Parting Again, Master's Deduction

The instant the Experimental Building's doors closed, that icy presence abruptly faded.

Everything seemed to return to calm.

A crescent moon hung overhead as I stood alone outside the Experimental Building.

I knew that from now on, I would not walk this path for myself alone, nor would my life belong solely to me.

I would not merely be an exorcist who walked between yin and yang.

I also had to fulfill the destiny I had carried through ten lifetimes and save Xiao Yu, who had always been confined within the Nine Corpse Tower.

I touched the Phoenix-Pattern Jade Pendant on my chest.

"Xiao Yu, thank you for protecting me and waiting all these years.

"In this life, I won't let you down!"

My voice was soft, yet every word rang with conviction.

After saying that, I lingered no longer and turned away without hesitation...

On my way back to the shop, my mind kept circling around what Xiao Yu had told me today.

It had happened so long ago that it all seemed utterly unreal.

Yet it had truly happened to me.

But what I needed to do now was put everything else aside.

I had to work hard to make myself stronger and find more of those shattered sealing crystals.

During these roughly two years of "peace," I needed to bring myself to my strongest state, collect more sealing crystal fragments, and reinforce the seal.

At the same time, I had to find other vicious corpses and prepare to fill the Ninth Coffin with a corpse two years from now.

I would not think about anything else. Even if I did, there was nothing I could do.

After all, everything rested on strength. Without strength, it was all empty talk...

By the time I returned to the shop,