Victory

Time seemed to stand still. Qian Yun's attack came down, but Hu Liena couldn't hear a thing...

Had they succeeded? Or were they already dead?

She had shut her eyes instinctively against the blinding light. Now, thinking back over everything that had happened, she asked herself that question and was overcome with guilt toward Qian Yun. I'm sorry, Qian Yun. This was all because I acted recklessly...

"Haah... haah...!"

The sound of ragged breathing interrupted Hu Liena's daze. She opened her eyes, and Qian Yun's not-so-broad back came into view.

Qian Yun was in poor shape. He knelt on one knee, clutching his chest with one hand. His other hand held the Spirit Light, which was planted in the ground to keep him from collapsing.

"Qian Yun!"

Hu Liena stumbled and fell in front of him. Her knee struck a sharp stone, but she didn't have time to feel the pain. She hurriedly crawled over to him.

"Qian Yun, are you all right?" Hu Liena rested a hand on his shoulder. Her dusty face was streaked with tears.

Qian Yun clutched his chest as the Spirit Light in his hand finally faded. He forced a carefree look onto his face and said, "I'm fine. The Dharma Source Barrier protected us. How could anything be wrong?"

At his words, Hu Liena choked back a sob. Only then did she notice the thin, transparent barrier over their heads. As she watched, it too vanished without a trace.

Hu Liena finally felt some relief, but when she saw Qian Yun's injuries, her heart ached and guilt washed over her again.

"You're hurt. It's all my fault... It's all my fault. I'm sorry... This was all my fault." Hu Liena lifted Qian Yun's bloodstained hand, tears falling onto it as she struggled to find the words. All she could do was apologize over and over.

She couldn't bear to imagine what would become of her if anything happened to Qian Yun because of her.

Qian Yun lifted his bloodstreaked face and wiped away the tears falling down hers. His gaze softened. "Don't cry. If you keep crying, my injuries will get worse. Give me a smile. I'll recover faster that way."

"Mm!" Hu Liena quickly stopped crying and forced her lips into a smile so ugly it looked worse than a sob.

"Cough... hahaha." Seeing Hu Liena's comical expression, Qian Yun couldn't help laughing.

"Pfft." Hu Liena finally laughed through her tears too. She smacked his shoulder in annoyance. "What are you laughing at?"

"Sorry, I couldn't help it. But you have something more important to do now." Qian Yun stood and pointed ahead of them.

Not far away, half of the Ghost Moth's enormous body had been cleaved open. Its entrails and blood covered the ground. It lay there, barely alive and at their mercy.

With Qian Yun supporting her, Hu Liena got to her feet and looked at the Ghost Moth that had brought her so much pain.

Its severed claw... the old wound on its abdomen... Grandpa... A-Qiang, Beast King Village, and everyone in the village.

Each memory tugged at her heart.

"Here." Qian Yun placed the Thunder-Attracting Spear in her hand, then murmured in her ear, "Go on."

Hu Liena's gaze settled on the Ghost Moth once more. Hatred she couldn't hide mingled with a sense of release in her eyes. Her thoughts churned, and she furrowed her brow and closed her eyes.

Qian Yun didn't urge her. Hu Liena needed time. Besides, the Ghost Moth had lost the ability to fight back.

After a long while, Hu Liena opened her eyes, now calmer. She met Qian Yun's golden gaze and said, "Qian Yun, let's do it together."

"...All right." He was surprised, but he didn't refuse.

Together, he and Hu Liena raised the Thunder-Attracting Spear, aimed its tip—sharp enough to pierce stone—at the Ghost Moth, and hurled it.

"Thud!"

The muffled sound of flesh and bone being pierced rang out. Qian Yun and Hu Liena gripped the Thunder-Attracting Spear again and threw it with all their strength.

The Thunder-Attracting Spear showed no mercy as it pierced the Ghost Moth's head. The moment the spear sank in, its body finally went limp. At the same time, a regal purple Spirit Ring appeared above its head, shimmering.

One spear through the heart, another through the head—not even the gods could save it!

The instant the Spirit Ring appeared, Hu Liena finally couldn't hold on any longer and sank to the ground.

At last... at last! The nightmare that had weighed on her heart for all these years had finally come to an end.

"Are you all right?"

"Go on. Don't waste the Spirit Ring." Hu Liena lightly patted Qian Yun's thigh, urging him to hurry up and absorb it.

Qian Yun nodded and headed for the Ghost Moth. When he reached it, he planted a foot on its pierced head.

Spirit Beasts usually had their own territory and wouldn't leave unless absolutely necessary. Beast King Village was thousands of miles from Sunset Forest, so why had the Ghost Moth wandered across the continent for so long, only to end up here?

He looked down at the Ghost Moth, turning the question over in his mind.

It was probably because of its lifespan. Ghost Moths were blessed among Spirit Beasts. Their talent and cultivation speed were beyond reproach, and Spirit Beasts and Spirit Masters of the same rank couldn't last a single move against them.

Yet for all its strength, it had one insurmountable weakness: its lifespan.

Ghost Moths were usually seen at a hundred years of cultivation; those with a thousand years were already rare, and ten-thousand-year Ghost Moths were rarer still. So whenever a Ghost Moth reached a new stage, it had to immediately seek a way to extend its lifespan, hoping to break through that barrier.

At that thought, Qian Yun had a vague idea why the Ghost Moth had come here. It must have been drawn by the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well in Sunset Forest—or, more precisely, by the scent of the Immortal Herbs within it. But the Poison Mist in Sunset Forest had blocked its path. It wanted to leave, yet couldn't bear to give up the Immortal Herbs that might help it overcome its barrier. It wanted to force its way through, but lacked the strength.

With no other choice, it had lain low here and waited for an opportunity. It simply hadn't expected Qian Yun and Hu Liena to arrive.

His Martial Soul possessed him once more, and Qian Yun sat cross-legged beside the Ghost Moth. The moment the Crown drew near, the Thousand-Year Soul Ring was pulled toward it.

Though he had just fought a fierce battle and wasn't in peak condition, the Ghost Moth hadn't been able to do anything to him while alive. What trouble could the Soul Ring it left behind possibly cause?

The Crown effortlessly erased the resentment the Ghost Moth had attached to its Soul Ring. Qian Yun then began absorbing the energy of the Thousand-Year Soul Ring in earnest.

At the same time, Hu Liena struggled to sit up and stood guard over Qian Yun as he absorbed the Soul Ring.

It didn't take long. Qian Yun quickly absorbed the Soul Ring's surging Soul Power, and before long, he was finished.

Qian Yun opened his eyes calmly as he sat cross-legged. A glint flashed in them.

As expected, a Thousand-Year Soul Ring was extraordinary. It had given him an excellent Thousand-Year Soul Skill, and his Soul Power had also reached level thirty-two!

Hu Liena had been watching him closely and naturally noticed the change. A hopeful smile appeared on her face. "Are you done?"

Qian Yun smiled and nodded. "It went pretty smoothly."

He raised a hand. The yellow, yellow, and purple Soul Rings beneath his feet flashed in turn, marking that he had successfully broken through the level-thirty bottleneck and officially become a Soul Elder on the Douluo Continent.

Hu Liena stared at Qian Yun's Soul Rings, full of admiration. "Tsk, so cool!"

As Qian Yun pulled the Thunder-Attracting Spear from the Ghost Moth's body, he shook his head with a wry smile. "You caught me off guard with that compliment. I'm actually a little embarrassed. But you don't need to envy me. You'll have one soon, too."

"That's true." Hu Liena nodded frankly.

After putting away the Thunder-Attracting Spear, Qian Yun came over and crouched beside Hu Liena. He gently touched her reddish-purple knee with one finger. "Can you manage? Otherwise, you can stay here while I go get someone to come in."

"Ah." Hu Liena grimaced in pain, but managed to say, "No. I don't want to be left alone in this creepy place."

"Then what should we do?"

Hu Liena's eyes drifted to Qian Yun's back, a trace of shyness in them. She muttered, "How about... you carry me out?"

Qian Yun pressed his lips together and glared at Hu Liena. Her face fell, and she pouted. "Ow, my leg really hurts..."

"Honestly, I knew you'd say that." Qian Yun turned around helplessly. "Get on. Be careful not to hurt yourself."

Hu Liena giggled, a sweet feeling rising in her heart. She leaned forward, and soon she was clinging to Qian Yun's back.

Before Qian Yun could stand, Hu Liena raised a hand and smacked him on the butt, then called out playfully, "Giddy up, horsey!"

"You little brat. Have some respect."

Since Hu Liena looked more badly injured than he was, all he could do was grumble before obediently carrying her back the way they had come.

The path back through the dark was quiet. Only Qian Yun's footsteps on the stone slabs could be heard. Hu Liena suddenly remembered something and rested her little face on his shoulder. "By the way, what exactly is your Thousand-Year Soul Skill?"

Qian Yun replied casually, "Nothing remarkable. You've seen it before. It's the same Clone Skill the Ghost Moth used."

"A Clone?!" Hu Liena cried out, her eyes shining. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Let me see it. Once we're outside, it won't be convenient."

"All right." Unable to refuse Hu Liena, Qian Yun summoned his Martial Soul, and the third Soul Ring beneath his feet began to glow.

Then, under Hu Liena's expectant gaze, a light-blue human figure stepped out of Qian Yun's body. In a flash, it appeared some distance away and stood quietly.

Hu Liena's mouth fell slightly open. She looked down at Qian Yun, then up at the light-blue figure.

It looked so much like him.

Though it had no facial expression, its bearing and body shape were unmistakably a copy of Qian Yun! For a moment, she almost thought his soul had left his body.

"By the way, is there anything else special about your third Soul Skill?" Hu Liena looked away and asked the question she cared about most.

"Like the Ghost Moth, my Clone can use Soul Skills together with me."

"Oh." Hu Liena tilted her head adorably. "That seems... all right."

She had meant to say that Qian Yun's Thousand-Year Soul Skill was pretty ordinary, but the words changed at the last moment.

"Heh." Qian Yun heard the disappointment in Hu Liena's voice. Rather than explain, he turned his head toward her and said, "Why don't you try touching it?"

At his suggestion, Hu Liena tentatively reached out and gently tapped the Spirit Entity's shoulder with her fingertip.

"Huh?!"

Hu Liena's eyes widened. Still not convinced, she grabbed at the Spirit Entity, but her hand passed right through.

Qian Yun's light-blue Spirit Entity was visible, yet somehow seemed not to exist. She couldn't touch it at all.

"How about that?" Qian Yun's slightly smug voice rang out. He focused his thoughts, and the Spirit Entity, which had been standing quietly, suddenly reached out and grabbed Hu Liena's wrist.

"Hey!" Hu Liena jumped in fright and hurriedly tried to slap it with her other hand, but as expected, she hit nothing.

Seeing that the point had been made, Qian Yun let the Spirit Entity release Hu Liena's wrist and recalled his Martial Soul. The Spirit Entity vanished along with it.

"That was like seeing a ghost." Hu Liena rubbed her wrist, still looking bewildered.

"This is the third Soul Skill I got. I call it 'Star Spirit Link.' After I create a Spirit Entity, it has sixty percent of my own Soul Skill power and is completely immune to physical attacks."

Hu Liena was dumbfounded. A Clone on its own was impressive enough, but the strongest effect of Qian Yun's third Soul Skill was undoubtedly its complete immunity to physical attacks. That meant that as long as Qian Yun used Star Spirit Link from now on, he could attack others all he wanted, and they wouldn't be able to fight back.

"That's amazing!" Hu Liena excitedly propped herself up and pecked him on the cheek.

Qian Yun rolled his eyes but let her have her way.

"Hehe." Hu Liena laughed smugly. She and Qian Yun were already so close that there was no separating them. The stronger he became, the happier she was.

The two of them groped their way through the cave for a while, and at last, they saw daylight again.

When they emerged from the cave, the glaring light made them squint instinctively. Once their eyes had adjusted, they saw the scout squad that had been waiting at the entrance.

"Uh, sir, did you defeat that Spirit Beast?" a scout asked in shock at the sight of them.

"Mm. I took care of the Ghost Moth. As for its remains... skin it and give me the hide and bones." Though Qian Yun was carrying Hu Liena and looked a little disheveled, he still carried himself with calm authority.

The scout's expression turned solemn. He regarded Qian Yun and Hu Liena with deep respect. Defeating a Ghost Moth with only two Soul Rings was a miracle, even for someone who had witnessed it with his own eyes.

"Yes!"