Shi Nian! His First Meeting with Ning Rongrong!

The figure walked very slowly, each step as light as if he were treading on cotton. Yet he was impossible to look away from.

Lin Mo saw him clearly.

A hunched body, a gray-white robe dragging along the ground, stained with who knew what—dust or something else. His face was withered like a corpse, his cheekbones jutting high and his eye sockets sunken, with two eyes glowing an eerie white within them.

He leaned on a bone staff in his right hand. A fist-sized skull was set into its head. Green flames burned in the skull's eye sockets, flickering like they were alive.

Then the Spirit Rings appeared.

Yellow, yellow, purple, black, black, black, black.

Seven Spirit Rings rose from beneath the hunched figure's feet and pulsed slowly around him. Two yellow, one purple, and four black—under the afternoon sun, they radiated an oppressive force that made it hard to breathe.

Ning Rongrong's face turned deathly pale.

"Se... seven Spirit Rings..." Her voice trembled. "He's a Spirit Saint... He really is a Spirit Saint..."

Lin Mo said nothing. He pulled Ning Rongrong a little behind him, eyes fixed on the approaching figure, his palms slick with sweat.

The figure stopped about twenty meters away.

He raised his head and smiled, his mouth stretching open to reveal sparse yellow teeth. The white light in his eye sockets shone blindingly bright.

"Finally... found you."

His voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping over rust. It didn't seem to come from his mouth, but to ring directly inside their heads.

Ning Rongrong stiffened all over, her fingers clutching Lin Mo's clothes.

The man's gaze swept over Lin Mo and settled on Ning Rongrong's face, lingering for two seconds. Then his smile widened.

"A little girl from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect... This old man is in luck."

He raised his bone staff, and the green flames at its head flickered more violently.

"This world is fascinating. There are so many things here whose auras I've never encountered." He took a deep breath, as if savoring something. "But it's too noisy. Those iron boxes, those glowing signs, and those ants in strange clothes... They're all too noisy."

His gaze fell on Ning Rongrong again.

"You're different. Your aura is very familiar to this old man. It smells of the Douluo Continent."

Ning Rongrong bit her lip and said nothing. But the hand clutching Lin Mo's clothes had gone white at the knuckles.

Lin Mo suddenly spoke. "You're Shi Nian."

The man turned his gaze to him. The white light in his eye sockets flickered.

"You know this old man?"

"The system told me."

"System?" Shi Nian furrowed his brow, clearly unfamiliar with the word. But he quickly lost interest. "It doesn't matter. I only care about that little girl. Her soul should be delicious."

He raised his bone staff, and the green flames at its head suddenly surged.

Ning Rongrong instinctively took a step back, but Lin Mo didn't move.

He stared at Shi Nian and said, word by word, "If you want to kill her, you'll have to get through me first."

Shi Nian paused, then laughed.

His laughter came from every direction, sharp and grating, like countless birds shrieking all at once.

"You?" He looked Lin Mo up and down. "A little ant without even a trace of Soul Power?"

He raised a hand and gave a casual wave.

An invisible force slammed toward Lin Mo. Lin Mo had been ready for it and dodged to the side, but the force seemed to have eyes. It curved through the air and smashed into his chest.

He flew backward and crashed into a pile of scrap. Broken bricks clattered down around him.

"Lin Mo!" Ning Rongrong screamed and tried to run to him, but her legs seemed rooted to the spot.

Shi Nian watched her, his grin growing wider.

"Don't be in a hurry, little girl. Once this old man has dealt with that ant, he'll come and give you a proper, loving treatment."

He raised his bone staff again.

Just then, Lin Mo climbed out of the scrap pile.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. His chest burned with pain, but his gaze hadn't changed. He stared at Shi Nian, slowly wiped the blood from his mouth, and said:

"That's all you've got?"

Shi Nian's smile froze for an instant.

Then he narrowed his eyes, the white light in his sockets turning dangerous.

"Interesting."

This time, he raised both hands. The green flames on his bone staff transformed into countless pale faces that howled toward Lin Mo.

Lin Mo didn't dodge. He couldn't. The faces were too fast, engulfing him in the blink of an eye.

But in the instant before they swallowed him, he shouted to Ning Rongrong:

"Run!"

Ning Rongrong finally moved.

She turned and ran, but after a few steps, she stopped and looked back at the mass of pale faces. They circled Lin Mo, tearing at him furiously. She could just make out his struggling figure within them, his body covered in blood.

She wanted to go back.

But her legs felt rooted to the spot.

Shi Nian's voice came from behind her. "Run, run. The farther you run, the deeper your fear will grow. Once this old man has dealt with him, I'll come after you. I like this game."

Ning Rongrong gritted her teeth and turned to keep running.

She ran past an abandoned excavator and heaps of scrap, then into a half-demolished building. Hiding in a corner, she clamped both hands over her mouth, afraid to make the slightest sound.

Her heart pounded as if it were about to leap out of her throat.

All she could hear was her own breathing, ragged and hurried.

She remembered the last look Lin Mo had given her.

It seemed to say: Stay alive.

Tears suddenly welled up.

She bit down hard on the back of her hand, refusing to let herself cry aloud.

Just then, a thunderous crash came from outside.

Then Shi Nian cried out in shock: "What?!"

Ning Rongrong jerked her head up.

She looked through a window in the ruined building and saw the mass of pale faces explode. Lin Mo stood at its center, covered in blood, but his right eye shone with an eerie purple light.

The purple light spread from his right eye like flames, covering his whole body. Every face the light touched melted away like snow, letting out a piercing scream.

Shi Nian's expression changed.

"You... What are you?"

Lin Mo didn't answer. He looked down at his hands, then at Shi Nian, and suddenly smiled.

It was nothing like his usual smile.

There was something cold about it.

Shi Nian instinctively stepped back half a pace, then immediately recovered and flew into a rage. "Enough with your tricks! This old man would like to see how long you can last!"

He raised his bone staff, and his Seventh Spirit Ring—the black one—suddenly lit up.

Ning Rongrong's pupils contracted.

His Seventh Soul Skill?

He was going to use his Seventh Soul Skill?

She wanted to shout, "Look out!" but the words caught in her throat. She couldn't force them out.

Shi Nian's body began to twist. He transformed into a gigantic pale ghostly figure, tall as a three-story building. He opened his gaping mouth, and countless faces poured out, forming a tornado that swept toward Lin Mo.

Lin Mo stood still.

The tornado swallowed him.

Ning Rongrong watched his figure disappear among the countless faces, her heart clutched as if by an iron hand.

She wanted to rush out.

But her legs still wouldn't move.

All she could do was watch the tornado spin furiously and listen to the sounds of tearing and screaming within it—and Lin Mo's muffled, stifled groans.

Her tears flowed harder.

She suddenly remembered last night, how gently Lin Mo had covered her with a blanket. So gently, as if afraid of waking her.

She remembered the calm look in his eyes when he said, "I will."

She remembered how he'd said he would take her along if he ran, without a hint of hesitation.

Now he was fighting for his life in there.

And she was hiding here, too afraid even to move.

"Useless..."

She heard her own voice, hoarse and trembling.

"Ning Rongrong, you're so useless..."

She raised her hand and slapped herself hard across the face.

It hurt.

But it cleared her head a little.

She took a deep breath and slowly stood, leaning against the wall. Her legs were still shaking, but she gritted her teeth and moved toward the exit, one step at a time.

When she reached the doorway, she saw it.

The pale tornado was still spinning, but it had slowed.

Then a streak of purple light shot out from within.

Then came a second, and a third.

More and more streaks followed.

The tornado began to collapse. The faces let out despairing shrieks, then dissolved into black smoke.

Shi Nian's pale ghostly form came into view, disbelief written all over his face.

"How is this possible... You're an ant... How could you possibly..."

Lin Mo stood before him.

He was covered in blood, most of his clothes torn away, his exposed skin crisscrossed with wounds. But his right eye blazed, purple light flickering like flames.

He stared at Shi Nian and said, word by word:

"Who did you say was the ant?"

Shi Nian's ghostly figure shuddered.

He tried to step back, but his body seemed frozen in place.

Lin Mo raised his right hand.

Purple light flowed from his right eye into his arm, running down to his palm and finally gathering into a purple blade of light.

He walked toward Shi Nian.

One step.

Two steps.

Shi Nian's ghostly figure began to collapse. He struggled desperately, trying to break free of the invisible restraint.

"No... Impossible! This old man is a Spirit Saint! A level seventy-six Spirit Saint! How could you possibly—"

His voice cut off.

The purple blade pierced his chest.

Shi Nian's eyes widened. He looked down at the purple light in his chest, then up at Lin Mo. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but all that came out was a mouthful of black blood.

Then his body began to fade away.

Starting at his feet, he gradually turned into black motes of light that drifted through the air. His bone staff fell to the ground. The green flame at its head went out, leaving only a dull skull.

At last, Shi Nian vanished completely.

Only the system's voice rang in Lin Mo's mind:

[Congratulations, Host, on killing Shi Nian (Level 76 Spirit Saint)]

[Obtained World Origin Point ×500]

[Obtained Spirit Bone: Illusion Wisdom Skull (Head Soul Bone, Skills: Illusion Resistance + Mental Strength Amplification)]

[Dual World Collision delayed by 76 days, remaining time: 441 days]

Lin Mo stood where he was, gasping for breath.

The purple light in his right eye slowly faded, and all strength drained from his body. He staggered, then dropped to one knee, bracing himself against the ground so he wouldn't collapse.

Ning Rongrong ran over and reached to help him, but halfway there, she pulled her hand back, afraid of touching his wounds.

"Are... are you all right?"

Lin Mo looked up at her and smiled. "I'm fine."

Ning Rongrong looked at his blood-covered face. Her lips moved, then she suddenly crouched down and wrapped her arms around him.

She held him tight.

Lin Mo froze.

He felt her trembling, and something warm dripped onto his shoulder.

She was crying.

She made no sound, but her shoulders shook again and again.

Lin Mo hesitated, then raised a hand and gently patted her back.

"It's all right now."

Ning Rongrong said nothing. She just clung to him even tighter.

In the distance, the setting sun sank toward the horizon. Golden light fell across the ruins, casting long shadows.

The wind died down.

Everything fell quiet.

Only the small figure in his arms still trembled faintly.

It was who knew how long before Ning Rongrong finally let go.

She lowered her head and wiped her tears with the back of her hand, not wanting Lin Mo to see her crying. But the more she wiped, the more tears came. In the end, she simply stopped and stood there with her head bowed.

Lin Mo braced himself against the ground and got to his feet. His chest still hurt, but it was much better than before.

He picked up the bone staff Shi Nian had left behind—no, the skull. The staff had vanished, leaving only the fist-sized skull lying on the ground, dull and lifeless.

He picked it up, looked it over, then handed it to Ning Rongrong.

Ning Rongrong stared at him. "For me?"

"The system said it's a Spirit Bone. I can't use it."

Ning Rongrong took the skull. The moment she touched it, it dissolved into points of light and merged into her brow.

She stared for a moment, then closed her eyes. A few seconds later, she opened them and looked at Lin Mo with a complicated expression.

"It's the Illusion Wisdom Skull," she said softly. "It can resist illusions and strengthen mental power."

Lin Mo nodded. "That's good, then."

Ning Rongrong looked at him and suddenly asked, "That purple light just now... what was it?"

Lin Mo thought for a moment. "The system gave it to me. Maybe it's something that keeps me alive."

"Then how did you know you could use it?"

"I didn't," Lin Mo said. "But if I hadn't, I'd be dead."

Ning Rongrong fell silent.

After a long while, she said softly,

"You really are... something..."

She didn't finish.

But Lin Mo saw her eyes redden again.

He looked away, toward the sunset in the distance.

"Let's go back."

Ning Rongrong nodded and walked slowly beside him.

After a few steps, she suddenly reached out and tugged at his sleeve.

Lin Mo looked down at her.

She didn't look up. She just held on to his sleeve and said softly,

"Just now... thank you."

Lin Mo saw the tips of her ears, red as could be, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Mm."

The two of them walked side by side into the sunset.

The ruins behind them were so quiet, it was as if nothing had happened.

But Lin Mo knew this was only the beginning.

There were still four hundred and forty-one days.

There were still more enemies.

And... things he didn't know.

He glanced down at the sleeve on his right arm. Ning Rongrong was still holding it, and she hadn't let go.

Oh, well.

They'd go back first and figure it out later.