Yu Sheng in the Spirit Realm was blind. After arriving there, unable to see anything, he called out his disciples' names a few times, uncertain of his location and what was happening. He stayed in place for a long time, not running around.
Among the three versions of Yu Sheng, he was probably the most obedient. Realizing he was blind, he didn't panic but guessed it was a side effect of the split and patiently waited for his disciples to find him.
After some time, he encountered the version of Yu Sheng from the Spirit Realm. This memory, lacking visuals, felt somewhat dull. He could only rely on his other senses, mainly hearing and touch, to assess the situation.
Yu Sheng waited for a long time but didn’t find anyone. He started feeling his way around, trying to figure out where he was. When he realized he had entered the Spirit Realm, he paused for a moment, then focused on finding Wen Jiu.
In his mind, since he was in the Spirit Realm, the easiest disciple to find would be Wen Jiu. He thought that maybe, if he waited a little longer, Wen Jiu would come looking for him.
However, instead of finding Wen Jiu, he was found by another group of people. They spoke in a language he couldn’t understand and insisted on taking him somewhere. Yu Sheng immediately sensed that the "invitation" wasn't polite but was rather veiled coercion.
At that moment, he also realized that his strength had diminished; he wasn’t as powerful as before. As an untrained spirit, he was unable to fight back against these people. He had no choice but to pretend to obey and follow them, hoping to figure things out as he went.
When the system finally contacted him, Yu Sheng learned that he had returned to the past. The conversations around him made it clear that these people weren’t after him, but were instead after the past Wen Jiu, and their intentions were obvious.
Yu Sheng was confused for a while, then realized he was being mistaken for Wen Jiu because he was blind and, like Wen Jiu, a unique spirit. These people likely weren’t searching based on physical appearance but based on Wen Jiu's distinct traits.
In the original story, it was noted that the stronger the spirit, the more easily it could alter its appearance. These people must have been searching for Wen Jiu using these traits. Spirits like Wen Jiu and Yu Sheng didn’t have a past or future, unlike beings bound to the cycle of life and death.
However, Wen Jiu's case was different. He was the protagonist, part of the walking god, while Yu Sheng's situation arose because he had split himself into three versions. The difference seemed small, but it was significant—Yu Sheng didn’t have the same potential utility as Wen Jiu.
Soon, Yu Sheng met the real Wen Jiu. He hadn’t been captured, nor had his impersonation been discovered. Instead, Wen Jiu, realizing that someone had been mistaken for him, couldn’t bear to let him suffer and deliberately entered a dangerous situation to rescue him.
At this point in the original plot, Wen Jiu wasn’t very powerful, but he was smart and good with strategy. He skillfully tricked the enemies, outwitting them, and managed to rescue the blind Yu Sheng.
Yu Sheng asked him, "We’ve never met before. Why would you save me?"
He thought to himself that if he didn’t save Wen Jiu, someone else would have to take on the bad things meant for him. In that case, perhaps Wen Jiu would be able to live a period of peaceful life. To Yu Sheng, it was a misfortune, but to Wen Jiu, it should have been a blessing. It might sound cold, but when it came to personal interests and life-and-death matters, who could still afford to be kind?
Wen Jiu only told him, "I’m not like them. They want to use my misfortune to gain their own benefits. If I use your concern for me to secure my own peaceful life, wouldn’t I be just like the people I despise the most?"
Yu Sheng, unable to see, could only try to touch Wen Jiu to confirm that he was still by his side. He thought he would feel a person, or at least a human shape. However, what he touched instead was a patch of feathers, soft and warm, like a bird’s feathers.
That feather-like sensation wrapped around him, and Yu Sheng felt as if he had fallen into a soft cloud. His whole body felt both comfortable and warm, and lying on those soft feathers, he drifted off to sleep.
In Yu Sheng's memories, Wen Jiu was a very gentle and mature person. Rather than a disciple, he seemed more like an elder or an older brother, someone who knew how to care for others and had a kind heart toward everything around him.
However, the Wen Jiu of the present felt much more unpredictable to him. He spoke little and smiled rarely. Of course, this was not in his bird form—birds didn’t smile, after all. Sometimes, Wen Jiu would change into other forms—be it animal, plant, or human—but no matter the form, his tone of voice and the expressions Yu Sheng could feel when he touched him lacked any trace of a smile.
They hadn’t spent much time together, but Yu Sheng gradually realized that it wasn’t just the lack of smiles; this Wen Jiu was different from the Wen Jiu he remembered in many ways. If not for the same name, Yu Sheng might have even thought he had mistaken someone else for his disciple.
He had assumed that Wen Jiu saved him out of kindness, but later, he realized that Wen Jiu’s actions seemed to stem from negative emotions—like disgust, fear, and pain—rather than goodwill. His saving him wasn’t because he wanted to be a good person, but because he despised those who were constantly eyeing him. He didn’t eat because the food tasted good but because he couldn’t stand the hunger. He didn’t transform into various shapes and appearances out of enjoyment or curiosity, but because he hated being remembered. Even when he asked about the weather or time, it was only to calculate how much longer it would be until the next disaster.
More often than not, Wen Jiu was in a state of calm, without any ripple of emotion. It seemed that in his world, even if nothing bad happened, there wouldn’t be anything good either.
Yu Sheng stayed by his side. Wen Jiu never told him to leave but also never invited him to stay. Life was cold and lonely, the darkness endless. Yu Sheng, not accustomed to this kind of life, couldn’t help but start a conversation with him.
"What's the time now?"
"Morning."
"Can you see the sunrise?"
"Sunrise? What sunrise?"
"The way the sun rises from the horizon."
"..." Wen Jiu's tone was calm, without any fluctuations. "This is the spirit realm, not the human realm. The sun is always at the horizon; it neither sets nor rises."
He had actually forgotten.
"Then, is the sky beautiful today? What color is it?"
"Why are you curious about this?"
"Because I'm bored. If I could see it, it must be beautiful," Yu Sheng poked at him with his finger. "Since I'm doing nothing, why not look at the scenery?"
"I don't understand. What's so interesting about scenery? What's wrong with being bored?"
Yu Sheng's attempt to continue the conversation was blocked by him, leaving him unsure how to respond. It was like someone asking him, "What's so good about eating meat? What's so good about drinking wine?" Such simple, obvious questions were the hardest to answer.
At this moment, Wen Jiu seemed more like a stone than even Zhan Xiaotian. His emotions rarely fluctuated. Every day, instead of solving problems or avoiding those who sought him, he simply sat motionless, either meditating or practicing.
Fortunately, his patience was good. Although Yu Sheng could not stay quiet for long, constantly finding things to talk about, playing with his tail, feathers, or hair—whatever form Wen Jiu took, he could always find something to enjoy.
But soon, Wen Jiu figured out a pattern. He realized that when he was in human form, he was disturbed the least, because Yu Sheng would only play with his hair and wouldn’t touch other parts. And if his hair was long enough, even if it was in Yu Sheng's hands, it didn’t feel like anything.
Over time, Wen Jiu would always take human form in front of Yu Sheng, letting his long hair fall, allowing him to braid it or tie it into a bow.
Their conversations were also quite interesting. Despite Yu Sheng being the one who was blind and couldn’t see, he was always the one telling Wen Jiu about the beautiful things in the world—the sunrise, the vibrant flowers and grass, the waves on the grass like the sea when the wind blew. Since he couldn’t see, he would always coax and urge Wen Jiu to go and see these things for him.
Wen Jiu, of course, couldn’t be bothered to look. To survive, having the ability to see spiritually was enough for him. He only wanted to ensure that nothing around him was hostile and that no suspicious creatures, except for Yu Sheng, were nearby.
Rather than seeing the hypocritical faces and useless disguises, he preferred to directly perceive the true intentions of others.
To Wen Jiu, the world was ugly, dull, devoid of color, and even without hope or a future.
He couldn’t understand Yu Sheng's passion for all of this, nor his desire to see those trivial things. He couldn’t understand his admiration, nostalgia, and loneliness.
He couldn’t understand why, when Yu Sheng praised the beautiful scenery, he always added, “You must look really good too. Not everyone who wants to approach you, or inquire about you, is necessarily looking to use you, devour your flesh, or drink your blood. Perhaps they simply admire your appearance and want to marry you.”
Wen Jiu asked without hesitation, “That person is you, right? Who else could it be?”
Then Yu Sheng hid. This was strange; he had known Yu Sheng for so long and had never seen him hide from him before.
Wen Jiu asked, and Yu Sheng said he was hiding because he was afraid Wen Jiu would see him. After all, Wen Jiu always kept his heavenly eye open, able to see through people’s hearts.
Wen Jiu then asked, “You don’t want me to see? Is it because you have hostility toward me?”
Yu Sheng quickly denied it, “Of course not. You’re so good; I can’t even wait to like you.”
“Then why are you afraid of me seeing?”
Yu Sheng thought to himself, of course, he was afraid Wen Jiu would discover that his feelings were pink. Even though Wen Jiu didn’t know what pink represented at the moment, he would understand later, and then Yu Sheng would lose all his face.
Although he wasn’t sure what his feelings looked like through Wen Jiu’s heavenly eye right now.
However, although Yu Sheng hid and didn’t want to be seen, Wen Jiu didn’t understand and truly suspected he had hostility toward him. He pulled him out of the corner, carefully examined him, and bluntly asked, “What’s wrong with me seeing?”
Yu Sheng awkwardly laughed, “Nothing, nothing. I was just joking.”
His offhand comment unexpectedly made Wen Jiu remember it. In the following days, Wen Jiu paid extra attention, observing whether any other spiritual beings displayed the same color of emotion as Yu Sheng did at that moment. He wanted to study what it represented and whether it was dangerous.
In the end, he concluded that “this kind of emotion represents wanting to…”
Wen Jiu was surprised. His usually still heart was suddenly stirred, though only a little.
"You like interesting things, right?"
That day, Wen Jiu suddenly asked him, "So, you want me to also feel and understand what is interesting?"
Yu Sheng answered as a matter of course, "Yes."
"I have a great idea now, much more effective than all the scenery, food, and interesting things you've described to me. Would you be willing to try it with me?"
"Really? What’s such a good method?"
"You."
"......??? What...?"
A kiss landed on his lips. Wen Jiu, inexperienced, looked a little awkward in his movements, tentative yet not shy, acting in a straightforward manner.
The union between spiritual bodies is somewhat different from that of mortals.
In other words, the bodies are far more free...
Usually, Wen Jiu is already very free, able to be human when he wishes, or transform into other forms when he desires. In this moment, he was showcasing this talent.
Everything started too quickly. Yu Sheng didn't have time to react before he felt the touch. Having lived in darkness for a while, his sense of touch had already become exceptionally sharp.
"Wait, wait... Is this what you meant by interesting things?!"
He was stunned, unable to understand how things had escalated so suddenly.
He suddenly remembered what the system had told him before, that the future plot and character development wouldn’t worsen, and meeting the protagonist had nothing to do with it.
The spiritual Yu Sheng didn't interpret it in the literal sense, thinking the future plot had already deteriorated beyond repair. Instead, he suddenly had a flash of insight, thinking maybe this history had been destined all along.
Like those stories he had seen in his past life, where the protagonist returned to the past thinking they could change everything, only to find that it was their actions in the past that led to the tragic future. In the end, nothing had changed.
Yu Sheng froze for a moment as he thought it over. So, the system's words could also be understood as meaning that the actions of his current self, having crossed over into the past, caused the breakdown of the three protagonists' personalities and the collapse of the plot?
Everything made sense now. The original Wen Jiu, the one from the original story, indeed resembled his current self, at least at the beginning of the story.
He had never seen a real landscape, living in a world devoid of color and taste, and he had no interest in anything. His emotions—joy, anger, sadness—were all dull. So, the first person to break through all of this became the most important person in his life.
But...
Yu Sheng thought selfishly, compared to the original Wen Jiu, compared to the original character setup and plotline, he preferred the Wen Jiu from his memories...
If everything he had done today led to that kind of outcome, then even if given the opportunity to correct the mistakes, to restore the worldline, he would choose to turn a blind eye, act ignorant, and not want to lose that warm and gentle little disciple Wen Jiu just for the sake of a task or the worldline or anything else.
Rather than watching Wen Jiu become a tragic protagonist, he would rather help him grow into someone with more warmth.
So, he responded to Wen Jiu, his cool hand pressing against Wen Jiu's back, sincerely and earnestly beginning to teach him how to experience joy and fun.
When they both became as warm as mortals, Wen Jiu gave him his Heavenly Eye.
"Look at me."
As Yu Sheng panicked, Wen Jiu said this.
Rather than continuing to gaze at this world that made him feel uninterested and defeated, it was better to give the Heavenly Eye to the person before him, allowing him to use it to look at himself.
"Why?"
Yu Sheng remembered that the Heavenly Eye was clearly something Wen Jiu had used to protect his life. How could he just give it away...
"If the Heavenly Eye had a heart, it would probably prefer to stay by your side," Wen Jiu kissed him, speaking in a deep tone next to his ear. His usually emotionless voice now carried a hint of feeling.
"I can't see so many beautiful things..."
"So, you look for me."
"Just like I once looked at the sky for you."