Yang Fan watched Xue Qinghe leave, wondering what the Spirit Hall Saintess would think after seeing how ordinary people lived.
Had she sensed the suffering of the common folk? Did she have her own thoughts about the privileges enjoyed by nobles and Soul Masters?
He thought she probably did. Otherwise, at just nine years old, she wouldn't have helped her mother steal the Heaven Dou throne in this way to achieve unification, nor would she have played Xue Qinghe, who loved his people like his own children, so convincingly.
If not for Tang San, she might have kept up the act for her entire life, allowing Heaven Dou to join the Spirit Hall Empire in a relatively peaceful way.
Xue Qinghe's figure had already disappeared. Yang Fan gazed at the Treasure Pavilion, so out of place in the Southern District, and fell silent for a long while.
"Ye Rou, from now on, let's add more rice to the porridge we hand out at the pavilion each week. It isn't easy for anyone trying to make a living in Heaven Dou City. Also, please invite a physician to offer free consultations here once a month. Yang's Treasure Pavilion will cover all the expenses."
Passing the front desk, Yang Fan gave the instructions softly.
Now that he had joined the Crown Prince's service, he might as well do what he could.
Whether it was to win the Crown Prince more support among the people, or to give this impoverished district a little more hope.
"Is it worth it? They're only commoners, without even a hint of Soul Power."
Yang Fan didn't answer Ah Yin. He simply stood by the second-floor window, gazing outside.
The sun set, and Yang's Treasure Pavilion was closing for the day.
"Pavilion Master, the matter you asked His Highness the Crown Prince to investigate has been looked into."
The guard, A Wu, stepped forward and handed Yang Fan a thick envelope, along with the melted Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue.
His Martial Soul was fire, and his Innate Soul Power was seven. On the surface, he was Xue Qinghe's adviser; in truth, he was one of the guards sent by Spirit Hall to assist Qian Renxue. He was currently assigned to protect Yang Fan.
"Thank you. Keep Ye Rou safe on the way home."
Yang Fan thanked him politely, as usual reminding him to escort Ye Rou home.
Both of them had close ties to Qian Renxue, so naturally they lived in the city center. Though Ye Rou was disabled, she was still quite beautiful, and her delicate, pitiful air made her all the more likely to attract prying eyes.
"As you command."
Watching A Wu push Ye Rou away, Yang Fan took his time locking the door before returning to the second floor.
He shifted the third book on the third shelf. With a faint rumble, the bookcase slid to the left, revealing a reasonably well-lit secret room.
After carrying Ah Yin inside, he activated the mechanism from within, and the bookcase slid back into place.
This was his bedroom and cultivation room. He kept some fairly rare metals here, while his true treasures were carried on his person.
"Is it news about San'er?"
Ah Yin asked anxiously.
Yang Fan knew that his word alone had never fully convinced Ah Yin.
After being deceived by Tang Hao, she had grown much more mature, but she still didn't want to believe that someone from another world had taken over her child's body.
Yang Fan took a silver letter opener from his bracelet, neatly slit the envelope, and began reading aloud.
"To His Highness the Crown Prince, Qinghe:
By Your Highness's secret order, this subordinate infiltrated Nuoding City and secretly observed the target, Tang San, for several days. I have detailed the many irregularities concerning this child below for Your Highness's consideration.
First, although this child is not yet eight years old, his intelligence and cunning far surpass those of children his age. At Nuoding Academy, he is smooth and worldly in his dealings with others, and there is a composure and restraint in his words and actions utterly at odds with his age. He has gone to great lengths to win over the work-study students, while using both kindness and authority on the academy's noble students. In a short time, he has already established considerable prestige among the new students.
Second, the methods he has displayed in combat are even more astonishing. This subordinate witnessed with his own eyes that he has mastered several 'Self-Created Soul Skills' that rely entirely on neither his Martial Soul nor anything else. His eyesight is extraordinary, allowing him to observe the finest details from an immense distance; it may be some sort of ocular technique. His hands are harder than iron and steel, able to crush blades barehanded without suffering so much as a scratch. He has also created a killing art called 'Hidden Weapons.' These require no Soul Power to operate; mere mechanisms and technique are enough to unleash astonishing destructive power.
Considering all these signs together, this subordinate dares to speculate that Tang San may have been possessed by an Evil Soul Master. His maturity beyond his years, unheard-of mystical techniques, and Hidden Weapon arts, which form a complete system of their own, are things no ordinary child could possess.
Relevant evidence is enclosed with this letter.
Respectfully submitted, An officer of the Spirit Hall branch in Nuoding City"
Besides the letter, the envelope contained Hidden Weapons collected by Spirit Hall that Tang San had used, strands of his hair, and a series of illustrations that had apparently been drawn by a Soul Master with a pen-type Martial Soul, all presented as evidence.
"Impossible... My little San... how could he..."
The despair in Ah Yin's heart was clearly conveyed to Yang Fan through the Heart of Eros.
He felt as if the letter were a keen blade, carving into Ah Yin's already shattered soul, slice by slice.
The Blue Silver Emperor, planted in her flowerpot like an abandoned, withered skeleton, lay stiffly rooted in the soil.
Unable to weep, she could only summon all her strength until the edges of her leaves began to twitch in a violent, painful spasm.
It was a grief that reached deep into her bones. In her previous life, not only had her husband deceived her, but she had also lost her human body and hundred-thousand-year cultivation through her sacrifice.
Now, even the child she had risked her life to protect had been confirmed as someone who had been possessed years ago.
Ah Yin had thought she'd already seen the truth when Yang Fan told her about it before. But when the truth truly stood before her, she still fell apart.
She knew Xue Qinghe wouldn't help Yang Fan fabricate anything, and the Hidden Weapons in the envelope were not something an ordinary person could imitate.
Most important of all was that black strand of hair.
With the power of the Heart of Eros, she could clearly sense the difference in that soul from another world. Having had frequent contact with Yang Fan, himself a soul from another world, she was the person in this world who understood that difference best.
Yang Fan quietly crouched down, his gaze gentle as he watched the Blue Silver Grass tremble as if it might wither away at any moment.
He slowly reached out a warm palm. He used no Soul Power, merely brushing his fingertip ever so gently across the twitching leaves.
The chill and fragility beneath his fingertips brought a deep ache to his eyes.
"Ah Yin, stop torturing yourself." Yang Fan's voice was low and rich, seeping along the leaf veins into the depths of her soul, which teetered on the brink of collapse.
"I know you're in pain, but whether it's Tang Hao or Tang San, they're ultimately just attachments from your past life. You did everything in your power to protect them. You couldn't have done more, and you owe them nothing."
Yang Fan leaned forward slightly and rested his forehead gently against the main stem of the Blue Silver Grass, letting her feel his steady, resolute heartbeat.
"Listen to me. From now on, let go of that heavy name and the shackles of the past. You're no one's mother, and no one's wife. You're Lan Yin, the one and only, newly reborn Blue Silver Emperor on this continent."
Yang Fan's voice was as gentle as flowing water. "You're no longer a solitary sprig of grass. I'll always stay by your side until you take human form again and become the one and only Lan Yin. You belong to me, Lan Yin—you're not Ah Yin."
As his words fell, a warm, immense vitality burst forth from the Heart of Eros in his sea of consciousness.
It was as if the Blue Silver Grass had finally found a harbor where it could come to rest. Its leaves stopped twitching in pain, and a faint but pure tender green quietly blossomed with that rush of vitality.
"Fan, I only have you."
With the help of the Heart of Eros, Ah Yin—or rather, Lan Yin—seemed to have acquired a body and was about to take human form ahead of time.
Yang Fan summoned his Martial Soul to examine her and discovered that she was somewhat like the Soul Spirits of later generations: a special form of spiritual energy. Soul Spirits attached themselves to Soul Masters, while Lan Yin was attached to his Heart of Eros.