Mysteries: Arcana Wars

Chapter 416 True Self

Chapter 416: True Self

Klein woke up from suffocation and suddenly sat up from the ground.

There were no more endless corridors that went back and forth, no more sharp, hard, straight ropes like light, and the sticky, empty black tide was gone.

Looking around, there was only the damp and cold cave, and the rough and broken stones beneath me.

I... have been sleeping here?

I was just... in that strange house... being chased... and... having a fight...

then……

The severe headache and dizziness arrived as expected, interrupting Klein's thoughts. It was like throwing his brain into a washing machine, spinning it round and round.

Klein frowned and gave up recalling and replaying the illusion. He just took out his pocket watch with trembling hands and opened it to read it over and over again.

All hands pointed firmly to twelve o'clock.

The illusion compass firmly indicates that this place is real.

Klein let out a long sigh, then fell backwards and collapsed completely on the cold and damp stone slabs.

Anyway, now we are finally back to reality.

Klein just lay on the ground, taking out two gold star coins from his pocket. He wanted to do some divination, but he felt upset and didn't know what to ask. In the end, he just held up the two star coins and stared at them for a moment, then put them back in his pocket.

What is going on?

What am I now...?

After guessing everything, Klein did not feel any joy or happiness at the truth being revealed. Instead, his mind was filled with only a pale confusion.

It turns out that my ending is neither failure nor success.

But... fusion?

Suddenly everything seemed to make sense.

Therefore, during this period of awakening, Klein always felt that there were personality traits that did not belong to [Klein Moretti] or [Zhou Mingrui]. They kept popping up in his mind from time to time, interfering with his behavior and thoughts, and sometimes even driving him to pursue some crazy pleasures, which was something he would never do in the Fifth Epoch.

These behaviors and mental states are clearly abnormal and inappropriate, but my body, mind, and spirit are all silent about these abnormalities and inappropriateness, without any abnormal reactions. It is as if, to me, these abnormalities and inappropriateness are part of normality, and I am like this, and this is my true self.

The only abnormality is one's own denial of oneself.

Therefore, the longer Klein was awake in this world, the more he could feel his own abnormality, like a bit of sticky black oil floating on a pool of muddy water. He grasped this point and dived into the deep pool, only to find that the bottom of the deep pool had already been contaminated by the black oil. As he dug and explored, the sticky black oil followed his movements and surged upward uncontrollably until it stirred up the entire pool.

It turns out that everything is correct.

Only I am wrong.

Thinking of this, Klein suddenly couldn't help laughing. Thinking back to his inexplicable persistence and overflowing self-awareness from the Fifth Epoch to now after he woke up, it seemed like a complete joke.

It turns out that I am you, [Tianzun].

Unexpectedly, back then, [Klein] and [Tianzun] fought for life and death for so long, but in the end they merged into one, and the two sides who fought each other finally became one [self].

It was [me] who was chased, and it was [me] who escaped.

...It's really...ironic...

Klein thought again and felt that this ending seemed a little too good to be true. It was so good that he couldn’t believe it.

No matter how I looked at myself back then, I was too frail compared to that old immortal god who had lived for who knows how long.

After the fusion, a certain proportion of [Klein] and [Zhou Mingrui] can be retained in the new [self]. It sounds like a dream.

Or, it's all fake.

Or... this ending comes at an extremely painful price.

"……crazy……"

Klein blurted out.

How can such a dangerous and cruel adventure achieve such a result without sacrificing enough rationality?

This can also be confirmed from the state and experience after waking up.

Madness was like a black spring that could not be suppressed and kept flowing. It had been rapidly eroding Klein's spirit since he had awakened.

This madness that comes from the depths of the soul is the suture scar of mixed things and the original curse of those who struggle against the will of heaven. It cannot be denied or erased.

Even if one forgets one's memories, one cannot counteract this madness. It will climb up along the soul and the self until it pulls oneself into the abyss and returns to the chaotic state that a true [Lord of Mysteries] should have.

Hiss...From this perspective, if this kind of madness can still find me, does it mean that the me who has just awakened is indeed the true [self]?

So should I... cherish the time of reason I have now?

...So confusing... Such a headache...I feel like I'm going to grow a brain again...

But when his original self-perception was completely shattered, Klein began to feel at a loss and even began to fear himself.

How should I face other people?

When the part that belongs to [Tian Zun] occupies a large enough part in the domain of [self]...

Will I become... no longer myself?

Could it be that Klein, who has now returned to his original simplicity, is just a character created by the real "me"?

A character that completes the script and teases the world?

Klein thought about it for a while and finally decided to trust Melissa and his future self.

Since all this has happened, judging from the performance and attitude of Phantom Melissa, I have actually found a suitable answer in my forgotten memories. In this way, I don’t need to dwell on it anymore. I can just follow the footsteps I have left and copy the homework.

Since the answer is already determined, I just need to move forward and I will find the answer waiting for me.

The only problem that requires your brain to solve may be to think about how to work hard to complete the [script] you have designed for yourself.

But...if...maybe...

...What if Melissa is also an illusion created by my real self for the me of today...?

...No...I can't think about this...

Klein quickly shook his head to get rid of these chaotic thoughts.

Gather your thoughts... Gather your thoughts...

In order to break this damn circular thinking, Klein simply stood up and looked around, changing his state and mind.

His gaze suddenly stopped again.

Just behind him, there was a huge wooden box.