Sunset Forest, Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Five days later.
Morning light pierced the poisonous miasma above the valley entrance, casting dappled shadows across the valley.
Qian Anci sat cross-legged on a blue-gray stone beside the spring, his plain white robe fluttering gently in the morning breeze.
He had not left in a hurry after emerging from the bottom of the spring five days ago.
His fourth Soul Ring had only just formed, and the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' source power was still churning inside him. He needed time to stabilize it.
More importantly, the interwoven red-and-blue dragon marking between his brows had yet to fade completely.
Qian Anci closed his eyes and regulated his breathing as four Soul Rings slowly pulsed behind him.
Purple, black, black, and the half-red, half-blue Dual-Colored Soul Ring.
After five days of settling, his aura was more restrained than when he had first emerged from the spring. His Soul Power had stabilized completely at level forty-five.
Gray-white Death Qi flowed around him, at times mingling with a thread of icy blue, at others swept by a wave of crimson heat.
"Anci."
Castorice's voice sounded in his mind, carrying a hint of satisfaction.
"The Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' source power has completely fused with your Death Qi."
"Now, even against that Fallen Soul Master from before, you'd be able to put up a fight."
Qian Anci did not open his eyes. He gave a quiet response in his heart.
He could feel the dragon marking slowly seeping deep into his bloodline, merging with the power of Dragon Transformation Pollux had granted him.
"Big Brother Anci!"
A childish voice came from the stone house.
Qian Anci opened his eyes and saw Dugu Yan bouncing toward him.
Her dark green hair fluttered gently in the morning light. Her little face was much rosier than it had been five days ago, and her dark green eyes sparkled. She no longer looked sickly in the slightest.
"Yan Yan, slow down."
Qian Anci leapt down from the stone and caught the girl as she rushed into his arms.
Over the past five days, aside from consolidating his cultivation, he had spent most of his time playing with her in the valley and telling her about Spirit Hall.
After five days together, he and Dugu Yan had grown even closer than she was to that old man, Dugu Bo.
"Big Brother Anci, are you leaving today?"
Dugu Yan looked up at him, her dark green eyes full of reluctance.
Qian Anci crouched and gently ruffled her hair.
"Yes. I've been away long enough. If I don't go back soon, my family will worry."
"Yan Yan, if you miss me, ask your grandpa to take you to Spirit Hall to see me. I'll treat you to something delicious."
"Really?"
"Really."
Only after hearing Qian Anci promise did Dugu Yan relax. She took his hand and led him toward the stone house.
"Grandpa made porridge and grilled fish! They smell so good!"
Qian Anci let her tug him along, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
These past few days, although the arrogant old Dugu Bo kept complaining that Qian Anci was a nuisance, he had never missed a meal. He had made sure Qian Anci never went hungry.
That old man was an absolute tsundere.
Inside the stone house, Dugu Bo was busy at the stove.
When he saw Qian Anci enter, he grunted without looking up.
"You've freeloaded for five days, and you still don't know how to be embarrassed."
Qian Anci sat down at the wooden table and smiled. "With Senior's cooking, I can't bear to leave."
"Save the flattery."
Dugu Bo carried over an earthenware pot and set it down heavily on the table, splashing a few drops of soup.
"Eat up and get lost. This isn't an inn."
Dugu Yan climbed onto a stool and obediently served Qian Anci a bowl of porridge. Then she picked the biggest grilled fish and put it in his bowl.
"Big Brother Anci, eat more."
Dugu Bo glanced at his granddaughter, a complex look flashing through his slit pupils.
That girl wasn't even this attentive to her own grandfather.
The meal was lively.
Dugu Yan chattered away, telling him what flowers had bloomed in the valley and asking what Spirit City was like.
Qian Anci patiently answered her questions one by one, occasionally glancing at the taciturn Dugu Bo.
After the meal, Dugu Yan nodded off at the table. Dugu Bo carried her back to bed.
Qian Anci gathered the dishes and washed them at the basin.
Dugu Bo stood in the doorway with his back to him. Then he suddenly spoke.
"Boy."
"Hmm?"
"When exactly are you leaving?"
Qian Anci set the dishes aside, wiped his hands, and walked to the doorway.
"Are you trying to drive me away, Senior?"
Dugu Bo snorted and glanced at him with his slit pupils.
"I just find it strange. You're a Saint Son with such an easy life. Aren't you worried your grandfather at Spirit Hall will be concerned?"
"Besides, I've heard Spirit Hall has been making big moves lately..."
Qian Anci fell silent for a moment.
He looked up at the poisonous miasma roiling above the valley entrance.
"Grandpa said that if the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up."
He paused, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
"Besides, Senior Dugu is practically one of us now, isn't he?"
Dugu Bo's slit pupils widened.
"I never agreed to that."
"What about Dugu Yan's poison..."
"You!"
Dugu Bo was left speechless, unable to come up with a retort for a moment.
Qian Anci chuckled and did not press him further.
He walked to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and looked down at its red-and-blue waters.
Five days had passed.
It was time to go back.
"Castorice."
He called softly in his heart.
"Hmm."
Her gentle voice answered at once.
"Time to leave?"
"Yeah."
Qian Anci spoke quietly in his mind.
"The Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' source power has stabilized. There's no point staying any longer. Besides..."
He paused.
"I have to go back and explain things to Grandpa. I just don't know what that Shadow Guard reported..."
Castorice said nothing more, merely giving a soft response.
Qian Anci turned, ready to say goodbye to Dugu Bo.
But he had only taken two steps when Dugu Bo's voice came from the stone house.
"If you're leaving, then leave. Stop dawdling."
The old man stood at the entrance of the stone house with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the distant horizon without so much as looking at him.
"Remember to get your ass back here in six months. I don't want to have to go find you again."
Qian Anci laughed.
"Don't worry, Senior. I'll come back in six months."
He turned and headed for the valley entrance.
The Scythe of Death formed in his palm, and four Soul Rings appeared silently.
Gray-white Death Qi swirled around him, enveloping him in a haze.
"Big Brother Anci!"
Dugu Yan's tearful voice came from behind him.
Qian Anci turned and saw the girl leaning out of the stone house window, tears glimmering in her dark green eyes.
"You promised you'd come visit me!"
"If you don't, I'll come find you."
Qian Anci waved to her.
"I promise."
Dugu Yan nodded hard, and at last the tears fell.
"Pinky promise!"
Qian Anci froze, then smiled helplessly.
He extended his little finger through the air. Gray-white Death Qi gathered at its tip, turning into a thin thread that reached out to hook around Dugu Yan's outstretched finger.
"Pinky promise."
Dugu Yan broke into a smile through her tears.
Qian Anci lowered his hand and shot upward.
A gray-white streak tore through the morning light, burst through the poisonous miasma above the valley entrance, and vanished into the distance.
Dugu Bo stood at the entrance of the stone house, staring at the receding gray-white light. He remained silent for a long time.
"The Saint Son of Spirit Hall..."
He murmured under his breath.
"That old bastard Qian Daoliu really did pick up a fine seedling."
He turned and went back into the stone house, wiping the tears from his granddaughter's face.
"Stop crying. That boy said he'd come back, so he will."
Dugu Yan sniffled. "Grandpa, do you think Big Brother Anci will lie to me?"
Dugu Bo fell silent for a moment.
"He wouldn't dare."
"Why not?"
"Because if he does, I'll take you to Spirit Hall to find him."
Dugu Yan finally stopped crying. She hugged her grandfather's arm and gazed out the window at the sky hidden behind the poisonous miasma, speaking softly.
"Big Brother Anci... you have to come back."
In the distant sky, that gray-white streak had long since disappeared.
Only the poisonous miasma above the valley entrance continued to roil without end.
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