Fates Parallel Chapter 340 - Conviction

Rika chuckled and shook her head.

“You don’t seem too worried. Doesn’t this really mess with your plans?”

Yoshika stared up at the gathering tribulation while she spoke to Rika through Eunae’s body.

“Not really. We don’t think this is our xiantian ascension. It feels different.”

“Oh, so it’s more like what happened with my tribulation?”

Lin Xiulan raised an eyebrow.

“This has happened before?”

Yoshika nodded.

“We helped Rika make some breakthroughs on her technique, and she began her breakthrough to the third stage while we were linked.”

“And now that’s happened again with Princess Seong?”

“We think so, yes.”

Ja Yun paled.

“How are you all so calm about this? There’s a cloud of essence over our heads preparing to obliterate Eunae and you’re all just asking like it’s another lazy afternoon!”

Yoshika chuckled and shrugged.

“We should have plenty of time before it strikes. I suppose it loses its impact a bit after the third time.”

Lin Xiulan frowned.

“Don’t underestimate the power of the heavens. That sort of attitude has been the death of more promising young cultivators than I care to recount.”

“Of course not. I only meant that with our experience, we have all the tools we need to ensure our survival.”

Ja Yun shook her head.

“That’s easy for you to say, but Eunae has to take the tribulation alone, remember? Even if you help her set up formations, she’s not a fighter like Lee Jia or An Eui. Even Rika almost died, and she had the entire Sky Hall array backing her up!”

“Don’t worry, we’ve thought of that as well. Did Yue ever tell you about her tribulation?”

Rika and Ja Yun exchanged glances, frowning.

“She’s in the third stage already?”

“Apparently she reached it some time before even Rika did.”

Lin Xiulan laughed.

“It was quite a shock to us, her tribulation. I wasn’t sure whether to believe her when she insisted on making preparations for it nearly a year in advance. The fact that it happened lent a lot of credence to her stories about you, Miss Yoshika.”

Yoshika wasn’t sure how to react to that.

“Anyway, she survived just fine even without us, and she’s not much of a fighter either. There are more ways to face tribulation than just taking it head on.”

Xiulan scoffed.

“It’s more accurate to say that only the insane or idiotic would imagine taking a tribulation the way you did, Yoshika. You have a plan, then?”

“We do.”

Rika scratched the back of her head, frowning.

“Uh, if you don’t mind me asking—why are you all still linked? You’re not stuck like that, are you?”

Yoshika hesitated. She could have split again at any moment—it wasn’t as if she wouldn’t be capable of carrying out her preparations as Eunae alone.

“We still have something we need to do, first. Sorry, could I ask you all to move the spirit’s flower bush away from the formation area while we do a bit of meditation?”

Rika put her hands on her hips and shook her head wryly.

“No rest for the weary, huh? Alright, as long as you remember to give my girlfriend back later. Come on, Yun, let’s transplant this shrine.”

“Wh—again?!”

Yoshika blushed a bit as the two of them got to work carefully digging up the spirit’s vessel. With so many aspects merged, it was sometimes easy to think of her relationships to others on a more abstract level. But Rika’s comment had served to highlight the fact that she had—depending on how one counted—as many as four different lovers, two of which were herself.

It was just as well that her current state was strictly temporary. Her cultivation made relationships complicated.

Lin Xiulan inclined her head slightly as she turned to go.

“Well, good luck with all that, girls. I’ll leave you to it—I need to make preparations for the arriving delegates. Shall I send Yan Yue up for you? I’m sure she’ll be interested in what you’re doing.”

Yoshika bowed with each of her bodies.

“Yes please. Thank you for all your help.”

Xiulan waved her off.

“Hardly. All I did was stand around and watch. The spirit did reach out to me earlier—it will be safe here for now. Make sure not to let those Bai degenerates anywhere near it.”

With that, Xiulan left Yoshika alone with her thoughts—a tribulation cloud floating ominously overhead.

She sat in a circle and closed her eyes—not in meditation, but just regular quiet contemplation. There was so much to consider that it might have overwhelmed any of her individual aspects, but the union of four minds gave her a perspective she’d never had before.

Yoshika could feel her soul as though it were a physical part of her being—a natural extension of herself no different from an arm or a leg. Like the spirit, it was damaged—corrupted by ideas antithetical to the essence of her identity.

Both wounds were self-inflicted.

It was a risk to try to address them now, when a tribulation threatened to strike at any moment. In theory, she had days or even weeks before it landed, but tribulations were notoriously difficult to predict. The heavens were as fickle as they were wrathful. But Ja Yun’s words echoed in her mind.

“If you don’t do this now, then you never will.”

It had to be now. She was ready. She had all the tools at her disposal, the experience she needed, and completely unfettered access to the scars on her soul. If she could find an excuse not to do it now, then she could find an excuse in any scenario.

Yoshika took a deep breath, and the world fell away beneath her. In its place, Yoshika stood before the swirling vortex of chaos that represented her soul.

She wondered if other people saw their souls the same way. The way Heian experienced the world was completely different, and Yoshika herself had a number of different ways to visualize souls. But it was only when she dropped all of the abstractions focused on the purest essence of herself that she saw it like this.

Was it so chaotic because her understanding of herself was still flawed? Would it become more defined as she grew in power, or was it always like this?

She decided to save such questions for later. She already felt a little bit strange. Like she was an intruder on her own soul—seeing something she wasn’t supposed to, even though she’d already witnessed it plenty of times.

The reason for that was likely the second soul that had joined her usual chaos. Neither had a shape that could be described in words, but while there was no distinct ‘seam’ between them, they nevertheless remained distinct. Eunae’s soul was not fully integrated with the rest of Yoshika.

That was good, of course. As it was, the seamless connection was a little distressing. Though she always knew which parts were Eunae, and which weren’t, it was impossible to tell where one soul began and the other ended.

Jia and Eui on the other hand were completely indistinguishable—they’d long since become a single shared soul.

With a frown, Yoshika realized she was stalling. She wasn’t here to ponder the secrets of her own existence, she was here to correct her mistakes.

She focused on the scars on her soul—the places where the endless chaos of her soul was particularly twisted. It was easier than usual, the instincts from Eunae’s Kumiho fragment subtly bolstering her understanding of the unfathomable depths of the soul.

The first scar was raw and painful. She’d picked at it recently, and even looking at it felt wrong. Yoshika couldn’t bear to approach it. The complicated wave of conflicting emotions threatened her very cohesion.

She turned away sadly—as much as she’d like to repair it, she couldn’t. Not while Eunae was part of her.

The other scar was her real target. This one she could only fix while Eunae was part of her. It was no less painful to look at. A stark reminder of her failure—her lack of trust in herself, and in her friends. It had been easy to blame on the Kumiho, but that was only running from the fact that the Kumiho was part of her too.

Yoshika stared at the twisted gnarl of painful emotions for a long time. Here, there was no actual ‘scar’ for her to erase—no fiery threads of power with which to stitch up the wound. Only her.

She knew what she needed to do. It was almost terrifying how easy it would be. Yet at the same time, it was almost impossibly difficult. How could a person change so easily? Did she even have the right to do this, when her individual aspects might not wish it? It was harder to isolate each aspect when there were so many.

But she had to. Now or never. She was neither slave nor master, and the next time Misun suggested otherwise, she’d slap her—ancestors damn the consequences.

Yoshika reached out and snatched the twisted gnarl of essence from her soul. In an instant, an invisible weight lifted from her shoulders. Nothing had changed—not really—but now she could be certain. Her love was genuine, her trust was real—there was nothing forcing her to act in one way or another, and the smoldering remains of the Soulfire in her palm couldn’t have influenced her if it tried.

She almost collapsed as the tension fled her. As easy as the act had ultimately been, the journey that led her to it had been harsh. Yoshika hadn’t been certain she’d even be able to do it until the moment she took the final step.

Allowing her soulscape to return to her inner sanctum, Yoshika stared down at the pale green ember in her hands. The last remnants of corrupting power she’d unleashed on her own soul.

She considered just throwing it away—it had caused her so much grief. But another thought struck her. Yoshika would likely never form a union like this one again. She was already eager to be finished with it, but she didn’t want to leave it at just that. Why let the last memories of this form be unhappy ones?

The Soulfire embers were a memento of her time with Eunae, and she knew just what to do with them.

With an assertion of her will, the embers turned into threads and Yoshika summoned her personal artifacts. The Claws of Heaven and the Fist of Earth were a pair of mismatched gloves that made Yoshika blush every time she said their name. They were a living artifact capable of growing along with her, and much like her cultivation they were never truly complete.

Into the gloves she’d woven an intricate pattern that represented her and her closest friends. Jia, Eui, Heian, Yue, Dae, and Rika were all represented within the growing tapestry adorning the artifact, and Yoshika was a little disappointed with herself that Eunae had been neglected for so long.

It was time that changed. With a thought, the smoldering thread of soulfire flowed into the gloves and added itself to their pattern on both a physical and spiritual level.

Now, she would always carry a piece of Eunae with her.

—-

Eunae slowly blinked her eyes open and reoriented herself to having only a single body. She frowned at the sheer blue fabric hanging over her face. She’d grown used to the veil after months of having it literally attached to her body, but somehow having it dominate her field of view after what she’d just experienced felt like a grievous wrong.

She’d convinced herself that it was fine. That she could suffer the indignity for the sake of others. Misun had a point—her power was dangerous and poorly controlled, and her ancestor had a bad history with the people of Qin. A little show of good faith would go a long way.

But so what? She didn’t want the veil. Nobody has asked her to wear it, and it wasn’t a decision she’d made for herself.

Eunae reached up and tugged on the veil, the loops of the golden chain pulling painfully on her ears. The chain was enchanted, and Misun was no amateur. There was a thread of divine essence running through the entire thing—from the loops, through the chain, and even the fabric of the veil itself. As far as Eunae was concerned it may as well be unbreakable.

A hand on her shoulder broke Eunae from her reverie—Rika.

“Are you okay Eun-eun? You’ve kinda just been spacing out ever since you finished meditating with Yoshika.”

Eunae was distantly aware that everyone had stopped their conversations to look at her. She shook her head.

“I’m fine, Rika. Sorry for worrying you. I was just coming to a decision.”

She rose to her feet and took a deep breath.

“While I was joined with Yoshika, I came to an important realization. I am nobody’s mistress—but neither am I their slave.”

Eunae clutched the veil tightly, gritted her teeth, and tore the chain from her ears. Her friends jumped back in shock, except for Rika, who leapt forward protectively.

“Holy shit, Eunae your ears! You’re bleeding!”

“I’ll be fine, Rika. I’m done kowtowing to my family’s demands and trying to please them—my older sister especially. I’m a princess of Goryeo just like her, and I’m going to make sure she remembers it. Now...”

She opened her eyes, hesitating for just a moment before looking up. She could feel it deep within her—she knew that it would be okay. She turned to meet Eui’s eyes with a smile.

“Yoshika, could you please heal my ears? This is quite painful.”

Everyone froze, and Yan Yue even covered her mouth to gasp in shock. After a beat, Eui threw her head back and cackled.

“Hehehe, oh you bitch! That’s a hell of a mean prank—I approve!”

Eunae blushed and stared down at her feet, immediately regretting it.

“I-I just wanted to make sure...”

Eui snorted, approaching calmly and reaching up for her ears. Eunae felt the soothing sensation of Eui’s magic run through them as she spoke.

“Sure you did. Calm down everyone—she didn’t just mind control me. Even our geas is gone. You can control your powers now, isn’t that right Eunae?”

Eunae nodded.

“I think I have you to thank for that.”

Eui shrugged flippantly and shook her head.

“Nah, that was all you. Think about it—did it ever really feel like you weren’t yourself? Like you were doing something that you wouldn’t?”

Eunae pursed her lips. Eui was right. The memory of her experience as Yoshika was fresh in her mind. She’d still been herself—just more. At no point had she ceased to be Eunae.

“I guess you’re right.”

Yan Yue let out a huge sigh of relief.

“Don’t scare me like that! I was just about ready to kill you on the spot!”

Eunae coughed awkwardly.

“S-sorry. I guess I was still feeling a bit of Yoshika’s irreverence.”

Eui snorted and Jia sputtered indignantly.

“Hey! Don’t try to pass this off on us!”

Yue rolled her eyes and scoffed.

“Hmph, I can believe it. Well, Eunae, I’m very happy for you, but I’m afraid we have bigger issues to deal with than your newfound confidence.”

Eunae glanced up at the dark cloud above and grimaced.

“I suppose so, yes. I had honestly hoped for more time to prepare.”

“What? Oh, no, I’m sure you’ll do just fine with that—you’re not as stupid as Yoshika—”

“Hey!”

Yue ignored Jia’s indignant protest and bit her thumbnail.

“No, I’m talking about the Awakening Dragon delegates. They are here. My father, Yan De, has arrived.”