Chapter 66

(AN: I was really having trouble deciding what to do. My mind was debating this for hours and I finally decided to rewrite it. The last chap was just filled with shitty plot holes and I didn't like that. Well, for me at least. This chapter might be way worse but I'm going to stick with it. I won't be rewriting any more chaps since it just kills the pace of the story so...sorry about that. But this will be the final version of the chapter and I'll be continuing the story from now on.)

Yang Chen, Seventeen and Lanlan arrived back to the house, inside the main bedroom

Lanlan's eyes started sparkling as she looked at the new surroundings, "Mama, how did we get here?!"

Seventeen smiled and lightly pinched her daughter's little nose.

Lanlan giggled and she turned to Yang Chen.

"Papa, do you know?"

Yang Chen became slightly surprised. He never would've expected Lanlan to be calling him her father this soon.

After Lanlan had found out that Yang Chen was her father from Song Tianxing, she became extremely happy. Now with her mother here and father, they can become a real family. This was all she ever wanted.

Yang Chen gave a teasing smile, "It was magic."

Lanlan eyes became brighter, "Papa, you know magic?!"

Yang Chen nodded and placed his hands behind his back and made a chocolate bar appear. He then extended his hand toward her and offered the chocolate.

"Of course."

"Thanks, Papa!"

Seventeen felt hurt. She was beaten by a damn chocolate bar.

Yang Chen smiled and patted her on the head. He then had her sit on the bed so she can enjoy her sweet while he would do some talking with Seventeen.

"I'll be giving my wife possession of her body now." Yang Chen went straight to the point.

Seventeen bit her lip. She didn't want to separate from her daughter so soon.

"Is there no other way?" Seventeen asked softly.

"There is." Yang Chen replied plainly.

Seventeen's hope reignited and she asked quickly, "Then what is it?!"

"I could create you a body so you won't have to share one."

Yang Chen nodded, "Yes, so is that what you want?"

Seventeen was about to answer without hesitation until she saw her reflection on the mirror. She then looked toward her daughter and became stumped.

'How am I going to explain this Lanlan? She won't even recognize me anymore?!' Seventeen thought with panic.

Before her negative thoughts could escalate, Yang Chen asked something.

"By the way, what are you going to do if you decide to go with this?"

Seventeen's negative thoughts were put on hold and she replied firmly.

"I plan to take my daughter and raise her by myself. Anything to get her away from your enemies and your killing life."

Yang Chen sighed, "You know, I left that life a long time ago. The moment you died, I came here in search of a peaceful life and to start a family. Besides, that wasn't entirely my fault, my mind wasn't in the right place and my thoughts were filled with insanity with a d.e.s.i.r.e to kill endlessly."

Although he was now the true Yang Chen and was going to tackle all his problems. That didn't mean he liked being blamed for something he didn't do.

Yang Chen shook his head, "I didn't. I was really suffering from an illness that made me go insane."

Seventeen widened her eyes. But she still had trouble believing this story so she clenched her fists.

"Liar." Seventeen said softly with anger evident in her voice.

Yang Chen shrugged, "It's up to you to believe if I'm lying or not. Getting back to the point, do you want me to create you a body, yes or no?"

Seventeen was in turmoil. Her heart wasn't in the right place right now. She began recalling memories about the past when she was still following Yang Chen. And in her memories, she did notice that he was getting more ruthless as the days went on. She still didn't even know how Lanlan will take this if she decided to get a new body.

"...C-Can you give me some time to think?" Seventeen asked with her head lowered slightly so you couldn't tell what facial expression she was showing.

"That is a question you should be asking my wife." Yang Chen said.

Seventeen raised her head, in order, to look at Yang Chen.

"T-Then can I speak with her?"

"I'll ask her first. Now, give me your hands and close your eyes."

Seventeen released a slight smile and took his hand as she closed her eyes.

Thirty seconds later, Ruoxi opened her eyes and showed a face that was about to cry.

"Ruoxi, what's wrong?" Yang Chen asked worriedly.

"Why didn't you tell me that you had an illness?!" Ruoxi asked quickly with some tears falling down her face.

Yang Chen scratched the back of his head, "So you were still able to see even though Seventeen was in control, huh?"

Ruoxi didn't respond and waited for his answer to her question.

"Look, the illness is gone already. When I came back to China, my mind started to repair itself when I was exposed to a calm and peaceful environment. I also have a friend that really helped me out with this."

Yang Chen didn't want to lie but he had no choice in this one. He couldn't tell her the real reason for the sudden disappearance from the illness because he didn't even know it. He had some speculations but the was pretty much it.

Yang Chen went up to her and hugged her waist, "So... Since you saw everything then what do you want to do about Seventeen. Are you going to speak to her?"

Ruoxi snuggled onto his c.h.e.s.t, "I think, I will. When she was in control, I could feel her anxiousness and panic. She was really scared about the consequences of this decision."

Yang Chen nodded, "Alright then."

Ruoxi lifted her head and kissed him on the lips. She then looked toward Lanlan and found her sound asleep. Her heart suddenly felt warmth as she looked at this sleeping child.

Ruoxi then looked back toward Yang Chen, "Hubby, how will I be able to communicate with her."

"I will be sending your consciousness inside your subconscious mind where all your memories are stored, your beliefs, skills and etc... It is also where you will be able to talk to Seventeen." Yang Chen explained.

(AN: Yeah, Idk if that's true but I'm going with it.)

Ruoxi was a little stunned, "You can do that?"

Yang Chen smirked, "Of course." He continued.

Ruoxi nodded and she closed her eyes.

Yang Chen put two fingers on her forehead and gave it two taps. Ever since he had started cultivating that soul technique when he had reached the Soul Formation Stage, his soul has gotten incredibly stronger. Now he can communicate with lost souls if he wanted to. Although he rarely cultivates this technique, it is still a useful and powerful skill in itself.

-----

Ruoxi opened her eyes and she could see everything was really vague for a second. She was standing in a big circular room with countless doors all around. The walls and doors were polished cleanly and the roof of the place was made of glass. It gave the setting sun, on the outside, a clear view.

On top of each door, there was a nameplate.

Ruoxi could see the one she was looking at had the nameplate with 'memories' on it.

Ruoxi was amazed. This was the mind inside her subconscious. She looked around some more until she found two doors that were a few distances away from each other and had no nameplates on them.

One was all black and gave off an eerie feeling while the other one was completely silver. This one gave off a very majestic aura. It was literally glowing in the bathing sunlight from the roof.

"Why do these two doors have no nameplates and the others do?" Ruoxi asked herself in a confused manner.

"I don't know." Came a cold voice from the side.

Ruoxi was startled and nearly jumped. She then looked toward the direction of the voice and found it was coming from the black door.

It was a very pretty woman with an attractive figure. She was wearing an elegant blue dress with her slim white arms and legs exposed. She also wore a pair of white flats as her long black hair extended all the way to her h.i.p.s. She was standing in front of the black door.

Ruoxi became cautious, "Who are you?"

The woman waved her hands to ease her worries.

"I'm Seventeen."

Ruoxi became surprised. This was Yang Chen's old lover.

'She's pretty.' Ruoxi thought.

Seventeen's face started to show bitterness.

"Hey..."

"Yes..." Ruoxi answered with a bit of awkwardness.

"How did you...end up falling for that bloodthirsty man?"

Ruoxi blushed as she knew who she was referring too.

"...I just did..." Ruoxi said awkwardly as her blush deepened.

Seventeen found that funny. She had known Yang Chen all her life and she never expected that man to make a woman this beautiful fall deeply for him.

Ruoxi coughed to erase the awkward atmosphere, "How did you end up in this...place?"

Seventeen started thinking, "I really don't know. I just woke up, not too long ago, in the outside world. Then thirteen brought me here inside this room."

Seventeen was referring to the black door she was standing in front of.

"What's inside?" Ruoxi asked.

Seventeen opened the door, "Come in and see it."

Ruoxi nodded and followed her inside. Suddenly as she was entering, something prevented her from going inside. It was as if an invisible wall was blocking her out. She couldn't even see the inside of the room, everything was covered in black mist.

Ruoxi became shocked. This was the same black mist that she had seen when Yang Chen had shown her in the vision of his past as a child.

Seventeen found her expression weird for just entering a room.

"What's wrong? It's just a normal room with a bed and the regular stuff. And how come you don't want to walk in?"

Ruoxi shook her head, "I can't walk inside or see the inside of your room."

Seventeen became slightly surprised, "I see." She then exited the room and closed the door.

"Let's try another one."

Ruoxi nodded and they both walked toward the one that had a nameplate on the top of the door.

Seventeen looked at the nameplate that said 'memories' and opened the door. But there was a problem, the door wouldn't budge open when she turned the handle.

They both became confused until Ruoxi tried to open it and the door actually opened!

They both looked at each other with a surprised face before they headed inside. But there was another problem. Seventeen couldn't enter the room. It was just like the same way with Ruoxi and the black room.

Ruoxi entered the room and could see that this room was just like the one on the outside. But this was a hallway and there were countless doors with more nameplates. There were most embarrassing moments, birthdays, school, etc...

Ruoxi peaked her head through the most embarrassing moments door and her face instantly turned red. She then closed the door quickly.

'Why is everything so organized?!' Ruoxi thought with an embarrassed face. She then looked toward Seventeen, who was still outside the door and became confused.

"Why are you not coming in?"

Seventeen shook her head, "I can't." Everything inside the room was blurry for her so she couldn't see anything properly.

Ruoxi found this strange. What was happening? She then left the room and closed the door.

She then started thinking more about this until she looked toward the completely silver door that she had seen earlier.

"What about that one? You want to try it?" Ruoxi said while pointing toward the door.

Seventeen shook her head, "When I first came to this place, I tried entering that door but every time I got closer, the door would get farther away from me. It was...weird."

Ruoxi became slightly astonished and looked toward the silver door. Shen then got rid of the idea since it was now useless.

"Hey...do you really love thirteen?" Seventeen suddenly asked.

Ruoxi became startled by the question before she blushed and looked away, "I do."

Seventeen became deep in thought as she heard her words.

After a couple of seconds of awkward silence, Ruoxi looked toward Seventeen and asked a question.

"Do you still hate Yang Chen?"

It was Seventeen's turn to get caught by surprise. She then began contemplating in her mind with a bitter face.

Ruoxi could tell what she was thinking and said quickly.

"It wasn't hubby's fault! It was his illness so please don't blame him anymore..."

Ruoxi knew it was useless to stick up for her husband since Seventeen had every right to be mad at him even for the rest of her life. But she still wanted to try.

Seventeen's eyes widened before they started to become red, "B-But if it wasn't for him...then I wouldn't have..."

Ruoxi still persisted on her having to forgive Yang Chen.

"Then what about Lanlan? If you leave with her then you'll be making her fatherless."

Seventeen clenched her teeth. She could tell how happy her daughter was when Lanlan addressed Yang Chen as her father.

After a couple of minutes, Seventeen wiped her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Okay."

Ruoxi released a happy smile. This had meant she had forgiven Yang Chen to an extent. Not fully but just enough to not separate her daughter from him.

Seventeen then started walking back toward the room with the black door.

"You should go now. You don't want to keep your husband waiting."

Ruoxi couldn't see her facial expression but she could hear her voice having traces of bitterness.

"Do you still love Yang Chen?" Ruoxi suddenly asked.

Seventeen stopped her tracks. She bit her lip and gave a low nod.

Yang Chen may have been the cause of her death but in truth, she was always ready to die with the life she lived. It was the thought of her daughter not making it that made her hate his guts. But after she found her alive and well, her hate was slowly dissipating. He even helped them reunite even when she was thought to be dead.

"Tell thirteen I refuse his offer for the new body."

Ruoxi widened her eyes, "Why?"

Seventeen turned around and revealed a sad and bitter smile.

"I already died. There is no point in bringing the dead back to life. Just please take care of Lanlan for me."

Ruoxi became shocked. That shock soon turned to anger.

"So you're just going to abandon your daughter?" Ruoxi asked coldly.

Seventeen's subconsciously released tears but she still responded.

"Lanlan...will view you as her mother so it's fine..."

Ruoxi walked up to her until she was right in front of her. She then started at Seventeen with cold eyes.

*Slap*

Seventeen had seen that slap coming from miles away with her combat and skills experience. But her body refused to move in that last second.

Seventeen lifted her hand toward her cheek as she felt the stinging pain. This pain was nothing to her but what truly made her surprised was Ruoxi's face.

Ruoxi had tears in her eyes as she glared at Seventeen. She was even holding her hand as it was also burning in pain.

In all her life, Ruoxi had never hit, let alone slap, anybody before. This was a first for her and she hated it but she had to make her realize how dumb and stupid she was.

"You have a second chance at life and you want to throw it away?!" Ruoxi shouted.

Seventeen lowered her head but you could see sparkling tears falling from her face.

"If you're scared of your daughter not recognizing you then at least try to find an alternative! Don't just give up!"

Seventeen bit her lip until there was blood. What was she doing? She had killed countless people with ease but she couldn't figure out something like this?

Seventeen looked toward Ruoxi and pleaded, "T-Then will you allow me to use your body to see Lanlan sometimes?"

Ruoxi revealed a smile, "Yes, but I need to speak with hubby on how that would work."

Seventeen released a grateful smile with tears in her eyes.

"Thank you."

Ruoxi nodded, "Well, I'll go speak with hubby now. I don't know what would happen to your soul if you were to stay here."

Seventeen nodded gratefully and watched as Ruoxi walked into a completely random door.

On the other side of the door, Ruoxi was crouching while hiding her face with her knees as she was madly blushing.

"Ah! I shouldn't have tried to act like that back there! Now I walked into a completely random room!" Ruoxi shouted out of embarrassment.

Just as she was thinking about how to exit the place, Ruoxi's surroundings changed. She could now see Yang Chen in front of her as he moved his fingers away from her forehead.

Ruoxi became surprised, "How long had I been gone?"

"About two seconds." Yang Chen replied casually.

Ruoxi became even more stunned. Her husband was really powerful.

"So what happened?" Yang Chen asked.

Ruoxi regained her train of thought and started explaining what happened inside her subconscious mind.

"Do you really want to share a body with Seventeen?" Yang Chen asked in a serious tone.

Ruoxi looked away but still nodded.

Yang Chen sighed, "But it doesn't work like that. You said that you couldn't enter Seventeen's room right? Well, that's because that room contains all her memories, beliefs, feelings, etc. Just like she couldn't enter the rooms you could enter because those said rooms belong to you. You two may be sharing the same body but that doesn't mean you two are the exact person. If she were to stay in your body while being awake then that would cause damage to your soul. And I will not allow that."

Ruoxi bit her lip, "Then what do we do?"

Yang Chen sighed, "If you really want to keep sharing a body with her then...you could try merging."

"Merging?" Ruoxi asked in confusion.

Yang Chen nodded, "It will combine both your souls together. But if you go with this then... you will both be one and the same. A completely new person..."

Yang Chen didn't know how he felt about that. But if Ruoxi actually went with this option and her soul was somehow suppressed then he would forcefully separate them and never try it again. But he could still make it so that Ruoxi's soul becomes the dominant one.

Ruoxi was stunned by this, "S-So I won't be the same anymore?"

Yang Chen nodded, "Yes, and no. You will have all your memories, personalities, and the other stuff but in addition, Seventeen's memories, personalities, feelings, etc... will be added onto yours. So you won't really be the same Ruoxi."

Yang Chen wanted to see her reaction. He was, of course, not going to let her change be too drastic.

Ruoxi began to think seriously. All she really cared about was loving her husband, family, and her new daughter.

It seems after Ruoxi had spent time with Seventeen, her motherly feelings toward Lanlan increased drastically.

Ruoxi then became deep in thought. If they really did merge then she would be able to experience Seventeen's life with Yang Chen. Although not entirely but this was a selfish wish she wanted. She knew their lives were difficult but she wanted to know more about her husband. So she didn't care about the consequences of the matter

Ruoxi looked like she had made up her mind and nodded toward Yang Chen.

"I see... But this will still take time. Your souls pretty much have to become more closer so they can get linked and become one." Yang Chen explained.

"What do you mean closer?" Ruoxi asked with a weird expression.

"You just have to do what you both like doing. For example, taking care of Lanlan or something that you both have in common."

Ruoxu sighed in relief, "How long until the merge then?"

Yang Chen thought for a second, "It could take a few days up to a few weeks. It all depends on how you two get closer. While this is happening, Seventeen will stay awake so you will be able to switch bodies for a limited amount of time. But if an intense moment where your emotions become unstable, Seventeen might be able to temporarily take over and be in control."

Ruoxi nodded seriously, "Okay. Can you take me to see Seventeen? I want to tell her the news."

Yang Chen nodded and tapped her forehead with two fingers.

Three seconds later, Ruoxi opened her eyes and said, "She is okay with the merging."

"Alright. By the way, you don't have to keep entering your subconscious mind repeatedly. Seventeen can see what you are doing since she is awake."

"Will we be able to communicate?" Ruoxi asked.

Yang Chen held out his hand and made a beautiful diamond necklace with a blue and black emerald appear. He then placed it over Ruoxi's neck.

"When you have this necklace on, you will be able to communicate with Seventeen telepathically. Once the two of you successfully merge then this necklace will disappear. Also, nobody else will be able to see this necklace beside you." Yang Chen said.

Ruoxi became shocked and subconsciously hooked her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss.

"Thanks, hubby." Ruoxi said with a loving smile.

Yang Chen smiled, "We should wake Lanlan up and introduce her to Rose and Wang Ma."

Ruoxi nodded and went to her daughter but something made her stop her tracks. She was hearing somebody else's voice inside her head.

'You don't have to worry about communication with me. I don't...talk much.' It was Seventeen who had spoken inside her mind.

Ruoxi was slightly surprised, 'I see...'

It was quite awkward for them both but Seventeen was just stating a fact. She was never the one to be overly talkative with a person she just met. Although they were both now in a weird sort of relationship, it was still a habit of hers.

Ruoxi shook her head and walked over to Lanlan. She then gave her a gentle nudge.

Lanlan slowly opened her eyes. She then leaned up while rubbing them.

"Mama..." Lanlan yawned.

Ruoxi released a gentle smile and quickly carried her daughter.

"Lanlan, are you hungry?"

Lanlan's sleepiness instantly vanished and her eyes became bright.

"Yes!"

"My Lanlan is just too cute!" Ruoxi said while giving her face kisses.

Lanlan giggled and hugged her mother's neck.

Ruoxi then walked up to Yang Chen while carrying Lanlan and held onto his hand.

Yang Chen smiled and all three of them headed to introduce Lanlan to the family.

(AN: Yes it's the same decision and it's still quite shit but I just didn't like how I made their merging so fast in the last chap. A lot of problems would have risen like that, imo. The merging will happen at the end of the Japan trip since I don't want to wait that long. I'll also be uploading another chap today so...yeah :)