Chapter 539: The Way to Distinguish Truth From Falsehood (Two-in-One)

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Yan Jing knocked on the door to Mu Tian's office.

"I'm not seeing anyone," Mu Tian's voice called out from inside.

"You haven't even asked who it is," Yan Jing said.

"Who is it?"

"Yan Jing."

"I'm not seeing anyone."

Inside the office, Mu Tian clutched his stomach, his forehead dripping with cold sweat.

This bastard. He had already handed the Great Prison over to him; couldn't he just leave him in peace for a moment...

But that damn knocking started up again outside.

"Boss! You don't sound too well!" Yan Jing's voice rang out again.

"Get lost!" Mu Tian snapped. The moment he opened his mouth, pitch-black blood trickled down his chin.

But Yan Jing didn't leave.

Instead of leaving, he smashed the door open, just like he had the last time.

Seeing Mu Tian's grimacing, sweat-drenched face and the black blood splattered across the floor, Yan Jing immediately pulled out the Advanced Healing Potion he had just obtained at the end of Stage A and tossed it to him.

Mu Tian stared at the vial in his hand. Gritting his teeth, he popped the cap and downed it in one gulp.

Once he finished, his entire body relaxed as the agonizing pain finally subsided.

"Things didn't look this bad before I left." Yan Jing looked at the slowly recovering Mu Tian and smiled. "Something isn't right with you, Boss."

"There was a slight problem," Mu Tian replied coldly.

"No, it doesn't look like a simple problem." Yan Jing narrowed his eyes. "Are you trying to break through to the Tenth Tier?"

"That has nothing to do with you," Mu Tian said coldly.

"Of course it has something to do with me. My job is to keep you alive until this whole mess is over." Yan Jing sat down on the sofa nearby. "Why are you still trying to reach the Tenth Tier? Shouldn't you just focus on recovering and wait for that woman to willingly sacrifice herself to you?"

Mu Tian didn't want to answer the question, but seeing Yan Jing's posture, he knew the man wouldn't leave until he got an answer.

"Her sacrifice wouldn't guarantee my success. To be precise, the chances are actually quite low. What else do you think those bastards are waiting for? If my success were guaranteed, do you think they would let me live to see that day?"

But Yan Jing wasn't satisfied with that response. "You still haven't answered my first question. Why are you so dead set on breaking through to the Tenth Tier?"

"Why do you talk so much?"

"Like I said, this is my job."

"Then you're screwed," Mu Tian sneered. "You aren't going to finish this job."

"Why?"

"Because I'm probably going to die."

"Why are you going to die?"

"Why are there so many damn 'whys' with you?!" Mu Tian finally snapped. He stood up, his lips trembling slightly as his voice rose. "Is 'why' really that important? Do you have to question everything?! What does it change if you know, or if you don't know?! Do you really think you can figure everything out? Even the Deity of the profound Erudition Pathway doesn't understand everything!!!"

"Do you think I want to die?! But that's just how this world works. Things don't just go the way you want them to. It's terrible, absolutely terrible, do you understand?!"

Mu Tian was genuinely furious.

Yet Yan Jing felt this "genuine" fury wasn't true anger.

It was the kind of venting one did with a friend.

A man like Mu Tian could cause thousands to die just by frowning. If he was unhappy, he could slap a group of Summit experts to death. Yet, here he was, talking.

Talking to Yan Jing. A human he had known for less than half a month.

"Loneliness is terrifying, isn't it?" Yan Jing said. His words were like the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Mu Tian felt his pent-up anger suddenly evaporate. No matter how hard he swung his fists, it felt like punching cotton.

This human sitting across from him—who looked no older than thirty—always did this. A casual remark from him could accurately pierce straight through your weak spot. It was as if this man had lived far longer than he had. Compared to him, Mu Tian felt like his years had been fed to the dogs; they had done nothing for him except give him a few white hairs.

That was exactly why he was so infuriating.

Mu Tian sighed and slumped back into his chair.

"You wanted to ask me about the River of Time?"

Yan Jing nodded. "Someone told me you were dying, so I wanted to ask my questions while you're still around."

Mu Tian sighed again. "Weng Lingxiao was right."

"That's why I never thought he would betray me," he couldn't help but mutter, as if recalling his previous error in judgment.

Then, he looked at Yan Jing and asked, "Why did you enter the River of Time?"

"To be honest, I don't actually remember entering the River of Time," Yan Jing said with a smile.

Mu Tian nodded. "I understand. It was for a woman, and not just any ordinary woman."

Yan Jing froze for a second.

Having finally scored a point, the corners of Mu Tian's mouth curled up. "If it wasn't for a woman, you most likely would have just told me. And if it wasn't a woman who was special to you, you would never have stepped into that River." Yan Jing smiled and didn't deny it.

"Give up on that River."

After a few seconds of silence, Mu Tian gave Yan Jing an unexpected piece of advice.

"Obsession will destroy a person. You are still young, with a bright future ahead of you. It's not entirely impossible for you to reach the Demigod Realm in this lifetime. There's no need to waste your youth and your years for the sake of a woman."

"If you really think about it, a lot of things just aren't worth it. Right now, you feel full of vigor. You feel invincible. You think the story of fighting against the whole world to save the woman you love is incredibly badass. But when you finally reach the flower in the mirror and moon on the water—only to realize that you've exhausted everything and that drawing water with a bamboo basket results in nothing—you will regret it."

When he said this, Mu Tian wasn't even looking at Yan Jing. His gaze was fixed straight on the opposite wall, as if these words weren't a warning meant for Yan Jing, but a reflection on the first half of his own life.

"That was what an elder told me on the day I reached the Summit," he murmured softly.

"So, do you regret it?" Yan Jing asked, looking at Mu Tian with a smile.

Mu Tian's gaze turned distant. "If only I did."

Yan Jing followed Mu Tian's line of sight toward the painting on the opposite wall.

It was the painting he had noticed the moment he first stepped into Mu Tian's office.

"You saw it as soon as you came in, didn't you?" Mu Tian asked.

Yan Jing smiled. "In an office with absolutely no other decorations, a painting that takes up half the wall is hard to miss."

"So that's why you insisted on bringing that kid Ning Wei into my office later." Mu Tian suddenly chuckled. "You're a genius, Yan Jing. No matter how much I hate you, I have to admit that."

"Thank you." Yan Jing smiled and nodded.

Bringing Ning Wei to Mu Tian's office had indeed been part of his plan, which was exactly why Ning Wei's attitude had changed so drastically after leaving the room. "So, this really is the young master's mother?" Yan Jing said, staring at the woman in the painting.

The woman wore a black and white formal dress draped with a layer of black veil. Her gentle eyes were downcast, her expression one of deep sorrow.

Mu Tian didn't answer the question directly. Instead, he said, "Her name is Ning Zhuoran." After pausing for a few seconds, he looked at Yan Jing and asked, "What do you think of how she looks?"

"She looks pretty sad. Like she was captured, imprisoned, and forced into a marriage by you, only to find that she couldn't even seek death."

Mu Tian took a deep breath, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. "At a time like this, a normal person would say she looks very beautiful."

"She is beautiful," Yan Jing answered sincerely. "It's just a shame that she doesn't look very happy."

Those words plunged Mu Tian into another daze.

He didn't speak for several minutes.

It wasn't until the minute hand moved again that he sighed, dropping the subject of the woman.

"Are you here to ask me how to enter the River of Time in your current state? Or are you here to ask how to tell if you're already in the River?" "I want to ask both," Yan Jing replied.

"Quite greedy, aren't you?" Mu Tian chuckled. "But I have to warn you in advance. If it's the first question, it can still be solved. If it's the second, knowing the answer might not leave you better off than you are now. More accurately, you will definitely regret knowing it."

"Tell me. I'm prepared," Yan Jing said, his expression calm.

"In three days, Pure Blood City will arrive early to pick up their people. I need you to handle Xiao Wei's wedding for me. Don't let anyone interfere, and make sure he is sent off safely." Mu Tian laid out his condition.

"I can do that." Yan Jing nodded.

The fact that Pure Blood Heavenly Kingdom was coming early to pick people up revealed a lot of information.

The man before him, who had ruled the Great Prison for centuries, was likely truly nearing the end of his road. In order to see his child leave safely, he had accelerated the process.

Seeing Yan Jing agree, a hint of relief flashed through Mu Tian's eyes. "I don't know exactly how many times you've entered the River, but the aura of time on you is so heavy that even someone like me, who isn't from a time-related Pathway, can feel it. Based on my estimations, you must have gone in at least five times."

Five times...

Yan Jing recalled Rabbit saying that the absolute limit of the River of Time was 'six'.

Had it already been five times...?

Yan Jing's gaze deepened. He truly had no memory of it whatsoever.

The memories in his head right now felt completely intact. He couldn't find any gaps or missing pieces.

Watching Yan Jing's expression, Mu Tian spoke up. "That is why I'm actually very puzzled."

"That River does love to tamper with people's memories. Like I said before, once you enter it, you forget why you went in. And once you fish someone out, you forget that you ever saved them."

"But there is one exception."

"That is when you enter, but you fail to fish out the person you wanted to save."

"In other words, the Anchor Point dies, and you are forcibly ejected from the River."

"Yet you claim you don't remember anything at all."

"Either... you are currently still inside the River and haven't recovered your memories yet. Or, regardless of whether you are still in the River or not, you successfully saved your Anchor Point before your last entry."

Mu Tian's last sentence was convoluted. Yan Jing took a long time to parse it before he finally understood what the man meant.

In other words, either he was still in the River right now, experiencing the first scenario where the River altered his memories.

Or he was in the second scenario of memory alteration, having successfully saved the person.

But even in the second scenario, it didn't rule out the possibility that he was still currently in the River.

He might have stepped into the River while already inside the River, saved the person, and then had his memories wiped again.

"So you understand now, don't you?" Mu Tian smiled. "Why I said the second question would bring you despair."

"I can tell you how to figure out if this place is the River or not. But how would you know if what I'm saying is the truth?"

"Or, for that matter, if I am even real? Maybe I am just a reflection cast by the River, and what I want to tell you is merely what the River wants you to hear."

"Does the River really have that much free time?" Yan Jing's gaze remained tranquil.

"Do you think there are many people who enter the River?" Mu Tian smiled faintly. "Taking a step back, not only might I be fake, but even you could be fake. A false reflection spending its entire life chasing after so-called reality—don't you find that despairing?"

Yan Jing shook his head. "Not really."

Mu Tian stared blankly. "Why?"

Back then, he had agonized over this very question for a long time.

When he exhausted his entire life to reach the Summit, only to realize he might just be a phantom in the River, his Dao heart had nearly shattered.

Perhaps, reaching the Summit was a lie.

The so-called Tier was a lie.

Becoming stronger was nothing more than amusing oneself inside the River.

Perhaps every single one of them was just a reflection, living their whole lives within a predetermined script written by the River.

And there was no way to prove it.

Any proof you found could have been deliberately planted by the River. The ancient texts you unearthed were left behind by the River. Even if you painstakingly tracked down a great entity, or even someone in the Demigod Realm, to tell you the truth—that great entity could simply be another reflection.

He had been genuinely plagued by this problem for ages, only finding an answer at the very end.

But now, Yan Jing genuinely didn't look conflicted at all.

So his 'why' wasn't a challenge; he was asking Yan Jing sincerely.

He wanted to know how Yan Jing's mind worked.

"Just a moment ago, Vice Domain Chief Weng told me not to care about whether this world is real, or whether what others tell me is true. He said I only need to care about whether I am real."

"But the truth is, I don't even care if I'm real."

Yan Jing's gaze was indifferent. "It doesn't matter if I'm a phantom."

"Finding Wen He and living on with the people around me—that is my only desire."

"It doesn't matter if we're all phantoms. Phantoms have their own lives too."

"But that River might be able to easily strip everything away from you!" Mu Tian stood up and spread his hands, seemingly desperate for Yan Jing to understand the bewilderment he had felt back then.

"If it actually does that," Yan Jing said, his face still placid, "then that becomes the next problem to solve."

Mu Tian sat back down.

He looked at Yan Jing, staring at him for a long time, before suddenly bursting into laughter.

Yan Jing's answer still wasn't the solution he had ultimately found. In fact, to be precise, it wasn't a solution at all.

This man was just acting completely shameless.

What kind of fucking subjective idealism was this?

You asked him whether things were real or fake, and his response was essentially that reality was whatever he believed it to be.

But precisely because of that, Mu Tian began to laugh.

He thought of himself. If he had managed to come up with this answer sooner back then...

Perhaps he wouldn't have been reduced to such a state.

"Listen closely, kid. This is the answer I found."

Mu Tian conjured two mirrors in his hands and faced them toward each other. Each mirror reflected the other endlessly, creating an infinite corridor of reflections until they vanished into darkness. He looked at Yan Jing to see if he grasped the meaning.

Yan Jing looked at the two mirrors and nodded. "I understand."

"What do you understand?"

"Even the Heavenly Dao will wither away."

It was a sentence that seemed completely unrelated to the question, but the moment Yan Jing said it, Mu Tian suddenly roared with laughter.

He laughed so hard he rocked back and forth, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.

Yes, even the Heavenly Dao would wither—that was exactly what he wanted to tell Yan Jing.

The Heavenly Dao would wither, and so would the River of Time.

If the River of Time wouldn't wither...

...then the River of Time was the Heavenly Dao itself.

And in that case, the distinction between true and false didn't matter anymore.

He had spent a full ten years searching for that answer. He had nearly succumbed to qi deviation several times, leaving him with countless hidden injuries. Yet now, Yan Jing had understood his point just from looking at two mirrors.

He laughed for a long time before looking at Yan Jing, his gaze slowly turning serious. "Kid, if the River within the River of Time were completely identical to the original entity, then there would be another identical River within that River, and another identical River within that one, and so on. No matter what kind of existence the River of Time is, it would absolutely be unable to bear the burden."

"Therefore, the River within the River of Time is absolutely not the same as the real one."

"I found hundreds of test subjects and had them use Soul Fruits to enter the River of Time. Forty-two of them successfully returned. Six of them saw a River of Time within the River of Time, chose not to enter it, and even recorded their findings. By comparing the two Rivers of Time, I verified my hypothesis."

"Even though the differences are minute, they do exist."

Listening to Mu Tian's words, Yan Jing's expression didn't grow excited. Instead, he spoke indifferently. "But that only proves that a River within the River of Time is different from the original entity. It doesn't prove whether or not the River I'm looking at right now is the very first one."

Mu Tian's expression grew even calmer. "But... I found a new method..."

Yan Jing stood up, turned around, and started walking toward the door.

Mu Tian frowned. "Are you not going to listen?"

Yan Jing didn't turn around. Instead, he stopped in the doorway and smiled. "You killed your Anchor Point, didn't you? And then you discovered that you didn't exit this 'River' you thought you were in."

Hearing Yan Jing's words, Mu Tian's gaze seemed to turn a little sluggish.

He opened his mouth, but in the end, no words came out.

Several seconds passed.

"Yeah, I did." He nodded at Yan Jing. "That's why I want to bring her back. Well? Does this answer disappoint you?"

Yan Jing smiled faintly. "It doesn't matter if I'm disappointed or not, Boss."

"I wish you happiness."

With that, he pulled the office door open.

"This place isn't the River," Mu Tian's voice called out from behind him.

"I know."

Yan Jing stepped out of the office.