One-Eyed Monster

”You’re me?” At this moment Adventurer was no longer as shocked as before; he was gradually starting to grasp what Teacher Hadi’s Inner World was really about.

”I am you!” The man in Black Cloth opposite him replied. He had already let go of the rope and was no longer straining to pull it. ”It’s a pity I couldn’t make you and me merge into one. We were just a tiny bit away.”

”Why do we have to merge into one?” Adventurer didn’t understand what this other self across from him was talking about.

”Either you Devour me, or I Devour you. This world is that cruel; you don’t have to be so stupid about it.” The Black-Clothed Adventurer went on lightly.

”I won’t Devour you.” Adventurer spoke with finality; he was slowly untangling this thread.

”It’s not about whether you want to or not. This is something that’s bound to happen. I can’t just turn around and Devour you just because you refuse to Devour me, even though we were so close just now…”

”I don’t understand what you mean…”

”Of course you don’t. You’re an idiot, taking up the body and doing nothing with it. It’s about time I took over this body as the main controller. But why are you still resisting? What are you resisting for!” The Black-Clothed Adventurer grew a bit anxious and started roaring.

Adventurer quietly watched this Black-Clothed version of himself. The thread he’d been slowly tracing out was gradually becoming clear.

”You are my other side.” Adventurer examined the Black Cloth opposite him carefully, and asked with some curiosity.

”Yes, and no. You’re nothing more than another side of me.”

”So you’re saying there’s a mirror between us, but in the end we can’t tell who’s the one standing in front of the mirror?” Adventurer offered an analogy.

”That’s right. It might be you, it might be me, but what that adds up to is Adventurer. Whether you win or I win, in the end we’re going back to Adventurer’s body.”

”Since you and I are the same, why is it that I know nothing about you, but you know so much about me?”

”Because I’m in the dark and you’re in the light. Everything about you is exposed to people, while I’ve stayed hidden the whole time, so hidden that even you can’t see me. That’s why you know nothing about me, while I know you inside out.”

”If that’s the case, why didn’t you just wipe me out directly? I’m such an eyesore.” Adventurer said. He felt that a lot of what this Black-Clothed Adventurer was saying was self-contradictory, very different from what he’d imagined, almost like he was trying to bluff him.

”You occupy the body; you’re the controller. We’re just a thought hidden behind you. You can call yourself Adventurer; we can only be called Adventurer’s other side.” The Black-Clothed Adventurer explained.

Adventurer gradually understood: here, he was also just one side of Adventurer; it was only because he was the main controller that he had that sense of being the ”real” one…

”Here, you and I are equal. There’s nothing more to say about that.” The Black-Clothed Adventurer said. ”Right now we’re both facing ourselves directly. In the end, one of us will walk out of here and occupy that body to go on living.”

Adventurer—or more accurately, one side of Adventurer—suddenly understood. Right now, he was facing himself head-on!

Only by knowing yourself can you walk farther. If you can’t even see yourself clearly, what meaning is there in anything?

”I don’t think we’re the only ones, either. A person doesn’t just have two sides; there are many sides, even if only one of them is what finally shows on the surface.”

”You’re not wrong. But those other sides don’t yet have the ability to step out and look you and me in the eye. Some of them are still immature; some I’ve quietly covered over and Devoured in the dark. I’m not like you, always putting on that stupid act.” The Black-Clothed Adventurer sneered; he seemed convinced he could seize the body and ascend to the peak.

”Would you directly give Adventurer the identity of an Adventurer?”

”Not just an identity. I’ll lead him to the summit, grant him limitless power, make him a powerhouse in this world!” The Black-Clothed Adventurer said.

”But that’s not what I want!”

”You are you, but you’re not Adventurer. I am Adventurer. You should step down!” The Black-Clothed Adventurer was getting a little impatient.

”Why should I be the one to step down? Haven’t I always been here?”

”You’re too weak; you can’t handle any of it. Leave it to me. You have to leave it to me!” There was already a hint of pleading in the Black-Clothed Adventurer’s tone.

”You remind me of someone. Back on Guru Mountain, I met Senior Kuren. You know, he had a title: the Butcher.”

”Don’t talk about useless things. Hurry up and go. Come with me, go there, and become an Adventurer right away!” The Black-Clothed Adventurer didn’t want to talk anymore; he tried to drag this other side of Adventurer toward that destination.

”Just like you said, the Butcher was strong—so strong no one could match him. But you know what? Senior Kuren didn’t like that kind of strength. He didn’t like that version of himself.”

”Stop saying all this useless crap. Hurry up and leave. You’ve occupied the body for so long—why? It’s my turn now. We’re all thoughts that sprang up from the same place, so why do you get to occupy it for so long…” Rude complaints spilled out, yet the Black-Clothed Adventurer’s mood didn’t shift; he was both furious and flustered.

”What I’m saying isn’t useless. Everyone has their own choices. We’re all thoughts that sprang up from the same place, but why is it that my weak thought gets to occupy the body? Because I’m the thought Adventurer truly wants.”

”If that’s true, then why do I exist at all? You’re talking nonsense!”

”It’s not nonsense. I’m the one who is originally Adventurer, and you’re just a dark side, a dark side steered by emotion, wanting to cut corners and take shortcuts. That dark side is precisely what Adventurer would never allow to happen.”

”Don’t do this. It wasn’t easy for me to get out. Don’t do this!” The Black-Clothed Adventurer suddenly shifted from earlier insistence to outright begging; he seemed terrified of being Devoured.

”You don’t have to be like this. I know I fundamentally won’t Devour you, and you’re not going to Devour the other sides, either. Every side is an aspect of Adventurer’s will. No one is a sage; everyone makes mistakes. The evil thoughts that arise are nothing more than momentary impulses, emotions taking control of me. What I have to do now is learn to control my emotions.”

Without a sound, the image of the Black-Clothed Adventurer collapsed with a crash. That patch of darkness suddenly began to dissolve completely. The rope marked with Symbols, and those distant caves, all turned vague and unreal, as if a light touch of a finger would cause them to crumble.

”You finally came out!” Teacher Hadi’s voice rang out at last.

”I’m out.” Adventurer felt clear-headed and refreshed, as if reborn.