Tang Hao didn't know whether it was because his soul ring had come from Ah Yin or something else, but he felt deeply uneasy.
He hurried to the small cave, only to discover that his Ah Yin was gone.
"No... that can't be." Tang Hao spread out his Soul Power to sense the surroundings, but there wasn't the slightest trace of a soul master. He could only blame it on nearby children or villagers discovering Ah Yin's unusual nature and taking her away.
Tang Hao spent the entire afternoon searching the village for Ah Yin. Even when he saw a child with a Blue Silver Grass clamped between their teeth, he hurriedly examined it with his Soul Power.
Despairing, Tang Hao dragged his heavy feet forward.
"Da... Dad." One-year-old Tang San looked at his father like this and struggled to call out with his still-underdeveloped vocal cords.
"Little San." Seeing Tang San calling for him from the doorway gave Tang Hao a tiny sliver of hope again.
From then on, Tang Hao went from being dispirited to becoming even more dispirited. Drinking, being lazy and gluttonous, and being absentminded—these all became labels village chief Old Jack attached to him. Of course, that was a story for later.
Meanwhile, Nan Xuan had already brought Ah Yin to a secluded forest far away from Holy Soul Village.
Nan Xuan stopped, spread out his domain, and replanted Ah Yin in the soil.
Nan Xuan looked at Ah Yin, whose leaves had all curled together, and smiled faintly. Then, a strand of spiritual power enveloped Ah Yin and pulled her into the Network World.
"This is the Network World?" Ah Yin was no stranger to this place. She had once had her own account here, but after her sacrifice, the Network World's rules had deleted it. Everything in it had been transferred to Tang Hao's account as her direct relative.
In truth, at the moment she was about to die, she had considered sending all her spiritual power into this world. That way, she could have lived as long as this world did. But Nan Xuan knew about that loophole and never gave her the opportunity. If that had really happened, this world would have been thrown into chaos.
"Who are you? Why do you have the ability to pull me into this world?" Ah Yin, dressed like an elegant noblewoman, asked Nan Xuan in utter terror.
"Don't you already have an answer in your heart?" Nan Xuan said with a smile.
That was right. Ah Yin had indeed formed a guess, but she didn't dare believe it. Could he really be the God of the Network?
"Nothing is impossible. I'm still human right now; I merely possess a god's abilities."
"For example, I can make an ordinary Blue Silver Grass evolve into a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast in a short time."
"Or I can resurrect a soul beast that has sacrificed itself and turn it back into a human."
Nan Xuan smiled as he spoke.
Yet that smile made Ah Yin feel a chill run through her.
"So why exactly did you take me away?" Ah Yin asked worriedly.
"If I hadn't taken you away and left you struggling in that sunless little cave, how much longer could you have lasted?" Nan Xuan did not answer her question directly and instead asked another.
Ah Yin fell silent, because she knew her own condition. If she had not been the Blue Silver Emperor, she would have died long ago in that place.
"Your lover, Tang Hao, clearly knew you were a plant-type soul beast, yet he still insisted on doing this. What was he thinking?" Nan Xuan shifted the question onto Tang Hao.
In Nan Xuan's eyes, Ah Yin was love-struck to the bone. Even after becoming pregnant, Tang Hao still dragged her around everywhere, yet she had not resisted.
"Let me show you a picture book." Nan Xuan sent Ah Yin another copy of the Lan Hao Picture Book he had previously given Liu Mumu.
Its contents were the comic story of Tang Hao and Ah Yin.
"How did you know what happened between us? And in such detail?" Ah Yin roughly skimmed through the picture book and asked in astonishment.
"I'm the God of the Network. As long as you posted something in the Network World, I can deduce a thing or two from it. Besides, Tang Xiao is a loyal believer. Such a small matter isn't difficult." Nan Xuan waved his hand.
Nan Xuan pointed to the final few chapters of the picture book, signaling for her to read them carefully.
Very quickly, Ah Yin noticed something was wrong.
The picture book depicted Tang Hao taking her, who was about to give birth, out of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Below it was a question: "Why do you think Tang Hao took Ah Yin away at this time?"
The next chapter showed Tang Hao lingering in a city near the Clear Sky Sect.
The question beneath it asked, "If Tang Hao loves Ah Yin so much, why didn't he take her straight back to the sect? Could worldly rules really matter more than Ah Yin, who was about to give birth?"
The second-to-last chapter showed Tang Hao wandering aimlessly through the city at night with his wife, who was about to give birth.
The question asked, "Would your husband take you shopping when you were about to give birth?"
The final chapter showed her sacrifice. She looked at those questions and the various answers from netizens beneath them.
Scenes from that time surfaced in her mind. Looking again at those questions and answers, she fell into deep thought.
Esteemed readers, I have something to say, though I'm not sure whether I should say it.
After all, it might be a little too cruel for you.
At midnight tonight, this book will be going premium.
To be honest, the book's number of favorites hasn't been very high so far. This is my first time writing a book, and also my first time writing a premium-release note. I don't dare act like those big authors and say, "Read it or don't, I don't care." That absolutely isn't how I am.
I'm begging you to read it.
I'm excited, but I'm also nervous. I don't know how this book will turn out, but I still want to keep going with all of you.
Especially those who wanted to be my dad yesterday—I took screenshots.
Don't make me create a group chat and beg you over video.
All right, enough nonsense. I'm looking forward to this new journey, with all of you by my side.
Nan Xuan watched Ah Yin sink into thought and chuckled inwardly before quietly observing her.
It had to be said that an Ah Yin who looked like a virtuous wife and loving mother was many men's first choice for marriage.
After a long while, Ah Yin asked Nan Xuan, "Have these picture books already spread across the continent?"
Nan Xuan thought for a moment before answering, "More or less. Tang Xiao made this; I only helped a little."
"And don't blame Tang Xiao. He only wanted to share your pure love story with everyone and clear both your names a little. At least then one of you wouldn't be called a soul-beast traitor while the other was called a human traitor." Nan Xuan was still quite fond of his loyal believer. Tang Xiao had meant well and could not be made to take the blame.
"I understand. I only want to know how Ah Hao and my child are doing now." Ah Yin's gaze was calm, with none of the terror or worry from before.
"Them? They're my neighbors now, and they're doing fairly well. Tang Hao is just a little dispirited and likes drinking. He's now the blacksmith of Holy Soul Village."
"As for your son, I don't think he's your son anymore." Nan Xuan said with a smile.
"What do you mean by that?" Ah Yin asked anxiously.
"How should I put it? I suspect your son has been possessed. The one inside his body now is another soul." Nan Xuan briefly described Tang San's situation.
"How is that possible? Ah Hao is a Title Douluo. How could anyone possibly harm our child?" Ah Yin said in disbelief.
"Nothing is impossible. This world is full of unknowns to begin with, especially something like souls." Nan Xuan himself had transmigrated here, and even he could not figure out what was going on.
"Has Ah Hao not noticed at all?" Ah Yin asked through tears.
"Maybe not yet, but he probably will in the future. After all, a powerful person capable of possessing another body must have unique methods. During their daily life, Tang Hao, as a Title Douluo, will definitely notice eventually." Nan Xuan waved his hand as he thought.
Nan Xuan was quite curious. Tang San had displayed so many strange traits, yet Tang Hao had not noticed any of them. That made this Title Douluo seem rather fake.
But perhaps Tang Hao had noticed and simply saw that Tang San was talented, thinking he might someday avenge him. Since Tang San was also willing to call him Dad, perhaps Tang Hao had not exposed him and accepted him as his son.
Ah Yin clasped her hands together, lay on the table, and wept.
Nan Xuan did not disturb her. Only after her crying stopped did he ask, "You've read the picture book. What do you think about the questions and answers beneath it?"
"There's a saying: the people's eyes are sharp."
"So I think you shouldn't be as foolish, pure, and innocent as you were when you were first with Tang Hao."
"I don't know. I don't know what I should do." Ah Yin was truly helpless at this moment. When she had gone through the events shown in the picture book, she had sometimes considered these things as well. She was a woman, and she cared whether her lover truly loved her.
It was just that she had no choice at the time. Pregnant and near delivery, she was afraid of being abandoned and afraid of causing Tang Hao trouble, so she obeyed his every word.
Looking at Ah Yin before him, Nan Xuan felt somewhat moved. She was just like abandoned women from his previous life's world—lonely, miserable, and helpless.
Nan Xuan sighed. "Since that's the case, I'll make the choice for you."
"You already doubt whether Tang Hao loves you. Whether he loves you or loves your soul ring, you can find out for yourself."
"As for whether your son is still your biological son, you can see that for yourself too."
"But all of this comes with restrictions and conditions." Nan Xuan would not help others for nothing unless they were truly pitiful. As for Ah Yin... sigh, she had partly brought this upon herself.
"The restriction is that from now on, you must live at my side as my distant cousin. Without my permission, you cannot reveal that you are Ah Yin."
"As for the condition, I'll help you restore your hundred-thousand-year cultivation and even modify your true body. But you must sacrifice yourself to me and become my ninth soul ring. Of course, this isn't really a condition—it is the only requirement for you to regain human form."
After saying all this, Nan Xuan looked at the taciturn Ah Yin and softly asked, "If you accept my choice, leave the Network World with me. We'll begin immediately."
Nan Xuan covered Ah Yin with spiritual power, but he did not forcefully pull her away. Instead, he gave her the authority to choose for herself.
Just as Nan Xuan expected, Ah Yin did not hesitate for long before leaving the Network World and returning her spiritual power to her true body.
Nan Xuan smiled. He spread out his domain to observe the surroundings, then dark-blue Soul Power emerged from his martial soul and wrapped around the Blue Silver Emperor's true body.
Afterward, Nan Xuan used his torso soul bone skill to draw some medicinal power from both the Aromatic Silk Beauty and the Aromatic Silk Beauty, then transferred it into the Blue Silver Emperor's true body.
Nan Xuan felt it was unlikely that she could evolve again. At most, he could optimize and perfect her somewhat. With the medicinal power of the Aromatic Silk Beauty, she might even gain immunity to a certain degree of poison. Then she would not have to keep taking out Immortal Herbs in the future; simply revealing her soul ring would be enough.
After thinking it over, Nan Xuan added spiritual power as well. Under Nan Xuan's various adjustments, Ah Yin felt as though she had been reborn. Although the process was painful, she could clearly feel the changes occurring in her true body.
About a day later, the Blue Silver Emperor, originally forty centimeters long, had grown to one hundred meters. Dozens of vines danced like skirt ribbons. Besides the original pale-gold patterns, its true body now bore an additional dark-blue one. Fully unfurled, she resembled an enormous tree.
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