Chapter 782: Inversion of Cause and Effect
"You're here again..." Yan Zhichun said. "Going backwards from the 'effect' to the 'cause' again?"
"Yeah, aren't you curious?" Jiang Ruoxue said. "A once-vanished legend is now standing alive before you, as if everything has started anew. I really want to know what its 'cause' is."
"But she counts as our number one enemy." Yan Zhichun said. "You know what the three words 'Wen Qiaoyun' represent to 'Jidao'."
"Yes, she represents being infinitely close to destroying this place." Jiang Ruoxue said. "It's just that you and I weren't active in the same era as her."
"What do you mean...?"
"Now is our era." Jiang Ruoxue said. "Rather than thinking about how to make this Wen Qiaoyun ineffective, it's better to think about how to bestow a new identity upon her."
Yan Zhichun was slightly stunned after hearing this. "You mean to make her a 'Jidao'?"
"Mm." Jiang Ruoxue nodded. "I rarely actively manipulate 'causes', but Wen Qiaoyun is truly different. I need this 'effect' to be under our control."
"Are you sure it will work?" Yan Zhichun said. "Wen Qiaoyun is no ordinary goods. Will ordinary rhetoric be useful to her?"
"Then directly tell her the truth of the world." Jiang Ruoxue said. "If she learns the truth of everything here, learns the result of collecting three thousand six hundred 'Dao', even if she isn't 'Jidao', she will subconsciously do the same things as 'Jidao'."
"But where do I start?" Yan Zhichun asked.
"Start from when you met that White Sheep." Jiang Ruoxue answered.
After hearing this, Yan Zhichun nodded, knowing that was the only option.
Since meeting that White Sheep, her life had completely changed.
"By the way." She changed the subject, looking at Jiang Ruoxue. "And that other woman just now."
"Hm? What about her?"
Yan Zhichun thought for a moment, then said, "She said she is 'Jidao'."
"Yeah?" Jiang Ruoxue raised an eyebrow. "What struck me as strange is that I once exposed my identity in front of her, but she had no reaction at all. Could she have just joined?"
"That's exactly the problem." Yan Zhichun said. "Let's talk while we walk. Hearing you say that, I've suddenly become interested in Wen Qiaoyun too."
The two of them walked out of the building one after another, following far behind the Lin Qin and Wen Qiaoyun ahead.
The 'Zhongyan Land' now seemed even filthier than a few days ago. Those executed during the last 'Heavenly Steed's Instant' were already starting to leak corpse fluids. The roads smelled rotten, and the blood of many had begun to cover the ground, making it extremely sticky to step on.
On the wide road, every certain distance, one could see those split in half from between the eyebrows by the black lines. Their legs were spread wide left and right like compasses, as if taking a larger step might allow them to escape this bitter land.
Unfortunately, their steps were too big, and even their faces were split in two.
"You just said... where is the problem?" Jiang Ruoxue asked again. "Just an ordinary 'Extreme Path Cultivator'. There are countless 'Extreme Path Cultivators' we don't know. This organization you founded might be larger than you imagine."
"No... I often encounter ordinary 'Extreme Path Cultivators'." Yan Zhichun replied. "But she claims to have joined for seven years. Isn't that ridiculous?"
"Seven years...?" Jiang Ruoxue frowned after hearing this. "Isn't that the same as you?"
"Although I've never admitted it, you know..." Yan Zhichun said. "'Jidao' was established by my initiative, and even the name was chosen by me."
"Yes."
"She has been a member for as long as I have, yet in all this time, we have never met each other." Yan Zhichun asked. "How likely do you think that is?"
"The likelihood is 'zero'." Jiang Ruoxue replied. "So you suspect her identity is questionable, and she might even be someone else sent to dismantle our 'Jidao'."
"Correct." Yan Zhichun nodded. "But I can't figure out the reason for doing this. 'Jidao' never had a good reputation, and there aren't even teammates to support each other. I simply can't understand the point of impersonating 'Jidao'."
"Yeah." Jiang Ruoxue said with a smile. "Zhi Chun, you're still too conservative. What do you mean 'Jidao' doesn't have a good reputation? As long as you say you're an 'Extreme Path Cultivator', most of the time you'll be targeted collectively. That's why even 'Extreme Path Cultivators' have to hide themselves now."
"But she doesn't seem to be hiding at all."
"Does she look like she's lying to you?" Jiang Ruoxue asked again.
"Honestly... no." Yan Zhichun smiled bitterly. "She even argued with me over the word 'Jidao'. I haven't seen such a situation even among true 'Extreme Path Cultivators'."
"When all impossibilities are eliminated, the remaining answer must be true. Could there be such a possibility..." Jiang Ruoxue thought for a moment and said, "You think you are the 'cause' of 'Jidao', and she should be an 'effect' arising from you, but the reality might be just the opposite."
"Hm...?"
"You are both 'causes'." Jiang Ruoxue said. "It's just that she is a different causal line, distinct from yours."
"I don't understand." Yan Zhichun said. "Speak simply."
"I mean... did that White Sheep seven years ago really only influence you?" Jiang Ruoxue asked. "Could it be that he laid down a second line himself?"
Yan Zhichun instantly understood what Jiang Ruoxue meant.
"You mean... that I and that woman named Lin Qin are on equal footing?" Yan Zhichun reached out to smooth the long hair by her cheek, then tucked it behind her ear with two fingers. "She, like me... is really one of the founders of 'Jidao'?"
"I'm just proposing a hypothesis." Jiang Ruoxue said. "After all, even that White Sheep wasn't sure if you could really create an organization that influences everyone, right?"
"No... still not right." Yan Zhichun said. "Even if it's as you say... she herself should understand her own identity, right? Besides, the name 'Jidao' was chosen by me, and the 'Jidao stance' she stated is exactly the same as the one I set. If she really is one of the founders... how could it be such a coincidence?"
"She even has the exact same 'stance' as us?" Jiang Ruoxue asked.
"Yes." Yan Zhichun nodded. "That's exactly what I find unreasonable."
The two of them looked at the pair in the distance, both falling into deep thought.
"It seems she is also a strange 'effect'." Jiang Ruoxue laughed. "I always feel something unusual is about to happen. When this place is covered with strange 'effects' everywhere... doesn't that mean the huge 'cause' is already very close to us?"