Yuanen Yehui's Little Trick

At this moment, a helpless, amused expression appeared on Luo Yang's face.

He waved his hand, signaling the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff Emperor to stay calm, then turned to Yuanen Yehui, who looked like a bristling hedgehog, and said in a relaxed tone:

"Just scaring you, don't be so tense."

"..."

Yuanen Yehui's killing intent faltered.

"Although your martial soul is the Fallen Angel, which is classified by the secular world as an 'Evil Martial Soul',"

Luo Yang retracted his smile, looking at her with clear eyes, "but what kind of martial soul you awaken is never something you can choose, nor is it your fault. A martial soul is merely a tool, a form of power. What truly defines good and evil is the person using the power and the way they go about their business."

He paused, "Furthermore, there are people in this world who haven't awakened evil martial souls, and even carry prestigious, shining reputations, yet their actions... are a hundred times filthier and more cruel than those of actual Evil Soul Masters."

These words, like a stone cast into a frozen lake, stirred the first ripple in the icy lake of Yuanen Yehui's heart.

The reason Evil Soul Masters are detested by the entire continent stems from their cultivation methods based on slaughter, which have left the world with a stereotypical impression of them being bloody, cruel, and devoid of humanity.

Therefore, to prevent tragedy, the various forces on the continent have reached a consensus: once an awakened individual with an evil martial soul is discovered, especially one with a top-tier evil martial soul like the Fallen Angel, they would rather kill the innocent than let one slip through, or keep them under lifelong surveillance.

However...

Are those soul masters who awaken evil martial souls at birth truly born guilty?

They cannot choose their bloodline and talent, just as people cannot choose their origin.

Should they be deprived of the right to live, be treated with hostility and exclusion by the whole world, or even be strangled in the cradle, simply because they possess the potential to "possibly do evil"?

And what of others, such as the high and mighty, revered by countless people as the "pure and flawless" God King Tang, with all the things he has done—scheming against the continent, manipulating fate, treating all living beings as chess pieces...

Are they really any nobler than an Evil Soul Master?

Yet.

Yuanen Yehui still stared fixedly at Luo Yang, the vigilance in her eyes not relaxing in the slightest.

The human heart is unpredictable.

She had seen plenty of people who were sanctimonious on the surface but harbored malicious intentions underneath.

This person before her, first showing goodwill, then threatening her, and now putting on a posture of understanding and sympathy... which side was real?

Was he deliberately using these words to lower her guard, plotting something deeper?

Seeing Yuanen Yehui's still-tense state, Luo Yang sighed softly.

He raised his right hand, palm facing upward.

The next moment, a profound, desolate energy, mixed with the pure aura of death and annihilation, slowly emerged from his palm.

This aura was not the "evil" of the Fallen Angel, which carried darkness, corrosion, and temptation, but a more primordial, more vast "death" that seemed to come from an ancient battlefield, judging the end of all things!

The purity and majesty of this death aura far exceeded the dark aura emitted by Yuanen Yehui's Fallen Angel martial soul!

"Look," Luo Yang's voice sounded calmly, "in a sense, my martial soul... could also be considered an 'Evil Martial Soul'."

Undead Scourge—controlling death, communicating with the undead, manipulating the deceased.

In the eyes of the vast majority of orthodox soul masters, this was definitely an even "eviler" and more terrifying martial soul than the Fallen Angel!

Because it touched upon the most forbidden realm of life.

Yuanen Yehui shuddered, looking in astonishment at the heart-palpitating death energy in Luo Yang's palm, then looked up at his calm face.

She could clearly feel the essence of that aura; it was definitely not a disguise.

He... he actually also...

"My martial soul's abilities lean toward 'purifying the undead' and 'death control,' which is why it is stained with such a strong aura of death."

Luo Yang explained simply, then dispersed the energy in his hand, and the suffocating sense of death vanished along with it.

"So, I truly have no hostility toward you, nor am I being hypocritical. Perhaps precisely because we both possess martial souls that the secular world does not understand, I find it less exhausting to be around you, and even feel a sense of 'kindred' intimacy."

He reached out his hand again, not as a threat, nor as an act of charity, but as a gesture of equal invitation.

"I just... simply want to make a friend out of you. A friend with whom I don't have to hide my martial soul, don't have to worry about being treated as an outcast, and can relax a little while talking. Nothing more."

Yuanen Yehui fell silent.

Her black eyes, which were always cold and guarded, now stared blankly at the hand Luo Yang extended, and then at his clear, frank eyes that held not a trace of impurity.

Friend...

This word was too strange and too extravagant for her.

From the moment she awakened the Fallen Angel martial soul, her world changed.

Within her family, some saw her as an ominous star of disaster, some feared she would bring catastrophe, and even her closest father sank into despair due to the tragic death of her mother (who possessed the same martial soul).

The outside world viewed people like her as monsters.

She had long since grown accustomed to loneliness, accustomed to disguising herself with coldness, and accustomed to pushing everyone away.

She thought she would just go on like this, carrying the curse, walking through life alone, or at some point meet her destruction just like her mother.

No one had ever said to her, "I want to be friends with you," and even less had anyone said, "We are the same," or "It feels very intimate to be around you."

At this moment, a tiny crack appeared in her frozen heart. A long-lost longing, one she had almost forgotten herself, began to stir.

A longing for understanding, for acceptance, for even the slightest touch of warmth, quietly took root.

"You... really think that?"

Yuanen Yehui's voice was very low, carrying a trace of imperceptible trembling.

"Have you ever heard this saying?" Luo Yang did not answer directly, but offered a faint smile.

"My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror; everything I do is justice."

"Martial souls are merely tools; power itself has no good or evil. True morality lies in the user's heart and actions. As long as what you do follows your own conscience and bottom line, then your martial soul has no so-called 'distinction between good and evil'!"

"So..."

He reached his hand out further, his smile warm and sincere, "Would you be willing... to be friends with me?"

My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror; everything I do is justice...

Power has no good or evil; it lies in the heart...

These words, like a thunderclap and a warm current, repeatedly struck and washed away the defenses Yuanen Yehui had built over the years upon fear and loneliness.

She looked into the youth's sincere eyes, feeling the aura of his martial soul—which was equally "unorthodox" yet incredibly open and honest—and the wall of ice in her heart began to melt at an accelerated pace.

Silence spread between the two.

But this silence was no longer filled with hostility and tension; it held a hint of hesitation, struggle, and... a faint glimmer of anticipation.

After a long while.

Yuanen Yehui nodded almost imperceptibly, her voice as soft as a whisper:

"Wait... wait until we get out to talk about it."

She did not take his hand immediately, but she no longer refused him either.

This was the greatest concession and trust she could offer at the moment.

"Alright."

The smile on Luo Yang's face instantly brightened.

Little Yuanen Yehui, easy to handle!

"Then let's continue to look deeper."

He turned around and signaled to the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff Emperor.

The giant beast let out a low growl, took a step forward, and led the way, taking the initiative to shoulder the responsibility of clearing the path.

Yuanen Yehui looked at Luo Yang's back and took a deep breath.

Finally, she slowly followed.

The pair of pitch-black Fallen Angel Wings on her back quietly retracted all their baleful energy, flapping gently.

For Yuanen Yehui, the journey ahead for the two people and one beast was an unprecedented experience.

She had almost... no opportunity to strike.

Whether it was the packs of hundred-year Wind Wolf that appeared, the thousand-year Ghost Vine lurking in ambush, or even another encounter with a four-thousand-year-cultivation Scaled Beast that was even more powerful than the previous one...

All the virtual spirit beasts blocking their path did not require her or Luo Yang to lift a finger.

The Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff Emperor acted like a dutiful scavenger, crushing everything in its path.

Yuanen Yehui followed along, moving from initial shock to gradual numbness, and finally to a deeper, uncontrollable sense of envy rising from the depths of her heart.

After the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff Emperor easily disposed of a group of blocking virtual spirit beasts for the umpteenth time, it suddenly let out a satisfied low roar. The golden light on its body flared, and its aura clearly rose by a notch.

"Oh? It seems to have reached a bottleneck; it's hit its absorption limit." Luo Yang sensed the change and said with a smile, "Not a bad harvest for our first time in. Yehui, how about you? How is your absorption going?"

Yuanen Yehui snapped back to reality, silently sensed her own spirit soul and spirit rings, and nodded: "About the same."

Although it wasn't as exaggerated as Luo Yang's, having "leached" so much high-quality energy, her improvement was far beyond what she could achieve through her own hard hunting.

"That's good, and the time is about up. It's not wise to stay in for too long on the first trip; it causes mental fatigue."

"Let's prepare to head out."

Luo Yang looked at the shifting light around them and made his decision.

Yuanen Yehui had no objections.