[To save up money for Whale Rubber and increase the absorption limit of my second Soul Ring, I began using my status as a soul master to take on all kinds of odd jobs and earn money.]
The scene shifted.
Young Lin Qing began appearing in every corner of Nuoding City.
In the morning, he helped load and unload goods at the freight depot by the city gate.
At noon, he went to the martial arts hall in town as a sparring partner—of course, while holding back most of his strength.
In the evening, he even helped sort medicinal herbs at an apothecary.
"Mm."
Lin Qing in reality nodded approvingly.
"That was the right choice."
His first Soul Ring had only been a mismatched three-hundred-and-fifty-year Soul Ring out of sheer helplessness.
So he had to do his best to improve the quality of his second Soul Ring.
Thousand-Year Whale Rubber was expensive, but it was absolutely worth the investment.
[After that, every day was the same routine of cultivation and work. Occasionally, Xiao Wu would come looking for me and drag me out to buy carrots with her, which gave me quite a headache.]
The narrator's voice was full of helplessness.
Seeing this, Lin Qing could not help rubbing his chin.
"Could this parallel Lin Qing's death... have been because he got too close to Xiao Wu, caught Tang Hao's attention, and was eventually hammered to death?
That was entirely possible!
That old rat was extremely petty.
He was not someone to provoke, absolutely not.
[At the age of nine and a half, my Soul Power Level successfully broke through level twenty.]
[At the same time, I used every Gold Soul Coin I had saved from working to buy Thousand-Year Whale Rubber. After consuming it correctly, my physical constitution improved greatly.]
[After consuming several pieces of Whale Rubber, I believed my body could absorb a Thousand-Year second Soul Ring.]
[This was no longer something the academy teachers could take responsibility for, so I chose to hire a small soul-hunting group and head to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt a soul beast.]
A five-man soul master team escorted the youth deep into the forest.
Battle, search, then battle again.
[In the end, we successfully killed a two-thousand-year Shifting Fox.]
It was a fox with silver-white fur all over its body and eyes glowing with an eerie pink light, capable of taking on all kinds of forms.
As it fell to the ground, a purple Soul Ring emerged beneath it.
Purple!
The mark of a Thousand-Year Soul Ring!
[Two thousand years was somewhat high, but I still chose to take the risk.]
[After an hour of agony that nearly killed me, I finally succeeded in absorbing this Thousand-Year Soul Ring and gained an exceptionally compatible second soul skill—Illusion!]
The absorption process was far more difficult than the first time.
The youth's entire body trembled, and fine beads of blood seeped from his skin.
But he endured it.
When the purple Soul Ring completely merged into his body, the Heavenly Eye pattern became two rings.
One yellow, one purple.
"Gasp!"
Lin Qing sucked in a sharp breath at the sight.
"He really did it."
Nine and a half years old, level twenty, and a Thousand-Year second Soul Ring.
That was a genius-level achievement anywhere.
Though he could not compare to a monster like Tang San, it was still astonishing enough.
"Looks like the me in this parallel world was a rather hardworking person."
A complicated emotion rose in Lin Qing's heart.
He admired him, yet also felt some regret.
Because he knew that this hardworking "himself" was already dead.
The final words continued.
[Without a background or sufficient strength, I still chose to keep a low profile. Fortunately, my second soul skill could not only cast illusions, but also alter my Soul Rings and appearance.]
After releasing it, the youth in the image would transform his second Soul Ring into yellow.
[I tried not to expose my second Soul Ring recklessly, and I continued to avoid getting too deeply involved with Tang San.]
At the academy, the blue-clothed youth would occasionally cast probing glances his way.
But Lin Qing always nodded politely yet distantly, then quickly left.
[Until I was twelve, an accident forced me to expose my Soul Rings.]
Lin Qing sat up straight.
"What kind of accident?"
He was very curious.
What exactly had happened that forced this parallel Lin Qing, who had always acted so cautiously, to expose himself?
[At twelve, my Soul Power Level reached twenty-nine. I was only one step away from level thirty.]
[On the day I graduated from Notting Academy, Xiao Wu invited me to travel with her to Shrek Academy in Suotuo City.]
"Lin Qing, are you really not coming with us to Shrek Academy?"
Xiao Wu tugged on the youth's sleeve, her eyes sparkling.
"The conditions there might be a little poor, but all the teachers are amazing!"
"No."
The youth shook his head.
"I plan to... return to Emperor Soul Village first."
He looked toward the distant sky, his gaze somewhat unfocused.
"I'll see everyone there first, then decide where to go."
[Xiao Wu said we were all friends and insisted on coming along.]
"Then I'm coming too! I've never seen the village where you grew up!"
"Xiao Wu, don't make trouble." Tang San tried to stop her from the side.
"I'm going! Lin Qing is my friend. What's wrong with me going to take a look?"
In the end, the girl in pink won.
[So she and the helpless Tang San followed me back to Emperor Soul Village.]
The scene shifted.
The familiar dirt road, the familiar old locust tree.
But the atmosphere in the village... was wrong!
It was too quiet, eerily quiet.
[When I returned to Emperor Soul Village, I discovered something strange: many households were missing.]
The youth walked along the village's dirt road, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter.
The thatched cottages that should have had cooking smoke rising from them now stood empty.
Their doors hung crooked, and their window paper was torn.
[Even Er Ni and Er Gouzi's home seemed to have been abandoned.]
That familiar courtyard.
The fence had fallen, and the front door stood wide open.
Weeds grew wildly inside. Clearly, no one had lived there for a long time.
Lin Qing's heart suddenly clenched in reality.
"Er Ni..."
He stared fixedly at the light-and-shadow image, his breathing growing rapid.
What had happened to Er Ni?
[I asked the elderly people who remained in the village and learned that something major had happened here two years ago.]
An old man leaning on a cane shakily recounted what had happened.
His voice was aged and sorrowful.
"That child Er Gouzi found a strange piece of metal on the back mountain. Holding it made your whole body feel invigorated and comfortable."
"Everyone said it was a treasure."
[Er Gouzi found a very unusual piece of metal in the mountains, something that looked like a treasure. News of it reached a group of bandits.]
[Later, the bandits came to Emperor Soul Village.]
The sound of hooves shook the heavens.
More than a dozen fierce-looking men charged into the village, beating anyone they saw and looting everything they found.
[The bandit leader was a level-twenty-one Soul Grandmaster.]
At the head of the group was a One-Eyed Brute.
He released his martial soul—a ferocious Earth Wolf.
Two yellow Soul Rings floated up and down beneath his feet.
[They found Er Gouzi's home and threatened him for the treasure he had picked up.]
"Hand it over!"
The One-Eyed Brute kicked Aunt Li to the ground.
Er Gouzi was lifted by his collar, trembling with fear.
"I... I'll give it to you..."
Trembling, he pulled the piece of metal from his clothes.
[After getting the treasure, the bandit leader actually set his sights on Er Ni.]
The One-Eyed Brute toyed with the metal, but his eyes drifted toward the figure huddled in the corner.
"This little girl is quite pretty."
He grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.
"Take her away! She'll be my bandit bride!"
"No, don't!"
Er Ni screamed and backed away.
[Er Ni would rather die than submit.]
She grabbed a pair of scissors from the table and pressed them against her own throat.
Her eyes were red, tears streaming down her face, but her gaze was resolute.
"If you come any closer... I'll kill myself!"
The One-Eyed Brute froze for a moment, then flew into a rage out of humiliation.
"Damn it! You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!"
He abruptly waved his hand.
"Grab her for me!"
Two bandits lunged forward.
[But Er Ni chose to take her own life.]
The scissors pierced her throat.
Blood sprayed out.
The girl's body collapsed limply.
Her eyes remained open, looking toward the sky beyond the doorway.
Before you continue