“Young Master… Don’t blame yourself… You did nothing wrong by killing those evil Cultivators.” Feng Yuxiang spoke a moment after Yuan explained his battle with the Blood Sect, as there was a clear sense of guilt within his eyes as he explained how he killed thousands of disciples from the Blood Sect.
However, Yuan shook his head and sighed in a low voice, “You’re wrong. I am neither feeling guilt nor self-blame because I killed those evil Cultivators. I am worried because I don’t feel any sympathy even after killing so many people…”
“Even now, I cannot feel anything. Is there something wrong with me?”
“That’s completely normal, Young Master. It just means your consciousness doesn’t find anything wrong with killing some evildoers. I can assure you that there’s nothing wrong with you. You’re just growing up— as a Cultivator. That’s it.”
“Growing up, huh?” Yuan sighed.
Sometime later, Yuan said to Lord Luo, “Pang City should be safe now that the Blood Sect is gone.”
“T-Thank you, Daoist Yuan! Once again, you have saved our city!” Lord Luo stood up and bowed to him.
“Unfortunately, our family doesn’t have anything else to give you, as I had already given you our most valuable treasure.”
“The Starry Abyss, huh?” Yuan suddenly retrieved the Starry Abyss.
“I still haven’t thanked you for giving me this treasure. It has been really useful to me ever since then. This treasure is more than enough to compensate for everything I have done for the city… as well as what I will do for it in the future. Of course, I hope nothing bad happens to this place ever again.”
“Thank you, Daoist Yuan.”
After talking with each other for a little more, Yuan returned to his own room.
“I am going to spend some time clearing my mind,” Yuan said to them.
He then turned to look at Feng Yuxiang and said, “Feng Feng, can you do me a favor?”
“Anything for the Young Master!”
“I will be taking Meixiu and another friend with me to climb the Stairway to Heaven, but they’re not here. Can you bring them here for me?”
“Another friend?” Feng Yuxiang raised her eyebrow.
Yuan proceeded to give her Meixiu and Chu Liuxiang’s location.
“I should return in two days,” she said after calculating how long it would take to bring them back.
She then handed him a bunch of treasures and said, “If you want to temper your body while I am gone, you can use this. Ah, here, let me separate it for you.”
After separating the treasures, Feng Yuxiang left Pang City to pick up Meixiu and Chu Liuxiang.
Meanwhile, Yuan went to the courtyard and sat under a tree with his eyes closed, seemingly cultivating.
“Yuan… He’s changed.” Lan Yingying, who was watching him from a distance with Xiao Hua, mumbled in a low voice.
“This change will only benefit Brother Yuan, who intends on climbing the Stairway to Heaven.” Xiao Hua said.
Sometime later, a figure approached Yuan and asked him, “Are you okay?”
Yuan opened his eyes and turned around to see Min Li standing behind him with a slightly worried face.
“Have you ever killed people before?” Yuan suddenly asked her.
Min Li shook her head and said, “No, but I have come close to killing someone a few times in my life.”
“I heard you destroyed the Blood Sect by yourself. I didn’t think such a thing was possible, but knowing you… I guess nothing is impossible.”
“Hopefully, I didn’t destroy myself in the process.” Yuan sighed.
“Why would you say something like that?” Min Li looked at him with raised eyebrows.
“I can tell that I am changing. I am feeling emotions I have never felt before, and I am doing things that I could’ve never imagined doing. I’m afraid that it’ll change me completely sooner or later.”
“Is it really that bad? People change. We’re both still young, so we have a lot of room and time to change.”
“Aren’t you afraid that you could become someone you don’t want to become? What if I suddenly become a cold-blooded killer?” Yuan asked.
Min Li chuckled and said, “Trust me, you could be anything, but a cold-blooded killer isn’t one of these things.”
Min Li shrugged, “Who knows. Just a hunch, I guess.”
“Anyways, although some may say that one has no control over what kind of person they may become… I believe the complete opposite— that it’s all in your hands who you want to become.”
Yuan showed a slight smile on his face after her words that sounded oddly familiar, as Xiao Hua had said similar words before.
“Don’t think too much about it, Yuan. You had to do what was necessary. If you let this consume you, it could grow into a real heart demon in the future, and you really don’t want that.” Min Li then said.
“A heart demon? What’s that?”
“It’s something that manifests in your heart— your greatest fears or anything traumatic, really. Once you have a heart demon, it will be incredibly hard to get rid of it, and it will hinder your cultivation until you get rid of it, which requires you to face your fear or trauma.”
“Is it common for someone to have a heart demon?” Yuan asked.
“Of course. In fact, it’s really common. Although most people are not aware that they have a heart demon since it lingers within the deepest parts of their consciousness, I wouldn’t be surprised if out of 10 Cultivators, 8 or 9 of them have some sort of heart demon lying dormant within their consciousness.”
“In my case, even though I have already left them behind, my family will probably become my heart demon in the future.” Min Li sighed with a bittersweet smile.
“I see… Thank you, Disciple Min. You’ve helped me calm down a lot.”
“Just call me Min Li— or even Min.”
Sometime later, Yuan stood up and said to her, “Anyways, you should get ready if you aren’t already. We’ll be challenging the Stairway to Heaven in a few days.”