Yan Lingji nodded as if she half understood, her gaze settling on the tiled-roof house as she pondered.
Bibi Dong's eyes, meanwhile, shone as she looked at Zhao Linchuan. His reflection was mirrored in her clear eyes.
She realized that the man before her seemed to possess an invisible charm that drew her in, making her want to approach him, understand him, and keep looking at him like this.
And she herself... seemed to have fallen for him long ago.
Bibi Dong suddenly remembered Yan Lingji's earlier words—"Who sneaks off every morning to wash her underwear?"—and blushed again. She quickly lowered her gaze and stared at her toes.
"Lord Soul Master!"
A moment later, a young voice sounded from behind them, breaking the delicate silence.
The boy ran out of the house, his eyes red-rimmed. He rushed up to Zhao Linchuan and dropped to his knees with a thump.
"Lord Soul Master, are you leaving?"
"What is it?" Zhao Linchuan asked evenly.
"Lord Soul Master, can I work for you?"
The boy raised his head and gazed intently at Zhao Linchuan. As if afraid he would refuse, he blurted out:
"I don't need any pay!"
"You cured my mother's illness. I want to repay you!"
As he spoke, he prostrated himself once more, his forehead pressed to the ground and coated in yellow dirt.
"Lord Soul Master! Please take me on as your servant!"
Zhao Linchuan and the two women exchanged glances and fell silent for a moment, as if weighing something.
The wind outside the courtyard rustled through the branches of an old willow.
In the distance, roosters crowed and dogs barked one after another, lending the silence a touch of life.
After a moment, Zhao Linchuan spoke slowly. "What's your name? What's your Martial Soul? What level is your Innate Soul Power?"
"To answer Lord Soul Master!" The boy knelt on the ground, not daring to raise his head. His voice trembled slightly. "This lowly one is called Gou'er... My Martial Soul is a stone. I-I have no Innate Soul Power."
His voice grew fainter and fainter, until it was barely audible.
He didn't dare look up, as if afraid that once Zhao Linchuan heard he had no Innate Soul Power, he wouldn't take him on as a servant.
"If you're going to follow me, the name Gou'er won't do."
Zhao Linchuan's tone was calm, without a trace of disdain, as if having no Innate Soul Power was utterly insignificant.
"How about this?" Zhao Linchuan looked down at him. "Your Martial Soul is a stone, so from now on, take Shi as your surname."
"I'll give you a name. From now on, you'll be called Shi Ruijin."
He took Bibi Dong's Pope Token from his Soul Tool and held it out to Shi Ruijin.
"Take this and go to the nearest Spirit Hall. Ask them to send you and your mother to Spirit City."
"Tell them it was arranged by Holy Maiden Bibi Dong."
"Th-thank you, Lord Soul Master!"
"Go on." Zhao Linchuan waved a hand. "Don't keep your mother waiting. We have other things to do, so we can't stay any longer."
"Gou'er... No! Ruijin sees the three lords off...!"
Seven days later, in the mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest.
This area lay very close to the core region. Ancient trees towered overhead, blocking out the sky, and sunlight could scarcely penetrate their overlapping canopies.
The air was thick with a damp, decaying stench mixed with the smell of soil and fallen leaves. Now and then, the hoarse, drawn-out cry of an unknown insect drifted from the depths, like an echo from another world.
A Death Spider Emperor, some ten meters long, hung motionless in the middle of a huge web.
The web stretched between several thousand-year-old trees, spanning over thirty meters in diameter. Its strands were as thick as a baby's arm and shimmered with a dark purple sheen in the gloom.
It had just finished feeding. A short distance away, the remains of several Soul Beasts lay scattered across the ground. Their flesh and blood had been sucked dry, leaving only shriveled skins and stark white bones, all the more terrifying in the dim light.
The Death Spider Emperor burped, exhaling a cloud of purplish-black mist. Then it slowly closed its compound eyes, ready to enjoy a peaceful afternoon.
Screee—!
Suddenly, a crisp birdcall tore through the forest's deathly silence!
The sound was clear and piercing, like an invisible sword stabbing through the stillness of the woods and soaring into the sky.
The Death Spider Emperor's eight compound eyes snapped open, blood-red light flashing within them.
Right after that, a rain of white flames poured down from the sky!
They fell like a meteor shower, countless and overwhelming, blanketing the entire area within several hundred zhang of the Death Spider Emperor.
The fire rained onto the ground without setting the plants alight. Instead, it transformed into walls of shimmering white flame that rapidly joined and merged, forming an impenetrable domain of fire.
The Death Spider Emperor sensed that scorching, sacred aura. Its eight long legs curled slightly, and its body tensed.
At the same time, two entirely different domains swept toward it from the north and south.
From the north, a golden ocean spread toward it like a rising tide.
Wherever the golden radiance passed, it coated the plants, earth, and rocks in a thin golden film. It looked gentle, but was as sharp as a sword.
From the south, a surging purplish-golden domain rushed forward like a great wave of the Sea of Death, as if an abyss had opened its jaws to swallow every living thing whole.
All three domains closed around the Death Spider Emperor. With the three layers stacked together, its strength was forcibly suppressed by more than half.
Its eight long legs began to tremble. Its enormous pincers drooped helplessly, and the fine patterns on its carapace faded.
It tried to move, only to find its body bound by countless invisible chains. Its movements grew numb and sluggish.
The fire domain and the golden radiance domain in particular suppressed it far too severely, striking a primal terror deep in its bones.
It felt as though it had encountered its natural nemesis. No matter how it struggled, it couldn't escape that suffocating aura.
It spread its pincers and let out a shriek unlike any human voice. The sharp, grating sound echoed through the woods, startling countless Soul Beasts hiding in the shadows.
Just as it was about to act—
Seven golden streaks and one white streak flashed past it like lightning!
They moved so fast that the Death Spider Emperor's compound eyes couldn't even follow their paths.
It felt only the sharp rush of air from every direction, along with several crisp sounds of its carapace cracking.
The streaks landed, and eight figures spread out around the Death Spider Emperor, forming a perfect encirclement.
Six of the eight figures were clones created by Zhao Linchuan's sixth Soul Skill, "Surprise Phantom."
The other two were Zhao Linchuan and Yan Lingji herself.
Zhao Linchuan held a sword in his right hand. The blade of the Supreme Ease Golden Edge gave off a warm golden glow in the dark forest.
Yan Lingji stood beside him, holding a slender vermilion sword.
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