"Papa," Bloom said, turning to the ancient oak, "doesn't he seem nice? He made the bad feelings go away."

"Master," the ancient oak's voice had changed, becoming confused and somewhat alarmed. "What has happened to the child? Her spiritual signature feels... different."

"Would you like the same treatment?" I offered.

Despite knowing that the ancient tree would likely have a completely different reaction to being freed from mind control, likely a negative reaction, I still felt it was the right thing to do.

The tree hesitated, clearly torn between programmed loyalty and growing awareness that something significant was happening. "If... if it pleases you, Master."

This time, I had to use significantly more qi.

The oak's consciousness was ancient and more deeply rooted, literally and figuratively. I extended multiple streams of qi toward the tree's vast spiritual network, keeping each tendril passive as they made contact.

The tree's Xuan Yi responded with overwhelming force, rushing to defend against what it perceived as an invasion. Centuries of accumulated conviction threw itself at the qi with desperate fury, devouring the foreign energy piece by piece.

The moment the Xuan Yi had finished evolving, the change in the tree's behaviour was dramatic.

"What... what did you do to me?" the tree's voice was no longer reverent but filled with a growing, terrible understanding. "I can see clearly now. What I felt before... that wasn't loyalty. That was..."

"Mind control," I said quietly.

As expected, the ancient tree's branches began to shake with rage.

"You... you violated my mind! Made me grovel like a slave! Made me teach my own child to worship you!"

The ancient oak's spiritual pressure flared as centuries of cultivated power focused into pure fury. Branches creaked ominously as the tree prepared to strike, and I tensed, ready to flee. I had no intentions fighting them after the mess I had accidentally created.

"Papa, no!"

Little Bloom darted between us, her small form placing itself directly in the path of her father's wrath. "He didn't mean to hurt us! He made the bad feelings go away, remember? He helped us!"

The oak's rage faltered as he looked down at his daughter. "Child, you don't understand—"

"I understand Papa was trapped and now Papa isn't," she said with the simple logic of the very young. "And I understand the nice mister made us feel better. So maybe Papa shouldn't be mad?"

The tree's branches slowly lowered as he studied his daughter's earnest face. Then he looked at me, really looked, and I saw the exact moment his anger transformed into something else entirely.

"She's right. You freed us," he said slowly. "You could have left us trapped in false devotion, using us for whatever power that worship provided. Instead, you chose to liberate us from slavery."

"I'm sorry," I said, meaning it. "I never intended for any of this to happen. I was just experimenting with energies I don't fully understand, and they affected you in ways I didn't foresee. I should have been more careful."

The ancient oak was quiet for a long moment.

"Few beings of power would admit fault so readily," he finally said. "Fewer still would act to correct harm they caused accidentally. I misjudged you, and for that I apologize."

I released a sigh of relief, glad that I could clear up the misunderstanding. And I knew that the ancient tree genuinely meant it because once again, I felt Du Yanze's spiritual pressure surge upward, carrying me from the middle of the Crowned Heart Realm to the late stage.

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"Yay!" Bloom clapped her tiny branches together. "Papa isn't angry anymore! And the nice mister is getting stronger!"

Before I could respond to her innocent enthusiasm, I became acutely aware that my backside was thoroughly soaked.

Throughout my experiments, I'd noticed the boulder beneath me becoming increasingly damp, but I'd attributed it to morning dew or some other natural phenomenon.

Now it was impossible to ignore. The rock was practically streaming with moisture.

"Right," I muttered, standing up and brushing off Du Yanze's robes. "I think I've been sitting long enough anyway."

The moment I stepped away from the boulder, a voice spoke up from below: nervous, apologetic, and deeply embarrassed.

"Please forgive this worthless seat, Divine Master! This pathetic stone knows it has failed in its most basic function! To allow the magnificent one's robes to become damp is an unforgivable transgression! This servant has brought shame upon all stones everywhere!"

I stared down at what I'd assumed was an ordinary piece of granite. Du Yanze's spiritual sense, enhanced by his recent advancement, immediately detected the presence hiding within the stone.

Peak Crowned Heart Realm.

This boulder was a Crowned Heart Realm cultivator, and apparently it had been serving as my meditation seat for the past several hours while slowly... sweating. From anxiety.

"You're a cultivator," I said, more statement than question.

"The Stone Emperor of Eternal Destiny!" the boulder proclaimed, then immediately deflated. "Though clearly this worthless one has proven unworthy of such titles by failing to provide adequate seating comfort. Please, Divine Master, punish this servant for its inadequacy!"

"You're a Peak Crowned Heart Realm expert and you've been... pretending to be furniture?"

"Not pretending, Master! Serving! When this one felt your overwhelming power, it immediately recognized its proper place in the cosmic order! What greater honor could exist than to serve as a throne for one who commands forces beyond mortal comprehension?"

I rubbed my temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Just how many lives had I unknowingly affected?

"I'm going to try something," I said, placing my hand against the stone's surface. "This might help you think more clearly."

I began channeling qi into the boulder's spiritual structure, expecting to find the remnant effects of the same kind of blue sun manipulation I had encountered with the trees.

But except for the evolution of the creature's Xuan Yi, nothing else happened.

The Stone Emperor's consciousness was exactly as it appeared: terrified with no trace of external influence.

I tried again, pushing more qi through the connection, searching for any sign of artificial compulsion or programmed loyalty.

Still nothing.

"Master?" the Stone Emperor's voice quavered with worry. "Have I displeased you? Is my spiritual foundation too flawed to accept your divine energy?"

I stepped back, frowning. The blue sun energy effects hadn't lasted on the Stone Emperor like they had on the trees. Whether that was because of the Stone Emperor's superior cultivation level, or because the effect was more effective on plant-based life forms, I didn't know.

All I knew was that the Stone Emperor wasn't being mind controlled.

"You're... actually choosing to be a chair," I said, still struggling to process this.

"The most honored chair in all existence!" the Stone Emperor declared with what sounded like genuine pride. "To support the weight of one who can casually manipulate the fundamental forces of consciousness itself; surely there is no greater purpose for a mere stone!"

It seems I had terrified the poor stone to the extent that it had decided that the safest course of action was to serve as my personal furniture. This also explained why its subservience didn't have the same effect on Du Yanze's cultivation as the ancient tree.

With a sigh, I looked at the sweating boulder, then at the two trees who were watching this exchange with fascination, then back at the boulder.

This realm was going to drive me insane.

"Master," Azure whispered. "There's something wrong with this place…"

I couldn't help but agree, and it seemed to have something to do with this Xuan Yi that was messing with people's heads.

Extending my left hand, I summoned a small amount of qi, letting the familiar spiritual energy dance around my fingers. In my right hand, I called forth some of the local Xuan Yi, watching as the belief-based energy swirled in chaotic patterns.

When I'd compared qi to harmonic essence back in the Realm of Living Lyrics, I'd noticed some differences, but mainly similarities, which made sense as qi was nothing more than a higher and more refined form.

But looking at qi and Xuan Yi side by side, they seemed fundamentally different.

Qi flowed with natural laws and cosmic principles. Xuan Yi moved according to will and conviction.

I let the qi dissipate and replaced it with blue sun energy.

Now this was interesting.

Both blue sun energy and Xuan Yi specialized in creation and manipulation of consciousness.

Both seemed designed to drive their users towards different forms of madness.

And clearly, blue sun energy didn't need to use its normal subtle insidious method to exert its influence on the locals; it could override and reprogram Xuan Yi with disturbing ease.

"Master," Azure said quietly, "are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

I stared at the swirling Xuan Yi in my palm, feeling pieces of a much larger puzzle clicking into place.

The familiar unsettling sensation I'd been getting from Xuan Yi ever since arriving in this realm wasn't because it was a derivative of a stable form of energy like qi.

It was because Xuan Yi was derivative of a corrupted energy source - blue sun energy.

Which also meant whoever had created the Realm of the Chosen had either personally visited the Two Suns world, or had learned about blue sun energy from someone who had.

There was another world walker…

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