Dual Cultivation God Returns

Chapter 725: Weight of Soul



He turned back to look at her, "Say you had to make a choice, whether to hurt someone for gain, or not hurt someone, but to still gain as much, all other things being equal, which one would you choose?"

"Second, but that's too obvious, that one requires less work", her answer brought a smile to his face, demonstrating the difficulty of trying to talk on this topic with her.

"What if both choices required the same amount of effort?"

"Hmm, in that case either one works", she took a moment, but still replied with ease.

"What if the second choice requires more effort?"

"Then first choice it is"

"See, that was simple, wasn't it?" Wu Long nodded, "You identified effort as the only valuable metric, and made your decision"

"Well, yes, why work harder for something if you can get it easier?", she shrugged her shoulders.

"And that right there is one reason to exclude morals, since they would complicate that choice. In fact a 'good' or 'naive and stupid' person would choose the second option in all three cases, granted there are no other circumstances influencing that choice", he chuckled, as this example clicked with their conversation before in her head.

"...so identifying morals as 'shackles' makes them unnecessary to consider...", she muttered, understanding the gist of what he tried to tell her.

"Yes, well, I cannot say that this is the only reason, and I cannot speak for everyone, but it is one of the many ways to see it. For some people, it's an easy way out. That way any decision and action becomes easy to make, no matter what the conditions", he added.

"But... even if I now understand why would morals be cut out of the equation by those who want to have an easier life, I still do not understand why would anyone then deliberately put those shackles on themselves knowing they will make their lives more difficult?", she then raised her gaze to him once more.

"Hmm, that is a little more complex, even though what explanation I gave you before was also quite simplified, but it has something to do with empathy, and in that case, it sometimes can be not a choice", he replied.

"Empathy...", her expression became a bit lost in thought, as she struggled to comprehend the concept. It wasn't that she was not familiar with it, but knowing about it was different from truly understanding it.

However, Wu Long knew that there was simply something she was overlooking. The same reason that caused him to overlook the missing piece of the puzzle earlier, and the key that would help him reach her now.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Think of it like this, if that someone you had to hurt in the choices you had to make earlier, was your sister, would you still choose the first option?", he asked causing Hong Yue to freeze and then turn to look back at him with widened eyes.

"No, but that's-..."

"Different, yes. Because she's your sister, but what do you think would someone who doesn't know you choose?", he nodded as wind rustled the leaves in the forest around them.

And then giving her a moment to take that in, continued, "That's what empathy is in its most basic form. It is just the ability to really 'see' other people. Just the mere understanding and acknowledgement that the bond you share with your precious ones also exists in other people, and that the same emotions could be felt by them when they are hurt"

Even though his tone was still light, there was no frivolousness or playfulness that was there when he talked about the worldview.

Hong Yue's crimson eyes intently looked at him without turning away.

"But if you're strong enough-..."

"See? It's simpler to think that way, right?", he gently smiled.

An uncomfortable feeling welled up in her gut that she didn't really understand. This was not enough to completely turn her world on its head, but at the same time she instinctively felt that there was something very uncomfortable for her in that relatively simple idea he just spoke of.

"That's as much as I can tell you about empathy, not that it is a good enough explanation or captured any complexities, but it should suffice as introductory food for thought, I'm not that good at explaining stuff anyway", he then noted, waking her from her thoughts, "You will have to think about it, and arrive at the answer yourself"

"Understanding it will tell you at least partially why I find the way Lan'er views this world appealing, and why even though I'm not as kind or just as her, I still try to look for new answers to the choices that come before me, and at the same time, why even while doing that I don't consider myself a good or moral person"

He concluded their discussion up to now, and she nodded, since she needed some time to think about everything.

"That said, there's something I have to tell you before we go", Wu Long added as she was already preparing to go.

'It might've been a bit harsh of me to tell her about empathy, but it is not something we can avoid forever, and it will help if she understands it before having this kind of talk with Ye'er. However, even if its something she would have had to learn about eventually, and I doubt it will lead to anything serious, I should make precautions just in case...', he thought as she turned to him with an attentive look.

"I am now going to say something for you to remember in future, you don't have to think of it that hard for now", his tone shifted to a more somber one, leaving behind even those traces of lightheartedness that were left there before.

She slightly raised her eyebrows at that sudden change of tone and cryptic words.

"I have killed people...", his words spoken in that same serious tone took her by complete surprise, as she tilted her head, wondering why he said something so plainly obvious like some kind of revelation.

But that look in her eyes disappeared in the next moment, as she felt her surroundings become hazy and melt away.

"...many of them... more than you, more than you and your sister together, more than everyone in our Sect combined...", as his words fell, the scenery in front of her eyes continued to change, but the last part remained unsaid, as it rang only in the back of his mind, '...more than you can comprehend...'

'W-what is...?', she shuddered from a chill crawling up her spine.

The world around her now was a dark and gloomy wasteland, all of it filled with bones and corpses as far as the eye could see, piled so that it was not possible to tell how deep the ground was buried under all of it, or if there was one at all. And all of this scenery seemed to somehow cling to him, countless white and bony, translucent hands stretching from below and clutching the hems of his robes, gripping onto his feet and ankles.

His appearance was also different, slightly older, and somehow even more handsome even though she didn't think it was possible before, but at the same time there was something harsher and heavier about the impression he gave off. And there was something in his eyes that made her unable to move, breathe, and even think.

The next moment, the vision was gone, and the world turned to the way it was before. Wu Long was just the handsome young man she always remembered. The only difference was that the little fox on his shoulder was no longer so relaxed, shivering as he gently patted its back

with one hand in a soothing motion.

"W-What was that?", she asked with a bit of caution. She was shaken a bit, but that was it. It felt like the vision she saw was not as intense as it could or even should be, as if it was somehow pulled back behind a thin veil that she could not perceive.

"Resentment, or how it's sometimes called, the 'Weight' of one's soul", Wu Long answered bluntly, "It's something that you can perceive about yourself when you reach a certain level of cultivation, it has to do with one's soul so it didn't disappear. And it turns out that once you perceive your own soul's 'Weight', there's no turning back even if you reset your cultivation"

"A-all of that?"

Wu Long nodded, not seeing the need to tell her that it was a mere fraction, and that he shielded her from really feeling the sensation it brought, since it was inconsequential to his point. His goal of etching this moment in her memory was already accomplished.

"So, if a time comes, a time that you will know, just like you knew when to use the box I gave you before without me telling you, just remember what I just told and showed you. And if you need to ask me questions then, you can", he spoke in the same cryptic manner.

However, being reminded of the time he gave her that box, and of what transpired after, she

didn't question him further, and simply nodded.

"Good", his atmosphere changed once again, becoming lighter as he smiled, "Come, let's go.

We'll talk more on the way"

He beckoned her to start moving, and using Bahshi Ghost Step, disappeared into a cloud of black smoke. She instinctively followed him without a moment's delay since he was using the same movement technique that she was so used to.