, they were both clearly stunned.
"You... this..." Chen Junnan at the door pointed at the injured Chen Junnan, his expression dazed. "What the hell? Is, isn't this me?"
The injured Chen Junnan furrowed his brow, feeling like breathing was difficult. "You... still pretending?"
"Me?" Chen Junnan at the door was taken aback. "Little ol' me is pretending? And who the hell are you?"
Kim Won-hoon, paying no attention to the two of them, placed the bundle he had brought before Chu Tianqiu. He bent down and said quietly, "Brother, this guy suddenly appeared in the basement just now like that..."
"Yeah, I know." Chu Tianqiu nodded. "No need to explain."
Kim Won-hoon nodded as well and stood behind Chu Tianqiu.
"And who do you say I am..." The injured Chen Junnan gritted his teeth, enduring the pain wracking his entire body as he staggered to his feet. "You're trying to pull that 'Real and Fake Monkey King' routine on me, aren't you..."
Chen Junnan at the door took a few steps forward. "What the fuck is this 'Real and Fake Monkey King'? Are you the Six-Eared Macaque?"
He locked eyes with the injured Chen Junnan, both of them finding the situation strange.
"No need to argue." Chu Tianqiu smiled, interrupting the two who were at a standoff. "You're both real."
"What?"
Everyone in the room was stunned. The two Chen Junnans also turned their heads to look at him.
"Sorry about that." Chu Tianqiu smiled at the injured Chen Junnan. "Calling you a fake just now was me deliberately framing you. Don't be angry."
"You... what do you mean?" The injured Chen Junnan asked. "You... where did you get that thing from..."
He pointed at the "himself" standing before him, his expression exceptionally complicated.
"From 'Echo,' of course." Chu Tianqiu smiled. "Everyone, I have temporarily grasped a method to make you immortal."
"Immortal...?"
"This Chen Junnan..." Chu Tianqiu pointed at the man at the door, "is someone I created using the power of a certain 'Echo'."
"Xiao Chu, do you even know what you're saying?" Chen Junnan at the door's expression turned cold. "You're saying little ol' me was created by you?"
"Don't get worked up." Chu Tianqiu chuckled. "This power creates a brand new version of you, sort of like cloning. Your memories might have a few small gaps, so I suggest you communicate now to sync them up."
"What...?" Both Chen Junnans frowned. "Are you saying... we're both real?"
Yun Yao, Yan Zhichun, and Xu Qian all stared intently at the two of them. Apart from their injuries and complexion, they really seemed indistinguishable from each other.
This included their little mannerisms and the tone of their speech; it was all identical. Neither one seemed like a fake.
"What? Nothing to say?" Chu Tianqiu turned to the injured Chen Junnan. "Since there's nothing to say, you can rest assured and die now. Another Chen Junnan will live on here in your place. You're useless. Die in peace."
The injured Chen Junnan stared helplessly, his face a mask of utter bewilderment.
He had never felt this way in his entire life. For the first time at death's door, he had a powerful, burning desire to live.
He felt that the person standing in front of him who looked exactly like him was not him. Even if there was no difference between them, even if their entire being, including their memories, was the same, he just wasn't him.
"No... that's not right..." Chen Junnan extended a trembling hand, turning back to grab Yun Yao's arm. "B-Big Star... this isn't right, is it? I am me... he is him... you guys aren't going to abandon me like this, are you...?"
Yun Yao could clearly feel Chen Junnan's helplessness, but at this moment, there was simply nothing she could do.
The old Chen Junnan was destined to die; the new Chen Junnan was destined to live.
"Ch-Chen Junnan... you..." Her lips trembled for a long time, and she could only manage a useless, placating phrase. "You'll be okay..."
"Okay my ass?!" Chen Junnan roared at the top of his lungs, using the last of his strength. Then he pointed at the version of himself in front of him. "Him... you guys..."
He tried to organize his words for a long time but ended up saying nothing.
"That's right... I'm dead weight now?" Chen Junnan lowered his head slowly, breathing in ragged, heavy gasps. He felt his whole body turn ice-cold, his head spinning badly. Even though he had died countless times before, what was this suffocating feeling in his heart?
"What a domineering ability..." Chu Tianqiu muttered to himself with a smile. "No wonder I had to make sure you obtained that 'Echo'..."
Seeing Chen Junnan so distraught, Yun Yao turned her head towards Chu Tianqiu, her face filled with indignation. "What have you done?"
"Didn't I already say? I used the lives of all the 'Heaven's Gate' members to explore a new path." Chu Tianqiu stated. "From now on, none of you need to fear death anymore."
"And this is it?!" Yun Yao pointed at the two Chen Junnans. "You abandon a dying teammate and create a brand new 'copy'?!"
"What's wrong with that?" Chu Tianqiu asked. "Go ask that lively Chen Junnan over there, is he a fake? Apart from not having today's memories, in what way is he not Chen Junnan?"
Chen Junnan at the door got angry again upon hearing this. "What the hell are you saying...? What gives you the right to create me?"
"But this is really wrong!" Yun Yao said. "This... This seems..."
"Seems unethical?" Chu Tianqiu laughed. "We seem to have gone back to the 1960s, when cloning technology first emerged. Would you say a cloned person is a 'tool,' an 'animal,' or a true 'human'?"
"This is clearly the same kind of problem..." Yun Yao said, looking a bit dazed. "This ability is too sinister. If we have to rely on it to get out of here..."
"So I say you're really selfish..." Chu Tianqiu took his glasses from his shirt pocket and put them on, then said, "Obviously, every time you die, you are resurrected by the same principle of replication. But now that I replicate someone while they're alive, you think it's unethical?"
"I..."
Old Lü and Aunt Tong, who had been silent for a while, exchanged a glance. They both felt that this ability was somewhat troubling. Although they didn't know how Chu Tianqiu had obtained it, if there really was a way to freely replicate teammates, then before they got out, the entire 'Heaven's Gate' would surely descend into chaos.
To put it mildly, even if all the replicas could obey orders, who could be sure how many people would actually leave? And when they left, would it be the real them, or the replica?