BXBX NOVEL Chapter 15: 15.
Chapter 15: 15.
It was dark.
When he opened his eyes, not a trace of panic nor confusion was on his face. He knew where he was.
The darkness wasn\'t frightening. It was peaceful and consoling. At a distance, three lights were visible. That was his destination in his Mind Space.
Chen Kai got to his feet and looked down at his attire. The jeans and dress shirt from earlier were gone. He was barefooted and dressed in a familiar pair of slacks and a business shirt. Raising his hand to his head, he felt the length of his hair. \'It\'s long again\', he commented inwardly.
"This won\'t be easy," he murmured.
His conscience placed him in his original body.
He walked forward and with every step, a ripple was created beneath his feet. The still lake was his platform as he walked towards the lights.
The lightness in his body was familiar. Even the underlying weakness was recreated.
As he walked further, with his eyes forward, the image slowly transformed. His dark hair became fuller and grew past his shoulders, his complexion was now healthier, his height grew a few inches and his body was muscular. His bearing moved from a polite young man to a charming noble.
His dark eyes slowly changed to amber. His eyes represented a predator with full battle experience and leadership.
Once again he looked down at himself. A bitter laugh escaped him when he took note of the Black Soft leather pants and a loose White cotton tunic. Below the clothing, a cool metal pressed against his warm skin. His body trembled when he ascertain the size of the pendant. His family\'s Royal crest.
First Transmigration!
Closer and closer he got to the lights until he can see the outline of buildings. At that moment, his image changed again. Gone were the dark and dominating looks, replacing them was a dark-haired man with piercing silver eyes. His body was wrapped in black metallic armor, outlining his muscular body. The grin on his face screamed danger. Flashing around his hands was violent lightning covering his hands like a glove.
"I do not miss this life that much," he joked but the amusement didn\'t match his current expression.
Second Transmigration!
The frightening man was no more when he placed three pagodas within his sight. He no longer wore armor. He was once again in comfortable clothes to fit the profession he excelled in within this life. Colorful scrubs and the infamous monogrammed white coat. Silver eyes were now brown. His mature and playful look made him approachable in that contradicting profession. That life was stressful and detestable. The higher-ups treated human lives like replaceable cups to fill their money. He butt heads with a lot of them.
Third Transmigration!
"If murder wasn\'t illegal, I would have done it so many times. Fucking pricks! I hope my disciples gain some self-control," he commented. The pagodas were closer now and his identity as a doctor faded to his recent life. His muscular body was slender once more. His features were now delicate. With his fair skin and starry eyes, he passed the check for being a pretty boy. The clothes were all high-end and tailor-made. Bitter memories threatened to surface but he kept walking. He thought that would have been his last life. He would have cherished it, even if he had to live a life of watching his back 24/7.
Fourth Transmigration!
As he walked to the pagodas and was made to relive the bodies of his past lives, he was trying not to let it affect him. Each transformation was torture on his mind. With the seal being weakened, it was like waves crashing against a wall, all the memories he wanted to forget kept bombarding him. He felt how it was affecting him as he go further.
These were lifetimes of tragedy, bitterness, and pain. It will affect anyone harshly.
When he reached the three structures, he was once more in the body of Chen Kai.
The three pagodas stood tall and imposing.
The building on his right had six floors and was red-colored. There was a mystical hue surrounding it. The red was vibrant but Chen Kai saw traces of black as it fluctuated. "The poison," he muttered.
He turned to the pagoda in the middle. Golden yellow. This was his soul. The strength and vitality were prominent. He learned over the years, the souls who are chosen for transmigration or reincarnation are strong ones like his.
The pagoda on the left was his mind. The color should be a bold blue but.....
Black chains were tightly wrapped around it.
The hue was dim and the building was crumbling. This was due to years of neglect. He bottled up his emotions so tightly that they became toxic to his mentality.
Stepping onto the left staircase, he slowly brought his right hand upwards, palm facing the sky, he opened his mouth to say the mantra but hesitated.
A dark piece of the pagoda fell.
When it fell into the abyss, Chen Kai felt his Mind Space shake. An ache pierced his mind but gradually faded.
He swallowed loudly and circulated the dormant power in his lower dan tian. His breathing quickened then slowed, this was repeated until he felt the familiar flow coursing through his body.
"Come."
Upon his low command, a Red Engraved Manganese Tang Sword materialized in his hand. He gripped it with great familiarity and removed it from its beautifully designed scabbard. The gold dragon pendant rocked back and forth on the tassel as the sword danced in its master\'s hand.
Chen Kai smiled and went closer to the Pagoda of the Mind.
Blade facing downward, he stood solemnly before the building.
The words he spoke next were sincere and humble. His submission to the worlds above him was felt. Chen Kai was one of the many people in the vast universe who witnessed the truth beyond the sky. They gave him life continuously, it\'s only right to be humble to such masters.
"To the Heavens who sees and the Earth who hears. To the Winds that guide and to the Water that flows. I, the Son Of the Heavens, seek forgiveness for my folly. I shall break this past to move with the present."
When he placed this seal, he sacrificed an everyday life. All his emotions and reactions were captured here, what people saw was his acting. He felt it all but couldn\'t display it. He had to put up a facade to survive.
As he spoke, the dark chains on the building began to rattle. The sword in his hand was lifted and positioned horizontally before his body. From right to left, he brushed his left palm on the blade; the chains began to shed their darkness.
Chen Kai slid his leg forward and slashed the air vertically then resumed his solemn position. Strengthened with his spiritual energy, the sword aura that was released targeted the cross-section of the chains, breaking each link decisively.
The Mind Space shook; the chains rattled and loosen and fell into the abyss below them.
The pagoda didn\'t reclaim its vibrancy. It was waiting for its host to resolve the problems plaguing it. The double doors opened. Chen Kai moved woodenly towards it. Each step mimicked his heartbeat.
Climbing the stairs, he focused on the dark interior with each step moving forward. He hesitated at the threshold for a few seconds before going in.
The doors slammed shut.
The sound of flint being scratched was heard, followed by the appearance of slowly burning torches. The room was finally revealed to him.
It was bare if one neglected the torches in the room. The floor was carpeted in an imperial red color. The walls were white and revealed the dark wood foundation pillars of the pagoda.
Chen Kai looked around for an exit or any specific detail in the room but there was nothing. The door disappeared when it was closed and there was no access to the upper floors. He was looking once more to confirm everything when he felt a disturbance before him. Turning to the source, a three-tiered marble platform materialized. Slowly, a gilded chair appeared with an intricate design on the legs and arms.
It wasn\'t long for a human-like phantom to appear.
Chen Kai recognized the attire the phantom wore. The tailor-made, embroidered blue and gold Tang suit was a gift presented to him by his mother. When his eyes reached the phantom\'s face, his mood became solemn. Long dark hair in a stylish ponytail, pale complexion but lively eyes, a gentle aura in a frail body - this was Li Yun. His original life.
Thin lips smiled his way as they sat back and observed Chen Kai.
"We\'ve always said we will leave with no regrets. Did we go back on our word?"
The phantom spoke eloquently. Two timbres of voices melded together - one steady not too dominant not too subservient and the other low, soothing.
After its question, a 3D projection lit up beside it.
The couple was recognizable from the start.
"Mother. F-father." The universal names forced their way out. He stumbled forward and burned their image in his mind.
The couple exuded love and care for each other as they walked hand in hand along a grassy path. The woman was glowing. She walked with pride, showing off her pregnancy. The man was ecstatic. He was going to be a father soon.
He smiled, seeing his parents so happy.
The image faded. Another one appeared.
They were in a doctor\'s office. The mood wasn\'t right. The doctor had on an apologetic and strained expression as he delivered the news to the couple. His parents were dumbfounded. Shock. Despair. Disbelief. It was all on their faces as they placed their hands lovingly on the woman\'s bulging tummy.
The image shifted to them in their family mansion and older couples were arguing and berating them. They were pointing their fingers at his mother\'s stomach.
He knew of this scene.
The elders of the Li clan wanted his mother to put him up for adoption because of his birth defect. "Those leeches!"
His parents disagreed with their demands. As per consequence of their rebellion, they were expelled from the family, severing all ties with them. "We didn\'t need them. We never did," he muttered. His eyes were blurry as he witnessed his mother crying on her knees before her in-laws until his father lifted her in his arms and left the Li Mansion with his head held high.
"They knew what it meant to give us life. They were willing to go through it all for us."
Tears fell when the image shifted to his mother going through a difficult birthing and standing guard over an enclosed bassinet filled with wires and tubes for weeks. He was diagnosed with a rare heart defect. Li Yun wasn\'t able to have a normal childhood. His days were filled with caution and doctor visits. His parents struggled with his medical bills but their love never faded.
A six-year-old Li Yun was projected. It was a simple playtime in the park with other kids his age but it was too much for him. He collapsed, sending his friends and nearby strangers into a panic.
Chen Kai clenched his hands tightly when the image of him in a too-large hospital bed came up. He was a fragile child with so many tubes and needles in him. His heart was the main problem but his body became weak from his heart\'s lack of use. His body was growing and working slower than the average child. He was placed on a special diet, specific pills, stricter doctor examinations, and a sheltered life. When he woke up, his mindset changed. Little Li Yun witnessed firsthand the look of fear and hopelessness on his parents\' faces. His father made a solemn promise to protect him and his mother gave her all to keep him alive.
"We were so young but had to grow up so fast. We knew our life was borrowed. We just didn\'t know when it will be taken from us."
The phantom- Li Yun was in a somber mood while he watched the images of their past life.
The two watched on and relived moments of triumph, fear, uncertainty, pride, determination, and accomplishment.
Li Yun lived a sheltered life but he had ample time to absorb knowledge of the world and put it into use. His love for computer science helped him in his days when he was hospitalized. His schooling was done online; he had high marks in every exam; he applied to college earlier than most and he created little everyday programs or apps to pass the time.
A certain image popped up.
"No." Chen Kai closed his eyes not wanting to see it. He still hasn\'t processed it, even after so many years.
"We must."
The doctors gave him a deadline for his life - twenty years. Li Yun was to die in the year of his twentieth birthday but he proved them all wrong and lived till he was twenty-two.
The image began to play.
It was his twenty-second birthday. He was surrounded by his parents, their neighbors, and a friend he met online who turned out to be a great friend despite the distance.
The celebration was foremost for his birthday but also the 1 year anniversary of three of his most popular apps that elevated the social and business world. His small, local company was growing. He was excited because this was the legacy he created. It was for his parents to live a carefree life after he leaves them.
The current scene was Li Yun standing before his parents with a joyous smile on his face. His attire was the same as the phantom wore.
Li Yun made it known that his parents were the major shareholders of his company and his best friend will be the second. He hired capable people to carry on his work and developed four apps to be released over the course of five years. They were all patented and only his father had access to such files.
His mother began to cry.
She figured it out.
He was stating his will at his birthday party.
His father tried his best to be strong but no one can ignore the tears flowing down his tired face and the violent tremble in his hands.
His best friend stepped forward weakly. He too was trying to keep himself together.
The neighbors sensed it all and stayed silent.
What they didn\'t know was the facade Li Yun was displaying as he spoke.
His body was gradually getting weaker and his breathing was becoming a chore but he stood steadily and spoke. His heart began to ache - from low pangs to forceful piercing.
He winced slightly. His best friend caught it and quicken his steps.
"Brother. What are you doing? Stop. Let\'s go to the hospital."
Li Yun stopped talking and slowly took a look at the faces who cared for him over the years. His gaze fell back on his parents who were stumbling forward. He knew they wanted to hold him one last time. He weakly held onto his friend and reached out for his mother.
"How lucky was I to have you as a friend," he said softly. Li Yun took a deep wheezing breath and staggered forward.
Warm calloused hands held his frail one.
Tears blurred his vision but he saw them.
He saw his loving parents.
"Mother. Father." He tried to smile when he looked at them.
They both held him close. They tightened their hold when he lost the strength in his body.
"Yun\'er! No. Not today. Please. Stay with Mommy for one more day."
His heart slammed violently against his chest causing him to cry out. Li Yun knew it was time.
"Was I... a ..good... son?"
Chen Kai rushed to the still image of his parents crying over his lifeless body. His best friend was sitting beside him with soulless eyes and his neighbors were all in a panic, crying and shouting.
"What did they say?! TELL ME!!! Was I a good son? Were they proud of me? They did so much. I took away their life. Tell me. What did they say?" he begged. He fell to his knees crying with his focus on his parents.
This was his regret and his underlying guilt.
His parents suffered because of him. The hushed conversations, the exorbitant medical bills, the lack of living, the jobs they had to take to get money - it was all for him.
The phantom-Li Yun waved his hand at the image.
"Ah! My boy! My sweet boy!"
This was the first time he heard his father cry. His guttural cries made Chen Kai even more desperate to hear their answer. They brought him to life only to suffer like this.
"Yes, Yun\'er. Yes. You\'re my good son. My precious boy!" His mother had him in her arms, silently crying as she rocked them gently back and forth.
"Mother. Father. I miss you."
The phantom-Li Yun took one last look at the image. He knelt beside Chen Kai. They both looked at their parents with tear-streaked faces.
Slowly they lowered their heads and bowed deeply to their parents\' forlorn image. They said two words that covered their entire life. They owed them that much.
"谢谢 {Xièxiè}"
The image faded.
The phantom slowly dissipated. The wisps danced around the room and divided themselves into the number of torches in the room. The flames reached out and held the wisps. Gradually the wild golden flames turned into a melancholy blue, calmly burning on the torch.
[Mental Faculties - 75%]