CHAPTER 32 — The Price of a Prophet (Part Three)
Zheng Wen Te gasped—
and reality slammed back into place.
The courtyard returned in a rush of sound.
Wind.
Breathing.
Stone beneath his feet.
Hundreds of eyes.
He stumbled backward, nearly falling.
Lian caught his arm immediately.
"Zheng!"
Her grip was firm, but her voice shook.
"What did you see?"
Zheng Wen Te's face was pale.
His forehead was damp.
His lips moved, but no words came out.
How could he explain?
That he had lived before?
That he had abandoned someone?
That his misery in this life was not random—
but consequence?
The disciples stared like they were watching a ghost crawl out of a grave.
Elder Mo swallowed hard.
"That… that was a soul projection."
Another elder muttered:
"No ordinary mortal could trigger that."
Lian's gaze snapped toward the Ancestor.
"You knew."
The sect Ancestor did not deny it.
His eyes remained on Zheng Wen Te.
"The scripture is not reacting to cultivation."
His voice was low.
"It is reacting to burden."
Zheng Wen Te's hands trembled.
"…Burden?"
The Ancestor's tone sharpened.
"Do you think Shangdi chooses prophets because they are pure?"
Silence.
Then—
"No."
His voice became colder.
"He chooses those who are unfinished."
Zheng Wen Te flinched.
Unfinished…
The word struck harder than any insult.
Lian stepped forward.
"Ancestor, what exactly is he?"
The Ancestor paused.
For the first time, something heavy crossed his ancient face.
"A man carrying karma that even Heaven refuses to erase."
A disciple whispered fearfully:
"Karma that… follows across worlds?"
The Ancestor's gaze lifted.
"Yes."
"And the Heart Severing Scripture has confirmed it."
Zheng Wen Te's voice cracked.
"I don't understand…"
The Ancestor looked directly at him.
"You will."
Then his hand moved.
Two fingers.
A simple gesture.
The scripture snapped shut violently, as if sealed by force.
The oppressive pressure vanished.
Zheng Wen Te collapsed to one knee, breathing hard.
Lian crouched beside him.
Her voice softened.
"What did you see?"
Zheng Wen Te stared at the ground.
A long time passed.
Then he whispered:
"A woman."
Lian froze.
The disciples leaned forward.
Zheng Wen Te's throat tightened.
"She said… I left without resolving my heart."
His fingers curled into the stone.
"She said every lifetime after would punish me."
The courtyard went deathly quiet.
Even Elder Mo looked disturbed.
"That's…"
"…a Dao vow," the Ancestor finished.
The words fell like a hammer.
Lian's eyes widened.
"A Dao vow? Between lovers?"
The Ancestor nodded once.
"A vow left incomplete becomes a chain."
Zheng Wen Te shook his head.
"I don't remember her…"
The Ancestor's voice was merciless.
"Karma does not require memory."
Zheng Wen Te's breath hitched.
He suddenly felt sick.
So this life—
his wife leaving…
his children turning away…
his collapse…
It was not only tragedy.
It was repayment.
Lian's voice came out quietly.
"Then… what happens now?"
The Ancestor looked toward the distant peaks beyond the sect.
His tone became slow.
Grave.
"The woman you saw…"
"She was not an illusion."
Zheng Wen Te's head snapped up.
"What?"
The disciples erupted.
"What did he say?"
"She's real?!"
"In this world?!"
The Ancestor continued calmly:
"She exists somewhere under this sky."
Zheng Wen Te's heart began to pound.
The courtyard blurred again—not from scripture—
but from fear.
"Why…"
His voice was hoarse.
"Why would she still exist?"
The Ancestor answered:
"Because unfinished vows do not vanish."
"They reincarnate."
"They wait."
Lian stared at Zheng Wen Te like she was seeing him for the first time.
Not as a useless mortal.
Not as Shangdi's prophet.
But as…
a man dragged forward by something ancient.
Zheng Wen Te whispered:
"…So I can't rest."
The Ancestor's voice was final.
"No."
"You cannot sleep."
"You cannot die."
"Not until you resolve what you abandoned."
The wind shifted.
Clouds passed over the sun.
And for a moment…
Zheng Wen Te felt it.
Not Heaven watching.
Not gods judging.
But someone.
Somewhere.
Waiting.
The scripture, sealed shut, tremble faintly.
As if amused
As if Whispering:
Run if you want...
Your heart will find her anyway.