The Clear Sky Sect dungeon was dark and damp. The stone walls were icy to the touch, and the air was thick with the stench of mildew and the oppressive aura of Soul Power seals.
This was a forbidden place where the Clear Sky Sect imprisoned serious criminals. It was heavily guarded; not even a fly could escape.
Ah Yin slowly opened her eyes, a dull ache pulsing at the back of her neck.
She raised a hand and gently rubbed it. Her azure eyes gradually brightened in the darkness, clouded with confusion for an instant before it gave way to cold clarity.
The stone walls around her were hard and thick. She could faintly hear chains scraping. There was no sunlight, no life, only endless darkness and oppression.
If she had guessed correctly, this was the homeland of Tang Hao and Tang Xiao.
It was also the Clear Sky Sect, reputedly the greatest sect under heaven.
Tap... tap... tap...
Just then, a steady, icy set of footsteps drew nearer, breaking the dungeon's deathly silence.
Ah Yin abruptly lifted her head and looked toward the cell door.
Two familiar yet unfamiliar figures were walking side by side toward her.
The newcomers were none other than Tang Hao and Tang Xiao.
Though only a few days had passed, the warmth they had shown on the road had long since vanished. In its place were greed, coldness, and the certainty that they would get what they wanted.
They stood outside the cell, staring at her with burning, icy eyes, as though inspecting a trophy.
Ah Yin braced herself against the cold stone wall and struggled to stand. Her slender figure looked especially fragile in the dim light.
She clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white. Not a trace of warmth remained in her azure eyes, only anger, coldness, and disappointment.
"What do you want?"
Her voice was quiet, but it carried a bone-deep chill.
Tang Hao sneered, his tone contemptuous and cruel. "What do we want? Surely you understand by now."
Tang Xiao remained calm, but his voice was cold as iron. "Ah Yin, don't blame us."
"We're human, and you're a Soul Beast. We were never meant to walk the same path."
"Humans have a saying: 'Those who are not of our kind are sure to harbor different intentions.' Since you chose to take human form, you should have been prepared to be discovered and hunted, not resent us now."
Tang Hao nodded in agreement, not a hint of guilt on his face. "That's right. We're not children anymore. We have to take responsibility for our choices."
"You know what it means to lose a bet and accept the loss."
Each word stabbed into Ah Yin's heart like an icy knife.
The fury that had surged within her slowly cooled.
Yes... she had been too naive.
She was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who had taken human form. It was an act of defying heaven itself.
In the eyes of human Soul Masters, she had never been a "person." She was a walking, priceless Soul Ring and Soul Bone.
She had been a fool—a fool to believe in human kindness, a fool to believe all those promises and assurances of protection.
But...
She really was different from other Soul Beasts.
At the thought, Ah Yin suddenly chuckled under her breath.
Her laughter was soft, but it carried an indescribable mix of mockery and sorrow, echoing through the empty dungeon.
Tang Hao and Tang Xiao exchanged a glance. They both saw confusion and impatience in the other's eyes.
"What are you laughing at?"
Tang Hao frowned and snapped, warning her, "Don't think pretending to be stupid will make us let you go. I'm telling you, it won't!"
"Playing crazy won't save you," Tang Xiao added coldly.
Ah Yin slowly raised her head. Not a trace of fear remained in her azure eyes, only cold resolve.
She looked at the two men, the corner of her mouth lifting in a bitter, proud smile. "I admit it. I was a fool to believe in humans."
"But do you really think... that I, a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, have no means of my own, and will simply let you butcher me?"
Tang Hao's eyes sharpened. "What do you mean?"
Tang Xiao, too, grew wary, sensing that something was wrong.
He didn't believe Ah Yin had any special abilities or means, but the look in her eyes made it seem as though she wasn't bluffing.
Ah Yin straightened her back. Her voice was cool and resolute, each word clear as it reached their ears.
"I'll tell you the truth—my true form isn't ordinary Blue Silver Grass. I'm the Emperor of all Blue Silver Grass: the legendary Blue Silver Emperor."
"The Blue Silver Emperor possesses the innate power to endure like wildfires that can never be extinguished, springing back to life with the spring breeze."
"In other words, unless I willingly choose to die, even if you kill me with your own hands, you will never obtain my Soul Ring or my Soul Bone!"
"I'm willing to pay the price for my naivety, but you... will never get anything you want!"
When she finished speaking, dead silence fell over the dungeon.
Tang Hao and Tang Xiao's faces changed. They froze in place, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief!
They couldn't get her Soul Ring?
They couldn't get her Soul Bone?
Then what was the point of going to all the trouble of bringing her back to the Clear Sky Sect?
Were they supposed to keep her as a pretty ornament?
They had gone so far as to offend a Titled Douluo-level powerhouse to get Ah Yin's Soul Ring and Soul Bone.
Though they didn't know who that Titled Douluo was or which faction they belonged to.
Looking at their faces, drained of color in an instant, the last trace of warmth in Ah Yin's heart went out completely.
She slowly closed her eyes and murmured softly:
"I took human form not to become anyone's prey."
"If it comes to that... I'd rather destroy my own source and scatter my soul than let you have your way."
Better to shatter like jade than remain whole like a clay tile.
That was the Blue Silver Emperor's final pride.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Ye Qing followed Qian Daoliu to the third great hall, after the Pope Palace and the Worship Hall: Douluo Hall.
Aside from an enormous statue of an angelic woman, the hall was filled with countless stone steles.
Names and life stories were carved into them.
Walking at the front, Qian Daoliu introduced the place in an even tone. "These people were either Titled Douluo or those who made great contributions to the Soul Master World."
"I can see that," Ye Qing replied quietly. "They must have been buried here in the hope of basking in the light of the Angel God."
The Angel God was the only deity on the Douluo Continent, and the God of Light in the hearts of countless people.
Some of these people might have hated the Spirit Hall, or one of its leaders, but they could never hate the Angel God—and wouldn't dare to.
After all, if the Angel God hadn't wiped out the Evil Soul Masters, no one could say what life on the Douluo Continent would be like.
That was why the Spirit Hall had been able to grow so powerful in such a short time.
It was just like Shrek Academy ten thousand years later.
Without the fame of Tang San and the others, how could that lousy academy have become the greatest academy on the continent?
Led by Qian Daoliu, the two came to the end of the great hall.
An Angel Statue stood there.
Though it looked identical to the ones outside, a closer look revealed that this one possessed a far stronger divine aura.
Under Ye Qing's watchful gaze, Qian Daoliu began to circulate his Soul Power.
The next moment, the Angel Statue emitted a faint golden glow.
Then it transformed into a golden vortex.
Qian Daoliu stepped inside first.
Ye Qing followed...