"If you also wish to receive resources poured into you like the ones she just received... resources that can help you ascend to the heavens in a single step, then you'll need to pay the same 'price' she did."
Zhao Linchuan stood up. "That's only fair, isn't it?"
With that, he didn't linger. He opened the door and walked out, leaving Yan Fei alone in the room.
The door closed softly. Yan Fei stood where she was, staring blankly at it, her exquisite face shifting through a range of expressions.
She understood what her young master meant.
"Pay... the same price she did?"
She repeated the words softly, light shifting in her eyes. "Does he mean... becoming entirely his, like Yue Shen?"
"But why did the young master speak up for me just now, warning Yue Shen not to go too far...?"
"Was it because he didn't want to damage his feather? Or..."
She walked to the table and picked up the teacup Zhao Linchuan had taken only one sip from. Feeling the lingering warmth against her fingertips, she fell into a long silence.
That young man's thoughts seemed even deeper and more unfathomable than she had imagined.
And Yue Shen... With that young man backing her so wholeheartedly, she would likely be transformed before long.
A sense of urgency, like cold vines, quietly coiled around Yan Fei's heart.
Late that night, in Yue Shen's room.
When the energy of the last left leg bone had completely fused with her, Yue Shen slowly opened her eyes.
Deep in her pupils, a dark-blue moon seemed to flash into view and vanish. Her whole bearing had grown even more ethereal and aloof, her skin glowing like jade. She was like a celestial maiden from the moon palace who had descended to the mortal world.
She gently raised her delicate hand, palm up. With a mere thought, a wisp of pure, icy moonlight gathered out of thin air, hovering quietly in her palm. It shimmered with a bone-chilling cold and a heart-stirring spiritual fluctuation.
"So this is... the all-around transformation brought by a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Bone?"
Yue Shen felt the surging power within her, ready to burst forth. Her meridians had widened more than tenfold, her bones were as tough as divine metal, her vitality as vigorous as a dragon and an elephant, and her spiritual power had been condensed into something almost tangible, vast as the ocean!
She had the strange feeling that, with the strength of this body alone, tempered again and again by the Soul Bone, she could crush Donghuang Taiyi, the so-called top expert of that other world!
She took a deep breath to quell her excitement, then took a God-Bestowed Soul Ring from her storage ring and held it in her palm.
"My two Martial Souls are the Lunar Jade Disk and my spiritual-type Body Martial Soul, the 'Brain.'"
Yue Shen analyzed calmly. "If I cultivate the Body Martial Soul first, the enormous influx of spiritual power all at once could easily make me lose control of my mind and muddle my perceptions, even with my existing foundation and the Soul Bone's enhancement. The risk is too great."
"To be safe, I should start with the tool-type Martial Soul, the Lunar Jade Disk. I can steadily increase my spiritual power with the Soul Ring's energy while laying a solid foundation."
Having decided, she didn't hesitate. Her fingers closed, and she gently crushed the God-Bestowed Soul Ring in her palm.
Bzzzz—!
A low vibration rang through the room. An incredibly pure torrent of Soul Power erupted, instantly enveloping her.
The phantom of a black Soul Ring slowly appeared beneath her feet. Then, guided by Yue Shen's unwavering will, its color began to deepen at a visible pace...
She had begun the arduous journey of reaching a Hundred-Thousand-Year First Soul Ring...
The next morning, the sun shone bright.
Worried that Xiao Wu's identity might be exposed by the powerful figures who were about to arrive, Zhao Linchuan used the excuse of taking her to enjoy "an even tastier carrot feast." Half coaxing and half dragging the somewhat bewildered yet eager Xiao Wu, he led her away from Notting Academy and brought her to the residence in the west of the city.
In the central hall, however, Xiao Wu couldn't sit still.
The moment she entered the residence, she faintly sensed an oppressive force that made even her soul tremble, as if some utterly terrifying presence were watching her from somewhere.
Seeing her unease, Zhao Linchuan said gently, "Xiao Wu, don't be afraid. I'm the master of this place. As long as I don't give the word, no one here will hurt you."
That only made things worse. Xiao Wu grew even more frightened, her little face paling as she instinctively tried to sneak toward the door.
Just then—
A vast, surging wave of spiritual power, like a current suddenly rising beneath a calm sea, burst out of Yue Shen's room!
"Ugh!"
Xiao Wu gave a muffled groan. Under the pressure of that pure spiritual force, her legs buckled, and she fell helplessly to the floor, her petite body trembling. She couldn't even lift her head, as though she were facing her natural enemy.
In the next instant, dark-blue ripples spread through the air at the center of the hall, and a graceful figure stepped out of them.
The moonlike glow slowly faded, revealing Yue Shen's peerlessly beautiful face.
Compared with the day before, she seemed to have changed in subtle ways.
Her skin was fairer than frost and snow, her features more exquisite, like a painting. An aloof, otherworldly air, untouched by worldly concerns, lingered around her. When her eyes opened and closed, dark-blue light shimmered within them, as though she could see straight into people's hearts.
After successfully absorbing five Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Bones and a full nine God-Bestowed Soul Rings, both her life level and the quality of her Soul Power had undergone a qualitative leap. Naturally, her allure had reached new heights as well.
Yue Shen glanced indifferently at Xiao Wu, who lay trembling on the floor. Her gaze was calm and utterly uninterested.
In her eyes now, a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was no different from the flowers and weeds by the roadside.
She couldn't even summon the slightest desire to seize its Soul Ring or Soul Bone. What her young master had given her was a million times better.
She looked away, glided over to Zhao Linchuan, and bowed slightly. "Yue Shen thanks the young master for his kindness and cultivation."
"Yue Shen, you seem... even prettier now," Zhao Linchuan said with a smile, looking her up and down.
He wasn't saying it just to flatter her. The combined improvement in her strength and bearing had indeed made her shine with astonishing radiance.
A faint blush rose on Yue Shen's fair cheeks, adding to her beauty.
She lowered her head slightly, her voice softening. "It is all thanks to the young master. Without your generosity, Yue Shen would never have reached where she is today."
"All right, we're family. No need for formalities." Zhao Linchuan waved a hand and pointed to Xiao Wu, who was still lying on the floor, too afraid to move. "This girl is called Xiao Wu. She's my personal maid now. Don't scare her in the future."
Yue Shen glanced at Xiao Wu again. This time, even the faint indifference in her eyes was gone. Her gaze simply passed over her without a second thought.
Her perspective had changed completely. A maid who was a transformed Soul Beast?
If the young master wanted to keep her, then he could keep her.
"Yes, Yue Shen understands." She bowed again. "I just emerged from seclusion, so I still need to meditate briefly and stabilize my cultivation."
"If you have any orders for me, young master, just call. Yue Shen will be there in an instant."
"Mm. Go ahead," Zhao Linchuan said with a nod.
Dark-blue moonlight flashed again. Yue Shen's figure melted away as if sinking into water, vanishing from the central hall without a sound. The suffocating spiritual pressure disappeared with her.
Before you continue