"Do you... believe in souls?" Jack exhaled a long puff of smoke and asked this as his first question.
"I used to be an atheist, but now all sorts of strange things have emerged. I've even seen the legendary bloodsucker, so it doesn't seem so strange to believe in souls!" Bai Ru nodded gently, responding without surprise.
"Then I have to tell you that my soul doesn't actually belong to this body. Do you believe that?" Jack lowered his head, looking directly at Bai Ru as he asked.
"What do you mean?" Bai Ru put down her hands that were supporting her chin and looked at Jack with a face full of astonishment.
"Before I turned twenty-two, this body still belonged to its original owner, but after twenty-two, it belongs to me!" Jack turned his head to look at the astonished Bai Ru and smiled as he said, "Actually, this is not hard to understand. It's like a car; the original driver left and handed the car over to me. The car's appearance hasn't changed, but its essence has!"
Bai Ru covered her small mouth in surprise to keep herself from gasping, then foolishly asked, "Then... what about the original driver?"
"This kind of thing can't be explained in just a few words. Anyway, the original Jack has left this body. You can understand it as he and I have merged into one. I inherited his memories, but he can never again control this body. What remains is merely a memory in my mind!" Jack looked at Bai Ru, whose expression was dazed. He reached out and gently stroked her long hair, saying, "I know this sounds like a myth, but that's the way it is!"
Bai Ru slowly furrowed her brows, lowering her head to digest this for several minutes before looking at Jack and asking, "Then... where did you come from? Did you also come from another body?"
"Do you remember the last time we encountered the zombie dog, when a guy named Rashuel took over my body?" Jack looked at Bai Ru, and seeing her nod, he turned his gaze to the distant wall. After a moment of silence, he continued, "Actually, Rashuel wasn't wrong; he is me, and I am him. I am a part that was split from his soul and ended up in this body!"
"Can souls really be split?" Bai Ru was once again shocked, her mouth agape in disbelief.
"Of course they can! Otherwise, how would there be a condition like dissociative identity disorder? That's actually a form of passive soul splitting. Normally, an ordinary person cannot split their own soul, but Rashuel is different; he comes from hell, and you can think of him as a very high-level demon!"
"Huh? Are there really demons? So does that mean you are a demon?"
"I don't know; I guess even Rashuel wouldn't be able to answer that question!"
Jack chuckled and continued, "Whether human or demon, everyone has their own soul. It's just that their souls are very powerful and possess many special abilities. The difference between demons and angels lies in the fact that one is filled with evil thoughts while the other is filled with good thoughts. When a demon has more good thoughts than evil ones, it can become an angel. Conversely, if an angel has more evil thoughts than good ones, it can also fall and become a demon. As for me, I am actually a part of the good thoughts that Rashuel split from his soul, and that part of good thought ultimately formed the soul in my current body!"
"Oh, I understand now. Good thoughts in a demon's soul are like cancer cells; they fear that an increase in their good thoughts will weaken their beliefs. So Rashuel split you off, right?" Bai Ru asked, looking enlightened.
"Yes, that's a very apt metaphor. Even Rashuel himself said so. After all, both good and evil thoughts exist simultaneously in the souls of demons and angels, just in varying degrees. Even in my body, there is a part of evil thought hidden away. This is something every soul cannot avoid because where there is white, there must be black!" Jack shrugged helplessly and let out a long sigh.
"Then why doesn't he just eliminate you? Why send you to the human world?" Bai Ru asked, somewhat confused.
"Splitting is one thing, but if he were to eliminate me, he would suffer serious harm himself! Moreover, he had a significant conspiracy when he brought me to the human realm!"
Jack looked at Bai Ru, his expression gradually becoming serious. He then said in a heavy tone, "Every demon has great ambitions, and Rashul is no exception. Every demon desires to come to the human realm, whether to destroy or to dominate. This is the most persistent thought in the minds of all demons. However, there is a very mysterious force that restricts them between hell and the human realm. The stronger and more malevolent the soul, the less likely it is to come to the human realm. But every restriction has its loopholes. Rashul brought me here because he found a slight loophole in that mysterious force; he wants to use me to descend into the human realm!"
"Like smuggling?" Bai Ru asked cautiously.
"Pretty much!" Jack nodded with a smile and said, "It's very difficult for a soul with evil intentions to come from hell to the human world, but a soul with a good heart doesn't have those restrictions, so I can easily come from hell to the human world. However, I and Rashuel are two parts of the same soul, and even that mysterious power cannot completely sever the connection between us. Rashuel wants to slowly corrupt me, letting the hidden evil within me overcome my good intentions. That way, I would willingly transfer most of his power into my body, and Rashuel only needs half of his original power to dominate the entire world!"
"Then, will you be in danger, my husband? You didn't want to take me with you before, was it because of this reason?" Bai Ru looked at Jack with concern, her eyes misty.
"Yes, there's a ticking time bomb inside me, and I have no choice. Although I can abandon my mental resistance during a crisis and let Rashuel control this body to fight for me, everything comes at a cost, especially when making deals with the most evil of demons. I don't know how many more times I can endure such transactions. Each time he occupies this body, I get closer to being completely corrupted. If one day I am fully corrupted, I will become a great demon walking in the human world, utterly irredeemable!" Although Jack always wore a faint smile, there was a hint of fatigue in it.
"You're really silly, my husband. If the whole world is ruled by demons, wouldn't I be unable to escape as well?" Bai Ru gently touched Jack's cheek and said softly, "Hearing you say this, many of my previous doubts about you have suddenly become clear. You are actually a very contradictory person. You are really handsome and mature when you fight, but in life, you can sometimes be shy like a big boy. Is this because you are still in the process of self-learning?"
"Don't make me sound like a robot, okay? But you're not wrong!"
Jack smiled wryly, feeling quite melancholic as he said, "Most of my knowledge and experiences of this world were left to me by the previous Jack. After absorbing his memories, I naturally understood his worldview and values. However, the previous Jack was very obsessive and had a dark personality, which instinctively made me resistant. So I started to eliminate the distorted concepts in his memories and learn what I believe to be correct and positive. But those memories still deeply influence me. For example, when I'm in danger and trying to save someone, I can't help but hesitate. So sometimes I really can't tell whether I am the reformed Jack or the kind-hearted Rashuel, or perhaps a combination of both!"
"Actually, you are neither. You are you, a brand new Jack!" Bai Ru gently shook her head, grasped Jack's hands, and said passionately, "Because the previous Jack didn't have Bai Ru, and the future Rashuel won't have Bai Ru, but you have me. From now on, I will accompany you through every moment, allowing you to be a Jack that belongs only to yourself!"
"Hmm!" Jack nodded, touched, and Bai Ru leaned forward, kissing Jack deeply on the lips.