Life and Death, Ah Rou's Sacrifice

"Not bad."

Su Mo quickly arrived at the center of the battlefield with Bibi Dong.

"Your Highness, I have fulfilled my mission!" Yue Guan's face overflowed with barely concealed Joy.

Joy also appeared on Gui Mei's stiff face.

Su Mo nodded slightly, then turned his gaze toward the weakened Ah Rou, the corner of his lips curling upward.

"You don't want anything to happen to your daughter either, do you?"

Ah Rou's entire body jolted. Her eyes, which had been dimmed by despair, suddenly lit up.

Could Xiao Wu have a chance to survive?

She no longer cared about the crisscrossing wounds covering her body, nor did she care about dignity or pride. With a trembling, tearful voice, she pleaded, "Please... spare my daughter! I'll agree to any condition!"

"Very good." Su Mo nodded. "The condition is simple. You will sacrifice yourself to him, and it must be a Soul Sacrifice. I guarantee that your daughter will be released today."

As he spoke, he raised a hand and pointed at Gui Mei beside him.

In Su Mo's eyes, Xiao Wu's cultivation was only a little over ninety thousand years. She was just one step away from truly reaching one hundred thousand years, so killing her now would be somewhat wasteful. It was better to keep her alive and kill her later.

Besides, how much trouble could a mere Soft Bone Charm Rabbit possibly cause?

Even if she transformed into human form and sought revenge someday, she would need the strength to back it up.

And with Xiao Wu's carefree nature, Su Mo even doubted whether she would truly remember revenge at all.

Just like in the original story, she constantly claimed that she wanted to avenge her mother, yet she did not cultivate properly. Instead, she spent her days causing trouble in the human world, eating, drinking, playing, and falling in love.

After obtaining the Immortal Herb Lovesick Heartbreak Red, she had been reluctant to refine it to increase her strength. Her whole heart and mind had been occupied by Third Brother, and she had long since cast aside the hatred of her mother's death.

At that moment, Xiao Wu, who was tightly restrained in Gui Mei's grasp, struggled desperately.

Her four little rabbit legs kicked wildly through the air as anxious, piercing cries escaped her mouth.

Though she could not speak human words, she fully understood their conversation.

The moment she heard the word sacrifice, tears instantly filled her pink eyes. Large drops rolled endlessly down her face, making her look helpless and pitiful.

Hearing her daughter's heartrending cries, Ah Rou felt as though someone had fiercely gripped her heart.

She closed her eyes. When she opened them again, they were filled with determination.

"I can agree to it, but will you truly let my daughter go?"

Su Mo narrowed his eyes. "Given the current situation, do you think I need to lie to you? I could simply kill both of you, and we would still obtain your Spirit Rings and Soul Bones."

Ah Rou's expression darkened. She knew that Su Mo was telling the truth.

In the state she and her daughter were in, they had no room to resist at all.

Even if they fought to the death, the result would only be both of them perishing, while these people would still obtain their Spirit Rings and Soul Bones.

Since she was going to die either way, she might as well sacrifice herself willingly. At least that would give Xiao Wu a slim chance to live.

"Xiao Wu..." Ah Rou gave a miserable smile. "You must live well. Don't think about avenging Mother..."

Xiao Wu cried out even more desperately, as if she were screaming, Mother, don't!

Her pink eyes were full of terror and pleading. She twisted her body desperately, trying to break free, flinging tears everywhere.

"Be good." Ah Rou's tears finally slid down her face. Her voice choked with sobs. "This is all Mother can do for you. You must live well..."

Watching her daughter struggle, Ah Rou felt as though her heart were being cut apart. It was as if someone were gouging at it again and again with a dull knife.

How she wanted to hold her beloved daughter one last time, stroke her fluffy little head, and hear her chattering sweetly around her once more...

But she would never have that chance again.

"I hope you keep your word."

Ah Rou turned to Su Mo. Her voice suddenly became calm, carrying the resignation of someone who had accepted her fate.

Su Mo nodded slightly, giving his promise.

Ah Rou took one final, deep look at Xiao Wu, forcing a smile onto her lips.

"Goodbye... Xiao Wu..."

As her words fell, a faint red glow began to rise from Ah Rou's body.

Very quickly, the glow grew brighter and brighter, enveloping her entire body.

Seeing this, Yue Guan stepped forward and snatched Xiao Wu from Gui Mei's grasp.

"Old Ghost, congratulations. You're about to obtain a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring."

Watching the increasingly intense red light surrounding Ah Rou, Yue Guan smiled as he spoke to Gui Mei.

He congratulated him from the bottom of his heart, without the slightest envy.

Leaving aside the bond of life and death between him and Gui Mei, Su Mo had previously promised that as long as they caught this Soft Bone Charm Rabbit, both of them would have a chance to obtain a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

Soon, the red light on Ah Rou's body had become dazzlingly intense. She let out a shrill scream—the agony of a burning soul.

The next moment, the red light transformed into a brilliant pillar and poured into Gui Mei's body.

"Xiao Wu, Mother will always love you. Live well..."

Those were Ah Rou's final words.

As soon as her voice faded, her body instantly dispersed into countless motes of light, completely merging into Gui Mei's body.

Xiao Wu watched helplessly as her mother vanished before her eyes, and all her struggling instantly stopped.

Her pink pupils were filled with endless despair.

Her mother was dead...

She no longer had a mother...

The mother who had accompanied her for tens of thousands of years had died right in front of her.

At the same time, Gui Mei's aura rose steadily. A vast, terrifying wave of Soul Power burst from his body and swept through the surroundings.

His previous injuries also healed at a visible rate.

When the light faded, the sacrifice of the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was complete.

Nine Spirit Rings surrounded Gui Mei: two yellow, two purple, four black, and one red. That scarlet ninth Spirit Ring was especially dazzling.

Moreover, a Hundred-Thousand-Year left leg Soul Bone merged into his left calf during the sacrifice.

Gui Mei's Soul Power had now reached Level 92.

At the Titled Douluo realm, directly advancing two levels was already terrifying.

After all, when Xiao Wu sacrificed herself, Tang San had only been a Soul Emperor. Even after the sacrifice, his Soul Power had only risen by five levels.

Feeling the surging power within his body, Gui Mei was overwhelmed with excitement.

He had never imagined that one day he would possess treasures he had always dreamed of, such as a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring and Soul Bone.

"All right, this isn't the time to celebrate. Let's hurry over to Golden Crocodile Grandpa." Su Mo cut short his joy.

"Your Highness, are we letting this rabbit go?" Yue Guan asked suddenly, holding Xiao Wu.

He knew that Su Mo had promised that transformed Soul Beast and would surely not go back on his word.

But he truly could not understand what Su Mo was planning. They could clearly obtain Spirit Rings and Soul Bones by killing both mother and daughter, yet he insisted on releasing this rabbit.

"We will release her, but not yet." Su Mo smiled mysteriously. "You'll find out soon enough. Let's head over there first."

Su Mo's goal was simple. The Sky Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape, those two lumbering fools, both liked Xiao Wu. They were utterly devoted simps for her.

Would they choose to sacrifice themselves for Xiao Wu?

Su Mo thought the chances were high.

Even if they did not sacrifice themselves, it would not matter.

If Gui Mei and Yue Guan used their Martial Soul Fusion Skill once more, it would be enough for Golden Crocodile Douluo to cripple one of them, leaving it for Yue Guan to absorb.

In any case, Su Mo would not release Xiao Wu until he had squeezed every last bit of value out of her.